I've been watching a Travel Channel series on Netflix called Expedition Unknown. Not only is the series itself great -- Josh Gates was always amazing on Destination Truth too, and is more than a little hunk-y -- but the places he goes and the things he sees are nothing short of awe inspiring.

Netflix only has the first season at the moment, but one of the last episodes sparked a story idea in my head. See, in the episode in question he goes to Myanmar, and while there visits a temple dedicated to important spirits of the country called Nats. The Nats are communicated with by mediums who dance and commune with the spirits... all of whom are transvestites, taking on the roles of the Nats' wives.

This, of course, inspired a story in my head of an orphan from that country, adopted by an American family, who finds out when they reach adulthood that their connection to their birth country is, perhaps, more important than they think. A Nat has attached itself to him, and has no intention of letting its bride go.

There are so many fun things I can think of to do with this kind of story, but the thing is, I don't want to do much if any research into it because I don't want the actual cultural or religious ties to drag down my own creativity. Because of that, I have to ask: would writing such a story, and warping the concepts therein to fit my own ends, be poetic license with real-world inspiration, or just culturally insensitive and in poor taste? The former I'd be happy with, but if the consensus leans toward the latter then I'll shelve the concept.

Melanie E.