Show Me Your Shelves | Sadie Hartmann
Interviews
Show Me Your Shelves is a new(ish) column by Gabino Iglesias. In this edition he talks with reader, writer, and lover of all things horror Sadie Hartmann.
I’ve always been passionate about books. When I go to someone’s house, I’m the guy who walks straight to the shelves or the stacks of books on your table or floor. I also love talking about books with everyone I meet. About seven years ago, I decided to start a column titled Show Me Your Shelves. It was a way to get people who are very far away or whose houses I won’t be visiting any time soon to send me photos of their shelves and to talk books with me. The column was a success. I only talked to writers, and they got creative with their photos. Then, life interrupted and I stopped doing the column. It’s something that tends to happen when you have three jobs and try to write novels when not working. In any case the idea of Show Me Your Shelves was always bouncing around in my head, and a couple years ago I decided to bring it back when I started writing for CLASH Media. Again, the column was great and I got to see some amazing book collections. Then CLASH’s blog died and SMYS died with it.
Fast-forward to the start of the pandemic. My France book tour was cancelled. The Virginia Festival of the Book was cancelled. Other events and readings were cancelled. This happened to me and to every other writer out there. Missed conferences. Lost opportunities to talk books. Cancelled book launches, events, and readings. How could I help? It was obviously time to bring SMYS back. However, this time I wanted it to be bigger and better than ever because Southwest Review has been good to me and to every writer I admire, so I decided to include reviews, bloggers, agents, and bookstagrammers as well as authors. To show you all how amazing this can be even when talking to people who aren’t primarily known as authors, we’re kicking things off with Sadie Hartmann, known to many as Mother Horror. She is a force of nature, an avid reader, a tireless supporter of indie writers and small presses, a book reviewer for various venues, a fellow LitReactor columnist, co-owner of Night Worms, and one of those bookstagrammers that keep putting pretty photos of great books in front of thousands of eager readers daily. Let’s get to know her and take a look at her shelves . . . and cart.
Gabino Iglesias: Hello, Sadie. Tell me, who are you and what role do books play in your life?
Sadie Hartmann: My name is Sadie Hartmann. I’m a six-foot-tall Northern California girl who grew up in a small, rural town and now lives in Tacoma, Washington. I’ve been a book nerd my entire life. Books are friends. Whenever life felt overwhelming or oppressive, I would make my escape into the pages of a book. The more Stephen King-ish, the better.
These days, especially THESE days, I’m still practicing Bookish Escapism. It’s just more of my full-time job now, so it’s a great excuse to have my nose in a book as much as humanly possible.
I review horror fiction for Cemetery Dance Online, SCREAM magazine, and, of course, Goodreads and Amazon. I write book-related articles for LitReactor and Tor Nightfire as well as other horror publications here and there like Black Static and FANGORIA.
I co-own a horror fiction, monthly subscription service called Night Worms with my best friend, Ashley Saywers.
GI: Independent reviewers and bookstagrammers are changing the game, especially for small press/indie writers. How do you think indie reviews and the bookstagrammer community affect publishing at large?
SH: Oh, man. So indulge me for a moment: Everyone knows the business golden goose, right? There is no advertising like FREE advertising; word of mouth. I have no clue how the book publishing industry quantified word of mouth back in the day, before the internet, but today they get actual analytics to show them where the book buzz is happening. The hashtag #bookstagram is this corner of the universe where readers photograph and talk about books all day long, every day, all year. It’s a game changer and I watched it happen. You have these magnetic readers talking up their love of some book to everyone who follows them, and, like magic, you can look at the comments and watch people IN REAL TIME buying the damn book. “I HAVE TO READ THIS.” The momentum that some influencers have is staggering. And the best part about it is it’s authentic and sincere. Influencers maybe get a free review copy out of it, but the passion can’t be manufactured. When someone with proven good taste says, “I love this book. Buy it. Read it,” that book gets so much more traction than from some kind of expensive ad paid for by a financially invested party. That’s just my “hot” take.
To further drive home the point: There was this primarily self-published author who had two novellas available in paperback on Amazon. A few of us bought them, read them, posted them, and promoted our love of these two novellas. Suddenly everyone had to have them and then they wanted more. But this author only had eBooks available of his back catalog. But on Instagram, readers want to take photos (and not photos of their Kindles). So, this author ended up formatting his back catalog into paperback copies and now if you look at his author hashtag there are hundreds of photos showcasing his books. I’m not saying who it is because they might think they blew up on #bookstagram for other reasons but I’m telling you what the catalyst actually was—it was influencers changing the game.
GI: As a fellow reviewer, I have hard time getting organized. Do you have a system for dealing with the books that come in and getting all the reading done?
SH: Oh, dude. I feel seen. No, I don’t have a practical way to keep myself on track with the review copies coming in. I’m a mood reader, so I’ll have this quasi-order of books I should read and then something will come in the mail and blow it all to shit. I’m thinking about making a spreadsheet to organize everything, but then when I think about how much time that will take, precious reading time, I just feel overwhelmed by the idea. However, I also know that an investment like that would probably serve me well in the future. So, I’m kicking it around. Right now, I guess my sloppy reading habits are functioning on some level and I get by.
GI: Every book collector has a stack of favorites. What books would you grab if the house was on fire and you had to run out?
SH: Over the years I’ve managed to collect some really beautiful, signed, limited collector’s editions of books I love. There are specialty publishers that dedicate themselves to making it nearly impossible not to stock up on these desirable copies. I have some great Cemetery Dance books from Brian Keene, Richard Chizmar, Robert McCammon and Josh Malerman. Some SST Published books of my favorite Paul Tremblay stories. Signed Thunderstorm Books from favorite authors like Mary SanGiovanni, Kelli Owen, Ronald Malfi, Jonathan Janz, Chad Lutzke, and more. I’d be running out of my house with stacks of books and my hair on fire, I can tell you that.
GI: How would you introduce people to Night Worms and what they do?
SH: Night Worms is a horror fiction, monthly subscription service. There are other book subscription packages out there, but a lot of them focus on the extra merchandise instead of the books. Several of them include one book and then several items like mugs, scarves, socks, and various other “goodies.” People who love goodies should check those out. People who love books, especially dark and scary books, should check out Night Worms. We try to include anywhere from two to four books in our package. We work closely with the authors and publishers to include signed bookplates, bookmarks, author letters, stickers, and original artwork—all pointed at the reader’s love of books. Sometimes we include hot chocolate, tea. or coffee just as a special treat while our customers read their books. We curate the package around a theme and pick out books that we already love or want to read ourselves. We love to expose our readers to indie horror, self-published works, and new releases from large, traditional publishers too. It’s pretty well-rounded. We encourage our customers to promote the books on social media as well as read and review them. Anything to join us on our mission to support and promote the horror fiction industry.
GI: Can you recommend ten books for those sitting at home running out of reading material during the lockdown?
SH: I would love to!
My Horror Fiction Quarantine Survival Kit:
1. The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix. This book sucks you right in and keeps you there. It’s funny, emotional, and scary. All the things.
2. The Reddening by Adam Nevill. I’m picking this book because it’s escapism at its best. Scandalous cult horror with strong female protagonists in a well-written novel-length story.
3. The Wilted Lily series by Kelli Owen. Books One & Two. I’m telling you, these novella-length stories are so addicting. Readers will find themselves getting emotionally invested in the lives of fictional characters. A healthy distraction!
4. A Penny for Your Thoughts by Matt Hayward and Bob Ford. This book is hilarious and endearing. I love the magical qualities it possesses through the imaginations of Hayward & Ford’s combined storytelling voices. I’m highly anticipating the sequel, Lady Luck!
5. Spungunion by John Boden. If you’re looking to lose yourself in a book for an hour or two, this novella is your jam. It’s the story of one man’s quest to find the man who murdered his wife. Harrowing and beautiful at the same time.
6. And Her Smile Will Untether the Universe by Gwendolyn Kiste. A collection of short stories where each story is better than the last. I have never read a collection of stories quite like this one. It’s fun to just read one a day or binge the whole thing in one sitting. It’s your choice!
7. The Boatman’s Daughter by Andy Davidson. Feels like reading a Brother’s Grimm dark fairytale mashed up with a horror story with a Southern gothic setting. It’s a delicious cocktail.
8. The Miriam Black series by Chuck Wendig. This series of six books will entertain you like no Netflix show can! Miriam Black is the most insane, hilarious, twisted protagonist I have ever loved. These books have short chapters with irresistible hooks that will keep your eyes glued to the pages for hours on end. The perfect way to waste a whole weekend indoors.
9. Dear Laura by Gemma Amor. A young woman’s friend goes missing, which sends her down a dangerous path of discovery. I cannot say more for fear of spoilers, but this is a novella I promise readers will not be able to put down until it’s finished.
10. Exorcist Falls by Jonathan Janz. Are you like me and the scarier the world is, the darker and uglier you want your books to be? Exorcist Falls will satisfy this itch with a book that will claw at your insides. GET IT and then be prepared to not get the images out of your mind.
Gabino Iglesias is a writer, professor, and book reviewer living in Austin, Texas. He is the author of Zero Saints and Coyote Songs and the editor of Both Sides: Stories from the Border. You can find him on Twitter @Gabino_Iglesias.
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