Story idea:
Title: Wolf Tracks.
At the dawn of a full moon, Leonard Creighton prepares to chain himself to a tree, believing he’ll become a werewolf. When his best friend and wife come to stop him, hidden truths and dark secrets are revealed. Will the full moon reveal a monster or a man haunted by the monster within?
I have always had a fascination with werewolves. Wolfman (1941) was a constant favorite as a kid and An American Werewolf in London (1981) was a constant favorite as a teenager. In retrospect, it is surprising that I gravitated toward werewolf fiction since I had a pretty prevalent fear of dogs as a kid. In retrospect, perhaps it’s not surprising at all. Our own fears always tend to fascinate us.
It is this fear and fascination that created this story idea. That, and a little known fact about werewolf lore that Hollywood usually overlooks. Everyone knows that a werewolf is a person who turns into a wolf during a full moon and anyone who is bitten by a werewolf becomes a werewolf themselves. But this is not the only way to become a werewolf.
In folklore, a person can transform into a wolf by many different means. Sometimes, all it took was being conceived during a new moon or being born on Christmas Day or the ever-favorite pact with the Devil. But the one that always fascinated me was the paw print.
In this tradition, all you had to do was drink water from a wolf’s paw print. Something about this strange and simple method stuck in my head. A bite, your conception, and your birth are beyond your control. But there is something so deliberate and unsettling about kneeling amongst muddy wolf tracks and drinking your fill. Is it a choice freely given or a tempting cure laid before you?
In some ways, it’s like being terrified by canines while also being delighted by stories where you’re transformed into a canine.
No, not surprising at all.
Since moving to Alaska, I’ve been able to witness and capture some beautiful moonrises. And one, just a few weeks ago, helped spur this post, when the moon rose during a partially cloudy night. It wasn’t until I reviewed the photo later that I saw the tracks of the wolf transform the face of the moon.
What fears and fascinations transform your stories?
Start your story in the comments below…