Hello Reader and Mermaid Fan,
The Temple of the Mermaid series (and this very Website) is for Mature Readers Only. Temple of the Mermaid is not intended for Children.
WARNING: Adult Language. Our Main Character, Joy, swears a lot. Laura curses when she gets frustrated. Ethel curses in fun 1930’s slang.
WARNING: Described Nudity and Adult Sexual Situations. Many, many mermaids in Temple of the Mermaid live life “clothing optional.” Laura can be a horn-dog. Joy contemplates what is happening to her internal organs (sexual and digestional included) throughout as she experiences body-morphing changes. Merman genitalia is mentioned three times.
WARNING: Violent Content Graphically Described. This might sound “awesome” for some, but some characters get ripped apart, and it gets described straightforwardly. Queen DeBora really enjoys killing people, so, watch-out Books Five and Six.
WARNING: Situations of Implied Sexual Assault. Situations of Threatened Sexual Assault. Situations of Military Condoned Sexual Assault. The Temple of the Mermaid Series is not meant to draw direct correlations between fantasy soldiers and any particular real-world military members.
WARNING: Depictions of Suicide. Joy’s story is not without collateral damage.
WARNING: Described Situations of Smoking and Drug Use. Joy and Laura are stoners. Laura vapes. Joy also dabbles in fictional Mermaid-World edibles.
WARNING: Animals Harmed. Some fantastical and real-world sentient animals are depicted harmed or killed.
Dear Reader,
Hi again, the core conception of Temple of the Mermaid was “What would happen if two very modern women experience a supernatural event. One is brought to a Mermaid-World, while the other (perhaps the one that would have better appreciated it) is left behind. One woman goes on to experience a rags-to-riches high fantasy adventure, while the other experiences a darker path. One finds herself awakening while the other loses herself inwardly. And again, their roles (if you ask them) probably should have been reversed, at least initially.”
It appealed to me to make Joy 180 degrees opposite of the personality type that would groove on being a mermaid (she fights it for a good long time!) let alone be the type to want an “Animated Musical Princess” type of life for herself – more so she would spit in the eye of a “Chosen One” trope – and snort laughter at the thought of being the main character in a YA Novel Series.
So I tried to make both Joy and Laura very real. They fart. They have periods. They think toxic thoughts sometimes. They both like and hate themselves. They get depressed. They get horney. They make wrong decisions. They struggle with where they are in the timelines of their families and each other. They both want to be and do better.
Also, with fantasy and this website, as with all fantasy, I’m presented with the choice to either sexualize my main characters or present them without male-gaze. Or both. What are mermaids? Are they both? Pin-up or empowerment or both? So, I think images in the novels, the covers, and on this site run the gamut. It’s a theme in the books.
At the time of writing the series, #MeToo, the George Floyd Murder Protests, and the Covid Pandemic all came to full fruition. “Girl Boss” and “Mary Sue” peaked and declined. “Kill your Gays” and “pronouns” and “Woke” all entered the national lexicon. And me being a 50 year old white guy (I grew my hair long for the Pandemic, so I greatly resemble The Simpson’s “Comic Book Shop Guy”) I found myself becoming hyperaware of how to treat characters in the book, their races, and sexual identities. Thus these Trigger Warnings. I don’t find these Trigger Warnings burdensome. I find the content of the books honest from the point of views of Joy, Ethel, and Laura – Gattie, Pootz, Acara, and Danio too. Like a skier on a downhill slalom, these Triggers are flags to ski between while also, hopefully, laying down an exciting and surprising course. My hope is that any characters who code as Gay or Trans, are at least presented with empathy even if they are slotted into fantasy or comedy tropes. With this in mind, my first editor was a woman, my Beta readers were women, my initial publisher was a woman, and two of my graphic designers were and are women. And that’s 80% of everyone connected to the book. I don’t know a lot of people. (Sad trombone “Whomp Wah.”) But I do listen to the “Hysteria,” “Strict Scrutiny,” and “#Sisters in Law” podcasts every week – so call it “Woman-washing” if you must! But I can’t think of a better milieu with which to awash myself – and for myself to be awash in! (Happy kazoo “Foo-woo-wee!”)
That said, I decided that Temple of the Mermaid would be dedicated to those young, middle-age, and older readers or moms who are Mermaids at heart, but would prefer a fairytale (at least this one) with a nightcap after the kids have gone to bed. Like a big glug of Kahlua in an iced caramel macchiato.
Matt
Copyright (c) 2023 Matt Schumann