>>40986124
>>40986198
Every writing community has it's tropes/clichés. The whole "I was innawoods with friends before someone was replaced by a stinky shapeshifter" thing is more or less one story being told a hundred different ways, as is the nature of a folk tale. I think the worst part about skinwalker stories is just how little interest most authors have in the origins of the term. Half the time the only way you can tell a story is about the wendigo, skinwalkers, the rake, fleshgaits, goatmen, etc. is in what terms the half-wit writing the story uses to describe them. If anything I think most skinwalker stories are more like "The Thing" set in the woods rather than folk horror that explores any particular mythology/belief system. It's just a massive waste of potential as far as exploring each of these things unique mythology and traits, as well as a missed opportunity to write about the unique places and cultures that birthed these things to begin with. On the other hand The Shining is a better wendigo story than 90% of these creature features and it respects it's audience enough to not need to mention anything directly, though nobody would blame you for having that interpretation considering things like Jacks spirit-driven insanity, the donner party, or the heavy usage of native decor in the set design of the Overlook.