Horror novelist and alum Courtney Gould ’16 returns to Tacoma for her fourth book release
Image: Courtney Gould ’16, author in the genre of queer horror fiction, poses for a portrait, Wednesday, July 22, 2026, at Grit City Books in Tacoma. (PLU Photo / Sy Bean)
By Britt Board
Assistant Director of Communications
When the owner of Grit City Books unlocked the front door before opening, she greeted Courtney Gould ’16 with a scowl.
“I’m mad at you.”
Gould looked confused. “What did I do?”
Apparently, her latest novel was impossible to put down. It’s about the best compliment an author can receive.
The locally owned Tacoma bookstore, known for championing queer voices, is where Gould’s newest novel, “Until the Last Light Goes Out,” will make its debut when it releases on October 13 of this year. The bookstore is a natural fit for Gould’s work. While her novels center queer characters and experiences, they’re equally known for the eerie, unsettling worlds she builds, something that might surprise anyone who knew her as a child.
“Everyone encouraged me to read and write. My parents got me a typewriter when I was little and read through my little handmade books.”
Ironically, Gould didn’t always love horror. “I hated horror when I was little. I hated the feeling of being scared,” she said.
Eventually, she leaned into that fear, first through books, then films, and finally in her own writing. “If I’m scared, I love to try to write about it and make others scared and connect that way.”
That fascination with fear and a desire for connection has become the foundation of her young adult horror novels, which blend supernatural suspense with themes of identity, autonomy, and belonging.
Before she was publishing award-winning books, Gould was a Lute. She chose PLU after visiting campus for the first time.
“I loved it immediately. It felt like a campus that’s in the woods, and I’ve always loved being in nature.”
As a creative writing major with minors in publishing, religion, and women’s and gender studies, Gould credits PLU’s workshop culture with her ability to take in feedback to better her craft.
She remembers that critiques were hard at first. “I would think, ‘They didn’t understand the vision,’” she joked. “But actually, they’re noticing something that I’m too close to notice and I come around and think ‘I can make this better.’”
Gould’s inspirations
“Holes” by Louis Sachar: “I reread ‘Holes’ six million times. It’s one of the best books ever. I was obsessed when a story came together perfectly and it made sense and it all works.”
“‘Skinamarink’ was one of the inspirations of my latest book. The genre of liminal space horror is big right now. I like the feeling of ‘I don’t know what I’m looking at, where I am, and the monster isn’t super apparent.’”
“My next novel is like ‘Twin Peaks’ meets Florence and the Machine’s new album meets Robert Eggers’ ‘The Witch’ movie. I was so into it, that I wrote the whole thing in a month and a half.”
Feedback from readers is especially meaningful, and sometimes surprising.
“One person came up to me at an event and said my book inspired him to become a foster parent. The main character had been in a horrible foster experience. He said, ‘If I could prevent that experience for someone else, I should just do it.’”
On the other end of the spectrum: “My first book was banned in a couple of states for having queer content. Texas and Kentucky banned ‘The Dead and the Dark.’”
The community she’s found through sharing her creativity has been overwhelmingly positive. “I’ve heard that some of my queer content feels inclusive and highlights experiences that some readers hadn’t seen before.”
Long before readers connected with her stories, Gould was learning how to navigate the writing and publishing world at PLU. Former PLU professor Kate Slater’s crash course on publishing proved equally influential. “I had no idea what the process looked like before this class and it sort of became the guidebook for me when I graduated.” Now, she’s about to release her fourth novel, “Until the Last Light Goes Out,” in October.
Gould's published works:
You can find Gould all over, leading local workshops or at book festivals or perusing her favorite bookstore. She’s also spending a lot of time huddled in her new office deep in research. The latest project follows geology students in a horror story that takes place underground. “When you write speculative fiction, you want it to toe the line as close to reality as you can, it feels more scary when things go wrong.”
Though she’s moved between Oregon and Washington, Tacoma has continued pulling her back. “I’ve always felt a connection to the community here in Tacoma,” Gould said.
Learn more about her upcoming book here.
