In How to Write a Unique Spooky Story, I wrote about how to write a unique spooky story by either creating your own monster, creature, or horror yourself or by finding a monster that is not well known. I advised finding a monster by researching myths and legends in other cultures to find something that has a rich history surrounding it, but that is not considered modern. However, I did not explain the different resources that could be used to discover and research these less than modern monsters. The first step in researching and finding your monster is deciding what culture you want your monster to come from.

Books

If you are looking for a truly old and unknown monster then books are your best bet, especially older books that do not have digital versions. Once you know what culture you want to research, you need to seek out old books that contain mythology and legends from your chosen culture. These books can sometimes be located at libraries; however, more often than not they can be found at used books stores and sometime estate auctions. Since these books are going to be older, you should keep in my mind that they will be written in the languge(s) used by the culture you are researching. Make sure to choose your culture based on your own language knowledge or make sure to have a translator available to you.

People

One of the best ways to find out about the monsters from your chosen culture is to travel to the place and talk to people about their monster legends and myths. Tour guides can be an invaluable source as not only do they often live in the area, but they also know a lot about the area and its backgrounds in both legends and history. A tour guide could also recommend some locals that might have more knowledge of local mythology that was passed down through the generations. Just make sure that when you talk to people about the legends and myths from their culture to always remain polite and do not claim that the monster or creature does not exist if the local population believes it does.

Internet

The internet is the easiest option for exploring monster myths as Google and other search engines will allow you to research a multitude of monsters and cultures without leaving your home. However, not all legends and myths have been digitized and made available online so you may be missing out on some of the best monsters that mythology has to offer if you only confine yourself to the internet. Many of the older books on mythology have never been made into digital books or posted online.

Combining Methods

The best way to truly understand your monster, once you have chosen one, is to research it using all of these methods so that you can truly interpret all of the different legends surrounding the monster. Different sources will often offer a different view on the legend and they might also see the monster’s actions differently.