Horror Inspired by the Classics
The Brooklyn Rail's Jackie Corley MFA '11 interviewed LA Times Book Prize winner Ivy Pochoda MFA '11 about Pochoda's latest novel Ecstasy, "a deliciously dark horror reimagining of a Greek tragedy."
Writes Jackie Corley MFA '11 in The Brooklyn Rail:
"I met Ivy Pochoda during our first day at Bennington College’s MFA Program. She was wearing a squash-related T-shirt in the dining hall, and I used my limited college experience with the sport to strike up a conversation. Pochoda graciously waited until later in the residency to reveal she’d been an internationally ranked professional player.
"Her success in squash, like her success as a Los Angeles Times Book Prize-winning thriller writer, is no surprise to those who know her. Pochoda is never half-in. Whatever she tries her hand at gets her full focus and passion, as well as her formidable work ethic.
"With her latest novel, Ecstasy, Pochoda has pivoted from thrillers and is all-in on horror. Ecstasy is a modern reframing of Euripides’s brutal Greek tragedy The Bacchae. We discussed her career shift and the inspiration for Ecstasy over email."