Cats of Ulthar: A Tale Reimagined follows a family of cats on the eve of returning home, where a father recounts to his children the tale of their grandfather, which begins as a bedtime story and becomes a dark memory of captivity, vengeance, and rebirth. What inspired you to reimage the famous H.P. Lovecraft story?

I have been a graphic novelist for over twenty years. The majority of my work has been reimagining Lovecraft for a new generation; largely introducing Lovecraft to children. It started with Howard Lovecraft and the Frozen Kingdom. That story spawned two other books in the series and three animated movies from them. My latest book before “Cats”, introduced children to Lovecraft’s character Herbert West.  I’m honored to state that my work has been featured in the Chicago Tribune and Rue Morgue magazine.

What intrigues you about the horror and paranormal genres that led you to write this book?

Horror has intrigued me since I was young. It touches on the most primal, darkest side of humanity. I wrote Cats of Ulthar because I loved the original story, but also because it allowed me to delve into modern-day themes that the original did not. This story, wrapped in a bedtime story, deals with questions over modern-day authority, the line between freedom, and what we call “a pitchfork mob”.

What scene in the book did you have the most fun writing?

Honestly, the final scene. This is a bedtime story, but the young cubs never hear what truly happens because they fall asleep. The father reveals he would never tell them the ugly side of this story because he wants to protect them from the ugliness of the world. It rang true to me as a natural protective moment coming from a parent, but that parent also wishes to unburden himself as an adult and relieve himself of some of the ugliness in the world.

What is the next book that you are working on, and when can your fans expect it to be out?

I just finished a futuristic short story about A.I. It defines comfort as a prison. It was inspired by seeing people turning to A.I. to make their lives easier. Slowly watching society turn to A.I. for the “comfort”, or an easy way to create “art”, or even book a vacation, haunts me deeply because I do not see it ending well. I also am fleshing out a graphic novel that is most definitely horror. I can’t predict when the next book will be released because creating stories in this form takes many people, but being a graphic novelist has been my passion for many decades, and I will never stop creating.

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