The Chicks welcome back Esme Addison, whose newest Enchanted Bay Mystery, A Hex for Danger, launched yesterday. Today, Esme tackles a great topic…

On Finding Inspiration Everywhere

Most writers probably know that inspiration for stories can be found everywhere. I have a hard time turning that off – the ability to see something, meet someone or experience something and get an idea for a story. I am constantly writing down ideas and creating the first three chapters for an idea I have.

Some may become a novel, some may not.

But it happened the last time I went to Poland. Not with mermaids… but something else.

I was not looking for more ideas – trust me – mermaids being real is enough.

But the last time we visited the Wavel Castel, the first UNESCO World Heritage Site in the world we learned about the myth surrounding the castle… It involves dragons.

Yes, you heard me.

Dragons.

According to Wavel.Krakow.pl Wavel Castle is located on Wavel Hill, which is “…situated on the bank of the Vistula river and surrounded by its waters and marshes, the hill had provided a safe haven for people since the Paleolithic Period. From the 7th century A.D. onwards Slavic peoples inhabited the hill. Early medieval legends tell of a fearsome dragon that lived in a cave beneath Wawel Hill, of Prince Krak the dragon slayer, and of his daughter Wanda, who drowned herself in the Vistula rather than marry a German knight.”

I am not a dragon person per se. I don’t enjoy reading about dragons, I don’t watch movies or television shows with dragons. But when I discovered the myth of the Smok Wawelski – The Wavel Dragon – and the Polish myths around them in general… I thought, I will have to write about that somehow… someday.

It’s an interesting subject once you go down the dragon rabbit hole – lol – because every culture has dragon mythology and almost every royal family claims to have comes from dragons… it’s weird but also fascinating. And it begs so many questions.

Why is there an actual cave under the castle known to be the dragon’s lair?

Why are their bones of a Pleistocene creature purported to be the dragon hanging from the entrance of the Wavel Cathedral since medieval times???

Why do so many royal families claim their divine right to rule came from a dragon?

I didn’t think I’d find a way to incorporate dragon mythology into my Enchanted Bay Mystery series… but I did! And I think it’s as authentic and as organic as it can be.

So yes, when you read A Hex For Danger… you’ll learn a little more about Polish mythology and maybe… a dragon or two.

Readers, has inspiration every struck when you didn’t expect it?

Synopsis: The annual Mermaid Festival is the setting for Esme Addison’s sunny-yet-sinister second Enchanted Bay mystery, perfect for fans of Heather Blake and Bailey Cates. The small town of Bellamy Bay has its share of skeletons in its closet, but it isn’t used to bodies turning up in the local history museum. After all, this coastal North Carolina town is much like any other…except, of course, for the mermaids.
Helping to run the family business, an herbal apothecary while keeping her supernatural secret hidden is no easy feat for water witch Aleksandra Daniels.  But somehow she’s still found time to help her friend Celeste, who has her own Caribbean mermaid heritage plan the annual Mermaid Festival. As fun-seekers throng the beaches, Alex gets to know and is intrigued by renowned artist Neve Ryland, who’s in town to decorate the local park with a mermaid-themed mural. Celeste, however, is less enamored with the artist, as Neve has been spending entirely too much one-on-one time with her boyfriend Jasper, director of Bellamy Bay’s history museum. Then, a reception for Neve ends abruptly when the artist is found dead in his office. 

The police investigation nets Celeste who asks Alex to find the true culprit. With the help of her magically-inclined aunt and cousins, Alex dives in to clear her friend’s name. But there was more to Neve Ryland than met the eye…and Alex fears she may be in way too deep. Will she catch the crook or be next on the hook?

Purchase Link