The idea for The Rise of the Great Old One came about one afternoon – my kids and I had been listening to the recordings of unexplained sounds from the depths of the ocean (check it out—there are some really creepy ones!). We then began to talk about Cthulhu and what if the creatures Lovecraft wrote about in his stories actually exist here and now; and that he saw them and knew we were going to be wiped out, but he couldn’t say outright “hey guys, don’t want to alarm you but have you seen these monsters? Like, the person standing next to you, the one with fisheyes, yeah that is one of Cthulhu’s buddies. Oh, and by the way, we are doomed!” because this would have seen him locked up in an institution.
Does writing energise you, or exhaust you?
Energises! I love it. I am always writing – I carry a notebook with me everywhere I go so I can keep track of my ideas. I love telling stories.
What’s your writing Kryptonite?
When my postman drops off my latest book order. I always tell myself “I will just read the first chapter and then get back into my writing” and next minute I have finished the book and my blank word doc is glaring at me from my laptop.
What is a little-known fact about you?
Two for the price of one: I am ambidextrous and the eyelashes on my left eye are white (birthmark).
In relation to your latest book;
What sparked the idea for this book?
The idea for The Rise of the Great Old One came about one afternoon – my kids and I had been listening to the recordings of unexplained sounds from the depths of the ocean (check it out—there are some really creepy ones!). We then began to talk about Cthulhu and what if the creatures Lovecraft wrote about in his stories actually exist here and now; and that he saw them and knew we were going to be wiped out, but he couldn’t say outright “hey guys, don’t want to alarm you but have you seen these monsters? Like, the person standing next to you, the one with fisheyes, yeah that is one of Cthulhu’s buddies. Oh, and by the way, we are doomed!” because this would have seen him locked up in an institution. That instead, he tried to impart these warnings of our demise at the hands (tentacles) of these monsters in his stories, and we, the dopey lot that we are, lapped it up as fiction. Then I thought if these creatures were real, instead of wanting to warn us, would Lovecraft want Cthulhu to wreak havoc on earth? Did he work towards releasing the cosmic monsters and died in his attempt to do so? In comes my MC who, upon reading Lovecraft’s stories has a switch flipped and can see these monsters, and as he is being dragged down into the very madness that takes the characters in all of Lovecraft’s stories, he has to make a terrifying choice: to serve The Great Old One or sacrifice himself in order to save the world.
From that, my story took shape and I wrote it that night.
What’s your favourite scene?
When the MC is returned to his room. I am not going to say anything more – you will have to read it
Did you base any of the characters on people you know?
Well, seeing as you asked, I did base my version of Cthulhu on…
No. But I might do so in upcoming stories.
And, lastly;
What’s brewing? What projects are you working on?
I am currently in my (looks over at the hard copy of my WIP and grumbles) gazillionty-billionty edit of my horror novel titled Daughters of Evelyn. I wrote it November last year as part of the NaNoWriMo project. It is my first attempt at a novel. I hope to see it published in the near future!
How many half-finished and unpublished books do you have right now?
Just my first novel. But I have a million more ideas brewing within my brain. I also have my eye on a few upcoming Black Hare Press submissions!
13 Victims – Launches 30th March 2021
/by Black Hare PressV.A. Vazquez: My husband loves to speculate about the day-to-day lives of henchmen in action films. Like when they go home for dinner at night, do they have to explain to their spouses that Mr. Big Baddie spent a billion dollars on a laser gun instead of making a larger contribution to their 401(k)s? When it’s Career Day at school, how do they explain their profession to a group of fidgety four-year-olds? Do we see so many British henchmen because they don’t need private medical insurance through their employers? So when I was asked to write a story for 13 Victims, I decided I wanted to write about two low-level drones who get caught up in trouble that’s way above their pay grade.
13 Drops of Blood – Launches 14th February 2021
/by Black Hare PressThis is an industry of rejection and to be successful, an author needs to be able to never throw in the towel, no matter the hard road ahead of them.
Jasmine Jarvis
/by Black Hare PressJAMSINE JARVIS is an Australian Author of Speculative Fiction. After joining a local writing group in May 2019, she was encouraged to try her hand at writing fiction – sending off her first pieces of fiction into Black Hare Press’ call out for Beyond. Realising how much fun this writing gig is, and how much she loves to tell stories, Jasmine has continued to shape her writing and is drawn to the absurd, the creepy and the downright terrifying. Since landing her spot in Beyond, she has had 23 drabbles and 4 short stories published. Jasmine hopes her readers enjoy her stories as much as she enjoys writing them.
The Rise of the Great Old One by Jasmine Jarvis – Launches 31st October 2020
/by Black Hare PressThe idea for The Rise of the Great Old One came about one afternoon – my kids and I had been listening to the recordings of unexplained sounds from the depths of the ocean (check it out – there are some really creepy ones!). We then began to talk about Cthulhu and what if the creatures Lovecraft wrote about in his stories actually exist here and now; and that he saw them and knew we were going to be wiped out, but he couldn’t say outright “hey guys, don’t want to alarm you but have you seen these monsters?
Rise of the Great Old One by Jasmine Jarvis
/by Black Hare PressWhat if I told you that the creatures from Lovecraft’s stories are real?
YEAR FOUR
/by Black Hare PressYEAR FIVE
/by Black Hare Press