Kailee Pedersen on Meet Your Maker
Summary
Horror Joy: Meet Your Maker with Kailee Pedersen
Brian interviews horror writer and opera singer Kailee Pedersen on Meet Your Maker about the relationship between horror and joy, which Pedersen links to the genre’s transgressive freedom, including psychological unsettlement and marginalized protagonists.
Pedersen discusses her writing origins (starting seriously at 13, early Neopets fan fiction, and supportive teachers), her path from poetry and creative nonfiction to novels, and how horror “found” her through an interest in uncomfortable, suppressed aspects of human psychology.
They talk about her books Pastorale, Sacrificial Animals, and The Minimalist, including how The Minimalist draws heavily from real experiences in classical music: pressure, failure, mental health, suicide, racialization, antisemitism, and homophobia.
They explore trauma-based “haunting,” genre as marketing, first-person narration, prepared piano references, and Pedersen’s current horror joy in playing Call of Cthulhu tabletop RPGs.
Pre-order Kailee's book, The Minimalist, which is out August 18th on St. Martin's Press.
https://kaileepedersen.com/the-minimalist/
Straight White American Jesus
The flagship show examining Christian nationalism and democracy.
Listen Now
Axis Mundi Daily Brief
Short, focused analyses of the most important daily developments in religion and politics.
Listen Now
