Hey, ghouls, the weather in parts of the country is frightful, and I hope everyone is safe. The hurricane season has taken a turn for the worse, and the destruction they’ve left in their wake is terrible. It will take years to recover from Helene and Milton’s one-two punch. Do what you can to help if you’re so inclined, but research the charity first to ensure they are legit.

We are rapidly heading into Halloween, and we all need fresh horror threads to celebrate the holiday season. I have the best place to check out for all your indie horror needs. I met Sean Cochrane through other friends while working on several anthology projects (Disquieted and Employee Picks). Besides being a great writer, Sean is the man behind Gore Clown Shop. He specializes in horror-themed shirts and other gear. Sean is also a huge supporter of indie horror. Through Gore Clown, he has released merch lines for Dillon Brown’s Horror Nerd Productions and myself.

Sean is the next brave soul to head into the arena for The 10 Questions. Here. We. Go.

1. How did you get interested in horror?

I don’t remember precisely why, but vampires appealed to me a lot as a young child. I was a vampire several years for Halloween. I was young enough that watching any horror movie wasn’t really an option, but The Real Ghostbusters cartoon fed me more horror imagery. What really did it for me, though, was a combination of Goosebumps and Are You Afraid Of The Dark?. I was hooked and went from there to Bram Stoker and Mary Shelley. Then it was Stephen King. The first genuine horror movie I ever watched was Night of the Demons, and Linnea Quigley’s “lipstick trick” fucked with me hard. More than anything else, that scene in my developing years had the most lasting impact on my personal style.

2. What set you off on your writing journey?

That’s something else that started when I was extremely young. I’ve always had a very active imagination, and I was drawing and writing stories at a very young age. Then, I started writing poetry and doing my best to emulate Edgar Allen Poe. It wasn’t great, but I was 12, so cut me some slack. Then I discovered metal, and my writing shifted away from storytelling and into lyrics and angsty teen poetry for years. I eventually came back to writing stories, though.

3. What inspired you to start Gore Clown Shop?

At the beginning of the year, instead of making bullshit resolutions that we’d abandon by mid-February, my family set realistic goals. Okay. Semi-realistic. One of mine was to eat more healthfully. It’s not October yet, and I’m four boxes of Count Chocula in and on my third giant bag of candy corn. The other one, though, was to make more art. So I went back to drawing. I drew my best stab at a tattoo-style spiked bat with a banner. I’d written a short story for the Camp Nightmare podcast that used the phrase “gore clown,” and I really liked that, so I put it on the banner. I posted it on Instagram, and several people commented that it would make a cool sticker or shirt. The idea was born, and I ran with it.

4. What challenges have you faced with starting a horror-based business?

The first big one for me is technical ability. I’m pretty handy with a pencil and markers, but I have no prior experience making digital art. I self-taught myself vector art. There’s a lot I still have to learn, but I’m very proud of what I’ve been able to accomplish. Another problem I face is market saturation. Like me, anyone with an idea can easily start a store and have shirts made, so everyone has done it, and it’s difficult to get exposure and attract people without dropping a mint on advertising. This is a hobby for me, and I’m not interested in throwing my money at Meta or Google ads.

5. Do you have a dream IP you want to work with?

Not really. When I started Gore Clown Shop, the idea was to make my own goofy stuff and try to sell it. Shortly after that, I reached out to our mutual friend Dillon Brown about making some shirts to promote Horror Nerd Productions and his films. Then you got ahold of me for merch. Then my friends from the Spoiler Sleepover podcast contacted me for merch. I absolutely love helping my friends and indie horror creators. I don’t really have a desire to land some huge marketing deal with something like Terrifier. I’m an indie horror guy, and I want to promote indie horror creators. I’m getting to do exactly that. All that said, I still want to reach out to Jordan Miller about doing a shirt for his movie “The Only Ones”.

6. What goals have you set for Gore Clown?

From the onset, I was never in this to get rich. I just wanted to put some art out there and make a bit of side cash to spend on horror merch and vinyl. My goal, above all, is to contribute to the indie horror community. That’s why I love putting out merch for my friends. This isn’t a career; it’s a hobby for me. I want to keep it fun and support other indie horror creators.

7. Which horror theme has been your favorite to design?

It’s probably the actual Gore Clown logo. Like I said before, the entire concept comes from a short story I wrote for the Camp Nightmare podcast. In the story, my friend JB, one of the show’s hosts, gets turned into the gore clown. So I had JB send me a picture with that wide-eyed face and made him into the face of the store. JB digs it.

8. What types of items are featured at Gore Clown?

Currently, it’s mostly T-shirts, which are the standard article of clothing. I also have a few hats, and I just added beanies and hoodies. There are stickers and some drinkware. During the summer, I had beachwear and a towel, too.

9. Give us a glimpse into the future of Gore Clown and tease what you have on tap.

Honestly, I have no clue. I haven’t made a big business plan or anything like that. I just make designs when I think them up or when someone approaches me and throw them on the store. As for a sneak peek, I’m considering making shirts for my new book, Fetal Vengeance. I don’t even know who’d wear one, but I like the idea of someone walking around somewhere with that on their shirt.

10. Tell everyone where on the web they can find your work and Gore Clown Shop.

Check out the store at goreclown.com. You can also find the store on Facebook and Instagram @gore.clown.shop. The same goes for my personal stuff, Seamus Belial, on Facebook and Instagram. You can also get my books by checking out that section on the store or going to godless.com.

I’d like to thank Sean for stepping into the arena to fight the horrors of The 10 Questions. I hope everyone checks the store out and supports indie horror!

Well, back to the murderous pace I’ve put myself on to finish two novels by early next year. I hope I kill it and get them done. Okay, okay, enough groan-worthy puns. See you all later!

Brent