Dark Harvest: Six of the Best with Don Webb #horror

Don Webb's been around writing wicked words for quite a number of years now, and when he submitted his story, Nailing it Down: The Doom that came to Ool Athag to Dark Harvest, I was overjoyed. Today he stops by for a good, old-fashioned Six of the Best. 

Tell us about your story. Where did you pick up the story seeds?

My story is about perception. All human horror stories are based on how we see the world – which is a consequence of our biology. We like bilateral symmetry because we have it. We think “up” is good, “down” because if where our brains are. Out art, our religion, and our ideas of government are based on the human body. So what would the Other think and feel?

What creeps you out?

I am frightened by strongly prejudiced people. People (even if I hold the same views) that can see any question ONLY ONE WAY are very dangerous. Consciousness is the most important human gift, and surrendering it to rigidity is the beginning of evil. On a more physical level people that don’t honor personal space set my teeth on edge. Back off, my friend. I’m Texan.


Why do you love dark/unsettling fiction?

The world threatens to overwhelm us with gray routine. Every day crushing waves of sameness fill our cities, our jobs, our TV sets. Every day the forces of Stupidity wage their war against consciousness. We have three weapons – wonder, beauty and terror. The best unsettling fiction uses all three with deadly precision against the great grayness. Writing horror is a sacred act. Giving another soul a momentary glimpse of its own alien beauty is a sublime act.

What are you working on now?

Hippocampus Press is preparing a 30-year retrospective of my Lovecraftian fiction that will be out in late 2014. I am working on a nonfiction book about the Tarot, and finishing up a couple of short stories that I’ve promised folks. I’ll be teaching creative writing for UCLA Extension in the spring, and I’m planning on a big road trip across Texas with my wife during bluebonnet season.

What’s the most unexpected thing people discover about you?

I’ve worked as a Christmas tree salesman and a professional fireworks operator.

Tell us a little more about what you’re reading at present?

Currently I am reading The Prague Cemetery by Umberto Eco, Sergeant Chip and Other Novellas by Bradley Denton – as well as several books on the history of the Tarot. I have a deep love for Eco, who is a well-known genius, and for Denton – who should be well known.

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