I've heard it said that there are no new stories, only new ways to tell them, and I think this is very true. Although the possibilities seem endless, I'm afraid writers often jump on the bandwagon when a particular story becomes popular. Wizards, vampires, werewolves, zombies anyone? Unfortunately, trying to follow a trend can be a difficult thing to do, because unless your timing is perfect or you have a truly amazing twist, it becomes difficult to make your story stand out amongst all the others that are similar.
So instead of traveling down a road thronged with people, why not pick a path less traveled? I would suggest embracing the old and making it new again.
I've often found myself paging through an encyclopedia of mythology as my imagination races through the possibilities. There are so many mythological creatures to pick from, and so many amazing stories waiting to be retold in a new and fresh way that's relevant to our time.
Here are a few sites on mythology and mythological creatures to help guide your muse down a path less traveled.
- Wikipedia's list of Mythological Creatures—This is an amazing list and the best part is there's a brief description for each creature so you don't have to keep clicking.
- Wikipedia's list of Creatures by Type—The above list is divided up into type of creature.
- Wikipedia's list of Folklore
- Wikipedia's list of Mythologies—Impressive and thorough.
- Wikipedia's list of Deities
- Wikipedia's list of Mythological Objects
- Wikipedia's list of Women Warriors
- Theoi Greek Mythology—A fantastic site about the Greek gods and Greek mythology.
- God Checker—A great resource with many different cultures listed.
- Luminarium—A page for all things Irish.
- Encyclopedia Mythica—Another amazing site—very thorough with an extensive list of cultures.
- A World History of Art—So many great works of art have been inspired from mythology. This is a great site if you prefer something more visual for your research.
If there are any other links you find useful but that we haven't posted, please let us know by leaving a comment.
Do you often use mythology for inspiration? Where do your new story ideas come from?
