https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/blog daily 0.75 2026-07-12 https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/blog/mfa-programs-that-are-chill-with-speculative-fiction monthly 0.5 2026-07-12 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/1627602366640-207DJQ1M4K5HZZ7VF0TY/N05613_9.jpg News - MFA Programs that are Chill with Speculative Fiction - Make it stand out John Martin, The Great Day of His Wrath 1851–3, Tate https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/blog/a-finalist-for-crafts-2020-elements-contest monthly 0.5 2021-12-16 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/1605492491253-3MFHVM1HWCGNY6JN696L/elements-prize_2020_winners.jpg News - Finalist for CRAFT’s 2020 Elements Contest https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/blog/shortlisted-for-the-masters-reviews-2020-flash-fiction-contest monthly 0.5 2021-12-16 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/1598051282985-U6JUEP0CUV9ISJNP98V7/flash2020_SHORTLIST.jpg News - Shortlisted for The Masters Review’s 2020 Flash Fiction Contest https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/blog/still-moving-everything-over-from-my-old-site monthly 0.5 2020-07-31 https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/blog/category/News monthly 0.5 https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/blog/category/List monthly 0.5 https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/blog/tag/Horror monthly 0.5 https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/blog/tag/MFA monthly 0.5 https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/blog/tag/Literary+Magazines monthly 0.5 https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/blog/tag/Gothic monthly 0.5 https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/blog/tag/Flash+Fiction monthly 0.5 https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/blog/tag/Science+Fiction monthly 0.5 https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/blog/tag/The+Masters+Review monthly 0.5 https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/blog/tag/Short+Story monthly 0.5 https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/blog/tag/Creative+Writing monthly 0.5 https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/blog/tag/Domestic+Fabulism monthly 0.5 https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/blog/tag/Speculative+Fiction monthly 0.5 https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/blog/tag/Magical+Realism monthly 0.5 https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/blog/tag/CRAFT monthly 0.5 https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/blog/tag/Girl+in+the+Forest+of+Fear monthly 0.5 https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/blog/tag/Fantasy monthly 0.5 https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/blog/tag/Fairy+Tale monthly 0.5 https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/blog/tag/Slipstream monthly 0.5 https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/blog/tag/List monthly 0.5 https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/blog/tag/Contest monthly 0.5 https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/blog/tag/Fiction monthly 0.5 https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/about daily 0.75 2026-07-20 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/1585522847572-Y1SQAFOZBYHQAYH7KAU2/StephGrossmanHeadshot.jpg Steph Grossman - Steph Grossman’s writing has appeared in Joyland, Paste Magazine, The Masters Review, CRAFT, Salamander, and elsewhere. From 2011-2019, she worked in NYC publishing (Simon & Schuster; Penguin Random House; JSTOR). She now lives in the Austin area, where she works as an Assistant Professor of Instruction in the English Department at Texas State University. She also holds an MFA in creative writing from Texas State. A devotee of literary horror, mystery, and the gothic, she co-hosts the Basement Girls horror podcast with poet Bianca Pérez. She lives with her husband, their toddler, and their nine-year-old kitten, Oryx. She’s currently at work on a novel and a few other things. https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/home daily 1.0 2022-02-15 https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/basement-girls daily 0.75 2024-01-07 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/1595911343673-FAP5KSOVGI229I26PFGB/Basement%2BGirls.jpg Basement Girls Podcast https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/752abceb-dab2-4fde-9e18-6a50688a8841/BasementGirlsHeadshot.jpg Basement Girls Podcast - Co-Hosts Bianca Pérez & Steph Grossman https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/fbe19c21-dec0-4c02-b9c8-e416ed478f93/The-Santa-Clause-3.jpg Basement Girls Podcast - Episode 13: The Santa Clause as Body Horror with Peter Counter Never put on a dead man's clothes! Author and culture critic Peter Counter joins Steph Grossman and Bianca Pérez in the basement to discuss how The Santa Clause (1994), starring Tim Allen, is actually a movie about body horror, possession, and the sublime. It's basically a yuletide Hereditary (in fact, we're pretty sure Santa Claus knows Paiman...). https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/4a269eb2-a215-4420-b72a-713cfe221c77/TheHalloweenTree3.jpg Basement Girls Podcast - Episode 12: Ray Bradbury’s The Halloween Tree Book & Movie Review With Bianca Pérez out for her Hallowedding (!), WIRED Geek's Guide to the Galaxy podcast host David Barr Kirtley joins Steph Grossman in the basement to discuss the '90s animated Halloween classic, The Halloween Tree (1993), as well as the Ray Bradbury 1972 novella of the same name that inspired it. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/ae761151-8a88-4a97-91c6-aac7db671cd2/MV5BNWMxYTYzYWQtNGZmNy00MTg5LTk1N2MtNzQ5NjQxYjQ5NTJhXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTQxNzMzNDI%40._V1_.jpg Basement Girls Podcast - Episode 11: Summer Camp Horror: Friday the 13th It ain't fall 'til September 23rd y'all. Hold onto sweet, scary summer for one more day by joining your resident basement girls in their discussion about the summer camp horror film that started it all: the original Friday the 13th. Topics include a brief history of summer camp, the "whodunnit" aspect of the film, cozy horror, feminist subtext, final girls, motherhood, and how the famous "ch ch ch ah ah ah" sound is actually a remix of "kill kill kill ma ma ma" (really! That's what it says!). P. S. Steph deeply hates Neddy. We also answer questions and comments from a few listeners who also happen to be authors: William Jensen, Brendan Deneen, and Amy Gentry. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/84d6ff55-be61-49ad-968b-31dc362d9d7e/BasementGirls-Ep10-FoundFootagePt2-Unfriended.png Basement Girls Podcast - Episode 10: Found Footage Horror, Part 2: Modern Found Footage Screenlife = Screamlife. Steph Grossman and Bianca Pérez discuss how recent innovations in the found footage genre tap into our internet addictions and round-the-clock "screenlife" to create uniquely contemporary horror stories. “Screamlife” FF films discussed include: Megan is Missing (2011), Unfriended (2015), Unfriended: Dark Web (2018), Searching (2018), Host (2020), and *sigh* Dashcam (2022). Also discussed: modern found footage in the form of online urban legends (Slenderman), Youtube videos (Marble Hornets and The Backrooms), and iconic found footage-y posts found on Twitter ("Dear David") and Reddit ("Pen Pal"). https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/13122181-aae3-457e-b42d-4c1c6c02070e/Spencer1.jpg Basement Girls Podcast - Episode 9: Spencer Movie Review with Adam D. Jameson “Is she eating the g*dd*mn pearls?!” Author and film critic Adam D. Jameson joins Steph Grossman and Bianca Pérez to discuss the gothic elements of Pablo Larraín's princess Diana movie Spencer (2021) that make it a Christmas horror film. SPENCER was written by Steven Knight, and stars Kristen Stewart, Timothy Spall, Sean Harris, and Sally Hawkins. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/d95ee760-ec12-45a5-bbbf-12c96ce5ee18/FoundFootageImage1-BlairWitch-Heather.jpg Basement Girls Podcast - Episode 8: Found Footage Horror, Part 1: The History of the Genre My cam shake brings all the fans to the yard. Steph Grossman and Bianca Pérez present the history of found footage, a beloved sub-genre of horror, starting with its literary origins, and then discussing the earliest and most iconic FF horror films: David Holzman’s Diary (1967), Cannibal Holocaust (1980), The McPherson Tape (1989), The Blair Witch Project (1999), The Last Broadcast (1998), and Paranormal Activity (2007). https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/23e07e66-914a-4dd5-aa15-7c388974709e/BasementGirls-Suspiria+%281%29.png Basement Girls Podcast - Episode 7: The Two Suspiria’s Dance until you die/get pretzeled. Literature scholar Bryce Jeter joins Steph Grossman and Bianca Pérez to discuss the similarities and differences between Dario Argento’s original Suspiria (1977) and Luca Guadagnino’s remake of it (2018), written by David Kajganich, and starring Dakota Johnson and Tilda Swinton (who goes above and beyond—as always—playing not one but two witches, and also an 82-year-old man. What a pro!). https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/1628137075133-RLJU56KXQ75UVNOYPCG2/IMG_6034+2.jpg Basement Girls Podcast - Episode 6: Interview with Alex Amick, Editor of The Wind In our first-ever My Favorite Horror interview, Alex Amick, editor of The Wind, joins us to discuss breaking into the movie industry via film editing, what it was like on the set of The Wind (hint: it involved creepy night horses…), and her favorite horror, The Witch. The Wind (which we reviewed in Episode 1) is a western horror film set on the American frontier, where a woman is left to deal with the darkness of the prairie—and her own mind. The Wind is now streaming on Netflix. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/1596165894133-O4I6PBOCAJ4U18OSZOOR/PatreonLogoBlackBackground.png Basement Girls Podcast - Support us on Patreon Contribute $1.00 or more per month. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/1596412957579-NR1UYJMOBU52YZU41WEF/Anchor.jpg Basement Girls Podcast - Support us on Anchor Contribute $.99 cents or more per month. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/1609447488954-75ER4PPHZLQBO33C0KQS/spotify-logo-png-7053.png Basement Girls Podcast - Inspired by horror. We’ve curated a playlist of songs that have either appeared in horror films we’ve watched, or that give off a deep, dark vibe. Featuring: Phoebe Bridgers. Pixies. Songs from A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night. And more. https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/publications daily 0.75 2026-07-20 https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/publications/fiction monthly 0.5 2021-12-16 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/fb7b8b3f-8751-4c6f-ac24-8f5c5d777a9b/SalamanderCover.jpeg Publications - Fiction & Humor - Red on Yellow Fall/Winter 2023-2024 | Salamander —Shortlisted for The Masters Review’s 2020 Flash Fiction Contest —Longlisted for Fractured Lit’s 2023 Flash Fiction OPEN contest Appearing in Issue #57 of Salamander, “Red on Yellow” is a flash fiction story about the day a 10-year-old girl goes missing in the Texas desert. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/e2bb4425-2131-44ce-8f36-3757991e3eba/Writing+-+Likeness+-+Joyland+-+Illustration+-+mirror-copy-1392x1392.png Publications - Fiction & Humor - Likeness May 9, 2023 | Joyland A horror-tinged, fairy tale-esque short story told in vignettes that trace the evolution of one woman’s relationship with mirrors throughout her life. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/1613171223768-LKMPJZQN73VOPTG7M0AA/Girl+in+the+Forest+of+Fear+-+Blog.jpg Publications - Fiction & Humor - Girl in the Forest of Fear February 12, 2021 | CRAFT —Finalist in the 2020 CRAFT Elements Contest A short story about creepy soccer coaches, Halloween corn mazes, coming of age, and tea. Read my Author’s Note on the story https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/1592860550700-LC96HG3DUYR5GY8PVUYS/steph-grossman.jpg Publications - Fiction & Humor - Stull June 6, 2019 | Joyland A short story about a boy and his mom who investigate an abandoned graveyard together. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/1592860833010-KPLQLLEP4N74ALNSZIW1/image-asset.jpeg Publications - Fiction & Humor - Poison September 26, 2012 | Fiction365 A “campus” short story. —Also won first place in Marist College’s 2011 school-wide fiction contest https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/1592860509065-A1UBH0P3GK8UNYAACD15/RobotButt.jpg Publications - Fiction & Humor - In Light of COVID-19, This Will Be a Doggy Style-ONLY Conference March 17, 2020 | Robot Butt https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/1592860894629-80EBQ3CG81T3LOOOZBQF/hobart-logo.png Publications - Fiction & Humor - An Open Letter to the Guy Who Asked Me For Directions February 7, 2018 | Hobart —Reprinted in Gold Wake Live’s Summer Fun 2019 Issue https://stephgrossman.squarespace.com/publications/nonfiction monthly 0.5 2026-07-20 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/483bafbf-a78e-46ec-9d81-be77cf8a5267/RufiThorpe-Interview.JPG Publications - Nonfiction - A Conversation with Rufi Thorpe July 9, 2026 | The Missouri Review I interviews acclaimed author Rufi Thorpe about her Clark Prize award-winning novel Margo’s Got Money Troubles and her experience as an executive producer on the TV adaptation starring Elle Fanning. We also talk about her research into Onlyfans, CPS, pro-wrestling, and addiction for the book, as well as breaking out on a later novel, and being told early-on by her MFA professor that she’d “never be a writer.” https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/1603127015156-4X4W8XJ9WLSBZT4YN446/Monster+She+Wrote_72dpi.jpg Publications - Nonfiction - The Future of Dark Fiction is Bright: On Monster, She Wrote by Lisa Kröger and Melanie R. Anderson Sept. 24, 2020 | Porter House Review A review of Monster She Wrote by Lisa Kröger and Melanie R. Anderson, where I consider the horror genre’s comeback in today’s publishing landscape, and discover that I am a New Goth. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/1589208012367-OQH1XI5KK20L9F36A986/IMG_0140.jpg Publications - Nonfiction - Rereading Stephen King on the Eve of My MFA May 11, 2020 | The Masters Review An essay about how reading Stephen King's On Writing when I was 16 made me realize I was a writer. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/1588575736441-YB7UANXNU7LPBGMYGR0A/Paperbacks%2Bfrom%2BHell_72dpi_foil.jpg Publications - Nonfiction - Grady Hendrix on Paperbacks From Hell and Why Horror is a Women’s Genre October 30, 2017 | Bookish I interviewed New York Times bestselling author Grady Hendrix about his Bram Stoker award-winning book Paperbacks From Hell. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/1588576603303-J4MWU1VOOSI9NO2PBQLU/8f3WmyLz_400x400.png Publications - Nonfiction - The Best Goosebumps TV Show Episodes Streaming on Netflix October 28, 2017 | Hypable I watched every episode of Goosebumps available on Netflix and chose the top ten. —Featured as main story on front page of Hypable for Halloween [October 31, 2017] https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/1588577921372-DKGW3Y5SJ2OE6FYDFV5H/NmzCv8tu_400x400.jpg Publications - Nonfiction - Why I Spent My Summer Vacation Dressed Like Hermione Granger June 2, 2017 | Paste Magazine A feature article about my entry into the extremely geeky world of Harry Potter LARPing. —I appeared on WIRED’s Geek’s Guide to the Galaxy Podcast to discuss my experience at the LARP. [June 10, 2017] https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/1588583461097-3TJVAMFY46KVPXOVZIVH/amagnumig_10311535863-768x797.jpg Publications - Nonfiction - Being There: Robert Capa’s Photographs of Omaha Beach on D-Day June 2, 2017 | Artstor My article on how photographer Robert Capa stormed the beaches of Normandy with Allied forces, risking his life to capture D-Day on camera. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e7ea7f64af8886c64523ad7/1588584984379-H1HOZNX5DYXGUFYJG327/awss35953_35953_29380517.jpg Publications - Nonfiction - William Blake: The Original Fan Artist April 13, 2017 | Artstor My article where I argue that Romantic poet and artist William Blake’s illustrations of scenes from Shakespeare, Dante, and Milton were early versions of “fan art.” —Received an honorable mention in the 87th Annual Writer’s Digest Writing Competition in the Magazine Feature Article Category [August 2018]