Pantheistic solipsism is a technical term that has been advanced for the World as Myth idea proposed by science fiction writer Robert A. Heinlein in several of his books and stories, although the concept has nothing in common with either Pantheism (the universe is God) or Solipsism (nothing exists but my mind). [Or maybe it has something in common, it can mean that "my mind is God", that all is created with mind] Science fiction is a form of speculative fiction principally dealing with the impact of imagined science and technology, or both, upon society and persons as individuals. ... Heinlein autographing at the 1976 Worldcon Robert Anson Heinlein (July 7, 1907 – May 8, 1988) was one of the most influential and, at times, controversial authors of hard science fiction. ... Pantheism (Greek: pan = all and Theos = God) literally means God is All and All is God. It is the view that everything is of an all-encompassing immanent God; or that the universe, or nature, and God are equivalent. ... This article or section contains information that has not been verified and thus might not be reliable. ...

The World as Myth idea involves the portrayal of all myths and fictional universes existing as parallel universes to our own and that persons and beings from these various “worlds” interact with one another. In the academic fields of mythology, mythography, and folkloristics a myth is a sacred story concerning the origins of the world or how the world and the creatures in it came to have their present form. ... A fictional universe is a cohesive imaginary world that serves as the setting or backdrop for one or (more commonly) multiple works of fiction. ... Parallel universe (fiction) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ...

For instance, in his last novels, Heinlein’s characters actually travel to and interact with the Land of Oz. Even our own world is considered an alternate (coded as "One Small Step" for the first words spoken on the moon by Neil Armstrong). Oz is an imaginary region containing four countries under the rule of one monarch. ... Neil Alden Armstrong (born August 5, 1930) is a former American astronaut, test pilot, and naval aviator famous as the first human ever to step foot on the Moon. ...

Pantheistic solipsism is featured in the work of many other authors. It plays a significant part in Douglas Adams' novel The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul. Adams' characters travel to and interact with a variety of Norse Gods in Asgard (among other interconnected events). The Dark Tower series by Stephen King also contains some aspects of Pantheistic solipsism. American Gods and the Sandman comic book series by Neil Gaiman featured a vast number of mythological and newly created gods and creatures interacting with one another. It is unclear whether these other authors were influenced by Heinlein or merely arrived at the same place for their own reasons. Douglas Noël Adams in an undated publicity photograph by Jill Furmanovsky. ... The front cover of the US first hardcover edition of The Long Dark Teatime of the Soul. ... Norse or Scandinavian mythology comprises the pre-Christian religion, beliefs and legends of the Scandinavian people, including those who settled on Iceland, where the written sources for Norse mythology were assembled. ... In Norse mythology, Asgard (Old Norse: Ásgarðr) is the realm of the gods, the Æsir, thought to be separate from the realm of the mortals, Midgard. ... The Dark Tower is a fantasy fiction, science fantasy, horror, and western themed series of novels by the American writer Stephen King. ... Stephen King Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author best known for his highly successful horror novels. ... American Gods is a novel by Neil Gaiman. ... The Sandman was a comic book series written by Neil Gaiman and published by DC Comics for 75 issues from 1988 until 1996. ... Neil Gaiman (November 2004) Neil Richard Gaiman () (November 10, 1960, Portchester, Hampshire) is an English Jewish author of numerous science fiction and fantasy works, including many comic books. ... Michelangelos depiction of God in the painting Creation of the Sun and Moon in the Sistine Chapel This article discusses the term God in the context of monotheism and derived henotheistic forms. ...

The Sandman is only one example of how pantheistic solipsism has become increasingly popular in contemporary comic books. Series such as Hellboy, Fables, Lucifer, League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Harry Kipling and Top 10 are all based on the concept of characters from disparate mythologies interacting with one another. The tendency of popular comics to concoct "crossovers," in which characters owned by different companies interact, is another element of this idea in comics publishing. A comic book is a magazine or book containing the art form of comics. ... Hellboy is a comic book character, dubbed the Worlds Greatest Paranormal Investigator. He is a large red-skinned demon with a tail, horns broken off to stumps (which some fans mistook for goggles in early issues) and a big stone right hand (the Right Hand of Doom). ... Fables is a Vertigo comic book series created and written by Bill Willingham. ... Lucifer is a comic book published by Vertigo, an imprint of DC Comics. ... Promotional still for The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen is a comic book series written by Alan Moore and illustrated by Kevin ONeill, published under the Americas Best Comics imprint of DC Comics. ... Harry Kipling is a new character in 2000 AD created by Simon Spurrier and Boo Cook. ... Top 10 is a superhero comic book series published by the Americas Best Comics imprint of Wildstorm, itself an imprint of DC Comics. ... A fictional crossover occurs when otherwise separated fictional characters, stories, settings, universes, or media meet and interact with each other. ...

It also plays a central role in much of fan fiction, which often features fictional worlds crossing over into the real world and each other. Fan fiction (also spelled fanfiction and commonly abbreviated to fanfic) is fiction written by people who enjoy a film, novel, television show or other media work, using the characters and situations developed in it and developing new plots in which to use these characters. ...

See also

• Solipsism
• The Man Who Traveled in Elephants
• The Number of the Beast (novel)