On November 26 & 27 we’re hosting our second-ever AugurCon, our virtual celebration of speculative literatures! We’re joined by over 45 amazing guests, including authors, poets, editors, and publishing professionals, to explore the intersections of the world we know—and the ones we dare to imagine.

We connected with Maria Haskins, writer of the short story collection SIX DREAMS ABOUT THE TRAIN, who is a panel moderator at this year’s AugurCon.

Get your ticket to attend her panel:

Horrific Imaginations: Mastering Fear & Tension
Sunday, November 27 at 4:30–5:30 PM EST / 1:30–2:30 PM PST

To see the full weekend program schedule, visit our website.

It’s clear from your blog that you read TONS of spec fic! What are you reading right now that’s feeling fresh and pushing the boundaries of what’s been done before? How is it sparking your imagination for what’s possible for the future of the genre?

I’m reading so much amazing speculative fiction every month that does new and interesting things. Cadwell Turnbull’s novel “No Gods, No Monsters” for example. It’s a fabulous book about monsters living in the real world with us and about other dimensions, and Turnbull does things in the telling of that story that just blew my mind as I was reading. Similar to how The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin blew my mind when I first read it.

In short fiction, there is an embarrassment of riches. One of my favourite zines to read right now is The Deadlands. They publish fiction that has the kind of beautiful and strange vibe I really like. And there’s a zine called Tasavvur publishing imaginative short stories from South Asia that has been putting out some glorious fantasy and science fiction. Fiyah is another zine that is always publishing amazing pieces. Their recent food-themed issue was excellent.

As a lover of flash fiction, I think Nightmare and Lightspeed have been publishing some outstanding flash over the last year. There’s so much great short fiction out there and it’s hard to pick among all the zines and all the writers doing excellent work. I do think the EA podcasts (Cast of Wonders, Podcastle, PseudoPod, Escape Pod, and now Cats Cast) are doing great work. They publish fantastic original fiction, but also reprints of pieces readers might have missed from anthologies and smaller zines.

Scenario time: let’s say you’re talking to a writer who’s just starting out, just penned their first short story. What’s one thing you would tell them that you wish someone had told you—the good, the ugly, the hopeful?

I would say, first of all, if you’re looking to submit stories to zines, be ready for rejection, but don’t be crushed by rejection. You have to realize that the field of speculative fiction is full of really good writers. Even if you write something excellent, you are up against a lot of other excellent writers. I’d also tell them to read the magazines they want to submit stories to, and in general, to read what is being published right now. Don’t just read the “big names” in a genre. Read beyond that. When I got back into writing in 2015, after many years away, I read an essay by editor and writing coach Rebecca Faith Heyman (https://www.janefriedman.com/sabotaging-your-chance-with-agent/). In it, there was this quote: “Familiarizing yourself with current and canon successes in your genre will help you think critically about your own writing. Who are you similar to stylistically? How are you bringing a fresh idea to a popular theme? – – – Bow to the masters, acknowledge your peers, and blaze a trail for yourself armed with the knowledge of what has come before.”

That last line has really stuck with me. Read your peers. Read the other new writers. In essence: read a lot!

When you think about your career so far, what’s one of the moments that keeps you going? A career highlight, a meaningful moment, an inspiring mentor, or something you’re just incredibly proud of? How has that impacted your journey?

Having one of my stories, “Cleaver, Meat, and Block” (originally published in Black Static) picked by Ellen Datlow for her Best Horror of the Year anthology was definitely a big highlight and that is something that sustains me to this day. Beyond that, I will always owe a huge debt to the ever-amazing Angela Slatter, a writer I look up to in so many ways, for giving me a much-needed hand when I was going through some tough times. She helped me put together my short story collection, “Six Dreams About the Train” at a time when I almost didn’t think I could go on writing. Having her help me, and tell me I could do it, meant everything and still does.

You’re hosting our horror panel on Mastering Fear and Tension! (And we can’t wait!) As someone who writes in darker tones of spec fic, what is the key to writing compelling horror?

One key ingredient for me when I write horror is to start in a place—a setting or with a character or something like that — that is very much rooted in the real world, and then twist the story as it’s being told toward horror. I also love reading horror like this, the stories that start off seemingly in an ordinary life or place, and then everything shifts into strangeness and darkness as the story progresses.

Hear more from Maria: Get your ticket to AugurCon 2022

Maria Haskins is a Swedish-Canadian writer and reviewer of speculative fiction. Her stories have appeared in The Best Horror of the Year, Black Static, Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Shimmer, PseudoPod, and elsewhere. Her short story collection SIX DREAMS ABOUT THE TRAIN was published in 2021.

Join Maria at AugurCon! Our panel on Horrific Imaginations: Mastering Fear & Tension takes place on Sunday, November 27. Get your ticket to AugurCon 2022 now!