References and Inspirations

In many of my stories, especially my more recent writing, my readers could find “Easter Eggs” or little nods to the games, anime, etc. I love. In many cases, I’ve been told it’s very easy to see how I’ve been inspired by the types of anime I watch, my hobbies such as mixed martial arts and dance, or any number of other activities I pursue.

Someone once asked me if using that inspiration is stealing the idea.

Nathan Bransford wrote an excellent post On Concepts a few years ago. What it boils down to is a basic truth: Somebody, somewhere, already came up with that idea. The creativity of a writer comes from how (s)he weaves her particular story, executes the idea, and how (s)he spins the well-used trope.

And in a lot of ways, it can be fun for the reader to recognize that reference, find the Easter Egg and have a little chuckle because they “get” the inside joke.  I, for one, love to find them.

For example, I’ve been doing a bit of exploring in World of Warcraft’s latest expansion, Mists of Pandaria.

©2012 Blizzard Entertainment.

The minute I encountered this quest, I shouted, “Ranma 1/2!” Oh yes, my friends, I loved seeing Pandaria’s Singing Pools and remembering how often Ranma would tell his “Old Man” that he was going back to China and Jusenkyo to find a way to cure the curse he’d acquired by falling into the cursed spring of the drowned girl. Right then and there, I was happy I’d created a male panda because there’s a fun element in balancing on those poles as a big “Old Man” panda. *giggles*

Is Ranma 1/2 related to World of Warcraft? Nope. Is it an awesome shout out? Oh yes. And World of Warcraft is very well known for these references, not only from anime or science fiction but all sorts of pop culture.

Do my stories have tropes? Yup. Am I worried about being considered un-original? No.

I’m very confident my stories are told in my very own way. I take inspiration from many sources and if you recognize my nod to the reference, I’d love to share the chuckle with you.

*All images owned by Blizzard Entertainment. No use of these images were used to make a profit of any kind.