Johnny Compton: On the Power and Pitfalls of Anger
In this interview, author Johnny Compton discusses the changes that took place in the 15 years since he first had the idea for his new horror mystery novel, Dead First.
Johnny Compton is the author of The Spite House, which was nominated for a Bram Stoker award, and Devils Kill Devils. His short stories have appeared in Pseudopod, Strange Horizons, The No Sleep Podcast and several other publications. His fascination with frightening fiction started when he was introduced to the ghost story “The Golden Arm” as a child. Follow him on TikTok and Instagram.
In this interview, Johnny discusses the changes that took place in the 15 years since he first had the idea for his new horror mystery novel, Dead First, his advice for other writers, and more.
Name: Johnny Compton
Literary agent: Lane Heymont
Book title: Dead First
Publisher: Putnam (Penguin)
Release date: February 10, 2026
Genre/category: Horror / Mystery
Previous titles: The Spite House , Devils Kill Devils , Midnight Somewhere
Elevator pitch: Private investigator Shyla Sinclair is hired by a mysterious billionaire to find out why he cannot die.
What prompted you to write this book?
I’ve had this idea for a while and wanted to write a detective noir story nested within a horror story. It also let me get into themes of revenge and the power and pitfalls of anger.
How long did it take to go from idea to publication? And did the idea change during the process?
The idea’s been stewing in my head for at least 15 years, so a lot of changes took place over that time. For instance, in my first go at it, over a decade and a half ago, it was going to be written in the first person, more closely mirroring the books I’m taking inspiration from, like Devil in a Blue Dress, Falling Angel, Red Harvest and the like. The P.I. was also initially male, and even quicker with a quip than Shyla is, but the initial description I had for him resembled me far too much, so I changed the protagonist to a woman to make sure I wasn’t engaging in any self-insertion.
Apart from that, and some other changes to minor characters, the plot of the story is largely the same. Shyla’s backstory was reshaped along the way as well, which gave her a simmering rage that I think made her more interesting.
Were there any surprises or learning moments in the publishing process for this title?
Not so much. This is only my third novel, and fourth book overall, so I’m by no means an expert on the publishing process at this point, but I was working with the same editor I had for my previous two novels, and we had a great discussion about the book before it was even acquired. I knew what to expect going into the publishing process.
Were there any surprises in the writing process for this book?
The biggest surprise was discovering how early in my life I became enamored with the noir/horror mashup. A combination of writing this book and having a discussion with fellow author L. Marie Wood about detective noir horror—specifically Angel Heart, the film adaptation of Falling Angel—made me realize that I’ve been fascinated by the idea of “hard-boiled horror” probably since grade school. Hell, my first attempts at writing short stories, when I was 10 years old, centered on an undead mobster returning from the grave for revenge. I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised that the fusion of crime and supernatural scares has been in me for so long, but I don’t think it really occurred to me until I wrote this book.
What do you hope readers will get out of your book?
Really, my only hope when I write something—at least so far—is that the readers are engaged and compelled to read more. I hope it scares them or enthralls them (preferably both), but anything deeper than that is something I’d, of course, welcome, but isn’t something I necessarily expect.
If you could share one piece of advice with other writers, what would it be?
If you have some weird, personal, anecdotal story that you’ve always wanted to work into a novel but haven’t yet, go for it. I did that with Dead First and I’ve gotten very positive responses to that scene so far (to be fair, I sort of “test drove” that story on a few live audiences during panels I’ve been on, and the response from the room each time gave me confidence that it would be effective, so if you’re in position to do something like that as well, try it out!).
