Abandoned Khmer temples ...
the inspiration for In Yellow Babylon
Actually, I've never had any desire to write the Great American Novel. Just small novels that explore ideas I'm interested in and places I love (or have made up and love because they're mine!) So far, I have one novel under my belt, one almost finished and one halfway through its first draft. Next on the agenda ... one coming soon to a bookshop near you.
I have always wanted to write a novel whose poetry would make Michael Ondaatje proud. I am also fascinated by the true story of Andre and Clara Malraux, who brazenly attempted to steal a six-ton bas relief from a Khmer temple in the early 1920s. With both of these inspirations in mind, I set out to write a literary adventure novel. The result: a story about one woman's quest for a lost temple, and an exloration of obsession set against the backdrop of post-WWI Indochina.
The inspirations ... the songs of Kris Kristofferson (Blame it on the Stones and Jesus Was a Capricorn); Creedence Clearwater Revival's The Man; and the political writings of Oriana Fallaci, who was fascinated by the abuse of power--who abuses power and why? This political/social satire explores the lives of an ambassador, CIA agent, ex-fashion model, journalist and jilted wife in a fictitious Southeast Asian country. Highlights: Human rights abuses, nuclear weapons, Ho Chi Minh reading Erica Jong novels, Donald Rumsfeld playing Parcheesi, and plenty of opium addiction.
I moved to Vietnam to write a novel. This is it. I wrote it by hand in a shabby hotel room, squeaky clean guesthouse and points in between during my first year in Saigon. A satire, it examines self-absorption, self-destruction, self-denial and life in the tropics. This time the fictitious country is the South Pacific island of Tuoua. As for the human sacrifice in the closing chapter, it's just all part of the fun.
Old Shanghai:
The Setting for Part One of
In Yellow Babylon
