Marcus Kliewer on The Caretaker | Horror Author Interview | Quills & Chills

What happens when grief, money, and bad decisions collide?

In this episode of Quills & Chills, I sit down with Marcus Kliewer to break down The Caretaker, a psychological horror story that starts grounded and keeps tightening the screws.

Macy is a broke college grad, grieving her father and trying to care for her younger sister. When she takes a questionable Craigslist job, survival overrides instinct, and the story doesn’t let up.

We get into:

• Writing flawed characters whose choices still feel inevitable
• The story’s “rights” system and its connection to OCD
• Structuring a narrative as a one-way descent
• Influence from Dark Souls II
• Balancing reality vs perception
• Why Oregon, specifically Salem, shapes the tone

Marcus also previews what’s next, including another release this year and a darker, more expansive story in the same universe.

FIND MARCUS KLIEWER ONLINE:

IG: marcus_kliewer

TikTok: marcus_kliewer

Reddit: r/oldhousearchive

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