short story

“The Bird With the Clownish Plumage” in Campfire Macabre; Worm translation

Welcome to the world of 2021! It comes with clowns in my neck of the woods. Campfire Macabre is a flash fiction anthology of monstrous proportions, boasting dozens of stories by incredible horror authors. This publication also marks a personal milestone: my woodsy tale “The Bird With the Clownish Plumage” marks my 50th published short story.

Check it out.

Also, I’m pleased to announce that my queer cosmic horror novella The Worm and His Kings will be translated into Spanish for a release in Spain by Dilatando Mentes Editorial, a wonderful publisher that has been translating works of horror in beautiful new Spanish editions. More details and cover art to come.

Best Lesfic Award; Inkheist; “In Subspace, No One Can Hear You Scream” in Mycelia, Issue IV

Posted on 2020-12-22 by Hailey Piper award novel novella podcast queen of teeth short story the worm and his kings unfortunate elements of my anatomy

Today I had the fantastic honor of winning the Best Lesfic of 2020 Award for Best Horror, for my queer cosmic horror novella, The Worm and His Kings! Make horror gay AF!

Also, I had the pleasure of reappearing on the Inkheist podcast to talk about The Worm and His Kings as well as writing process, queer representation, my upcoming 2021 releases Unfortunate Elements of My Anatomy and Queen of Teeth, and whether psychic powers fit into supernatural horror or form their own subgenre of psychic horror. Give a listen!

I expect this will be the last update of a long, long year. Ending it with a bang is my erotic horror story, “In Subspace, No One Can Hear You Scream” that appears in Mycelia issue IV. At this club’s show, there’s more happening than meets the eye. Check it out.

“Brain Trust” in Planet Scumm; “The Curse of She, Part 6: The Final Girlfriend” in We Are Wolves

Posted on 2020-12-12 by Hailey Piper interview short story

Happy December busy time! I’m a bit swamped, and so I’m a little late with updates, but here are a few things that have popped up of recent.

At the end of November, my horror mystery “Brain Trust” was the cover story in Planet Scumm #9. We open with a bathtub full of brains, the latest in a baffling string of situations in this steampunk city.

This past week, We Are Wolves released from Burial Day Books. Edited by the incredible Gemma Amor, Laurel Hightower, and Cina Pelayo, this charity anthology gathers women’s horror fiction and howls at the moon like nothing before. Among the many wonderful stories, you’ll find my cinema-laced tale of expectation, exploitation, and community in “The Curse of She, Part 6: The Final Girlfriend.”

Over at Nightworms, I chatted with Andrew “the Book Dad” about my new queer cosmic horror novella, The Worm and His Kings.” Check out the interview here.

And speaking of Worm, it’s now available on Barnes and Noble!

“The Inheritance Thread” in Love Letters to Poe; interviews

Posted on 2020-11-20 by Hailey Piper audio interview novella podcast short story the worm and his kings

This week has been busy! The Worm and His Kings, my new queer cosmic horror novella, released from Off Limits Press on the 15th, and it’s now available from Bookshop if you would like to support indie bookstores.

In the short fiction realm, Gothic horror magazine Love Letters to Poe published my coming of age tale “The Inheritance Thread” in their most recent issue. It’s a story of lineage and burdens, and the long-sought voice of a mother. The magazine’s podcast, available on both the site and podcast places like Spotify, has an audio version to, narrated by my wife J. The page also includes a short interview with me about the story. Check it out here.

In the non-fiction department, I’ve had the pleasure of appearing on several venues:

Gabriel Hart invited me to LitReactor, where we talked cosmic horror and NYC.

Necronomi.Com had me on to talk in depth about one of my favorite horror movies, The Wicker Man (1973).

And most recently, I appeared on the Women in Horror Film Festival Facebook page for a video interview about The Worm and His Kings.

“The Last Noel” in Gothic Blue Book VI: A Krampus Carol

Posted on 2020-11-09 by Hailey Piper short story

I’m supremely late in updating for this, but it’s also been a rough several days. In any case, on Halloween, Burial Day Books recently released Gothic Blue Book VI: A Krampus Carol, 31 short stories and poems of Christmas-flavored horror, one story or poem for each chilly December night.

In the middle, you’ll find my story of babysitting gone wrong in “The Last Noel.” Wear a coat; it’s cold in those woods.

I also recently had the pleasure of appearing on the Dead Headspace podcast to talk about writing process, influence, and The Worm and His Kings, my new queer cosmic horror novella releasing from Off Limits Press on November 15.

Speaking of which, that’s only six days away! And just in time, the paperback is now up for pre-order on Amazon, too.

“Hopscotch for Keeps” in Places We Fear to Tread; “Autotomy” in Monsters Out of the Closet

Posted on 2020-09-29 by Hailey Piper audio short story

Two new stories for September!

First, travel back to the ’90s in central New York in this location-based horror anthology. Play a game, kids, but make sure you know what you’re playing for. My story “Hopscotch for Keeps” appears in Places We Fear to Tread.

Then, Lovely LGBTQ+ horror podcast Monsters Out of the Closet released a new episode today. DOUBLE focuses on doppelgangers. My story appears second, “Autotomy.” Mom is gone, replaced by a stranger, and she has plans. Check it out here or on Spotify, iTunes, any podcast place!

“The Mother Stitch” in The Arcanist

Posted on 2020-08-30 by Hailey Piper flash fiction short story

I have a new horror flash fic over at one of my favorite places, The Arcanist. This one gets a bit bodily and uncomfortable, so fair warning!

Also, my author page is up at Off Limits Press along with a compilation of info for The Worm and His Kings, my upcoming queer cosmic horror novella that releases November 15, 2020.

“Unkindly Girls” in Worst Laid Plans; “Toad Man, Toad Man” in Monsters, Movies & Mayhem

Posted on 2020-07-15 by Hailey Piper short story

It’s a double release day!

First up, the highly-anticipated first anthology from Grindhouse Press, Worst Laid Plans: An Anthology of Vacation Horror takes summer vacation to horrific extremes. My story, “Unkindly Girls,” is a departure for me and probably my bleakest short story yet.

Find it here!

Monsters, Movies & Mayhem digs its claws into cinematic horror, behind the scenes, on set, and inside the theater itself, where not even the audience is safe. That’s where you’ll find my story, “Toad Man, Toad Man,” where bored adolescents stumble into a private screening of an old occult film one hot summer day. I have my copy already and it’s beautiful.

Check it out!

“Scarlet Hide Molly” on Monsters Out of the Closet

Posted on 2020-07-04 by Hailey Piper audio podcast short story

I’m a couple days behind on this; the last week has been trying.

But I’m proud to say my story “Scarlet Hide Molly,” which previously appeared in Planet Scumm #6, has now been adapted to one of my favorite podcasts, Monsters Out of the Closet. This podcast takes horror fiction by LGBTQIA authors and adapts it into full productions with voice cast, music, sound effects.

The second story in their latest episode, WITCH, Robin Tynan, Abigail Birkett, Taara Rangan, and Anna Podds do an incredible job voicing narrator and the three women who tell campfire tales of the titular mountain fiend. Give it a listen!

“Forgive the Adoring Beast” in Dream of Shadows; “There Is an Old Lady Who Swallows the Stars” in Neon Horror; new interview

Posted on 2020-06-03 by Hailey Piper flash fiction interview short story

Happy Pride Month! I delayed updating for what I feel should be obvious reasons. The first Pride was a riot though and no change comes without fighting for it.

New stories:

Dream of Shadows has released their second issue, inside which you’ll find my post-apocalyptic fantastical horror flash fic, “Forgive the Adoring Beast” alongside lots of other cool stories.

Over in the UK, The Haunted Bouncy Castle has released their first anthology, Neon Horror, which is all queer horror creators. My flash fic “There Is an Old Lady Who Swallows the Stars” appears inside.

Next, Stephanie Evelyn has been running a terrific series of interviews, Women Thought Leaders in Horror, over at her blog and was kind enough to invite me to be part of it. She posed interesting questions that I was all too happy to answer. You can check that interview here.

More to come soon!