Tell Me I'm Worthless

"Tell Me I’m Worthless tells the story of two friends, Alice and Ila, in the aftermath of a night spent together in a haunted house. Alice is transgender, and Ila is a ‘gender critical’ feminist , so it’s a complicated relationship that gives the reader lots to think about. Why are, or were, they friends? What happened? Who do I sympathise with and why? But at its core is this terrifying house, Albion, which is essentially haunted or possessed by a particular brand of British fascism . The book is a very timely exploration of the social fabric of the United Kingdom today, but it’s also a very visceral, unforgiving straight-up horror novel, and this is a winning combo for me. Yes, I think the horror genre is the perfect playground to work through all sorts of political, social, and personal ‘issues’. Horror is, or can be, a very open and flexible genre. Anything can happen, from the kind of violence we see every day on the news and in our personal lives, right through to the completely unimaginable and impossible. It’s a breeding ground for metaphor. Absorbed is about a woman who physically absorbs her boyfriend into her own body. It’s about the complexities of a long-term relationship, of losing your individual identity and melding with another person. The body horror-ish concept felt perfect for this story because the love the main character feels for her partner and the fear of losing him is so visceral. These aren’t emotions she can readily access and work through; they’re in her bones. Get the weekly Five Books newsletter I want to add that I don’t believe creators working in the horror genre have any responsibility to incorporate social and political themes into their work, and I don’t think readers need to constantly worry about ‘getting’ the subtext. Works of horror can stir up all kinds of feelings and emotions, and I think it’s enough just to let those feelings wash over us, take what we can, and enjoy the ride."