Any books/writings that really altered your life?

Vapor · 07-16-2010, 10:50 PM

Like, that were a grand influence on your beliefs, lifestyle, values, life decisions etc.

Me:

The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test by Tom Wolfe: My affinity for counterculture and crazy folks began here, as did my general mindset of spaciness.

The Calvin and Hobbes Tenth Anniversary Book by Bill Watterson: Not joking. This totally revolutionized the whole way I look at art and began my interest in it.

The Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy series: More affinity for weirdness, and also a new look at science, storytelling and reason (or lack thereof).

Ray Bradbury's general body of work: I've read literally over a hundred of this guy's short stories. Influenced the way I thought of a lot of things, not the least of which being literature and the general workings of the human spirit and mind.

V for Vendetta by Alan Moore: My outlook on humanity in general, and my sense of eloquence. And it's awesome

The Sandman by Neil Gaiman: Influenced the way I consider stories and the human mind. And added to my knowledge of literature and mythology.

Strange Stories, Amazing Facts by various editors: This was a tome put out by Reader's Digest in the mid-'70s. It is a huge compilation of stories and ideas that go from strange, sketchy, supernatural stuff to obscure, interesting historical and mythological stuff. I was exposed to this when I was very very young, and the Reader's Digest-style extreme accessibility was perfect for that situation. it started my love of knowledge and the obscure that is now an indelible part of me.

Understanding Comics by Scott McCloud: Again, something that formed my ideas about art and expression. It also seeded ideas about media, information and perception in my head from a young age.

And you?

**Valigarmander** · 07-16-2010, 11:15 PM

Hard to say. I've read plenty of amazing books, but I don't know if any of them were life-changing for me.

I think Calvin and Hobbes had a profound effect on my childhood too, though.

Volchanka · 08-08-2010, 07:27 PM

The Moomin-troll books by Tove Jansson as a kid.
And Carlos Castaneda books - as a teenager.

Bomby · 08-08-2010, 10:52 PM

The Sound & The Fury by William Faulkner. Completely changed the way I think about art.

User Name · 08-08-2010, 11:01 PM

The Awakening by Kate Chopin. Not the best book I've ever read, but it really inspired me to form my own opinions and become my own person regardless of the dominating people in my life.

The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls also has had an influence on me. I met the author, and she helped me be more honest in my writing. Her story also made me appreciate my life a lot more.

***CaptHayfever*** · 08-09-2010, 12:06 AM

The Cure and The Goodness Gene by Sonia Levitin. Those books scared me. That I keep seeing more & more parallels to them in our world scares me more.

The Long Sandy Hair of Neftoon Zamora by Michael Nesmith. Never before have I seen music so accurately captured in prose, not only in the passages describing music, but in the entire narrative. I want to be able to write like that.

Real Ultimate Power: The Official Ninja Handbook by Robert Hamburger. I made the decision to buy this one based on reading the first few pages on Amazon, so I already knew the twist that made the book different from the website. What I didn't know, though, was how in-depth that twist would get. What I had expected to be just sort of a gimmick to help maintain the comedy, by the last page had me tearing up for one of the few times in my life at a book's ending other than the finales of long-running series.

Please Remove Your Elbow from My Ear by Martyn Godfrey. The second script I ever completed (& the only screenplay I've completed so far) is an adaptation of this book. I connected with it so much that when I sat down to type it out, I just kept at it obsessively until the first draft was done.

And remember, "I'm-a Luigi, number one!"

chibimod3 · 08-09-2010, 02:27 AM

Howl's Moving Castle - Diana Wynne Jones. (I butchered that)
It was a my first real novel I read. It got me to start writing.
Calvin and Hobbes- It gave me and my Godfather something to talk about.
Harry Potter- I started reading it to forget about my parents divorce. My mom bought me volume 4 when she told me.
The Chronicles of the Black Company- It got me out of a reading rut.

But these books just shattered whatever I was thinking at the time and forced me to think outside the box. There were others that I can't remember the names of though. It makes me sad to think that I've read more books then names I remember.

Vgfian · 08-09-2010, 03:20 AM

The Holy Bible

07-16-2010, 10:50 PM	#1
Vapor Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: WHERE IT'S AT Gender: Posts: 5,211 Thanks: 314 Thanked 413 Times in 249 Posts	Any books/writings that really altered your life? Like, that were a grand influence on your beliefs, lifestyle, values, life decisions etc. Me: The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test by Tom Wolfe: My affinity for counterculture and crazy folks began here, as did my general mindset of spaciness. The Calvin and Hobbes Tenth Anniversary Book by Bill Watterson: Not joking. This totally revolutionized the whole way I look at art and began my interest in it. The Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy series: More affinity for weirdness, and also a new look at science, storytelling and reason (or lack thereof). Ray Bradbury's general body of work: I've read literally over a hundred of this guy's short stories. Influenced the way I thought of a lot of things, not the least of which being literature and the general workings of the human spirit and mind. V for Vendetta by Alan Moore: My outlook on humanity in general, and my sense of eloquence. And it's awesome The Sandman by Neil Gaiman: Influenced the way I consider stories and the human mind. And added to my knowledge of literature and mythology. Strange Stories, Amazing Facts by various editors: This was a tome put out by Reader's Digest in the mid-'70s. It is a huge compilation of stories and ideas that go from strange, sketchy, supernatural stuff to obscure, interesting historical and mythological stuff. I was exposed to this when I was very very young, and the Reader's Digest-style extreme accessibility was perfect for that situation. it started my love of knowledge and the obscure that is now an indelible part of me. Understanding Comics by Scott McCloud: Again, something that formed my ideas about art and expression. It also seeded ideas about media, information and perception in my head from a young age. And you?

07-16-2010, 11:15 PM	#2
Valigarmander The Bee's Knees Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: The land of rain and trees (Oregon) Gender: Posts: 29,755 Thanks: 1,649 Thanked 5,700 Times in 2,580 Posts Blog Entries: 20	Hard to say. I've read plenty of amazing books, but I don't know if any of them were life-changing for me. I think Calvin and Hobbes had a profound effect on my childhood too, though.

08-08-2010, 07:27 PM	#3
Volchanka Newbie Join Date: Aug 2010 Gender: Posts: 4 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	The Moomin-troll books by Tove Jansson as a kid. And Carlos Castaneda books - as a teenager.

08-08-2010, 10:52 PM	#4
Bomby You just freaking blew Joe Biden's mind! Join Date: Jun 2000 Location: WHAT?house Gender: Posts: 19,491 Thanks: 513 Thanked 1,449 Times in 849 Posts Blog Entries: 5	The Sound & The Fury by William Faulkner. Completely changed the way I think about art.

08-08-2010, 11:01 PM	#5
User Name Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Gotham City Gender: Posts: 7,209 Thanks: 701 Thanked 536 Times in 367 Posts	The Awakening by Kate Chopin. Not the best book I've ever read, but it really inspired me to form my own opinions and become my own person regardless of the dominating people in my life. The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls also has had an influence on me. I met the author, and she helped me be more honest in my writing. Her story also made me appreciate my life a lot more.

08-09-2010, 12:06 AM	#6
*CaptHayfever* Smash SuperMod Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: (n) - the place where I am Gender: Posts: 27,659 Thanks: 1,991 Thanked 2,486 Times in 1,513 Posts	The Cure and The Goodness Gene by Sonia Levitin. Those books scared me. That I keep seeing more & more parallels to them in our world scares me more. The Long Sandy Hair of Neftoon Zamora by Michael Nesmith. Never before have I seen music so accurately captured in prose, not only in the passages describing music, but in the entire narrative. I want to be able to write like that. Real Ultimate Power: The Official Ninja Handbook by Robert Hamburger. I made the decision to buy this one based on reading the first few pages on Amazon, so I already knew the twist that made the book different from the website. What I didn't know, though, was how in-depth that twist would get. What I had expected to be just sort of a gimmick to help maintain the comedy, by the last page had me tearing up for one of the few times in my life at a book's ending other than the finales of long-running series. Please Remove Your Elbow from My Ear by Martyn Godfrey. The second script I ever completed (& the only screenplay I've completed so far) is an adaptation of this book. I connected with it so much that when I sat down to type it out, I just kept at it obsessively until the first draft was done. And remember, "I'm-a Luigi, number one!"

08-09-2010, 02:27 AM	#7
chibimod3 Junior Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: The bottom of a Dr. Pepper bottle Gender: Posts: 497 Thanks: 52 Thanked 18 Times in 16 Posts	Howl's Moving Castle - Diana Wynne Jones. (I butchered that) It was a my first real novel I read. It got me to start writing. Calvin and Hobbes- It gave me and my Godfather something to talk about. Harry Potter- I started reading it to forget about my parents divorce. My mom bought me volume 4 when she told me. The Chronicles of the Black Company- It got me out of a reading rut. But these books just shattered whatever I was thinking at the time and forced me to think outside the box. There were others that I can't remember the names of though. It makes me sad to think that I've read more books then names I remember.

08-09-2010, 03:20 AM	#8
Vgfian Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Listening to Seeking 7 Seven and giving out free hugs. :) Gender: Posts: 6,862 Thanks: 2,433 Thanked 398 Times in 311 Posts	The Holy Bible