Tim Waggoner has two passions: writing terrifying fiction and helping other writers improve their craft. He teaches English and Creative Writing at Sinclair Community College. The author of over 50 novels and numerous short stories, mostly in the horror and dark fiction genres; his latest novel “Your Turn to Suffer” was released last week.
The novel is about a woman who is told by a mysterious figure in a grocery store that she must atone for her sins or suffer the consequences, but she has no idea what the figure is referring to. “Bit by bit, they start dismantling her life,” Waggoner said.
His previous book, “Writing in the Dark,” has recently been nominated for the Bram Stoker award, which is the premier award for horror. It’s a nonfiction guide to writing horror and dark fantasy and it draws on Waggoner’s own experience as a writer. “It was easy to write,” he said, “It all just poured out of me.” Waggoner’s fiction has won the prestigious Stoker award in the past, but this is the first time he’s been nominated for nonfiction.
He describes “Writing in the Dark” as the culmination of many years of teaching and advising students. The book’s release coincided with a bevy of interviews on podcasts and in print. “I wanted to reach as many people as possible because my mission was to help writers,” he said.
Although “Writing in the Dark” involved a large amount of publicity work, sometimes Waggoner’s book releases come with none at all. He’s not allowed to talk about his upcoming movie novelization until the release date for the film is announced.
“It’s almost like knowing the future in a way,” he said. “I was really excited to do it. It was a bucket list item.”
In addition to novels and nonfiction, Waggoner also writes short stories. Several of his tales will be featured in upcoming anthologies. He said that at this point in his career, he usually already knows where things will be published when he writes them. “Between the novels I do and the short stories, I don’t have a lot of time to write ones that don’t already have a home,” he said.
Despite the staggering volume of novels and short stories he’s written, Waggoner hasn’t lost his passion for the written word. He said the most important factor in deciding whether or not to write something is, “if it sounds like fun.”
He credits his position at Sinclair with affording him the flexibility to write projects he’s excited about.
“Writing does bring in an income, but since it’s not my only source of income, I don’t have to worry as much about how much it pays,” he said, “otherwise I’d have to write very commercial fiction all the time and I’d always have to think about that.”
Waggoner has helped many students pursue their passion for writing. It’s wonderful to hear that teaching at Sinclair has enabled him to do the same.
MacKenzie Tastan
Reporter