Jess Hagemann’s recent work has appeared in Last Girls Club, Ghoulish Tales, and Sky Island Journal. Her debut novel Headcheese (2018) won an IPPY Award in Horror. She holds an MFA from the Jack Kerouac School, and is the proud recipient of writing residencies at McNeese State and Dear Butte. Austin, Texas is home. Her new novel, Mother-Eating, is out TODAY from Ghoulish Books. Get a signed copy HERE.
Several years ago, Mindy Rose stormed Ghoulish headquarters with a loaded pistol and a single demand: let me interview your authors or I’m going to blow your miserable goddamn brains out. The gesture was so passionate that we were left with little choice but to hire her on the spot as our publicity ghoul—and, later, as an assistant editor. And, every once in a while, she does interview our authors in a series we call GHOULGAB. So far, to the best of our knowledge, she has not blown anybody’s brains out, either. Find her online at @garbagesauce.
Mindy: what got you interested in Marie Antoinette and why did you decide to reimagine her story?
Jess Hagemann: Sofia Coppola, first. Her film take on the French queen is sumptuous and delightful and dark in all the best ways. It wasn’t until I found out I “share a common ancestor” with Marie Antoinette, though (thanks 23&Me–a gift from my sweet mother-in-law) that I really dove into learning more about her story, which IMHO is, despite her royal upbringing, really a story of oppression, repression, and mother trauma. I set my version in present-day because I wanted her story to feel alive.
Mindy: so technically you’re basically royalty
Jess Hagemann: Somewhere way back there maybe?!
Mindy: that’s pretty cool
Mindy: you could use that to your advantage probably
Jess Hagemann: If some Austrian noble wants to pay off my remaining grad school loans, I would not say no.
Mindy: hell yeah
Mindy: is there anything you’d like people to know before reading the book?
Jess Hagemann: Mother-Eating won’t be for everyone. It’s called a “documentary” on the cover because it’s written as transcripts of interviews with former cult members. So readers shouldn’t go in expecting traditional exposition or world-building, or even chapters. No narrator is reliable. And the violence made at least one early reviewer throw her Kindle. You’ve been warned.
Mindy: were there any books or media that you found inspiring during the writing process?
Jess Hagemann: Chuck P’s Rant and George Saunders’s Lincoln in the Bardo are great examples of similarly structured oral histories. French film Martyrs (2008) is, like Mother-Eating, about a religious group that uses torture to bring people closer to God. Poppy Z. Brite’s Exquisite Corpse and Dennis Cooper’s The Sluts showed me it’s okay to push the occasional boundary.
Mindy: do you have any writing habits that are weird or bizarre or are you pretty chill about it?
Jess Hagemann: I write everything longhand the first time. Then I transcribe it. Then I throw it out and write the thing again, trusting I’ll remember the most important bits. Writing is telling yourself the story first.
Mindy: you rewrite the entire story from memory?
Jess Hagemann: I use v2 (the transcribed version) to build a detailed outline, then rewrite it based on that. I can’t take credit for the method. It’s Matt Bell’s, from Refuse to Be Done.
Mindy: that is wild
Mindy: what made you want to work with ghoulish and what’s that process been like for you?
Jess Hagemann: I met Max when we both had books come out from another publisher. But I still didn’t expect them to pick my story from the Ghoulish slush pile, and I was thrilled when they did.
Jess Hagemann: Max gives great notes. Hire them for freelance editing!
Mindy: are there any other ghoulish titles you’ve particularly enjoyed?
Jess Hagemann: Pocketknife Kitty by Shannon Riley is so much fun, and Bury Your Gays is awesome if you like bleak. The Ghoulish Tales magazine offers something for everyone.
Jess Hagemann: I also have a huge Ghoulish TBR, including Warren Wagner’s The Only Safe Place Left Is the Dark.
Mindy: pocketknife kitty is a fav of mine as well!
Mindy: what advice would you give to aspiring horror writers?
Jess Hagemann: Read constantly so you know what’s out there (and therefore how you can add to or subvert it!), and listen to podcasts with horror authors/filmmakers discussing their wins and challenges because it’s inspiring and will make you feel less alone during the otherwise solitary pursuit of writing. For the same reason, attend horror fests when you can to meet other writers. Your network matters in publishing as much as it does in your day job.
Mindy: beautiful
Mindy: last question: how do you feel about daniel kraus saying you “might be the best horror writer in america” ?
Jess Hagemann: It’s exceedingly generous and blows my mind because I admire what *he* does so much. Have you read Angel Down? The dang thing is written as one single long gorgeous sentence!
Mindy: it’s always really beautiful to me when writers are vocal about admiring and appreciating each other’s work
Jess Hagemann: We have to champion each other. This thing we’re doing is hard.
Mindy: agreed.
Mindy: this was lovely, jess, thank you so much for letting me gab you!
Jess Hagemann: Thank you, Mindy!
Get a signed copy of Mother-Eating HERE.
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