G. S. Carnivals
04-22-2009, 04:43 AM
TLO Member Interview: Nicole Cushing
Conducted by Phillip Stecco
1) How did you first encounter the work of Thomas Ligotti?
Back in 2001, I first ran across "Our Temporary Supervisor" in Weird Tales. At that stage in my life (my late 20s) I didn't "get" Ligotti at all. Like many readers of my generation, I grew up on Stephen King. So I wrote Ligotti off as an acquired taste I hadn't yet acquired.
It wasn't until this past fall (of 2008) that I approached Ligotti's work again (this time, after discovering my husband's old volume of Lovecraft and reading some old H. P. first). I think having read Lovecraft made all the difference.
Now I feel in love with Ligotti's work. He's brilliant.
2) What are some of your favorite works by Mr. Ligotti?
I think I've most enjoyed "My Case for Retributive Action", but "A Soft Voice Whispers Nothing" would have to be right up there, too. The short story "Teatro Grottesco" and "The Shadow, The Darkness" are two more favorites of mine.
3) What other writers do you enjoy reading?
The memoirist, Janice Erlbaum. Science fiction writer Jennifer Pelland.
4) Do you have any favorite singers or musicians?
Right this moment, not really. I enjoy instrumental music, and lately I've been addicted to music composed by Philip Glass.
In the past, I've enjoyed Gillian Welch, Led Zeppelin, Nellie McKay, and Joss Stone.
5) Do you have any favorite artists in the visual media?
I'm fascinated by Hieronymous Bosch, but can't say I'd hang his stuff in my living room.
6) What are some of your favorite movies?
For some reason, I love the Godfather movies. Pan's Labyrinth and The Butterfly Effect are two more favorites. Oh, and as far as classic horror my favorite King adaptation is a lesser known film, Needful Things. On the lighter side, I enjoyed The Lake House and Say Anything. I'm also a big fan of I (heart) Huckabees
7) Do you watch television?
Yes. Mostly cable news, The History Channel, and some of the better shows on SciFi ("Dr. Who", old "Twilight Zone" re-runs).
My husband and I also watch a fair bit of "t.v." on the computer these days. Through him and through friends, I've been introduced to shows such as "Robot Chicken", "Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law", and "The Venture Brothers".
If I happen to be around a t.v. in the afternoon, I'm all about "General Hospital".
Basically, I tend to go to t.v. for brain candy (with the exception of the aforementioned "Dr. Who" -- often those episodes are quite well-written and engaging).
8) What do you enjoy eating?
I love seafood (crab and sushi in particular). I also enjoy Thai cuisine (Pad Thai is one of my favorite dishes). But nothing beats a good steak, too. Pizza is a rare treat.
9) Do you have any odd hobbies or collecting fetishes?
No.
10) What recreational activities do you enjoy?
Exercising (yoga or running), hiking, dinner-and-a-movie-with-my-husband, family get-togethers.
11) So many of our lives are filled with the day-to-day anxiety of existence. Have you personally discovered any ways to relieve stress?
My spiritual practices are probably the best way I relieve stress. I also have a few close friends, who I can talk to about anything. When I need to, I vent.
12) Life?
Unpredictable.
13) Death?
Unpredictable.
14) Work?
Unpredictable.
15) Do you have any interesting work anecdotes to relate?
No. My day job is pretty stressful. I'll just leave it at that.
16) What is your earliest childhood memory?
I have vague memories of my third or fourth birthday party. There's 8mm film of my brother and I square dancing (ridiculing our trailer-park relations). I have a vague memory of that day.
17) What is your fondest childhood memory?
My parents went out of their way to provide the best vacations they could afford. Trips to the Shenandoah Mountains and Disney World were big hits. I even had a chance to see the Space Shuttle lift off once. I'll never forget that.
18) Who has been the most influential person in your life?
A dear friend of mine (ironically, also named Nicole) who helped me when I desperately needed help.
19) Do you have a special plan for this world?
The best "plan for the world" I can think of comes from a prayer attributed to St. Francis:
Lord, make me a channel of thy peace; that where there is hatred, I may bring love; that where there is wrong, I may bring the spirit of forgiveness; that where there is discord, I may bring harmony; that where there is error, I may bring truth; that where there is doubt, I may bring faith; that where there is despair, I may bring hope; that where there are shadows, I may bring light; that where there is sadness, I may bring joy. Lord, grant that I may seek rather to comfort than to be comforted; to understand, than to be understood; to love, than to be loved. For it is by self-forgetting that one finds. It is by forgiving that one is forgiven. It is by dying that one awakens to eternal life. Amen.
Goodness knows, I don't pull that one off without a hitch, but that's my plan.
20) What else should we know about you?
I'm a writer of surreal fiction. I actually will have a short story in a forthcoming anthology -- a tribute to the late horror author Richard Laymon -- entitled In Laymon's Terms (due out later this year from Cemetery Dance Publications).
I am continuing to write new short fiction, and sending my stories out, and continuing to work on refining my craft.
Also, I think I am probably Thomas Ligotti Online's token Christian. My Christianity is influenced by a few years of deep study of Buddhism (particularly that practiced by the Vietnamese Zen Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hahn).
Thomas Merton is an important Christian influence of mine. I would love to hear a dialogue between Ligotti and a Zen Buddhist monk.
While I don't at all agree with Ligotti's pessimistic view of the world, I am nonetheless fascinated by it. And I love Ligotti's style, his way with words, and his dark humor.
Conducted by Phillip Stecco
1) How did you first encounter the work of Thomas Ligotti?
Back in 2001, I first ran across "Our Temporary Supervisor" in Weird Tales. At that stage in my life (my late 20s) I didn't "get" Ligotti at all. Like many readers of my generation, I grew up on Stephen King. So I wrote Ligotti off as an acquired taste I hadn't yet acquired.
It wasn't until this past fall (of 2008) that I approached Ligotti's work again (this time, after discovering my husband's old volume of Lovecraft and reading some old H. P. first). I think having read Lovecraft made all the difference.
Now I feel in love with Ligotti's work. He's brilliant.
2) What are some of your favorite works by Mr. Ligotti?
I think I've most enjoyed "My Case for Retributive Action", but "A Soft Voice Whispers Nothing" would have to be right up there, too. The short story "Teatro Grottesco" and "The Shadow, The Darkness" are two more favorites of mine.
3) What other writers do you enjoy reading?
The memoirist, Janice Erlbaum. Science fiction writer Jennifer Pelland.
4) Do you have any favorite singers or musicians?
Right this moment, not really. I enjoy instrumental music, and lately I've been addicted to music composed by Philip Glass.
In the past, I've enjoyed Gillian Welch, Led Zeppelin, Nellie McKay, and Joss Stone.
5) Do you have any favorite artists in the visual media?
I'm fascinated by Hieronymous Bosch, but can't say I'd hang his stuff in my living room.
6) What are some of your favorite movies?
For some reason, I love the Godfather movies. Pan's Labyrinth and The Butterfly Effect are two more favorites. Oh, and as far as classic horror my favorite King adaptation is a lesser known film, Needful Things. On the lighter side, I enjoyed The Lake House and Say Anything. I'm also a big fan of I (heart) Huckabees
7) Do you watch television?
Yes. Mostly cable news, The History Channel, and some of the better shows on SciFi ("Dr. Who", old "Twilight Zone" re-runs).
My husband and I also watch a fair bit of "t.v." on the computer these days. Through him and through friends, I've been introduced to shows such as "Robot Chicken", "Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law", and "The Venture Brothers".
If I happen to be around a t.v. in the afternoon, I'm all about "General Hospital".
Basically, I tend to go to t.v. for brain candy (with the exception of the aforementioned "Dr. Who" -- often those episodes are quite well-written and engaging).
8) What do you enjoy eating?
I love seafood (crab and sushi in particular). I also enjoy Thai cuisine (Pad Thai is one of my favorite dishes). But nothing beats a good steak, too. Pizza is a rare treat.
9) Do you have any odd hobbies or collecting fetishes?
No.
10) What recreational activities do you enjoy?
Exercising (yoga or running), hiking, dinner-and-a-movie-with-my-husband, family get-togethers.
11) So many of our lives are filled with the day-to-day anxiety of existence. Have you personally discovered any ways to relieve stress?
My spiritual practices are probably the best way I relieve stress. I also have a few close friends, who I can talk to about anything. When I need to, I vent.
12) Life?
Unpredictable.
13) Death?
Unpredictable.
14) Work?
Unpredictable.
15) Do you have any interesting work anecdotes to relate?
No. My day job is pretty stressful. I'll just leave it at that.
16) What is your earliest childhood memory?
I have vague memories of my third or fourth birthday party. There's 8mm film of my brother and I square dancing (ridiculing our trailer-park relations). I have a vague memory of that day.
17) What is your fondest childhood memory?
My parents went out of their way to provide the best vacations they could afford. Trips to the Shenandoah Mountains and Disney World were big hits. I even had a chance to see the Space Shuttle lift off once. I'll never forget that.
18) Who has been the most influential person in your life?
A dear friend of mine (ironically, also named Nicole) who helped me when I desperately needed help.
19) Do you have a special plan for this world?
The best "plan for the world" I can think of comes from a prayer attributed to St. Francis:
Lord, make me a channel of thy peace; that where there is hatred, I may bring love; that where there is wrong, I may bring the spirit of forgiveness; that where there is discord, I may bring harmony; that where there is error, I may bring truth; that where there is doubt, I may bring faith; that where there is despair, I may bring hope; that where there are shadows, I may bring light; that where there is sadness, I may bring joy. Lord, grant that I may seek rather to comfort than to be comforted; to understand, than to be understood; to love, than to be loved. For it is by self-forgetting that one finds. It is by forgiving that one is forgiven. It is by dying that one awakens to eternal life. Amen.
Goodness knows, I don't pull that one off without a hitch, but that's my plan.
20) What else should we know about you?
I'm a writer of surreal fiction. I actually will have a short story in a forthcoming anthology -- a tribute to the late horror author Richard Laymon -- entitled In Laymon's Terms (due out later this year from Cemetery Dance Publications).
I am continuing to write new short fiction, and sending my stories out, and continuing to work on refining my craft.
Also, I think I am probably Thomas Ligotti Online's token Christian. My Christianity is influenced by a few years of deep study of Buddhism (particularly that practiced by the Vietnamese Zen Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hahn).
Thomas Merton is an important Christian influence of mine. I would love to hear a dialogue between Ligotti and a Zen Buddhist monk.
While I don't at all agree with Ligotti's pessimistic view of the world, I am nonetheless fascinated by it. And I love Ligotti's style, his way with words, and his dark humor.