Ok, hi everybody! I hope this bodes over well. It all started when I was worldbuilding for my novel tonight and I was thinking about a few things. I made a nation, a backstory for the nation, and a setup for future novels based on these sources:
- The Book of Exodus (Specifically The Tale Of Moses)
- Princess Mononoke
- Laputa, Castle In The Sky
My main concern comes in my usage of Princess Mononoke as an inspiration. I fear it’s a bit too derivative—seeing similarities between both works make me feel like I’m copying and I should push the envelope to be more original rather than pulling this much blatant inspiration—though I haven’t been able to generate any other ideas.
I feel like my message behind this nation with the preservation of nature and animals is different enough from the film mentioned; but I have similar things that start to feel like I’m just ripping off the original. I add my original flairs here and there, but I don’t think it’s enough to differentiate it from the property it’s inspired on. I’m starting to get worried because I don’t want to be derivative and yet I don’t want to take away from what I’ve built upon. Any advice?
