Paul Waaktaar-Savoy inspires a Norwegian novel!
August 29, 2002 - Nettavisen (web paper, Norway)
Nettavisen discusses the upcoming Norwegian book releases. One of these is ‘Drømmer om storhet’ (‘Dreams of greatness’) by Norwegian author Pål H. Christiansen. This novel tells the story of the writer Hobo Highbrow, who’s struggling to deliver his next masterpiece. One day, Highbrow gets deeply inspired by no one less than Paul Waaktaar-Savoy. The fictional character throws himself on his work with renewed energy, basing the book on a study of Paul’s lyrics.
An excerpt from the book can be found on Christiansen’s web site. In the excerpt, Hobo Highbrow finds himself thinking about Paul being such a serious reader. To illustrate, Highbrow remembers the story where Paul ran into an elk, when the still unknown and unnamed a-ha was recording demos in the woods. Paul, convinced that his white trousers attracted the animal, ran off whilst shouting a quote from a book by the famous Norwegian author, Knut Hamsun. “Gud hjælpe mig!! De hvide Kalsongærne” (‘ancient’ Norwegian for ‘God help me! The white pants!’ - but with a cultural reference to Hamsun that’s impossible to translate )
Cover of ‘Drømmer om storhet’
"In the book, Paul becomes a kind of icon for the main character" - Pål H. Christiansen, author
The book recounts some real-life facts of Paul's life, but also represents him as a fictional side character in the book, who functions within the story.
But where does the idea com from to use Paul as a character for a novel?
"There is no simple answer," Christiansen tells a-ha.com. "Part of the reason lies in my own, private sphere of interests and partly in the book's main theme - namely the balance between 'big dreams' and an earthly living."
Paul became the representation of this balance. Christiansen explains us: "In the book, Paul is 'elevated' to some kind of icon for Hobo, but on the other hand, Paul is a normal person with a wife and kid, yet with a life outside of the usual. Paul was the man behind the lyrics and melodies in a-ha's first phase, a man with obvious literary qualities and interests, which makes him especially interesting."
Did Christiansen have to do a lot of research into the life and times of Paul?
"My interest in a-ha and Paul has been there all the time, but with the years, it became more focused - especially throughout the work for the novel," Christiansen answers. "Hobo is a fictional character, with many extreme traits, so I can't stand for all that he says [about Paul]. But I myself have sympathy for many of Paul's qualities and accomplishments."