This week I’d like to write first about TV shows that expand my imagination. Everyone benefits from new ideas, and writers thrive on inspiration. I especially enjoy science programs, because there is almost always something that triggers an idea for a plot or storyline.
One of my favorite TV shows is How the Universe Works. Scientists are making many discoveries that can add fuel to science fiction writers’ imaginations, because what we are discovering “out there” is often more strange and bizarre than the most vivid writer’s imagination. I also like Secrets of the Earth, because even our own world is far more active and volatile and less safe for many of us than we like to believe. From tornadoes to floods, from wild fires burning out of control to the latest volcanic eruption, the mostly safe world we knew before is starting to fight back.
National Geographic, NOVA, and the Science Channel all offer insights into this wonderful world we live in. When I see the beauty of nature and the abundance of myriad creatures that surround us, I realize how fragile the world is that has been created here.
Magazines offer a great deal of information I find interesting, too. I’ve always been fascinated by earlier cultures and civilizations, and Archaeology magazine delivers the latest discoveries and updated opinions about what transpired before our own civilization progressed, from hunter-gatherers to farmers, to the beginnings of our first cities.
Discover and Smithsonian magazines always have articles I find interesting in a social context, as well as nuggets of some new piece of information I can use to think about as a writer to further a story line or create another plot for a new adventure.
My oldest and dearest friends are the many books I’ve read over the years. Besides a love of art and music, I developed an early interest in science as well. I always loved adventure stories, and the magical fairytales collected by the Brothers Grimm. The books of Elizabeth Peters’ Amelia Peabody series are very entertaining stories of mystery and archaeology, which have always appealed to me. Other favorites include books like The Tao of Physics by Fritjof Capra, and Steven Hawking’s A Brief History of Time. In Search of Schroedinger’s Cat, by John Gribbin, afforded me an introduction into the strange and unpredictable world of quantum physics. So, you can see how I wove all the threads of what I learned over the years into my magical adventure series Alex Cort Adventures.
I believe research can be fun. If you are reading about something because it interests you, chances are it will be interesting to friends or your readers as well. At the very least, you will always have something new to talk about!
A number of movies have been inspiring and entertaining over the years as well. Who doesn’t love Star Wars and Indiana Jones. And now there is a new take on an older story, A Wrinkle in Time.
Tell me about your favorites — I’d love to know! Where do you get new story ideas?
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