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The Mermaids of Lake Michigan // Guest Post by Suzanne Kamata

March 7, 2017 Crystal // Dreams, etc. 5 comments
The Mermaids of Lake Michigan // Guest Post by Suzanne Kamata

Suzanne Kamata shares some of the mermaid inspiration for her novel THE MERMAIDS OF LAKE MICHIGAN. // dreams-etc.comNote – I received a copy of this book from the publisher through TLC Book Tours in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own. No affiliate links were used in this post.

It’s been awhile since I’ve had a guest post from an author on my blog, so I’m so excited to be able to share some thoughts by Suzanne Kamata, author of The Mermaids of Lake Michigan. I signed up for the book tour as soon as I read the title. Anything that talks about mermaids will catch my attention… but lake mermaids? It was made for me! For those who don’t know, a friend and I have a group and a dream called Secret Life of Mermaids. We’ve had to put this on hold for the time being, but it’s something we both love. It’s first name was actually Minnesota Mermaids, because we thought, “Why do mermaids only live in oceans?” We live in the land of 10,000 lakes, there’s gotta be a mermaid or two swimming around in this state!

Head on over to Goodreads to read the official synopsis of the book!

My Thoughts

Reading The Mermaids of Lake Michigan was like reading a fairy tale–not a dark Grimm’s fairy tale, but not a Disney-fied fairy tale either. It was life with a mystical touch. I loved the dreamlike nature of this novel. Sometimes it felt like were flitting in and out of moments of Elise’s life. At times I wanted more, but it always felt like we saw exactly what we needed to see. I loved the Moulin Rouge-vibes to the narrative as well… it took me awhile to figure out what the narrative reminded me of and then a line brought Moulin Rouge to  mind and I thought, “Yes! That’s it!” This is a shorter book, one that you can read in an evening, which is how I read a majority of it.

[Tweet “THE MERMAIDS OF LAKE MICHIGAN is a dreamy fairy tale with Moulin Rouge vibes!”]

I asked Kamata about the inspiration behind all of the different mermaid threads that I read about in the description of the book (I hadn’t read the book at this point) and I loved reading what she wrote. A big thank you to Suzanne for sharing this with us!

Guest Post

[Tweet “Suzanne Kamata shares some of the mermaid inspiration for her novel THE MERMAIDS OF LAKE MICHIGAN!”]

I grew up in Grand Haven, a small town on the shores of Lake Michigan, which is the setting of my novel, The Mermaids of Lake Michigan. When I was a teenager, I thought the Midwest had to be the most boring part of America, and I couldn’t wait to get away. I had plans to go to New York City, or maybe to travel the world gathering exotic experiences, and then to become a writer. I did leave. When I was sixteen, my family moved to South Carolina due to my dad’s job, and later, I went to Europe on foreign study, and to Japan, to teach English. It was only then, a few years after I’d left, that I truly began to appreciate the magic of the place where I was born and raised. Grand Haven was the home of the world’s largest musical fountain as well as a beauty queen (Miss Coast Guard U.S.A.), and an annual festival that attracted visitors from all over.

The lake that is central to the story and appears on the cover of the book is like an inland sea – so wide and vast, that one cannot see to the other side. As a child, I often tried to imagine what was on other shore. And what, I wondered, was way down at the bottom? Pirate booty? Our own Lochness monster? It was easy to imagine that there might be mythical creatures in those depths – even mermaids.

Awhile back, I wrote a story called “The Diver,” which was inspired by Francis , a real-life wreck diver on the Great Lakes. According to an article that was published in a 19th century ladies’ magazine, on her first dive, she dove into a sunken ship to retrieve a diamond ring. On another dive, her oxygen was temporarily cut off when someone tripped over the onboard. In my version of the story, she is helped by a mermaid, who may, or may not have been illusion conjured by an oxygen-deprived brain. I liked the idea of a female wreck diver so much that I decided to weave one into my novel.

I was later interested to discover that mermaids appear in folklore all over the world. In Japan, where I live now, it is said that eating mermaid flesh will lead to immortality. I learned about Ghana’s mami-wata from a fellow expat writer. Other cultures have stories about mermaids as well.

I’ll leave it to the reader to decide if the mermaids of Lake Michigan are real or not.

Again, a big thank you to Suzanne Kamata for taking the time to share some of the inspiration behind her novel. If you’re interested in reading The Mermaids of Lake Michigan you can check it out in the following places.

Purchase Links

Amazon | Books-A-Million | Barnes & Noble

Connect with Suzanne

Website | Twitter

 

What do you think? Could there be mermaids in Lake Michigan?

About Crystal

About Crystal

Hi! I'm Crystal, a millennial learning how to live slowly and sustainably, while still seeking adventure and following my dreams, etc.

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Books Read in January 2017
Book Tour // The Mermaid’s Daughter by Ann Claycomb

5 comments

  1. tovar477573@mail.ru says:
    March 8, 2017 at 11:54 am

    Lot of climax and lot of danger we find from your content and i like to read this regularly. Most of the viewers are like to get such kind of story. I hope you should be success in your job.

    Reply
  2. My Urban Family says:
    March 8, 2017 at 10:04 pm

    I love visiting Grand Haven – which makes me want to read the book even more now!

    Reply
  3. Jessica Bradshaw says:
    March 10, 2017 at 9:52 am

    i love this cover! Moulin Rouge is one of my favorite movies. Great job!

    Reply
  4. Taylor Smith says:
    March 10, 2017 at 9:52 am

    That is kind of cool! I need to read the book!

    Reply
  5. HeatherTLC says:
    March 10, 2017 at 3:52 pm

    Thanks for being a part of the tour!

    Reply

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hi!

I'm Crystal, the storyteller behind Dreams, etc. I'm all about learning how to live slowly & sustainably, while also seeking adventure as we follow our dreams, etc.

Hello, friends! šŸ‘‹šŸ¼ Swipe through for a few g Hello, friends! šŸ‘‹šŸ¼ Swipe through for a few glimpses from January. As 2022 came to an end I had this feeling that I was preparing to hibernate and I guess, in a way, I have. I’ve been slowly easing into the new year, focused on getting back into a few routines after Iceland and the holidays. And it’s been a great month. I can’t believe it’s almost over. What have your favorite moments of January been?
2022. Looking back on this year it was the year of 2022. Looking back on this year it was the year of so many dreams experiences. Whales. Cape Cod/Nantucket. Iceland. I saw musicals that have I’ve been dreaming of with Moulin Rouge, Wicked, and Six. 

It wasn’t without its stresses and rough moments but I’m grateful for the good that can be found, even when it’s hard.
Let’s journey back to November for the second we Let’s journey back to November for the second weekly dam walk of the month. My dad joined me for this one and we made it somewhat fast because it was a chilly day. ā€œThe water looks cold,ā€ I said when we back to the car.

Between Iceland and the below zero, windy, and snowy weather we had last week (which came with requests from my parents not to go) it’s been a few weeks since I’ve been to the dam and I miss it!
Years ago I celebrated Christmas and New Years in Years ago I celebrated Christmas and New Years in Vienna and it still lives in my memory today as such a special time. I know December in Reykjavik will be the same—and not just because I came home with a little over $100 worth of ornaments of all 13 Yule Lads AND their mom AND the Christmas cat. (There was a little bit of miscommunication between my mom and me on that shopping trip. šŸ˜‚)

It might have been cold (and when that wind hits you don’t want to be outside or by the harbour…I speak from windswept, breath-stolen experience and will forever be grateful for the library we eventually found respite in) and we only saw the sun a few hours each day, but seeing this already charming city decked out in Christmas lights with a skating rink and the prettiest tree secured it’s place in my heart.

Reykjavik, I hope to see you again one day. Soon. Probably not in December, but I’m glad I got to see you in December once.
Last year my niece and I visited New York at Chris Last year my niece and I visited New York at Christmastime and it was fun to see the city decked out in lights. I can also now say that I’ve seen the Rockefeller Christmas Tree and skating rink and the Saks Christmas lights, but I’ve also seen the crowds they draw.

It was completely different in Reykjavik this year. You actually had a chance to skate on the ice rink if you wanted (and I never did the conversation, but I think it’s cheaper) and you could actually walk up to the Christmas tree. Two very different Christmas in the city experiences.
Iceland, Day 2, Part 2. We ended the Golden Circle Iceland, Day 2, Part 2. We ended the Golden Circle tour with a stop at Thingvellir National Park. My fingers froze as I took these photos but it was worth it to capture this view. šŸ˜ PS - the last photo is from a lake we stopped at on our way from Geysir to Thingvellir.
Iceland, Day 2, Part 1. We went on a rather unvent Iceland, Day 2, Part 1. We went on a rather unventful Northern Lights tour the night before and slipped in a few hours of sleep before meeting our bus for the Golden Circle tour. Our tour guide was @busdriver_annie and she was amazing! Pictured: Faxi (the small waterfall) Gullfoss (the big waterfall), a wool market where we also saw some animals, and Geysir (the hot springs area). Geysir is actually the most famous geyser in the world but it doesn’t erupt anymore. However, Strokkur erupts every 5 - 10 minutes. I’ll share more photos from the tour soon!
Iceland, Day 1. We landed bright and early at 6:30 Iceland, Day 1. We landed bright and early at 6:30 am, dropped off our bags at the hotel, and went exploring. We saw HallgrĆ­mskirkja, the amazing view from the bell tower, the rainbow street, and walked down Laugavegur. Swipe to the end to see the view from our apartment!
Scenes from November, which were mostly at the dam Scenes from November, which were mostly at the dam apparently.
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