Latinx Heritage in Horror Month 2024: An Interview with Luis Medina
What inspired you to start writing?
I have been writing since I was a kid, but it wasn’t until I went to Acting School in New York that I had to write a one-act play. That assignment focused on how to create compelling characters and situations, and how to tell a story. Years later, play/scriptwriting shifted to short horror stories for anthologies.
Tell us about your work in 25 words or less.
Stories with horror elements that explore what it means to be human.
What was it about the horror genre that drew you to it?
I grew up watching monster movies like Dracula, The Wolf Man, The Creature from the Black Lagoon, Godzilla, and slasher movies- I’m a child of the 80’s what can I say? Initially, it was these movie monsters that drew me in. Scary Stories To Tell in the Dark and Goosebumps fueled my literary imagination during my formative years. As a teen, I also took on novels from Stephen King and Anne Rice. The monsters got my foot in the door, but the character relationships and rich storytelling are what inspired my love of horror.
Do you make a conscious effort to include LatinX characters and/or themes in your writing and if so, what do you want to portray?
I think it’s more of a subconscious effort. I do however make a conscious effort to leave character descriptions to a minimum to let the reader fill in the blanks with what they imagine the character to look like, which will hopefully mirror themselves. That being said, I have written characters with LatinX names who do not speak Spanish, while other characters who aren’t obvious LatinX people do speak Spanish. I’ve written scenes dealing with Hispanic folklore such as curanderos, El Ojo, La Llorona, and El Cucuy. These elements are not in every story I write, but when they show up, I think it’s important to weave them into the story organically and to share with the reader the various stories and superstitions that many of us who identify as LatinX may have grown up with. When Spanish is written, I don’t provide translations as it can derail the flow of the scene. I trust that either the reader understands what is written, or will inspire them to research the translation.
What has writing horror taught you about the world and yourself?
From the perspective of an audience, horror teaches me that no matter how dire a situation may be, there is always hope. Hope can empower us, and fuels a strength that may be dormant inside. Conversely, when the ending is bleak, horror makes us face our greatest fear- that no matter how hard we fight or how much effort we put into leading a good life- death comes for us all.
As for what horror has taught me about myself- it has been my therapy. Writing horror helps me relieve stress in my life, whether it be going through the death of a loved one or the daily stresses of work and life, writing out my nightmares and fantasies, and being able to weave them into a horror story has been vital to my sanity… considering most of my stories involve murder or monsters ripping people to shreds- I’m not sure what that says about me? – lol.
How have you seen the horror genre change over the years? And how do you think it will continue to evolve?
Horror is an interesting genre because it revolves around death- the one and only thing that frightens most of us- either fear of death or how we will die. I think the genre takes inspiration from the world around us. Terrorist attacks, pandemics, viruses, illnesses, etc. provide the biggest inspiration for new horrors and nightmares. Occasionally, an author will write about a nightmare they had, but horror evolves as the world around us changes. Literary and cinema horror also influence each other. When the populace dictates slashers or supernatural popular, then that is what most horror leans towards. If it shifts towards ghosts and hauntings, then horror steers in that direction. Horror is very much in touch with humanity, so ultimately, I think authors will always write about what is socially relevant.
Time to daydream: what are some aspects of LatinX history or culture – stories from your childhood, historical events, etc — that you really want our genre to tackle? (Whether or not you’re the one to tackle them!)
Obviously, La Llorona is a major story that I think every LatinX person grew up with. There are some films that tackle this story, but I think it would be interesting to see more stories that progress the legend past the origin story. I am of New Mexican descent, so I would love to see more stories that involved curanderos/ curanderas, not only as mystical characters but normalizing them as regular people and family members. El Chupacabra, El Cucuy, and El Tenton– an evil spirit/ doppelganger of a family member who would spirit you away through touch, I think would make fascinating stories. I grew up hearing stories from my mother and grandmother about these spirits, and while I have some ideas on how to write them into stories, I think other authors creating stories would help to promote our culture and folklore to the masses.
Who are some of your favorite LatinX characters in horror?
I honestly cannot recount any LatinX character from literary stories I’ve read, but I think there is a wider variety in cinema horror. Benicio DelToro as the Wolfman, Salma Hayek as Santanico Pandemonium, John Leguizamo in various horror roles, and Antonio Banderas as Armand. Guillermo del Toro has been a personal hero of mine as he is a filmmaker and novelist, creating wonderful stories that feature LatinX characters. Cronos, The Devil’s Backbone, and Pan’s Labyrinth shares his unique vision of horror and integrates stories with a LatinX twist.
Who are some LatinX horror authors you recommend our audience check out?
Guillermo del Toro is the only one that comes to mind. The Strain trilogy was a great and refreshing take on the vampire legend. Treating vampirism as a blood disease was interesting, perhaps it was an idea that spilled over from when he directed Blade II. While the horror lives up to what you’d expect from him, the characters are so rich and the storylines beautifully woven together, that by the time the climax presents itself, you are torn between sadness and triumph over what the main characters achieve.
What is one piece of advice you would give horror authors today?
Character is integral. If you are telling a story but do not allow your audience to get to know the character(s), then they won’t care once the horror begins. While a monster without a motive is scary, it doesn’t always work. The stakes need to be present in order to move the story forward. If the dialogue, scene, chapter, etc. doesn’t move the story forward, then it is just fluff and should be cut. The story should dictate the horror, not the other way around.
What is one piece of craft advice you’ve gotten that has really worked for you? Alternatively, what’s one that you’ve happily rejected?
When writing your first draft, you should write anything and everything that comes to mind. Do not worry about pacing, do not worry about repetition or descriptive words or even complete passages. Write down the ugliest version as quickly as you can. If writing was equivalent to art, then the first draft is just throwing paint on a canvas or putting clay on a block. The re-writing process is where you begin to edit and fine-tune. Re-writing is where the art begins to take on its shape. Hence the term- writing is re-writing.
The piece of advice I was given that I don’t necessarily follow is- start with action/ deaths right away. While I understand wanting to hook your audience from the get-go if you always begin with action or death, you risk becoming predictable and you will lose your audience. Yes, you need to find a way to hook your audience, but if you are writing horror, then you need to earn the dread, you need to build the horror, and then and only then can you unleash the nightmare while keeping your audience engaged.
And to the LatinX writers out there who are just getting started, what advice would you give them?
Write. Write whatever comes to mind. Do not censor yourself, or feel that just because you are LatinX everything needs to pertain to the culture and every character needs to speak Spanish. The title LatinX represents a wide array of us throughout the country. Our backgrounds are diverse, our upbringings and experiences are diverse. We are 1st generation LatinX Americans and 2nd generation. Some speak Spanish, others do not. Some are lighter in complexion than others. The stories you write should reflect that diversity. But more importantly, tell the stories YOU want to tell. If it’s not a story you want to read, it’s not a story worth telling.
Luis Medina is originally from California but moved to New York City after High School to study acting at The American Academy of Dramatic Arts, and The Atlantic Theater Company Acting School. He remained in the city for ten years acting and directing professionally for theater. In October 2021 he was the winner of the AutoCrit writing competition, which produced All Sales Are Final for the L.A.-based podcast Haunting Season during their Halloween weekend special. He had one story picked up by Salvage Realms. All Sales Are Final which was published in the horror anthology: Symphony of the Damned- Vol.1 in April 2022. Another story of his, The Ghost Up the Stairs was picked up by Wicked Shadow Press and published in February 2023 in their horror anthology: Flash of the Dead. He also just completed his own anthology of original stories entitled: Nyctophobia and Other Terrors and is currently working on his first novel. On top of writing, he is a professional film and theater actor, most recently completing work on a film, an educational video, and print work for a power tool company. His day job involves working in I.T. for a power company.
