Author | Critic
“Themes of adolescence, rage, toxic masculinity and addiction are portrayed in a terrifying but comprehensible way, and the book manages to succeed in pulling at empathetic heartstrings while simultaneously delivering a very dark, surreal story that will occupy minds for ages.”
Mike Thorn joins Vince Midgard on The Dark Mind Podcast to discuss his recent novel Shelter for the Damned.
They discuss the themes and inspirations behind the book, including the exploration of the Jungian shadow and the ambiguity of supernatural versus psychological elements. They also touch on Thorn’s previous work, Darkest Hours, his podcast Craftwork, and his experiences as a writer. The conversation concludes with Thorn sharing his love for reading, the importance of maintaining a healthy lifestyle, and his upcoming projects.
This course will engage with horror literature’s legacies and unique capacities for catharsis, allegory, and personal expression. We will discuss what scares us and investigate the psychology of fear within the context of fiction, digging into the nuts-and-bolts processes of generating fear in the reader. We will explore the wide range of horror’s subgenres and aesthetic possibilities, looking at tropes, traditions, and metaphors as opportunities for creative openings rather than restrictions. We will discuss the importance of atmosphere, point-of-view, and convincing characterization. Drawing on insights and fiction by some of horror literature’s most important and exciting figures, we will dive into the genre with a focus on craft and technique.
Date: Tuesdays, Oct. 29 – Dec. 3
Time: 7-9 p.m.
Location: Community Room (Charlotte Street Arts Centre)
Length: Six week
Cost: $15
Max. class size: 12
“Over the past few years I’ve had the privilege of enjoying an ongoing dialogue with one of my major creative influences, award-winning writer Kathe Koja. Two years ago, she and I discussed genre and process during the virtual launch for my second short story collection, Peel Back and See. Last year, we discussed our work’s relationship with cinema for In Review Online. While brainstorming about topics for future conversations, we decided to pursue the concept of numinosity: its permutations in literature in film and the role it plays in our own creative projects. This article is the result of our email thread on the subject.”
Shepherd asked 949 authors and super readers to select their three favorite reads of 2023. Read Mike Thorn’s thoughts on his choices here.
“Sheds, nightmares, violence, family, friendship, addictions, sacrifices… A Shelter for the Damned, by Mike Thorn is a book with a frenetic pace that keeps you reading non-stop. That shows us the hells that the most perfect families can hide. That even hides a first love story between its pages. Which brings us three very different teenagers who will be involved in a nightmare from which it seems impossible to escape and which breaks our hearts. If you are looking for a horror reading that shocks you with its rawness, you have to give it a try.”
“The inaugural episode of THE BRAIN DRAIN—the ghoulish DBBT aftershow—finds a guest in the tub! Author and critic Mike Thorn joins us to discuss horror, the creative process, the new audiobook edition of his first novel “Shelter for the Damned,” and his tub pick—SICK (2022), John Hyams’ taut and clever COVID-set slasher. We dissect screenwriter Kevin Williamson’s social diagnosis, Hyams’ dynamic camera, and the engagement of pandemic-as-horror.”
Mike Thorn 