Welcome, Grace!

Grace R. Reynolds is an American speculative fiction writer. She was raised in New Jersey and graduated from Rutgers University. Having lived in seven states, she currently calls Maryland ‘home,’ where she writes dark fiction and poetry. In addition to her short fiction, she is the author of Lady of the House and two other collections of poetry. These include The Lies We Weave, which was nominated for the SFPA Elgin Awards, and Midnight Blue. Her debut novella, Neon Moon, will appear in the Spring of 2026 through Dark Matter Ink. Grace is an active member of the Horror Writers Association and the Science Fiction and Fantasy Poetry Association.

About New Moon

Darlene Boone is a survivor. For more than a year, she’s been bartending at the famous Teegarden Saloon, a honky tonk in the Texas Hill Country, while attempting to put her life back together in the wake of an abusive past. But when an axe-wielding maniac descends on The Teegarden during one of the bar’s busiest nights of the year, Darlene, along with everyone else in the crowded establishment, will have to put down their whiskeys and take up the nearest weapon if they’re to survive this unexpected night from hell. No one knows if they’ll make it out alive, least of all Darlene, but one thing’s for sure no matter what: Texans don’t go down without a fight.

Interview with Grace R. Reynolds

Tell us about yourself – what is something readers would be surprised to find out? 

I grew up in a haunted house! Both my mother and I saw and heard a spirit in our home many times. He wore boots, and had a heavy footstep. Sometimes, if we had neighbors visiting for coffee, they would see him walking in the hallways. He wasn’t malicious though, just a little mischievous. We got used to each other!

What is it about the Weird West genre that draws you to it? What are your favorite aspects or examples of this often-underappreciated genre?

Writing stories in a Western setting feels like uncharted territory. Couple that with the ‘weird’ and all the ‘rules’ go out the window. I like that the Weird West genre challenges norms in fiction. What happens when a giant death worm burrows out of the ground in the middle of a scene? Or when vampires infest a saloon? I like that monsters we know and love can be placed in settings we don’t usually associate them with. And as a writer, it’s a great way to expand your imagination and push your own boundaries.

What inspired you to write this story?

I love slasher films and books. A few years ago, I thought it might be funny to write a story about a famous country music singer, one with big hair and a chainsaw, as a final girl. What was first a joke became the serious idea to set a slasher in a honky tonk. Neon Moon has gone through quite a few versions, and locations, but once I settled on the Texas Hill Country as the setting the story felt natural. Like so much of the South West, the hill country feels like another planet. It’s beautiful and somewhat isolated. Strangers and natural elements can make it feel dangerous. If you were to meet an untimely end out there, I doubt anyone would hear your scream.

That is an awesome cover – what was the inspiration for it?

In Neon Moon, the Teegarden Saloon has a famous sign of a cowgirl riding a boot. We wanted to bring the horror and dread to the cover art, and artist Katerina Belikova came through with a terrifying and murderous cowgirl! It is a nod to both the saloon’s sign and the slasher genre. Not only did Katerina create a creepy skeleton cowgirl, but she also drew the saloon itself, introducing readers to the isolated setting of Neon Moon on both the front and back covers. 

If you were living in the Weird West, what kind of character would you be?

I think I would be some kind of anti-hero mutant sand spider. Have you seen those critters? Their venom can cause necrosis and hemorrhaging, and I think that’s kind of neat. There’s a ‘good for her’ story somewhere in that. I love spiders in general and think the world of them. They are nature’s architects! We need more spiders taking the reins in fiction. 

Are there any other writing projects you’re working on?

Too many! I recently finished drafting my next poetry collection Gods Always Eat Their Children and that is with my editor, now. I’ve dabbled in the first few chapters of a sequel to Neon Moon, just for fun, and I am also working on a Gothic dark fantasy novel, loosely based on my northern Croatian heritage.

What are you reading right now?

I am reading Entropy, a poetry collection released in January 2026 by Ravven White published through Curious Corvid Publishing. This collection focuses on the real life body horror of living with chronic illness and degenerative diseases such as multiple sclerosis. As someone who also lives with some of the same diagnoses, this collection cuts deep. If you or someone you know live with a chronic illness or debilitating disease, I highly recommend picking up this collection of poetry. 

Favorite weird west movie/book/comic/etc. and why?

Can I say Melinda West: Monster Gunslinger? I just loved your novel, it opened my eyes to just how much one can explore in the Weird West genre. Other than your novel, I’m actually fairly new to the Weird West genre! I didn’t realize how much I enjoy a good Western story, and am wading the waters of this terrifying sub genre. 

[Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it! – KC]

Anything else you’d like to add about writing or the Weird West (tips, etc.)?

I recommend taking a trip out west, if you can. I grew up on the East Coast, so the first time I visited Arizona in 2007 my whole world opened up. When I lived there in 2014, I was fortunate to explore the state and appreciate the dramatic changes in its topography. The same can be said for Texas, too. We lived in central Texas, which is predominately made up of Hill Country, and it is so very different from other regions of Texas such as the pine trees in the north or the desert out in the western part of the state.

The landscape of the Weird West is just as much of a character in your story as a gunslinger, the bartender at a saloon, or the monster just around the bend. Get to know your setting in every way that you can and find the beauty and dangers it has to offer.

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