"It was very daunting." Spring Horton Talks About Writing For The Big Screen, Inspirations, And Future Plans

One of the few limitations of being an international blogger who is based in Austria is that when I fancy an author interview my options are limited. Obviously, the chances of living anywhere near where an author lives are slim, and even so, there is money to consider. Time zones play a different role as well: when Spring Horton, who is based in the US of A, tells me that they are going to send me something back within the day, I automatically expect somewhere between 24 and 36 hours because that's how time zones work.

However, would money, climate, flight, and time not play a role, Spring and I would meet at one of their favourite places on this Earth: Edinburgh.

Their love affair with the area is quite obvious. While most authors place their story in their own area, they decided to go with the UK. So obviously my first question would by why? And what sparked the love for this area? 

"I knew Edinburgh and loved it. It’s still my favourite city." As it turns out the Atticus McLaren Mysteries had not been filmed there. Instead, they had been moved to the lovely area of York, even though Horton didn't really know anything about it but "what I did know were actors there, who knew other actors and so on. So York started out as a move of necessity, but I’m really glad we did as it’s a wonderful place."

Spring Horton is not only a bit of an Edinburgh fan, they are an indie author of various shorter books. Most notable are "The Atticus McLaren Mysteries", which consists of five parts. Their most recent work is the "The Veritas Guild" which was published on the 1st of August this year. They focus mostly on mystery and fantasy novel and always include neurodivergent or queer characters. In 2017 Horton started their own production and publishing company called "Divergence Productions."

It had been a step towards making "The Atticus McLaren Mysteries" cinematic. However, what inspired them to move the book series onto the big screen in the first place? 

"It was originally going to be a script. I pitched it to a few producers and Hollywood lawyers, but they were either not interested or wanted me to have already done a lot of the heavy lifting, like attaching actors," they explain. "I thought, if I’m going to do that, I might as well make it myself. Then my friend, Elizabeth Lockwood, who plays DI Barnes, said, just come to York and we’ll make it here."

While this sounds easy, I can't shake the feeling that this must have been daunting. It's a big project, and seems almost unattainable. Horton tends to agree "It was very daunting." They even admitted that there were multiple times when they thought it was folly and considered giving up. By then it had been too late to stick the head into the bucket and pretend nothing happened. "There were other people committed, and other people emotionally and monetarily invested. It’s amazing how many times you can budget the same project, and tighten the belts."

Any advice for authors in a similar situation? I wonder.

"My advice to anyone wanting to make an independent film is don’t be afraid to ask people for things. The worst that can happen is they say no, but you’d be surprised how many people are willing to believe in something once they see how much you believe and how motivated you are."

When the hard parts are done, the fun begins. When it comes to creating a series, Horton states that filming is the most fun part:

Yeah, you’re hungry, you’re tired, but everyone is there giving it their all, and if you’ve done it right, having a lot of fun."

They also admit admit to being a big fan of casting as well, because it's fun to see how other people interpret their characters. Then there is always the writing. As an author it has to be a fun part, and with five book to their name, I couldn't help but wonder which of the Atticus McLaren Mysteries is a personal favourite of Horton's:

The answer: Probably A Haunting in Edinburgh if it's about the mystery, but Dead & Buried takes the prize. "Not necessarily for the mystery [...] but because of the emotional growth of Atticus, the introduction of Drake, and it’s in Shetland. Anything with Shetland has me at Shetland."

Shetland is a picturesque Scottish Island in the North Sea, and looks like a perfect place to take a quiet holiday. But Horton's future plans don't seem to include any rest. "I’d love a holiday but the no rest of the weary things turned out to be a true saying."

Instead Horton works on a couple of fantasy novels, the first ("The Veritas Guild") had already been released and when we had this interview, they were working on part three. As far as Atticus is concerned, "the truth is, it’s changed enough that I probably couldn’t wrap my head around another book. We definitely have more episodes planned. We’re hoping to get started on number two in February with one loosely based on A Haunting in Edinburgh."

Related: Book Review: A Mystery With A Touch of The Supernatural: A Haunting in Edinburgh

When it comes to TV-shows, I couldn't help but notice that Horton is fond Good Omens as well. Since I am also familiar with fandom culture and fanfic, I began to wonder if they take inspiration from other works, or if it influences their work as well. 

Horton is not shy in admitting that this happens. "I take a lot of inspiration from other works, and people. I think most people who know me know that I use faceclaims (to use the old roleplaying term)." That is when you model your original character's looks after a real person, often an actor. "I will sometimes lend writing styles to my work too." 

In fact, this goes so far that they have to be careful what they read while writing a novel so that it doesn't seep too much into the book. In terms of filming, Horton states that they hadn't borrowed anything directly from films or directors ... "but I’m sure I will down the road." 

One thing that delights me about Horton's work is how they always include diverse characters. While other books or shows may have their Token Gay Character or none at all, it seems that Horton is exactly the opposite: everyone is queer! And what a delightful change this is, but maybe if you're looking really hard you might find the Token Straight Character. 

"I think it’s important for people to see themselves in entertainment, especially those who never really have before. I try to be diverse in many ways, but I especially am in sexuality. Once I started writing LGBTQ+ characters, I never really went back." Horton explains. 

In "The Veritas Guild" Horton wrote their first agender character, using "they/them" for the first time. As someone who also goes with "they/them" next to "she/her" pronouns, I couldn't help but perk up at those words. I use these pronouns with relative ease but according to Horton,  "... It was a real experience, but true to the character. I lean more towards male and non-binary characters and relationships because I lean that way myself. It feels truer to me and who I am." 

"Having said that," Horton concludes. "Atticus’ best friend is a lesbian, so I just truly love to see people of different backgrounds. It’s important, and simply put, more interesting." 

This is the point where all the questions have an answer, and we should pay for our metaphorical coffees and head out. Then I'd blob down at my desk and start typing this interview. This is what the professional side of my brain tells me to do, but the Chaotic side of my brain nudges me and insists. Ever since starting this interview, one question pained me, and I simply have to ask when the answer is so close: "why did you chose comic sans for the title sequence in A Murder In The Museum"?" 

After such a highly professional question, the obvious reaction is confusion. "I don’t think I did." Then they go on explaining the font choice. "I’ve forgotten the name of it at this point but we’d been trying to stick to a similar look with all of the trailers, behind the scenes, etc. and I think whatever this was was the closest my video editor had." 

This sounds like fair play, and maybe I am in the wrong after all my calligraphy knowledge is close to none. So I let everyone form their own opinion: 

Thank you very much to Spring Horton for taking the time to answer my questions.Don't forget that you can find them on: 

Goodreads | Website | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook 

The Atticus McLaren Mysteries are available at

amazon.com (US only) | vimeo (worldwide) 

Meanwhile, a review of "The Veritas Guild" is available here!