Untold Horror Awaits: The Art and Comics of Emily Carroll – by Cody Ormsbee

The comics medium covers a variety of genres, including fantasy and horror, and today I’d like to convince you to take an interest in an up-and-coming comic artist who exemplifies those genres: Emily Carroll. Carroll has been making web comics since 2010 and has since branched out to include works in multiple anthologies, including an anthology of her own Through the Woods, which has won two Eisner awards and an Ignatz award for outstanding artist. Her comics usually delve into fantasy, but universally work in the genre of horror.

Carroll’s stories are truly horrifying, and though I never counted myself among the horror fans, her work calls to mind the works of Edgar Allen Poe and H.P. Lovecraft with a fantastic blend of suspense, gore, and the uncanny to satisfy even the most diehard horror aficionado. If you are uncertain, then I’d strongly urge you to check out her website, emcarroll.com, where she has some of her comics available online. I’d recommend The Prince & The Sea, The Three Snake Leaves, and His Face All Red, although all of these works are horror and contain mature themes, so read at your own discretion.

For those of you who can’t get enough of her work, like me, Carroll has done work in the indie game industry, including promotional work for the game Gone Home, and full in-game art for The Yawhg. Gone Home is a suspense exploration game where you slowly discover the story of a family by wandering their home. The game is a gem for those who are willing to explore every aspect of the story. Some of her work appears in the game, but mostly she did the cover and promotional work. The Yawhg is a choose-your-own adventure type game, where you go through a week in a fantasy town before a magical storm hits. This game is filled with her illustrations and fantastically silly situations triggered by different actions. I’d recommend getting together with friends to play.

For you non-gamers who still want to enjoy more of her work, and maybe support her along the way, I’d recommend you pick up a copy of Through the Woods. It contains five separate stories and is a beautiful addition to your growing comic collection.