Five for Friday: Authors who Inspire

When I write, or even just brainstorm, I find myself drawing inspiration from other authors. I often think to myself, “WWNGD?” (What would Neil Gaiman do?” Sometimes, it’s reading someone else’s work that encourages me to continue my own musings. Here are my top five authors who inspire me. 5. JRR Tolkien Tolkien is the reason we have such rich fantasy novels today. Before The Lord of The Rings, there wasn’t any notion of elves, dwarves, and wizards in popular fiction. He practically invented them. Generally, when you think of elves, you think lean, tall, pointy-eared etc. Tolkien is responsible for that vision. Most fantasy books today have some trace of Tolkien in them; when you read through Force of Nature, one of the elves even comments on Tolkien’s uncanny sense of fantasy. 4. Bram Stoker

Ah, yes, Dracula. Considering the boom of vampire culture right now, it’s no wonder that Stoker makes this list. There are no vampires in the Force, and I don’t plan on ever using them, in the traditional sense that is. Alex does suck energy out of people, don’t forget. (Funny, I never made that connection until just now.) But the main reason for Stoker goes back about 10 years ago. I was in university, taking a Germanics class called “The History of Vampires in Film”. We watched vampire movies each class. Part of the assignments required reading Stoker’s original text. I remember having such a vivid picture in my mind while reading that I thought, wow, I wish I could write like that. Since then, two vampire novels have again inspired me to write. First, yes, I’ll admit it, Twilight. I devoured the series very quickly. Shortly after, I found I had nothing to read that was similar, so I decided to write the kind of book I would want to read. Force is what came out of that. Second, Jennifer Rardin’s Jaz Parks series. I picked the first book up on my way camping and ended up having to buy the rest of the series before the end of the first day. When I got home, I realized I hadn’t touched my novel (this time it was Force of Nature) for months, and started finishing it. I also love Charlaine Harris’ Sookie Stackhouse series, and refer vaguely to her in the third (still untitled) story in the Force series. Nonetheless, it was Stoker who is the most widely recognized author who brought the myth of the vampire to the novel.

3. Cecilia Ahern

Who? Cecilia Ahern has written a ton of whimsical books, such as “A Place Called Here” and my personal favourite “If You Could See Me Now” (which is about an imaginary friend). She also wrote PS I Love You, which was turned into a movie, as well as created the TV show Samantha Who? Ahern’s novels transport you to a world where magic is possible, and encouraged. I also am inspired by her drive. Her first novel was published when she was just twenty-one, and she continues to crank out bestsellers. I love that she keeps things modern, but never lets you doubt the existence of magic. 2. JK Rowling

Remember her? She wrote this little book series called “Harry Potter”. Rowling is such an inspiration, both through her words, and through her story. She made reading cool again. She changed the world with her stories. I remember first reading HP after my mom had one a boxed set of the first three books. They hadn’t hit it big yet in Canada, and we both didn’t know what to do with these “young adult” books. Who was going to read them? I ended up reading the first book quite by accident, and told my mom she HAD to read it. I wasn’t finished the second one when she started pawing for it! We were starved for more Harry! Her determination to write, despite all odds against her (a single mom on welfare in England) only furthers my admiration of her. She’s now got a whole empire around her. You go, girl!

1. Neil Gaiman I remember when I first joined twitter (@shawnapiranha), I started following Neil, (we’re on a first name basis, apparently) and I kept saying to people, "I wish Neil Gaiman was my friend!" He’s so unbelievably AWESOME! He writes the way I only hope to write. His words come out like music, even on something as restrictive as twitter! The first book I read of his was Neverwhere, which blew my mind. What a fantastic concept! I followed it up with Stardust, and American Gods. If you’ve read Force, you’ll know how these were strong inspirations for some of the characters in the novel. I’ve read all of his books, though I must admit, I haven’t yet read the Sandman graphic novels, basically because I’m a wuss. Gaiman invites the creep factor in when everyone else is afraid to (like Shadow’s wife in American Gods... creeeeeeeepy)... even The Graveyard Book isn’t afraid to delve into the dark depths of a child’s mind. So fantastic. There’s something about the imagery he creates that makes his books feel like paintings. The best example of this is to read the short story Mirrormask...then watch the movie. It’s exactly how you see it in your mind. A lot of his novels are getting turned into movies: Stardust was highly successful, Neverwhere was made into a miniseries, Coraline was nominated for an Oscar, and according to IMDB, The Graveyard Book is getting the film treatment! I have to say, my biggest inspiration for writing comes from Neil.

Five for Friday: Geek Gods

There's a lot of Greek mythology within my Force series. Initially I had planned on writing a list of five favorite Greek myths (maybe one day), but I made a typo in the title of this blog post and have changed my mind. Instead, we shall be checking out my favorite "geek" gods.

I've come up with a two criteria:

Must be an actor (sorry, Joss), and Must not be a character (eliminating Sheldon from Big Bang Theory, and Chuck)

5. Robin Williams (Mrs. Doubtfire, Dead Poets' Society)

You might be thinking, Robin Williams? Really? Yes. Not only did he name his daughter Zelda (yes, after that Zelda), but he also is a huge fan of new electronics (he even attends conventions for them quite regularly), but he also loves RPGs, anime and video games. He frequently laments about how he gets owned when plays on his XBox 360.

4. The cast of Mythbusters (Mythbusters)

While Adam and Jamie are the staples for this show, I find that Kari, Grant and Tory are waaaay more fun to watch. Still, I'm putting the whole cast on the list because one day, I know Mythbusters will save my life.

Plus, anyone who can do a whole episode on duct tape is awesome in my book.

3. Jimmy Fallon (SNL, Late Night with Jimmy Fallon)

I've only recently become a Jimmy Fallon fan. He is hilarious! From his impeccable Neil Young impressions to his Robert Pattinson mockery to his Glee-homage... I find myself totally smitten by his love of satire. Go, Jimmy, go!

2. Felicia Day (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The Guild, Dr. Horrible's Sing-a-long Blog, Red: Werewolf Hunter)

The queen of the geekverse.

Felicia is a creative force to be reckoned with. First, she writes and stars in The Guild. Then, her role in Dr. Horrible let us know she can sing too! (By the way, listen to her on the Dr. Horrible commentary.) She is so impressive in the geek world that video game makers send her their games to her before anyone else. She is even writing a comic for Dragon Age 2. Her role in The Guild, and her own personal addiction to WoW led her to produce this music video, which went to #1 on iTunes within a day! You go girl!

1. Nathan Fillion (Castle, Firefly, Serenity, Dr. Horrible's Sing-a-long Blog)

What can I say about my boy Nathan? He is a chameleon. Put him in ANYTHING. I will watch. Even EW agrees with me!

Perhaps the winning moment for me was his turn on Firefly, but more recently he has been shining as Richard Castle. (Oh, sweet! I unintentionally brought this back to writing!) His twitter account (@NathanFillion) is a fantastic look into his personality, with a combination of posts, links, and photos. Best of all, his fans are loyal to the core. So loyal that they have launched a campaign to help him buy the rights to Firefly. So loyal that they went to great extremes to try to get him the role as the Green Lantern (it ultimately went to Ryan Reynolds). Watch the trailer below... you'll see what I mean.

Kinetic Typography

I do enjoy Stephen Fry. Love this little video about language!

Five for Friday: Quote and Quotability

I want to branch out a bit on this blog, so today I'm going to try something new. I'm going to post five of my favorite things, whether they be books, movies, foods... anything can make the cut. (Hopefully I will remember to keep it up!)

In keeping with a writing theme, I'm going to use today's list for "Quotability" (i.e. how much the movie has permeated into my everyday life.)

5. Airplane!

I have to admit, I haven't seen Airplane! in years, but there is no denying how it has become a staple in my speech.

Most quoted line: Well, it requires a setup. The movie version is "Surely, you can't be serious?" "I am serious... and don't call me Shirley!" Everytime i hear the word "surely" I must follow up with the end of that quote! It's almost like it's law!

4. The Princess Bride

Again, it's not surprising to see my favorite movies on this list. The Princess Bride is a staple in my everday vernacular. Unfortunately, even though I quote it incessantly, usually the quotes don't fit the situation. I do overuse "Inconceivable!" but then again, who doesn't? Still, I think the best lines in the movies go to Fezzik (Andre the Giant) and Inigo Montoya (Mandy Pantinkin). The rhyming on the boat is classic, yet hard to throw in to everyday conversation:

Inigo Montoya: That Vizzini, he can *fuss*.

Fezzik: Fuss, fuss... I think he like to scream at *us*.

Inigo Montoya: Probably he means no *harm*.

Fezzik: He's really very short on *charm*.

Inigo Montoya: You have a great gift for rhyme.

Fezzik: Yes, yes, some of the time.

Vizzini: Enough of that.

Inigo Montoya: Fezzik, are there rocks ahead?

Fezzik: If there are, we'll all be dead.

Vizzini: No more rhymes now, I mean it!

Fezzik: Anybody want a peanut?

But, I digress.

Most quoted line: It's a pet peeve of mine when people don't use a word correctly. Perhaps it's my background in English Lit, or perhaps it's how I hate that the internet has destroyed language all together. But when I hear someone say "supposably", my skin crawls.

So, I give you, Inigo: (insert my best spanish accent) "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."

3. Robin Hood

Not my favorite Disney movie by a longshot, but there are two quotes in this movie I use incessently. I guess this one will be a tie:

Most quoted line (1): (Usually only used when people are in my way, this requires a bit of pushiness. It only works when you stick out your belly) "Get outta my church!"

Most quoted line (2): (When saying goodbye) "Come back next year! On my birfday!" 2. The Wizard of Oz

An obvious choice, considering I have a tattoo reading "There's no place like home." Furthermore, the various electronics in our house are named with a Wizard of Oz theme (Tin Man, Toto, The Wiz, etc.).

Most quoted line: "Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain..." (used when I get embarassed or caught-red handed)

1. Finding Nemo

There are so many quotes I use from this movie that if I started to list them, I would run out of space. From speaking in whale, to the shocked "he touched the butt!", Nemo has become a staple within my vernacular.

Most quoted line(s): Check out IMDB for a more comprehensive list of quotes, but for now, I will just list a few:

Dori: Just keep swimming!

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Seagulls: Mine! Mine! Mine!

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Crabs: Heeeeeeeeeey! Heeeeeeeeey! (it's important to make little crab claws with your hands when using this quote.)

--

Squirt: We're gonna have a great jump today!

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Bruce: Fish are friends, not food.

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Dori (reading): Ess-cah-pay!

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Mr. Ray: Let's name the zones, the zones, the zones...

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Dori: I shall call him Squishy and he shall be mine and he shall be my Squishy. Come on, Squishy Come on, little Squishy!

(Yes, I do use ALL of these! ALL THE TIME! I know, I'm nuts!)

Honorable mentions:

The Muppet Christmas Carol:

Mice: Please sir, I'd like some cheeeeeeese.

Charlie Brown Christmas:

Lucy: "And presents for pretty girls?"

Singing in the Rain:

Don: "Hey Cosmo, call me a cab."

Cosmo: "Okay, you're a cab."

Creating a Book Trailer

Recently, I find more and more authors are employing the new idea of creating a "Book Trailer". Essentially, it's a movie trailer but for your book. This article has a useful list of what works in a trailer, but even better, there is a fantastic trailer embedded on the page.

How am I ever going to compete with that?

In other news, Force is live on amazon.com, through their Kindle store! I'm currently investigating other eBook publishers, but it's a time consuming process. Plus, I really just want to finish writing and editing the series so that all three books can go up together. Hopefully that will come soon! Until then, happy reading!

Distractions

It's very easy to get distracted from writing, especially with all shiny, flashy things around. I had a free evening tonight, and was all set to work on book three (still untitled), but then there was facebook, and twitter, and television, and the various blogs I like to read, and and and...

Now, I find it's 10:30 at night, and I've yet to write a word. Is it perhaps something subconscious about this story in particular? When i first wrote it, I hit a block. I took my characters to a dark place, and couldn't figure out how to get them out without upsetting "my readers" (I use quotes because there's all of three of you out there). But still, that was the way I wanted (or thought i wanted) the story to go. I've been stuck ever since, and it's been over a year.

Part of the reason I've been tackling it again is because I'm going to start publishing on the Kindle Store. It's an experiment, so hopefully it will be successful. I must say, without the help of Dan (my wonderful, tech-savvy roomie), I would never be in a position to post on the site. There are so many formatting-for-web codes and tricks that I just don't understand.

In my procrastination, I opened up my OneNote file for the series. It's kind of like my encyclopedia of the world i have created in my books. I have a page for each character, which includes quotes of descriptions I use throughout the stories. I also have pages for locations, and other important elements.

Many times I will have an idea of something in my head, for example, the interior of Mobius (described in an earlier post). In my travels across the inter-webs I sometimes find images that fit my imagined idea (for Mobius, it is the interior of the Guggenheim, and the exterior of the Kelowna library). I put these pictures in the OneNote file.

I find looking at these pictures helps me get inspiration, as well as helps me to remember exactly what I had been thinking weeks (or months) previous. Today, I came across the image for Zarek (a pivotal character in the second novel). I hesitate to post it here, because I would rather not affect a reader's imagination (which is why I will never post the pictures of my "fantasy cast" if Force was made into a movie), but I wanted to post a "tease" of what is to come once the second book (tentatively titled "Force of Nature") makes it on to the Kindle Store.

From: http://media.photobucket.com/image/gargoyle/Zappy_Kid/Gargoyle.jpg

In other news, I suppose I should mention that I have reverted back to my original title. It appeals to a wider audience, I think, and for purposes of Kindle-dom I find it is a better fit.