[Editorial] Interview: Mums and Sons - An Examination of the Child/Parent Relationship Pocketbook with Rebecca McCallum

Ariel Powers-Schaub: Tell me about how you first had the idea for Mums and Sons, and how the idea took shape. 

Rebecca McCallum: It may sound odd to say it but I really feel that I don’t choose my writing projects-they choose me. I only write about things I am passionate about and where I can see there is something germinating that is worth exploring. This can be frustrating at times because there are periods when nothing really hits me but allowing projects and ideas to occur organically is rewarding for me as a writer and this is how I prefer to work.  Now that I’ve let go of the writing element of Mums and Sons, so to speak, I find I am just beginning to step back and assess how I arrived at the idea, so I am still learning and discovering in that respect. 

You are a Hitchcock expert and I was so glad you included Psycho so we could benefit from that expertise. How did you choose these three films - The Babadook (2014), Hereditary (2018), and Psycho (1960) - to feature in your analysis? 

I’ve always been a huge Hitchcock fan and have been writing a series on Hitchcock’s Women for Moving Pictures Film Club for some time. When I look back on some of the essays and editorials I wrote ahead of Mums and Sons-I can see an interest in motherhood certainly permeates throughout my work. Such as my article Sympathising With Wendy in The Shining and my exploration of Nancy and her mother Marge’s relationship in A Nightmare on Elm Street which discuss mothers who endure a great deal. I had seen Hereditary in the year I started working on the text and it had really connected with me deeply, especially the character of Annie. The Babadook came a little later and it was once I landed on that as a film I wanted to dissect that I realised I could apply a focus within the study by looking at the different age categories and how the relationships both differed and reflected one another. 

You highlight such understated details, it’s clear you know these films well. How many times have you seen these three films? 

Too many to count I am sure! I watched, reflected, and watched and reflected some more for months. I feel that allowing time for ideas to settle in, to breathe and take shape has been important to this text. Sometimes I would watch with a notebook, other times sat close to the screen. However, the instrumental part of the process for me is absorbing my analysis and interpretations-meditating on them if you will-to really allow them time to formulate. Thankfully, this never felt like a task for me, instead it was like an ever-evolving discovery that just kept unfolding in continuous layers. 

You use seven focus-points to shape your analysis. How did you choose these key areas to focus on? 

I apply an analytical approach to film and take the greatest pleasure in interpreting and decoding both what I see and what is unseen-which is equally crucial. Whenever I am writing, my process involves identifying themes and then grouping observations within them. I had many themes listed in my planning stages but some of them were absurd or way too thin! However, the seven focus points jumped off the page and the evidence and scope for examination that sat around them was what led to me settling on them as the framework for the text. In a way, the seven themes represent the elements of horror that I am most drawn to and therefore, upon reflection, I feel Mums and Sons is as much a piece about an exploration of myself as it is of the films covered. 

In the introduction to Mums and Sons, you call the horror of motherhood “the most controversial topic.” Why do you think that topic is as controversial as it is? 

I wrote about my thoughts on motherhood for my essay Squeezing my Hand in the Dark-A Girl Gang I Can Turn To in the Hear Us Scream -The Voice of Horror Anthology-Volume 1 and discussed the significance for me personally of films such as Rosemary’s Baby and Prevenge. Horror allows for an open and honest look at the fear around the idea of motherhood and also what happens when you become a mother. This includes the unpleasantness, the resentment, the agony, and the loneliness which are qualities present in the protagonists I explore in these films. The controversy for me, seems to exist in the notions around expectations of motherhood, the pressure that is heaped onto women to embody a distorted feminine ideal and the judgement that comes alongside this, it’s a lot of weight to carry. 

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Tell me about the process of choosing a publisher and an artist. 

This was my first time going through such a process and so I made sure to do my research with publishers and also have a clear idea of my intentions with Mums and Sons. I knew this would be a project with an indie flavour to it and therefore I wanted to choose an independent publisher to support my work. Not only was it key for me to have full creative control but in knowing that I would be sharing Mums and Sons with the horror community, I felt very passionate about collaborating with other indie creators in order to champion them as fellow artists. Plastic Brain Press have held my hand right from the start and have always shown a genuine interest in my work while consulting me at every juncture, as a result I felt supported all the way. 

In terms of artwork, I only ever had one choice and that was my long-time friend Ken Wynne who is Editor in Chief at Attack from Planet B. Ken is incredibly talented and very much in demand so I never took it for granted that he was working with me. His artwork complements the text beautifully which was always my goal. I shared some thoughts with him but he turned them into art -I basically think of him as a magician!

What’s your advice to other writers who are writing their first books? 

Allow yourself mistakes as a first-time writer, keep yourself disciplined in order to nurture your commitment and have one or two close friends who can support you through what is an emotional but ultimately rewarding process. My number one piece of advice would be to choose a topic that sets your heart and mind on fire. You will be devoting a huge chunk of your life to this project so you owe it to yourself as a creator to follow your own passion-not to please others. Remember that the joy is in the journey too-of course it's incredible to see Mums and Sons come together as a literal finished object and to have the opportunity to share my insights with others, but the real gift is in the exploration and in finding hitherto unexplored connections.

Read Ariel’s review of Mums + Sons horror zine by Rebecca McCallum!

Pre order of Mums + Sons available now through Plastic Brain Press! Grab your copy now and orders are being sent out from 6th May 2022

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