Character Art: Isme, the Daughter of Orpheus
She can sing fire into existence... but she has no idea the adventure waiting for her.
by H.C. Southwark
Using the power of AI, I tried to render a few images of Isme, the protagonist of my novel Daughter of Orpheus. She is as described on the tin: the daughter of Orpheus and a maenad. This means she is separately in Apollo and Dionysus's spheres of influence, and this tension dictates many of her concerns throughout the story.
(For anyone who has not read the book... it's FREE. Download link is at the bottom of this page!)
The novel begins with Isme living on an island off the shores of Greece with her father (who himself is a mythic figure). They are aware that the current world (which is the world of iron, according to Hesiod) is about to come to an end, and thus are the ancient Greek equivalent of doomsday preppers.
In the first chapter, Isme disobeys her father's rules by going to the beach and singing to the turtles, who are arriving because of the full moon and the tides.
(Note: haha, the turtles are so wonky, one of them looks like a sea dragon, others are flying, and the first ones are mutant turtle pancakes. Artificial intelligence, what are you doing?)
They regarded each other, Isme gazing at the sea and the sea gazing back.
Isme held still as she could, for if she moved too much then the sea would remain only water. After a time the sea seemed to decide she was safe and there were more, little round pebbles bobbing up in the foam, blowing bubbles out nostrils...
(Daughter of Orpheus, Chapter One)
As you'll notice, Isme is being depicted wielding fire in her hands. That's because her connection to Orpheus allows her the power to sing and alter reality, including summoning fire:
Words came to her, words from the fire, simply, easily, as though fire was eager to be born...
(Daughter of Orpheus, Chapter One)
Later in the story, Isme is recruited to serve as the priestess of Delphi. I wanted the location to look "out of time," something otherworldly, because it is a vortex of prophesy about the future. Therefore the columns and marble of the building can still be white, although buildings were painted in the ancient world.
"Soon you will know more than any mortal. You will become a prophetess at Delphi, speaking what others do not understand..."
(Daughter of Orpheus, Chapter Fifteen)
As for the image below, I have to say that it was my favorite. Despite the oddity about the arm, it captures the wild and free nature of the maenad inside Isme. Plus it gives her fire and sets her against the sea. It's the best representation the computer was able to come up with.
I hope the world does not end tonight, thought Isme. If the world had ended yesterday, that would not have been so bad. But today I am alone.
(Daughter of Orpheus, Chapter One)
Finally, a lot of these images have Isme dressed in approximations of ancient Greek bedsheets (the AI does not fully understand how a chiton or peplos works, and to be fair neither did Renaissance artists). But throughout most of the story, Isme is actually dressed in animal skins. Here's an attempt to render those:
Thanks for taking a look! The entire novel is free, you can get it here, or by entering your email below.
—H.C.
LAST CHANCE TO GRAB A FREE BOOK!
When she saw the dead bodies, she knew her fate..
Isme never wanted to hurt anyone... she just wanted to survive the coming apocalypse. But now she has to escape her blood guilt, or face the penalty in the next world... and only the Oracle of Delphi can help. If she can even get there alive...
This 400+ page fantasy novel is free... that's right, FREE. You can grab it by entering your email below, and it'll be mailed straight to your inbox. 🙂
LAST CHANCE TO GRAB A FREE BOOK!
When she saw the dead bodies, she knew her fate...
This 400+ page fantasy novel is free... that's right, FREE. You can grab it by entering your email below, and it'll be mailed straight to your inbox. 🙂
LAST CHANCE TO GRAB A FREE BOOK!
When she saw the dead bodies, she knew her fate...
This 400+ page fantasy novel is free... that's right, FREE. You can grab it by entering your email below, and it'll be mailed straight to your inbox. 🙂