Bon Temps – A Supernatural Crossroads

Once in the book and once in True Blood, we’ve heard mention of a supernatural crossroads. Was this said in passing to clue us into something pervasive and influential to the events in Bon Temps? Is there something about Bon Temps itself which attracts supernatural activity and beings and places them in contact with each other for mutual benefit and for power struggles with each other?

Claudine said to Sookie in Book 4 that Bon Temps is a supernatural crossroads. Lettie Mae said to Tara as they walked to Miss Jeanette’s place in the woods, “if you want to meet the devil, you go to the crossroads”. This is related to the supernatural meaning of crossroads. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crossroads_(culture) for related information.

In the book, Dead To The World, Claudine says to Sookie on page 75: “….I’m here because of all the activity. ….You have vampires, and Weres, and lots of other stuff all tangled up here in Bon Temps---to say nothing of several important and powerful crossroads. I was drawn to all the possibilities…”

Considering that True Blood is based on the book but not precisely in alignment with all the book details, will this Crossroads nature of Bon Temps be actualized in True Blood? And if so, why and how?

One thing we know is Alan Ball has said that although Sookie is the main character, the actress portraying her can’t be telling the TB story entirely through her point of view as it’s done in the books. With that in mind, some things must be changed and other characters need expansion to make up for less Sookie. And to make more of others, it has to be done carefully so as to not change the basic story too much.
How might these characters be expanded within the basic structure of the storyline and by what means? What from the books is open to expansion?

Without a doubt, the supernatural crossroads nature of Bon Temps could lend itself to expansion and use by the TB writers. Lafayette was a very minor player in the books, already dead at the beginning of Book 2. Yet here we are with a very much alive Lafayette as we head into the TV version of Books 3 and 4. Same thing with Tara. She was a minor character in the books and when she did pop up, we only saw the parts of her life where she interfaced directly with Sookie. Sookie mentioned Tara’s history briefly. But in True Blood, Tara is a supporting lead, much more than a bit player.

How can the writers expand these supporting yet undefined characters? Should they portray them living ordinary human lives, never living in tandem with Sookie’s supernatural-infused life? Or should they put these characters into supernatural contact, too, make them struggle with the strangeness of it all?

One way to tie the supporting characters into the supernatural world is to use the very nature of Bon Temps itself as a Supernatural Crossroads. This adds credibility as to why and how everyone is getting mixed up with supernatural beings of various types while the rest of the world is only getting mixed up with the newly outed vampires.

IN MY OPINION, THIS IS BEING SHOWN AS TRUE NOW THAT WE HAVE THE FAIRIES MEETING AND GREETING SOOKIE IN THE BON TEMPS CEMETARY.