I’d had enough of gory crime shows. On a whim I watched this new detective show.

And I never looked back. So what is it about Castle?

Great dad? Witty sleuth? Loyal son? Dedicated writer? My writing mentor?

I’ll go with all of the above. (I just happened to fall in love with him in the past year. Really, I know the character Castle might not be exactly who Nathan Fillion is – but I can pretend. And if you know anything bad about Nathan – don’t share it in the comments because I want to continue in my fantasy world. Thank you very much.)

What makes him so attractive? For me, it’s all of the above. The touching moments he has with his family. The love he has for Becket, the real detective he shadows. His ways of embellishing his theories on the most recent murder. (Hilarious.)

Maybe it’s the way the writers of the show combine humor with murder. Those two words just don’t go together. And if you’ve ever tried to combine humor and a serious subject – it ain’t easy!

And that’s why that show is my writing mentor. At times they have off-the-wall storylines. I mean, really, a tiger and Castle and Becket in a locked room? Some would call it unrealistic. I call it awesome.

And in this past year the writers of the show have really added some twists, revealed possible secrets, and upped the stakes. Becket’s dark desire to solve her mother’s murder and the fact that it could end up killing her and Castle’s determination to protect her. Then in one recent episode, they brought in the big guns – the CIA (Or maybe it was the FBI?) Anyway, they eluded that Castle’s family has ties with the government. Okay, that little tidbit sent me over the mystery moon.

What about you? Are there any television shows or movies that help you refine your writing skills? Or offer inspiration?