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| The inspiration for Otto |
A frequent question posed to authors is, "Where did you get your inspiration?"
I always respond vaguely, but have finally decided to out myself by logging where the ideas come from. The sources may seem a bit odd, but then again, so is Omni.
Warning:
all manner of SPOILERS ahead
CONCEPTS
- The academy campus - When first folks enter The Hub, I hoped they would experience the same sense of wonder I felt when I watched Gene Wilder escort his visitors into the Wonka chocolate factory candy room
- The elements - based on my college where each dorm had its own personality and culture
- Appraisement - based on my sorority rush week
- Humorishness - my sense of humor was shaped by Bugs Bunny, pure and simple. There are lots of scenes in Pete's tale that were inspired by A Christmas Story and a bit of Ferris Bueller ... probably a dash of Monty Python at a subliminal level
- Clothing - I love kilts and Steampunk wear, so those had to be factored in somehow. Thank the Aethereans for school uniforms :)
- Bramble On - YouTube show In Deep Geek's coverage of Game of Thrones back when the latter was a thing
CHARACTERS (and who would play them)
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| Otto himself |
- Pete - Thomas Brodie-Sangster (the kid from Love Actually when he was a tween)
- Cassie - Robin Wright
- Lt. Drake - Corbin Bernsen (a la when he played Shawn's dad in Psych)
- Kyrian - Tom Welling in his Smallville days (sigh)
- Demetrius - the look of Matthew McConaughey (in Surfer, Dude, but without his accent/dialect)
- Billy - your garden variety brat/bully. If there's a character who inspired him, I can't put my finger on him
- Curator Theod - Hmmm not sure
- General Alberts - I adore Albert Einstein, what can I say. I reckon Tony Shalhoub could do him justice :)
- Twinkle - No inspiration for her. She came fully formed, and has only gotten more ridiculous over time
- Larz - Think Tom Cruise, but with a bigger ego and poofier hair
- Ivimy - Agnes in Dickens' David Copperfield
- Speck - No idea. He's better than any humans I know. Maybe based on my nephew Eric?
- Dame Prunylda Figg - Maggie Smith's character Cousin Charlotte in A Room with a View
- Preceptor MacIvers - Walter Harrison in the Tea Cozy Mysteries
SUBMITTED CHARACTERS - created as part of a collaborative initiative offering folks the opportunity to see their original character incorporated into Pete's story
- boBi - created by author DJ Piper
- Hazel Briarwood - created by writer Kimberley Thomson Morris
- Tallulah (Tali) Marin - created by scribe Genevieve Poston
- Posi Truvis - created by writer/editor Cindy Freeman
VOICES
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| The Ghost of Christmas Present Muppet style |
- Lt. Drake - Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer's father. I wish I could take it back, and frankly will probably transition his voice little by little to something more akin to Henry Spencer of Psych fame
- Curator Theod - originally, the Ghost of Christmas Present in the Muppet Christmas Carol. Now becoming the breathy voice on the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland who says, "He knows to much."
- Pete - my own voice, more or less
- Cassie - she was originally going to talk like Cartman's mom on South Park, but I decided I couldn't do that to her
- Billy - basic dumb bully speak
- Kyrian - cross between Aussie, Kiwi, Dim Theta, and a bit cockney
- Esperanca - a better version of myself
- Otto - Jeeves! Specifically as played by Stephen Fry
- Edni - Valley girl
- Leon - I've been asked what his accent is. Frankly, it's his own, but the closest thing to something real would be Cajun chef Justin Wilson
- Yinyang - the jury's still out. She doesn't really have a discernible dialect
- Nadalien - Mae West :)
- Bramble On show host - Simon Callow (again as featured in A Room with a View. After all, it's my favorite "fiction" film.)
The other thing I'm often asked is, "Which element are you?" Care to make a guess in the comments?
