Inspiration Monday #4: Fantastical Creatures

Hello!

It's Monday. Time for some inspiration!

On Saturday evening I watched Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest with my family (I really am addicted to pirates) and it gave me inspiration for my inspirational post: monsters/fantastical creatures!

We must begin, of course, with the kraken. (Who agrees with me that it should be pronounced "KRAY-kin", not "CRACK-en"??)

Since we didn't begin with alphabetical order, we might as well push off from the Shores of Reasonable Organization into the deep waters of Organizational Randomness. Ready? Let's go!

Banshee

The myth of banshees originated in Ireland. They are basically screaming women who are precursors to a death. They appear to relatives of the person who is going to die. I can't think of any banshees in any books I've read.

Siren

Since I just finished To Kill a Kingdom, which is all about sirens!

Sirens sing instead of scream. They're kind of like mermaids, but a lot eviler. They sing to sailors and lure them into the water so they can kill them.

Kelpie

Malevolent shapeshifting water horses that will lure weary travelers to their doom. By drowning. Kelpies are actually really cool. You can learn more about them here.

Selkie

Both kelpies and selkies are from Scottish folklore. Selkies are harmless shapeshifters that can appear as women or seals.

Harpy

Harpies are from Greek and Roman mythology. They are part bird, part woman "personification[s] of storm winds", according to Wikipedia.

Dragon

Because we can't leave out dragons! My favorite book with dragons is Seraphina, by Rachel Hartman. 

Basilisk

Kind of like a dragon; actually a mishmash of creatures, with the added bonus of being able to kill anyone who looks into its eyes. Cornelia Funke uses a basilisk in Dragon Rider (which also, incidentally, features dragons) and **SPOILER ALERT IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE SECOND HARRY POTTER BOOK YET, WHICH I'M NOT SURE WHY YOU HAVEN'T IF YOU HAVEN'T** J.K. Rowling uses it in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, which is hands down the best Harry Potter book, even though I haven't read the seventh one yet.

Brownie

Because they're under-appreciated. They sneak into your house while you're sleeping and do chores for you. Just remember to leave a gift of food, like milk or porridge, out for them! (Brownies originated in Scotland. Why do all the best myths come from Scotland?)

I hate werewolves, so they're not on the list.

Fairies

Guys, fairies used to be eeeeevil. Now, it seems, they're more often portrayed as fluffy and sparkly and rainbow-y. Not that there's anything wrong with rainbows. I just don't think rainbows should be applied to fairies. I want to read more books with nasty, tricky fairies!

Wow, this list is getting long, so I'll just put a few more here.

• Manticore
• Chimaera 
• Dwarf
• Faun
• Centaur
• Griffin
• Elf
• Mermaid
• Ifrit
• Unicorn
• Pegasus

Was this list helpful? Do you have anything to add?

Thanks for reading,

KB