Five Novels That Inspired Me

I had to make a list of five novels that are important to me and inspired my writing

for my Narrative Structures class, so I thought I would share it with you.

Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling

I have to mention Harry Potter because they’re the books the initially got me into reading and from that stemmed my love of writing because I started by writing Harry Potter fan fiction for several years. I love the human element and human emotions in a magical world, and I learned that just because you take people out of our everyday world doesn’t mean they still won’t behave like people.

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie

The first Agatha Christie book I read; it got me hooked on Hercule Poirot novels. I love the twist that you never see coming, and how it makes you reexamine all that you knew. It’s also where I first learned about red herrings.

The Girl Who Played With Fire by Stieg Larsson

Although I liked the first one, the way the second novel was written makes it unclear whether Lisbeth Salander is guilty or innocent, even when the story is in her point of view, and I thought it was brilliant. The suspense, the pacing, and the back and forth point of view jumps kept me reading, and I hope one day I’ll be able to replicate it.

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

This introduced me to alternate realities, where the focus of the story lies in the people and the differences between our world and theirs. It’s fantasy without the magic; it’s our world but slightly off, which is what I mostly write about.

Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman

Because it’s awesome. A chance encounter leads to the discovery of a world underneath a world, as well as self-discovery.

Do you have any novels that inspired you?

(Pictures via NotEnoughDevotion, All-About-Agatha-Christie, BridgetsBooks, 7Books, & PaintingFakes)