We were lucky to catch up with C.R. Langille recently and have shared our conversation below.

C.R., appreciate you joining us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

I first knew I aspired to be a writer in 6th grade. I wasn’t a huge fan of reading up to that point, but I ended up checking out the book, The Crystal Shard by R.A. Salvatore and devoured it. After that, I tore through all of his other books, and just about every Forgotten Realms and Dragonlance book I could get my hands on. I knew shortly after that, that I wanted to do the same thing. I wanted to be a writer and create stories that would give other people the same kind of joy and emotions I felt reading.
I started writing short stories shortly after that. As my taste in books changed, so did my writing. Fast-forward 30+ years to today and I’m amazed and humbled at how far I’ve come.

Fun fact, I got to meet R.A. Salvatore at FanX a while back. I told him he inspired me to become an author and that my first book had just been released. It was a surreal moment.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I am a horror author by trade. I love the genre, the emotions it can create, and the general vibe of it all. I write across a wide spectrum of horror, but my absolute favorite horror sub-genre is cosmic horror. A lot of my stories and books are considered cosmic horror, and I like playing with the tropes of forbidden knowledge, ancient entities so grand and powerful that the human race is insignificant to them, and just the idea that there are things out there we aren’t meant to know.

My latest book, Branches & Bone: The Collected Tales of Evelyn Horn is a cosmic horror western set in the late 1800’s and is about a Pinkerton (Evelyn) who comes to the Utah Territory looking for a fellow Pinkerton who has gone missing. Evelyn is one of my favorite characters I’ve ever written about.

I spent 20 years in the military, but when I retired, I decided to form Timber Ghost Press, which is a small publishing press that specializes in horror. I’ve worked with a lot of different small presses over the years and some have been magnificent to work with, others, not so much. I wanted to create a press that I would love to work with. I wanted to create a place that would be well-known throughout the horror community, and be well respected. I think I’ve done that, as I constantly run into folks at writing events who say they have heard of Timber Ghost and the good things we are doing.

At Timber Ghost Press, we strive to be transparent with our authors and customers, create quality publications, and support noble causes/charities such as The Trevor Project, Planned Parenthood, the National Center for Trans Equality, Global Rights for Women, and Ladies of Horror Fiction.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

I believe that society can best support artists and creatives by consuming their media. Buy books, especially from local book stores. Leave reviews. Tell your friends about a book that you liked, or a piece of art that caught your eye. Also, tell your favorite authors/artists/creatives that you liked what they made. A statement like that can really brighten our day and keep us going if we’re feeling down or overwhelmed.

Also, support authors/artists/creatives that don’t use AI to generate their work. AI is becoming a bigger issue and not everyone understands why it is a problem. AI has its place, but that place isn’t in storytelling or creating art. If we’re not careful, it will replace a lot of folks who are already struggling.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

For me, the most rewarding aspect of being an author is creating a story and seeing people’s positive reactions to it. If I write something and publish it and someone puts out a review, or hits me up at a conference and tells me how a certain scene scared them, or how they just fell in love with a certain character, then I know I’m doing it right and it keeps me going.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://link.heropost.io/crlangille
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/crlangille
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/crlangillewriter
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/crlangille/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/crlangille
• Other: https://www.timberghostpress

Image Credits

Jennifer Langille
C.R. Langille
The Legendarium Book Store
Timber Ghost Press