(Photo taken by me at the US Botanical Garden in Washington, DC)
As has been the case, I'm working on polishing the manuscript. A polish can also include a couple of new chapters and even a new character. My newest character is a Princess. Always a sign the story is moving along in the right direction when the new character can lay claim to such a title.
But when I was searching for a name to further inspire me, and some sense of historical authenticity surrounding it, I googled Poetry and Apocalypse (which will make sense if the book gets published and you read it:), and found this beautiful piece by Julian Tuwim, a Polish poet.
The Dancing Socrates
I roast in the sun, old wretch…
I lie, and yawn, I stretch.
Old am I, but full of pep:
When I take a slug from the cup
I sing.
My ancient bones bask in the sun's glow,
And my curly, wise, grey head.
In that wise head, like woods in spring
Hums and hums a wiser wine.
Eternal thoughts flow and flow,
Like time.
Kind of ideal when you're writing a vampire story, don't you think?
And by the way, the character's first name is Izabella.
