When Gunner Star first blossomed into a full-fledged
creation, it was easy to trace the origins of the character. He is me. Or I am
him—depending how you look at it. I
became my alter ego after “I died. I was reborn. I returned as man named Gunner
Star.” But when it I was asked where “Caitlin Star” came from, I had to stop, think, and attempt to reverse engineer the creative process to discover some
of Caitlin’s influences. Here are the top five as best as I could figure it
out.
Real Life
Okay, this one is a bit unfair since you cannot seek out my
real life in a book or on DVD. Well, actually, you sort of can. It’s all there
in the books I have written and will write. Sure, it is disguised in the
action/adventure format; but lurking inside, buried deep beneath the colorful
action and brooding melodrama, is the part of my essence infused and imprinted in every character, every scene, every word.
There is inspiration from a real person I have known in
every character I create. The old cliché of “write what you know” really is
true—if you want your writing to ring true.
In the case of Caitlin the indirect sources of real life
character influence are numerous and overlapping—I was raised by a
strong-willed woman and have been among fearsome females my whole life. But
there are three very specific, direct inspirations on Caitlin; a girl from
childhood, someone from the young adult years, and a woman of the present
day.
Conan the Barbarian by Robert E. Howard
Robert E. Howard’s Conan stories are not just stories that
you read. They are worlds you live in.
They are images that you see and sounds you hear and the touch of flesh that
you feel. When you read an action sequence in Robert E. Howard story, you feel
it. Ever since I first gazed upon the Frank Frazetta cover paintings and
cracked open my first Conan paperback, I became hooked on Howard’s visceral poetry.
I read a lot of comic books and graphic novels, but it is
rare that I buy and read a title live each month fresh off the presses. During
the early 2000’s, DC Comic’s “Birds of Prey” was such a title. I never missed
an issue. When Gail Simone was scripting the book, Ed Benes drawing it, and
Greg Land doing the covers, it was a femme fatale feast of kick ass girl power.
The Black Canary character is a huge influence on Caitlin
Star, and to a lesser extent Huntress. At least from a philosophical point of
view, Caitlin has some Poison Ivy in her. Barbara Gordon as Oracle is a major
inspiration for the Lori character in “Caitlin Star”.
The films of James Cameron
Or to be more specific, the women from the films. There has never been a male genre writer who can create dynamic, powerful, complex,
strong-willed, fierce, kick-ass women the way Jim Cameron does. Ripley (Aliens), Sarah Conner (The Terminator), Dr. Lindsey
Brigman (The Abyss), and Neytiri (Avatar) are as infused into the spirit of
Caitlin as Cameron’s breathtaking action sequences and cinematic heart are to
my storytelling style.
"Nikita" had an outstanding third season and heads into year four this fall with solid momentum and a loyal fan base. The show has always been a bit of a dark horse, flying under the radar on the CW network, often overshadowed by the network's other cult shows, "The Vampire Diaries" and the long running "Supernatural".
But make no mistake about it, "Nikita" is a kick ass show; an adrenaline-fueled, entertaining hour of high drama featuring a terrific cast anchored by former stunt professional turned actress Maggie Q as the title character. Nikita is a wonderful character and Maggie Q is sensational as the femme fatale action hero counterpart of Jack Bauer. This is the best version of "Le Femme Nikita" since Luc Besson's original.
See also: Casting Caitlin Star and Caterino on Caterino
Read the opening chapter of "Caitlin Star" here.
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