A Slice of Cake With... Holly Rae Garcia

This week I am delighted to be having a slice of cake with author Holly Rae Garcia.

Holly is a corporate photographer by day. When she's not shooting or editing, she writes short stories and novels and runs a local book club. They meet at the pub. Okay, they're a wine club that talks about books. Semantics.

She's worn a lot of hats over the years, working as a waitress, bartender, 911 dispatcher, wedding photographer, lab technician, and a handful of soul-crushing roles at soul-crushing companies. But not her current role, that job is fantastic (in case her boss is reading this).

Holly loves the works of Edgar Allen Poe, Daniel Keyes, Richard Matheson, and Stephen King. Dark stories with sad endings are her jam. In her own writing, she leans towards the horror, sci-fi, and dystopian genres.

Close to the Bone Publishing released her debut novel, Come Join the Murder, on March 27th, 2020. Her novella coming out Oct 30th, 2020, The Easton Falls Massacre: Bigfoot's Revenge, was co-written with her husband and fellow author, Ryan Prentice Garcia.

Holly lives on the Texas Coast with her family and five dogs.

What kind of stories do you write?

I like to write dark stories with a revenge focus. Whether that’s psychological thrillers or horror books, I feel like revenge is one of those unique situations that can turn anyone into a killer. I love playing with the idea of the bad guy being good and the good guy being bad, and that we’re all capable of evil if pushed far enough. Contemporary, human-based books are my preference to read and write. I've dabbled a bit in fantasy for a few short stories, but I feel like real humans are the most interesting and horrific creature out there.

Can you describe your writing why?

To see if I could. I’ve been a reader for as long as I can remember, and I just wanted to see if I could write a book. Looking back now, it’s hilarious how naïve I was about the whole process. I’m obsessive by nature, and devoured everything I could find on the topic. But the best way to learn how to write a book… is to write a book, right? The learning curve was enormous and often painful but I was driven to see it through. I learned a lot about the craft, about what I liked to write, and cut my teeth on many short stories along the way. I would not recommend it to new writers, but it was my process and I wouldn’t change it for anything. As for why I continue to write, I’m addicted to creating worlds and people that weren’t there before and the idea of making readers feel something from my writing. Whether that’s disgust, fear, or joy, the idea that someone is imagining and feeling things from my words… it’s almost magic.

Share with us your favourite passage from the book you enjoyed writing the most

I’ll share the opening of Chapter 23 from Come Join the Murder. Some of my favorite sections would spoil it too much, but this section after a storm where water collects around a child’s swing and moss-hung trees tower above…is one of my favorite non-spoilers.

“Rebecca leaned against the edge of the sink in the kitchen and listened to the coffee maker putter as it dripped water through the grounds and into the pot below. Above the dirty dishes was a window to the back yard, framing a large oak tree that oversaw the small fenced in space. Gray moss fluttered as it floated from the branches. Underneath the hanging moss was a well-used swing set. The chains creaked as the swing slowly rocked; an invisible wind pushing an invisible child. Attached was a slide with water pooled at the bottom from last night’s storm, and a few branches from the tree had fallen around it. Rebecca grabbed a dishtowel and was halfway to the back door before realizing she didn’t need to wipe down the slide. There was no longer a soggy-bottomed boy to worry about.”

Tell us about your latest project

Come Join the Murder is one of those twisted, dark thrillers about a mom who is seeking revenge for her son’s death. Told in both her perspective and that of the killer, the chapters dance around each other until the two finally meet. As the novel progresses, we see Rebecca’s downward spiral as she obsesses over her mission.

I’m currently working with my husband on a Bigfoot horror novella tentatively titled Easton Falls Massacre. I love sci-fi or cryptozoological horror, even the cheesy B-story stuff. I realize Bigfoot is very different from Come Join the Murder, but the dark themes are prevalent throughout both.

What is your favourite cake?

I would have to say… anything free in the break room at work. Self-control goes out the window, especially if there’s still a corner piece with lots of icing available. To me, that’s the only point of cake, to be a vehicle for delicious icing. If I’m buying, my favorite would be Tres Leches. Which is funny, because that one doesn’t have any icing. 

That's a new one on me, Holly. I'll have to check it out. You can connect with Holly at her website hollyraegarcia.com/ and find her books on Amazon.

Join me next week when I have an extra slice of cake with Rob Edwards.

If you would like to take part in A Slice of Cake With... please fill in the form found here. I'd be delighted to have you.

You can also support my writing endeavours and buy me tea & cake - it's what makes the world go round!

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find out more about her books on her website clairebuss.co.uk. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop.