Hidden Drawings addresses social issues and will be adapted on Netflix

Close to Halloween, author Jasol Rekulak has invested in the release of a thriller with a little bit of everything: horror, suspense, drama and even a dose of romance. The work Desenhos Ocultos, released in Brazil by publisher Intrinseca, follows the story of Mallory Quinn, a 21-year-old young woman fresh out of rehab — and even though it seems repetitive, the work carries a tone of immense social criticism and has a twist that , I promise, will shock you. Mallory gets a job at the home of Ted and Caroline Maxwell, who, in the eyes of the neighborhood, lead a perfect life. Her main job is to take care of Teddy, the couple’s 5-year-old son. The young woman immediately falls in love with her work: she lives in a place of her own, goes out for her nightly jogs and achieves the much-desired stability. In addition, she builds sincere bonds with the child, a sweet and shy boy who never leaves his notebook and pencil. But one day, something different appears on the paper: a man in a forest, dragging the inert body of a woman.cover-book-hidden-drawings-jason-rekulakLivro Occult DrawingsDisclosure/ Intrinsicphoto-Jason-Rekulak-author-book-hidden-drawingsJason RekulakDisclosure/ Jason Varney0From there, Teddy’s illustrations become more and more sinister, and his stick figures soon turn into highly realistic drawings impossible to be done by a 5-year-old child. Scared, Mallory begins to wonder if the drawings might be glimpses of an unsolved murder that took place decades ago nearby, perhaps related to a supernatural force. Now, she must race against time to decipher the images and save Teddy before it’s too late. metropolises, Jason revealed that the Hidden Designs thought-provoking thriller has been bought by Netflix and will become a feature film. The author, however, made it clear that the production still does not have a premiere date, cast and other defined details.

“The rights were acquired by Netflix and they plan to adapt the novel into a feature film. But as I’m sure you know, these projects often spend years in development. I’m keeping my expectations low and hoping for rapid progress!” he explains.

Inspiration for the book Rekulak, which was helped by Doogie Horner, designer of the best-selling Miss. Peregrine for Peculiar Children, and Will Staehle, who has signed work for Michelle Obama and Guillermo Del Toro to produce the work, said his idea for Hidden Designs came about because he wanted to include illustrations “in a novel for an adult audience.” I started writing Hidden Drawings because I wanted to write a novel with illustrations for an adult audience. I’m sure there are some readers who see illustrated fiction as childish or cryptic, but I think it’s an interesting way to engage 21st century attention. I began to wonder: what if a novel offered some of the same visual emotion? So I got in touch with two of my favorite illustrators and we all got to work,” he explained.

“I knew I wanted the images to appear at regular intervals throughout the novel, and I wanted a character from the story to draw them. I wanted the photos to be clues to a mystery. I would like the photos to evolve or change over the course of the book so the visual style doesn’t get too repetitive. And lastly, I knew the photos had to be in black and white, to keep the book at an affordable price.”

And, yes, that’s what you do: unlike conventional adult storybooks, which have text and more text along the pages, Hidden Drawings has illustrations made by the characters in the middle of its pages. cause tension and curiosity in the reader, Rekulak’s work carries themes of a social nature that are still seen as “problems” in today’s society. Making it clear that he did not try to “make any overt or subtle statements about Christianity, veganism, immigration or anything else” in the work, the author explained that his idea was just to portray a book that takes place in the real world, with people who live and face real-world problems. “I’ve read so many generic thrillers that take place in a sort of neutral fantasy land, a version of our world where the characters have no political opinions, no one discusses religion, and no one mentions uncomfortable issues like racism or abortion. This is a smart strategy to build a large readership, but it’s not real life,” he points out.

Real life is confusing. Government is always a compromise. Religion is infinitely debatable. And, because I see my characters as real people living in the real world, they occasionally clash over current issues. Jason Rekulak

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