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The Greenhouse
Feb. 21st, 2022 08:16 amAfter thinking about it, I’ve come to the conclusion that I would definitely like to write a graphic novel. Before I get to that stage, however, there are two things I need to do. First, I need to set up an online portfolio of the comics I’ve written, and second, I need to successfully complete a shorter publication project.
For the shorter publication project – a zine, one might say – I want to write a stand-alone horror comic called “The Greenhouse” about an ancient nature spirit killing a social media influencer. It will turn out that the influencer’s heart is in the right place, and that they consider “being an influencer” to be a necessary evil on the road to spreading the message of environmental conservancy to a larger audience, but that doesn’t matter to the plant spirit. The spirit sees food, and she eats it.
The theme I want to express is that, ultimately, nature does not give a shit about human intentions. Humans are only one animal on this earth, and plants are much older than we are. One day we will destroy ourselves, but the planet will survive, as it’s always done, and all our triumphs and struggles will be utterly forgotten. I love this sort of existential horror, but it’s also nice to mix it in with the more visceral horror of having one’s bodily autonomy invaded in creative and unpleasant ways.
Anyway, it would be good and reasonable if the story were twenty pages, with perhaps another five or six “bonus” pages of notes and sketches and guest art and so on. I have a friend who used Kickstarter to publish two comic zines recently, so it might be good to get in touch with him and ask about working with an artist, what needs to be prepared in advance, and so on.
Also, before I write this story as a comic, I’d like to write it as a piece of fiction first. That way, even if I lose courage about embarking on a collaborative project, I’ll at least have a good story.
For the shorter publication project – a zine, one might say – I want to write a stand-alone horror comic called “The Greenhouse” about an ancient nature spirit killing a social media influencer. It will turn out that the influencer’s heart is in the right place, and that they consider “being an influencer” to be a necessary evil on the road to spreading the message of environmental conservancy to a larger audience, but that doesn’t matter to the plant spirit. The spirit sees food, and she eats it.
The theme I want to express is that, ultimately, nature does not give a shit about human intentions. Humans are only one animal on this earth, and plants are much older than we are. One day we will destroy ourselves, but the planet will survive, as it’s always done, and all our triumphs and struggles will be utterly forgotten. I love this sort of existential horror, but it’s also nice to mix it in with the more visceral horror of having one’s bodily autonomy invaded in creative and unpleasant ways.
Anyway, it would be good and reasonable if the story were twenty pages, with perhaps another five or six “bonus” pages of notes and sketches and guest art and so on. I have a friend who used Kickstarter to publish two comic zines recently, so it might be good to get in touch with him and ask about working with an artist, what needs to be prepared in advance, and so on.
Also, before I write this story as a comic, I’d like to write it as a piece of fiction first. That way, even if I lose courage about embarking on a collaborative project, I’ll at least have a good story.
