Hi my name is Charie D. La Marr,
creator of the genre Circuspunk. Some of you might know me from
Facebook as Persiphone Hellecat and some might even know me from the
nine years I spent as a professional clown as Kotton Kandy.
So why, do you ask, does a person who
spent nine years wearing the motley suddenly start writing stories
where clowns blow up? First of all, that is only a part of
Circuspunk. Circuspunk can bring in any other genres that you
want—from romance to sci fi and everything inbetween. The stories
include circuses, carnivals and fairs, midways, freak shows and
sideshows, clown, magicians, freaks, acrobats, carnies … all of it!
And the reason is simple. Behind all
that splatter and funk, I love the circus! This is a very irreverent,
but loving look at a subject near and dear to my heart. But I just
got tired of hearing people say, “I #$%$%$% hate clowns!” I would
show them my picture and they would agree that as a clown, I was
adorable, but they still hated clowns and wanted to see them wiped
off the face of the earth. So I decided, if people want to blow up
clowns, let’s do it MY way—with tongue firmly planted in cheek.
And so Circuspunk was born. I hope that it makes people laugh and
desensitizes that clown phobia. I consider it an antidote.
Now, that is not to say that I don’t
understand clown phobia in children. As a clown, I took many courses
in the psychology of children and how to handle them. I understand
that we raise our kids telling them not to talk to strangers. And yet
the first time they see a clown, they push the kid into the clown’s
arms and get out the camera. I would freak too if my parents made me
hug the strangest person I ever saw! I learned to get down to their
level, stay back and talk softly and work to gain their trust until
they came to me. I would talk about what was on their t-shirts, what
their favorite subject in school was, anything to loosen them up and
gain their confidence. And the truth was, I ended up in literally
thousands of baby books because I never met a kid who ended up not
liking me.
Sadly, I cannot say the same of their
parents. I was a performing clown. I did magic shows, I walked around
with magic tricks in my pockets and puppets. I was not a gumball
machine. I didn’t give out cheap trinkets or make animal balloons.
I saw way too many parents allow young ones to suck on those balloons
and once saw a kid have to have a cheap ten cent ring pulled out of
her throat.
My message is simple. Love us. We walk
around all day in costumes that sometimes weigh close to ten pounds
with wigs and full makeup in the hot sun. We get shin splints from
working on unforgiving concrete surfaces. We work hard taking classes
and keeping our skills and talents sharp and growing. And we ask
nothing more from you than a smile. Is that a lot to ask for?
Links to learn more
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