Heather’s Bookshelf: Author Interview with Alyson Hasson

What inspired you to write “Requiem of the Unclaimed”?

Hasson: Requiem was originally a request by a publisher for me to write, and once I heard pirate horror I knew I had to make little me proud. I was obsessed with pirates of the Caribbean when I was little, like wearing a pirate costume to school obsessed. A lot of my story draws from that obsession mixed with a need to see more strong female MCs. 

How did you come up with the names of your main characters?

Hasson: I use baby name list websites for naming my characters. Sometimes I'll look for ones that show popular names from the time my story is set or I'll go by region. For Requiem I did a bit of both. Sybil and Walter were both pulled from sites naming the most common baby names of England back as far as I could go and Captain Wynn is actually a real person. He was a pirate that not much is truly known about which worked perfectly for my story because I could get close to real life without running into major stories that people are familiar with.

Is there anything that you want readers to know about you, your writing process or your book?

Hasson: This book was a labour of love. I wanted it to be gothic, creepy and spooky but also fun and confusing. Some of my favourite stories are the ones where you don't quite know why it's happening but you know it's evil and represents a much bigger evil in the world. 

When you encounter writer’s block, what do you do to break yourself out of it?

Hasson: Sometimes I just lean into it. For me it is usually an indication of burn out, so I just focus on watching movies I enjoy or reading fun books. Then, once I'm ready to get back to writing I usually start jotting down notes of where I want the story to progress. This lets me get back into it in a less pressured environment. I find that once I sit down on my computer there is a lot more pressure to write the sentences well the first time. Bringing some messy ideas to the table first helps me break out of that. 

What’s the weirdest or most unexpected place you’ve gotten a story idea from?

Hasson: Probably an excel spreadsheet at work. I am an analyst and most of my days are filled with databases, excel and many many numbers. One of my short stories that will be published later this year was inspired by a trip down the analytical rabbit hole. The story itself is about a woman with agoraphobia who becomes obsessed with a nature painting, but the inspiration was born from the obsession with finding the problem with a dataset and then fixation on needing to get away from the computer and to touch some grass. 

What is your favorite genre, book, and/or author?

Hasson: Scott Smith and Adam Nevill are by far my favourite authors. I read a lot of horror, but I have a soft spot for romance and romantasy as well. 

What are you working on next?

Hasson: I have a few projects on the go currently! I'm publishing 4 more books this year, one is already announced and the others still getting lots of behind the scenes attention. 

I have Caught in the In-Between (Ouija Horror story) coming out July 7th and then the next book won't be released until October. The title will be announced later on with my cover reveal. 

Learn More About the Author and Requiem of the Unclaimed here:

Instagram.com/alyson_hasson_writes

Facebook.com/alysonhasson

Alysonhasson.substack.com

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