Gothic fiction author Gray O’Dell is known for writing twisting tales of folklore and fantasy. Beautiful writing truly takes the reader to an elaborate world like O’Dells The Glass Princess. Gray O’Dells organized bookshelf, adored with seasoned trinkets, is full of these beautifully haunting stories. Hear what they have to say about their books!
Gray O’Dell will leave you both comforted and paranoid with lively horror stories. You are invited to read worlds of supernatural entities in chilling places to reflect the mind. This acclaimed horror author published a new story titled It Hunts the Night. This story is set in a place of raw fear and isolation: the forest. Go look at their website for more spooky stories!
How long have you been collecting your books?
I’ve been collecting books since Elementary school when I started with secretly spiriting away RL Stine’s Goosebumps series from my school library. I didn’t seriously start collecting books until high school and college. These were mainly art books because I spent most of my free time honing my drawing skills. When I became a horror author, I started avidly collecting novels. My most recent acquisitions have been mostly classic gothic and folk horror with a good mix of classic ghost stories.
The collection of books since Elementary school is an impressive feat. RL Stine is a classic author that leads into horror and gothic themes. The Glass Princess demonstrates the haunting energy that memory holds. It is an excellent start to reading O’Dell’s work.
What is your favorite book on your shelves?
This is like asking a movie buff what their favourite film is. Lol. Truth is, I don’t really have a favourite book since most of my books are collections of stories. However, to avoid being a pill, I’d say my absolute favourite classic is The Picture of Dorian Gray. I have long adored that story and recently come into possession of a non-censored version.
Agreed! It is difficult to put just one book on a pedestal when many deserve the spotlight! A similar book to the beautiful The Picture of Dorian Gray, though, is the tragic book The Beautiful and Damned by F. Scott Fitzgerald.
Do you organize your books a certain way? Is this the only way you organize or does it change? If so, how often do you reorganize your books?
I have OCD, so needless to stay, the sorry state my shelves are in makes me itch. There is some semblance of organization. I usually like to keep folk horror with folk horror. Gothic horror and classics with gothic horror and ghost story collections with ghost story collections. I also happen to be a fan of the taller books being on the ends and any series I have MUST be together or I go nuts. My kids love to mess this up by taking books and only shoving them somewhere. Lol. As to how often, I religiously re-organize and re-sell my books to make sure the layout is clean as possible.
A perfectly crafted selection with height, genre, and series is highly satisfying, even if others put books back the wrong way. Each category even fits into color, such as the red and black covers of the folk horror series The Old Ways.
If you have keepsakes, knicknacks, and trinkets on your shelves what is your favorite?
I have all kinds of witchy knick-knacks on my shelves. My favourite of these is a small curiosity replica of a deer skull with vines wrapped around it. This is followed VERY closely by the goat skull sitting at the top of the shelf. Yes, you read that right. A REAL goat skull.
The deer skull and real goat skull complement each other very well, especially since they are at different levels and sides of the bookshelf. The skulls bring consistency throughout the shelf and draw the eye to every section.
Do you have any fandom art/collectibles on your shelves?
Oh no. I think the closest thing I have to something like this would be an LOTR plaque that looks like Bilbo’s front door.
Many fandom collectibles might draw the reader to that particular book, such as one from Lord of The Rings, so having few items allows one to explore all the books. Another fantasy collective to match is Steven Erikson’s Gardens of the Moon.
Who is your one-click author, and which of their books do you recommend from your shelves?
Oh goodness. Again, I don’t really have an itch for modern authors. Umm, if I had to choose a few, they would be Neil Gaiman, Stephen King, Jay Kristoff, Adam Neville, and Darcy Coates. For Neil, I highly recommend Neverwhere. It’s the first I read by him and it’s still a favourite. For Stephen, I’d say Pet Sematary. Jay’s Empire of the Damned series is a must and for Adam, I recommend The Ritual. Darcy’s Craven Manor is one of the best modern gothic tales I’ve ever read.
These classics of horror are a must. O’Dell’s A Tomb of Flesh, sets a similar, eerie scene of going beyond the bounds of mortality.
Do you have more than one copy of a book on your shelf? If so, which one and why?
Empire of the Vampire. Mainly because the hard back came out before the paperback and I grumbled at having to wait. Lol.
For O’Dell, paperback is the winner rather than hardcover. But for mysterious horror books like Empire of the Vampire, sometimes you just need to get the book.
Are you particular about the format of the book you purchase, hardcover or paperback, or whether they’re new or used?
I prefer the used babies. They tend to have more love, annotations, notes, and sometimes some special goodies I won’t give away here. Lol. Far as type, I tend to prefer paperback, but will go hardback if the paperback edition isn’t set to release for a while.
A book and its story are intended for a community to enjoy, so having special annotations or creases simply shows passion.
Are you someone who worries about sunlight exposure, how the books are aligned (vertical or horizontal), or if the pages are yellowed with age?
Nah, I don’t worry about things like that. The more damaged a book is, the more I tend to love it.
The yellowing of a book’s pages only further proves its purpose to be loved and read!
Diving into this bookshelf was spectacular! With collections of spooky, well-loved books and fascinating decor, this bookshelf is envious. Follow Gray O’Dell on Instagram and look at their horror pieces. While working on chapters, O’Dell has published a gothic ghost story, Garden of Eyes, which you can read now on Inkitt!
Check out Kiersten White’s Bookshelf here for more spooky passions!
Stop by O’Dell’s Bookshop page here!
