Below is the third in our series of author interviews celebrating Cosmic Horror and Cthulhu Mythos Month by investigating how authors define the terms. Thanks to author Barbara Cottrell for her time and answers! Check
Below is the third in our series of author interviews celebrating Cosmic Horror and Cthulhu Mythos Month by investigating how authors define the terms. Thanks to author Barbara Cottrell for her time and answers! Check out our Cosmic Horror and Cthulhu Mythos Page for more interviews and original fiction.
How do you define the term Cosmic Horror?
Cosmic horror is any story where the threat is outside the boundaries of human experience or understanding. Something so alien that we struggle to process it (hence the inevitable insanity). On the flip side, the monsters in cosmic horror are utterly ignorant and/or indifferent to humanity’s existence. We just don’t rate.
How do you define the term Cthulhu Mythos?
Cthulhu Mythos doesn’t have to be a rigid genre (with set themes and requirements), but if you touch the Mythos, I think you have to include the more “traditional” creatures of cosmic horror. To fail to do this would be like making a John Wick film without all the violence.
Can you recommend a tale of Cosmic Horror, in the Cthulhu Mythos, or both?
A good example of cosmic horror is John Langan’s The Fisherman. I loved how he talked about big things while keeping the focus both personal (a story of one man’s grief) and local (the Hudson River Valley). The gold standard for the Cthulhu mythos (in my opinion) is Victor LaValle’s The Ballad of Black Tom, though some might argue it’s not Cthulhu Mythos. It’s a great riff on Lovecraft and that’s good enough for me!
Can you recommend something of your own work? Cosmic Horror, Cthulhu Mythos, or Otherwise?
Darkness Below is a good place to start. It’s not only the first book in my series, it also features a creature out of the cosmic horror pantheon. And it won some awards for writing. 🙂
About the Author
Barbara Cottrell is a former professor who gave up her career in academia to write about a fictional college. She is the author of The Shadows Of Miskatonic, a series of supernatural thrillers. Her debut novel, Darkness Below, won a silver medal from Reader’s Favorites and a gold medal from The Book Fest and Indie Reader. Her second novel, Thin Places, was also released to critical and popular acclaim. The third novel in the series, Shadow Zone, was released in September of 2025.
When she isn’t exploring the dark side, she makes wine with her husband, Lance.
About the Interviewer
Jeremiah Dylan Cook is the author of A Mythos of Monsters and Madness, which includes Cosmic Horror and Cthulhu Mythos short stories. He founded Cosmic Horror and Cthulhu Mythos Month in January of 2023.
