Monster Bits and Bobs – ESP Workshop Notes
The detail of your monster depends on several questions. As with any worldbuilding, there is a balance between building relevant story information, and getting too sucked into your world to write. Judiciously use bits and bobs from these notes.
- What part does the monster play in your story?
- How large of a part does the monster play in your story?
- Is it a character?
- Does it illustrate danger?
- Does it interact with your characters?
- Is this monster the only non-humanoid in the story, is the story full of monster?
- Is the monster in conflict with your characters?
- Does your monster have a solid shape?
- Is your monster a shapeshifter?
- What is the intelligence level of your monster?
- What does your monster consume? How?
- What does your monster create? How?
- What is the environment where your monster evolved?
- May not need to be hyper realistic, but shouldn’t conflict
- Sodium based monsters in a water world
- Is the monster out of its natural environment? What is the impact?
- May not need to be hyper realistic, but shouldn’t conflict
- Do they use magic?
- Are they magic?
- Do they use technology?
- Do they contain technology?
- Do they move?
- How do they travel?
- Basic needs, food, shelter, reproduction
- Can use occasional made up words to draw attention to a creature part, too many make illustrating context difficult
Your monster can have none, one, or more of each some features.
- Exterior
- Feathers
- Mucous
- Hide
- Shell
- Carapace
- Scales
- Slime
- Gills
- Hair
- Exoskeleton
- Distinguishing characteristics (for individuals)
- Blemishes
- Pustules
- Scars
- Tattoos
- Missing bits
- Differences in symmetry and coloration
- Sensory
- What senses do they have? How do they use them?
- Eye
- Eye Stalk
- Tentacle
- Pseudopod
- Nose
- Ears
- Mouth
- What is the use of the monster’s mouth?
- Beak
- Tentacle (when the base of the tentacles is within the mouth)
- Lips
- Teeth
- Suckers
- Tongue
- Mandible
- Fangs
- Limbs
- Arm
- Leg
- Wings
- Trunk
- Tentacle
- Forelimbs
- Can be prehensile
- Paw
- Pincers
- Hand
- Hoof
- Extremities
- Fingers
- Toes
- Claws
- Talons
- Hook
- Fishhook
- Stinger
- Can be used to deliver secretions
- Protrusions
- Horn
- Bone
- Tusks
- Antler
- Spikes
- Tail Spikes
- Fin
- Secretions
- Potentially stored in a sac, or created in a gland
- Mucous
- Acid
- Poison
- Silk
- Spittle
- Oil
- Ink
- Slime
- Musk
- Any material
- Emissions
- Thoughts
- Sound
- Spores
- Heat
- Smoke
- Cold
- Dust
- Emotions
- emanating the monsters emotions
- supplanting your emotions
- Anything gaseous or lacking substantial form
- Other
- Face
- Head
- Tail
- Trunk
- Recommended book: The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker
Related: Character Descriptions – ESP Oct
