- What is your “day” job if you are not a full-time author?
I’m a project manager at a financial tech company, working on some enormous initiatives and partnerships. It’s a huge responsibility, and I’m glad it came into my life after I’d already established my writing routine. If I had to learn how to write now and build that muscle, I don’t think I could.
- If you wrote a book about your life what would the title be?
A Comedy of Horrors. I’ve been through a lot and experienced two lifetimes of crazy things, all while keeping my sense of humor intact. To me, just about everything has potential for a funny story. That’s probably the Irish storyteller in me.
- What is the hardest thing about being an author?
It is now and always will be finding the time to write. I have enough story ideas to keep me busy until the year 3050. There are always opportunities to get my words published, having been doing this for twenty years. Now that I’m in my fifties, it’s still carving out that time, and the added bonus of getting older, keeping my energy high…or highish. I’ve discovered that I write better at night. Morning writing is not something my brain is wired for. I’m fortunate that I work from home, so commute time is now writing time.
- What is the best thing about being an author?
Hearing from readers who tell you a book touched them in some way or got them through something. I don’t know about other writers, but I write to entertain. I want my books to take people away from the mundane and/or horrible things life throws our way. This might be why I don’t write about serial killers or true crime. I want my readers to escape from that stuff. When I wrote Creature, I included a character based on my wife and her deadly autoimmune ailments, one of them being Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, a very rare condition. The overwhelming feedback from people who have EDS and were brough to tears seeing what they face daily given space in a book was the high point of my career. I also wrote a children’s picture book that is used by schools and therapists to help young children through periods of grief. That was not the intention when I wrote it, but I’m happy as hell that it’s helping children.
- Have you ever been star struck by meeting one of your favorite authors? If so who was it?
I was on vacation in Maine and decided to get my haircut at the local barbershop one early morning. I headed into town, not even sure it would be open. As I walked in, Stephen King was walking out. As we passed by one another, I opened my mouth, but nothing came out. That was a first for me. I’m Irish and was bequeathed with the gift of gab. I proceeded to sit in the chair, a little dumbfounded and definitely star struck. Funny part was when the barber asked if I knew that guy. I said, “Yeah, I do.” He then said, “Great. Do you have his phone number?” Phone number? Oh yeah, I have Stephen King’s phone number. When I said I didn’t, he sighed and said, “That’s too bad. He accidentally grabbed my car keys on his way out. Guess I’ll call my wife to drop off my spare set.” It was such a Maine interaction. I love that town, and I’ll never forget that moment. And Stephen King, if you’re reading this, I promise to actually speak if we meet again.
- What book changed your life?
Right back to Stephen King. My father let me read Night Shift when I was way too young. Mind blown. I went from loving horror movies to loving horror books, and I’ve never looked back.
- What were some of your favorite books growing up?
Clive Barker’s Books of Blood were just a whole new level for me. I’d never read anything like them before. When I was around 11 I started reading Lovecraft and was totally absorbed. As a little kid, I read The Little Red Lighthouse and The Snowy Day about a jillion times. I had a huge set of Hardy Boys books, too, before graduating to horror and scifi. I remember seeking out anything written by Alan Dean Foster, as well as Conan books. And I can’t leave out the incredible Necroscope series by Brian Lumley. Just outstanding. Vampires done right.
- What books are currently in your to be read pile?
You mean TBR piles? I have a few books by Greig Beck (Primordia and Center of the Earth) who has become a new favorite. Short story collections by Wendell Berry. Cold Dead Cash by William Johnstone. Call After Midnight by Tess Gerritsen. Also Angel of Vengeance by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child, just to name a few. There’s always a variety on my TBR.
- Which do you prefer ebooks, print, or audio books?
I’m a print man, though I do have a Kindle with about 200 books loaded on it. And I do listen to audio books every now and then. Problem with audio is I get too distracted when I listen. Being a tactile person, I always prefer holding a book in my hands. If someone invents perfume that smells like a new book, I’m buying a bottle for my wife. LOL!
- If you could live inside the world of a book or series which world would it be and why?
Wow. That’s a good one. I’m in love with Craig Johnson’s Longmire series. I dig the whole modern day western vibe and have become an honorary citizen of Absoroka County, Wyoming. I’d love to be a tough guy on the right side of the law, assisting Longmire in solving crimes in hardscrabble country.
Hunter Shea
Genre: Horror
Publisher: Dark Wolf Books
Date of Publication: 5/27/2025
ISBN: 979-8895679234
ASIN: B0F3QTH2WK
Number of pages: 353
Word Count: 94K
Tagline: They See Everything. They Know Everything. And They Never Stop Watching…
Book Description:
When West Ridley’s family is forced to abandon New York for a crumbling Pennsylvania farmhouse, he expects misery—but nothing could prepare him for the horrors lurking within its walls. His father’s worsening illness, his mother’s exhaustion, and his grandfather’s drunken ramblings paint a bleak picture of their new reality. But it’s the eerie warnings and shadowed figures that truly unnerve him.
The words “WE SEE YOU” scrawled on his ceiling are just the beginning. Something sinister roams the halls at night, whispering through the silence, watching from the darkness. Grandpa Abraham swears the house is haunted. But the truth is far worse than restless spirits—because in this house, secrets are buried deep, and the Guardians will do anything to keep them hidden.
As the Ridleys unravel the mysteries of their new home, one thing becomes chillingly clear: escape is impossible. No matter where they go, the watchers remain.
A pulse-pounding horror thriller packed with eerie suspense, We Are Always Watching is perfect for fans of Stephen King, Paul Tremblay, and haunted house stories that linger long after the last page. Dare to uncover the truth? Order your copy today—before they see you first.
Excerpt:
His
foot crunched on a three-foot long stick. It was gnarled and thick, a perfect
walking stick and weed slasher. Whisking it back and forth, he swatted at the
wild vegeta tion, heading for the woodpile. It would make a great bonfire. He’d
never been to one in person, but he’d seen plenty in movies, especially the
flicks from the ’80s with teen campers in peril.
West
loved those movies, especially the parts where girls took off their shirts and
either went skinny dipping or had sex in the woods or an empty cabin. Actresses
took their clothes off a lot back then. He’d never even seen a naked boob until
Anthony showed him this strange astronaut/vampire flick called Lifeforce. The
girl vampire was totally naked, front and back, for half the movie. West’s mind
was blown. Horror, sci-fi, and his first naked woman. The constant
flip-flopping between arousal and terror left him both exhausted and too tired
to sleep that night.
Something
crashed through the brush to his left. He stopped, the hairs on the back of his
neck rising. There was a garbled growl. The sounds of two cats tussling gave
his nerves sweet relief. Not wanting to get in the middle of their fight, he
veered to the right.
Closing
in on the haphazard mound of wood, he realized what it was. The farm would have
had a barn at one time. It must have collapsed decades ago. The old walls and
floorboards were blighted by the sun and elements. The stench of decay grew
stronger with each step. Weeds grew through the gaps, some of them so thick,
they hid whole sections of the former barn. “I wonder what took you down,” he
said, lifting boards here and there with the tip of his sneaker. The ground
beneath it was black as pitch and had an odd smell, like something scorched and
long forgotten. Could have been a fire. Or maybe it was a storm, some hurricane
that sent people to their cellars. That is, if hurricanes happened in this part
of Pennsylvania.
Did
Grandpa Abraham’s place have a storm cellar? And what about a fruit cellar? He
heard about them all the time, especially when it came to places for crazed
killers to hide bodies. What was the point of a fruit cellar? Why stick your
fruit in some hole?
There
was sudden movement in the brush behind him. He waited for one of the cats to
slink into view. The sound didn’t repeat itself and no cats came out to play.
West felt the hairs stand up on the back of his neck. He had the very
uncomfortable feeling that he was being watched.
Out
here, surrounded by the tall grass, anyone could be lurking.
He
closed his eyes and saw the words on the ceiling over his bed. WE SEE YOU West
was suddenly very uncomfortable. All of this was so alien to him, he felt as if
he’d stepped into a place where he didn’t belong. “Time to go back inside.”
He
trudged away from the collapsed barn, unable to shake the feeling that there
were eyes at his back
Often called THE KING OF THE CRYPTIDS, Hunter Shea is a lifelong horror hound and NY Times bestselling author of over forty books of monstrous mayhem, ghostly frights, and newfound terrors. Some of his bestselling books include the critically acclaimed Creature, They Rise, and The Montauk Monster, the nostalgic Money Back Guaranteed and One Size Eats All series, and Jessica Backman’s Death in the Afterlife paranormal trilogy. His books have been found in the International Cryptozoology Museum and his face on the Discovery Channel where he talks about, well, monsters.
He can be heard and seen on his two long-running podcasts, Final Guys and Monster Men, both informed and humorous explorations of horror’s best – and worst – movies, books, and video games, as well as interviews with some of the hottest writers, directors and producers in the genre. You’ll also find exciting first-hand accounts of true-life hauntings, UFOs, cryptid encounters and more.
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