Justin Key

Oct 31, 2023 | lithub.com | Justin Key |Stephen King

Beasts and monsters are a staple in both written and cinematic horror. They transcend the confines of our boring realities and offer something new, foreign, and unique. But there’s something special about horror rooted in real life and real animals – the horror that taps into the rich elements already cooked up by mother nature. This frightening potential makes us wary of what could be transpiring right in our own backyards. And our imaginations do the rest.

Oct 28, 2023 | latimes.com | Justin Key

Why do we love Halloween? Is it that we all like to be scared? Or maybe it’s that we want to conquer our fears? I recently took my two young sons shopping for Halloween decorations. Halfway down an aisle stocked with hanging ghouls, misting cauldrons and spiders, my 8-year-old looked around, nervous and slightly trembling. The whole vibe was making him uneasy. Why was I surprised? We were surrounded by literal monsters, images that should scare any living person.

Oct 17, 2023 | nytimes.com | Stephen Kearse |Kelsey Norris |Justin Key

FictionKelsey Norris’s “House Gone Quiet” and Justin C. Key’s “The World Wasn’t Ready for You” share an interest in the ways that being bound shapes our understanding of freedom. Stephen Kearse is assistant editor at Spotlight P.A. and a contributing writer at The Nation. Oct. 17, 2023, 5:00 a.m. ETHOUSE GONE QUIET: Stories, by Kelsey NorrisTHE WORLD WASN’T READY FOR YOU: Stories, by Justin C.

Sep 19, 2023 | audible.com | Justin Key |John Scalzi |Tananarive Due |Michael Mammay

Black Mirror meets Get Out in this gripping story collection reminiscent of the work of Octavia E. Butler, which deftly blends science fiction, horror, and fantasy to examine issues of race, class, and prejudice—an electrifying, oftentimes heartbreaking debut from an extraordinary new voice. Justin C. Key has long been obsessed with monsters. Reading R. L. Stine’s Goosebumps as a kid, he imagined himself battling monsters and mayhem to a triumphant end.

Sep 17, 2023 | booksoup.com | Justin Key

Justin C. Key has long been obsessed with monsters. Reading R. L. Stine's Goosebumps as a kid, he imagined himself battling monsters and mayhem to a triumphant end. But when watching Scream 2, in which the movie's only Black couple is promptly killed off, he realized that the Black and Brown characters in his favorite genre were almost always the victim or villain--if they were portrayed at all.