An Interview with Bladen Mercutio

Bladen is a scientist by day, rock star by night, writer in between, and someone who enjoys running only in dreams. A graduate in atmospheric sciences, they chase fire and tell the future for a day job. In addition to their work with the Southwest Gothic series, Bladen has written and recorded several varieties of sonic entertainment, including an accompanying soundtrack to the novels. A Desert Southwest native, they do their best writing in the ghost towns of the Texas borderland between the real and the unreal. Also a witch, the second law of thermodynamics is their magical ethos, and they try to live every day as though it were Halloween. Bladen likes cats, honey mustard, yelling at clouds while drinking scotchy-scotch, and is composed almost entirely of jokes.

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Who/what made you want to write? Was there a particular person, or particular writers/works/art forms that influenced you?

When I was a kid and they asked me what I was going to be when I grew up, I said an author. I give a lot of credit for that initiative to my mom, who was an investigative journalist for a bulk of her life.

I loved Steinbeck, Huxley, and Dostoevsky growing up, and I think many of those influences still appear in my writing today. The nostalgic mood of the settings I write about is still attributed to my love for Steinbeck’s descriptions in Cannery Row. Huxley’s dystopian and widened perceptions shaped my world-building. Dostoevsky is just so blunt and yet manages to still be profound.

“I am a sick man. I am a spiteful man. I am an unattractive man. I believe my liver is diseased.”

Like, damn, bro. Who else could set the mood so effectively with an opening line? I think I chase his ability to make the reader go ‘what the hell?’ at least once with every book I write.

What other professions have you worked in? What’s something about you that your readers wouldn’t know?

Before starting on Southwest Gothic, I spent time in comics, releasing two graphic novels. There was a good chunk of the 2010s where I was a touring and session musician out of Nashville. I play fourteen instruments and lent my musical contributions to nearly one hundred projects during that time, and was given the opportunity to tour overseas, playing concerts and shows in Europe and the Middle East.

Being a musician full-time was fun and all, but man, it’s hard to sleep on a bus barreling through the Appalachians at eighty miles per hour. Eventually, I decided to retire from the sexy, dirty, rock and roll lifestyle and cash in on my degree, which is in atmospheric science. My current job is in meteorology, specifically fire weather. I have the greatest honor of being regularly dispatched to wildfires to work alongside the coolest people in the world to serve communities in crisis.

Tell us the story of your book’s title. Was it easy to find, or did it take forever?

Southwest Gothic was the easiest title I’ve ever had. I came into the project knowing that’s what it would hail as. That said, it did go through a few iterations. Originally, the first book in the series was West Texas Gothic, and it was intended to be a standalone novel. Then, the second book happened, set primarily in New Mexico, so I titled it New Mexico Gothic. I honestly thought the third one would be the last one, so I’d round it out with another state-oriented name, but that ended up not being the case. Now the series is simply Southwest Gothic, with the individual books being named after their villains.

What part of publishing your book made it feel real for the first time?

I finished the first book, Harvesting Angel of the Plains, back in early 2020 and then sat on it for years. That’s something I’ve honestly never done. When my graphic novels were finished, they immediately went to editing and then went to press. Back then, I ran a small press collective and we published a handful of rad comic creators. It was a ton of work, but amazing to be a part of so many titles from start to finish. While I knew I was perfectly capable of publishing this book on my own, I wanted something different for it. So I sent it far and wide to countless agents. Unfortunately, most writers know exactly how that goes: you get nothing back but form letter rejections. Eventually, I decided it wasn’t worth my time to keep beating a dead horse and not allowing the work to be in the hands of the people who would enjoy it. I was a publisher. I have the chops. And doing it this way, I had the control. So I made the most beautiful book I could, with painted edges, spot UV on the cover and dust jacket, and moody formatting on the inside. It’s something I likely wouldn’t have been able to do had I gotten the book traditionally published. After a wonderfully successful BackerKit campaign, the print run was completely funded, and a limited edition hardcover was created.

When I unwrapped that book and held it in my hands, I knew an era had started for something truly awesome. It may not reach the same amount of people as an indie published series, but there’s no telling whether traditional publishing would’ve done it any better. It’s out there being spooky, waiting for its readers, and looking damn good doing it.

If your book had a soundtrack, what are some songs that would be on it?

Southwest Gothic actually does have its own soundtrack. As a professional multi-instrumentalist, I was able to compose, perform, and record an entire orchestra’s worth of accompaniment to the series, which is being released as a multi-volume counterpart. It can be sampled and purchased on my composer Bandcamp page.

Those tunes do well to encompass the sonic undertones of the film score, but there are definitely a few mainstream songs that set the vibe too. Each character has their own playlist mood, from Macarthy’s indie pop to Remy’s synth rock, Jonas’ piano pop, and Vincent’s cumbia rap. The songs cast a wide berth with contributions from Maribou State, GUNSHIP, Tori Amos, and Mexican Institute of Sound, to name a few, which all do a great job of setting the southwest and spooky tone of the series.

What’s one thing you hope sticks with readers after they finish your book?

The overarching question throughout the series is “What is it you believe?” The characters are all beautifully flawed, and they all undergo tremendous growth through this book and the ones that follow. We think we know what it is we believe, but each character realizes that to survive, they must adapt. Walt Whitman said it best in Leaves of Grass: “. . . dismiss whatever insults your own soul, and your very flesh shall be a great poem.” The full quote is worth reading, but the snippet gets the point across.

What was the most rewarding/meaningful part of publishing your book?

I spent so long writing these books, which can be a very lonely process, and it’s amazing to have the first one out in the world. Watching others fall in love with my favorite band of witchy idiots has been the absolute best. I’ve loved getting messages from people letting me know what coven they’re in and seeing them wear that badge with pride. The curiosities I get about where the world goes beyond book one give me absolute life. Hearing people say Macarthy’s wisdom grounds them…that Remy’s their favorite jerk…Jonas is their favorite slut…and that they’re still not sure if they should hate or like Vincent…that’s worth all the countless days and sleepless nights I spent writing when I should probably have been doing laundry or the dishes.

What creative projects are you currently working on?

With book two on the horizon for late 2026, I’m starting to script out and delve into the art for its trailer. The second volume of the soundtrack is in the last stages of its recording process, so that’ll be released sometime next year as well. I just started the first draft of the final book in the series, and I have many trips planned to my haunt near Big Bend to visit ghosts and set the vibe.

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