Category Archives: INSPIRATION

Fuel for My Jetpack, Mead for My Dragon

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Modern Mechanix & Inventions

I love looking back at our old future.

Maybe it’s just nostalgia talking, but I liked seeing the Things to Come back before they came. I mean, we’re basically living in the future as we speak.  We’ve got it all – space ships, space stations, robots on Mars, handheld communicators that can put us in contact with anyone in the world, instant food, everything.  We even have flying cars, especially if you drive them off of someplace really high.

The problem with our current future is that it’s so unimpressive looking.  Ever notice how the iPhone looks like a bar of soap that’s got two more showers left in it?  Sure, its practical, fits in your pocket, and doesn’t require nuclear energy to play music or make a call – but man does it look dull!

I long for the days of our fun future, the inaccurate and impractical version with big, silvery pipes and unnecessary buttons and single levers that control everything.

And so it was with great pleasure that I came across a little gem from history called Modern Mechanix & Inventions.

Modern Mechanix & Inventions began life in 1928, seeking to make its name amidst the science and technology publications biz at the time.  Chock full of DIY projects and the car reviews of Tom McCahill, the magazine held its own until 2001, changing its title a couple of times during its run.

There are a number of places on the ’net to find archives with pictures of the covers, most being mixed in with other classic publications.  I wouldn’t be writing about it now if a friend hadn’t made mention about it on facebook (props to MarcosBnPinto!).  The visions presented in some of the mag’s more fantastic covers are the stuff that fueled the rockets of the imagination in the days before we exorcised the Man in the Moon.

I genuinely enjoy seeing stuff like this. It’s great food for fantasy, storytelling, or getting ideas for running a role playing game.  I’m always on the lookout for more retro-future artwork, so if you can suggest any, I’d be glad to take a look at it.  Drop us a line!

For a look at a number of these beautiful covers, visit Marcos’s tumblr here.

Introducing: Alternative Muses + Our First Mini Contest/Giveaway*

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I don’t like normal muses. I’m not inspired by flawless beauty or a record heavy with wild successes. Convention is a hindrance. I look to the obscure, the weird, the disenfranchised for daily sustenance. I love passion, prickliness, commitment, awkwardness, individuality. A willingness to fall hard on a big stage or the refusal to walk on to it at all, to not shut up when it’s convenient, to live close to the bone and heart and brain. Dead Writers, mostly, but also artists, photographers, performers, activists, life-livers, non-conformists, survivors. The majority are women but, being a feminist, men are definitely not excluded. It’s a personal list-and very, very long-but inclusive. My magpie tastes couldn’t have it any other way. Continue reading →

Inspiration Strikes…in the Strangest Places

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The women in my family have a saying. At least four generations have been caught up by the idea, so it’s definitely a thing. “Warm, sudsy water cures all”. Yep, this is whipped out any time someone has a headache, the ‘flu, is in the throes of grief–or when there are dishes to be done. Especially that last one. (This is 2012, so the men aren’t immune from being roped into doing the after-meal washing up, either.) It’s often thrown around with more than a bit of sarcasm by the conscripted scrubbers; yet, when I think about it, there’s more than a bit of truth contained beneath the ruse. Continue reading →

[Intermezzo] Happy Birthday, Momma! Or, This is Where I Review My Mother’s Job Performance…..

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I’m taking a break from my work to wish my sweet, lovely mom, Kay, a Happy Birthday! I started by searching the web for appropriate “mom/mothering” quotes. I came up empty. Oh, there are thousands on the Internet. Most of them are quite nice, inspiring even. Perfectly appropriate. Unfortunately, they just seemed…hollow. Not right. Then it occurred to me. “Duh! You’re a writer. Doing a ventriloquist act with someone else’s words is not good enough for your mother. Do it yourself.”

So here I am, feebly attempting to explain how wonderful she is in (almost) every way. I decided to add that ‘almost’ qualifier because no one is perfect. Not even my mom. That’s alright, because even her imperfection is inspiring. When I was growing up, her humanity empowered me. It still does. She’s stronger than she knows, more beautiful. She grew up at a time when suburban assimilation was expected; she raised me to be my weird, larger-than-life self. To revel in my uniqueness, because that uniqueness was my ticket to an interesting life.

She’s always been fun (and funny!) and open. She’s adventurous but won’t admit it, even when she’s in the middle of doing something totally awe-inspiring. She’s wickedly creative when it comes to this thing called life; always has been, always will be. She’s shy, like me, but passionate and vocal about her convictions (hmm, also like me). She gave me my love of reading and tea and art and half of the other important, beautiful things I hold so dear. My mom, this woman named Kay, has made it possible for me to look in the mirror and say, “I like who I am.” It’s true: I like who I am. But I love her. Mom, you are the best: the best parent, the best friend, the best role model I could ever hope for. You still inspire me. Happy Birthday!

Why, yes, it was the 1970s!

Why, yes, it was the 1970s!

 

Also born on 25 April: Al Pacino, Ella Fitzgerald, Oliver Cromwell, Edward R. Murrow, Renee Zellweger, William J. Brennan, Jr., Edward II and Guglielmo Marconi (which is odd, because I was born on Tesla’s birthday).

[Resources] Starlight Echoes

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 Starlight Echoes-A music, writing & art group* is an open, highly interactive community on Facebook. Whether you are a new or untried artist looking for a safe, supportive and encouraging community or a professional interested in expanding your network or widening your platform, you will find a warm reception. Artists, writers and musicians from around the world post their work. Taken as a whole the offerings are impressive; viewed individually, they are stunningly varied. It’s heartening to see strangers, united only by a common passion for creativity, be so open and eager to welcome the art of others. It is never easy to put yourself out there; it requires an emotional nudity and brazen nerve that never entirely resolves itself. If you are in need of a critique of your work, then you will have to look elsewhere. There are plenty of forums for that. Starlight Echoes is a place where positivity reigns; it is inclusive and inspiring. Who can’t use a little of that in their lives?

*FYI-This is NOT my Facebook group. It was started and is administered by a lovely, spirited woman named Angela Muchmore.

Fuel for My Jetpack, Mead for My Dragon Supplement –

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Fan to Pro by Steven Savage

A Review

The engineering major gazing at the movie screen, wishing he had been at the computers of WETA studios when Gandalf took on the Balrog.  The retired warehouse worker with his Steelers jersey, hat, socks, beer mug – and faded fantasies of being on the gridiron during the big game.  The overworked store manager who had been told her singing voice was angelic, but that her dreams of singing for the masses were impractical and childish.

From an early age, we are told that our various fandoms – be they for sports, entertainment, recreational sciences, art, whatever – are just silly wish-dreams that should be put aside for the rigors of the seemingly more practical day-in-day-out of work.  We may find no joy in ‘work’, in fact, we may even hate it – yet, we attend our duties faithfully while dreaming of more desirable activities.

Why do we do this?  Sure, we have to keep from starving, but why are people always encouraged to relegate their fandoms to their off hours, always warned against turning their passions into paychecks?  Are we obligated to condemn that which brings us happiness the joyless realm of Never-Everland?

Fan-to-Pro: Unlocking Career Insights With Your Hobbies is a work that doesn’t merely seek the answer to that question; author Steven Savage and editor Jessica Hardy intend to help you get past it.

Fan-to-Pro is a book that revels, praises, exults, and joyfully rolls around in the world of fandom.  Though he has a background in science-fiction and fantasy fandom (as well as extensive experience in IT and career recruiting), Savage makes it clear that fandom covers any number of celebrated subjects, from the aforementioned sci-fi, to sports, and even art.

As the title implies, Fan to Pro refers to turning your hobby into a career that you would love.  What makes the book special is how much it puts itself in the corner of the fan.  A touching element of Chapter 3 is where Savage delves into “Fandom Edges”.  These would be common traits seen among die-hard fans that give them a particular advantage when striving for their goal.  In these fans, Savage sees qualities such as experience, knowledge and passion, tools inherent in any successful artist, football player or entrepreneur.  The goal is to get the reader to recognize these qualities in themselves and fan them into confidence to move forward, improve their skills, and excel in their endeavors.

The book lends itself well to being read.  It is written in a straightforward, informal and funny tone in which it presents sage advice and several exercises meant to help the reader get past the common hurdles, both physical and mental, of making their dream come true.  It’s not simply focusing on what you like that matters; it’s important to look at what you like from different perspectives and see practical ways to turn it into a profession.

The reader is implored to turn away from the disheartening, ultimately empty criticisms of how futile and unprofitable fandom can be, and instead is advised to focus on the actually pragmatic benefits fandom can provide.  Organizing a convention would be a fantastic way to network, for example.  The author himself mentions that his math skills were greatly enhanced from having to work with math while playing RPGs in college.

Fan to Pro, however, is not simply a warm-fuzzy meant to make you feel that all the hours you spend chatting on a Skyrim forum is actual work.  In addition to the exercises mentioned, important topics such as learning about the industries you’re interested in, connecting with others, and even the particularly tricky subject of relocating is thoroughly addressed.

Savage and Hardy have comprised this short (127 pages) work from a series of blogs that had explored the world of fandom and fandom-based careers thoroughly. Through gentle, good-natured humor and encouragement, the reader is instructed to take their passions seriously.  History has proven repeatedly that no great writer, inventor, physician, linebacker – geeks all, in their own way – could have ever made it otherwise.

Fan-to-Pro: Unlocking Career Insights With Your Hobbies is available to order from www.fantoprobook.com in print, Kindle, ePub and PDF format.  To see the blog that brought about the book, check out www.fantopro.com.

Check out Steven Savage’s additional work at seventhsanctum.com and stevensavage.com.  Point your browser to the following for his other books.

www.conventioncareerconnection.com

www.focusedfandom.com

Creativity and the Macabre: Forever is Composed of Nows

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Ideas often come alive for me at strange or inconvenient moments. After the ever-trusty shower, I usually feel the most open to creativity when I am…….

walking amongst graves. My husband and I are lucky to live a few minutes from the second largest cemetery in the United States. Established in 1845, it is equally an arboretum, with 15 lakes, trees, flowers and wildlife set within what, at times, looks like traditional parkland. Continue reading →

[From My Archives]* On Shaw, or How a Dead Playwright Transformed My Adolescence and Altered My Life

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When I set out to do this essay, I realized that writing about George Bernard Shaw would be rather like writing about my first (real) love: a little daunting, a little dangerous and, ultimately, mostly about me, for we tend to see ourselves reflected in others as steadfastly as we implant ourselves firmly in what we read. Continue reading →

Fuel for My Jetpack, Mead for My Dragon (06 March, 2012)

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Ya know, hang around the fantasy genre long enough, and chances are pretty good that you might come across a dragon.  The reptilian beasties have been either benefiting or terrorizing the human race for hundreds of years and throughout many different cultures.  They have been the subject of myths, movies, and books, the level bosses in video games and the eponymous hero of a children’s song that seems to have been inspired by an illicit substance.

Dragons are and have been so popular, they run the risk of becoming passé after several centuries.  So, if you’ve wanted to employ a dragon or a dragonesque creature into your fantasy epic but wanted to avoid cliché, why not take a trip around the Internet and see what you can substitute your charming, fire-breathing monstrosity with?

Mythical & Fantasy Creatures is a great storehouse of information when it comes to entities of the unreal. One of the first things I noticed was how simple and uncluttered the site design was.  There are categories listed for just about any phylum of creature you’re looking for, from avian to serpentine, large to small (if you’re looking more for division than phylum, plant-like creatures have their own section too).

Click on a category on the left – say, Large Creatures, for instance – and a new page pops up with a helpful definition of what exactly “Large Creatures” is intended to mean.  In this case:

“Large sized mythical creatures are a range of fabulous monsters and fantastical creatures, they are from myths, folklore and legends, or in some cases are based upon exaggerated descriptions of real creatures. Other of these creatures origins are from popular modern fiction.”

On the right side of the page is a list of creatures kept in the site’s library.  Here I saw listings for massive things like titans, chimera, and manticore. Out of curiosity, I clicked “cockatrice”:

“The Cockatrice is a snake like creature, which has a pair of great wings that are seen to come from that of a great eagle or that are leathery wings like a dragons. Characteristics of a Cockatrice are that it has glowing red eyes with black pupils. Cockatrice has a magical gaze that it can petrify an attacker to stone.”

Dragons?  Please!  All they can do is set stuff on fire!

Ah, well, anyhow, if you ignore my advice and want to find more inspiration for your dragons anyway, not to worry:  Mythical & Fantasy Creatures has a separate section altogether for Dragons and Serpents. What’s more, the site designer wasn’t content to just say “Here. Dragons.”  Instead, the visitor is offered the option of learning about fantasy dragons, culturally significant dragons (such as those found in Chinese traditions), and serpents of both land and sea.

The amount of information on each creature varies.  Some entries are about a paragraph or less long, some – such as the entry on the kraken – contain tons of information, including historical references to the creatures that, once upon a time, were actually thought to be real.  Regardless, what is clearly evident is the amount of love, work, and research that was put into the page.

As if all that weren’t enough, the site also features designations of mythical beasts by culture.  Looking to get ideas from the members of the Egyptian pantheon?  Want to base a hero off of a Norse god but can’t come up with any ideas than Thor?  The site covers Celtic, Mayan, and elemental beasts (fire, water, that kind of thing) in addition to those, and has a whole Greek section off to itself.

Sometimes when coming up with the ultimate monster/friendly creature, a writer often needs help coming up with inspiration.  Turning to the classics – especially the ancient classics, born in less cynical days unspoiled by the scientific method – can provide ideas for the unearthly fauna that will roost in the dreams – and maybe the nightmares – of readers for years.