If you think writing a good monster horror is a walk in the park, you've got it wrong. Writing cheesy and cliché monster horror can be easy, but if you want your monster to stand out from the existing pool of creatures, then you're going to need to take on a unique perspective. Here are three main factors that define a horror monster:

Strange or grotesque appearance: We're often afraid of the unknown or the unfamiliar. This includes physical features we are not accustomed to seeing, especially if they suggest some kind of mutation or potential danger. For example, a rotting face, such as you would see on a zombie, would cause revulsion and discomfort, making us fearful of interacting with the creature.Dangerous: If a monster is not dangerous, then there's no real, rational reason to be afraid of it. If it's not going to cause us harm, then we can simply avoid it and move on. A true horror monster needs to act as a threat against us.Part of a horror narrative: If the monster is not written into a horror narrative, then it does not count as a horror monster. Take Sesame Street for example. Oscar the Grouch or The Count are monster-like creatures, particularly the vampire, but they don't exist as horror monsters. They are playful characters meant to educate the youth. So, although The Count is a vampire, he does not count as a horror monster.

Although these are the three main components in creating a horror monster, these are not the only things you want to include in your writing. Here are some other necessities to keep in mind as you develop a good horror monster:

Motive: Motive is possibly the most important thing to consider as you write your monster. Maybe your monster is a killing machine, ripping apart their victims limb by limb (yikes, am I right?). Or maybe your monster hunts their human prey under the cover of night, feasting on their flesh (gross). But why? Why is your monster feeding on humans? Is it because they have no other food resources and are desperate for survival? Why is your monster ripping apart humans? Are they trying to protect their environments from human trespassers? Treat your monster as a character in your story, because they are. This means giving them motivations just as you would for any other character in your story.Strengths: What are your monster's strengths? Are they extremely strong with multiple limbs that allow them to multitask in their pursuit to kill a human? Are they like chameleons, able to camouflage themselves into their environments, so they can hide from their prey and perform a successful sneak attack? Does your monster have supernatural abilities beyond the scope of human understanding? Even more interesting, is your monster intelligent? We're so used to reading monsters as these strong beings that use their bodies to inflict fear and pain. Consider making your monster smart. Although your monster may appear unthreatening, it could possibly become the most powerful monster ever if it adheres to human logic.Weaknesses: Even though your monster is the ultimate villain for your hero to defeat, your hero is going to repeatedly fail. In fact, your protagonist(s) may endure pain and suffering at the hands of your monster before it is defeated. So, how does the protagonist defeat the monster if it's so strong? Every single monster has one (or a few) major weakness. Consider the werewolf. What kills a werewolf? A silver bullet. What defeats a vampire? Holy water, a wooden stake, or sunlight. It may take time and trial and error, but your protagonist will eventually discover your monster's one weakness they can exploit to triumph over the monster in the end. Make sure you keep this weakness hidden until you approach the end of your story.Unpredictability: If your characters and readers know everything there is to know about your monster, then there's very little point in writing a monster horror story. Part of the fear comes from the unpredictability of the monster. Can the monster be exposed to sunlight, or are they allergic to it like vampires? Can your monster camouflage themselves to hide from your protagonist? We shouldn't know what your monsters can and cannot do for the majority of your story. This way we'll be left on the edge of our seats. A twist on this unpredictability trope is to make the mundane unpredictable or to pervert the mundane. This goes beyond your monster character and can include environments and inanimate objects. We're used to the dark being scary, but what if you make the light frightening? Cell phones are normal devices that almost everyone uses, but some people get frightened or wary when their phones start listening to them. Play up on these fears and make the non-scary, scary.Make the monster symbolic: What's scarier than a man-eating monster or being buried alive? Realizing that the thing you've been afraid of all along exists in reality. In fact, you may already be a victim to it. Perhaps your monster is never satiated and that's why its constantly killing humans and feasting on them. This can symbolize greed and society's ever-increasing need for more. If your monster represents a larger theme from the real world, it might be even scarier than if it were just a simple scare because it makes readers question their own ideas and livelihoods.Maximize fear: This is one you probably already know, but maximizing fear by using peoples' fears against them is one of the best ways to incite fear in your readers. It becomes a very psychological process of getting into the minds of your readers and exploiting their own personal fears. Using these fears in the appearance of your monster or in the setting in which they're found will add dimension to your monster horror story. Here are some of the most popular fears:SpidersHeightsEnclosed spacesIsolation

Of course, there are plenty of other phobias for you to use in your writing. Do some research and find one that fits your story.

Now that you know what defines a horror monster, let's examine the nine most popular horror subgenres that include monsters. These are sure to keep you and your readers awake at night.