Award-winning supernatural horror writer C.J. Leede has released a new novel titled “Headlights,” which follows an FBI agent in Colorado investigating a serial killer who leaves victims along roadways.
“The very tortured special agent who had been assigned to the case has to come back to Denver, a place he never wanted to return, and face a lot about his own past in order to solve the case,” Leede explained.
Leede has lived in many places across the United States and now works while traveling. She said those experiences continue to shape her writing.
“[My novels are] all very Americana. I love America. There’s a lot to celebrate, and so I try to include all of that in my books,” she said.
Leede began writing during her final semester of undergraduate studies after taking a creative writing class.
Leede said she continued writing and eventually decided it was what she wanted to pursue professionally.
After submitting several manuscripts and attending graduate school, she eventually published her first novel. During that process, she also discovered horror was the genre that best fit her voice.
“I always thought I was going to do genre fiction, and I thought I was gonna do sci-fi or fantasy or something,” Leede said. “But I was handing in stories and a professor of mine was like, ‘I think these are horror stories.’ And I said, ‘No, that's not possible. I don't read that stuff.’ And he said, ‘Maybe you should.’”
That experience led Leede deeper into horror literature and helped define her approach to storytelling.
“[Horror] really allows you to sit with fear and say, ‘How can we understand it better?’” she said. “How do we get to feeling better about it all? I think that's what horror does so beautifully.”
Leede added that fellow horror fan and podcaster Anna Dupre also contributed to “Headlights.”
“Anna has become a great friend of mine through this whole horror community and ended up being an authenticity reader on ‘Headlights’ because she’s got a forensic background in her work history, which is pretty fascinating,” Leede said.
“Headlights” will be released June 9 as part of Leede’s national book tour.
Leede and Dupre will appear together June 11 at 4 By 4 Brewing Company in Springfield in partnership with the Springfield-Greene County Library.
“Springfield-Greene County Library has been doing such incredible things, not just for horror, but for all book lovers,” Leede said. “I know Springfield-Greene always puts on the best programming, so I'm really looking forward to it.”
For more information on Leede and her work as well as the event, visit her website and Instagram page.
