Recommended for Writers: Writing Monsters by Philip Athans

What are monsters? Why do we write about them, instead of about more “realistic” villains? And how can we write well about these terrible creatures?

This book helps authors grapple with these questions. Writing Monsters gives examples from books and films; at archetypes of mythical monsters; at the “real” monsters of our world; at cryptids; and finally at cursed and dangerous things which, though inanimate, can be so threatening or personified that they play the role of monsters in our stories.

The book also includes a Monster Creation Form to help the writer create his or her own unique horrors.

Find out more about Writing Monsters by Philip Athans.