IN PROVIDENCE, RI? DID A NEIGHBORHOOD NEAR YOU INSPIRE MY SHORT STORY “PAISLEY SURPRISE”?
Posted by kristipetersenschoonover
I love reading short stories which take place in areas with which I’m familiar; it’s almost like I’m in the story rather than reading it. That’s part of my attraction to the Akashic series of noir collections—among them Bronx Noir, Baltimore Noir, and Miami Noir; all places I’ve been, all places I love.
This winter’s holiday chapbook for friends was “Denigrating David,” and in its introduction, I talked a little bit about how fascinating it is for me to read about where writers get their story ideas—in other words, what specifically inspired a particular piece? I even made an open comment to writer Daniel Pearlman, who’s on my list: ‘But that’s the good stuff. That’s what people really want to know. I’d love to hear the specific roots of Alison Lurie’s “The Pool People” or Daniel Pearlman’s “What Rough Beast.”’
Dan did answer me via e-mail: ‘As to “What Rough Beast,” it was the news report of an attempted interspecies mating (a moose—or was it a New Zealand sea-lion—with a cow?).’[1]
Awesome!
The year before that, the chapbook was “Paisley Surprise.” Which many people really enjoyed—and although several asked me where the story idea came from (and obviously Carl Stephenson’s “Leiningen vs. the Ants” was an inspiration), there was more to it than that: surprisingly, it was not a place where hordes of flesh-eating ants even exist: a small neighborhood near Books on the Square in Providence, Rhode Island—five houses on a tiny cul-de-sac off Angell Street between the Taylor and Wayland Street intersections.
I was on my way to the book store with members of the Newport Round Table for a group reading and signing of our anthology Walls & Bridges in April, 2009. If you live inProvidence, then you know that, just like many cities, parking isn’t always the easiest thing to find. My friend Heather and I parked a few blocks away, and on the walk to the book store, we passed this quaint grouping of five houses or so that I just couldn’t resist photographing, thinking it would make a great setting for a short story.
What’s funny is, the second I was done photographing the place, the entire piece “Paisley Surprise,” from start to finish, with characters and back story and everything, popped into my head.
Because where my stories came from seemed to be of interest to so many people, I thought, just for the heck of it, I’d take you on a tour of the neighborhood and tell you how it figured into the story.
If you’d like to read “Paisley Surprise” first, it’s available in two places: in my website’s store, where you can get a limited-edition copy of the chapbook: http://kristipetersenschoonover.com/store/ …or in Static Movement’s Inner Fears Anthology, available on Amazon here: http://amzn.com/1617060259.
Enjoy!
First off, none of these houses are of the architectural styles I describe in the story. I was trying to capture the flavor and feel of this cool little neighborhood, not necessarily its exact look.
[1] Daniel Pearlman, in e-mail to author, 2 February 2011.
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About kristipetersenschoonover
A ghost story writer who still sleeps with the lights on, Kristi Petersen Schoonover’s fiction has appeared in many magazines and anthologies; her traditionally published books include a short story collection, THE SHADOWS BEHIND. She was the recipient of three Norman Mailer Writers Colony Residencies and holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Goddard College. She serves as co-host of the DARK DISCUSSIONS podcast, as founding editor of the dark literary journal 34 ORCHARD, and is a member of the New England Horror Writers. Follow her adventures at kristipetersenschoonover.com.Posted on November 8, 2011, in Deep Thoughts & Fun Stuff, Short Stories and tagged Books on the Square Providence RI, Killer Ants, Leiningen Vs. the Ants, Paisley Surprise, Short Stories, Short Story Locations. Bookmark the permalink. 2 Comments.
I love Providence, too, and know the neighborhood well. It’s quite inspiring; there’s something about the density and mix of old and new buildings that inspire me. I know of at least one other writer to use the setting!
Hi Will! Providence is awesome. I have a few stories set there, in fact. There’s just something about the way it’s laid out, or as you noted, the mix of buildings, that makes it a wonderful setting. Hey…THAT wouldn’t be LOVECRAFT, would it? 😉