Saturday, October 15, 2011

Tattoos don’t give you superpowers, but they look badass



The shop where I got my first tattoo (at the ripe old age of 17) had a sticker on the ceiling that read, If it felt like an orgasm everyone would have one. For sure, but I have a feeling that if tattoos gave you superpowers everyone would have one too. Think about it- you put ink just under your skin with a needle, and it stays there for life. So full of fantasy potential. So when I started writing Transgressions, I had a magical-tattoo novel in mind (but then Keith showed up and took over the whole plot, which is another story for another timeJ ). There are a few great ones out there already, but I wanted to put a new twist on the subject—so I decided to have a tattoo of wings that comes alive.

The idea came to me when I was working on a novella about a tattoo artist with latent magical powers who notices that the tattoos he makes give people unusual abilities (it’s kind of a prequel to Transgressions). I started brainstorming and expanding on the concept, and voilà—Transgressions was born. 

But back to the real world for a minute. I’ve wanted some ink ever since I was about five-- thankfully I waited another fifteen years to get that half-sleeve. J My artist-- an amazing woman with truly enviable body art—told me about all kinds of tattoos that people get and the stories behind them. There are those that symbolize a person’s passion in life—like a history major who got a scroll and a quill—as well as those that commemorate loved ones (which is not to say get your SO’s name tattooed on your butt—that, she maintains, is still the relationship kiss of death). Mine are mainly geek tattoos, like the quote from my favourite book (okay... and one old-shame RPG fan tat). 

So a couple of things to remember if you do choose to get ink: look at portfolios before you pick your artist, make sure the salon sterilizes everything, and don’t get drunk! A little pain is totally worth the ink you’ll be sporting for the rest of your life. 

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Transgressions is now available from Decadent Publishing HERE
Drop by my blog for more rants, raves, stories and the occasional giveaway. http://sirenesong.blogspot.com/


4 comments:

Jessica E. Subject said...

I really want to get a tattoo. Have for a number of years, but I worry about fainting. I have a thing with needles. I've already designed the image I want (relates to the genre I write), now I just need to find a salon.

dany-sirene said...

Me too, actually... and it sounds like a dentist's drill! o_O

Jessica E. Subject said...

Eek! That sound just makes me cringe, not faint. I will get one though. Hopefully very soon. :)

Barbara Elsborg said...

Some I love to see, others I think are awful. It really is important to make sure you can live with what you choose and not to get carried away! I had a heroine in one of my stories who was a tattoo artist- yet she didn't have one herself. I was surprised no one commented on that!!