Sasquatch: Image
I have decided to focus my storybook project on the topic of American folkloric monsters, and there is arguably no monster more famous or recognizable across the country than Bigfoot himself. The "primal, hairy ape-man" monster archetype is nothing new, and is prevalent in countries all over the world (Yeti, Yowie, Barmanou, Hibagon, Chuchuna, etc.) and the creature even has many different names across North America, such as Sasquatch, Skunk Ape, Skookum, Momo, Grassman, the Fouke Monster, the Dewey Lake Monster and the Mogollon Monster, just to name a few. Much like the creature's many different titles, its proposed behavior also differs wildly depending on the regional spin-off that is being described. Some are benevolent or benign, while others are outright hostile. The versatility of this monster will allow for greater freedom when writing about it in my storybook project.
The Mothman of West Virginia, statue by Bob Roach: Image
Mothman is a unique creature originating in the mid-1960s, whose stories and sightings are almost completely localized within Point Pleasant, West Virginia. Despite its very small area of influence, it has become one of the most well-known monsters across the country, and is massively popular within the Point Pleasant area, where they hold an annual festival dedicated to the creature. It is described as having a humanoid body with an insectile head containing red compound eyes and 7-10 foot long moth-like wings. There are no purported sightings or stories that involve Mothman actually physically interacting with any of the denizens of Point Pleasant, though it has been considered to be a sort of omen that foreshadows disaster, such as the collapse of Point Pleasant's Silver Bridge in 1967, which killed 46 people and was ultimately connected to sightings of the Mothman.
The Jersey Devil of, you guessed it, New Jersey: Image
A strange creature with a history that stretches back before the Revolutionary War, the Jersey Devil is legendary folkloric monster said to live in the Pine Barrens of southern New Jersey. The monsters origins date back to 1735 and are attributed to a Pine Barrens denizen known colloquially as "Mother Leeds." The story goes that Mother Leeds had 12 children, and when she became pregnant with a 13th, she cursed the child, claiming that the child would become the devil. When the child was born, it morphed into a flying, bipedal creature with hooves and a goat's head, and then flew off into the forest, where it supposedly lives to this day. There have been reported sightings of the creature dating back to its origin in the 1730s, all the way up to the 1960s, and its effects on local culture are plain as day (see, for example, the New Jersey Devils hockey team). It is also rumored that in the early 1900s, the Philadelphia Zoo offered a reward for the creature so that they could create a private exhibit for it, which fits perfectly with the setting for my original project idea. If I also decide to go the audiobook route for my project, the creature is also rumored to have a high-pitched "blood-curdling scream," so that would be fun.
These three creatures are not the only ones I plan on using for my project, just some of the most popular ones. I also plan to include stories of the Native American Wendigo of the Great Lakes region and the Chupacabra of the Southwest. Overall, I'm still pretty interested in going down the audiobook route with this story, though I'm also trying to stay open to other possibilities that may arise.
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