I do not typically enjoy horror stories.

It’s been that way for a long time. Movies and novels alike; I just haven’t enjoyed horror. I don’t edit it either, because I don’t understand it well enough as a genre to give someone an acceptable return on their money. To edit something properly, you have to understand its context and audience; and to do that, you have to enjoy stories like it. Never go to someone who doesn’t enjoy your kind of story.

Oh, I’ve enjoyed an occasional entry in the genre, most notably Dan Wells’ I Am Not a Serial Killer (which was made into a very good low-budget movie, which can be enjoyed on its own even though the book is better); and I greatly appreciated the explanation of horror that Steve Diamond gave way back at the start of the WriterDojo podcast (in their thirteenth episode, appropriately enough). But overall the genre just didn’t speak to me.

Which means, despite getting to know Steve Diamond (online and for a brief meeting in person), I have had absolutely no interest in reading his debut novel, Residue, because it’s primarily supernatural horror. Now, though, after many years, I finally felt like I owed it to him to at least try the book. So when the book was re-released with an audio edition, I bought it and started listening.

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