MEMENTO MORI INK’S AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT: AJ HUMPHREYS

As his birthday looms on the horizon, Savannah chatted with AJ Humphreys about writing, friendship, and family.

AJ Humphreys is not just an author, but someone I have had the pleasure of developing a friendship with over the last year. We met at a small signing last year the night before Books & Brews, and now the poor guy is stuck with me. Amazing author, dog dad, and passionate anti-fascist, AJ is a must read author that simply doesn’t receive enough love. Get to know him a little more with me!

Q: What do you want readers to know about you as an author?

• I believe in the power of story. Meaning, I have been personally affected on an emotional and visceral level through the mechanics of storytelling since I was a little tyke. I’ve been brought to tears by novels, felt jubilation in the theatre, and yelped with fright in the car as audio stories rolled. Experiences such as these are what I hope to pass along to the next generation through my writing. I have felt several emotions throughout the writing process, but it’s the reader that I hope has the ultimate experience.

Q: What inspired you to start writing? When did you start?

• I think, like many millennials, Harry Potter was a huge piece of the puzzle. Maybe gateway drug is a better turn of phrase. But Game of Thrones as an adult reminded me what storytelling could be. I began looking at things like the news, anime, music, and content creation as story, and became infatuated with the concept of story creation. I learned anyone can create fiction, and in doing so we can all create and master entire realities. As  I started looking beyond the written word, I think Jordan Peele became my ultimate catalyst. Around 2018, I got really into Peele as a creator. His ability to make me laugh went back to the MAD TV days. But his ability to craft Get Out and Us really proved to me, he was so much more than a comedian, and I studied Jordan and read more in the vein of reviews and breakdowns, which motivated me to launch my first project, which I completed writing in 2020 at the start of Covid.

Q: What works do you currently have available (solo and anthologies)?

• Season of The Monster saga (4 books: SPRING, SUMMER, FALL, WINTER)
• TRIP: A Psychological Horror Novel
• Crumpled: Stories From The Horror Archive
• Phobophobia: Face Your Fears

Q: What was your gateway into horror?

• Oofta. Probably Scooby Doo. I know a lot of people would not say that is horror, but it is spooky. And it is the spooky stuff that I am most interested in. The paranormal, the supernatural, good vs evil and all the grey areas that line the fight. And as I think about it, I think I’d point specifically to Zombie Island because this was the first time the gang actually couldn’t solve the mystery without accepting the supernatural. Which is my favorite trope in horror; accepting what is happening is real, despite all the logic, naysayers, and facts to the contrary. So, maybe it’s that childlike ability to believe and imagine the what-ifs of all the other monsters that they stopped that has kept me in this space of dark journeys.

Q: What are your favorite subgenres of horror?

• Grief, Psychological, and Speculative horror. Pair any of those with a creature feature and I’m in. I think our world is a horrific place filled with horrific individuals, so the cherry on top, for me,  is any bit of horror with a strong allegorical foundation. Let me read between the lines as subtle webs of social commentary are woven throughout. 

Q: If you didn’t write horror, what other genre do you think you’d be in?

• Whodunits, 1000%. Agatha Christie-type stories that allow the reader entrance to the mystery of the crime. They itch something in my brain, but also I think I’d like to see more of the genre make its way into cinema where I think it truly thrives.

Q: What are some authors (traditional or indie) that have inspired you or helped you along your journey?

• Dean Koontz, I think, is my biggest influence because I love his ability to blend genres. I don’t really think anyone succeeds at it as often as he does. When it comes to all the indies who have helped me and served as inspiration, I’d highlight Zack Lester, Joshua Hull, and LJ Vitanza. Zack & LJ have been in my corner since our earliest days of writing on Kindle Vella, where Season of The Monster got its start. But Josh is on a different level. He’s beyond a novelist; he’s a screenwriter, and a genuine lover of story. His support early on was instrumental in my self-confidence.

Q: What’s on your TBR? Anything coming out soon that you’re looking forward to?

• Well, to stick with Josh, his next novel, 8114, comes out next month, and I am beyond excited to get my hands on it. S.A. Cosby’s newest novel, King of Ashes is right up there too. I had the privilege of speaking ‌with him in person about that book one-on-one, and WOW, I know it’ll be good. I’m also looking forward to cracking the spine on Andrew Van Wey’s Tides of ‌Darkness before the sequel and third novel in the series releases later this year.

Q: What are you working on now?

• I’ve got a novella that is about to go into its first edits, but I don’t want to reveal too much because the subject matter is awesome. But, think Ready Player One meets liminal horror. The other project I’m working on is a series of shorts for Patreon titled, “Karma’s a Bitch.” Each story surrounds a character named Karma, who is essentially the vigilante/anti-hero love child of Jynx & The Joker with a Slim Shady attitude. The first story, which is written and in its first round of edits, has Karma going up against I.C.E.

Q: Where can readers follow you and find your books?

• AJHumphreyswrites.com is the best place to start. From there, readers can find all my socials, including my patreon: https://patreon.com/AJHumphreys as well as my books for sale direct from me, or from a litany of retailers that include: Amazon, Apple, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop, Google, Kobo, and so many more.

Savannah R. Fischer is the permanently exhausted pigeon in charge of two well-loved chaos gremlins. When not with her family, she can usually be found in her cave, wrapped in an oversized blanket and dreaming of spinach puffs. She wants to show her gremlins that they can do hard things, even when it’s scary, like pulling the wrong lever and ending up in a pit of alligators. No llamas were harmed in the making of her works of horror.