I'm delighted to have J.A. Sullivan as one of our featured guests on Haunted Trails #31DaysOfHaunting!
I'm so glad we could do this, J.A. Please tell our readers a little about yourself!
Thanks so much for having me! I’m J.A. Sullivan, a genderqueer Canadian who uses
they/them pronouns and writes creepy stories. For as long as I can remember I’ve been
obsessed with monsters and things that go bump in the night. This has led to a lifetime of
reading horror books and watching horror movies.
All this fictional horror also sparked a curiosity in me to dig deeper into real life mysteries,
like ghosts. Over the past decade I’ve spent time exploring famous haunted locations, such as the Villisca Axe Murder House, the Edinburgh Vaults, and the Kingston Penitentiary.
Currently, I’m a member of Spirit Hunters Ontario, a group of paranormal investigators who try to capture evidence of unexplained occurrences, help people who are experiencing
hauntings, and educate the curious through our public events.
For the month of October, I’ll also be a tour guide for Spirit Hunters Ontario in our public
ghost walks through a real haunted mansion! Our group has repeatedly investigated the
Cottonwood Mansion Museum and we’ve established some great connections with the gentle spirits who have made this place their forever home. On the ghost walks, we give people a chance to hear about paranormal experiences in the mansion, present some of the evidence we’ve captured, including a video of what looks like a mother and child descending the main stair case, and provide an opportunity to speak to the resident spirits. It’s a lot of fun, plus all the profits from the event ticket sales goes directly to the museum for upkeep of the mansion.
If you’re interested in attending, all the details can be found at
We would love to hear about any recent projects you released or completed.
Compared to a lot of other authors, my writing speed is downright glacial, but earlier this
year I did complete a short story called “Excoriation” which was included in the anthology The Horror Collection: The Lost Edition by KJK Publishing. The original concept came to me a while ago, about a couple on the verge of divorce who visit an isolated cabin to try and resolve their issues. But, as is often the case, I discovered new twists and turns in the writing process, distorting the original idea into something I wasn’t expecting at all.
So, instead, “Excoriation” finds Ava and Curtis already divorced. She’s started a new life
with a new girlfriend, but is compelled to re-enter his life to visit his dying mother one last
time. However, an ex-mother-in-law isn’t the only thing waiting for Ava at the cabin.
Something else is lurking there in the shadows, hungry for fresh skin.
You can find The Horror Collection: The Lost Edition, and all of my other published works,on Amazon:
I quite liked Excoriation and I think our readers will enjoy the atmospheric and tense tone of this story as well as the rest of the collection!
Horror is widely varied with a variety of sub genres that includes supernatural, folk,
psychological, slasher and many more. Which sub-genre are you most drawn to and why?
To no one’s surprise, the supernatural subgenre captures my attention most, both as a writer
and consumer of horror content. I think it both attracts me and scares me the most because
there are no concrete rules in the fantastical world of paranormal stories. After all, how do you defend yourself against something you can’t see? And, if something evil decides to stalk you,can you ever truly escape?
While a lot of supernatural tales, especially haunted house stories, often include common
tropes, the possibilities for the antagonist forms and abilities to terrorize the protagonists are
practically limitless, so you never really feel safe going into these stories. And, the very best
ones give you fears you hadn’t even thought of before.
What's next for you? Are you working on anything new right now?
At the moment I’m in the process of querying a completed novel, and have another novel in
the revision stage. But, since both of those things can move slower than my writing pace, I’m also in the outline phase of a new novel which will be my project for National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo).
While it seems strange for a slow writer to attempt the challenge of writing an entire novel in the month of November, this is my 11th year participating and I love how it brings the writing
community together. So, if you’re tackling NaNoWriMo too, feel free to commiserate with
me over social media.
As for the details of this new novel, I’ve tentatively titled it “Her Final Form” and it involves the horrors of menopause, ageism, and rival packs of werewolves. The idea initially came to me a few years ago, and was written as a short story, but it was lacking something that I couldn’t put my finger on. Finally, that missing piece seemed to click in my mind and I’m excited to see where the writing takes me.
Is there anything you'd like to see more or less of in the Horror genre, and is it something you
try to reflect in your own work?
I would love to see more stories that include LGBTQIA+ characters and explore horror from
a queer perspective. To me, horror is the perfect genre to subvert expectations of gender roles
and expressions of sexuality. Life as a queer person is filled with fears such as challenging
your own beliefs and identity, as well as the fear of being accepted both inside and outside of
the queer community, all of which create terrific foundations for intense horror stories.
Thankfully, these themes and expressions are starting to be told through some incredible
authors like Hailey Piper, Eric LaRocca, and many more. And, yes, absolutely, I strive to
delve into these topics in my own writing, particularly drawing from my own experiences
under both the bisexual and nonbinary umbrellas.
We enjoyed getting to know you and your work and appreciate the chance to share your projects with everyone! Since we're Halloween obsessed here on Haunted Trails there's a few more things we need to know!
Favourite films and books for the spooky season?
It’s nearly impossible to narrow down a list of favourites of books or movies, so instead I’ll
share a few that I would love for more people to experience.
For films: if you enjoy The Wicker Man, check out Moloch; want an emotional haunting,
watch Light from Light; need some laughs with your bloodshed, find WolfCop.
Books: for youthful carnival fun, try Something Wicked this Way Comes by Ray Bradbury;
for a haunted house I would not want to explore, enter Hell House by Richard Matheson; for
a WTF reading experience, slip into Headhunter by Timothy Findley.
Who would be your perfect squad to go trick or treating with?
Without a doubt, I would love to go out with my online Horror Family. A few years ago, we
all met on social media and now chat nearly daily. We’re all horror fans, have had virtual
dance parties, and movie watch alongs. It would be amazing to trick or treat with all of them,
especially Lisel Jones who is also a fantastic author everyone should check out.
Forget costumes, you can swap bodies with your favourite horror character for Halloween.
Who is it?
Hands down, it has to be Dracula! As a kid, I dressed up as Dracula for several Halloweens in
a row, and I remember being deeply offended if someone referred to me as just a vampire – I
was the Count! Plus, I always thought having the ability to shapeshift into a bat or a wolf, or
even mist, would be super cool.
What's the one Halloween candy that you'd rather fight the scariest of monsters than hand it
over?
My favourite candy has always been the Halloween Kisses, which are molasses flavoured
chews that have a witch flying on the orange and yellow wrapper. Most people despise them
and say they taste like sugary wax, so I don’t know that I would have to fight anyone to keep
them, ha!
Give us one song that should be on everyone's Halloween playlist.
Heads Will Roll by Yeah Yeah Yeahs, especially if you’re watching the video.
Finally, what's your ideal way to spend All Hallows' Eve?
In a perfect world, I would start the day by having time to read some short stories, probably
some by Clive Barker, Algernon Blackwood, and Stephen King. In the afternoon, I would
bake some deliciously dark goodies, like Devil’s Food cupcakes. Then I would get dressed up
as either Dracula or a pirate and hand out candy to Trick or Treaters (I love seeing all the kids
in their costumes). And, once the streets were empty and dark, I’d watch horror movies with
my sister, and eat sweets, until the first light of November.
Thank you so much J.A. for being a part of our Halloween celebration on Haunted Trails #31DaysofHaunting! We look forward to checking out your work!
Readers, to stay up to date with J.A.'s writing and paranormal adventures, be sure to check out the links below!
Thank you so much for including me!
Folks can find me at:
Website: writingscaredblog.wordpress.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/j.a_sullivan/
Bluesky: @jasullivan.bsky.social https://bsky.app/profile/jasullivan.bsky.social
X (aka Twitter): @ScaryJASullivan https://x.com/ScaryJASullivant=sR9O9lkA68ecd_W1_z9WtA&s=09
If you want to know more about the paranormal, Spirit Hunters Ontario has a great Facebook
group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1235068120308849,
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/spirithuntersontario/,
or visit our website: https://spirithuntersontario.wordpress.com
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