Interview: "I Must Scream on Deaf Ears" Author Steve Russell
The questions facing us all during lockdown inspired Steve Russell to pen his short story. With the serenity of what was known behind him, his lead character in I Must Scream on Deaf Ears is haunted by the unfamiliar.
Why did you as a young person and do you today love monsters?
I've always loved monsters and monster stories. Doesn't matter what kind of monster—from kaiju, demons (both internal and external), spectral and aliens to classic Universal Monsters like Dracula, the Wolf Man, and the Creature from the Black Lagoon. Even more contemporary examples like in The Shape of Water. Even the creatures and bad guys in shows like Mighty Morphin Power Rangers! Yeah, monsters have always had a special place in my heart.
Something about the monster and the supernatural just piqued my interest from a young age. The existence of creatures just beyond our concept of understanding or reality is fantastic imagination fuel.
On a deeper level, the thematic exploration that juxtaposes mankind against the monster/spirit/demon/supernatural entity to further understand self and humanity has always elevated the genre in my eyes. Though, I guess that's not so true for Power Rangers.
Why did you choose a short story instead of a novella for this piece?
The story I wanted to tell in I Must Scream on Deaf Ears didn't need to be any longer than what it is. I wrote the short story after finishing the first draft of a recent manuscript and wanted a palette cleanser of sorts. I wanted the story to be drastically different from the post-societal narrative and quasi-horror elements in that story, so a supernatural creature story was naturally the way to go!
At the time, we were deep in the United Kingdom's third lockdown—arguably the toughest given the long, dark, cold winter days—and I was processing a lot of internal frustration, anger, and upset that had built up over the year and two previous lockdowns.
I Must Scream on Deaf Ears acted as a means for me to tackle the mental health issues that had been festering within me, and I knew it was important to tie it directly to that acute sensation of isolation and seemingly endless lockdown.
As someone who deals with anxiety and depression, adding in lockdown fatigue, frustration with the coronavirus response, heated disagreements with family, and, frankly, dealing with other people made for a heady emotional cocktail.
Everything was further heightened when I became a dad for the first time early on in the pandemic. All of these facets led to Seth Harper's story—one that had a clear, specific tale I wanted to share and themes I wanted to explore.
Is the story inspired by a real death of a friend or family member?
Although the story drew from my personal experiences with grief, isolation, and declining mental health, it isn't directly inspired from having lost anyone during the coronavirus pandemic.
That being said, it faithfully represents the state of the United Kingdom at that time. The research I did for the story allowed me to capture an accurate depiction of the funeral and wake process during lockdown, and I spoke with a few friends who had sadly lost people to COVID-19.
They were kind enough to share their experiences and anger with the unfairness of the situation and how surreal it all was. Their time and honesty was instrumental in providing a more grounded representation of loss and forced separation during lockdown.
This passage, for example, was heavily influenced by their stories:
"In some small way, he was grateful his dad had died before the worst of it hit. The bewildering lack of leadership, frequent stalling, and U-turn decision making in the weeks after led to delayed restrictions being imposed. Those decisions meant friends and loved ones couldn't come to his father's funeral and wake to pay their respects. Plans had been forced to change, friends and family offended and hurt, and people started to showcase the true quality of their character as the funeral had crept closer. Hosting an online call to say goodbye seemed so disconnected from what it was all meant to be, from what it was supposed to provide the dead…and those left behind."
Have you ever had a fear that is all in your mind? Most of your story doesn't have the monster in it.
Absolutely. My anxiety and depression tend to become the loud monsters I can't shut off, especially when they feed into each other like a world-class tag team!
I have a few good coping mechanisms I've learned over time that help to assuage any building anxiety, and in the pre-COVID times I taught and trained Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu multiple times a week, which always helped me find balance both physically and mentally.
Sadly, that's not been a realistic option for me for a year and change now. Something about unvaccinated, close-quarter grappling during a pandemic just didn't make sense to me.
Regarding the entity's presence in I Must Scream on Deaf Ears, I wanted to play with the concept of time and reality through Seth's perspective.
Was he dealing with reality or just the emotional shrapnel of guilt and isolation? Was it conjured from the spiral of drinking too much as he desperately searched for a new job and his bank account dwindled down to zero? Was what he saw 'real' in how we perceive reality or a creation borne out of a collective malaise and disregard in helping others?
Using the creature at specific moments to underline Seth's decline helped to emphasise his personal reality distortion. His world shifted and changed during a time when the world itself was shifting and changing, all while people were locked down and unable to visit one another. How could anything feel real when everything was, in so many ways, intangible and untouchable. Was any of it real?
Look at how Steven Spielberg utilised Bruce in Jaws. Sure, their situation saw creativity forced by necessity, but it created a gnawing sense of tension that always turned to stark horror when the shark did appear. Same can be said for the Xenomorph in Alien, which is why that “hug me” reveal in the vent scene still hits. That deprivation caused a heightened sense of the inevitable.
Your short story is very simple. Not many characters or places. Were you trying for a vintage feel?
I always knew this story was going to focus on a single character with minimal locations. Seth's dad lived in a one-bedroom flat on an English council estate, but no matter how much space a person may have, everything suddenly feels a lot more claustrophobic when you're not allowed to leave it.
The relative size of space, the repetition of days, the same four walls, and unexplained time loss all play into the core themes of I Must Scream on Deaf Ears and were purposeful choices.
When writing it, I looked to similar stories that revolved around paranoia, the concept of a mind fracturing, and the increasing sense of desperation that isolation can cause. Stories like The Lighthouse—which leaned into a lot of vintage narrative choices—and The Shining (both the novel and film), as well as Alfred Hitchcock's Rear Window and even Disturbia all helped me. Color out of Space (both the Nic Cage movie and the HP Lovecraft short) was also helpful in portraying how a mind fractures as a man descends into madness.
And then there's the movie that inspired me to tell this story in the first place: Rob Savage's Host. When I watched that movie, I realised a lockdown horror story would be the perfect personal outlet.
How is marketing a short story different than a novel or novella?
As an indie author, the marketing side of things isn't too different from any other indie marketing effort, whether it's a short film, movie, YouTube channel, podcast, or novel.
One thing stays the same, though: whatever it is, you've got to promote it with passion.
The biggest hurdle straight out the gate is generating initial awareness. The second step is turning that awareness into interest. I did that by leaning into the UK Government's initial coronavirus warning posters advertising "Hands. Face. Space."
Once I settled on the tagline of "Hands. Face. Haunted Space.", I knew that using the government poster as an inspiration for the cover was the way to go. It was instantly recognisable whilst ultimately subverting their expectations thanks to the changed text, iconography, and the use of "Haunted Space". As soon as that tagline came into existence, everything else clicked into place.
I then did a cover reveal before sharing posters and banners on Twitter and Instagram (where you can find me @stevetendo) and leaned into appropriate hashtags that would get as many eyes on them as possible.
The story launched on March 23, 2021—the one-year anniversary of the United Kingdom's first lockdown. It's since gone on to receive great reviews that highlight and praise its approach to mental health and how it portrays the grind of isolation during lockdown. A lot of people also love the ending.
Sharing reviews, re-sharing Instagram Stories that people tagged me in, and communicating with those who have enjoyed the story have become a big part of the post-release afterglow.
This time period is very hard for selling books. People rarely read. Their reading material is usually anything written by a reality TV personality. How do you work at selling your writing?
During November of last year, lockdown in the United Kingdom actually saw a spike in ebook and audiobook sales, which I guess can be attributed primarily to people being unable to get out to the movies, restaurants, bars and pubs, etc.
With so many being furloughed and suffering the privilege of boredom during the pandemic, it's not hard to believe that people turned to ebooks and audiobooks after exhausting Netflix and Amazon Prime Video. There's only so much time you can sink into staring at flickering images or just looking for something to watch, right? So it seems many finally turned to their towering TBR piles. It was either that or bake more banana bread a la Lockdown One.
There's no denying there's some frustration in grafting so hard on a personal story when so many flock to another ghost-written celebrity book, but, to be honest, I don't think that those who would be interested in those kinds of books would have any interest in I Must Scream on Deaf Ears or its message in the first place.
Conversely, those who enjoyed my story probably don't have much time for some reality TV star's tell-all. Different folks, different strokes. But who knows…there may be someone who exists within that very specific Venn diagram.
When it comes to selling the story itself, it's not too different to being in an indie band. You've got to adopt a brick-by-brick, fan-by-fan mentality. Find your audience, connect with them, and prepare to play the long game! Going too broad with a scattergun approach, believing your story is for everybody is one of the fastest ways to get it seen by nobody.
Leaning into the communities, fandoms, and hashtags that care about the ideas and themes in your story also helps. Whether it's leveraging real-life commentary (like #COVIDIOTS, #Lockdown, etc.) or highlighting the fact it's a #Horror #ShortStory, for example.
Niching the marketing should help it get seen by people who already have a natural interest in what you're creating. Participating in interviews like this is obviously also a great help in getting more eyes on I Must Scream on Deaf Ears and myself as an indie author, and I’m grateful for the opportunity.
Like I mentioned earlier, one of the most challenging aspects is just creating awareness—for the work and as a creator. Those that gravitate towards I Must Scream on Deaf Ears are probably going to be into horror, enjoy twisted tales of the supernatural, and are probably a bit more socially conscientious when it comes to putting the needs of the many ahead of the wants of the few.
They're also undoubtedly highly intelligent and incredibly good looking.
You can grab a copy of I Must Scream on Deaf Ears here:
Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/3rUyJRu
Amazon US: https://amzn.to/2P1WS9U
You can find more information at www.stevetendo.com, where I also blog about my mental health, pop culture, and writing journey. And if you sign up for my newsletter, you can even grab a free eBook set within my superhero universe—so if you’re a fan of Marvel, DC, the Marvel Cinematic Universe or the DCEU, be sure to check it out!
