What story does it inspire?

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I have this thing about taking photos of the ocean. This one was taken early in the morning, after sunrise, which was pretty spectacular, and of a passing rain belt. It’s not quite as discernable as it was with the naked eye, but it was out to sea, and I wondered what it might be like aboard a large ship.

What if the rain storm followed the ship? It would be intriguing to know if that’s ever happened, but my thought would be, a ship in the middle of the ocean, with limited engine power because of a mysterious breakdown, pouring rain continuously pounding the ship keeping everyone inside, and then people start dying.

Of course, there’s no visible reason why they should be, no wounds, no strangulation, no gunshot or knife attacks, people just dropping dead.

Is it the shroud that has enveloped the ship?

Is it unworldly?

Is it nature’s retribution?

It might be the latter, because on board is a large group of industrialists responsible for more of the carbon dioxide output that is destroying the ozone layer and worsening climate change.

Now, there’s a story!

What story does it inspire?

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It could be a dark and stormy night.

It could be the catalyst for someone who makes a decision to join the space program and head for the moon.

It could be that there is already a space program, there are bases on the moon, and we’re about to head off to Mars.

It could be just someone skulking in the dark up to no good cursing the fact the moon just came out from under the clouds and exposed their position.

Or it could be a war story, ships on the ocean stalking the enemy under the cover of darkness, only to be foiled by the moon, which sometimes can be quite bright.

I often wonder what it might have been like in the North Atlantic between America and England when the convoys were hoping to get to England without being sunk. A dark moonless night would have helped.

There are so many reasons why the moon could be important to a story. Perhaps I will write one now!

What story does it inspire?

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While in reality, this is just an ordinary lake at a resort we stayed at a while back and can be used for canoeing.

During summer the surrounding undergrowth is a haven for snakes, and it is not a good idea to wander too close.

Hardly the place to spur the imagination…

Unless, of course, you start thinking about the ethereal aspects it could possess. For instance, it might be the place where the ghosts of those who drowned come out to play at night.

It might be a lake in the middle of what was once an experimental site that needed a lot of water, and that tainted water might be the haven for mysterious creatures.

Ot it just might be part of a disused government secret site, long abandoned, with buildings and infrastructure just waiting for the right explorer to visit. Again, the ghosts of those who once were there could just be the reason why no one goes near the place.

And, what if there was an extensive, and invisible network of underground rooms. Above ground, just a pond and surrounding overgrown gardens, underneath, well, that’s up to you.

What story does it inspire?

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while poking around in what could be considered part of our colonial past, we came across a place that had a few remnants.

It’s hard to imagine that in the 1800s wagons like the above were a principal means of transport, with variations for transporting goods, or people, drawn by horses.

Whereas these days we can travel 300, 400 miles in a day in the modern car, and in relative comfort, to do the same distance in a horse-drawn vehicle, with no spring loaded axels, would take days.

And the journey is particularly uncomfortable over any distance. There would have to be a series of Inns and Hotels to stay overnight because travel at night would be difficult.

It’s hard to imagine where we would be without the modern motor car.

I have had a ride in a stagecoach once, over a short journey, and it was not something I would contemplate over a long distance.

But, then, what if we suddenly have no oil to create petrol, and we use up all the minerals needed for electric car batteries?

I think it could inspire a post-apocalypse world we would bearly be able to survive in.

What story does it inspire?

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This is taken from a rather bleak part of the coast near Coffs Harbour in New South Wales, Australia.

There was something about the sea on a particularly bleak day and not the sort of weather anyone would want to be out doing the touristy things.

We, on the other hand, are ready to visit anywhere anytime in any condition.

We never quite got as far as the end of the cliffs, but the notion that there were caves, and once upon a time, pirates or smugglers makes for a good story.

Certainly, with our convict settlement beginnings, it’s not hard to imagine the convicts stealing a boat, and sailing south from Sydney, the only settlement at the time, and landing in a place like this.

What story does it inspire?

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There is always something not quite right when you literally reach the end of the road.

At the time we were looking for a place called Never Never.

Yes, you read that correctly, Never Never. It is a place on the map, and the GPS navigator knew where we were going, and took us to where it thought it was.

That place you can see is identified by the red plastic fencing across the road. The truth of the matter, we were not allowed to go to Never Never.

So, as for inspiration, it seems we have Never Never, the Americans have got Area 51.

And no, I’m not hanging around to see if spacemen and UFOs are coming to visit after darkness falls.

What story does it inspire?

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This photo was taken at a Castello in Tuscany, Italy, and was quite interesting.

I was fascinated as to what was behind the door in front, and up the stairs to the right. I was guessing, up the stairs was the exit from the ballroom, but it might be something else quite banal.

Behind me was the room that had all the names of the family who had lived at the castle.

More interesting was the fact there was the old castle, going back centuries, and the new castle, not so old.

But…

One could cast their minds back to the 1500s perhaps and imagine the castle, on a hill, overlooking what are now vineyards, but could once have been the forest.

Extensive gardens at the back could have been where the jousting and other games could have taken place.

There would be a feasting hall, the kitchens, the servants, and there was a keep.

Italy had a rich history of each of the towns launching raids on other towns, and these towns were walled in, like San Gimignano, with 14 watch towers around the perimeter, where the fortifications were such they kept out the oncoming marauders.

Siena is much the same, a walled town.

Each had a large central square, and Siena famously holds the Il Palio di Siena every year in theirs.

Just being in Tuscany is almost inspiration enough for any sort of story with Tuscany as the backdrop.

What story does it inspire?

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This photograph represents an idyllic scene, a pool at the bottom of a waterfall, which on a fine day would be perfect.

The fact it looks to be in the middle of nowhere is neither here nor there because…

That’s where the writer’s inventiveness kicks in.

So…

How do we get there? If it’s below the waterfall, then we came up the river, which is basically how you would go anyway, it’s just the depth of the river that determines how far you can go.

We had a situation like that where the depth of the river nearly stopped us from getting far enough up the river into the mountains to discover some amazing territory.

You could also go downriver, but since this river might start up in the mountains, it might be a long way.

Why would we be there?

The boring answer, we are on holiday.

The better answer, we’re searching for gold, and so are others who are trying to get us to move on, or we’re searching for something, just insert what you want to find. I was thinking: an intrepid brother or sister who has gone missing, and the waterfall was the last place they were seen.

And, what if there’s a secret entrance behind the waterfall, that opens into an underground complex with sophisticated, very strange and never seen before equipment, that hasn’t been used in a very long time.

Somehow I like the last one best.

And, just to add a new twist, you find a human-like body in a pod, and when someone accidentally leans on a button, it comes to life. Is it human, or is it a robot?

Or, is it….?