So Mermaid Marla is another completely inspirational mermaid who likes to swim with sea creatures, brings magic to the lives of land-locked humans everywhere, and is apparently and obnoxiously immune to all effects of aging. She CLAIMS to be 50, which obviously translates to about 19 in mermaid years. I first met Marla at MerCon, where she glimmered and undulated alongside many of the other mermaids I’ve interviewed for this illuminating blog. I have been meaning to talk to her for a while, not only for your mermaid knowledge but so that I can steal all of her secrets and possibly sell them and become a zillionaire.

In the mean time… here is our gorgeous Q and A.

So how did you discover mermaiding?
I actually discovered what we now call mermaiding quite by accident! As a scuba diver I was having problems with my legs cramping from time to time. Someone had mentioned to me that freedivers used a special fin called a monofin, which could help strengthen my legs to lessen the cramps. As I started researching freedivers I absolutely fell in love with their ability to hold their breath and stay under the water without scuba tanks. While I was searching for different types of monofins I came upon a website that mentioned mermaids and monofins. Of course that piqued my interest and I was utterly amazed to find out that there were people making mermaid tails using monofins and had been doing so for years! It made perfect sense to me and I couldn’t believe I had never heard about nor seen them before.

Have you always identified as a mermaid, even if you didn’t always wear an actual mermaid tail?
I have always had a connection to the ocean, having lived next to it most of my life, but had never identified myself as a mermaid. I remember always wishing I could fall into the water and turn into a mermaid like in that movie “The Incredible Mr. Limpet,” who turned into a fish. I did think it strange that the two times I lived far away from the ocean in Montana and Colorado, I felt out-of-sorts, and had an almost suffocated feeling… Now I understand why. After becoming scuba certified everything fell into place and I knew I was supposed to be near the ocean. When I’m under the water it is the only place where I feel completely at home and stress-free, so of course I must have always been a mermaid!

Why are mermaids so appealing to you?
The lure and mystery that surrounds them is so enticing, but it’s not only that. They represent the guardians of the ocean to me. Mermaids have an appeal to everyone young and old across the globe. When you stop to think about it, how many other things are globally appealing and accepted? I think that is one of the things that I love most about mermaiding. Mermaids bring people together and put smiles on their faces no matter where they are from or what language they speak!

Do you feel different as your mermaid self?
I definitely feel different when I am mermaid! I feel more beautiful, better able to express myself, and have a general peaceful feeling. I never did role-playing when I was younger as I had a lot of responsibilities and grew up a little fast, so this is a whole new feeling for me. The most amazing difference is the ease it gives me to communicate with children. I have always been a little awkward around children, not really knowing how to talk with them since I don’t have any of my own. When I am my mermaid self, the walls come down and the curiosity of the children helps me to interact with them on a very innocent and magical level.

You became a scuba diver before you became a mermaid. Can you compare these different ways of experiencing the ocean?
They are very different and both amazing in their own ways. Scuba diving opened up the sea to me and made my dreams come true. Being able to stay under water for an hour at a time is just heaven for me. The one and only downside to scuba diving is all the equipment needed to make this happen. Although you achieve a weightlessness in the ocean, it is still a bit cumbersome with a tank, regulator and hoses attached to you. With mermaiding it’s a totally liberating feeling but is limited to one’s ability to breathhold. I haven’t practiced enough to be able to stay under very long, but just being able to move freely, with the motion you create with a monofin/tail, is intoxicating. Of course our eyes aren’t able to see as well underwater, but with a little practice you would be surprised how easy it is to recognize fish and objects once you’re used to it. Salt water is very natural to our eyes so I much prefer swimming in the ocean compared to pools whenever possible.

Can you talk about some of the other mermaids and mermen you’ve met? How involved have you been in the mermaid community?

Marla with Hannah Fraser at MerCon

How do people react to your mermaidliness, generally?
As a whole, I get very positive reactions. There are a few who don’t get it, especially because of my age, but those people are usually ones who don’t normally appreciate anything out of the norm. I don’t worry too much about any negative responses because I understand it’s hard to grasp for a select few. I think some fear we are all part of some sort of cult or they see it as simply cos-play, which I love as well, but for me mermaiding is so much more. If I really analyzed it I guess it would seem quite odd for a grown woman to dress up in a mermaid tail, especially one without children, but I see it as therapeutic and as a form of self-expression. When I see the smiles on children’s faces, as well as on the faces of people young and old alike, I know it’s something I was meant to be and gives me such an inner joy.

Can you tell me about any particularly special moments in your mermaid life?
There really are so many special moments for me. I’ve had children come up to me without saying a word and just give me a hug, which is pretty overwhelming to me. I’ve had parents thank me and tell me that their child rarely speaks to anyone, right as that child is asking me a slew of mermaid questions! I receive messages on my Facebook fan page from young girls who say they are inspired by me, and that is such a wonderful feeling. The special friendships I have found within the mermaid community and the bond we all have that can’t be explained with my non-mer friends. Becoming a mermaid has really opened up so many avenues for me personally and I am so thankful I finally realized my mermaidness.

You’re approaching 50, aren’t you? I would never have been able to guess that! Do you feel that the ocean/mermaiding has anything to do with your youthfulness?
Actually I just turned 50 last June and thank you so much for that compliment! While I can’t say that mermaiding is the cause of my youthfulness, I can honestly say that becoming a mermaid so late in life has re-energized my entire being. I look at everything in a different light now and finally feel at one with myself. Of course there are times when I think, “What am I doing putting on a tail at the age of 50?” but that quickly goes away when I look at my photos with so many people I’ve brought happiness to. That’s really what it’s all about….your happiness and the happiness of others around you!

Do you have any advice for aspiring mermaids?
Well for one thing, there isn’t any right or wrong way to become a mermaid. Mermaids come in all shapes, sizes, and races and the sky’s the limit when you create your own personal tail. When you’re ready to purchase a tail you will find there are many tailmakers out there, so just do your research and figure out which one will be a good match for you. I would also suggest practicing swimming with either regular fins or purchase an inexpensive monofin to get the feel of swimming with your legs together. But remember, being a mermaid doesn’t mean you have to be able to swim. Being a mermaid can be as simple as having a love of the ocean and all things that live in it! I have been a mermaid all my life but didn’t realize it until I was in my 40′s… Donning a tail is a wonderful way to express our physical form, but the true mermaid magic lies within our hearts!

Any last words?
I would like to thank you, Carolyn, for your wonderful interviews, articles, blogs and of course amazing books that allow the mermaid community to be shown in a tasteful and beautiful light. I feel very honored to have a spot on your page and thank you for the opportunity to tell a little more of my mermaid journey and let people know that it’s okay to be yourself, even if it’s a mermaid!

So Andrea Portes is the super talented author of the novel Hick, which became a movie that she wrote starring Blake Lively and my favorite actress who-has-really-good-taste Chloe Grace Moretz. She’s also writing comic books now, and more novels, AND she’s working on the Uncle Alice Presents project that is the subject of this very cool Kickstarter campaign that was launched THIS VERY EVENING and that you should obviously sponsor immediately. Uncle Alice Presents is a comic book, graphic novel and TV experience telling “out-of-this-world stories with Alice Cooper as our scary, scaredy narrator.” Included in the anthology, and the reason why mermaids everywhere should pay special attention to it, and why aspiring mermaids everywhere should head to the closest beaches, is Andrea’s MERMAID-MAKER.

First, here is Andrea (on the left) being very glamorous at the Hick movie premiere at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival:

Listen to the description of MERMAID-MAKER and take a gander at the awesome illustration by David Beauchene:

All the hot so-cal beach girls start going missing, one by one, as a mad scientist at SCRIPPS has started capturing them and bringing them back to the lab in an attempt to scientifically create mermaids by crossbreeding humans and fish.

Out of extreme generosity and selflessness, I obviously had to ask Andrea all about MERMAID-MAKER and mermaids generally, and our shimmering Q and A follows:

So can you tell me about this new Uncle Alice Presents Kickstarter campaign you’re involved in?
I created and wrote a comic book series, called SUPER RAD, for Dark Matter. (That comes out in Fall 2013). It turns out, they were working on the Uncle Alice project and I tossed over a few ideas and they actually stuck.

What is this mermaid maker? How did you come up with the idea to include mermaids?
It’s so funny, so when I was brain-storming about funny, weird ideas for the anthology, the last thing that popped into my head was “Mermaid Maker.” And I remember I actually laughed because it was such a goofy idea. But then I thought about how strange that would be to have a mad-scientist type actually stealing beautiful girls off a beach with the intent of cross-breeding them with fish to make mermaids. It just kind of made me chuckle.

I sent that idea, with a few others, over to Uncle Alice creator Tom Sheppard (The Annoying Orange, Pinky and the Brain) and Todd Moyer (Dark Matter CEO).

To be quite honest, I thought MERMAID-MAKER was going to make them think I was just a goofy weird but for some reason it seems to have taken. It’s in all the press and they even have the front cover, with the mermaid and the fish, in their “breeding tubes” or whatever you would EVER call that.

So funny. It really just goes to show you can never tell what will take.

Do you have an opinion of mermaids generally?
I think right now my opinion of mermaids is people seem to dig em. Particularly, judging the reaction to MERMAID-MAKER.

Have you ever secretly aspired to be a mermaid?
I think I would love to be a mermaid. All that beauty and never having to worry about thighs! Perfect.

Come to think of it… maybe this MERMAID MAKING isn’t such a bad idea…

I’m in!

What else are you working on?
Thanks for asking, my second novel Bury This is coming out this coming winter. It’s being published by Soft Skull.

My comic book series, SUPER RAD, will be out this fall.

And, happily, I just finished my third novel, STUPIDFACES, which is exactly right at this very moment, in the hands of my agent. It’s a YA novel, so that’s a bit of a departure… but after writing Bury This, which is incredibly dark, I needed to write something lighter. And, of course, for a YA, I’m told it’s dark.

I have a feeling I’m going to get told a lot of my things are dark, actually…

Except MERMAID-MAKER.

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Check out the Kickstarter video right here:

So due to this article that was published on Shine from Yahoo! today about mermaid extraordinaire Linden Wolbert, many many thousands of new people are visiting this mermaid blog of mine for the first time and very likely will be taking to the high seas (or their local rivers and pools) in the near future.

I thought I might take this opportunity to re-share my very first post on this blog, from January 2011, with the my one true love TIM GUNN. Because this is still my very favorite mermaid interview ever. Here is the original link and here it is again, still fabulous:

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23
JAN

TIM GUNN TALKS ABOUT MERMAIDS

So I had a deep suspicion that my one true love Tim Gunn might appreciate the strangeness and wondrousness of mermaids, and I emailed him and asked if he’d talk to me for a bit about mermaids and fashion for my brand new blog – and this, my very first post. Because as you will see – and as this blog becomes filled with wonders over the next many months – mermaids are everywhere in our lives and culture, including the bust- and hemlines of the extremely glamorous mermaid gown. And Tim Gunn knows everything. When he agreed, even gallantly claiming to be “honored” by my request, I done fainted dead away and had to be revived with smelling salts. And then the following took place.

I know. He is awesome.

Do you feel that mermaids and mermaidly allure have a place in today’s fashion world?
When we consider the catalysts that are essential for inspiration in the fashion industry, few have the staying power or the potency of mermaids, owing largely to the fact that mermaids have been part of world literature, lore, art, and artifact for such a very long time. There will always be a place for mermaid-inspired fashion, providing that the designs are conceived in a manner that’s relevant to the current moment.

In what ways do you think that women can add mermaidly allure to their own wardrobes?
Mermaids aren’t afraid to show off their curves and celebrate their gender. This is what gives them such extraordinary allure, at least in my humble view. There’s a fashion lesson is this: dress for your curves and your womanliness, wear clothes that fit well, and walk – or swim – with confidence. Finally, never turn down a sequin or paillette.

What do you think of the mermaid dress? Do you have any favorite examples?
The mermaid dress is, by definition, about drama; form-fitting from bust to knee (and usually strapless) and with a cascading burst of fabric from the knee to the floor. You find them in abundance on the red carpet and some of the most beautiful are by Marchesa. But my favorite mermaid-inspired garment is the mermaid sheath, which was introduced in the late ‘60’s by the legendary Norman Norell. His sequined covered gown quickly became an American fashion classic.

Can you describe any other mermaid-inspired fashion? What did you think of Gaultier’s 2008 collection, for example?
Gaultier is ever the showman. I found his fall 2008 couture collection to be expectedly over-the-top and, frankly, entirely too literal and, therefore, costumey for my taste. However, the look from the collection that Marion Cotillard wore to the Academy Awards was stunning. (For me, evaluating fashion is all about context; who’s wearing it and for what purpose.) And owing to the fact that Ms. Cotillard won an Oscar that year, Gaultier’s dress received a lot of attention, a lot of very positive attention.

What do you think the appeal of mermaids is in general? Are you yourself a fan?
I’m a huge fan of mermaids (and mermen for that matter), because their place in art and literature is so long-standing (3,000 years!) and crosses every culture and region of the globe. There will always be a fascination with creatures that transcend the world as we know it, and mermaids are among the more accessible of those creatures.

Do you think there is any place for merMEN in the fashion world, and do you have any advice for aspiring mermen who might be feeling a bit overlooked?
I always say that fashion is so much easier for men than it is for women, but I need to recalibrate that thought when it comes to mermen, because it strikes me that they pose more of a fashion challenge than mermaids. Fortunately, a merman’s fashion need only be addressed from the waist up. This means that plenty of options are available, from a classic polo shirt to a full-on tuxedo (minus pants, of course). Though we must be reminded that color options for a merman’s apparel should be informed by the color of his flesh and scales.

Do you have any advice for aspiring mermaids (and mermen)?
Advice? Don’t let the world aquatic compromise your personal style and…practice holding your breath.

So a brand-spanking-new novel with a mermaid silhouette gracing the cover entered bookstores this past Tuesday, as I’m sure you’re well aware, at least in your hearts if not your conscious minds: Amy Shearn’s The Mermaid of Brooklyn. Look:

Here is Amy at a bookstore in Brooklyn with The Mermaid of Brooklyn:

The novel is actually about a struggling mother of two young children in Park Slope, Brooklyn, stretched way too thin and at a breaking point, especially once her no-good husband vanishes as no-good husbands tend to do, who gets saved in part by a mermaid. Who may or may not be herself. I love the reason Amy gives, the way she equates mermaidliness with motherhood and women’s magicalness generally: “I wanted to write something about mothering that captured how it feels: epic, magical, often entirely surreal.” You can win a copy of The Mermaid of Brooklyn by entering this contest on Redbook.com, though really you ought to stop being so cheap and go to your local bookstore and buy a copy. I’m not sure you’ll be able to resist, anyway, after this sparkling interview:

So what is the concept behind your novel The Mermaid of Brooklyn?
You know, I just described it to my four-year-old in a way that I think might be the best summary I’ve come up with yet: A lady is in trouble and gets some help from a mermaid, only to realize she didn’t actually need help after all, and that she’s okay by herself.

What is a rusalka, anyway?
The rusalka is the proto-mermaid of Eastern European lore, a sort of spooky, malevolent siren-spirit. They are the spirits of wronged women, of illegitimate mothers, brides left at the altar, suicides by drowning. But watch out, because they are also known for dancing in meadows and hanging out in trees during the full moon. And they love seducing (and drowning) sailors.

In my book, a rusalka from the East River inhabits a Brooklyn mom’s body, which I’m pretty sure was not the official folklore version.

How did you come up with the idea of using a mermaid the way you do?
I can’t even remember what I was reading, but it was some survey of Slavic folklore that mentioned the rusalka. This was probably ten years ago. Around this time my grandmother told me a story about how her mother, Jenny, once considered jumping off a bridge but had her life saved by a pair of shoes, and the two strands—Jenny, rusalka—became intertwined in my mind. I couldn’t figure out my way into the novel for some time though, so they just kind of marinated in the back of my mind for a while.

Have you ever felt you had a secret (or not-so-secret) mermaid identity yourself?
Well, in my book the rusalka is kind of this id-like force, an inner voice that helps Jenny to find herself, to listen to herself, to fight for her life. I think every woman has this kind of rusalka inside her. But these rusalka-voices are seldom polite and often unpleasant, so most of us—for better or for worse—don’t always listen to them.

Mermaids and Brooklyn have a history. Have you ever been to the Coney Island Mermaid Parade?
I haven’t! Isn’t that odd? I love the idea of it, and I always love looking at the pictures, and every year I think of going and then remember that I hate parades. I’m one of those New Yorkers who doesn’t do well in crowds, go figure. I think it’s because I’m short, so being in a crowd in the summer just involves a lot of armpit-facetime.

What do you think the appeal of mermaids is, anyway? Have they always had a particular appeal to you?
There’s something inherently fascinating about creatures that are half-human, half-magic, about the uncanny nature of the almost-plausible mythical beast. Then when I was pregnant for the first time, what with all of pregnancy’s surreal aquatics, it became clear to me that all women are actually half-human, half-magic.

What would you say to women who feel there might be a secret mermaid inhabiting them, too?
I would say to enjoy it, but also to remember that a mermaid on land can be a little bit like a recent divorcee, consumed with physical pleasure and not all that responsible.

Have you been surprised at all by peoples’ reaction to the mermaid in your book?
I have been! I don’t want to tell anyone how to read the book, and I love different readers’ different interpretations, but I’ll just say I’m surprised at how many people have taken the mermaid at face value.

Do you have any advice for aspiring mermaids?
Stay away from the East River!

What are you working on now?
I’m working on a short story, because I think I forgot how to write short stories but I want to remember how, about a case of mass hysteria amongst a group of teenage girls. And in theory I’m writing a novel that’s a ghost story, even though I know nothing about ghosts and never read ghost stories. But in reality that novel is still very much lists and notes and research and scribbles. In other words, it’s still perfect.

So you probably know Michelle Tea for her kick-ass memoirs and poetry and novels and anthology collections featuring girls (often herself) who are radical, cool, brave, modern-day Joan of Arcs; in other words, she is, as SF Weekly says, the “literary purveyor of fucking bring-it.” She’s received a Lambda Literary Award for Best Lesbian Fiction and she co-founded of the all-girl poetry roadshow Sister Spit, and she’s done plenty of other things besides that you can read all about if you are not too lazy to use Google and or click on the link I’ve helpfully provided above. Now Michelle has a new novel coming out from McSweeneys, her first YA fantasy and the first of a trilogy about a girl in Chelsea, Massachusetts, and the “filthy, swearing mermaid who comes to her when she’s unconscious.” As filthy, swearing mermaids tend to do. Here is the cover of Mermaid in Chelsea Creek:

And here is a completely charming photo of Michelle by Amos Mac that makes me want a Popsicle immediately, but then again when do I not:

So of course I had to ask Michelle all about Mermaid in Chelsea Creek and mermaids generally, and it turns out she was inspired by the Polish Syrenka, who is pretty much the most bad-ass mermaid out there, watching over Warsaw with her twin tail and her sword and shield. Our illuminating interview follows!

So what is the concept behind your novel Mermaid in Chelsea Creek?
I just wanted to write something fantastical that played with magic and myth. I had learned about the great salt mine in Poland and it really captured my imagination. I’m Polish, so it inspired me to investigate Polish folklore and pagan traditions, and that’s how I learned of Syrenka, the mermaid who lives in the Vistula and protects the city of Warsaw.

Why a mermaid? How did you come up with the idea to stick a mermaid in Chelsea Creek?
I’ve always loved mermaids, and I got sort of obsessed with Syrenka and she became part of the story. The idea was that Sophie, my main character, had this old-world magic but she had to return to her ancestral home to learn about her powers. So I had Syrenka swim from Poland to get her.

Your mermaid is described as “filthy” and “swearing.” Can you tell us more about her?
Well, the oceans are dirty, so I imagine after a long trek through it a mermaid would be pretty grimy. I also needed Syrenka to have a very Polish disposition, and Polish people are tough. They don’t smile, and they think you’re up to no good if you smile at them. Living in the river in Warsaw through the ages she would have seen many horrible things, and that has hardened her. I wanted her to feel real and complex and tough, the way I believe such a creature would be.

I understand you have a love of magic, horoscopes, tarot, and witches. Do mermaids fit in there as well?
I am very charmed by magic and otherworldly ideas, and it’s true that mermaids have their place among tarot cards and the myths and rituals of magic!

Have you ever identified with them yourself in any way?
Yeah, totally! When I was a teenager dying my hair blue and lavender I was definitely going for a faerie/mermaid magical girl look. I was really different from everyone in my city and got really harassed for it, and was attracted to stories of girls who were noble and beautiful and different and punished for it, like mermaids and Joan of arc and other saints. And as a little girl I’d play mermaid at the beach and in swimming pools.

I don’t think you normally write about fantastic, tailed creatures. Did you find it challenging and/or liberating and/or something else?
I have found it totally liberating to write about fantastic things in general after writing so much memoir. It’s been really inspiring to just get to follow my imagination and make stuff up, but also way more challenging. With a memoir the story is already there, so that’s half the battle. Having to create a whole world and its creatures from scratch is really daunting!

I understand you visited Poland and did some research on the Warsaw mermaid. Can you talk about that?
Visiting Warsaw was really amazing. I was teaching a feminist writing workshop and the women I worked with were so tough and cool–Poland is harsh, it has a communist hangover, and as a catholic country it is very repressive. I actually found it to be very depressing, but also I had a bad cold and was at the start of a break up and didn’t bring warm enough clothes, so maybe it wasn’t depressing but I was depressed! I did stumble across this small public exhibit showing images of the Warsaw mermaid through time, which was amazing. Sitting on the bank of the Vistula was really great, and visiting the statues of her. With some friends I’d made we took the train to the Wieliczka salt mine and did the epic tour. It was so beautiful, and will show up in the next books in the series.

Why do you think people like mermaids so much, anyway?
The ocean is so vast and mysterious, to think that there could be creatures so similar to ourselves living in the depths is really dreamy and exciting. And tails are so beautiful and swimming feels like flying. To be at home in the ocean, a place so perilous to humans, that is I think the most alluring part of it.

Do you have any advice for aspiring mermaids?
Hmmmmm . . . Make your own mermaid mythology. Remember that history gets written by the winners, and what we know about mermaids comes from people who probably didn’t understand them properly. They’re not just pretty, long haired seductresses. They’re fierce and intelligent and full of wisdom and experience, just like you.

So last summer my friend Kris and his beloved were out and about in Seattle when they spied the rather spectacular vehicle of none other than the Gypsy Mermaid, an otherworldly lady who travels all around the country spreading light and joy, as well as original art and music, in her mermaid-themed Gypsy Caravan. Here are the photos Kris sent me of said caravan that same day:

Photo by Kris Boose

Photo by Kris Boose

Of course I immediately looked up this travelling lady and emailed her to find out more. I admit I have been slightly untimely in posting my penetrating questions and her illuminating answers, but I think it’s clear that you, I and the Gypsy Mermaid herself all live beyond the boundaries of regular time, which is for suckers.

Here are some more photos for you:

Imagine driving down the highway doing something boring like picking up your dry cleaning and having that vision cross your path!

Our slightly delayed yet deeply scintillating Q and A follows:

So tell me about yourself and this mermaid-covered gypsy caravan of yours! How did you become the Gypsy Mermaid? Have you always been a mermaid/been interested in mermaids?
I have always been a mermaid. When I was invited to the waters to learn how to swim I of course automatically swam as a mermaid. I seek out the sparkly, glittery, magical, and special romance with humans. The gypsy half of me grew as a passion to travel, explore the world and dance under the moonlight and fireside, and thus became my gypsy “land legs.” The two halves came together as I discovered who I was as a young woman, and the name “Gypsy Mermaid” was formed as far back as the 80′s. My Gypsy Caravan is a continuation of one of my previous art cars, “the Mermaid Mobile,” which also traveled the highways and byways in search of adventure. She was originally a Canadian postal truck (aluminum body). When I was introduced to her she was the picture vehicle for the movie Saving Silverman, had a picture of a cowboy lassoing a raccoon on the side, and was called the Cowboy Wayne Pest Control truck. Now of course she is a fantastical colorful creation whose soul purpose on the road is to inspire smiles and giggles while providing me with a cozy home on wheels.

What draws you to mermaids? Why are they so alluring, do you think?
Mermaids have always had a magical appeal to me—the freedom and adventure of the open waters, the quiet moments on solitary rocks either sunbathing or enjoying the moonlight. Thinking about life and the abundance it provides in life lessons and blissful moments while on this plane of existence, being one with and part of nature. Mermaids have a natural beauty that ebbs and flows like the water, the wind, even the firelight as it flickers. They live in the water but they encompass all the earth elements in colors, personalities, personal tastes. I myself have always had both the fire and water elements with me, in my art, my artcars, my personality. It flows smoothly and with a rhythmic pulse, a smoldering passion for life.

How do people respond to your mermaids? Can you tell me about how you designed them, etc?
Everyone I have come across in my many adventures knows of mermaids, and they always smile at the whimsy of each one they discover on and around the Gypsy Caravan. I have created many mermaids over the years. One of my favorites and of most people is my “cutlery mermaid” made of recycled cutlery, poppies, beads and other bits and pieces. I have taken to painting smaller canvases of mermaids recently, usually representing parts of the Gypsy Caravan… the mermaid weather vain or the mermaid wishing well for instance. I call the smaller canvases my “postcard” series. I create mermaids as the ideas come to me. I am inspired by all that I see in life around me. The imagination is truly a gift and blessing.

What services do you offer as The Gypsy Mermaid? Where can people find you? Is there anywhere you appear regularly?
I offer mermaid oracle card readings, gypsy charm bags, original artwork (of course there are mermaids!). And because I sing as well, I have a CD available, A Little Giggle. It’s sexy, silky, soothing yet stimulating, old standards/jazz/blues. You never know what I will be bringing out. I also have whimsical “funky hair fascinators” that I create. I’m all over North America but usually post on my Facebook page where I will be at any given time. You can find many videos of my adventures on my Youtube channel, and I’ve started a Vimeo channel, too.

Do you have any advice for aspiring mermaids?
My lovelies you must: Follow your passion. Never let anyone or anything talk you out of your dreams in life. It’s your life. Live it fully every day and seek the happy always.

Peace and Love my darlins,
the Gypsy Mermaid

So there have been a lot of mermaids in the news of late. Far more, I’m sure, than I will list here, but:

© Jeff Koons, 2013, Pastel on Paper.

Did you see this article in Publisher’s Weekly about Brenda Peterson’s self-publishing mermaid venture (achieved with her pod-mates’ help)? While you’re at it, check out Brenda’s Huffington Post blog; she recently wrote about the U.S. Navy’s acoustic war on the world’s oceans, and today’s post features a conversation between her and yours truly.

I also helpfully provided a list of ten mermaid destinations, including Mermaid Shelly’s Grotto, last week for the Hairpin, where I’ve lovingly and generously written about mermaids before.

And then there’s been a ton of press about both Linden Wolbert and Eric “The Mertailor” Ducharme:

Here’s the Yahoo article on Linden. And the Huffington Post interview with Linden about being a “mermaid to the stars.” Here she is in the NY Daily News.

Photo: Carter’s News Agency

Eric Ducharme just appeared on TLC’s My Crazy Obsession, and there have been about 50000 articles on him since. Here’s a promo for the show:

 
Here’s the big story from the UK’s Daily Mail, an article from Yahoo , a story on Laughing Squid, and even one on Perez Hilton. I recently asked Eric about all this hoopla now and will post that interview tomorrow, or even tonight if you’re lucky.

There are many more stories that those, and I’m sure there are reporters plotting as we speak, reality show producers scheming, and probably entire film crews down at Weeki Wachee if not your local creek or pool, all of them trying (and most assuredly failing) to figure out the secrets of those glamorous, glittering half-fish we all know and love.

Aimee Bender is one of my favorite writers, writing about the real world in a way that’s always slightly, magically off-kilter and occasionally populated by mermaids. The wonderful “Drunken Mimi”—from The Girl in the Flammable Skirt, for example, features a high-school mermaid who walks around with a crutch and is wooed by an imp. Here’s how it opens:

There was an imp that went to high school with stilts on so that no one would know he was an imp. Of course he never wore shorts.

One thing he didn’t know was that there was a mermaid at the school; she was a sophomore as well. She wore long skirts that swept the floor and one large boot covering her tail and she used a crutch, pretending like her second leg, which of course didn’t exist, was hurt.

She was a quiet one, that mermaid; she excelled in oceanography class, but she also made an effort to not be too good; she didn’t want to call attention to herself. On every test she missed at least three. (What is plankton? A boat, she wrote.) She was very beautiful; hair slightly greenish which everyone attributed to chlorine. Eyes purplish which everyone attributed to drugs. The girls called her a snob. The boy shoved each other and agreed.

I know. Aimee’s last novel came out in 2011 and has what I think is one of the best titles ever, The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake; it’s about a woman who tastes emotions through food. Check out some of her other writing here, and if you haven’t ever read Aimee before you can later thank me with a note or even a nice pile of cash.

I recently asked Aimee about urgent mermaidly matters:

What attracts you to magic and the fantastic/inspires you to feature it in your own fiction?
Something about telling a story in a a skewed way really draws me—as a reader and a writer. I can see the real world more clearly through an unreal lens.

Can you talk about “Drunken Mimi” and what inspired it?
It was very freeing to write a story about a mermaid and feel like it could “count.” I don’t remember the exact inspiration but I do remember how shocking and fun it felt to put the word “mermaid” on a page and move from there. After that it felt like any word was open and available.

What do you think of mermaids and their continual appeal?
I find them fascinating because they are so beautiful and so mysterious and alluring but they can’t have traditional sex.

In what ways does the figure of the mermaid appeal to you personally? Do you identify with them in any way?
I’m a terrible swimmer so I like the idea of a woman who can swim and who can traverse land and sea so easily. I also am intrigued by the sirens, the voices of sea creatures who would lure boats and then crash them. I don’t identify with that so clearly but I think it complicates the mermaid in a good way to have her as a figure of both beauty and also destruction.

I know you teach fairy tales, including The Little Mermaid, at USC. What do you think the allure of fairy tales is? What is your take on the Hans Christian Andersen story?
I love the story and I love the sadness of the ending; students are sometimes shocked to find out what happens to the original “Arielle.” His writing is so much about sacrifice so it makes sense there’d be a wholly different angle. Fairy tales—the allure—I think it’s something very primal, like DNA-level primal. Since they show up in every culture, it seems we need fairy tales to be human, which I find wonderful.

Do you have any advice for aspiring mermaids?
I personally would like to see a mermaid with very short hair. Why not? Subvert the look.

So as I alluringly mentioned the other day, Eric “The Mertailor” Ducharme was recently on the TLC show “My Crazy Obsession” and as a result has been the subject of 50000 articles and tv interviews and no doubt love letters in the past couple of weeks. Since I haven’t interviewed him since 2011, I figured it was a good time to check in and see how he’s handling all the hoopla!

But first, here’s one of the photos from the show:

Photo from TLC

And second, how gorgeous are his tails? Here’s a Chris Crumley photo featuring Kristi Sherk (who has very good taste in books) in one of them, but there are countless stunning photos to choose from.

Photo by Chris Crumley with model Kristi Sherk

And third, please don’t be too jealous but here is Eric with yours truly a couple of years ago in his Crystal River studio, either before or after a glamorous lunch at APPLEBEE’S:

Yes, mermen eat salads at Applebee’s.

So I haven’t interviewed you for this blog since November 2011. A lot has happened since then! Can you give us a rundown?
Oh my goodness, Carolyn! Where in the world do I start! Life is simply fantastic and I could not ask for anything more! So many wonderful opportunities have come my way since you and I both sat down for lunch at Applebee’s! I always love speaking to you because you totally understand me, well, at least I think! But anywho, the mermaid tail business could not be any better! Every year since I was 16 Mertailor LLC has doubled its profits while growing into a successful production. One of my major accomplishments was getting to perfect my silicone mermaid tail design. This has allowed me to further my journey to create the most cost effective, realistic looking mermaid tail on the market. Yes, there is now a larger market of mermaid tail companies. I have noticed a huge spike of up in coming mermaid tail companies. I am not too worried as this keeps me on my feet, creating new and improved products for my client base. I also find that a lot of the competition finds out how difficult it is to keep up with the constant business. It is simply amazing how many tails are sold each much. The amount of individuals finding out that they can now purchase their very own mermaid tail is crazy cool!

I am just proud to say I have been able to hold my own and continue growing with my company as I see big things for both of our futures.

So what was your reality-tv experience like, filming “My Crazy Obsession”?
It was fantastic! The crew was amazing to work with as well as the media and amounts of press that has been a result of the airing of the show. In less than 24 hours, my life changed on the flip of a coin. There are so many new fans and supporters of me. Not only interested in purchasing a mermaid or merman tail, but interested in sharing their mutual passions with me. It was crazy to see how many articles, new castings, and publications to promote and advertise the “Merman” Eric Ducharme aka The “Mertailor”. It was just a wonderful experience and I cannot wait to see what happens next!

There has been a ton of press about you in the past couple of weeks (I can’t tell you how many people have forwarded me articles about you!). What has it been like for you?
Oh my goodness has there! It is non-stop! It is amazing to see all of these media stories! I love it! I am so happy to be able to introduce the idea of “mermaiding” to the entire world. It is not just the USA, but the stories that have been spread all over Europe!

What’s happening with your fashion line/mermaid tail-making?
Like I said, the mermaid tail business is BOOMING! I am making these tails by day and shipping them out by night. It is so difficult to keep track of exactly how many tails are getting shipped on a monthly basis. As for the fashion line, there are always ideas and design concepts. I keep them in my thoughts and write them down for safe keeping!

What are you working on right now?
I am always working on something new whether it is current orders or new tail designs, but all in all I am working on ME! I am finding my place in life and enjoying the ride! I cannot wait to find out what happens next. I am on such a positive high that I can only imagine what is in store. I feel something big and successful coming my way!

So I get a lot of very lovely emails from aspiring and actual mermaids and mermen, and a few days ago I heard from one 23-year-old Ashley, who wrote to say that she decided to go on the mermaid portfolio workshop diving trip (see the official flyer here, I believe there is one spot left!) this summer after reading about it on this very blog—a trip that will make her dream of being a mermaid come true. Come July, Ashley will be hanging out in the Caribbean, wearing a mermaid tail and lounging about in mystical hidden grottos and on glittering white sand bars and around shipwrecks swarming with sharks.

So I thought it would be interesting to interview Ashley for this blog and then follow up in a few months to hear how her trip went and see photographic proof of her astonishing transformation. If you yourself are undergoing a similar transformation, or have anything else mermaidly to share, please email me and maybe I will throw more stories up on this blog, if I am not too lazy.

Here is Ashley pre-mermaid:

So tell me why you’re going on the mermaid trip this summer. What appeals to you about it?
I’m going on the trip this summer because it’s a dream come true. I’ve always wanted to be a mermaid. The idea of learning how to apply make up, pose for pictures, and swim in a tail from people who love this as much as I do just seems magical.

Have you always loved mermaids?
Yes! My house is less than 10 minutes from Weeki Wachee Springs so as a kid I dragged my mom there all the time. I pretty much grew up at Weeki Wachee. I’d go over and watch the shows and then run to Buc Bay and try as many tricks as possible. I was also convinced the spring was pure magic and the more time I spent in it the more likely I would be to grow a tail.

I love to swim and I love the beauty of the ocean. I believe I have always been a mermaid at heart, I have just lacked the know how to fully become one. My mom still loves to tell people that, when I was a kid, I only had one wish every year when I blew out my birthday candles: to turn into a mermaid.

What do you think the appeal of mermaids is for you, anyway?
The appeal of mermaids for me started from birth. Obviously Weeki Wachee had a huge part of it and I watched the Little Mermaid movie at least once a day when I was little but I think the biggest part of it is how magical they were to me. I have asthma and it was really bad when I was a kid. I remember not just be memorized by the beauty of the mermaids but I always thought how lucky they were that they didn’t need lungs. I always thought that I would turn into a mermaid and not only would my legs disappear but so would my asthma. Luckily I am much better now and almost never have attacks.

How are you preparing for the trip? Do you have a tail?
I am preparing for the trip by attempting to make some cute tops to pose in. Also I have been trying to run to help build up my stamina and of course swimming. Once the spring semester for school is over I will be going down to a place called Rogers Park on the Weeki Wachee River to do laps out there. And I do not have my own tail. Sadly I am a broke college student and cannot afford it!

What do you expect from this trip?
I except this trip to be a bunch of things. I know it will probably be one of the hardest working weeks of my life and I also know I will love every second of it. I am hoping to find a way into the mermaid world with this trip and also to make some friends.

Do any professional mermaids out there inspire you?
I am definitely inspired by Hannah Fraser. She was the first mermaid I heard of outside of Weeki Wachee and she still amazes me. I also love her conservation work.

Any more mermaid plans in the future?
As of this second there are no plans but I am hoping the trip will inspire me to be more daring in finally going after this dream. As well as help me find ways to be a mermaid. Becoming a professional mermaid isn’t exactly a mapped out profession. I know it is going to be a lot of trial and error, but hopefully I will find my way.

So as I’m sure you’re aware, the Coney Island Mermaid Parade has filled the streets of Coney Island once a year every year since 1983 with glorious mermaids of every stripe and color. On this very blog I’ve interviewed parade founder Dick Zigun as well as inimitable parade queen Bambi the Mermaid, who really embodies the over-the-top joy and all-out giddy glitteriness of the parade:

Unfortunately, said parade may not happen this year due to a severe lack of funds and one greedy hurricane named Sandy, which wreaked havoc on parade headquarters at the non-profit Coney Island USA (and Coney Island generally). You may not be aware of all the moolah and preparation such a mass parade requires (over half a million people!), but it doesn’t come cheap. Therefore, Coney Island USA has launched a kickstarter THIS VERY DAY to raise 100,000 smackers to save the parade. There are all kinds of gorgeous incentives; for 150 clams you can sit in the shaded, comfortable VIP section and get a prime view of the parade while all the other suckers sweat it out in the hot sun. For 2,000 smackers you can get that, a slew of other stuff, AND a bunch of signed limited edition prints by legendary photographer Harvey Stein. LIKE THIS ONE:

The Happy Mermaid by Harvey Stein

Really there are many many many options, each more delightful than the last. Go visit the Kickstarter page to carefully select your own mermaid package and help keep this gorgeousness alive—you have until June 3rd—and then tell all your friends and enemies about it, too. And THEN head out to Coney Island on June 22nd! Which, by the way, is the day after my birthday. Thank you.

Check out the Kickstarter video here:

For further clarification and incentive, I asked Coney Island USA Development Director Tim Pendrell a few penetrating questions. I MAY post more mermaid parade-ish interviews in days to come, if you’re very lucky.

So what does the Mermaid Parade mean to you?
This year will be the fourth Mermaid Parade I have worked on, if this campaign is successful. The Parade just keeps getting bigger and bigger and bigger every year to the point that it has outgrown the resources we have to put into it. It has become the biggest day in Coney Island and one of the largest events in all of New York City. It is a safe place for all of the strangest people in New York City to express themselves freely and after they do you often wish they hadn’t.

When did you realize this Kickstarter was crucial?
We’ve known for awhile that good news just wasn’t coming our way and we’d need to turn to the supporters of the Mermaid Parade to help support it. The Mermaid Parade is difficult for us in good times, but after the damage we suffered along with the neighborhood after Sandy it was just too much. It is amazing that our building is so close to reopening, but with the cost of the construction and the increase in cost of the parade, we simply needed help.

How much are you looking to raise, and what is it for?
Our campaign goal is $100,000 and we have a list of the expenses at savemermaids.org. Some of the expenses are obvious…insurance, judge’s stands, security…but other things like medical supplies, printing registration forms, t-shirts to identify staff are often overlooked. The Mermaid Parade is over half-a-million people and there are a lot of costs associated with keeping that safe and trying to get everyone a good place to view the parade from.

Why are you, personally, so passionate about keeping the parade alive?
It is really important for the parade to happen from an economic standpoint. People love the parade, but I am worried that without the parade kicking off the summer local businesses will suffer.

Aside from contributing to the Kickstarter, how can people help?
It is really important for people to spread the word about why they love the parade and how people can help it.

Another photo of Bambi, just because

So this weekend I was at Spoutwood Farm’s May Day Faerie Festival, out in the faerie-filled boondocks of Glen Rock, Pennsylvania. Imagine: you maneuver along twisting pathways and up and down sprawling bright green hills and under ribboned arches and across miniature wooden bridges, while about 500000 messy-haired red-cheeked children in fairy wings scamper alongside elaborate evil queens and sparkling fairies and leaf-covered green men, not to mention all kinds of artisans and artists and bellydancers and other magical creatures. Of course, there were many many mermaids, on crowns and cups and plaques and necklaces, on “Mermaid Island,” in song (Jennifer Cutting’s Ocean performed the classic sea balled “The Mermaid”), in the gorgeous lounging mermaid dolls of Susan Snodgrass, and even at this glamorous mermaid posing station right next to the glittering (in spirit) portapotties:

I was at the Fairie Magazine tent with publisher Kim Cross and her many gorgeous helpers and friends, including swordsmith (and sometime mermaid-sword-maker) Matt Stagmer and the joy-spreading Twig the Fairy (and occasional Twig the Fairy-Turned-Mermaid), who on good days might appear like a vision in the back of your car

AND the amazing, inimitable Charles Vess, who makes wondrous, otherworldly art like this:

and this

Charles and I were set to do two “Faerie Chautauquas” or talks together, Saturday and Sunday afternoons at 2. Originally, these Chautauquas were to also include Ari Berk and Gary A. Lippincott, so I figured I could let them do all the talking as I am very lazy. When Ari and then Gary ended up heartlessly abandoning us, it was down to Charles and me. Charles suggested that I read from one of my books while he drew the scene I was reading, so on Saturday I read from The Fairest of Them All, my novel that comes out in August, a scene of Rapunzel hunting in the forest in glamorous warrioress fashion. Here’s Charles’s illustration, done with magic marker on posterboard:

After I read, Charles continued to draw and I kind of just yammered on, with no plan and no end in sight. SO for the next day, I thought perhaps we might need a better plan and by “better plan” I of course mean mermaids. I suggested that we force the audience to participate, too, which is a tactic beloved by lazy people everywhere, and Charles suggested I end at a pivotal moment and let everyone else decide what comes next. So Sunday morning Charles and I made a glamorous visit to WALMART for pens and paper and posterboard, and that afternoon I read a scene from Mermaid, a few pages up to the moment when our mermaid drinks the sea witch’s potion and is about to turn into a human. All the while, Charles drew:

Yes those are more portapotties in the background, but it was still totally beautiful

And then I handed out paper and pens and told everyone to create something. If nothing else, I figured everyone would at least have to spend a few minutes imagining being a mermaid, and said activity would likely make everyone more full and complete as they carried on with their lives. That being the case, the results were still really, really lovely.

Artist Jenny Davies-Reazor, for example, imagined that in those last minutes before losing her tail, the mermaid might scrape off some scales, pluck a pearl or two from her tresses, and store them in the now-empty vial. She’d make herself a necklace that would forever remind her of the world she left behind:

Another woman imagined that in that last moment, as her tail turned to legs, the mermaid would regret her decision and dive back into the ocean, intent on returning to her own world, and begin to drown as water filled her lungs and her legs kicked furiously against the tide. Another drew pictures of the now-human mermaid, in the castle now, struggling to put on human clothing, trying to tug pants’ legs onto her arms and being generally completely befuddled. Others focused on the mermaid’s emotional state as she leaves one world and enters another.

And meanwhile, Charles finished his drawing

and mermaids, in all their incarnations, continued to dazzle humankind everywhere.

So there are 13 days to go of Coney Island USA’s Save the Coney Island Mermaid from Extinction! Kickstarter, and they’re three-quarters of the way there.. but they still need a ton of support. So I figured I’d go right to Mermaid Parade Queen Bambi the Mermaid and let her use her mermaid wiles to convince you to give up some more clams. Photographer Dan Howell sent over some gorgeous photos of Bambi and other paraders to make things that much more irresistible. PLUS there’s a benefit for the parade this Saturday eve at NYC’s Bowery Ballroom with Ms. Amanda Palmer, PLUS there are all kinds of other wonders floating about on the Mermaid Parade’s Facebook page and Twitter, including info about this year’s king and queen (a Real Housewife! who writes books!) and other sea-loving celebs and mayors and, well, celebrated and mayorial mermaids.

Here is my Q and A with Ms. Bambi herself, sprinkled with and followed by some deeply irresistible photos:

So why should we save the Coney Island Mermaid Parade?

photo by Dan Howell

Can you tell us about some of your awesome past costumes?
Of course some years I’ve gone more overboard than others and honestly some of my favorite costumes were also the ones I made myself early on out of saran wrap and tape and safety pins!

What do you have planned for this year? Are you working with Garo Sparo [who’s designed many of Bambi’s costumes in the past] again?

Photo by Dan Howell

You also run Coney Island USA’s Burlesque at the Beach, right? What’s coming up this summer?
This year will be the 17th season of Burlesque at the Beach, another great art show produced by Coney Island USA and Sideshows by the Seashore. Burlesque at the Beach is the crown jewel of the Neo burlesque revival, it is the nation’s longest running and oldest burlesque show. Burlesque for me evolved as a way to be a mermaid year round and the show was certainly influenced by the joie de vive and creativity of the mermaid parade. You can come down to Coney and see a little of the feeling of the parade in show form every Thursday and Friday night, from May through October!

How else can people support Coney Island USA?
Donating to Coney Island USA is so worthwhile because it supports so many artists in their creative endeavors and lifestyles as well as the audiences whom they entertain. Also The Coney Island Museum is growing rapidly and is an incredible source of New York City and amusement park history. I think this parade is going to be the biggest ever, there is so much awareness right now for perseverance after Hurricane Sandy and the value of Coney Island, America’s playground! It makes perfect sense that mermaids and sea creatures are the custodians of the long tradition of summertime memories and FUN!!

What do you think about the response so far to the Kickstarter campaign?

Photo by Dan Howell

Photo by Dan Howell

Photo by Dan Howell

Photo by Dan Howell

Photo by Dan Howell

Photo by Dan Howell

Photo by Dan Howell

Photo by Dan Howell

I have many fascinating things to post and will ATTEMPT to do so while being holed up in a cottage in rural Pennsylvania finishing a very bleak and unmermaidly crime novel, but I will start by pointing you to this Vulture article, For Your Consideration: Mermaids are the New Vampires. Of course this and many other articles are hollowing on the heels (fins) of that new Animal Planet show Mermaids: The New Evidence, which apparently a gazillion people watched. You and I have both heard that “mermaids are the new vampires” claim before, at least for a couple of years now, but let’s hope that it sticks this time because really, vampires are kind of lame and way less glittery (oh, wait).

ANYWAY, another cool mermaidly event has been happening all month at one Ms. Tiffany’s blog, Escaping… One Book at a Time, where she’s spent the month of May reviewing mermaid novels and featuring guest posts and interviews with a whole bevy of mermaid authoresses, all of whom I would have featured myself on this very blog had I been less lazy. Said mermaid extravaganza is called Mermaids & Myth Month, which is less a month and more a way of life.

Here is the schedule of all reviews and posts. I have generously provided links so that you can go purchase all of these books immediately. Also, in July, Bonnie from the book blog A Backwards Story (whom I interviewed last summer) will be doing her Splash Into Summer extravaganza again, so if Tiffany’s mermaid buffet leaves you wanting more you’ll know what to do.

May 1
Kick Off Post with Schedule & Giveaway (sponsored by Tiffany and a friend)

May 2
Review: Tangled Tides by Karen Amanda Hooper

May 3
Guest Post & Giveaway with Karen Amanda Hooper

May 4
Review: Fury by Elizabeth Miles

May 5
Review: Envy by Elizabeth Miles
Guest Post & Giveaway with Elizabeth Miles

May 6
Review: The Vicious Deep by Zoraida Cordova

May 7
Review: The Savage Blue by Zoraida Cordova
Guest Vlog & Giveaway with Zoraida Cordova

May 8
Review: Evergreen by Brenda Pandos

May 9
Interview & Giveaway with Brenda Pandos

May 10
Review: Sea Change by Aimee Friedman

May 11
Interview with Aimee Friedman

May 12
Review: Of Poseidon by Anna Banks

May 13
Review: Of Triton by Anna Banks
Author Post by Anna Banks

May 14
Review: The Nightmare Affair by Mindee Arnette

May 15
Guest Post by Mindee Arnette

May 16
Guest Review of Promises by Amber Garr, by Jessica Baker

May 17
Review: Betrayal by Amber Garr
Guest Post & Giveaway with Amber Garr

May 18
Review: Brides of Rollrock Island by Margo Lanagan

May 19
Review: Above World by Jenn Reese

May 20
Review: The Forgotten Ones by Laura Howard

May 21
Guest Post & Giveaway with Laura Howard

May 22
Review Sweet Shadows by Tera Lynn Childs

May 23
Review: Forgive My Fins by Tera Lynn Childs
Author Post & Giveaway with Tera Lynn Childs

May 24
Review & Publisher Giveaway: Starling by Lesley Livingston

May 25
Review: Lost Voices by Sarah Porter

May 26
Review: Lies Beneath by Anne Greenwood Brown

May 27
Review: Deep Betrayal by Anne Greenwood Brown
Extra Scene & Giveaway with Anne Greenwood Brown

May 28
Review: Tempest Rising by Tracy Deebs

May 29
Review: Tempest Unleashed by Tracy Deebs

May 30
Review: Mermaid by Carolyn Turgeon

May 31
Guest Post by Carolyn Turgeon
Finish Post

That is right: Mermaids & Myth Month ends tomorrow with a guest post from yours truly, writing about my inspiration for Mermaid. I asked Tiffany why she loves mermaids so much, and here’s her response:

“I’ve been fascinated with them since I was little and saw Disney’s Little Mermaid. Everything just expanded from there and I was only pulled more in when I learned of the not so sweet mermaids/mermen. They live in such vivid worlds and no matter their shape, size, colour or personality, they all hold a certain allure that just calls to me. May also have something to do with the fact I am a serious water baby and refuse to live anywhere that is not near a body of water and have joked about being part mermaid. You know it’s possible, right?!”

So Lana Fox is an erotic author and sexuality activist who runs a course on erotic self-love entitled “The Mermaid Voyage: A Two-Week Journey of Erotic Self-Discovery.” Admit you want to take that immediately. She’s also written an erotic novel called Confessions of a Kinky Divorcee and is working on a non-fiction self-help book that is in part themed around—what else?—mermaids. Everyone knows that those half-fish half-humans are sexy, but I obviously had to ask Lana about how mermaids can help you and me perform some erotic self-discovery. You’re welcome.

So what is “The Mermaid Voyage: A Two-Week Journey of Erotic Self-Discovery”?
Thanks for asking, Carolyn! “The Mermaid Voyage” is a two-week spa for your sexual self and it is themed around mermaids. I designed the course because we are so often shamed, as women, for feeling sexual or making love to ourselves, yet I think solo lovemaking and romance are two of the most breathtaking ways of connecting with and caring for our deeper selves. The course will include daily audio visualizations, erotic meditations, and inspirations for connecting with your inner mermaid. It will also include a gift box with aromatherapy products, a sex toy, and enticing little sea-themed luxuries.

How does the image of the mermaid figure into what you’re doing?
Great question! I’m so inspired by the grace of mermaids. They are often portrayed as being absolutely comfortable in their bodies, and for me, mermaids’ movements are so sensual, expressive, and self-accepting. Yet we women who walk the earth too often receive the message that our bodies—particularly when we are feeling or being erotic—are ripe for criticism, shame and cruel objectification. We’re taught that our bodies should be about other people, when actually, other people should be inspired by our bodies, and honored by them, just as they are. I believe we learn this, in part, by truly knowing and celebrating the depths of our erotic selves.

How do you incorporate mermaids into your course?
Mermaids are part of the audio visualizations that are central to the course. I also encourage those who sign up for the Voyage to think of themselves as mermaids as a way to open the channels of erotic self-love and freedom…in fact, this is why the gift-pack is also mermaid-themed (natural shells and all!).

People ask me all the time about why mermaids are so sexy when they don’t, in fact, have genitals. What do you think?
It’s so interesting that people ask you about this, Carolyn. Yes, I can see why. I think we have been shamed into believing that our genitals are somehow “dirty.” Society would too often have us believe that sex is about our genitals—not our minds, hearts and souls. Yet mermaids embody the very opposite! I love seeing how sensual and erotic they can be simply by being at one with themselves. And, in my imagination, I like to think that when mermaids sing they can climax from the sheer joy of it. Sex can involve genitals, but it isn’t about genitals. It’s about enjoying our very selves.

Do you identify as a mermaid at all?
I do! I have a lovely “Oracle of the Mermaids” deck by Lucy Cavendish and and Selina Fenech, and I use it on a daily basis to really connect with myself. When I see the beautiful mermaids on the cards and read their messages, I feel that I am very much tapping my own inner depths, my own inner mermaid. I also love the sea—really love it!—and I like to dream that, in a past life, I came from the ocean.

Why do you think people (especially women) like them so much?
I think that women who identify as really feminine can feel very freed up by mermaids. Mermaids are often seen as strong and independent, but they aren’t afraid to be pretty and femme—in fact, they celebrate it!

Do you have any advice for aspiring mermaids?
For me, identifying as a mermaid is about learning to be ourselves and to shed any shaming that we have experienced. So I love to sing in the shower, to dance when I’m alone (as well as with others!), and to enjoy my body erotically, my rhythms, my self. In other words, my advice would be to find ways of expressing yourself with your voice, emotions, and body, in purely inspiring ways. That’s how I really feel my own self as a mermaid—so that would be my suggestion.

I last talked to Raina the Halifax Mermaid for this blog a couple of years ago (here’s the inimitable interview), and she’s been up to a whole lot of mermaidly stuff since. She has even proven the literary-ness of mermaids everywhere by writing a book, “Fishy” Business: How to Be a Mermaid, which came out two weeks ago and which aspiring mermaids everywhere can order here. Yours truly even wrote the foreword, so it is obviously the best book ever and will very likely change your life.

I talk to Raina about her gorgeous tome below:

So tell us about your book. What prompted you to write it?
My book is called: “Fishy” Business: How to be a Mermaid. It’s 1 part autobiography, and 1 part How-to. You can learn how I became a successful mermaid performer, and how to create your own mermaid company too. In the book I have it broken into 4 Parts: Fins, Persona and Image, The Working Mermaid, and Resources.

There were a few reasons behind writing the book, and I’m embarrassed to say that one of them was stress! As an active mermaid I get 100s of emails from all over the world, from mermaid hopefuls looking for some information. At first I’d always give detailed replies. I’m a teacher, I enjoy educating others! Before I knew it, it got to be too much. I looked for other outlets to educate others about the mer-world and started posting tutorials about professional mermaiding on mernetwork. After a few posts I realized I had quite a lot of material. After complaining a few times to friends and family about some of the not-so-nice, more demanding emails, it was suggested to me that because I was using my professional skills in teaching, that I charge a fee for my advice. I didn’t really feel comfortable with that idea, but it did eventually dawn on me that I could write a book! I put some feelers out there into the community, to see if people would be interested in something like that. I got back a mixed response that people either wanted a how-to-guide, or an autobiography. I decided to combine the two. I spent a few solid months doing nothing but working on the book, while doing mermaid work on the weekends. It was wonderful and a great growing experience.

What can aspiring mermaids learn from it?
Hopefully everything and anything they need. A lot of research went into this book. It isn’t just my knowledge and experience, but the collective knowledge of our community, things I have learned through my two degrees working with children and educating, and things I have learned from interviewing mermaids who worked in fields different from mine (like in aquariums). I start with the very basics of how to get a tail, get the funds for a tail, learning to swim, and discovering the mer-community. Then I explain the things that need to be in order before starting a company, like your persona and image, networking and promotion, a few legal things, and gear. From there we go to life as a working mermaid, with the very basic logistics that apply to all mermaid work, to the specialized steps involved in both getting and working very specific gigs and events. All along these three parts I’ve included personal stories—some never before shared—that are both embarrassing and hilarious, of how I figured things out the hard way. There are some photos, and then there is a resource section with links, phone numbers, information, books, and more to help out the mermaid enthusiast or professional mermaid.

The book is intended to be for all levels, all ages, and those who are either only interested in hearing my story or those only interested in setting up their business. I don’t just tell you the info, I teach it to you using a variety of strategies.

Can you share a tip or two here?
Sure! I think the best tip I can tell anyone is that they need to advocate for themselves! Our profession isn’t well known at the point in time, and even within the realm of performers we’re on the outskirts. Businesses aren’t just going to hail you down all the time for work, or even understand what you’re trying to do. It’s up to you to put yourself out there, provide people with examples of what you do and why you’d be a good hire, maybe even go as far as to submit a proposal or give a presentation! In my book I try to give you all the tools you could possibly need to do that, and I feel that much of the material can be applied to many businesses within the performing world. To us our mer-world is so much a part of us it can be hard to grasp that someone may have no clue that mermaids can even be hired.

I think the second best tip I can give you is that it doesn’t happen over night, no matter how easy some of the real pro-mermaids make it look. Everything takes time. You don’t need the perfect expensive silicone tail to start your company- I made mine work with a fabric one and then a falling apart latex one so I could get my start. If you’re always waiting for the perfect conditions, you’ll never get started. You just need to start!

What has the response been?
Much better than I could have ever expected. Within my first day of sales I’d sold fifty books. Within the first ten days of sales, I’d sold a hundred. I’ve gotten nothing but positive reviews that have pretty much made me cry, because total strangers were able to easily pick out all the important points I was trying to make. I’ve gotten so much fan mail because of it, and so many people have told me it has given them the courage to follow this dream. I really felt like we were such a small community and a niche market, but the majority of the people buying my book are total strangers to me, and not even in my country! (My poor friends and family members haven’t even gotten their copies because everything has been going to everyone else, hah!) I had a few very vocal nay-sayers when I first presented the community with this idea and asked for feedback on what sorts of things they’d like to see covered in the book. I’m just very very happy I didn’t listen to the nay-sayers, because writing and publishing a book has helped me grow, helped me pay for some much needed dental work (lol) and brought me happiness and closeness within the community.

What’s next for you, mermaid-wise?
We’re using the remainder of the book funds to purchase my baby sister, Mermaid Ama, her own merbellas studios inc tail. Currently she is borrowing one of my tails, and she’s very excited to have one that is made to fit her. My company has quadrupled so I’ll be spending the majority of the summer doing many parties, events, parades, and performances with Mermaid Ama, Mermaid Mimi, and Mermaid Naida. As always, we’ll be participating in many environmental events like World Ocean’s Day.

We’re going to focus a lot more on our video and photo output using some of the tips from my book, working with the media on some pieces, and hopefully getting our ducks in a row for a potential children’s show later this year. We also plan on publishing a photobook in the fall, hopefully with an accompanying account of this upcoming summer 2013 (Think A “Fishy” Summer: Journal of a Mermaid) and video documentary. I tend to come up with big projects for myself, but I break them into obtainable goals and somehow they get done.

So I recently heard from one Kaycee Militante, mermaid aficionado and proprietor of the ridiculously cute Applejack Apparel, where you can buy super inexpensive, handcrafted tails for the little mermaids (and mermen) in your life. Here’s their Facebook page, which you should probably follow because everyone’s day gets brighter when looking at squawking moppets in mermaid tails. I mean look how cute these things are (they even come with requisite flower headbands)!

I know. I have now solved your what-to-bring-to-the-baby-shower dilemmas forever, and you can thank me with fan mail and ca$h. In a further act of selflessness, I recently asked KayCee about her company and those shimmery-tailed creatures generally.

So why did you start Apple Jack Apparel? What inspired you?
I started Applejack Apparel when my daughter, who was three at the time, saw some videos of girls in mermaid tails on YouTube and begged for one of her own. I saw there were several shops that sold tails, but they were very high-end and I thought I could make her one for a lower price.

Have you always loved mermaids?
I’ve loved mermaids since I saw Peter Pan! The jealous girl mermaids were so cute… Later I loved The Little Mermaid, which came out just when I was still a kid, and I’ve had a blast watching that movie with my daughter, who prefers Ariel over the rest of the princesses..

Pretty ridiculous, right?

Do you identify as a mermaid in any way?
Well, I love swimming! And I have long hair, and I like to sing.

What has the response been to your tails (from kids and adults)?
I get uplifting emails from customers regularly, and that is the best part of owning this kind of a business! When I hear that one of our tails made a birthday dream come true or that a little girl doesn’t want to take hers off, it really makes my day. The best responses often come to us on Facebook, where people submit some amazing pictures of happy girls posing in their mermaid tails. I also take pride in the craftsmanship—we have a lot of positive reviews that mention the craftsmanship and the fabric.

Why do you think little girls love mermaids so much?
Mermaids are elusive and beautiful! They live in a part of the world that is mysterious, and the idea that they are separated from our world can be both tragic and intriguing.

I know you have a daughter/mermaid of your own—what does she think of them?
Nina wore the first tail I made to bed the first night, and cried when having to decide whether she would take it into the tub or to bed for the first few days… like so many interests she’s had, the mermaid obsession was urgent and intense for awhile, but now she’s more into Monster High and drawing. She still agrees to model whenever I have something new to share, and she and her brother play in the bath tub sill (he has a shark tail!)

Any exciting plans for the future? Have you considered making more swimmable tails and/or making tails for adults?
We have made tails for adults! We can do custom orders for babies and grown ups. Making the grown-up top was a bit of a challenge at first! Also, my son has a shark tail that I’ll be listing in our online shop, too. We could make a tail to fit over a mono-fin at some point, but for now I’m enjoying making affordable things for little girls.

What advice do you have for aspiring mermaids, young and old?
Indulge your imagination! Write and draw your adventures, or video them so you can look back someday and remember. Be playful in life and have fun with what you do and who you are.

So this Friday evening you might want to transport yourself to Greenport, New York, to attend the opening reception for artist Caroline Waloski‘s brand-new mermaid-themed exhibit “Flights of Fancy,” which will be showing at at The Siren’s Song Gallery until the end of July. Here is the sparkling invitation and relevant info:

I talk to Caroline below, about fishy ladies and Siren’s Song (which she also runs and directs, and which features mermaid art from a variety of sea-loving artists), but first, check out her own magical creations:

So what is the Siren’s Song Gallery?
I created the Sirens’ Song Gallery to lure folks into discovering the arts. The gallery is located in a historic maritime village. One can’t ignore the sea, bays, rivers and streams surrounding the area. It is natural for an artist to record what is seen, but there is more than meets the eye. Many local galleries feature paintings of the sea, but I thought I’d feature what was less obvious: the mysteries of the depth in spirit and psyche. After thousand of years evolving we humans are still connected to the sea. The waters of the earth can be benevolent or malevolent. The tides and the moon have a strong pull on our lives, and emotions, and the Mermaid Goddess is still there as intermediary. From ancient Mesopotamia until today she is our protectress. The mission of the Sirens’ Song Gallery is to focus on the beauty and power of this ancient deity, and her relevance in sustaining and preserving our world.

What kinds of artists have you featured?
The gallery has exhibited mid-career and established artists from the around the world, all of them focusing on water and sea themes. Water, the sea, and our natural environment has been the major focus of all art exhibited at the Sirens’ Song. The very first exhibit in 2006 was titled “Creatures of the Deep & the Shallows.” Artists from the Manhattan Graphics Center exhibited both fact and fantasy images with mermaids and other sea life bestiary. “Water Works,” a solo exhibit in 2008, featured limited-edition reduction linocuts, etchings, and collages by Cynthia Back focusing on the beauty, magic, patterns, and texture of our waterways and how they stay recorded in our memory. “Ebb & Flow” in 2011 featuring Shelly Haven and Cynthia Back dealt with large and small waterways and what possibly lies under the surface, and remains forever in our memory and fixed in time.

As artist in residence I have begun to focus on exhibiting my own work. The women’s issues that have always been the focus of my art have taken on a mythological approach using the Mermaid as Muse, the giver and protector of all life on earth, the ancient Goddess presiding over an “Amniotic Sea.” It is from prehistoric primeval seas that all life emerged. We are the evolved creation of those primeval cells. We are made up of water, depend upon it to sustain life, and the pull of the tides still moves and controls us. Our children in embryonic fish-like state are carried in a salty pool inside our female bodies until birth.

After thousands of years this Goddess of the sea is still very much an intermediary between us and the ocean’s force. Spirits and demons have always been present in my work, but since moving to this historic maritime village the Sea Goddess or Mermaid has insinuated herself as the dominate spirit. My new work in “Flights of Fancy” contains some book arts in the form of Ditty Boxes. Sailors in their long sea voyages during the whaling era often worked on art projects to pass the hours, and sometimes years on board ship. Mermaids were a favorite subject. These scrimshaw inspired objet d’art focus on the sirens of mythology, and life givers. “The Odyssey” a carved surface of the egg shaped box shows a Siren perched on a rock while 2 other Sirens float in the air. Upon opening the box a small imperiled boat is revealed. “The Beginning” is a doll shaped stacking box. The outer box is a Mermaid in her element. The inner box reveals a human swimmer with flippers, the final inner 3rd box reveals a tiny MerBaby. I am happy with where this series is going. As an etcher I have always worked in 2 dimensional layered work, now I am working in 3D. This gives me the opportunity to reveal only one layer at a time. Just like the mystery of the sea.

Can you tell me about your own background? Have mermaids always inspired you?
After years of living in New York City, born in Brooklyn near the waterfront, I moved to Long Island in 2005. But I was always surrounded by water, wherever I lived. Prior to moving to Greenport I lived and had my art studio in Harlem’s Hamilton Heights area. Situated between the Hudson and Harlem Rivers in a house built above underground streams I always felt the protection of water spirits. I was familiar with Long Island’s East End because my parents, and extended family always vacationed there. My parents were first generation Americans, their parents immigrating from Warsaw. The symbol of Warsaw just happens to be a mermaid. Greenport was a natural choice because it is a historic maritime village with a deep water harbor. Whaling and rum running are part of the local history, as is aquaculture and agriculture. My best days as a child were at the beach, swimming, fishing, collecting sea shells and sea glass, boating, or day dreaming about Mermaids. I haven’t changed much; the sea still preoccupies my thoughts and mesmerizes me.

To quote Anais Nin: “I must be a mermaid…I have no fear of depths and a great fear of shallow living”.

So I’ve been aware of Joy de Vivre and her Siren School for a while, and was even set to visit one of her San-Diego-area camps last year that involved irresistible swan maidens and a whole lot of white feathers. Siren School hosts fantasy-based camps, parties, tours and even cruises centered around romantic, magical creatures (including, of course, mermaids) that every woman might want to be for a day—or longer. You can see a list of upcoming events here. More recently, she’s launched a cool online magazine called la Vie Sirene and this month its focus is mermaids. Check out the cover and click around to read, among other things, Joy’s awesome interview with one of my favorite mermaids, Weeki Wachee’s Barbara Wynns:

I ask Joy for further gorgeous illumination below.

Can you tell us something about yourself?
I am a confessed siren! I don’t use my gifts or talents to lure men to their doom; but I do appreciate being a woman and all that it entails.

I have always known I was cursed with the entrepreneurial bug, but before I struck out on my own I worked in film production and marketing in the performing arts. I’ve owned a few small businesses I absolutely loved, including a tea room, fine dining garden restaurant and a theater company. But my latest venture, Siren School, looks to be the most fulfilling as it inspires and buoys women to find and express their true selves.

How did you become interested in mermaids?
My favorite story as a child was Hans Christian Andersen’s The Little Mermaid, which, as readers know, has a different sensibility than the Disneyfied version. My mom forbade me reading it cuz I would be late to dinner, crying in my room while pouring over the especially heart-wrenching parts

Have you long been involved in mermaid culture, etc?
I flirted with the culture from the fringes for ages. When the movie Splash came out I was nicknamed Madison because of my long blonde hair. And as a SoCal beach girl I have always had a very personal, passionate and altogether primal relationship with the sea. In fact, I am convinced I have salt water coursing through my veins. I am most alive and at peace and ‘myself’ when I am in the ocean.

What is La Vie Sirene?
It is a grass-rootsy online magazine “of the sirens, by the sirens, for the sirens.” In my dealings with members of the mer community I have run into scores of talented artists, authors (you may have been my first!), jewelry & tail designers, rabid enthusiasts, etc., who deserved to be showcased for their dedication and artistry. Unfortunately, many of them feel they have nothing to offer. La Vie Sirene is the place where they can not only be in the spotlight, but share their thoughts and expertise.

The magazine’s logo is made from photos of all its contributors.

June’s premier issue is about Mermaids, and every single article and ad involves something mermaidy, from mermaid artists, authors, performers and shop owners, to recipes, bath products and even mermaid-specific hotels and pubs. Instead of providing the month’s content in one chunk, the information is rolled out and posted daily, with at least one article and one attendant ad, chosen to complement said article. I wanted to make both the main content as well as the hand-picked ads stand out and give readers the chance to savour each morsel proffered. At month’s end, the issue’s contents will be compiled into one publication available in PDF, Epub, Mobi and possibly even print formats.

It just launched a few days ago and already we are getting incredibly heartening feedback. People are finding it not only entertaining, but highly informative! It’s what I worked for, but dared not expect. So I am thankful, to say the least.

While it’s exciting to get involved in new projects, and try formats that reside just beyond the envelope, by far the best part about the entire enterprise has been the connections I’ve made with some incredibly soulful and talented people. It is such a gift to see them work their magic, and to get to showcase it.

What inspired you and what can we expect in the future?
I actually just posted an article about the mermaid/belly dancer who inspired Siren School to begin with, if any of your readers are brave enough to take a gander.

As for what the future holds, specifically as it applies to the magazine, we have a list of themes in the offing through 2014, though we’re open to requests.

I know you also run mermaid camps (and other fantasy-based camps) and have mermaid-themed cruises in the works. Can you tell me about all that?
Siren School grew out of my desire to stop swimming just to train for a triathlon, and to get back to doing “water ballet” as I had in my youth… only this time, with a tail! I searched the net for a “mermaid camp”—not knowing if there actually was such a thing—and found the grandmama of them all, wonderful Weeki Wachee. But I lived in California and they are across the country. Additionally, I wanted to delve into the lore and mythology of the legends in something of a roleplay environment. Next thing I knew, I was creating my own camp experience, which is not surprising given that I’ve been involved in theatrical interactive event creation since I was a tyke.

Once I got started with the idea for mermaid events, my inner genie, flapper, geisha, naiad, Venetian courtesan, Parisian showgirl and so on began complaining that they were being neglected. That is when I realized that I wanted to offer a variety of ‘siren’ archetype activities and experiences.

I sat down and created a slew of events all based in coastal Long Beach, CA, and thought I was done. But immediately, I started receiving messages saying, “I love your events but they’re too far away. Let me know if you ever do one in my area.” What to do, what to do… That is when the idea for a tour first germinated and the result is l’Experience Sirene, i.e. Siren School’s 2013 tour with events in cities all over America—each city chosen specifically to best fit the theme. Our Vampire Hunt will be in New Orleans, Pirates Caribbean Cruise & Treasure Hunt in Cozumel, Dryad (wood nymph) event at a Treehouse resort in Oregon, the 1920’s Speakeasy Die Hard gangster melee in Chicago, etc.

The aquatic events include two mermaid cruises with optional dolphin swims in the Bahamas, a Pacific Paradise mermaid getaway with dolphin encounter in San Diego, CA, and our naiad retreat which includes a manatee swim in Florida’s fresh water springs.

Do you yourself slip on a mermaid tail and/or identify as a mermaid at all?
I was over the moon when I got my first tail!!!! Being a major introvert and not liking to attract attention, I do most of my mermaid swimming and water dancing in secret, far from ogling eyes. I am in the throes of designing my first custom tail, which is fortuitous since I gave my original tail away to someone who was unable to get one for herself.

Joy’s alter ego: “mermaid’s perch” by dashinvaine on deviantart

Why do you think so many people are so drawn to mermaids?
Oh gosh, I could write about that for pages and ages. I think this topic is best left to experts like.. well… you! But I will say, that to me mermaids represent confidence, freedom, grace… a lack of hangups and inhibitions… all qualities that are incredibly attractive in a woman. If the movie Splash imprinted you as it did me, then you may equate being a mermaid to being genuine, beautiful, sweet, loyal, loving, bright… so many qualities I would love to foster in myself!

And finally, do you have any advice for aspiring mermaids?
I feel it is absolutely vital to be one’s self without in any way comparing to other mers, their accomplishments, or their tails! Like any budding subculture, mer-dom has its own set of growing pains to contend with, and will find its balance, I have no doubt. While it does so, I feel it is imperative that mers act in a cooperative effort to embrace and promote this unique activity and lifestyle they adore. Like the Little Mermaid’s sisters, we too must twine our arms around each other and rise up out of the water, singing our siren song, not to induce others to wreck on the rocks, but to praise and share our gratitude and love for the mermaids we are—and more important, for one another.

So artist David Delamare is kind of a big deal, mermaid-painting-wise, and you’ve probably seen one of his mermaid masterpieces whether you know it or not. At least in your dreams or drunken wanderings (or here). I mean look:

He’s got tattooed mirror-holding mermaids hanging out on rocks, and steampunk Marie Antoinette mermaids sitting on metal horses

and streamy-haired mermaids hanging out around bathyspheres for possibly nefarious purposes

and poker-playing mermaids about to cheat pirates out of valuable loot

and well coiffed mermaids pressed against seahorses in questionable manners

and plenty more mermaids besides, many of which you can gaze upon in this glittering gallery.

Obviously, I had to ask David some questions at some point, lest I be remiss in my mermaid duties and leave this blog somehow eternally incomplete. Our enticing Q and A follows.

When did you start painting mermaids? What was the first inspiration?
The first mermaid I painted was for ready money, nothing more. She was part of a very fanciful wooden sign for a restaurant called Buttertoes. At the time I had no idea that this seemingly simple sea creature would ultimately provide so many interesting conceptual and compositional possibilities.

How has your mermaid art evolved over the years?
My mermaid art has changed dramatically because my approach to making paintings is so different. For many years I painted using an air brush for areas of continuous tone (both on the figures and in the backgrounds) then added details using a traditional brush with water-based paint. Several years ago, I switched to the most traditional of media—oil brush on canvas. Using a brush rather than a spray gives the areas of continuous tone a much more organic and less mechanical effect. With oil painting, I start with a layer of opaque paint which will become the shadows and continuous tone, then glaze over this with transparent washes. The result is that the light bounces off of lighter areas while being absorbed by darker ones. This creates a depth and luminosity that my earlier paintings couldn’t have. You can’t see this in the photographs of the art. It’s really only visible when looking at the originals. If you’re curious about how the individual elements of the paintings are added, you might view the progressive slideshow on You Tube of my Alice painting titled “Beware The Jabberwock.” There are also some progressive albums on my Facebook page.

Has your idea of them changed at all—over time and/or as a result of mermaids’ increasing popularity, etc.?
At first, my narratives were influenced by Greek mythology or the Pre-Raphaelite movement. Later, my interpretations become more personal, primarily driven by the desire to create more complex and interesting compositions, settings, and features. I experimented, of course, with different anatomical elements such as gills, fin shapes, and scale styles. Then, in the last ten or twelve years I began interpreting the writings of my partner and publisher Wendy Ice, who has written a field guide describing a mermaid world of her own invention. We occasionally have late night discussions about the symbolic or metaphorical significance of the mermaid, usually taking a fairly psychological approach having to do with the conflicted (divided) self or the division of the conscious and unconscious.

Can you talk about what continues to inspire you? How/why do mermaids continue to interest you?
Artistic genius never stops inspiring me. Painting, music, live theater, film, and literature are all favorites. If I find myself at a temporary impasse, certain artists never fail to jump-start me. Reliable touchstones include Mozart, Django Reinhardt, Orson Welles, Harold Pinter, Caravaggio and Monty Python. Mermaids continue to interest me because their conceptual elasticity is endlessly encouraging as a source of engagement.

What’s the most challenging part of painting them?
The challenging part is to keep reinventing them so that they remain vital.

Do you have an interest in or fascination with mermaids outside of your art? Are you, for example, interested at all in mermaid culture and/or have a particular love of the sea?
Wendy and I have both carefully avoided reading any contemporary writings about mermaids because we don’t want to be consciously or subconsciously influenced by the material. Also, we don’t want to feel as though we can’t use an interesting idea just because someone else happened to use it. The odd result is that we’ve been creatively immersed in the subject matter for many years but are almost completely ignorant about how it has been handled by others in the last century. For the same reason, we know next to nothing about contemporary mermaid imagery. Like anyone else, we occasionally stumble upon a mermaid painting online, but we don’t go looking for them. (The downside of this approach is we miss out on what is likely a wide variety of interesting literature and imagery.)

Can you share with us one of your favorite mermaid paintings you’ve done—and why?
My favorites are the most recent. I particularly like a newer series that we’re calling the “Victorian Mermaids.” It features Victorian carnival portraits that depict a caste of mermaids described in Wendy’s writing. In these images mermaids are posing as humans posing as mermaids. I like the fact that they have a psychological quality about them, akin to something found in traditional oil portraiture.

And finally, do you have any advice for aspiring mermaids?
Beware of the undertow and always bathe in moonlight.