Why does the moon wax and wane? Why do vultures have bald heads? Why do people prepare and eat foods in certain ways, or on certain holidays?
The hero succeeds only when he follows the advice of elders or gods — or alternatively, only when he is self-reliant. The hero must be clever to succeed, solving problems in creative ways. Some myths even teach that luck can be more important than skill. It can be fun to hear about an “ordinary” person who gets rewarded, or entertaining to hear about a complete fool who somehow becomes king. [1] X Research source Meletinsky, Eleazar, ed. F. Oinas and S. Soudakoff. The Low Hero of the Fairytale. 1975.
If you’re having trouble coming up with a mythological explanation for the topic you chose, write down a list of words that remind you of snow. If you want to explain how snowstorms happen, write down “cold, wet, white, snowman, ice cream, clouds. " Maybe snowmen live in the sky and sneeze snow down to earth, or maybe the clouds try to give us ice cream that melts on the way down.
Is the hero super-strong, super-intelligent, or incredibly talented in one area? Some heroes have “superpowers” such as shooting a bow with perfect aim, or the ability to knock people over with the wind from their breath. Why does your hero have these special talents, if any? Did the gods bless the hero, did the hero train hard, or was the hero just born that way? Which kind of person would you admire, or which do you think matches the real world best?
The hero is overconfident, and ignores advice or turns down an offer of help. The hero is greedy or lustful, and tries to steal or take something that doesn’t belong to her. The hero is arrogant, and thinks he’s better than everyone else, or even better than the gods.
If you’re out of ideas, try reading collections of actual myths, or modern books that use mythological characters. Percy Jackson and the Olympians is a good example
This tends to make the plot move pretty quickly. In one version of the Herakles myth, the hydra is introduced, tracked down, and killed in just eight sentences. [4] X Research source
Use iconic symbols. These vary between traditions, but often include the numbers 3 and 7, animals like the raven or the seal, or characters like the prince or the trapped faerie. Use the same structure for several sentences in a row. For example: “Seven days he went up into the sky, and seven days he walked down to go to Xibalbá; seven days he was transformed into a snake . . . ; seven days he was transformed into an eagle. “[5] X Research source Florescano, Enrique. The Myth of Quetzalcoatl. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins UP, 1999. Print. Give people a short, descriptive epithet. This is especially popular in Greek epics, which often use epithets that refer to other stories, such as “Dionysus the wolf-repeller” or “Apollo, carrier of the bay branches. “[6] X Research source
Set the myth in the distant past, or a distant land. Think of all the stories you know that begin “Once upon a time,” “Far, far away,” or even “A long, long time ago. " Describe the kind of hero people expect in myths. For instance, a youngest brother, a king, or a woodcutter are all common heroes in folk tales. For more epic myths, start with a famous hero or a goddess instead.
Coyote notices people shivering in winter, and they plead for a way to warm themselves. A queen ignores her suffering subjects. The gods send a plague to her daughter, and the queen must learn to help people in exchange for their assistance to cure her daughter.
Introduce a new character. This can be a god, a spirit, a talking animal, or an elder. The character might describe the next challenge to come and how to overcome it, or give the hero a magical item that he can use later. Create a new challenge. Just when everything is looking good again, have the hero make a mistake, or send a monster to undo the hero’s good work. This is useful if you want the story to go on longer.
“And that’s why the sun gets hotter and bright every summer. " “And ever since then, people brush their teeth to a shine every night, so the tooth-stealing goblins are scared by their own hideous reflection. "
