I am the first to admit I have a fabulous imagination … but it never hurts to have a little extra inspiration. Recently, I wanted to design a dirigible in great detail, so that I could describe it several times throughout the narrative without making any major error. I hate the idea of describing something one way, and then getting details wrong three chapters later because I was too lazy to get a clear image up front. And – lucky me! – there are plenty of images of models online, of beautifully detailed Steampunk dirigibles and airships and balloons.
This model reminds me of the flying fish in Disney’s ‘Atlantis: The Lost Empire’, an animated movie which borrowed heavily from the Steampunk Aesthetic.
My imaginary airship wont look exactly like the models illustrating this article. But they are certainly assist me in coming up with ideas of my own. Like the use of tartan for the balloon…
I’m going to be a Po-faced Nerd and offer you this:
https://steamedup.wordpress.com/2015/07/31/edna-mode-says-no-capes/
You also shared this to Steampunk Sunday. It is a fabulous article.
And yes, I agree – key sets in a story need to be very clear in one’s head.