A Scary Interview with L.P. Ring

The Black Beacon Book of Horror 2 will be released on the 1st of October, but in the meantime, the Kindle version is available for pre-order at just $1.99 instead of $3.99 and you can add the anthology to your Goodreads TBR list. To get you pumpkin-spiced up for an unforgettable Halloween 2026, we’re interviewing the contributing authors. Step into the corridors of their dark minds, if you dare!

Hi L.P.

That classic question to get started. Do you have to be a horrible person to write horrible things?

I always think of actors saying they love playing villains when I hear this question. A lot of people like playing around in the sandbox when it comes to ‘horrible things’ so isn’t it nice to be a little psychopathic and put some ‘people’ through the wringer.

Which horror writers do you admire—old or new, famous or hidden gems?

My favorite horror novels are Ghost Story by Peter Straub and The Terror by Dan Simmons. I’m a big Stephen King fan too, though far from a completist, and I actually find a lot of his stuff from this century – Duma Key, Revival, The Outsider – easily as enjoyable as his earlier, more consistently admired works. More recently, I’ve been reading a lot of Laird Barron, Thomas Ligotti, and John Langan. Langan’s book The Fisherman is being pitched as a potential film from David Lowery (who directed The Green King) and that combination is extremely exciting.

Can you describe your perfect horror-themed night in, out, or away?

A couple of beers or a few glasses of red, a nice casserole or stew, the lights out, and a rewatch of a classic horror film – The Shining, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Jaws, Invasion of the Body Snatchers…

Hitting fifty this year so most of my horrors are fairly cosy.

Are there any urban legends, folktales, or real-life tales of horror that happened (just maybe) where you live or grew up?

I live in Japan now where there are a lot of abandoned houses and spooky stories. Thinking of back home, fairy forts are a bit of a mainstay of Irish culture. I also have a childhood memory of my mom driving us past a house which she referred to as ‘haunted’, so I guess an interest in all things spooky caught me early.

Do you have any writing rituals?

I love sitting at a window where I can look outside – the break from the (occasionally) blank page can be a great reviver. Also to have some music on in the background. For some reason, harpsichord pieces caught my fancy a few years ago and I’m a big fan of having horror movie soundtracks on as well. And I often wear headphones so as not to annoy my wife.

Where can we find you online?

I’m really not online much anymore though I do check BlueSky occasionally: lpring.bsky.social

A Glimpse of the Ghostly: L.P. Ring

The Black Beacon Book of Ghosts will send shivers up your spine this Halloween. The Kindle version is already available for pre-order at just $1.99 instead of $3.99 and you can add the anthology to your Goodreads "want to read" list today. The anthology will be officially released on the 11th of October 2024. To get you in the mood and give you a little insight into the workings of their minds, our contributing authors are sharing their own haunting experiences with you. Read on, if you're not fainthearted!

A Haunted Place - L.P. Ring

Back in the days before schoolwork, class schedules, or Super Mario, I was sat in the car with Mum when she pointed out her window and said “that house is haunted”. In my memory, I asked for details. In my memory, I looked at that unpainted two-storey with its dark windows, overgrown garden, and forbidding silence, and gawped at what beasts or ghouls chuckled or howled within. Truthfully, I probably did neither of those. The moment almost certainly passed in a grey blur. We continued onto the supermarket or wherever, and the kid strapped into the passenger seat said - or thought - not much of anything about that place. Much of what has grown from those few, whizzed-by seconds comes from movies, games, and books. That gloomy, ignored residence that still exists in my memory, down a stony, overgrown path behind a padlocked gate stretches upwards. It grumbles and carps, demands sustenance, and as part of our co-dependency, I toss it scraps, morsels, or maybe even the odd meal. Being honest, to echo my favorite author Stephen King, I find feeding that house fun. And if you’re reading this, I hope you do too.

A Post-Apocalyptic Interview with L.P. Ring

Our next anthology, Tales from the Ruins, is going to be a cataclysmic one! It will be released on the 25th of February but the Kindle version is available for pre-order today at just 99c instead of $3.99. To celebrate the imminent publication of the first Black Beacon Books anthology exclusively dedicated to post-apocalyptic fiction, we’re interviewing the contributing authors. Behold the maniacal workings of their troubled minds!

Hi Liam,

Let’s make the first question a lighthearted one...hmm...okay, got it! Is your story simply an entertaining piece of fiction or are you giving us a peek at the terrifying fate tomorrow will unleash upon us?

It doesn’t seem like the rich and powerful have our best interests at heart, does it ? I’m getting a very ‘Russia, 1917’ vibe about the world right now.

What is it that makes post-apocalyptic fiction so appealing? Would the world be better off if more people read this genre?

Conflict is an almost essential part of narrative, especially in genre fiction. The post-apocalyptic element allows readers to see conflict in a setting separate from day-to-day life – same as with a lot of horror. That offers us the thrills but also the escapism.

Do you have a favourite post-apocalyptic author?

The classics by John Wyndham (The Chrysalids) and J.G. Ballard (Concrete Island) offer interesting takes on the stripping away of buttoned-down, English sensibilities after everything goes to hell. I reference Ray Bradbury in my story as well. More recently, Emily St. John Mandel (Station Eleven) and Chuck Wendig (The Wanderers) have been great reads. Utopias don’t seem as much fun, do they?

Some people like to listen to music while reading. Which song can you imagine providing the soundtrack to your story?

Mogwai with their builds from quiet to loud would be wonderful. Otherwise, Godspeed You! Black Emperor.

If you woke up in your story tomorrow, what would you do? 

I’m afraid I’m more a Greg than an Elizabeth. I’ll leave it there.

There are no firearms or ammunition. You have to choose an everyday object from the home or garden as your weapon of choice—what’s in your hands?

That’s a cool question because firearms remove the need and threat of proximity. If I was at The Deep End, I might go with a hammer. Or I’d pick up a bible, start ranting, and see if I could just become part of the furniture. That gives me a story idea…

Time to get more personal. Tell us three interesting facts about yourself.

Eeek! ‘Interesting facts’ are so subjective.
i. I’ve lived overseas for almost half my life.
ii. I love horror movies but generally hate true crime (unless David Fincher is
somehow involved).
iii. I once went to seven countries on three different continents in six weeks. I
don’t recommend it.

What do you aim to give your readers?

I hope to put my protagonists in situations where they have an inner as well as outer journey. I also enjoy exploring power dynamics a lot. I also hope to provide a fair amount of mayhem.

What are you working on now? 

I have a post-apocalyptic novel that I’m sending out at the moment. And a zombie novel, an Agatha Christie/Lovecraft mash-up, lots of stuff…

Where can we find you online?

I’m on twitter for now at @l_p_ring and on mastodon at @lpring@writing.exchange .

Thanks for playing along. Good luck in the wastelands!

Cheers! I hope they still serve good beer.