A Note on Inspiration

After a bit of internal analysis, I've discovered that there are some subconscious forces at work with every creative idea, no matter how small or how original. Something makes us think the things we think.

For me, it might have been that initial image of Bridgett. Not her anatomy, just her face and her outline. One of the things that spurred that creative streak was having a friend mention that she was interested in reading some of my work. Another element was my continued exposure to a different girl, one who I initially encountered years ago and thought was interesting at the time. Both of these girls have cute features, thin (not skinny) bodies, long legs, and petite breasts. Something of all this came together in my subconscious and devised a character. Or not, I could be wrong.

Another character, Hokairu Itobe, is the product of the same subconscious addition. Initially, the inspiration for him was Zechs Marquise from Gundam Wing. When I decided he should be black, I wanted to keep that same kind of regal stature. There's a British actor named Chiwetel Ejiofor. This man is very talented, has a very confident, subdued presence that can give him a regal quality or an agressive one, depending upon the part. When I see Itobe, I see some odd fusion of Zechs and The Operative (Serenity). And that's what I want.

I think we can control the fusion of ideas, as in the latter example, and sometimes, the fusion of ideas happens quietly, all on its own. With the exception of plot progression, when I'm trying to think about what's needs to happen in a story or what that story should be, I'm performing that process of subconscious addition, over and over.