Philip Fracassi stands at the precipice, that point in a writer's career where readers who've followed them instinctually just know that their latest release is the one that's going to catapult them into stardom. For Fracassi, that release is his latest novel, The Autumn Springs Retirement Home Massacre. Yes, the title is a mouthful, and the book itself is a literary roller coaster ride unlike anything you've ever read—a proper slasher whodunit amongst the geriatric set. But Fracassi, who's hard to pin down thematically with six previous novels that run the gamut from kidnapped children to historical stories about orphanages overrun by evil to time travel to antiquated desks as the conduit to madness, delivers what may be his most ambitious work yet. In our own review of the novel, Dark Scribe Magazine says:

With The Autumn Springs Retirement Home Massacre, Fracassi brilliantly crafts both a serviceable slasher and poignant rumination on aging. Skillfully blending slasher and geri-horror elements, he creates what feels like an entirely new and fresh horror subgenre. Impressively, his characters are fully realized older adults—adults who’ve lived full lives and whose life experiences logically factor into their reactions to the slasher mayhem playing out around them. Fracassi doesn’t pander to geriatric stereotypes either and authentically portrays his characters on the page as resourceful, playful, sexual, contemplative, and flawed. 

On the eve of the novel's release, the Bram Stoker and British Fantasy Award finalist sat down with us to discuss the creative process behind The Autumn Springs Retirement Home Massacre, its inspirations, and his fantasy casting suggestions.

Dark Scribe Magazine: Let’s start with a basic—where did the inspiration for The Autumn Springs Retirement Home Massacre come from?

Philip Fracassi: I was touring for Boys in the Valley in late 2023 and my wife and I stayed at a Marriott Hotel in Virginia that was on top of this big hill surrounded by acres of grass and trees, the buildings were historical with brick facades. On a sunset stroll I mentioned that it seemed more like a retirement home than a hotel, and—BAM—the ideas started coming fast and furious. When we got back to the hotel room, I opened my laptop and typed the words THE AUTUMN SPRINGS RETIREMENT HOME MASSACRE, followed by a couple paragraphs. I sent that to my agent and the next morning she replied saying: “Oh my gosh, you have to write this!” And so I did.

DSM: And where in the world did the character of Rose DuBois come from? She’s definitely not your typical final girl. Did you base her on someone you know?

Philip Fracassi: Rose arrived fully formed in my mind. She’s not based on anyone I’ve personally ever known, but she arrived very soon after the title. In that first synopsis I just mentioned, I think she had a slightly different name, but otherwise she was there from the get-go.

DSM: Where there any challenges writing an elderly Black female protagonist? If so, what were they and how’d you work through them?

PF: No, not really. I’ve written so many characters and told stories from protagonists that were black, white, Hispanic, gay, straight, young, old, etc. For me it’s just about immersing my mind into that human being, seeing things through their eyes as best I’m able, give them some personality juice, maybe a little baggage to deal with, and away we go.

DSM: As a real-life licensed nursing home administrator, I’ve got to give kudos for your realistic depiction of senior housing. What kind of research did you do to nail the environment that serves as such a critical background to this story?

PF: I spent a lot of time at a retirement community when I was working in the movie industry, and there was one place in particular that inspired a lot of what’s in the book as far as the layout and buildings, etc. Even one or two characters. I also did some research via my in-laws who recently moved into a retirement community, so I pulled from a few different sources. The rest is just my mind filling in the blanks.

DSM: I’ve also got to hand it to you—as a diehard slasher fan, the level of violence in this novel does the genre proud. But murdering the elderly in such creatively brutal ways verges on killing kids and puppies territory, which is a risk. Did you have any apprehensions killing off cuddly grandparents?

PF: None. Zero. I have too much respect for the elderly to let them off easy. And I’ve killed lots of kids in my fiction, so it evens out.

DSM: Are you a fan of the slasher genre? If so, what is your favorite slasher film—and why?

PF: Honestly, not really. I’m not really a “slasher” guy. I’ve never seen a Friday the 13^th movie, and I don’t read much serial killer-type fiction. That said, Halloween is one of my all-time favorites, so that’s the one slasher movie I hold close to my heart.

DSM: Ok, it’s fantasy time—or manifesting, as I like to think about it. A popular streaming service has just bought the rights to TASRHM, but one of the contractual provisions is that you’ve got to give them one casting suggestion for each of the characters. Who do you see in the roles? And there are bonus points if you give Jamie Lee Curtis a part. (laughs)

PF: Well, there’s around 80 characters in the book, so for brevity’s sake I’ll keep it to our two main characters, Rose and Miller. I think Jamie Lee Curtis would be great in the role, but she’s not really “Rose” in my mind. I’m not sure there’s an actress I connect with Rose, necessarily, but if I was forced to choose someone, I guess I’d go with someone like Alfre Woodard or Jenifer Lewis. And for Miller, the late Ossie Davis was an inspiration, for sure, but for a living actor I could see Ian McKellan dong a nice job.

DSM: I hear you’re embarking upon a pretty extensive North American book tour to promote TASRHM. Where can readers come to meet you and get a signed copy of the book? Is there a tour stop that you’re particularly excited about?

PF: I’m going all over the country during the month of October, so the best place to check my tour dates are at www.pfracassi.com/newsandevents. There’s also links to bookstores at that same page offering to ship signed and/or personalized copies. I’m excited for all my stops, but probably looking forward the Horror on the Hudson event in early November. I think that’s gonna be a blast.

DSM: Who are your own literary inspirations?

PF: Horror author Laird Barron is my biggest inspiration. He’s also a friend and mentor, and honestly is one of the main reasons I’m writing horror fiction today. I’m inspired on a daily basis by all the other writers out there working hard to get new stories into the world. Keeps me motivated to see my peers kicking ass.

DSM: What was the last book you read and would recommend to DSM readers?

PF: The last book I read was Daytide by Chris Panatier. It comes out in 2026 from Rapture Publishing. I also wrote the introduction. As far as books you can read now, I recently finished Coffin Moon by Keith Rosson and greatly enjoyed it.