It's fun, and you like fun, right? Go on. Do it.
Now that you've watched it, I want to talk about how it made me feel. That video, although not quite ten minutes long, made me want to write about epic adventures. It made me want to take down an RPG book and start writing up a campaign for a fantastical world of magic and monsters (although I might skip out the bamboo-legged bee-creatures, no matter how much I laughed at their misfortune). It inspired me.
I don't know so much about anyone else, but normally when it comes to inspiration I have to work at it. I have to read a variety of material with some suitable music (currently soundtracks for the silver screen, such as those from Equilibrium, Dredd and Game of Thrones Season 2 are favourites), or I go on a walk - when I lived in Aberystwyth this could be up in the hills/woods or down on the seafront and through the castle, which was great for thinking and getting ideas. I find that when I'm alone is most often when I get hit by something, so... often in the bathroom, and also when I can't sleep at night I'll get struck by a thought that I just have to write down. I even have a particular association with a urinal in a certain pub that always make me think of a concept I had, as I had it whilst standing there, uh, doing what you do. OK, so that's a bit TMI but it's an illustration of how my mind wanders when alone.
It's OK, it was nothing like this (terrifying) image.
For me there's also another -ation involved in the whole process - you know the one. No? It starts with 'm' and ends in 'otivation'.
A lot of the time I'll write something down in a book, in my 'phone, on a clean body part, etc, and be quietly smug about it. Aren't I clever at what I've thought up, it's sure to be a great plot hook/character development/general MacGuffin that will help make me famous throughout the land for my literary/gaming skills! What's more likely is that these these notes get left somewhere safe, filed away for use during the mythical, unspecified time of promise known as 'later'. This changes under two circumstances:
- I have to do it. Deadline coming up for a game publisher? I'll get that written up, no problem. Need to write up and send out information for players in a game I'm running in two days? Easy. I have an idea for a short story that I've already plotted in my head, made notes of in half a dozen different mediums and that will probably not even go over 2,000 words? Pfft, that'll... happen... at some point...
- Something particularly 'clicks' with me. Taste is subjective, and can vary wildly but there are some things that just make me want to write something. I love certain things like dystopian futures, historical periods not normally examined in-depth and stories with a Lovecraftian element.
Also the colour orange and Aztecs, those are good too. Who am I kidding, I just love this picture.
The video I linked to way up there at the top met this second criteria. It's a powerful feeling that sort of overtook me and seems to still be casting its FANTASY ADVENTURE spell on me. The only things standing in its way? Other writing commitments, work and the awkward situation where you may or may not be able to put a gaming group together, depending on time, system, whether online or real-life, etc.
So what have we learnt here? Well, I have issues when it come to making coherent points. I've also outlined some of the things that help me when it comes to inspiration and motivation, and hopefully this will be of mild interest to others. Now to deal with all this stuff, but then again... I'll just put these notes in a file, I'll probably get round to it later.
P.s. Also, have this because I shouldn't have to experience these murdermaw slitherhorrors alone.
I EAT YOUR DREAMS.
