So, I've had a few people ask me where this stuff comes from. The truth is, I have an extremely active imagination, not to mention the ability to bullshit my way out of most situations.
It's a gift.
That said, I'd be lying if I didn't cop to some
serious inspiration from a plethora of quality web comics and Scifi series, both written and visual.
Firstly, what I generally picture in my head when writing up the definitions for these, is the art of
Jonathan Rosenberg. I've been reading his webcomic,
Scenes From A Multiverse, since it began a year ago, but you may already know him from
Goats, which he started posting in 1997. [That's quite an archive.]
SFAM never EVER fails to get a giggle out of me. Some of my favorite characters include
The Corn God,
Doctor Whoa, and
Mrs. Spelt.
Another webcomic that floats to mind when I'm thinking up a Mollexicon post is
Drive, by
Dave Kellett. He's another one that you may know of from his other long-running [2001!] webcomic,
Sheldon.
Kellett has gone to great lengths to build a rich, detailed universe for his space opera. Sprinkled throughout the comic are pages of historical documents, personnel files, and encyclopedia entries. Excellent world-building, hilarious characters, and an intricate, yet easy-to-follow story make for one of my favorite comics on the web.
Continuing to plumb the vein of Space Opera, I'll talk a little bit about the first series I read as an impressionable youth. Anne McCaffery's
THE ROWAN. I only managed to read the first three books, before I either lost interest, or my Dad couldn't find the rest at the used bookstore he would squirrel them home from. I don't really remember why I stopped, but I definitely remember why I kept reading as long as I did. Psychic powers! Important women! Interesting locales! Empathetic cats! I remember sitting in my room, reading something else, when my dad walked in and tossed me the first book. "I just finished that, you'll like it." That has happened a LOT in my life, and we continue to swap books today.
Another Dad Recommendation that has had a lot of influence over most of my creative endeavors is the
STARDOC series by S.L. Viehl. It's another series that I started as a tween, never managed to complete, yet remember fondly. At that point in my life, my ADD was kicking in something fierce, and I had to have all of the parts together or I wouldn't finish a series. I was voraciously consuming books, and if it wasn't ready right then and there, I moved onto the next set.
Which is what I do with television now. Such as Farscape [
Netflix and
Wikipedia ], which is probably the most influential, at least as far as making up words.
Then there's Stargate SG-1, which is my darling favorite. [
Netflix and
Wikipedia]
And of course, Firefly. [
Netflix and
Wikipedia.]
The various lists go on and on, and honestly, there's no way I could talk about everything in a coherent fashion, but these are the big ones.
I hope this has been informative, at least as much as the Mollexicon itself! Stop by every Wednesday for a new definition. And please, please feel free to ask me anything about any of the entries, or just in general. Answering questions is excellent world-building practice! <3
