Get ready to learn more about the book Monstersona in this discussion with sapphic author Chloe Spencer.
Join us for an exclusive peek behind the scenes as we quiz Chloe Spencer about Monstersona, writing, reading, and more.
This book is part of the Maine category in the 2026 IHS Reading Challenge.
Why did you write Monstersona?
I wrote this book primarily for survivors of sexual assault and traumatic events. I am a disabled author with PTSD, and a lot of my experiences have shaped this novel into what it is. I wanted to write something that would help other survivors feel less alone.
Who is your favorite character in the book?
My favorite character in the book is definitely Aspen – she is so smart, is a total cinephile, and she’s overcome so much. She doesn’t make herself smaller or more palatable in the narrative, she challenges herself and others. Her journey is very interesting and in some ways, parallels my own.
What inspired the idea for Monstersona?
Monstersona tackles a lot of issues regarding bodily autonomy – the idea that women feel that their bodies do not belong to them, because of patriarchal systems. It also is in part inspired by medical trauma that I’ve experienced, and coming to terms with PTSD, the idea that I feel like a monster, a stranger in my own body, and how I navigated that experience.
What part of Monstersona was the most fun to write?
Definitely the scene at the diner, where Aspen’s given a guitar and she gets to cover “Walk the Line.” She sings that song specifically to Riley. It’s a romantic and touching moment in the book, one of the rare moments of safety and intimacy they get to share.
How did you come up with the title for your book?
I was thinking about conjunctions like Fursona, the idea that you have another part of your identity. One of the characters (spoiler alert) can turn into a giant monster… she has a Monster-sona.
What is your writing process like?
So Monstersona was written when I was definitely more of a pantser – I was still in graduate school when I started the first draft of Monstersona, so while I was familiar with story structures with Save the Cat, I hadn’t yet incorporated that into writing books, only film scripts. Now I literally can’t write without a beat sheet, and I honestly love it. My beat sheet doesn’t have to be super detailed, but I need to know where I’m going in order to avoid getting “stuck” or getting writer’s block. Since I’ve switched to being more of a plotter, I experience writer’s block far less. Most of the time my writer’s block comes from not having enough time to write, rather than not knowing what I want to do!
Where do you usually write, and what do you need in your writing space to help you stay focused?
I usually write at home! I am terrible, terrible, terrible with writing out in public. I have been told that I’m a fast and aggressive typer so people think I’m just writing really angry emails all the time. Being at home is best because it gives me an opportunity to cuddle with my cats, and I also like to turn on lo-fi hip hop music or fantasy music to help me focus.
If you could spend a day with another popular author, whom would you choose?
I love everything that Tiffany D. Jackson writes. She’s brilliant, comes up with the most exciting plot twists, and all of her books tackle important subjects. She’s also not afraid to go to some really dark places, as explored in her debut, Allegedly. She is also a filmmaker. I think there’s so much that I could learn for her and a day wouldn’t be enough!
Do you have a pet who helps/hinders your typing?
Coconut, age 7, is desperate for scratches. He will often climb onto my lap and force my laptop off it, then sit there and chirp at me until I give him scratches. And then if I happen to stop, he will keep chirping at me until I scratch him again. The word “No” doesn’t exist in his vocabulary. He is a diva through and through.
What is the most valuable piece of advice you’ve been given about writing, and by whom?
There are two pieces of advice that I’ve gotten, actually, that have been most helpful to me in my career as a writer, and both were from when I was in undergrad. I went to Rose City Comic Con and Brian Michael Bendis was on a panel, and he said, “”Finish what you start. Look at it. Do better next time.” Another time, I met Dante Basco (yes, Zuko himself!) and he gave a lecture, and he said, “Product is the only shot you got for making it.”
When I was in my early 20s, I was so new to the world that everything seemed nerve-racking. Putting my work out there? Terrifying. What if it wasn’t good enough? But what a lot of people don’t understand is that no project you put together is perfect. Art isn’t based in perfection, it’s based on making a finished result. You can’t have a writing career if you sit around, scared of what people are going to think all the time. Your only shot that you have is putting out what you can, and improving on it. There are projects I made in my early 20s that I’ve fallen out of love with, but I put them out there, and that’s what counts. You can’t approach every work like it’s going to be your magnum opus, and you’ll only have one shot to say something important – that’s WAY too much pressure to put on yourself. But what you can do is try, try, try again.
What has helped or hindered you most when writing a book?
Word counts! Oh my gosh if there’s something that’s going to trip me up, it’s word counts. I tend to write a lot of novellas because I don’t have to worry about word counts as much, so it’s very freeing. But when I have to write a novel? Ugh! I have to make sure it gets to 70K, MINIMUM. So even though I have a beat sheet ready and I know what direction the story is going in, I’m often looking for places where I can add in more detail, extending sentences where it may not be necessary… makes the writing process longer, and sometimes makes the editing process very messy.
What author in your genre do you most admire, and why?
At this time, the author I admire most is Emma E. Murray. She writes a lot of sapphic horror, and tackles some extremely dark subjects with nuance, grace, and intrigue. For anyone that’s looking to get into darker fiction, I highly recommend Crushing Snails or Shoot Me in the Face on a Beautiful Day. When the Devil, published with Shortwave Books, is also a great short read.
Have you ever cried when writing an emotional scene?
I haven’t done as much writing this year, but I have been working on a yet-unannounced sapphic slasher. Without getting into too much detail, this book focuses on a place in a rural small town that’s really important to its queer community, and how that place has served as a beacon of hope for queer people. There’s this powerful metaphor about how this space is legacy, and no matter how much homophobes try to hurt us, we build our spaces and communities with love, and that’s stronger than fear.
Have you ever hated one of your characters?
Oh my gosh there are SO many characters that I hate. I think most people know that I hate Margo, the love interest/antagonist in Mewing, my body horror novella with Shortwave Books. Margo is a supermodel and nepo-baby who runs an entire house of influencers, all of whom are blond and were forced to dye their hair accordingly or otherwise get extensions. She’s an emotionally manipulative woman in her 30s who preys upon young women who don’t know any better. She is also incredibly immature, but because she’s glamorous, rich, and gorgeous, she can hide some of these attributes better. She is also someone who upholds tenets of white supremacy through how she controls the women in the house, which is interestingly not something that a lot of people point out about the book, but is very present. Margo is a symbol for everything that’s wrong with the beauty and fashion industry in the modern era. So yes, I hate her, and I absolutely want other people to hate her, too.
What type of books do you enjoy reading the most?
Inside of me are two wolves: one which loves horror novels, and the other that loves rom-coms. It should be no surprise that I love writing horror romance and dark romance. I love horror for its energy and action, for the ways in which the genre challenges me to think about the world, and to put me in a “safe” environment to be afraid… in a roundabout way, I think reading horror helps me feel braver. But I need the romcoms because horror can be bleak! I view romcoms as a form of escapism.
What books did you grow up reading?
I grew up reading the Warrior Cats series, and the Chronicles of Ancient Darkness by Michelle Paver. I also read a lot of books by Ruth White, who focused on what life is like in Appalachia pre-1980s, and her books were quite dark. Occasionally, I also read Tamora Pierce. I think what these writers–or books–all have in common is that they tackled challenging subject matter. They pushed characters to their limits, and in many of these worlds, no one was safe. A lot of the books were about characters that were fighting tooth and nail to rise above some pretty dark and disturbing circumstances. I think that a lot of that darkness, but also that hope and that tenacious fighting spirit, is in my works as well.
What books have you read more than once in your life?
I don’t tend to re-read novels very often, but I will constantly re-read graphic novels when I get the chance. Terry Moore’s Strangers in Paradise is a huge influence on my work, and every time I read it, it feels like coming home and getting a hug from a longtime friend. What I also love is that every time I read it, I discover something new that I haven’t noticed before, either in the artwork itself or in the dynamics between the characters, which means that it’s not the same reading experience every time. Every panel is gorgeous and so carefully planned, and often times there are small jokes, motifs, or details in the background that can add more weight to the scene.
