Jeff Strand, Putting the Splatter into Splatterpunk

Jeff Strand, Putting the Splatter into Splatterpunk By Lionel Ray Green

Bram Stoker Award-winning author Jeff Strand is also a two-time Splatterpunk Awards winner, receiving trophies in 2018 for his short story “The Tipping Point” and again in 2022 for his short story “Next Best Baker.”

Strand is known for effectively blending horror and humor, winning a 2021 Stoker Award in Long Fiction for his mockumentary-style dark comedy “Twentieth Anniversary Screening” after being previously nominated four times from 2006 to 2012. He also wrote a novelization for the 1978 cult film Attack of the Killer Tomatoes.

This year, Strand added four more books to his extensive catalog, including two for young readers. His first 2024 release was the ventriloquist dummy horror novel Creep Out followed by It Watches in the Dark and Nightmare in the Backyard, the first entries in his Eek! series for Sourcebooks. In August, he released his sixth collection of short stories titled Snuggling the Grotesque. His third Eek! series book for young readers, Finders Keepers, is slated for release in April 2025.

Strand agreed to an exclusive interview for Ginger Nuts of Horror, where he discusses what makes a good splatterpunk story, writing for young readers, and what really creeps him out.

Jeff Strand, Putting the Splatter into Splatterpunk

GREEN: You just released your sixth collection of short stories Snuggling the Grotesque, which includes the Splatterpunk Award-winning “Next Best Baker.” With that in mind, what are the key ingredients for a good splatterpunk story?

STRAND: Though I’m not an expert at genre definitions, my personal opinion is that splatterpunk fiction has a “dangerous” element to it. It pushes buttons to make you uncomfortable, whether it’s through social commentary, breaking taboos, or whatever. It’s not simply a bloody, gory tale.

Having said that … is “Next Best Baker” dangerous? It’s a pitch-black comedy about a reality baking show where the competition gets increasingly twisted and depraved. So it’s very possible that I don’t know what makes something splatterpunk. Somebody may have a definitive answer, but it’s not me. 

GREEN: This year, Sourcebooks Young Readers released It Watches in the Dark and Nightmare in the Backyard, the first two books of your Eek! Series. What are the challenges in writing horror for young readers?

STRAND: People unfamiliar with the market will often say “You just can’t have swearing, sex, or gore,” but in the young adult arena, that’s very much NOT the case. You can have all of that stuff, as long as the story is from a teenager’s perspective. 

However, my Eek! series is Middle Grade, and that’s an entirely different beast from YA. No cursing. No sex. Only mild grossness. Of course, there can be scares and action galore (I think Nightmare in the Backyard completely holds up to my adult work in that regard). 

The biggest difference is that when you’re writing for pre-teens, you have to be very aware of the messages you’re sending. Not in a “Remember, kids, only you can prevent forest fires!” life lessons way, but in the smaller details. I described the mayor’s walk as “waddling.” Can’t do that. It could be perceived as making fun of the way he walks. Calling a character “stupid” was out. A character getting river water in his eyes screaming “I’m blind! I’m blind!” was deemed ableist. He still gets water in his eyes, and he still can’t see, but it’s written in a more sensitive manner. When much of your market is middle school libraries, this sort of thing is important.

GREEN: Your 2024 novel Creep Out introduces us to an evil ventriloquist dummy named Virgil. Why do you think ventriloquist dummies remain so creepy and what creeps you out in real life?

STRAND: They look kinda human but they’re not. They move their heads and mouths “by themselves.” If the ventriloquist is any good, you can’t see their mouth move when the dummy talks. It all adds up to something creepy.

Now, am I creeped out by ventriloquist dummies? No. I love them in the same way that I love creepy dolls, but it’s a “That’s so cool!” sort of thing. In real life, it’s spiders. It used to be snakes, but my girlfriend got a pet snake and I’m not creeped out by it. Maybe if she got a tarantula I’d let it crawl over my bare skin. We’ll see …

GREEN: What do you think the creation of the Splatterpunk Awards, which debuted in 2018, has meant to the extreme horror subgenre as a whole and to you personally as an author?

STRAND: To me personally, it meant two more awards on my shelf. To fans of the genre, it shines a spotlight on some notable works published that year. It gives recognition to authors who are not often showered with awards — when horror legend Edward Lee collected his trophy, he said it was the first award he’d ever won in his career!

GREEN: The works of Bram Stoker Awards winners and nominees rarely cross over with the list of Splatterpunk Awards winners and nominees. This year, CJ Leede’s Splatterpunk Award-winning novel Maeve Fly was the only work nominated for both awards. You’ve won a Stoker and two Splatterpunk Awards. What are your thoughts on that lack of crossover?

STRAND: I don’t think it’s “Stoker voters are snobs who would never consider a splatterpunk work for the award!” Splatterpunk has been nominated and won in the past. I think it’s more about the market. Contemporary splatterpunk is mostly self-published or small press — there are authors who are selling like crazy, but it remains a niche market. From a visibility standpoint (and visibility is crucial in the awards voting process) it’s very difficult to compete against a wide-release big-publisher book with a publicity budget.

Yes, I won for a splattery self-published novella. I also have a decent amount of name recognition within the Horror Writers Association. A lot of the splatterpunk authors aren’t really into joining international writers organizations, and so their passionate niche fanbase doesn’t translate into the wider appeal needed to get member votes!

AUTHOR LINK: GLEEFULLY MACABRE

Snuggling the Grotesque by Jeff Strand

We apologize in advance for the fatal blow to your sanity, but Bram Stoker Award-winning author Jeff Strand is back with another short story collection!

Yes, the author of Gleefully Macabre Tales, Dead Clown Barbecue, Everything Has Teeth, Candy Coated Madness, and Freaky Briefs isn’t done with you yet. There will be serial killers. There will be cosmic horror. There will be extremely demented cooking competitions. There will be pink fizzy drinks. There will be Santa Claus, hangings in the Old West, body swaps, some light cannibalism, and monsters galore.

The twenty-six stories contained within these pages include fan favorites like “Torture Porn For Prudes” and “Rope and Limb,” along with the Splatterpunk Award-winning story “Next Best Baker.” There are strange, twisted tales like “Insufficiently Splattery,” “Devil-Powered Death Train of Doom,” and “Mouthy.” There’s even the depraved “Mac & Millie,” which you should definitely not read.

Prepare a cup of hot cocoa and put on your comfiest pajamas, because you’re about to be Snuggling the Grotesque.

Further Reading in The Putting the Splatter into Splatterpunk series

Candace Nola

Bryan Smith

Lucas Mangum