Elliott Gish
Frequently Asked Questions
PLEASE NOTE: I am not famous, so no one actually asks me these questions.
When did you start writing?
When I was eight years old, I won a poetry contest at my local library with a poem that was an absolute ripoff of Jack Prelutsky (sorry, Jack). The high of reading said poem in front of an audience ruined me forever. From there I moved on to short stories and wrote several fantasy novels in my teens, all of them absolute ripoffs of Tamora Pierce (sorry, Tamora). Now I write things that are not ripoffs of anyone, as far as I know.
What kind of fiction do you write?
Most of my work can be broadly categorized as weird fiction, dark fantasy, fabulism, or horror. I also dip into historical fiction and science fiction from time to time.
What authors inspire you?
In no order at all: Kelly Link, Diana Wynne Jones, Shirley Jackson, Nalo Hopkinson, L.M. Montgomery, Carmen Maria Machado, Ursula K. LeGuin, Margaret Atwood, Caitlin R. Kiernan, Terry Pratchett, Kate Elliott, Helen Oyeyemi, Sarah Waters, Zadie Smith, Octavia E. Butler, John Ajvide Lindqvist, Emily St. John Mandel, Joanna Russ, Catherynne M. Valente, Neil Gaiman, Iain Reid, Nathan Ballingrud, Brian Evenson, Madeleine L’Engle, Junji Ito, Nick Hornby, Stephen Graham Jones, and Alice Walker. My influences are broad, and may not always be obvious in my body of work.
Have you written any novels?
Yes! My debut novel, Grey Dog, will be published in 2024 by ECW Press. I wrote several other novels before that one, but they are mostly about dragons and will never see the light of day.
I am interested in publishing your work. Can I email you about writing something for a journal or contest?
Yes, please do!
Where can I find your work?
If you click on the “Published Works” tab at the top of the site, you’ll see a list of my published fiction and non-fiction. A lot of it is online. I will likely also be putting some smaller, unpublished pieces up here.
Are you on social media?
I am! On Twitter I am @Elliott_Gish, and on Instagram I am @elliottgish.
Wow, you use a lot of exclamation points.
That’s not a question, but yes, I do!