10 Sandman Fates Worse Than Death

3. Endless Ideas

Kindly Ones The Sandman Three Witches
DC Comics

As detailed in Sandman #17, writer Erasmus Fry captured the muse Calliope on Mount Helicon in 1927. He repeatedly raped her to get inspiration for decades, and became an author of some renown. An old man by 1986, Fry sold Calliope to author Richard Maddoc.

Maddoc forced inspiration from Calliope, and the once blocked and desperate author now had several books, a play, and offers for films ahead of him. Calliope prayed to the Fates for their help but found that they could not intercede. They suggested her former husband Morpheus, but he too was trapped by mortals at that moment.

Dream attempted to free Calliope once he was freed. He went to Maddoc’s home and told the mortal to free her. He said he couldn’t because he was afraid he wouldn’t have any ideas. With that, Morpheus did the worst thing anyone could do to a writer: he filled his head with ideas. One idea after another. So many ideas, he couldn’t latch on to anyone. Going mad, Maddoc agreed to free the Muse. She asked Dream to end his punishment and then the Dream King did the second worse thing anyone could do to a writer: he took the ideas away. Richard was left with no ideas at all.

Contributor
Contributor

John Wilson has been a comic book and pop culture fan his entire life. He has written for a number of websites on the subject over the years and is especially pleased to be at WhatCulture. John has written two comic books for Last Ember Press Studio and has recently self-published a children's book called "Blue." When not spending far too much time on the internet, John spends time with his lovely wife, Kim, their goofy dog, Tesla, and two very spoiled cats.