Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Marty Young (martyyoung.com) is a Bram Stoker-nominated and Australian Shadows Award-winning writer and editor, and sometimes ghost hunter. He was the founding President of the Australian Horror Writers Association from 2005-2010, and one of the creative minds behind the internationally acclaimed Midnight Echo magazine, for which he also served as Executive Editor until mid-2013.
Marty’s first novel, 809 Jacob Street, was published in 2013 by Black Beacon Books. That novel went on to win the Australian Shadows Award for Best Horror Novel, and was a Notable Indie Book of 2013.
His short horror fiction has been nominated for both the Australian Shadows and Ditmar awards, reprinted in Australian Dark Fantasy and Horror (‘the best of 2008’), and repeatedly included in year’s best recommended reading lists. Marty’s essays on horror literature have been published in journals and university textbooks in Australia and India, and he was also co-editor of the award winning Macabre; A Journey through Australia’s Darkest Fears, a landmark anthology showcasing the best Australian horror stories from 1836 to the present.
When not writing, he spends his time in the deep dark jungles of Papua New Guinea as a palynologist, whatever the heck that is.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The first – and only – book I’ve had published so far is called 809 Jacob Street. It’s a psychological horror that looks at what makes a monster, because not all monsters have glowing red eyes and fangs and scaly skin. Some look like the person next to you.
It was inspired by my childhood; I used to walk past a big old house on my way home from school. The house wasn’t haunted and it wasn’t spooky – until other kids in my neighborhood began telling stories about it being haunted. Then it became spooky, too. And over the years, I often thought about this, and how we’d corrupted a perfectly fine house and turned it into something terrible. I begin wondering what would happen if a house was a receptor for such tales and whispers, becoming whatever each person believed it to be, and that became the house at number 809 Jacob Street.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I write best late at night, once my wife has gone to bed, and the house is silent – not that the silence matters, as I put on headphones and listen to wild, loud, cranky music. The louder, faster, meaner, and heavier, the better. Plus I also pour myself a good glass of scotch, and then get stuck in.
When things are going well, I can disappear into a story for hours. I used to run out of steam and look at the time, only to discover that it was almost 4am!! That was never good, because come 7am, my house was awake, which means so was I…
What authors, or books have influenced you?
The two biggest influences on me are Stephen King, for his sheer storytelling ability and his amazing characters, and Clive Barker, for his majestic, poetic prose and his wild, surreal imagination. There are a lot of other authors I greatly admire and will ensure I always buy their latest books the moment they come out, but King and Barker are my true literary heroes.
What are you working on now?
I’ve just finished a trilogy of books set in the same wonky town of Parkton; these are with an editor at the moment, who is no doubt tearing them apart and scribbling all over the pages with a bright red pen. That trilogy is an action-filled, hellish ride, complete with monsters, military, and global destruction. It’s a little different to the psychological horror of 809 Jacob Street, but boy, was it fun to write!
I’ve also just started another novel called Motel Bladefeeders, although that’s just a working title and I suspect it will change. The book is a loose sequel to 809 Jacob Street, featuring one of the boys from that book, all grown up and twisted, delving into the secrets behind the numerous alleyways of Parkton, and the shadowy people he finds there. He teams up with a Detective along the way, but she has a lot of problems of her own. They make quite a good pair; they’re both kind of crazy.
It is going to be a dark and disturbing ride, that’s for sure.
What inspired it? Well, when I wrote 809 Jacob Street, I knew I was touching on a lot of mysterious happenings; things that filled in the background, and I knew I needed to delve deeper into these places. Fortunately, I had the perfect character in mind to roll up his sleeves and get stuck in.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write lots, and write often, as often as you can. Read lots, too. Read all of the time, in all different genres. Devour books. Be pedantic with your writing, make it shine. Read guidelines and follow them when submitting. And always be polite.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Be the writer you want to be.
What are you reading now?
I am reading Island of Nightmares by Gertrude Barrows Bennett (writing as Francis Stevens). A bit of pulp pleasure!
What’s next for you as a writer?
Hopefully I can get my trilogy published in the near-future, either through a publisher or self-published. Plus I want to complete the sequel to 809 Jacob Street, and there’s also a novella burning a hole in my brain, so I’d best write that one out as soon as possible.
I am also editing an anthology called Blurring the Line, which will be published by Cohesion Press next year. I have some great authors lined up to take part in that, so I’m looking forward to it.
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
Clive Barker’s Books of Blood, Stephen King’s The Stand, and The SAS Survival Handbook: The ultimate guide to surviving anywhere by John ‘Lofty’ Wiseman
Author Websites and Profiles
Marty Young Website
Marty Young Amazon Profile
Marty Young’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.