Meet Co-Travelers H. A. Titus and C.R. Langille
Part 2 | Getting to know the authors featured in "Take Me There"
Welcome to an exclusive first look at our upcoming anthology. Take Me There: A Speculative Anthology of Travel is a collection of short stories featuring characters on the move. Whether transcending to a higher plane of existence, exploring dangerous forests, or terraforming hostile planets, this collection has it all.
In case you missed our previous introductions:
Now, let’s learn more about the stories and authors featured in this book!
The Devouring Ocean by H. A. Titus is a Fantasy Horror story featuring magical spells, naval explorers, and a long-lost library. Written as a fantasy version of a ‘found footage’ horror film, we piece together the horrific fate of a group of scholars and sailors who discover a lost island and its unfortunate history. H. A. Titus simultaneously paints a world of vibrant beauty and visceral pain with this tale of ineluctable retribution.
The Oath by C.R. Langille is a Dark Fantasy Horror story featuring necromancers, dark powers, and haunting voices from beyond the grave. The story follows a powerful necromancer named Tarl Tel-ath, who strives to bring back his late wife, Greta. The problem: Tarl promised her he would do no such thing. C.R. Langille masterfully reveals that sometimes the best intentions in life lead us into the darkest parts of death.
If you could go anywhere in the world, where would it be and why?
H. A. Titus: I would love to visit Zhangjiajie in the Hunan province of China. If you've seen pictures of tall, pillar-like mountains, that's Zhangjiajie. (They also inspired a lot of the terrain in the Avatar movies.) It's just such a unique, beautiful part of the world.
C.R. Langille: I would go to Japan. I've always wanted to go there since I was little. My grandmother is from there, and growing up, I always had a fascination with the country.
Would you travel to the setting of your story? Why or why not?
C.R. Langille: Absolutely not. The world my story is set in is a very dangerous place. Not sure how long I'd last there, lol.
H. A. Titus: Absolutely not! Despite much of my work tending towards the horror end of fantasy, I'm actually a wimp. I do not think I'd do well.
You get 24 hours to live in any fictional world/universe. Which one is it?
H. A. Titus: There are plenty, but one of my first picks would have to be Scadriel, the setting of Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn books. I think it would be very cool to experience a world covered in mists, and if I could experience mistling powers, even better! I'm always drawn to worlds that have interesting or unique magic systems.
C.R. Langille: I'd go to Middle Earth or somewhere similar. It would be super fascinating to see all the grand structures, fauna, and ruins of a place like that.
If you only had eight words to describe your story, what would they be?
C.R. Langille: Necromancy, Demons, Fantasy, Cave, Magic, Oath, Love, Greed
H. A. Titus: Magic, Eerie, Unknown, Found-footage, Academic, Ocean, Archeology, Exploration
Describe your writing style and what readers can expect from you in the future.
C.R. Langille: I like to think of my writing as cinematic. I grew up watching a lot of movies, so when I write, I always keep that in mind. I just (well, not just, about six months ago or more) finished up a novel that I'm shopping around. It's basically Alone meets Cabin in the Woods and is about a group of survival experts who think they are competing on a reality TV show for money when, in fact, they are just a tribute to an ancient creature that awakens every so often and is always hungry. Now I'm working on adapting a short story of mine into a novel. It's an homage to the old 80s/90s sci-fi horror. Think, “rural town getting invaded by aliens.”
H. A. Titus: I always have a certain vibe or mood I want readers to feel. And since I (almost always) write fantasy, I try to heavily lean into the 'awe and wonder' aspect of the genre, especially when it comes to fantastical creatures and magic.
For the future? I plan to keep bringing serials and short stories to Substack. There's one serial I'm planning to launch in late summer that I'm especially excited about—it's called Knights of the Faerie Queens and revolves around two loyal fey knights who set out from their kingdoms in order to slay a monster.
How has travel informed or influenced your writing?
H. A. Titus: My husband loves traveling, but I'm definitely a bit more of a homebody. However, I always end up being inspired when we travel, whether it’s because of the scenery, the local legends, or just the fact that I'm somewhere outside of my normal routine. And because I grew up on epic fantasy like The Lord of the Rings, sometimes I can't resist a good travel montage in my work—traveling gives me ideas for the scenery to describe for those.
C.R. Langille: Coming from a military background, I have done a lot of travel, and not only has it helped inform my worldview, but it has definitely helped my writing. If you don't get out, travel, and experience other cultures, you'll never really know what else is out there. People are amazing, and seeing what they build, hold dear, and value and how it can be similar to my own values or different is an amazing thing. I try to capture that when I'm writing, even if it is a fantasy or alien culture.
Describe your all-time favorite vacation or holiday trip. Tell us what made it so special.
C.R. Langille: Nearly 20 years ago, my wife and I went on a cruise that hit several spots in Mexico. It was pretty amazing. It was my first (and so far only) time on a cruise, and it was one of our first big vacations together. I distinctly remember seeing the ruins at Tulum. In one of the ports, I wanted to take my wife to an authentic Mexican restaurant. I think we had to walk more than a mile to finally get away from all the touristy places.
H. A. Titus: My husband and I recently took our kids to Orlando. We went to Disney World, visited a manatee sanctuary, and toured the Kennedy Space Center—all of which sounds like a typical American vacation. What made it special was how nostalgic it was for my husband. His family often went to visit grandparents who lived in Florida when he was a kid, so he enjoyed being able to show us a lot of the stuff they all did together.
What is your favorite aspect of your story? What inspired you to write it?
H. A. Titus: I've always been intrigued by the idea of found-footage movies and TV shows and wanted to try incorporating the same feel into a story. As to what inspired me...I spent ten years living on the shores of Lake Superior, which is absolutely gorgeous and also extremely terrifying because of the depth, the freezing cold water, and the high winds in the fall. Add that to a life-long fear of deep water, and a summer spent fascinated by ocean mythology, and one of the things that eventually came out of that was The Devouring Ocean.
C.R. Langille: I initially wrote my story for an anthology that a few of my Graduate Alumni were going to put together. Obviously, it never panned out, but I thought it would be cool to write about a culture where necromancy and life after death were ingrained in their very existence. What would that look like? What would happen if your significant other didn't want to come back after they died? My story is about love on the surface, but really it is about selfishness and greed.
What would you tell your readers before being launched in an exploratory spacecraft?
H. A. Titus: I hope you enjoy the Take Me There anthology! And if you come check out my other short stories or serials, please drop me a note and let me know which ones were your favorites!
C.R. Langille: Kindness is cheap. People won't remember everything you did or accomplished, but they will remember how you made them feel. Be kind, rewind.
About the Authors
C.R. Langille – USA
C.R. Langille spent many a Saturday afternoon watching monster movies with her mom. It wasn't long before she started crafting nightmares to share with her readers. She is a retired, disabled veteran with a deep love for weird and creepy tales. This prompted her to form Timber Ghost Press in January of 2021. She is an affiliate member of the Horror Writers Association, the DEI Chair for the League of Utah Writers, and she received her MFA: Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University in 2014. Follow her here: https://link.heropost.io/crlangille
H. A. Titus – MO, USA
H. A. Titus can usually be found with her nose in a book or spinning storyworlds in her head. She loves mythology, Dungeons & Dragons, and a good cup of tea. She lives in the Midwest with her weather-mage husband and two super-villain sons (don’t mind the robotic dinosaurs, they’re friendly) who enjoy dragging her into real-life adventures. Some claim she is half-fae, but that’s just an unfounded rumor. She shares short stories and serialized fiction at hatitus.substack.com.
Thanks for reading. We hope you enjoyed this sneak peek into the stories in our upcoming anthology. Feel free to join us in the comments below!
Take Me There: A Speculative Anthology of Travel
Embark on a journey across the realms of genre with "Take Me There: A Speculative Anthology of Travel," a specially curated anthology of 24 stories from emerging, visionary indie authors from around the world. Each tale is a gateway into the human experience, a portal leading readers into new and undiscovered territory. From interplanetary space travel to the deep recesses of the mind, this collection takes readers on adventures spanning time and space and everything in between.
Featuring stories by
Brian Reindel, Brylle Gaviola, Christopher Deliso, Clarice Sanchez Meneses, C.R. Langille, Daniel W. Davison, Devon Field, Galia Ignatius, H. A. Titus, Iris Shaw, J.M. Elliott, Jack Massa, James Castor, Joe Gold, LB Waltz, M.S. Arthadian, Melissa Rose Rogers, Olivia St. Lewis, Pamela Urfer, Randall Hayes, Shaina Read, Shannon Aaron Stephens, Victor D. Sandiego, Winston Malone
Great interviews! Nice to get a glimpse of the humans behind the stories.
Great to watch this anthology take shape, and to hear about the other contributors and their writing! Looking forward to reading the result.