So, over the months (or, uh, years *cough cough*) I wrote and re-wrote Spartacus and the Circus of Shadows, I’d always play specific songs to remind me about the initial concept of the story (I already talked about how Sympathy for the Devil helped bring me back to Spartacus).
My favorite high school-nostalgia/guilty pleasure Natalie Merchant, in her lyric-writing brilliance, initially gave me the pieces to put together Athena, Spart’s circus performing mother. She evolved from the lyrics to Ophelia: Ophelia was a circus queen/the female cannonball/Projected through/five flaming hoops/to wild and shocked applause. But, to get all literary (and perhaps a bit pompous, as though I could really say this about my own writing)…to Spartacus, it’s like Athena really is all of the characters from the song, simultaneously–wild and demure, loving and unloving. I wanted it to be like he can’t pin Athena down as good or bad, loving or uncaring because she is ultimately a mystery. A crazy, feminine, Natalie Merchant mystery. Well, that’s how I hoped it would appear, anyway.
(And yes, I have a massive girl-crush on Natalie Merchant. Just had to put that out there.)
But while Ophelia gave the words, though, it’s this awesome video, Kind and generous (also Merchant), that gave me the circus-as-family-vibe. (Though this is obviously a much lighter and happier circus than Bartholomew’s…but hey, it was a jumping off point.)
Photo by Jimmy and Dena Katz, from “World of Wonders”
And, corny lyrics aside, if you’re interested in seeing the inspiration for the sideshow, you don’t have to jump through any weird, girly music hoops to get there. I was at Powell’s Books when I stumbled across the World of Wonders, a photography book by Jimmy and Dena Katz. They–get this–photographed a modern sideshow. It was like they did this just for me because, honestly, Remmy and Nero and Zeda were all there, just waiting to be discovered. And, I just discovered–you can like them on Facebook. OMG, I can’t wait to do this myself. (Done.)
And lastly…so I have another book idea in the works. Coincidently–or not–it’s another Merchant song, helping me keep the plot in check. Gonna keep grinding, see what happens.
Oh, anticipation, how I love you.
Comments!