Grady Hendrix: Turning Personal Family Trauma into Universal Horror

It's undeniable that certain experiences tap into universally terrifying aspects of the human condition, resonating across global cultures and spreading initially through literature, then through cinema. Few individuals are as well-equipped to discuss the horror genre, both as a writer and screenwriter, as Grady Hendrix. He was recently interviewed at the 15th Celsius 232 Festival of Horror, Fantasy, and Science Fiction in Avilés, Spain. You can watch the full interview, complete with localized subtitles, below.

But where does a story like *Witchcraft for Wayward Girls* originate, a horror narrative that achieves global appeal despite its plot being rooted in specific American cultural traditions? As Hendrix explains, the answer lies in his own family's experiences.

"It was something very personal," Hendrix shared. "I discovered that some of my relatives had been sent away when they were teenagers, and nobody knew about it for 50 or 60 years later. So, I started thinking, 'There's a story here.' And the more I learned, the more I realized, 'This is a great story.'"

This personal experience, however, is not an isolated incident. As the author himself points out, similar events have occurred in other parts of the world.

"I think it happened in a lot of countries. Someone told me it happened in Spain. It happened in Ireland. It happened to some extent in the UK.

"But I also think that even if you didn't have that specific story, you understand that same feeling. Across the world, in every country, since the dawn of time, single mothers have been hated. That's universal; that's completely true. In stories, single mothers can be depicted as beings to be hated or as horror."

*Witchcraft for Wayward Girls* tells the story of a teenager named Fern who, after becoming pregnant, is sent to an isolated institution to give birth in secret and surrender her babies. We discussed this book and many other topics, including the horror found in cinema, in the interview with Grady Hendrix available above.