Ms. Horror Blogosphere: Entry #16

Blogger: Heather Santrous
Blog: Mermaid Heather

I'm 22 and fresh out of college. Ever since I took a chemistry class in high school, and discovered I was good at it, I have wanted to use it in forensic science. I don't know if this is an extension of my love for horror movies or not. I do watch some films from this view point at times. Six months out of college, I have managed to find a job in a forensics lab at last. This has made me cut back on my blog some, but I am sure I will find the time again once I get into the swing of things. I have always been big into swimming--I know that "mermaid" is a cheesy nickname, but I have been called that for a long time now. It is often said I am the happiest when in the water, so I'm told I should have been a mermaid in life.

What initially drew you to the horror genre?
I can blame my dad. When I was little, I was too afraid to watch scary movies. I would try sometimes, but always chicken out at some point in the movie. I remember trying to watch The Shining on TV one day, but every time I thought something scary was about to happen, I would leave the room. Then one day, I think when I was around the age of 10, my dad wanted to watch a movie with me. He would not tell me anything about the movie, except that it was called Halloween. From the title alone, I had a feeling it was going to be scary, but I went with my dad to watch it anyway. I managed to sit through the whole movie for once, and we had a talk about it after that. Even though I would still get scared by horror movies, I was no longer afraid to watch them.

Why is it that there seems to be more female horror fans than ever before? Are more women watching horror, or are more women admitting to watching horror?
I think we have always been out there, but we are starting to let guys know that they aren't the only ones that like the genre. That being said, I have never heard a guy refuse to watch a horror movie. I still run across some women that will say they can't watch horror movies because they gives them nightmares. So there is still something of a gap there.

What made you decide to blog?
My blog actually started as a class project. In my freshman year of college, we were told to make a blog and write about anything we wanted. The purpose was to see how well we could write. I made "mermaid heather" right away, thinking that I would be writing about swimming. Swimming has always been my first love, so seemed like the best thing to write about. After I made the blog though, I got to thinking about it. I decided that writing about swimming would be rather boring. I had been reading the "Final Girl" blog before this, and I thought that horror was something that I loved as well. I figured I would try my hand at it, which didn't start off so well, and see where it took me. I have been doing it ever since, heading into five years now.

Who is your biggest inspiration?
I don't aspire to become an actress or anything like that, but if I had to pick one to look up to, I would have to choose Christina Ricci. She is just an awesome actress no matter which genre she is in. I think Stacie, the woman behind "Final Girl", has inspired a lot of us, including myself.

Bang, Marry or Kill: Freddy, Jason, Michael. Please explain your answer.
Such an odd question. I think I would have to kill Freddy. He'd rather be in my dreams, so rather hard to have a sex life. I would have to kill Jason as well--he never sticks around except to kill. It also depends on which Jason, too. If we are talking the zombie Jason, then eww. Michael, on the other hand, will sometimes stand around being the silent type. I like that in a guy sometimes. The mask gives him an air of mystery, also. Mystery can be a lot of fun, so I can see myself wanting to marry him.

If you could have the baby of one figure in the world of horror, real or fictional, who would it be?
This is an easy question for me. I usually talk more about the women in the films I watch, instead of the guys. But there has been one guy though that really stands out to me, Shane Brolly. Shane plays Kraven in the Underworld films. I have thought of other actors as sexy before, but I have to say that Shane is the only one I would sleep with at the drop of a hat. He is just so sexy.