We address a few questions to Sebastiano Tuccitto, author of "11:00 p.m. - C’è qualcosa nel buio…", an anthology of horror short stories with a preface by Andrea Cavaletto, an Italian screenwriter, cartoonist and graphic designer, best known to the public for his collaboration with Sergio Bonelli Editore as the screenwriter of Dylan Dog and Martin Mystère.
“11 p.m. - There is something in the dark..." is composed, as the title suggests, of 11 short stories that have as their common thread the fear generated by monsters.
Indeed, the writer, here in his literary debut, immerses us in a setting where the threat arises in reality, fantasy or dream by unleashing a series of cruel images and heinous actions that suddenly turn the lives of the many characters who populate this anthology upside down.
Ghosts, insect procreating creatures, witches, the living dead, werewolves, the infected, imaginary friends, and the condemned come to life in Tuccitto's tales, dragging the characters and the reader into a violent and bloody dimension poised between dream, reality, and imagination.
Genuine horror, typical of the 1980s, flows from the pages of this literary anthology. In fact, reading it evokes eighties movie memories (Creepshow above all) while also letting the author's great passion for horror films and literature shine through.
“11 p.m. - There is something in the dark..." is definitely a must-have treat for horror fans.
In our interview, Sebastiano Tuccitto talks about his anthology of short stories, his influences and his future plans.
“The face was monstrous,
full of holes where colonies of insects came out and in....
The skin was gray in color with green patches,
cockroaches and cockroaches were attached to it as pests.”
IT'S RAINING OUTSIDE - "11 p.m. - There is something in the dark...“
DV: Hi Sebastian, tell us a little bit about yourself.
ST: Sicilian by birth and in blood, I am 39 years old, 40 in August this year, and live in Rome with my wife Grazia Maria, a teacher, and my daughter Chiara, 4.
Electronics engineer, working in the field of information security as a project manager.
I am passionate about mathematics, robotics, electronics and computer science and, wouldn't you know it, to my scientific nature I also associate a strong artistic, musical soul. In fact, I have a diploma in clarinet and, over the years, as a clarinetist and saxophonist I have toured half of Europe. I have collaborated with Roy Paci, Vinicio Capossela, Macaco, and here and there with various more or less known musical formations.
Last but not least, I am a big Fan of yours!!!
DV: Happy to have a fan like you! How did your passion for writing come about and what prompted you to write "11 p.m. There's Something in the Dark...," your first horror anthology?
ST: I read a lot and watch movies like there's no tomorrow. I have always had a ball in my head to try my hand at writing but it has always remained an unfinished idea.
Last year, during a 6-month work trip for which I was moving from Rome to Fabriano for 3 days a week, I had the opportunity to be "single" without a wife and daughter and thus have a little more time on my hands. I would return to the hotel in the evening after dinner, and who knows, the winter, the rain and snow, the cold, the uniqueness of the medieval village of Fabriano, must have inspired me for sure!
There is so much of my life lived in the last few months in the stories. Train trips, job interviews, pub dinners amidst rivers of beer. In short, I'm in it.
DV: The preface of "11 p.m. There's Something in the Dark..." is by Andrea Cavaletto. How did the collaboration with the well-known Italian screenwriter and cartoonist come about?
ST: I am a comic book fan, fan of Dylan Dog for almost 30 years. I knew Andrea as a writer of a few stories and had been so impressed with his writing for the Nightmare Investigator. During the work trip I was telling you about earlier, one evening, sitting drinking beer in a pub, I decided to message him via messenger to offer to read the few stories I was still writing and give me an opinion.
Since that evening, our "epistolary" communication has always been more intense. I discovered all of his work, outside of Dylan Dog, both for film and comics, and became very close to independent extreme horror cinema.
In the days that followed, he continually peppered me with advice, both for writing and for watching new movies and reading new comics.
I continued and finished writing the anthology also because of him, he spurred me on and pushed me all the time. And then I must say that he was among the few, if not the only one, who was always available.
He was in the beginning and still is now. I will never cease to thank him!!!
DV: Tell us about your anthology of short stories. Why did you choose the horror genre and who is the reader you would recommend it to?
TS: "11 p.m. - There is something in the dark..." consists of 11 stories, a number that refers to that of the time in the title (11 p.m.)
In the first part I dust off the classic figures of the horror genre (zombies, dolls, werewolves, haunted houses, clowns). The second part probes disturbing terrain and veers into the extreme, focusing on strong and brutal themes.
First of all, it must be said that I am a movie and literature junkie in general, preferring horror and science fiction. Mine is a real obsession with blood, monsters and terror. My father passed this passion on to me. With him, when I was seven years old, I saw my first horror film, Cronenberg's The Fly. The films of Dario Argento, John Carpenter, Wes Craven and the novels of Stephen King and Clive Barker then marked my life.
I would recommend my novel to anyone who likes to read, not just horror stories. Then of course, if that person likes to experience the pleasure of being scared, much better!!!
DV: "11 p.m. There's Something in the Dark..." conveys your passion for horror films, especially 80s horror films. If I had to compare your work to a film I would compare it to Creepshow, a new sequel to the famous episodic film. Was this just suggestion or was the atmosphere reminiscent of the aforementioned film intentional?
ST: That was the goal. The fact that the stories took you and other readers back to the late 1980s means that I was able to recreate those vintage, creepy atmospheres, and that makes me proud.
Who knows, maybe the anthology might actually become a sequel to Creepshow!
DV: The eleven short stories that make up the anthology are filled with characters who meet an excruciating death. "It's raining outside" is reminiscent of an episode of Creepshow, "A pub sandwich" brings to mind The Corner Restaurant while in "The interview" one can discern influences from the cinema of David Cronenberg. How much did cinema and also horror genre literature influence this first book of yours?
ST: It has influenced so much. As I told you before, the films of Dario Argento, John Carpenter, Wes Craven, and the novels of Stephen King and Clive Barker have shaped my life.
Moreover, from Cronenberg to Romero for film, from Garth Ennis to Tiziano Sclavi for comics, from Clive Barker to Charlee Jacob for literature, I have always been fascinated by man's terror in the face of mutation of the body, infection and contamination of the flesh, extremes, violence, obsessions, all interweaving the psychological element with the physical.
DV: The cinematic and literary influences in fact can be felt so much. Did you ever have moments of difficulty while writing the stories? Which among them is your favorite?
ST: It may sound strange, but I had no difficulty. The more I wrote, the more the stories formed sharply, without shadows, in my head.
I really think I have achieved a good result.
My favorite is "The interview" because it is the story that most brings together my life experience, having done so many job interviews over the years, with my passion for more extreme horror, being in the ending very violent.
DV: The stories in your anthology are populated by typical figures from horror literature and film: ghosts, werewolves, zombies, witches, cannibals, killer clowns. Many are based on dream, nightmare and sleep disorder. Tell us about the link between the dream world and the horror world featured in your literary anthology.
ST: I would never compare myself to, for example, undisputed masters like David Lynch, but in my stories where this connection is present I wanted to make sure to confuse dream with reality, creating confusion and discomfort in readers, see the stories "Laugh clown", "It's raining outside" e "Neighbors".
What I wanted to convey is that evil changes faces but never dies and that horror exists in many forms and is always around us.
DV: That's exactly right. Your stories propose 11 facets of evil, and in my opinion your rich imagination could find many more.
What are your literary and film influences?
ST: From a literary point of view without a shadow of a doubt King and Barker for horror, Isaac Asimov and Philip K. Dick for the science fiction genre... Oh yes, I think I mentioned that the other genre I love is science fiction in its many facets.
For film there are many: Raimi, Cronenberg, Carpenter, Craven, Lynch, Ridley Scott, James Cameron and, many others...
DV: What are your future plans? Is there a new anthology or novel in the works?
ST: My projects are many. So many in my head especially, hahahah! We'll see if they ever see the light of day. Between work and family finding time is getting harder and harder.
I can tell you, however, that I want to continue writing scary stories in all different sauces and that I am working on a new book, a very extreme novel.
In addition, 2021 will see the birth of a comic book adaptation of some of the stories from the anthology "11 p.m. There is something in the dark..." which will be published abroad.
"11 p.m. - There is something in the dark." is available in Digital format on the official website of IVVI Publisher and in print edition in all bookstores.
