Now that the story's over, I thought I'd share a few tidbits about it's development, exclusively on Wattpad. Thank you so much for embracing me in this community; this is my way of giving back to you for your awesome support.
NAMES
Selene was named from a combination of Greek and Japanese mythology. I'm a huge fan of Sailor Moon, and the main character there is named "Usagi," which means "rabbit," after the Japanese legend of "the rabbit in the moon." In the Western world, we typically call the face of the moon, "the man in the moon," but the Japanese see a rabbit. I also love the story of Selene and Endymion from Greek mythology--which also has a link to the moon and was a source for Naoko Takeuchi in writing Sailor Moon. So, I named my rabbit farmer girl after the goddess of the moon.
Kayleigh was named in honor of my favorite science fiction show, Firefly. Kaylee in Firefly is the ship's mechanic, so I made my Kayleigh be a bit of an engineer herself.
Harley was named after a student of mine when I was a teacher who painted me a picture of a koi fish.
Orion is named after the constellation "Orion," which was named after Greek mythology. In the myth, Orion was a hunter who was eventually blinded.
ART
I have always loved art, and am envious of the amazing artists in the world! The most influential one for me in this work was, obviously, Pygmalion. I first learned about Pygmalion after watching the amazing Audrey Hepburn film, My Fair Lady, which is loosely based on the premise of the myth: a man tries to make a perfect woman. Of course, any man who thinks he can make a perfect woman is a tool, so obviously I had to make that fit my villain.
Selene picks the Siren, arguably the most dangerous source of inspiration, but I've always had a soft spot for sirens. Sure, they lure men to their deaths in brutal and horrific ways, but they're probably just a big misunderstood.
Victria picks a real person to base her art on: Sappho. Sappho was a poet in Ancient Greece, and, as Bartie says, there's an extraordinarily specific reason why Victria's attracted to her. For more information on why, check out my short story in the anthology Defy the Dark, called "Night Swimmining."
MORE
Is there anything else you'd like to know? Leave a question in the comments and I'll try to answer!
YOU ARE READING
As They Slip Away
Teen FictionSelene is a "non-essential" crew member on a generational spaceship that classifies artists as insane. She and her fellow non-essential artists are given a rather unique assignment: create art they find beautiful, with no angle of making it essentia...
