Stephen Mark Rainey, author of "Fugue Devil: Resurgence"

I had the pleasure of interviewing Stephen Mark Rainey on the release of his latest book. Fugue Devil: Resurgence is described on Amazon as “a compelling and frighteningly perceptive collection of chilling tales” and praised by Richard Chizmar as the work of “a consummate storyteller… at the top of his game.”

This special 30th anniversary celebration of The Fugue Devil & Other Weird Horrors includes a dozen short stories that will grab you by the collar and won’t let go until you’re shaken down to your shoes. The title work is joined here by three never-before-published tales and many other hard-to-find gems.

Fugue Devil: Resurgence will be available on Amazon from in paperback or Kindle, and from publisher Black Raven Books in a limited-edition hardcover format, offered exclusively to the first 100 purchasers.

THE AUTHOR

• Mark writes frequently on his personal website, www.stephenmarkrainey.com.

• You can find him on Facebook at www.facebook.com/s.markrainey.

• He’s on Twitter (though not often) at @MarkRainey59.

Who are you? Stephen Mark Rainey (I generally go by Mark; people who call me Stephen usually want money). Age-wise, I’m early-approaching-mid 60s. I recently retired after having provided graphic services in the education field for the past 23 years.

Where and with whom do you live? I live in Greensboro, NC, with my wife, Kimberly, and five precocious housecats (who are partners in a not-at-all profitable home redecorating enterprise).

If you could co-write a book with any author, living or dead, whom would you choose? I’ve collaborated on a couple of books with Elizabeth Massie, and on stories with David Niall Wilson, Durant Haire, and John Pelan. In general, these have been agreeable experiences. However, I tend to be less-than-comfortable divvying up authorial duties, and I have a very individualistic approach to writing (not to mention life in general). At one time, three decades or so ago, I approached Fred Chappell about a possible collaboration, but he expressed feelings similar to mine. So, really, I’d be hard-pressed to think of anyone with whom I’d care to collaborate that I haven’t already. If hard-pressed, I’d probably say T.E.D. Klein, as his work — particularly Dark Gods — has resonated strongly with me since the day I first read it. I’m sure I’d be much obliged to co-create some fictional universe with him.

Why do you write? It’s the proverbial calling. In my exuberant youth, I was most interested in producing visual art — primarily pen & ink, watercolor, and acrylic. In college, I earned a Bachelor of Fine Art degree, which led me, at least indirectly, into my graphics-oriented day job. In my twenties, I was keen on producing something akin to graphic novels — writing and illustrating my own stories. Over time, that interest gravitated more and more to the writing side. Eventually, storytelling became my true creative passion.

Where do you write? Way back when, I scribbled first drafts in spiral notebooks at whatever location was handy at the time. But I always sat at my desk in my home office to type the final manuscript. This became something of a ritual. Once home computers sent the old typewriter packing, I continued to use the desktop machine in my office. It felt “right.” I never cared much for using a laptop, as the smaller keyboard annoyed my temperamental fingers. However, over the past few years, for whatever reason, they’ve taken more kindly to the laptop, and now I write wherever I feel most comfortable plopping down. A couple of years back, when Kimberly and I were visiting her parents in Michigan, I discovered her dad’s old easy chair and ottoman in their basement family room. It’s the most comfortable place in the world to write, so now our plan is to force her parents to move out so I can take over their family room.

Are you a planner or a “pantser”? Something of both. For short fiction, I always “pants” it, although I outline things in my brain as much as possible; I generally like to know where the story is heading before I even start it. Not always, though; sometimes, shit just surprises me. For novels, I tend to outline more, especially since I’ve had to provide detailed synopses to some publishers prior to sending in a book. These outlines tend to be very loose, though, and sometimes, the outline and the finished product don’t much resemble each other.

Historical period you’d like to visit: Probably the frontier days of North America — the 1700s into the 1800s. I suppose that, depending on the length of the visit, surviving such a potentially hostile environment might be problematic. Yet, I find myself fascinated by the idea of exploring this country when the better part of it was wilderness. I love hiking, going deep into forests, and being as far away as possible from burgeoning humanity. Humanity has always insisted on stamping its goddamn footprint on every piece of real estate extant, and I would so love to spend time — maybe lots — where humanity largely isn’t. Conversely, I find the mindset and physical capabilities/endurance of our country’s pioneers utterly fascinating.

Favorite board, card or video game: It’s been years since I’ve played any video games, but for a decade or more, I was heavily involved with a couple of online WWII combat flight sims — Air Warrior and Aces High — which were as “realistic” as computer sims probably can be. World War II history, particularly WWII aviation, has always been a passion of mine, and these sims were highly immersive. I don’t have time for such frivolities these days, but I certainly enjoyed them at the time.

Complete this sentence: People are most surprised to learn that I… actually write books, especially those in literary circles. 

THE BOOK

Title, genre and length? Fugue Devil: Resurgence, horror (largely of the cosmic variety), 375 pages (approximately 77,000 words).

When and where does it take place? This one is a collection of short fiction. Most of the stories are set in roughly contemporary times, though a few are historically based or set in a fantasy realm. Several are set in a fictionalized version of the southern Virginia town where I grew up (which I have on good authority that you are at least somewhat familiar with).*

How did you come up with the title? Quite a few of my stories either directly or indirectly relate to each other, and “Fugue Devil” — a novelette I wrote in 1991 — shares its history with several other of my tales in which music plays a distinctive, supernatural role. A fugue struck me as the perfect musical means of “summoning” the particular entity at the center of the novelette. So “Fugue Devil” it became.

What inspired you to write it? A bona fide night terror, circa 1971, inspired “Fugue Devil.” I was a young ’un of about 12, and I had a nightmare that featured a wicked critter — something that was an amalgamation of several of the old movie monsters that had frightened me as a little kid, such as the Creature from the Black Lagoon, the She-Creature, and the critter from Curse (Night) of the Demon. It appeared several times in the dream, and each time it did, I woke up in a cold sweat (a most curious sensation), absolutely traumatized. Every time I managed to go back to sleep, the dream took up precisely where it left off, and the same thing would happen over and over again. It’s the only time in life I recall any such thing happening, and the memory of it is as clear — or clearer — than any waking memory from childhood.

Is there a sequel in the works? There is actually a sequel to “Fugue Devil” in this collection, titled “The Devil’s Eye.” It takes place 17 years after the events of the original tale. There’s also a prequel, titled “Threnody” (which I had no idea would be a prequel when I wrote it, since it predates “Fugue Devil” by several years). Whether or not I’ll ever write another story in the “Fugue Devil” universe remains to be seen. Sometimes, I think I would very much like to; on the other hand, the stories that make up that little mini mythos say what I had to say on the subject, and I’m pretty happy with it remaining that way. Who knows, though; someday, the calling may become too strong to resist.

Describe your book in one word that most people don’t normally use. Alluring

What would you select as your book’s theme song? Who would you choose to write the musical score? If we focus solely on “Fugue Devil” from the collection, I’d go with “Lucky Blue,” by Future Loop Foundation. It’s an instrumental piece, not really creepy but quite moody — it has the vibe of something from a David Lynch movie — and the atmosphere it conjures is perfect for the story. As a matter of fact, for a musical score, I’d choose Angelo Badalementi at his moodiest.

What’s your most interesting story title? “Threnody,” maybe. It’s the story that serves as the backstory for “Fugue Devil.” A threnody is a dirge, a piece of music for the dead, and nothing could be more apt for that tale.

THE HERO

Name, age and occupation: The narrator of “Fugue Devil,” Mike Higgins by name, tells a story of his junior high school days, so for the majority of the story, he’s around age 13 or 14.

Where and with whom does he/she live? As a youngster, the character is a typical schoolkid who lives with his family. As an adult, we don’t know much about him except that he is tortured by the events of his past; as an adult, he is single and struggles to maintain his sanity in the “normal” world.

Who would play this character in a movie? Daniel Radcliffe, both as a kid and as an adult. He’s great with both whimsical and serious roles, and that would be just the ticket for the protagonist in “Fugue Devil.”

* Note: The blogger penned a book about Rainey’s hometown, Martinsville, Virginia, which served as the basis for several of the stories in this volume. Rainey graciously agreed to pen the foreword for “Martinsville Memories.”