What’s inspiring me today

So Brian and I talked last night about life goals, what we want, and basically us trying to be better people. For me, I think a big part of that is writing more. Partially because I’d love to publish a book someday but also because I once considered writing to be one of my best skills. Now, I barely write at all and I can’t say for sure anymore if it’s something I’m even good at. So, here I am, on a half-abandoned blog writing. I want to transition this as a place that I can practice my fiction writing but for now, I want to use it as a place to transcribe my thoughts. For today and occasionally hereafter, I want to just talk about something that inspires me. Today, that’s Over the Garden Wall.

I won’t bother to explain what Over the Garden Wall is here, mostly because this is for me and not the Internet at large. I do hope other people someday read this (to what I’m sure will be my great embarrassment but oh well) but for now, it’s to help get my thoughts out.

The greatest thing that OtGW does for me is the tone. A melancholy sense of other-worldliness, but that the other world is created from our own. I’ve never really been super fond of high fantasy and intense sci-fi because the creators usually get too swept up in world building. It can be interesting, sure, but for many the relatable aspects get lost. Here, Americaness plays a huge roll as a tone for The Unknown as Americana seems to permeate the setting. However, it’s Americana from all over, from the 1800’s to the present. Even anachronisms make sense in the full context of the story which makes the tone even better. It really reminds of Neil Gaiman which is always a great thing. (I’ll have to someday try to explain why he means so much to me as an author)

Another aspect of the tone is a real sense of danger and dread without (usually) being outright scary. It’s the environment, the layer of strangeness that seems to drip over everything. I remember in the Yahtzee review of Silent Hill 2, he describes part of the appeal being the environment and how everyone there acts strangely, as if they don’t see the same things you do. OtGW does the same thing (with the exception of Beatrice). When every character acts just a bit unusual, it really adds to the overall environment.

I think I’m just going to leave it here for now. I’m sure I’ll talk more about OtGW later but for now, I’m just not really feeling it. The overtime project at work is really draining me and there’s just not enough hours in the day. However, I do want to start writing every day, or at least attempting it. This may not be much, but it’s a start.

Story Idea: a changling boy stolen away by the Seelie Court to Faerie, growing up there, and then returning to a modern city for a quest. There’s more to the court than he first suspects and, despite knowing a little magic himself, is struck by the marvels of modern life. This boy’s name: Wilder.