Being Geek Chic is a blog about one woman navigating the male-dominated industries of production and tech. It's written by Elizabeth Giorgi, Founder, CEO and Director of Mighteor - one of the world's first internet video production companies. Learn more about Mighteor here.
Picture this: It’s a dark rainy night, the cat’s by your side, and you’re ready to curl up with a good horror story. You pull up a classic HP Lovecraft tale on your Kindle and dive in. But as the story’s hero gets lost in a stormy woods, you lose your place, too—as is so often the case with Mr. Lovecraft’s stories.
Enter Tro Rex & Eyo Bella! They’re a sister team dedicated to unpacking the works of the horror legend. But how? Check out Littlest Lovecraft, their series of of fully illustrated books based on H. P. Lovecraft’s original works. The pair has already published the first two books in the series: Littlest Lovecraft: The Call of Cthulhu and Littlest Lovecraft: The Dunwich Horror. (Pick up your copies here.) Their wish? To put you “on a path to the more obscure corners of the mind.”
And now, Tro and Eyo are creating a third graphic novel: Littlest Lovecraft: The Shadow Over Innsmouth, which, for the next three days, you can help fund over on Kickstarter.
But before you go down the rabbit hole of the Littlest Lovecraft works, check out Tro and Eyo’s interview with BGC. Trust us, in the company of these two ladies, you won’t be disappointed.
Q: Tell us, what gave you the idea to create children’s books based on horror legend H. P. Lovecraft’s works?
Tro: This one is pretty straight forward - Eyo had asked me if I would write a simplified version of the Dreamquest of Unknown Kadath for her so she could follow it as it is very confusing. One thing led to another and I said I’d agree to do some simplified versions of the stories for her if she would illustrate them. And it progressed from there to the books!
Eyo: To be honest, I’m a bit dyslexic. I love books, but reading can be an uphill battle. I also love HP Lovecraft, but unfortunately, his writing style can get pretty complicated, making it nearly impossible for me to follow along. One day I asked my sister if she could make a simpler version of one of the stories for me to read. Soon after, she came to me with the idea to write a children’s book based off Lovecraft’s works. At first, we debated making an actual children’s story with his mythology, but we eventually agreed on making simplified versions of his stories. Initially, I thought that this was some kind of abstract idea for the future. That was until Tro called me up and said “I made a Kickstarter!” And when we showed up on Laughing Squid and got funded, I knew that it was real. It was all overwhelming, but I’m glad she did it, because I’m very proud of the work we’ve done!
Q: Where do you find your inspiration in life?
Tro: All kinds of places! I am a big reader and watcher of films (good films or terrible films!). I also get a lot of inspiration from my friends and geeking out over things with them - this is how many of our side goodies in our Littlest Lovecraft Kickstarters came to life. Anything starting with the phrase “Wouldn’t it be cool if…?” Also dinosaurs. Dinosaurs are a huge inspiration.
Eyo: This is a hard question, haha. I try to pull it from lots of places. I am a massive science nerd. I am endlessly fascinated by how the universe works. I’m also a huge history nerd, because there are so many amazing stories and figures throughout time that leave fiction wading in a kiddy pool. I have a fascination with death and death culture. A lot of people in Western culture are scared by it, even though it is an essential part of life and existence. How a person or a culture views death says a lot about how they live their life. I adore the bizarre. I firmly believe it is madness(or close to it) that makes the world go round, makes it interesting. I believe it’s something that should be reveled in and enjoyed. But I also know that it’s not for everybody.
Q: What do you hope to achieve with Littlest Lovecraft? What’s your mission?
Tro: First and foremost, we want to help make Lovecraft accessible to more people. It is our hope that people will read our books and then be interested enough in the source material to go read the original works and fall in love just like we did! Also, to have fun. We have a lot of fun with the projects and the writing and everything that goes into them.
Eyo: Ever since I was little, I’ve been attracted to dark, bizarre things. When I was in 4th grade, I recited a shortened version of The Raven for my school talent show. With this natural curiosity, my gateway drug was Tim Burton. He made movies that were morbid, cute, stylish, and fun. He was a huge influence on my childhood. I know that I’m no Tim Burton, but it would please me to no end if our books could spark that curiosity in someone, young or old. To start them on a path to the more obscure corners of the mind.
Q: If you could take any fictional character out for a drink, whom would you choose and what would you drink?
Tro: OMG, that’s a difficult choice! Maybe Deadpool and ginger ale? At least it would be entertaining!
Eyo: It would be a tie between Death from Discworld and Prismo from Adventure time. I would go out for curry with Death (I have a massive, undying love of Indian food) and pet kittens. With Prismo, I’d love to hang out at his time room, knock around a few beers, eat some pickles, and talk about how awesome the universe is.
Q: What would you tell your 13-year-old self?
Tro: Sorry, but you will always be short and unable to reach things on top of the fridge. But don’t worry - you’ll grow up to be a dinosaur one day!
Eyo: I would tell myself “You’re going to be okay. All the weird awkwardness that makes you hate yourself now is going to be what makes people love you in the future. Also, do more life drawing. You’ll thank yourself later.”
Emma Bauer is a Being Geek Chic Contributor. Clearly, she’s got great taste. She is a PR enthusiast, dog lover, tea drinker, art appreciator, and of course, aspires to Be Geek Chic. Follow her on Twitter: @emmalynnbauer
It’s no secret around here that we really love Young Adult Novels with a dystopian twist. And while none of us are young adults, we do have a love of the format. It may be because it harkens back to a time when our brain’s were ripe to absorb it.
Author, Kate Banks, explains:
Just before adolescence the human brain undergoes an enormous growth of axons and dendrites.
During adolescence these bushy neurons are pruned (by genetics and environmental stimuli) as a normal part of the maturation process, forming a roadmap of neural pathways that dictate behavior. Pathways exposed to more stimulation will thrive and grow, while those that are fed less will weaken.
In pathways designed with self-regulating feedback loops, like the dopamine reward system or the stress response system, excess stimulation sets off a neurobiological cascade. Initially, the stimulation causes the neurons in the pathway to release a large amount of neurotransmitters. In order for the message to be sent, these neurotransmitters must cross a synapse, a small space between the branches of the neurons, and find a receptor to which they can bind. If a high level of stimulation continues, the body attempts to rebalance the input and turn down the volume of the signal, by decreasing the receptor sites. This down-regulation of receptors is responsible for the tolerance that develops in feedback loops. It now takes a greater release of neurotransmitters to obtain the same effect.
This dopamine reward circuitry is particularly active during adolescence.
Experiences that are novel, exciting and edgy fill the adolescent with a dopamine derived feeling of euphoria. Because of this increased sensitivity to dopamine, teenagers are drawn to stimulation like bears to honey. And in today’s world there is no lack of stimulation. Technology and innovation have thrust us into a context in which information is being processed by the senses faster than the speed of light, setting off a neurobiological cascade, the consequences of which are reflected in conditions that effect society as a whole – obesity, materialism, anxiety and depression.
So before you head out to Mockingjay this weekend, remember this, your brain was once wired to absolutely LOVE THE HELL OUT OF THIS. Is it really so far fetched to this our brain’s can’t still fall into that neurological cascade? I think not.
You can read Kate’s whole post over at Observation Deck.
