Dive into Hallowed, a gripping blend of horror, fantasy, and action that will thrill fans of The Last God, Wytches, and Mouse Guard. This unique comic series, set in the richly developed "Direverse," offers captivating storytelling, unforgettable characters, and an exploration of the complex intersection between faith and war. Support the Kickstarter and be among the first to experience this enthralling tale, complete with exclusive rewards and additional stories from this new and haunting world.
COMIC BOOK YETI: Spooky season is never over here at the Comic Book Yeti! With that in mind, we get to sit down with Kyle Stück on their newly-funded comic book Kickstarter, Hallowed, where what’s in the woods shouldn’t be the only concern of those traveling there! Kyle, even though it will be ending soon, how has your 2024 been so far?
KYLE STÜCK: Hi, Ty! Thanks for having me! 2024 has honestly been a bit of blur. “Life moves pretty fast,” as Ferris Bueller says—and I’ve definitely been feeling that. Currently, I’m just trying to hold on, grow as a creator, and remain silly in the face of never ending horrors. Very excited to talk about Hallowed!
CBY: Hallowed is described as blending horror with elements of classic fantasy. Could you tell us more about the specific horrors the characters encounter in the forest?
KS: Absolutely! The forest is riddled with bad stuff. Time works differently there and quickly begins to disorient our protagonists. Some hear voices. Others see dark shapes just out of the corner of their eyes. Everyone’s sleep is restless and full of nightmares. A few begin to sleepwalk, waking in the middle of strange and vile acts. Something wearing a jester mask begins to follow them, speaking in malevolent riddles. Odd lights flicker just beyond camp. Bones of creatures too large to comprehend decorate the snow. And then there are the hags, multiple beings transformed into twisted forms with wicked desires prowling the woods. The horror aspect doesn’t really come into play till Issue #2, but it’s the heart of the series and I can’t wait for folks to experience it!
CBY: The setting of the haunted forest feels like a character itself. How did you develop the forest's personality, and what emotions or themes does it evoke for the deserters?
KS: Without giving too much away, the forest has very specific lore and history due to a terrible act that occurred long before our tale begins. Something truly awful was born that day and its creation informs the strange and twisted ecosystem our characters find themselves in. It’s a physical and emotional prison for all who have the misfortune of stumbling into it and using that in Hallowed was always the main goal in the story as a way to explore the psychology of our protagonists. They’ve all been running from different things in their individual lives, and this forest latches onto that and forces them to confront themselves in horrific ways specific to their unique “sins.”
CBY: Can you talk about how Hallowed balances horror with meaningful questions that reflect on our real-world issues, particularly regarding war and belief?
KS: For me, I don’t think works of fiction ever have to have a “deeper meaning” or a “point” to warrant their existence. However, my favorite stories are the ones that do both. That is to say: stories that have something relatable or are tethered to reality in some way while also being approachable on their own. I think fantasy and horror do that really well. You can have something fantastical like a werewolf, vampire, or dragon, but you can use it to make a creative parallel to the real world too. I think a lot of people are more open to that as opposed to something that comes at them head on and says, “Hey, I want you to think about this!” So with Hallowed, I really wanted people to be able to just read it and go, “That was a good and creepy fantasy story!” At the same time, I really wanted to process some of the issues and horrors that our world is going through right now, especially the ones we appear to be repeating as a species. Faith and war are, unfortunately, often linked and I wanted a way to talk about that without writing a non-fiction snoozefest. At the end of the day, I wanted the comic to be entertaining, so while it very much has a “soul” and purpose, I’ve been very careful to make sure it’s also filled with badass action sequences and lots of cool monsters.
CBY: You’ve cited works like Phillip Kennedy Johnson & Riccardo Federici’s The Last God and Scott Snyder & Jock’s Wytches as inspirations. What specific elements from these works influenced Hallowed?
KS: The Last God has gorgeous art and I love the way it turns certain fantasy tropes on their head. That was a big source of inspiration for Hallowed, especially having protagonists or “heroes” who were actually pretty broken and or despicable people. In regards to Wytches, Scott just writes horror really well and I loved how much bite that book had. As a writer, I can grow overly attached to my characters sometimes, so much so that I can get a bit precious with them. With Hallowed, I challenged myself to be true to the story and sacrifice the characters—literally—when it was needed. No one is safe and I found that very liberating here.
CBY: Hallowed is part of a broader fantasy universe called the "Direverse." Can you tell us about the larger world and how this story fits within it?
KS: Absolutely! I’ve been working on the Direverse for a couple years now and am slowly rolling out different projects set within it. Hallowed is the first one to come out, which wasn’t planned, haha, but it’s a great starting point and I’m excited for the others coming in the future! I really wanted a sandbox to play in where any type of story was welcome (horror, romance, comedy, etc.) within the fantasy setting. I also was tired of always seeing boring-looking humans as the protagonists on the covers of fantasy books, movies, comics, or video games (sorry my fellow humans). As a fan of the Redwall series, I’m more interested in creatures and anthropomorphic animals, so I was very intentional about creating a universe where this race of anthropomorphic animals called “dires” would be the stars. As for Hallowed’s place in all of this: a big part of the Direverse are these things called “Tears,” which are messy and complicated civil wars fought between the dires that have devastated their home country over the years. Hallowed takes place during the Third Tear, which is the most recent one in this universe’s history and one which will have huge ripple effects on all the other stories to come.
CBY: You mentioned that Hallowed has an action-packed story line with terrifying creatures. What was the design process for these creatures, and are they based on any specific folklore or original ideas?
KS: It starts with an idea and then becomes a collaboration with the artist. Sometimes an idea might be good on paper but once we try and explore it visually it doesn’t work. Oftentimes, the artists come up with stuff I didn’t anticipate but really like. They’re the true stars! I’m a big fan of folklore, but I think Jeff VanderMeer’s Southern Reach series was the biggest influence in terms of how I approached the direction of the monsters and the design. I wanted stuff that was truly strange. Visualizing how people or beings would look if they slowly decayed and morphed with other things over time was where I usually started for a creature’s or character’s design.
CBY: Regarding your Kickstarter campaign, you mentioned that backers will have creative input in crafting an original song if you reach a certain goal. How do you envision the collaboration process for this?
KS: Yes, it’s one of my favorite stretch goals! We’re less than $500 away and if we reach our goal ALL backers will get to be a part of the creative process! In addition to getting a copy of the song, we will send out a survey to everyone before production with various questions or preferences (title, genre, subject, lyrics, etc.) which will inform how we actually produce the track. The majority will dictate which direction we go and backers will get to follow along as the song is created. Will Hallowed become a classic country bop? The PEOPLE will decide!
CBY: You funded the first chapter of this book yourself and are using Kickstarter to recover costs and fund future issues. How has the campaign shaped your outlook on indie publishing and creator-led projects?
KS: I don’t know if I have come to any definitive conclusions yet, but I do think it’s planting seeds for my future as an author. Comics and publishing in general is just a chaotic place to be in right now, but it’s been encouraging—both in my campaign and others I have observed—to see creators empowered by their audiences. It can be so hard to get stuff made but the crowdfunding model and relationship can strip away a lot of the hurdles. I love that it puts you immediately in front of the people you’re wanting to reach in the first place. Our campaign is a smaller one, but it’s still been so cool to connect with new readers and creators who see what my team and I are doing and like it. With traditional publishing, I have to wait a long time for any sort of feedback. With Kickstarter, I’ve already learned so much about Hallowed through our backers and this is before most have even read it haha! As a creator, there are few things more honoring that having people believe enough in your vision to support it financially before it’s in its fully realized form. It has definitely lit a fire in me and reaffirmed there’s something to this story and universe. I’m very grateful!
CBY: Hallowed also includes stretch goals for additional rewards. Could you give us a hint about the reward if the campaign reaches $6,000?
KS: I can definitely give a tease. If we reach $6,000, let’s just say all backers will get access to a very different corner of the Direverse. That’s all I can say—I’m sorry haha!
CBY: Are there any particular scenes or pages in Hallowed that you’re especially proud of and excited for readers to see?
KS: There’s one splash page where two characters are facing a giant man-eating worm called a “landmonger” that makes my heart so happy. It turned out exactly how I wanted it and I am very thankful for the excellent work by Riccardo Faccini (artist) and Noah Baslé (colorist) who made it happen.
CBY: What can readers expect from future chapters of Hallowed? Will we see more of Flagg and his men, or are there other stories within the Direverse you're excited to explore?
KS: There’s plenty more stories in the Direverse, but Hallowed will just be focusing on Flagg and his men. Expect to learn more about each member and why they deserted, along with introductions to mysterious new characters. Lots more spooky stuff as well!
CBY: Finally, what message or takeaway do you hope readers will have after reading Hallowed?
KS: I just hope they find it entertaining and enjoy their time in the world! If they do, I look forward to them discovering the multiple adventures and characters waiting for them in other corners of the Direverse. This is the start of something very special and I’m really excited for people to be a part of it.
CBY: Before we end the interview, can you please share with readers where you can be found on social media?
KS: I’m most active on Instagram, but I also regularly publish a newsletter if people want to stay up-to-date with my nerdy shenanigans that way. I always love chatting with and meeting new people, so feel free to say hi!
CBY: I have to say that, not only has it felt extra special to read the first issue of Hallowed, but it’s even more special that the Comic Book Yeti had the ability to interview one of the creators on the project! Kyle Stück, thank you for your time in sitting down with us to talk about your already-funded comic book Kickstarter. Congratulations and we hope to see your name attached to even more interview opportunities in the future!
KS: Thank you, Ty! I appreciate the great questions and am very thankful to Comic Book Yeti for having me on. You all are one of my favorite comic sites and it’s been a blast popping on here. Hopefully I’ll be back talking about other delicious geeky goodness with you all soon. Thanks again!
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