In conversation with KT Wagner
With all the attention on novel-length work, it’s sometimes easy to forget the power of short stories, especially in the fast-paced world we live in today. Canadian author Alice Munro made a name for herself as short story writer, and KT Wagner is following in her footsteps. I first meet KT in workshop and have read many of her stories as they have evolved from rough drafts to polished gems. Wagner has more than 50 short stories published with more on the horizon. Wagner writes everything from Gothic horror to climate fiction, and I love the diversity and mastery she shows in the many genres she works in. As someone who enjoys the short form, I’m always excited to see what she’ll do next! –Carina Bissett
About KT Wagner

Surrounded by gnomes, gargoyles, and poisonous plants, KT Wagner writes Gothic and sci-fi horror and op/ed pieces in the garden of her British Columbia home. She helps create literary community including write-ins, an annual ghost story writing retreat and co-organizing Golden Ears Writers. KT graduated from Simon Fraser University’s Writers Studio in 2015 (Southbank 2013). She’s a member of the Horror Writers Association (HWA) Greater Vancouver chapter, SF Canada (National Association for Speculative Fiction), CODEX Writers, and chairs the board of the Federation of British Columbia Writers (FBCW). A number of her short stories are published and podcast in magazines and anthologies. KT can be found online at https://www.facebook.com/CitizenKatherineWagner and https://bsky.app/profile/ktwagner.bsky.social.
Interview with KT Wagner
BISSETT: What attracts you to horror as a genre?
WAGNER: There’s a lot of horror at the surface of the daily news streams. I like to peel back the outer layers, so to speak, and examine the deeper human motivations at play. The human condition is complicated, and I believe reading and writing horror helps us understand—and maybe even mitigate—the darker aspects of our nature.
Given cultural expectations that women are the kinder, gentler, more nurturing gender, and that we are inherently victims, I particularly enjoy subverting crone, mother, and maiden stereotypes.
BISSETT: Who or what terrifies you?
WAGNER: Well, that would be a long list. I’m not sure it’s possible to pay close attention to today’s world and not be terrified, especially for loved ones, and the younger generations. Beyond those ubiquitous, external, existential threats, I’m deeply terrified of losing touch with reality. Also, the possibility of being afflicted by “locked-in syndrome” has long horrified me.
BISSETT: What changes have you seen in the representation of women in the horror genre?
WAGNER: There are many challenges writing a genre that is defined by the emotion it evokes. Emotion is entirely subjective, and horror is a genre that has long been defined primarily by male writers. Finding space for the perspectives of other genders has been a challenge. However, I feel readers today are open to a broader definition of what constitutes horror, and women horror writers are breaking a lot of new ground. It’s a work in progress, but I’m hopeful for the future.

BISSETT: Have you faced any particular challenges writing horror and speculative fiction in Canada?
WAGNER: Traditionally, Canadian literary culture has not been particularly welcoming of genre or so-called commercial fiction, particularly speculative writing. CanLit tends to be dark and if not horror, then, horror adjacent.
Margaret Atwood broke early speculative ground, and other talented Canadian writers like Eden Robinson, Premee Mohamed, Kelly Robson, Silvia Moreno-Garcia, Gemma Files, Ai Jiang and more, have forged a burgeoning appreciation of horror and speculative fiction.
I believe all resonant fiction has something to say about the here and now, even when it’s set in secondary, futuristic, or historical worlds. I write from a Canadian perspective, drawing on the landscape and the communities I’ve been a part of. Canadian political culture and issues differ—at times distinctly—from those in the US. However, because most speculative fiction markets and readers are US based, I try to consider how the lens of American politics and culture might interpret my narrative.
BISSETT: What are you currently working on?
WAGNER: I love writing flash and short stories. As usual, I have about a dozen in active development and close to three times that many circulating to markets. This last year, I’ve been exploring speculative and dark poetry. I’m also working on a novella, possibly to anchor my first short fiction collection.
Recent and upcoming publications:
A Bloodless Mistletoe Graveyard, Haven Speculative, June 2023. https://www.havenspec.com/a-bloodless-mistletoe-graveyard
The Mall Santas Ride At Moonrise, Uncanny & Unearthly Tales, Grendel Press, Oct 2023.
Frozen Charlotte, On Spec #127, Spring 2024. https://onspec.ca/current-issue/
Plague Hag (poem), Space and Time #146, Spring 2024, forthcoming.
Carina Bissett

Carina Bissett is a writer and poet working primarily in the fields of dark fiction and fabulism. She is the author of numerous shorts stories, which are featured in her debut collection Dead Girl, Driving and Other Devastations (Trepidatio Publishing, 2024), and she is the co-editor of the award-winning anthology Shadow Atlas: Dark Landscapes of the Americas. She is currently a Bram Stoker finalist for her essay “Words Wielded by Women” (Apex Magazine, 2023), a comprehensive retrospective of women in horror. Links to her work can be found at http://carinabissett.com.
Dead Girl, Driving and Other Devastations

In this powerful debut, Carina Bissett explores the liminal spaces between the magical and the mundane, horror and humor, fairy tales and fabulism. A young woman discovers apotheosis at the intersection of her cross-cultural heritage. A simulacrum rebels against her coding to create a new universe of her own making. A poison assassin tears the world apart in the relentless pursuit of her true love—the one person alive who can destroy her. Dead Girl, Driving and Other Devastations erases expectations, forging new trails on the map of contemporary fiction. Includes an introduction by Julie C. Day, author of Uncommon Miracles and The Rampant.
Praise for Dead Girl, Driving and Other Devastations
“Carina Bissett is one of my favorite speculative authors writing today—magic and myth, horror and revenge, wonder and hope. Her stories are original, lyrical, and haunting—Shirley Jackson mixed with Ursula LeGuin and a dash of Neil Gaiman. An amazing collection of stories.—Richard Thomas, author of Spontaneous Human Combustion, a Bram Stoker Award finalist
“Carina Bissett’s collection is a thing of wonder and beauty. It is a true representation of Carina herself: whimsical, visceral, lovely, and fierce. You can hear women’s voices screaming while roses fall from their lips. Dead Girl, Driving and Other Devastations is a triumph.”—Mercedes M. Yardley, Bram Stoker Award-winning author of Little Dead Red
“From fairy tale revisions to fresh takes on monstrous transitions and the absolute horrors of being female, no one knows how to write a story like Carina Bissett. Fierce yet fragile.”—Lindy Ryan, author of Bless Your Heart
“In a debut collection weaving folklore and fairy tale and told in magical, lyrical, irresistible prose, Carina Bissett inveigles readers with the breadth of her skill. A feat of woven wonder, with spells sketched in the air and strands stretched taut, Dead Girl Driving and Other Devastations is an enchanting tapestry of silken stories, the collection establishing Bissett as a world-class author of fabulism, fantasy, and horror. A must-read for lovers of Neil Gaiman, Angela Slatter, and Carmen Maria Machado.” —Lee Murray, five-time Bram Stoker Awards-winning author of Grotesque: Monster Stories
“Ravishing flights of fantasy.”—Priya Sharma, Shirley Jackson award-winning author of All the Fabulous Beasts and Ormeshadow
“Dark, often violent, Dead Girl, Driving & Other Devastations doesn’t lie to you about the nature of its stories. Between the title page and the Afterword lies a harrowing alliance of nightmare and fairytale. The pages are full of strange birds, resurrections, second chances, monstrous women, enchantments, and inventions. These stories explore a dark and permissive imagination, unafraid to disturb the monster at the back of the cave. It is a collection for the brave and forlorn, for those seeking escape, vengeance, transformation, or grace. There is wonder here, and freedom from shackles—for those fierce enough to wrench loose of them.”—C. S. E. Cooney, World Fantasy Award-winning author of Saint Death’s Daughter
“Carina’s short stories are absolutely luminous and deeply unsettling. Savour this collection like a fine blood-red wine. It’s absolute perfection and will linger long after the pages are closed.”—KT Wagner
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