Welcome to the Jackalope Stories Blog! As I prepare for the launch of my first book, I thought it would be nice to have a platform to release news, teasers, and a little insight into the background of The Thin House and other projects. Be sure to check back here for regular updates.
For today's post I wanted to provide a little background into The Thin House. I began working on my first book almost two years ago. At the time, I was working on creating a comic book. I finished the scripts but the art was proving difficult. I was working with a very talented artist, but since we were both trying to get started in the industry there was no way I could pay what he deserved. As such he rightfully continued his own side projects, and we just were not moving forward like I wanted. I ended up reaching out to a friend of mine who has some experience in the comic book industry as a creator, and asked for advice. He suggested I put my efforts into a project that was 100% on me. So I started thinking about a book. A friend of mine who did the editing for the comic scripts (and eventually The Thin House) had written a novel and she helped me understand some of the basic mechanics. With a very "here goes nothing" attitude I got to work. I had been tinkering with the idea of exploring monster stories and childhood memories. When I was a kid I loved old monster movies, particularly the classic universal studios ones. I used to love the The Wolfman, The Creature from the Black Lagoon, and many more. What I've noticed though is that as I've gotten older I've developed a deep sense of warm nostalgia for the monsters that used to scare me. This all came at a time when my grandfather's health was fading. In fact, the entire generation that had stood so tall when I was a kid were slowing down. For the first time, I was really considering a future without the men and women who had served as the underlying mythology of my family for longer than I'd been alive. That's where The Thin House came from. Finn Anglin's eventful summer in his grandparents boarding house is my childhood listing to the stories of giants. The supernatural guests are my great uncles and aunts and their bizarre exploits. The only real monster in the book, the creature waiting for Finn in the basement is my own fear of moving further and further from that part of my life. Like all writers, I put a lot of myself into this book. There's a lot about it that I'm excited to share. Even though the book is filled with the creatures that I loved to be scared by when I was little, I would never call this a horror novel. Don't get me wrong, there are definitely some moments that are meant to raise the hairs on the back of your neck, but overall this is a love letter. Not just to the monsters that used to inhabit our closets and the spaces beneath our beds, but to the people that made my childhood truly magical. So I hope you enjoy this summer with the Blacklock's in their mysterious boarding house. There's a lot more to come. We haven't even gotten to the Jackalope yet.
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AuthorMy name is Jake Nickens. I'm a husband, dog owner, and Author of The Thin House. Archives
November 2021
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