I guess it shouldn't surprise me that no one has placed the inspiration for me "Temple of the Leaf". I had to search pretty hard for the line which planted the seed...

"I must have this city," she told them, sitting crosslegged on a pile of cushions, her dragons all about her. Irri and Jhiqui poured wine. "Her granaries are full to bursting. There are figs and dates and olives growing on the terraces of her pyramids, and casks of salt fish and smoked meat buried in her cellars."

Those lines were spoken by Daenerys Targaryen in reference to the city of Meereen in George R. R. Martin's "A Storm of Swords" (the third novel in his famously unfinished "Song of Ice and Fire"). I've been re-reading the series for a while now and am enjoying the books almost as much as the first time.

I read the paragraph above and thought that a pyramid with gardens growing on its terraces would form the basis of a cool scene. I didn't take much else from Meereen (there are no harpies on my pyramid and no slaves to be seen) so the rest is my own creation.

I get asked all the time where I get my ideas so hopefully this will provide some insight.