Spooky reads and a diary comic
Hello!
Spooky Season is finally upon us and I’m here for it!
Certain books and films cry out to be read and watched this time of year. Predictably it’ll be cosy reruns of Gilmore Girls (not scary I know but an Autumnal fave) and possibly a subscription to Shudder to replace the ever growing disappointment that is Netflix.
I’m finally dipping into some new books that I bought recently - all with a similar spooky theme.
I gobbled up Emily Carrolls’s new comic A Guest in the House and what a masterful storyteller she is! Carroll cites Daphne Du Maurier’s Rebecca as one of her major influences for the book so I was instantly sold. I’m afraid I’m going to have to gush - the writing is fresh and light - the drawings natural and flowing - and they serve each other so beautifully - I felt immersed! Carroll often uses interesting layout devices in her work - breaking out of the panel, playfully using text - but I don’t find it at all distracting or hard to decipher. I really recommend reading her scrolling short comics on her website if you haven’t already.
Also recently bought but not read yet:
Graveneye written by Sloane Leong, artwork by Anna Bowles - A gothic fairytale told from the point of the view of a house - which I thought was quite an interesting angle. I’m intrigued.
Blue Light of the Screen: On Horror, Ghosts and God by artist and musician Claire Cronin. The author pulls apart her obsession with the horror genre and what it means to be afraid whilst reflecting on her strict Catholic upbringing and mental health. The writing is interspersed with Kronin’s scratchy drawings as if ripped from a teenage diary - they have this filmic, graphic novel quality. Excited for this one!
Inspired by this post about Sarah Glidden and her daily diary strips, I made a short comic about waking up early:
I’d like to do these more regularly - I find making them quite fun and cathartic.
Till next time and stay cosy,
Ellie