Saratoga Schaefer (USA Today bestselling author of Serial Killer Support Group and TradWife) joins Rachel Redd on Talking Horror to explore why horror is the freest genre for the darkest truths, from the body horror of pregnancy to the real monster already on your phone screen.

In this episode, Saratoga and Rachel dive into:

• Seven unpublished books and a decade of rejection before getting the "yes"
• Why social media — not a demon in the well — is the true villain in TradWife
• The ethics of true crime fandom and why victims shouldn't be footnotes to their own stories
• How sobriety, poetry, and a childhood love of murderous nutcrackers shaped a horror career
• What queer and non-binary identity brings to horror's most essential questions of power and self
• A sneak peek at the upcoming A Thousand Monstrous Forms and The Last Time We Drowned

Whether you're a horror skeptic who loved The Hunger Games, an aspiring author surviving the rejection marathon, or a reader hungry for stories that challenge identity and power, this one is for you.

Timestamps:

00:00 — Why readers shouldn't eat while reading Saratoga's books

00:19 — Introducing Saratoga Schaeffer

01:31 — Horror, genre-blending, and the freedom of the "Dark Side"

03:26 — Breaking the stigma: Horror is for everyone

04:35 — Saratoga's origin story: From murderous nutcrackers to middle-grade horror

08:20 — Poetry, recovery, and inheriting an art form

11:23 — Writing as a safe space for identity and self-confidence

14:16 — Reaching back: Writing the books you needed in the past

17:57 — The "Unicorn" myth: Surviving a decade of rejection

19:41 — Behind the scenes of Serial Killer Support Group: Revisions and character deaths

22:55 — Knowing when to bend: Boundaries in the publishing industry

46:30 — TradWife: Social horror, body horror, and the monster on your screen

1:04:15 — Sneak peek at A Thousand Monstrous Forms

1:11:05 — Closing thoughts and cover reveal dates

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