A full-length novel about a young King Arthur. No Lancelot or Bedwyr, but there will be characters with similar names. I hope the novel is good, but I can guarantee the culture, technology, and names will be perfectly accurate.

Arthur C. Clarke; because he was so amazingly creative and had such an excellent grounding in technology and science.
Frank Herbert; his vision of humanity's possible futures and his thoughts on ecology were astonishing.
Isaac Asimov; he created an entire universe spanning thousands of years with dozens of different characters and story arcs that intermingle - good model.
J.R.R. Tolkien; with an excellent grounding in mythology he made his own universe.
Marijas Gimbutas; quite a vision of our past.
Joseph Campbell; an understanding of our common psyche so deep that I learn from him every time I read a new book.

'Batman Begins' . Comic movies have traditionally been costumes, powers, and hokey lines. That movie was real. I mean it has not happened, it probably would not happen, but it could. That got me thinking about the low standards we set on comics. We don't expect the hero's powers to make sense (he can fly, but he is so dense that a single strand of his hair can support a ton). We don't expect the source of those powers to make sense either (Marvel says that a race came to our planet a long time ago and gave us all the genetics to develop powers). Even how they dealt with their powers seemed ridiculous. (I have the power to dominate all life on this planet, so I'm going to help everyone out just because I can). The whole thing irritated me, so I wanted to make a more sensible universe, with rational reasons for the behavior of both heroes and villains.

I tend toward series, so I generally start out with characters. I think about where I want them to go philosophically as well as within the story arc I've already created. I have tried pushing the work, but I find that coming back to those things time and again I begin to have ideas. I organize them and that inspires more ideas. It's only when I have a good idea about the story, the theme, and the nature of all the scenes that I write. Of course all this can change in the middle, but I've found that overall the method generates smoother, better written stories.

I practice Kempo-Goju karate, run, swim, read Sci Fi, Fantasy, and philosophy. Anything that can make me look at the universe a little differently. I even pick up a book on physics once in a while.

'The Demon of Llewenydd'

Stories about King Arthur have always been about him or his knights exclusively, with the bad guys only coming in as bad guys. With my short stories I've established that there is a lot going on other than his court. And in the book you'll see how his stuff is only part of a whole. I chose for my novel his first big rest in his transformation from chieftain to major king. And fitting enough, I've also included bits of other significant persons in the British Isles whose stories are interconnected with his.

This genre has also been known for its romanticism and idyllic scenes. The period was gritty. And, though the British had a respect for women and an honor code of their own, it was not something we would call idyllic in the modern age. That is something else I have focused on in the book.