Launch Interview: Sam K. Horton’s Gorse
INTERVIEW BY LESLIE S. LOWE
Sam K Horton is a Cornwall-based literary fantasy author. Trained as a costume designer working in film, theatre and opera, he moved into visual art, always working with narratives, texts and stories. He began writing short stories as part of a creative project to create a fictional island called Eythin in 2019 and became a novelist by accident. His debut, Gorse, is published on 12 September 2024 by Solaris.
How would you describe this book and its themes in a couple of sentences?
Gorse is a historical fantasy, set on the North Cornish moors and follows Nancy Bligh as she navigates family, grief and questions of faith in uncertain times. The book is rooted in the landscape of North Cornwall and Cornish folk tales.
What inspired you to start writing and what has been most rewarding about it?
I started writing as part of a visual arts project. I had created a fictional island (Eythin, eagle-eyed readers will find mention of it in Gorse!) and, after making it look real, I realised it needed stories. I wrote a series of myths and histories about the inhabitants and couldn’t stop, I enjoyed it far more than making artwork and I realised that I could get closer to what’s in my head with words than images. It was a revelation and a frustration that I didn’t start writing sooner!
What attracted you to writing historical fiction?
I love the details and odd facts you find when you dig into history. They remind us that people don’t really change that much. Our wants and needs are startlingly similar. It was a clear choice to make Gorse a historical novel. The moor is littered with history and fascinating stories, and I knew I had to make it a part of the story.
How have your experiences in theater, opera, and film assisted with writing this novel?
It definitely meant I lean into the theatrical! My background is costume, so I have spent far longer deciding on what people are wearing than strictly necessary. My folder of liturgical vestment reference is a hard drive on its own and I’m delighted the Reverend’s fur-lined tippet made it in!
Is this a stand-alone story or will there be addition volumes? What are you working on now? Is it connected to this one in any way?
This is book one of two, the sequel Ragwort is coming soon! Right now, I’m writing about Teddy Boys and Vampires, so I suppose I am continuing my habit of combining folklore and history! I think because folk tales have so much to tell us about how people think and what they want, just like history!
Does any part of your own life experiences connect with any character or events in the story? What difficulty did you have in writing it?
I grew up in a rural environment, on a sheep farm near the Welsh border. The feeling of small, isolated communities is one I understand, as is the struggle for identity and making sense of your place in the world.
Why the focus on this topic now? Is there a key historical event you found in researching that inspired you to write this story to portray a key message for now?
I think the themes are all still fairly current and will resonate with readers. I also wanted to shine a light on a part of Cornwall that’s often overlooked by visitors. The beaches and coast are lovely, but the moor has a magic all of its own.
How did you balance the research with writing the story? Did you get to do any interesting interviews for your research?
I tried to keep to the old adage that your research shouldn’t get too far ahead of your story but I can’t say I kept to it! Although we’re a long way removed in time from the setting of Gorse, a lot of land management and agricultural practices are still in full force. I talked to farmers about splitting stone and running sheep, and an archeoastronomer about neolithic sites. Lots of folk story swapping too!
How do you think the reader will connect with them?
I hope the information from those conversations helps make the world of Gorse a grounded, believable place. I think historical detail goes a long way towards that, but details taken from life always ring so much truer.
Every author has their own publishing journey. Tell me about yours.
I’ve been lucky enough to have quite a short journey. I wrote a book of short stories set on the island in 2020 that wasn’t picked up by an agent but came back with lots of encouragement. I wrote Gorse over the summer of 2021, queried my agent in January of 2022 and signed two weeks later. We had a rocky submission and weren’t certain it would sell. This was tough. I am so grateful to my agents, who turned what could have been a quite depressing phone call into one I came out of with an idea for a new book, outlines for others and a genuinely optimistic outlook. I don’t know how they did it. They’re magic. We sold Gorse to Solaris not long after and they have proved the perfect home. Forever grateful to my incisive editor, Amy, who has helped me polish Gorse and Ragwort until they shine.
What advice would you give to other aspiring historical writers?
Choose a time period you can really get stuck into. I firmly believe that great stories can come from any topic once you start reading into it but it’s an easier go of it if you’ve got an existing interest. Once you have that, make sure the history is working with your story, not against it. Your primary goal is a good story! And this might be controversial but a little (just the tiniest) bending of the truth might be needed for that to work. It’s fiction, after all.
What is the last great book you read? Why?
Private Rites, by Julia Armfield, which was spectacular. I think particularly from a world building point of view, it’s set in a not-too-distant future of rain and flooding and not once did her writing make me question any aspect of that reality. I would also mention The Death I Gave Him by Em X Liu, which is a sort of technological Hamlet/Locked room mystery. It’s tense and fascinating and full of new ideas. Sorry, that’s two!
HNS Sponsored Author Interviews are paid for by authors or their publishers. Interviews are commissioned by HNS.
