When Rena Mason moved from the desert heat of Las Vegas to the overcast landscape of Olympia in 2008, it was more than a change of scenery. It was a shift in atmosphere.
The dark skies, damp air and deep rows of creaking evergreens certainly set the mood for the then-up-and-coming horror author.
“There is this type of chill here,” Mason said. “It lends itself to being spooky, and it sparked my creativity.”
The Pacific Northwest was different, the perfect place to write her first novel, “The Evolutionist.” The book delves into the fear of being different, which is one of humanity’s most basic fears, according to Mason. It’s a theme that resonates deeply with readers and reflects her own fears and anxieties.
“The main character is a metaphor for the fear of ‘the other,’ ” she said. “It’s important for me that readers pick up on that — the fear of something different. So many of us have that same fear.”
Her deep dive into horror stems from the peculiar comfort she’s always found in the genre. As a child growing up in the 1980s, horror wasn’t something that kept her up at night; it was something she embraced. It evokes memories of when she lived near Lake Champlain, where the fog once seemed to carry the booming sound of cannon fire next to a Revolutionary War-era cemetery. Or, while other families gathered for game nights and barbecues, her family huddled around the TV, where renting stacks of low-budget horror flicks and B-movie slashers by the dozen became a family ritual — laughing, screaming, and experiencing the fun of facing fear together.
“To me, it’s an experience. Even today, I will read or watch horror when I’m dealing with sad feelings because it makes me feel better about my own life.”
After finding early success with novels and short stories in the horror genre, Mason, who also worked as a registered nurse, moved back to Nevada to be close to her son while he went to college. She made some other stops across the country, but no place gave her the inspiration like the PNW. In 2018, she and her husband bought a secluded home in Longbranch. And for a few weeks each month, from her quiet, sometimes mist-enshrouded vantage point overlooking Nisqually Reach, Mason spins tales that resonate with primal fears. The fog that comes in gives her the same creeps it did back near Lake Champlain. Instead of cannon fire, she hears the sounds of unseen voices — half-heard conversations that seem to come from nowhere and everywhere at the same time.
She uses those types of feelings in her writing. For Mason, horror is personal. It’s not about the grotesque or the extreme; it’s about finding the fear in what’s familiar. As a scuba diver with a penchant for cave diving, she’s encountered real-life moments that give readers chills. “Claustrophobia freaks people out,” she said. “I’ve had to take off my scuba gear and drag it behind me to fit through tight spaces; the sound of my tank scraping against rocks. That scares people more than any monster I could create.”
Mason will often take something as common as being stuck in traffic, or running late to a business meeting, fears that, while seemingly mundane, become all-consuming to the point that, “You think about it so much they begin to haunt your dreams.”
Her ability to take these real-world experiences and twist them into nightmares on the page is a testament to her skill. It’s no wonder that Mason has become a three-time winner of the prestigious Bram Stoker Award, an honor named after the author of Dracula and given to the very best in horror writing. Her first novel, “The Evolutionist,” was a surprise hit that earned Mason her first Bram Stoker Award.
Ultimately, Mason’s stories center on broken characters who must undergo some kind of transformation, sometimes of heart and sometimes of fate. “I love when their personalities get confronted by something unexpected and they’re forced to change if they want to survive.”
Her work is marked not only by her willingness to embrace fear but also by her ability to evolve as a writer. Unlike the slasher films of her childhood, which thrived on blood and gore, Mason’s stories take a more cerebral approach. She’s part of the new wave of horror writers who create “elevated horror” — a genre that focuses more on psychological tension than cheap jump scares.
“People like smart, well-constructed horror these days,” she said, pointing to films like “Parasite” and the rise of Asian horror as examples. “It’s about building tension, playing with people’s perceptions.”
Mason co-wrote a screenplay called “Rippers” back in 2015. Her most recent work is a short story called ‘Three Sisters Stars’ in “It was All a Bad Dream 2: Another Anthology of Bad Tropes Done Right.” She has more short horror stories slated to come out in 2025 and is looking at publishing her next novel soon.
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