2. Food, food, glorious food!

The authors describe the delicious things the characters eat. Remember what Bilbo served the dwarves for dinner? Remember what the Hogwarts students ate? Of course you do.

How it inspires creativity: Many of those dishes sounded so good, people were inspired to cook them for themselves! Sites like Middle-Earth Recipes tell you how to cook foods from and inspired by Lord of the Rings, and recipes for pumpkin juice and butterbeer can be found all over the place.

3. Really cool toys.

Be they magnificent swords, magic wands, or gorgeous costumes, these stories are full of things that make your fingers itch to touch them.

How it inspires creativity: Just go to any number of DIY websites and you can find all sorts of instructions to make your own recreations of props and costumes. Some are admittedly frivolous, but many have practical uses, like these TARDIS garden sheds.

4. Awesome costumes.

Many characters in fantasy stories have some fashion style that stands out in some way. In Narnia, many of the characters wore bright and colorful clothing.

How it inspires creativity: Obviously, there are cosplayers - but that's not really what I'm talking about. I'm talking about things like hand-made Hogwarts house scarves and Sailor Moon earrings that can be be worn as everyday wear. Crafty fans love making and wearing things like this.