Batman

I'm a huge comic freak - X-Men, Batman, all of those superheroes I grew up with and am still engrossed in the stories. Arkham Asylum and The Dark Knight Returns are two of the absolute best Batman graphic novels out there, and I would highly recommend them to anyone looking for a mature and dark look into the Batman universe. Not to mention, Arkham Asylum is illustrated by one of the most amazing artists in the world, Dave McKean....

Even more than the common superhero themes, I absolutely love all of Neil Gaiman's work, especially The Sandman. It is one of the most amazing stories ever told, and I'd recommend the Absolute Sandman editions that are just being released to anyone who wants to jump into the universe.

Anyhow, there was a point to all that. I've found that superheroes or literary/fantasy figures tend to embody certain characteristics and methodologies that identify them. Batman is fairly nuts - he had his parents murdered in front of him when he was a kid, and he goes around in a bat suit fighting crime. That's nuts in itself, sure - but even more so, the psychology of his character shows that he is a deeply paranoid and unsettled individual. He has contingencies for every possible situation, and even when he was a member of the Justice League, he had a plan for having to kill every single member of the team if it ever came to that junction.

One of Neil Gaiman's talents as a writer is to be able to take any kind of mythological or historical event, thing, or time and come up with his own unique perspective. I am sure he has spent countless hours, days, weeks, or even years simply researching history and mythology. This effort is then clearly displayed in his work. His novel, American Gods, (which one can read for free here: American Gods) is also another great example of this talent.

Being able to think of every contingency when making a decision, every possible outcome and every repercussion is something that should be second nature. Being aware of things that have happened before, or things other people have defined goes hand in hand with this as well. Rarely will you really invent something completely new or not seen before. You may come up with a new process or a new way of going about something, but true creation is a rare commodity and is always associated with great changes. Looking at something completely different than what you are working on can surely inspire you in ways "outside the box."