Writing the Algorithm: Social Media, Obsession, and Horror That Hits Home with Matt Serafini

In this episode, Daniel sits down with Matt Serafini — screenwriter, author, and one of horror's most compelling new voices, hailed by grandmaster Brian Keene as one of the best in the genre. Matt's books include Rites of Extinction, Feral, Under the Blade, and his brand new social media horror novel, Feeders.Together, they dig into the obsessive joy of tracking down obscure slasher films, the nostalgia of video store culture, and how the algorithm-driven doom loops of modern social media became the seed of Matt's most ambitious novel yet. They talk about growing up on King, F. Paul Wilson, and Bret Easton Ellis, writing a teenage protagonist you'd never expect, and why Matt refused to change the last hundred pages of Feeders — no matter who asked.The conversation also hits the pressure young people face online, the cynicism baked into performative outrage, AI slop flooding our feeds, and why Matt believes the best thing any writer can do is tell a story only they could tell.This is a sharp, funny, and genuinely insightful conversation about horror fiction, social media, storytelling, and what it means to write something that couldn't have come from anyone else.💀 In this episode you'll discover:Why Ogroff the Mad Butcher might be the most gloriously unhinged slasher film you've never seenThe joy and consequence of video store culture — and what streaming has quietly taken from usHow King, F. Paul Wilson, Michael Slade, and Bret Easton Ellis shaped Matt's voice as a writerWhat it felt like to receive a blurb from Brian Keene — and why "validation" is a complicated wordWhy Matt built MonoLife (the fictional dark web app at the heart of Feeders) from real frustrations with social mediaHow working with college-age interns gave Matt an authentic window into Kylie's worldThe agent who told him to scrap the last hundred pages — and why he walked awayWhy the climax of Feeders was the most fun Matt has ever had writing anythingWhat Matt hopes readers take away from the book (without prescribing the answer)Why authenticity — not productivity — is the writer's best weapon against AIA sneak peek at Matt's next project, which his agent called "couldn't be any more you"Links & Resources:Matt Serafini on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mattserafini Feeders by Matt Serafini: https://www.amazon.com/Feeders-Novel-Matt-Serafini/dp/1668060973 Devil's Rock Community Discord: https://www.devilsrockbooks.com/podcastSubscribe to The Writer's ChairIf you enjoyed this conversation, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with a fellow horror fan or writer.📺 Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@devilsrockbooks🎧 Listen on your favourite app: https://pod.link/1829723468💬 Join the community: https://www.devilsrockbooks.com/podcast📚 About the GuestMatt Serafini is a screenwriter and author of horror fiction based on the East Coast. His novels include Rites of Extinction, Feral, Under the Blade — called "one of the best slasher films you'll ever read" by Film Thrills — and Feeders, a dark social media horror novel published in 2024. He has been hailed as one of the best new voices in horror fiction by Brian Keene.Matt's short fiction has appeared in multiple anthology collections. His non-fiction writing on film and literature has been published at Dread Central, Shock Till You Drop, Fangoria, and Horror Hound. He has a background in marketing and spent years managing social media for a university — an experience that fed directly into the obsessions at the heart of Feeders. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.