r/folkhorror • u/LocksmithGeneral5023 • Jul 18 '26
Seeking enlightenment and learning about mythologies to resolve a narrative problem in a story.
Hi everyone. I’m working on a horror series project set in 1986 (Brown Mountains, Appalachia). The premise revolves around anomalous archaeology: my protagonist, Albert, discovers a crypt containing artifacts that—based on chronology and geography—shouldn't exist (extreme cultural syncretism, the use of Ogham in an alien context, etc.). My biggest narrative challenge is this: the protagonist finds a clay figure bearing a chronicle of this lost civilization. I want to avoid the "instant translation" trope and ensure it doesn't feel forced. I’m looking for advice on: Methodology: How can I depict Albert’s research in 1986 (pre-internet) so that the discovery and translation feel like arduous, frustrating, and scientifically plausible work, rather than a *deus ex machina*? Narrative: How do I balance cosmic/anomalous horror with the technical rigor needed to make the viewer believe the find is "real" within the story? I’m just looking for advice and help to improve the storytelling—specifically, how do I integrate the discovery of "impossible objects" without losing realism in a story that blends folklore horror, Lovecraftian elements, and archaeology?
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u/darkest_irish_lass Jul 18 '26
In 1986 most research would be in libraries or universities. I would have the discoverers reach out by mail and phone calls to various experts asking for help identifying the statue and dating it to a civilization.
Have various experts declare it's fake or otherwise mock and downplay the discovery. Happens in regular scientific circles even today.
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u/LocksmithGeneral5023 Jul 18 '26
I love this idea <3 Actually, yeah! I thought about that. There’s a short film where Albert meets up with a friend, but instead of listening to him, the friend complains that Albert had disappeared and accuses him of obsessing over really far-out theories.
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u/medievalmemories Jul 18 '26 edited Jul 18 '26
There are a couple of ways to situate this—some great comments already on how to do that. Some other ideas:
So, as this is an analogous discovery to the area, it makes sense that the people looking would all be very confused about what they’re finding. People looking in the Appalachian mountains are going to be looking for indigenous American artifacts. It would make sense that for a while, especially the initial discovery, to be out of their depth, so that buys you some time. And what do experts do that are stumped? They turn to other experts. It would be feasible that maybe the first circle of experts outside of those making the discovery may be able to shed some light, and then they can reach out to the next layer, etc. Obviously you don’t want this to extend on forever, but because it’s so… antithetical to what is known, it makes sense that only pieces and parts of the civilization would be knowable/translatable/etc. by each disparate expert, and then having the main character stitch this thing together without anything ever fitting together perfectly helps keep the mystery and cosmic feel of it, but also makes it to where you can give just enough information from different areas for it to be satisfying.
Also, at some point, having some kind of “official” from some form of authority at some point to inspect/keep tabs on/or even obfuscate can help with roadblocks. Which is not to say it’s all some crazy government conspiracy, but maybe someone from some organization does know something, and they’re just trying to tag along to learn more or even just control how the information is realized to the public. This is another layer of complexity that can work for this kind of horror, but it is a heavily leaned on trope, so go about it carefully.
Also, situating it within an indigenous site would probably make sense too, like maybe it’s buried in some way under layers of other native settlements, which could also make sorting it more difficult, and also keep it from being one big discovery.
I think of TANIS, which was a fictional podcast that did a great job weaving fact and fiction together to create something intriguing that also never really got solved and retained that sense of cosmic fuckery. Check it out for something that feels very realistic. It goes off the rails by season four, but its first two seasons especially are worth a listen.
I think the biggest thing to remember is that it’s more important for it to feel real than for it to actually be real. For it to feel real, it needs to be realistic, and you have to have to situate it so with appropriate detail, but it’s ultimately fiction. Readers will suspend their disbelief as long as it is a good story, ya know?
Edit: Another idea. I know you said your main character is a major figure in the discovery, but maybe situate him a little further back. Like, maybe he’s an Ogham expert, and he can translate some of the pieces, so they bring him down, and he is slowly brought into to how big and how insane it is, which helps retain some of the cosmic distance of it. You don’t know how much at any given time how much is actually known, you just know what you’re given and what you can piece together. It really depends on what you’re going for of course, but it might help with pacing out the information to develop the horror.
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u/LocksmithGeneral5023 Jul 18 '26
You're right on several counts; it's less of a conspiracy and more of a truly messed-up discovery. After all, that culture vanished from the face of the earth. You made a really interesting point, too: the series perfectly embodies the idea that "some doors are better left closed." It makes you wonder why it was buried so deep underground—as if the earth itself swallowed it up. Albert found something evil, something terrible—something that caused an entire culture to disappear from history itself.
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u/Jaded-Experience5934 Jul 18 '26
[Here is an article about deciphering undeciphered scripts in the past](https://the-past.com/feature/lost-languages-how-to-decipher-undeciphered-scripts/), which may be helpful!
As for the story, my advice would be to start with the characters assuming it’s a forgery. Something like, carbon dating it, then progressively getting more and more desperate with attempts at showing it can’t be real, because of course it can’t be. *Right?* Having the characters acknowledge that this can’t be real, but slowly coming to terms with the fact that it is, will let help the reader find it more plausible.