Preston Fassel’s Novel ‘The Despicable Fantasies of Quentin Sergenov’ Wins Independent Publisher’s Gold Medal for Horror
Nick Taylor
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The Despicable Fantasies of Quentin Sergenov, cult author Preston Fassel’s 2021 horror-comedy novella released to help raise funds for The Trevor Project, has won the Independent Publisher’s Gold Medal for Horror.
Released to coincide with Pride Month 2021, the story—set against the backdrop of the wrestling boom of the 1990s and early 2000s—follows the exploits of Quentin Sergenov, a closeted pro-wrestler whose career is ruined when he’s outed by a homophobic fellow athlete. Transformed into a dinosaur by a collective of Nazi scientists, Quentin escapes and sets about trying to settle into a new life and reunite with his former lover, along the way crossing paths with an assortment of bizarre characters, including bodybuilding CEOs, internet celebrities, and hedonistic sci-fi groupies. 35% of all proceeds from the book will go to The Trevor Project for as long as it remains in print. The Trevor Project is a nonprofit organization that provides suicide prevention services to LGBT+ youth.
Founded in 1996, the Independent Publisher’s Book Award—also known as the IPPY— recognizes works by authors unaffiliated with any of the “Big Five” publishing companies, to “reward those who exhibit the courage, innovation, and creativity to bring about change in the world of publishing.”
“One of my big inspirations as a writer was John Waters,” Fassel said upon the book’s release. “I watched every movie of his I could get my hands on in college, and he was instrumental in my growth as a creator. He’s still one of my favorite filmmakers. I asked myself, ‘What if Female Trouble-era John Waters had been given a million dollars and asked to make a horror movie? That’s where Quentin came from.”
Of the book’s success, Fassel says, “It’s kind of crazy to me. I never expected this; this thing started out as a joke between my brother and I making fun of bigots we knew growing up. We used to have to walk to and from college because we shared a car with our parents and I’d kill time spinning this story, and he’d push me ‘make it crazier, make it weirder,’ and I’d just pull from all of my pop culture references and the media that influenced and inspired me. I finally sat down and wrote the first draft of it in like 2008, and I’d pull it out at parties to make people laugh but it mostly just sat in a drawer for like thirteen years.”
The win represents Fassel’s second IPPY, after his debut novel Our Lady of the Inferno won the Gold Medal in 2019. That book was recently acquired and re-released by Encyclopocalypse with new cover art by Encyclopocalypse author Christian Francis and Moroccan synthwave artist Hatim Bahia. The tie-in audio drama adaptation featured Barbara Crampton, Doug Bradley, Mick Garris, Kasey Lansdale, and Autumn Ivy. Fassel’s third book, the nonfiction Landis: The Story of a Real Man on 42nd Street, a biography of Sleazoid Express founder Bill Landis, was nominated for the 2022 Rondo Award for Book of the Year.
The Despicable Fantasies of Quentin Sergenov is currently available exclusively through Amazon. Our Lady of the Inferno and Landis are available through Encyclopocalypse via Amazon, Barnes and Nobel, and wherever books are sold.
Follow Preston on Twitter @PrestonFassel and to learn more about The Trevor Project, visit https://www.thetrevorproject.org/
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