Unset 1965

The California desert is lonely and so was I. Around me, the Joshua trees raised their arms to the sky in prayer, the sky turned a brilliant orange, and the sand swirled in small eddies around my feet like tiny magic clouds. The desert was beautiful and terrifying and for a brief moment, I felt beautiful and terrifying too. I want to walk out into the sunset and disappear, but I do not. Everything here survives on barely anything, but I cannot subsist on barely anything. Despite everything, I still want to live.

In a distance, I saw a neon sign and it said VACANCY.

Unset 1965 is an short epistolary horror story, delivered in the mail between May to October 2022. It is a story about the California desert, ghost towns on old Route 66, and falling in love with a old motel that needs you as much as you need it.

It is also part of an ongoing shift in my work towards tangibility and slowness, and experiences that you hold in your hands. You’ll get physical letters, over 6 months, a story intentionally moderated by the actual passage of time. It is an exploration of a larger project, the Unset Motel, which is about a motel that eats people, which is being poked at in several formats right now, including a game and a novel, but this is a self-contained story. It is self indulgent and moody, and I'll pour in all my love of the southwestern California desert, my obsession with ghost towns, and the feeling of wanting to drive off into the sunset and start everything over. 

HOW DO I GET IT?

UPDATE(May 1, 12pm): SUBSCRIPTIONS ARE NOW CLOSED. Patreon subscriptions can still be made, and will receive letters on a rolling basis, but any subscriptions made after this time(12pm, May 1st) will miss letters.

There are two ways!

You can buy the whole subscription here, at the Three Eyed Rat store. The subscription closes on April 30st.

OR

You can subscribe to my Patreon at the MAIL DAY level between April to October 2022. You have to remain subscribed during this time to receive all letters.

Either option will result in you receiving the Unset 1965 letters from May to October 2022.

IS THIS A GAME?

This is an epistolary short story, not a game. That said, emergent gameplay tends to happen around my work once it is in the audience’s hands, and I’m interested to see if game elements might develop.

IS THERE A DIGITAL VERSION?

After the mailings end, a full digital version will be made public for free. But the story is first intended to be experienced as actual physical letters, received in the mail.

CAN YOU MAIL TO INTERNATIONAL ADDRESSES?

Yes, but it is a bit risky. If you live in Canada or the United Kingdom, you can buy the subscription and enter your address(with extra shipping costs, sorry!)

If you live in any other country, Patreon will allow you to enter your address as part of subscribing to the MAIL DAY tier. I can’t charge for extra shipping there, but I’d really appreciate you adding a couple dollars to help out with shipping! Some countries, like Australia, are having issues with USPS shipping, so caveat emptor. I will try to resolve any international shipping issues, of course, but this may result in you receiving letters slowly, out of order, or as a compiled packet at the end of the mailings.

WHAT IF MY ADDRESS CHANGES DURING THE SUBSCRIPTION?

If you are a Patreon subscriber, you can change it yourself. Here is how to update your address.

If you bought a full subscription via the Three Eyed Rat store, you can email 3eyedrat@gmail.com to update your address.

Mailings are prepped about 3 weeks before you receive them, so there is a chance that some mail still gets misdelivered - if so, just email me and we will get a new letter sent!