I Know This Because Tyler Knows This…

(The final of three posts wherein I discuss the inspiration and influences behind my first novel “Deep Purple Dream.”)

Previously I discussed the literary inspiration and religious allegory that sparked the idea of writing my first novel, followed by the inspiration of alternate realities and drug-induced epiphany from the long-gone Omni Magazine.

The third element that inspired and influenced "Deep Purple Dream" – and still influences my work – is exploring the concept of identity . . . how we see ourselves and the world we live in, and how those around us do the same. Who am I, and who are you? How do we define ourselves?

What is the most important part of you? Perhaps you don't know, or you are only just now discovering that part. You may not have reached the point in life where that element has been revealed. And what if it is never revealed? Is human identity (“I am my race; my ethnicity; my sexual orientation; my class status; my gender; my nationality; my religious affiliation; my politics; my age”) an internal or external force? Or does the meaning your life has originate simply from the meaning you determine to give it? Can we trust our own judgment anymore than someone else's?

You never know just how you look through other people's eyes.