My ideas come from classic cartoons, trippy dreams I keep having, and childhood videogames. I also get some ideas from movie or video game soundtracks.
The classic cartoons mostly inspired the design and feel of my comics and drawings, and each of what I've made and posted here (and other websites I'm on), is my personal love letter to the works' that I've kept fond memories of and still revisit every once in a while even if they don't make a comeback in recent time, or if I haven't watched/followed said program in a decent amount of time.
Childhood Videogames are something that has never gone away. Heck, the loads of games that came out during the PS2/Xbox/GameCube era (along with alot of 1990s PC games, mostly from Disney; as well as some Playstation 1 games that have lingered their way into my collection like Spongebob Supersponge and Spiderman PS1) are what fueled much of my adventure novels. Just the spirit of adventure these games brought whether they were a collect-a-thon, a linear platformer, the Prince of Persia, a racing game, an action-racing game, a licensed game or movie game (like A Bug's Life, Toy Story 2, Star Wars, The Simpsons Road Rage and Hit & Run, Batman: Vengeance or Fairly Oddparents or Tak & The Power of Juju). Not to mention videogame franchises like Crash Bandicoot are stuff that says, "Hey, it's cool to make loony adventure stories." My youtube playlist is filled with a lot game soundtracks based on the games I've played early on, or CLASSIC games I've discovered recently and got hooked on them (even when they're ones that don't age well.)
Movies are in a similar boat to the classic cartoons panel. There's some movies that have stuck with me forever like Batman: Mask of the Phantasm & Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker, Scooby-Doo (mainly the Zombie Island quadrology), especially Pixar movies from Toy Story all the way to The Incredibles and Up and even Cars. Toy Story has been a starting point for some of the comics/novels I have that include a dynamic duo in a sense, and has been the main inspiration for me throughout the series' existence. Animated movies aren't the only inspiration for there includes a good fair share of live-action movies too, like the original Spider-Man trilogy, The Stupids, Roll Bounce, Star Wars in some places, Holes, Sky High, Max Keeble's Big Move, and quite a few more.
Cartoon & Movie & Videogame Soundtracks - As I've stated in the videogames panel, I have a playlist full of soundtracks from the games I've loved. But I also have ones based on movies and cartoons. The one that's most obvious and used quite a good amount of times is the Spongebob soundtrack from the television show. However, I like to go a step further and listen to songs from the movies (and I don't just mean the official soundtracks. I go for the actual orchestral score). I was always fond of funny characters going on big journeys, or having a big event.
(This is one of my favorites, as well as enjoying this movie).
It's something you don't get as often anymore, not even as a TV special. Maybe it's cause of how intensive it takes to make something like this, or maybe because its easy to watch/read user-created works online that it kinda defeats the purpose of big-movies based on properties? Maybe its how they're adapted? I don't know, but I do kinda miss this. I know there's direct-to-DVD movies like the aforementioned Scooby-Doo, but sometimes its not the same.
The orchestral themes in movie soundtracks, or those kinds that are quiet, gently funny, pensive, endearing, or calm-before-the-storm are the sounds I like to listen to when I'm writing chapters. Songs with flutes, bassoons, or clarinets that bring a sly feeling to a situation are my most favorite when writing because it brings a sense that someone's got an idea, but they're having trouble properly planning it out. Sometimes, though, those songs can't be found via soundtrack alone and instead is from a YouTube video or cartoon I'm watching. (I end up rewinding back the same part over and over just for the song, and as a consequence I guess, I end up memorizing the scene that I'm rewinding back and forth. It's kinda funny as I end up mimicking the lines afterward. And now... some memorized lines:
"You'll get your rent when you fix this DAMN DOOR!" ~ Spider-man 3
"You did good children... very good indeed~" / "Now what do we do?!" - The Powerpuff Girls Movie
"I looked death right in the eye... and it smelled like cheap cigars and stinkyfish" - Ren & Stimpy
"I'll teach you to swindle my idiot sidekick!" - Ren & Stimpy
Oh, what? Whaaaaaaaat? These are plastic! He can't fly. Toy Story
"Bullseye, you don't wanna go with me! They'll put you back into storage if they find you, so just go!" - Toy Story 2
YUUU-AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!! - Mike Wazowski's scream from Monster's Inc.
"Friends are there.... to help you get started! To give you a push on your waaaaaayyyy!" - Garfield & Friends
"I can do this... it's just a bird, right?!" - A Bug's Life: The Video Game
"Welcome to your grave, Suckers!" - The Simpsons Arcade Game
"Woo-hoo-hoo! Jane stop this crazy thing! Hahaha!" - Ed, Edd n Eddy
"Jinkies!" / GRRRAAARRRRHHH!! / "Jinkies... Jinkies, isn't that a breakfast cereal or something?" - Bravo Dooby Doo
"So here's the deal. You help me find my missing parts, and we're in business!" - Toy Story 2: Buzz Lightyear to the rescue.
"Vishnu! Here I come!" / "Thank you for not dodging!" / "Ey, move it whitey!" / "Damn it! I dropped my kabob!" / "He used a cheat code!" / "I blame society" / "Ow! My neck!" / "Oowww, my ass!" / "Ow, my head!" - The Simpsons Hit & Run
_"Come to daddy." / "Boom!!! I'm back, dummy!" / "Take your lumps like a MAN, Private Twinkletoes!" / "I'm gonna beat you like a rented mule, boy" / drunken noises _ - Team Fortress 2
Bee-doh! / No... no annoying sounds... / No, I said Cookie robots. Cookie ROBOTS! Why, why do you have to be so... old...?" - Despicable Me
"I did it! I feel five years younger! Ooohhh, it's good to be back!" / "And he starts sucking on the glaaaass!" / "See anything yet, Patrick? / "I need my glasses." / "HAM-mer! Dah-I get it!" / "Somehow, I don't think he needs a hand!" / "Nothin' but a little MAN-type stuff!" / "Look ooouuut! Look OUUTT!!" / "Neptune, I command you to kill SPONGEBOB!" / "Alright, Krabs! Time for you to die!" / "By the way, Patrick... when was the last time you took a bath?" - Spongebob
I'm gonna stop there for now because this list will get long in the tooth! But a thumbs up and a high-five for you if any of these quotes suddenly reinvigorate your memories! These are just the things that have been my inspiration, and the lines I memorize when I listen for the music.