Uh-oh, I've been worldbuilding under the influence.
Here are a few of them, in no particular order. I've definitely left out a lot. See my undergrad dissertation, On Yearning, and my photobook, Lingermyth, for related ideas.
Books
- Ursula K. Le Guin's Earthsea.
- Hope Mirrlees's Lud-in-the-Mist.
- On Fairy Stories, Tolkien's lecture-turned-essay on the nature of fairytales.
- E. R. Eddison's The Worm Ouroboros.
Films
- The French Dispatch and others from Wes Anderson.
- Princess Mononoke, among other Studio Ghibli stuff.
- The 1977 animated Hobbit movie.
Art
- Picasso, especially his little doodles.
- The amazing art of Troika.
- Otherworldly landscapes by Mœbius.
- Tarot decks, and other funny old illustrations.
Music
- Bob Dylan, songs like One More Cup of Coffee, Boots of Spanish Leather, All Along the Watchtower, and The Changing of the Guards.
- Andrés Segovia, especially Romance de los Pinos and Recuerdos de la Alhambra.
- More here.
Real Life
- The elegent pilot cutter.
- Cornwall, beautiful place.
- This guy's name.