Hi everyone, for today’s author interview, please welcome to the blog David Tocher!
David is an award-winning novelist of horror, and has also written various short stories and essays. You can find out about his latest work via Facebook, or visit his website: http://davidtocher.com
When did you realise you wanted to be a writer?
I think it started when I was about ten. I’d read a book by this one author I really admired, and something just clicked. I remember thinking, I want to be able to do that. How do they do that? That’s when I knew I wanted to be a writer.
What’s your latest project about?
My latest project is a horror-fantasy series that begins with Spider Seeds and continues with She Who Hunts: The Tale of T’lejhánka, a prequel chapbook illustrated by Andrea Acosta at Artem Ki Dharma. The illustrations are available to order here.
The series weaves together folklore, horror, and the supernatural, exploring what happens when light and darkness collide in British Columbia, Canada.
The sequel to Spider Seeds is Spider Sister, and I am currently writing it, hoping for a late 2025 release.
Where do you get your ideas from?
Everywhere. Dreams, conversations, history, even music. I’m fascinated by the thin line between the real and the imagined. Mostly classic literature and fairy tales, though. Stories are just retellings of other stories, with each author’s own personality, style, and viewpoint added to them. Sometimes an image or a phrase will stick with me for days, and I’ll start building a world around it. I’m always looking for meaning in ordinary things. The strange beauty hiding in the everyday.
Do you have any writing rituals?
Definitely. Jazz and coffee are my pre-flight checklist. I’ll cue up Dave Brubeck, Bill Evans, John Coltrane, Duke Ellington, or Herbie Hancock, pour a cup of coffee, and taxi out mentally. Before I take off for the day’s writing, I always go through yesterday’s pages, making small adjustments and checking the instruments, so to speak. That’s my runway roll. Once I’m lined up and cleared for takeoff, the words start moving. I aim for about six hundred words a day, three solid pages. If the air is smooth and the wind is right, I can keep flying a lot longer. It’s all about showing up, logging the hours, and staying in the air.
You can listen to my jazz writing playlist on Spotify here: David Tocher’s Jazz Playlist for Writing.
What do you hope readers will gain from reading your work?
I hope they’re transported. That they feel something real, like a good scare! Whether it’s fear, wonder, or empathy, I want my stories to linger a bit after the last page. If a reader looks up from my book and sees the world just a little differently, that’s success to me. And if they feel less alone, knowing that their thoughts and experiences aren’t solitary, then I’ve done my job as a storyteller.
Who are your favourite authors?
Charles Williams, William Shakespeare, Charles Dickens, Homer, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, William Wordsworth, Percy Bysshe Shelley, Horace Walpole, Sheridan Le Fanu, Bram Stoker, and Mary Shelley. Each in their own way taught me something about language, structure, and the emotional weight of story.
Do you have any dreams about where you’d like your writing career to go?
My novel Spider Seeds has won the Literary Titan Gold Book Award for Fiction, and it’s been optioned for film, so my writing career is already going where I want it to. Going forward, I’d like to keep achieving the same things, just on a bigger scale. I want to reach more readers, see more adaptations, and keep creating work that resonates.
What’s your favourite book/film/song?
My favourite novel is probably Great Expectations by Charles Dickens. In history, he’s probably the greatest novelist of all time. The Shakespeare of the novel for sure. My favourite film is probably Jaws, but Psycho is right there beside it. As for music, my favourite song is Revolution by Dick Gaughan. He’s a great Scottish folk singer and an amazing songwriter.
Do you have any hobbies or things you love to do?
I love film, literature, and anything that explores how stories are told. I’m also a baseball fan. The Red Sox are my favourite American League team, and the Chicago Cubs are my favourite National League team. When it comes to football, I root for the Buffalo Bills. Josh Allen all the way. And for the CFL, I’m a BC Lions fan. When I’m not writing or reading, I enjoy going for walks, listening to jazz, and letting my mind wander.
Are there any other fun facts you’d like to share about yourself or your writing?
All of my books are available on Audible.
At the end of the day, when it’s all said and done, as an author, I’m really just all about scaring the living hell out of you.
David’s full biography:
David Tocher (pronounced “talker”) is the award-winning, critically-acclaimed author of SPIDER SEEDS, SHE WHO HUNTS, and LETTERS FROM A DEAD WORLD, a chilling short story collection introduced by horror legend Nancy Kilpatrick. In July of 2025, Tocher received the Literary Titan Gold Book Award for his novel SPIDER SEEDS in the category of Fiction. His 2019 anthology CANADIAN DREADFUL was praised by FIRST BLOOD author David Morrell as “a harrowing tour of the northern landscape that will leave you both dazzled and terrified.” An accomplished editor, fiction writer, and essayist, Tocher’s short stories and essays have appeared alongside those of genre icons such as Kelley Armstrong, Tanith Lee, Richard Chizmar, Robin Furth, and Bev Vincent. New York Times bestselling author Stephen Spignesi (STEPHEN KING AMERICAN MASTER) describes Tocher as “a Wizard of Words and a Master of Literary Mayhem.”
Tocher is the author of two nonfiction essays featured in Bear Manor Media’s STEPHEN KING DOLLAR BABY SERIES by Anthony Northrup. He is credited as an Associate Producer in several independent horror films, including the remake of SPIDER BABY OR THE MADDEST STORY EVER TOLD, starring horror icons Ron Chaney and Brinke Stevens; BEYOND THE GATES OF HELL; and THE EDGE OF HER MIND, a celebrated anthology spotlighting women filmmakers and featuring genre veteran Lance Henriksen (ALIENS, NEAR DARK). He resides in the Okanagan region of British Columbia, Canada, where he continues to write, edit, and champion the power of story. When he’s not crafting fiction or revisiting literary classics, he can often be found watching B-movie horror films or cheering on a good baseball game.