Machado began writing entries as a school project; these would later become Her Body and Other Parties, described as "borrowing from science fiction, Queer theory, and horror."

"I started writing that book in 2011 and I finished in 2015, which was the year that I sold it, and then it came out in 2017, so that's a six-year arc," she said. "It takes a long time.

"Every story is different. One of the stories, Inventory, took me like two hours to write, and another, Resident, took me many years to finish, so it is a true range of experiences as a writer."

Since 2017, Machado has published several other projects, including a graphic novel and a memoir.

A dream come true
While she is very proud of the work she has accomplished in such a short time, she says she will never forget the feeling of releasing her first publication.

"It was a little strange. Well, not strange, but I'd spent my whole life wanting to write a book, and then to have what I've always wanted was pretty intense, and wonderful," she said. "I was really lucky because the book did so well right off the bat. It sort of achieved a lot of success, and that was pretty great, so yeah, it was exciting, it was wonderful, it was wild."

While some authors have strict processes and regimens to keep their creative juices going, Machado faces her craft with more freedom and fluidity. "I just write as the spirit moves me. I try to get to a draft, then I'm able to share it with anybody I want to look at [it], then I just revise it until it's done," she said.

A school project turned hit publication
When Machado finally realized she wanted to compile her short reports together into a book and seek publication, she was still in grad school. "I was ...writing and enjoying it and thought, 'I should finish a book.' Three of them were stories that I wrote in grad school."

While each of her stories speaks to a different experience, Machado admits she does have favorites. "I'd say my favorite is Especially Heinous, which is this novella in the middle of the book that is sort of a Lynchian deconstruction of Law and Order SVU," she said. "Yeah, I'd say that's probably my favorite. It was a moment of writing where I experienced a kind of radical growth as a writer. I felt myself experiencing getting stronger and making new connections in my brain, and it was very exciting."

From the start, Machado's stories reflected ideas of Queer and feminist theory and helped her deconstruct ideas about patriarchy and heteronormativity. She always knew that LGBTQ+ themes would play heavily into her collection. "I think it was Queer from the beginning," she said.

When writing Queer stories, Machado said nothing is off limits. "I'd say anything is possible," she said with a laugh. However, she does note that honesty is the point from which she begins when telling Queer stories. "Thinking honestly about Queer communities, Queer relationships, Queer sex, all of those things are very important to me when I'm thinking about my Queer characters in my fiction," she explained.

Queerness will "always and forever" be a part of Machado's future projects, she said, no matter what genres she explores.

While Machado is still interested in horror, she said she may want to explore other genres in the future. "A genre is a tool inside my toolbox, and I can use it however I want. If I choose to write something else, I can do that," she explained. "[Horror] is a genre that speaks to me very strongly, so it's likely to continue," she said. "I'm interested in exploring the things that scare me, so horror is just a natural outlet for that project."

Next projects
Machado is very busy working on her next few projects at the moment. Although she can't reveal too much about them, she can assure readers that they can expect to see more LGBTQ+ books from her down the line.

"Well, I'm working on a bunch of new stuff right now, most of which I cannot talk about," she said, "but I do have a book that will be coming out in a couple of years, which is called A Brief and Fearful Star."

And for those hoping to explore Machado's clever writing style in a genre other than horror, never fear: she may be shifting into a new lane soon. "I'm very interested in erotic novels, so I've been thinking a lot about that, as a genre."

Her Body and Other Parties is available now and is the perfect read for anyone interested in a sample of clever feminist horror.