My fiction is my own, but I can’t say that I am not inspired by a number of things
I am inspired by the nature around me, As I watch a sunset or a sunrise, I try to think how it can be depicted in words that would convey the same picture that I see. Sometimes I get it right, doing the picture in my mind justice. Other times, my written description just isn’t the same, but it’s close.
I tend to describe the nature around me more often than I do people.
Trees are also a huge deal in a number of my stories, especially the stories dealing with the Realm of Original Magic, where all magic was born. The Glen of the Maples was inspired mainly by this tree, which became the house of Lord Cobb. This tree is very close to my home, so I walk by it often. There are other tress in the realm, including the Oak of Wisdom and a tree that will play a prominent role in a future set-to-be-released story…..
I also am inspired by the sea, mainly the Pacific Ocean, since I spent most of my elementary and teenage years in California. Huntington Beach in particular was a favorite stomping ground for my friends and I, though I visited a number of other beaches as well. These became the inspiration for parts of Delphian in my stories, especially in The Keeper of the Key.
I also spent parts of my summers as a teenager in Colorado and also near the grand canyon, which inspires some of my scenes as well. Delphian, while being near the ocean, is also a mountainous region (much like parts of California), so there is a great deal of mountain scenery. I used my memories of the trips to Colorado as inspiration while writing those scenes – the first book of the novel The Keeper of the Key even takes place in Colorado. I don’t have many of the photos I took from those trips, as they were before digital photos were a thing, but a few survive.
The Iowa scenery in particular plays a heavy hand in my third novel in the series, Portal Seeker as well as in the novel Last of His Kind. I write about the plains a great deal in that novel, as I live in Iowa now and love to hike here (though I don’t have the opportunity often to go hiking with work and writing). But when I do, I take a notebook to write down what I see, hear, smell, feel and even taste when I am out in nature. I also take pictures so I can recall my memories as well.
I have to be grateful for my husband. He takes all of this in stride. He allows me to have the time to think and remember and be inspired, and in turn he often is inspired by me. He knows when I look at a cloud formation I am trying to ingrained it into my mind so I can describe it in words. he stokes my imagination by helping me figure out what shade of green something is or what word will justify a certain mood. He is an inspiration as well, patiently hearing all of my chatterings and stories.
Find your own inspiration. Write your own story. Or just read those that inspire you.
K. S. Wood Writes 