Mermaid Kae-Leah

Today we will be chatting with Mermaid Kae-Leah, the Royal Purple Mermaid Princess. In addition to being a mermaid, she is also an author and an environmentalist.

Cynthia: Welcome, Kae-Leah, please tell us about yourself.

Kae-Leah: My name is Kae-Leah, and I'm a mermaid activist, FictionPress author, and vintage fashion doll collector who just happens to live with both an autism spectrum disorder and severe scoliosis from the Pacific Northwest.

Cynthia: What inspired you to join the mermaid community?

Kae-Leah:  Part of the reason why I originally decided to buy a spandex mermaid tail from Fin Fun Mermaid Tails was to do mermaid cosplay photo shoots to promote my FictionPress novella series, "Nerissa Sanderson, The Part-Time Mermaid of Sunshine Valley, CA", but I've also been greatly inspired by the passion for ocean conservation other mermaids like Hannah Fraser and Raina the Halifax Mermaid have, and I wanted to join them in sharing my own passion for protecting marine life by adopting a mermaid identity.

Cynthia: You are outspoken as an environmentalist.  Tell us about that.

Kae-Leah: I firmly believe that what makes a mermaid or merman is NOT how well they can swim (heck, I can't swim at all, due to my health problems!), how long they can hold their breath for, or how realistic their tail looks. To me living a mermaid lifestyle is all about every day doing your very best to take care of the oceans, by not eating any fish(or at least only eating sustainable seafood), recycling and composting whenever possible, and limiting your consumption of single-use plastics. On my public mer-page, I provide a wealth of information on what people can do to help save the oceans and why making ocean-friendly choices is so important. It is very rewarding to me when people tell me that something I've posted has made them reconsider the impact that their choices have on the oceans, and I try to do my best to ALWAYS practice what I preach.

Mermaid Kae-Leah

Cynthia: What would be your favorite mermaid story and/or movie?

Kae-Leah: My favorite mermaid movie is Disney's The Little Mermaid, though I also like the anime version of The Little Mermaid which is much closer to Hans Christian Anderson's original story, Splash Too, and Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. My favorite mermaid book is the (in my opinion extremely underrated) The Sea Fairies by L. Frank Baum, the author of the Wizard of Oz series, which, by the way, is in the public domain and as such can be read online or downloaded to your e-reader legally for free.

Cynthia: Tell us about being chosen as a Mermaid Minerals "Mermaid of the Month".

Kae-Leah: It was a very close contest, but last month I was voted Mermaid Minerals' Mermaid of the Month. They sent me a goodie bag full of their all-natural, vegan products, and I can full-heartedly endorse their Mermaid Mane shampoo and conditioner as since using it, my hair has looked shiner and felt healthier than it has in years, and my allergy symptoms have even improved somewhat.

Cynthia: You are thinking of starting your own blog?

Kae-Leah: Yes, I've been toying with the idea, as I think a "legitimate" blog has the potential to draw more attention to the causes I advocate for, but I haven't decided for sure whether I want to do it or not, as I have been pretty much neglecting my fiction writing for a while now because of being busy with other projects, so I may not want or need to have "more on my plate" at the moment.

Cynthia: How do family and friends react to you being interested in mermaids?

Kae-Leah: My mama couldn't be much more supportive if she tried, as she's my long-suffering mertender and mertographer.  My friend Sondra, who usually does my hair and makeup for mermaid shoots, has also been very supportive. For some, I suppose it may be fair to say that the whole mermaid thing has taken some time to get used to and understand, but overall, I'd say I'm blessed with a very supportive and encouraging family and circle of friends.

Cynthia: Any final messages for my readers?

Kae-Leah: In short, to quote "Finding Nemo", FISH ARE FRIENDS, NOT FOOD! The most important thing we can do to help the oceans is stop treating them like a food bank, as 90% of large predatory fish have been fished out, and eating seafood isn't even as healthy as the fishing industry would want us to believe.

Thank you, Kae-Leah.  You can connect with Mermaid Kae-Leah, the Royal Purple Mermaid Princess, on Facebook.

Best wishes and starfishes,

-Mermaid Cynthia

cynthia (at) goldmermaid.com