Welcome back to my Author Spotlight series where I shine the light on fabulous authors from around the globe to gain insight into the person behind the writer and peek into their writing world.
Today, I cross the ditch and shine the spotlight on Tabatha Wood, an Australasian Shadows and Sir Julius Vogel award-winning author of weird, dark, speculative fiction and quiet horror from Aotearoa, New Zealand.
A former English teacher and school library manager, they now tutor from home while also working as a freelance writer, editor, and illustrator.
They like strong coffee, soft cats, and spending time by the sea.
Welcome, Tabatha!
Tell us about yourself. Who is the person behind the writer, and what do you bring from your real life into your stories?
I grew up in Whitby on the Northeast coast of England, where Bram Stoker set ‘Dracula.’ It’s a beautiful place with a lot of history attached, but the imposing form of the ruined Abbey standing on the headland glaring down at the town was a constant reminder of the gothic myth, and for me, a powerful motivator. I’ve always loved gothic horror (I based my university dissertation on Victorian gothic classics) and I hope maybe one day I’ll write my own modern gothic masterpiece.
It’s such a cliché to say that writing is my therapy, that art supports my mental health, but it’s true. A lot of my work explores gender and identity, as well as motherhood, relationships, and (as you might expect from a horror writer) death. There are a few monsters included but much of my work is semi-autobiographical in that I can explore and express the most challenging parts of my life through weird horror and dark speculative fiction.
As for who is the person behind the writer, I’ll let you know when I finally find out.
Outside of writing stories, are you involved in any other areas in the writing industry? Eg editor/publisher/blogger etc.
All of the above in various degrees, mostly depending on if I’m working extra hours as a contractor or editing others’ work. As an author, editor, poet and essayist, almost everything I do revolves around writing in some way, and as I self-publish under my own Wild Wood Books imprint, there is the running of a small business to contend with too.
What does a typical writing day look like?
I would love to say I have a well-honed routine and designated writing hours, but the reality is a ‘good’ writing day for me could be 500 words typed on my phone while sitting in the bath, or it could be seven solid and focused hours spent writing by hand in my home office. I grab the time whenever I can and as the muse finds me. I do, however, set monthly goals and targets and (mostly) I achieve what I set out to do.
When you first started writing, did you have a goal, have you met it, and how long did it take?
I published my first book while I was training to be a teacher—a nonfiction guide for professional educators with Bloomsbury Press. Two more followed, and later I worked as a technical editor for Wiley Publishing. I landed my first contract by sending an email to the publisher while inebriated with a plan and a pitch for a behaviour-management book. Honestly, it still blows my mind that they said yes. It was a right place, right time situation, but also, I was hurled into the deep end and had to learn to swim pretty fast.
My debut fiction collection was a turning-the-Big-Four-Oh labour of love that I thought would appeal to a small handful of people and would basically amount to a tick on my bucket list. I certainly never expected to be shortlisted for a Sir Julius Vogel award, and a lot more people than just a small handful bought it. So, I decided to keep writing and see where I ended up.
You could argue that a lot of my writing career has been down to luck, and it has, but it’s also been a lot of hard work and perseverance. My golden rule is to always write the story I want to read. That way whatever the destination of the finished product, I always enjoy the journey.
What is your proudest writing achievement?
All of them. No really. Obviously, I am super proud of winning awards and gaining recognition from my peers, but every finished project, no matter how big or small, is an achievement and I celebrate it as such. I think if you don’t, you lose sight of why you write in the first place.
Was there ever a time when you thought you wouldn’t make it as a writer and what kept you going?
Most people begin writing for the love of it, which is absolutely the best reason to start, but if your dream is to get published, grow your readership or win awards, you must sit your ass down and do the work. There are no easy shortcuts and “overnight success” is very rarely that. Writing can be awesome and exciting, but it can also be a long, hard slog filled with rejection and self-doubt. I’ve certainly experienced plenty of that. So yeah, I think the only reason I keep going is because I’m bloody-minded, determined, and I really, really love being a writer. Plus, I genuinely don’t know what else I would do!
You have several publications. Do you have a favourite, or which was the most fun to write?
This is a hard question to answer. For fiction, SEEDS was the most fun to pull together, and includes some of my favourite characters and monsters—Mr Skellyplant, Marian and the Long Drop gremlins. But I always relish getting stuck into a well-researched essay too. “An Exploration of Menstruation in Horror and Dark Fiction,” or as I jokingly refer to it, my “period piece” was written for Women in Horror Month in February 2020 to explore how a natural, biological function frequently gets twisted into something horrific. The idea was born out of my anger and frustration at patriarchal horror tropes and the way menstruation is too often presented as something to be reviled or feared. Oh yeah, and I won an Australasian Shadows Award for it.
It begins with a seed. A dream. An idea, planted and encouraged to grow. A thought that buries deep down inside and puts out monstrous roots. Until, at last, the bloom erupts and showers the land with life.
seeds – tabatha wood
What effect has writing had on your life and/or those around you?
I’m not sure I know how to answer this one. Has being a writer been a mostly positive experience for me? Yes. Has finding successful (paid) writing opportunities been stressful and challenging on many occasions? Hell, yes! It’s all very well saying I do this for the love of it, but love don’t pay the bills. I’ve been extremely lucky to have the support of my immediate family to shoulder some of the financial pressure and give me the time I need to focus on my creativity. I think by now they’re used to me squirreling myself away to peck furiously at the keyboard, and they’re always the first to read (and critique) any new pieces.
What are you currently working on, what’s coming out, and do you have any future writing goals?
The past eighteen months have been incredibly challenging for me due to a negative health experience that’s had some lasting effects, and I’m still sifting through the wreckage of it all. The only things I wrote and published in 2023 were a couple of blog posts. It was bloody rubbish, and I hated the enforced rest, but my body and brain needed the break. Suffice to say, I am now using that time as inspiration for some future stories and essays, and while I don’t know for sure what that looks like yet, I’m excited to get back into the saddle. I have a whiteboard in my office that’s covered in post-it notes, which will hopefully translate into a novel, and some new essays simmering away on PTSD, and menopause and “hagsploitation” in Horror, although these two topics are not necessarily related!
Where can we read more about you and your books?
I try not to lurk too much on social media these days as I find it’s a terrible time-suck and distraction, but my author website—www.tabathawood.com— is the best place to find out what I’m up to, read old and new work, and generally explore my back catalogue. I made the decision a couple of years ago to remove my books from Amazon for Reasons, but you can purchase pretty much everything in eBook form at Smashwords: www.smashwords.com/profile/view/tabathawood
Final question:
Do you have a furry friend support crew? Who are they and how much do they distract you from writing? (Include picture)
My feline dynamic duo are Sir Monty Python and his side-kick Stevie Bobbins. They were indispensable last year when I needed extra emotional comfort, and I spent a lot of time in bed with them curled up on my lap while I was sick. While they don’t distract me from my writing per se, they do perform exceptional lap-warming and pen-chasing duties as needed.
Thank you, Tabatha, for sharing an insight into your writing life and good luck with your future writing endeavours.
That brings us to the end of today’s Author Spotlight. Learn more about Tabatha and their publications via the links above. Perhaps you’ll find your next great read.
Until next time, happy reading.
Pauline Yates 
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