Reindeer House pt.26 ✨SURPRISE!! Behind the scenes!!✨

🎉✨ BEHIND THE SCENES OF REINDEER HOUSE!! ✨🎉

Hi peeps, one and all!! Firstly — MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!! 🎄✨ And secondly, thank you so much for reading Reindeer House!! This little post is a peek behind the scenes at how these deer came to life, and why they are the way they are.

Did you know Reindeer House wasn’t the original title? At first, I was going to call it Santa’s Reindeer Stables Boarding House — which is very accurate, but also a mouthful. So it got lovingly shortened, and honestly? Reindeer House just felt right.

As for their names — each one started as a Japanese translation of the classic reindeer names. I then wrote them in romaji, then tweaked them until they sounded fun and readable in English. For example, Dashaa used to be Dassha, but that would’ve been pronounced “Dass-ha,” in English which wasn’t quite the vibe, so I adjusted it. Sorry if any of the names were tricky at first—but I hope they grew on you!!

Rudorufu came together almost immediately. Since he’s in charge, I knew he’d be perpetually stressed, painfully responsible, and trying his absolute best. I also just really like meganes, so the glasses were inevitable. Instead of a red nose, I gave him red hair — and decided the “legendary red nose” was actually just one very unfortunate cold. He also ended up as the straight-man for so many jokes, whether he liked it or not.

Dashaa!! His name was like "dash" so I figured he’d like working out. I love tsunderes (not the rage kind, just blushes and gruffness), and he fit perfectly. He was definitely going to say “b-baka” throughout the story, but somehow it never made it into his speech as much as expected. I gave him a gold star badge in his design because he wants approval ahaha!! And big red running boots for, well, running!!

Donaa… So peaceful… I wanna give him a hug!! I was initially unsure what to do with his personality, but once the “quiet big brother” idea clicked, everything fell into place. Tall, strong, dependable — but soft and gentle too. Somehow always has a fresh cup of tea ready. And yes, he owns an uncountable number of Christmas sweaters.

Bikkusen is fabulous. Glam, drama, fashion, sparkle. I really like using him because his speech is so recognisable!! In a crowd, you’d instantly know who those “DAAAARLING”s were coming from!! I want him to take me shopping and give me fashion advice… He was fun to design!! The lurid pink fur jacket? The hair? The boots? The HAIR?!!?! Ahaha!! A line that I desperately wanted to use but never found a place is “This is worse than when Santa caught me rearranging his tinsel…” 

Dansaa might be one of the easiest characters to write, because the moment he appears, ridiculous dialogue just pours out of him. He’s beautifully air-headed, and you can drop him into any scene and chaos follows. Design-wise, I wanted modern clothes with star motifs — the chain on his pants, the arm-garter, the antler charm — because in his mind, he is the star, the main character. 

Puransa is another favourite of mine. Exhausted. Done with everything. A perfect contrast to his brother Dansaa — which honestly begs the question: how did they come from the same womb? And the “she’s a goat” joke is never not funny to me!! I wanted him to have a pop of colour in his design so I gave him a red scarf — though it was never mentioned in the actual story…. 

Kometto, the love-struck fool… His design leans heavily into pinks and purples, and if you look closely, you can see he has shining eyes, like he’s always starstruck (which, let's be honest, he is!!)!! I really wanted to give him a happy ending, so yes, the focus drifted there a bit at the end — no regrets. The heart motifs, the delusion, the sincerity… I adore him.

Kyuupiddo… dangerous. Extremely dangerous. I love giving small characters unsettling energy, and Kyuu-chan absolutely delivered. I never fully figured out how he ended up on Santa’s elite team, or why dangerous objects gravitate toward his hands — but I think that mystery makes it better. He was originally meant to be holding a gingerbread man in the design illustration, but since he was already holding a knife, that became a bag instead. Good thing Rudorufu and Donaa are always nearby to remove the hazardous objects around...

And finally — Buritsen. I knew I wanted a relentlessly optimistic character who the universe absolutely hates. He trips, crashes, and nearly dies constantly — but bounces back every time with a grin. For some reason, the name “Buritsen” brings to mind tripping over (writer brain logic), so it stuck. Bandaids, messy clothes, green hair — he looks good, but he’s a walking hazard, and I love him for it.

And what’s a better combination that putting a whole bunch of mildly disastrous characters under one roof? Hilarious escapades just happen on their own!! They pretty much did whatever they wanted and I was just here to type it down!! Ahaha!! 

Thank you so much for spending time with these deer. I hope they made you laugh, smile, or at least snort a little. I hope you had fun with them!! I know I did!! 

Have a wonderful Christmas, and see you again sometime.

Lots of love,

Fern 💜✨

xo