Origins of Your Werewolf Interest.

[Silveera-Ice]

I werent sure where to put this post, but I think its ok here...

What I mean is when/where/how/what started your interest in werewolves. Whether it be a book, a film, a friend, whatever.

For me, well, Im not sure when my interest in werewolves started, maybe when I was about 7 ish. I remember trying to convince my younger brother that there was werewolves in the forest near where we lived at the time. (actually it was a very small wood, but we called it a forest anyway, because it sounded cooler!) And He believed me, because he was only about 3 at the time Whenever we go back there, I always remember the stories I told, and you get the feeling that there just might be something in the woods, behind the trees, :howl: especially at night.
But I honestly cant think where I got the idea of werewolves from in the first place, it wasnt a film, or a book, or even someone else, but I definitely had the right picture in my head, and I must have got it from somewhere...

Anyway, thats me, what about everyone else?

[Vagrant]

This is a wonderful topic, thank you for posting it!

From a very young age, I was obsessed with morphological freedom and the fantastic, I was frustrated that I was stuck as just a human, and that I couldn't fly about, run fast, or whatever else. Even from a young age though, I read a lot of comics, so the source of that particular portion of my psyche is rather obvious.

And I'd always loved canines, from a young age I bonded with them more than I did with people. Something that hasn't changed throughout the timeline of my life is that most tend to find me a little too strange and far too eccentric to enjoy the company of. I'm very open-minded, so I often pose thoughts and ideas that tend to leave those around me in a refined state of "...wut?" The Internet was the only cure for that later on, but I digress.

The natural evolution of all this was that even before I hit my teens, I spent a lot of time wondering about animal people, and I'd formed my own favourite little tribe of Dog-men, complete with their own culture and traditions. By the time I was in my teens, I was obsessed with shifters, paratechnology, and all sorts of crazy things to that end. My characters would have all sorts of freedoms granted to them; grow a spaceship, wrap it around them, and bolt off into space if they wanted to.

I watched a lot of the Discovery channel and BBC documentaries, picked up a great deal of love for most animals, and as most kids, I was fascinated by Dinosaurs and Dragons. These all represented little freedoms in my mind that Humanity had been cruelly denied, every animal represented a different kind of freedom, but canines and Wolves were always my favourite, because of those early experiences. And theirs was the freedom of trust.

So these days, I'm fairly obsessed with the buggers. It's probably unhealthy too, but I care not, for I wouldn't be who I am if not for those little (to big) obsessions, I'd be a lot more dead inside without 'em.

[JoshuaMadoc]

I blame (thank) japan and their video gaming culture.

[Bloodyredbaron]

[lycanthropeful]

Ever since I was very young, even though didn't know how to define my interest, I always had an obsession with animals. Later I learned that as a young girl, I had a lot of unusual thoughts, particularly as a female. When I was about 12 or 13, I put my finger on what was "wrong" with me - I was a macrophile. Strangely enough, I had an obsession with dragons because they epitomized everything that I sought: power, freedom, and the ability to leave a boring human state.

I don't know where along the line my preference switched to canines. Shortly after I ditched my old dragon obsession, I designed some canine characters, and my interests have remained there ever since. I had a good friend who I would not be surprised if she was a therian (of the draconic variety); we were close, and I think through her, I began to feel a sudden disappointment with being a human, wanting something more. Perhaps it had to do with wanting more and more to see a werewolf, to be one, etc. Dragons just don't exist, plainly, whereas wolves and big dogs clearly do. It seemed that only in the past three or four years that I started to "understand" werewolves, and what they meant to me. It was a fantasy that I could only ever hope to live one day.

Psychologically, I've analyzed myself many times. Lycanthropy seems like an everyday thought to me. I was raised, and still am (I just turned 18 in October, so my independence is not fully there just yet!), in a very conservative manner, knowing what is morally acceptable and how to act. Well-behaved, gets good grades, nice personality, all that stuff. Finally I realized why I loved werewolves so much: the change from man to beast was a metaphor the freedom from society. Having been pent up, so to say, my whole life, having to conform to my parents/society/etc., it seemed only natural that I would worship some other form of escape where as a wolf someone could roam freely, kill off enemies, and indulge in their unbridled power.

That's another aspect of lycanthropy that appealed to me. Up until about 10th grade, I was very shy. Now I am more confident, and it seems that my body has finally caught up with my mind. I have a physically aggressive personality, but a somewhat "doormat" personality otherwise. You could even go so far as to say that I like being physically dominant in situations - like an alpha wolf - though I'm not very bossy. (I'm pretty sure we're all somehow weird here in one way or another - look up "sthenolagnia" on Google and you'll know what I mean). This change awakened a force in me I never knew I had, which connected strongly with the lifestyle of a werewolf. The increase in size, muscle mass, enhanced power through fangs/claws, speed, freedom... all that good stuff. ;)

Drawing and writing about werewolves has also given me a very real way to allow my angry feelings (which I try to hide, since I, for a long time, though it was socially unacceptable to be angry or violent) to be channeled. The way I see it now is a lot more liberal than before. Until just about last year, actually, I was terrified of my dark urges/fantasies. I thought I was psychotic. But now, I realize that for me, simply "reattaching" my id (if you know Freud's theories of psychoanalysis, that means my animalistic desires) to artwork, instead of performing the actions of the wolf in real life (which are deemed unacceptable by the superego, society's prohibitions) is better than going out and killing someone, even if it's sick and twisted enough that I'd want to in the first place. Werewolves are such a personal topic for me, but I really don't know how I'd not spiral downwards into rage and depression had I no way to vent.

The end.

[Leonca~]

I can’t even remember how I first became interested in werewolves. It probably had something to do with reading myths and folklore, which would occasionally include stories about werewolves. My interest in mythology predated my viewing of many of the classic werewolf movies such as The Wolf Man, so that probably explains my preference for more traditional varieties.
I do remember how I was introduced to other forms of shapeshifters though. There was an awesome episode of the Twilight Zone I saw many years ago, where a woman took a love potion and became cursed and transformed into a wereleopard. That really impressed and fascinated me, and led me later to look up all of the other forms of shapeshifters (mostly in folklore). As much as I love wolves, I would like to be able to change into a leopard even more.

[Moss27]

My official interest in werewolves was when I was in middle school. Wolves were already my favorite animal, so I guess that helped, too.

There were two things that sparked it: a book and a movie. I don't know which one came first, though.

The movie was Van Helsing. The werewolves were visually appealing to me, and that made me scream, "OMG WOW! WEREWOLVES!" And all that nonsense. And Hugh Jackman was a sexy beast, so that helped a lot.

And the book was The Wolving Time. Instead of those stories where werewolves stole people's sheep, they were shepherds themselves and used it to ward off other wolves and stuff. and they still went to church, who ultimately tried to kill them, anyway.

And I guess the interest in werewolves stuck, because I was completely and utterly shy. I used werewolves in these (horrible) short stories, writing to make humanity see that werewolves were only misunderstood. But now that I've found this site, I'm open to all ideas about werewolves and other creatures.

[WerewolfKeeper3]

Let me see... well, it was probably after seeing Goldenwolf's artwork that my love of werewolves started... that, and i have to attribute some of my acceptance, to the X-Men, my love of fantasy, and the fact that i still say there are things in this world that humans can't see, because we just are to afraid to admit they're out there, somewhere... waiting...

[Wingman]

[Silveera-Ice]

Wow, thanks for these wonderful replies! These posts are amazing and its great that your all so honest. I agree with a lot of theses post, they make so much sense!

[Kami]

I've always loved wolves, ever since I was very young. Around the age of 8, I started becoming obsessed with the moon phases as well. I couldn't explain why, but since then, I've loved werewolves almost as much as wolves themselves.

[Celestialwolf]

From my Website (see signature):

I'm obsessed with things that morph, shift, or transform, especially wolves and werewolves. I don't quite know why (It could be due to an inferiority complex?), but I've been this way since I was in kindergarten; my first memories of noticing this interest were with random wolf picture book and the mini-novel Werewolf of Fever Swamp by R.L. Stine at elementary school, and oddly enough, the movie "Scooby-Doo and the Reluctant Werewolf as well. " As I got older, I was enthralled by K.A. Applegate's youth book series: "Animorphs," especially when they morphed wolves.

Growing up, I'd had varied levels of focus and thought on the matter, but in my teens is where the interest really took life and became an obsession as I found Goldenwolf's art, as well as other art and information, on the web. Since then I've always paid special attention whenever I come across or hear about them; one of my favorite songs for a while was Metallica's "Of Wolf and Man." I also began to enjoy being by myself in the mountains or forest—a "lone wolf" if you will—and as strange as it may sound, I've wished many times that I could become a werewolf; to have that ability to become more powerful with fur, claws, and especially the tail to escape normal life and gain more freedom at will. I know that will never happen for me, but the interest will probably be lifelong and I'll continue to look for wolfish media and information for a long time to come.

[Vagrant]

I'm with you, Silveera, it's really great seeing such open and earnest replies.

I admit too that I'm gladdened to see that a number of us have had this interest going on for as long as we can remember, for some it's just a matter of being a fan of Werewolves, but for others it's something that reaches far deeper into the very meaning of ourselves, something that's inexplicably profound.

I've enjoyed reading pretty much all of the replies here, and a number of them have made me smile. And it's just nice to know there are others like-minded out there.

[outwarddoodles]

Vagrant; Same here, same here! Only with another werewolf fan could I have a reasonable conversation about the personal symbolic nature of werewolves. I mean, really! Try explaining werewolf = freedom to anyone else.

Not to sound like a broken record, but my opinions towards werewolves, and all shapeshifters in general, fit along the same lines as everyone else. They mean so many things to me all at once. Freedom, being more than human, the latent primal energy within every man, the connection between man and beast, an instrinsic link to nature and life, concealing of your true nature, the intuition of animal mixed with the intelligence of human....werewolves mean so much to me.

Although, I'd like to mention, I never thought anything about what werewolves embodied before I started liking them. I always loved werewolves. I wrote werewolf stories in elementary school,;my eyes were glued to any movie or show about werewolves; I drew them; I pretended to be shapeshifters; and I even chose my imaginary best friend to be a werewolf. Werewolves then represented some of the same things they do now, but I'm pretty sure I was not consciously aware of what werewolves meant to me before I began liking them.

My official 'obsession' with werewolves did not formally begin until 7th grade. I found Goldie's old site at "The Temple of Luna." I was AMAZED at the artwork there! I couldn't believe there were other interpretations of werewolves than the Hollywood rendition. I scoured the internet for everything werewolf, began to seriously draw what I thought of them, and eventually found myself here.

[Vagrant]

I hear you, I really do.

I wish I'd had access to the Internet earlier on though, due to the fact that I had such a hard time relating to most people, I was certainly a troubled sort. It took far too long in my opinion for the Internet to finally land here, and even when it did it took so much longer to roll out where I lived because I lived out in the middle of nowhere (and still do, to an extent)!

Post Internet though, I'm still a bit of a grizzled curmudgeon (I love that word) on times, but I'm far more well-adjusted because now I know that all these wonderful people are out there. And I don't feel like I'm the only one with these outlandish dreams, and bizarre cravings. I now know full well that's not the case, and the World is a better place for it.

The Pack in particular I really wish I'd stopped by years ago, instead of having bloody lurked that long. Being shy is just a side effect of having been introverted for such a long time, without any real escape. But I'm glad I am here now, contributing the occasional brain heaving to this wonderful place.

So, yup ... I really dig where you're coming from. There are probably few other places that would actually understand any of this, or would even want to.

[lycanthropeful]

I also began to enjoy being by myself in the mountains or forest—a "lone wolf" if you will—and as strange as it may sound, I've wished many times that I could become a werewolf; to have that ability to become more powerful with fur, claws, and especially the tail to escape normal life and gain more freedom at will. I know that will never happen for me, but the interest will probably be lifelong and I'll continue to look for wolfish media and information for a long time to come.

That's exactly how I feel! For a year, I worked at a local supplement store, and when I'd come home after closing the store around 8:30 PM, if I had a bad night (frustrating customers, cash register problems, bad sales, etc.), there was nothing I wanted to do more than to walk down to the park on my street and go sit in the forest. Luckily there was a legitimate park there, swings, slides, and everything, or else I never would have convinced my parents to let me go in the dark (meanwhile I was thinking, "I can fend for myself - I'm a wolf for tonight"). It's amazing how just being there helped me vent my frustration... sometimes I'd just scream, go climb a tree, or stare up at the moon. I knew every time I did it that it was awfully weird, but it made me feel better.

These are great responses so far! It's like THERAPY reading them all!

Post Internet though, I'm still a bit of a grizzled curmudgeon (I love that word) on times, but I'm far more well-adjusted because now I know that all these wonderful people are out there. And I don't feel like I'm the only one with these outlandish dreams, and bizarre cravings. I now know full well that's not the case, and the World is a better place for it.

Isn't this (The Pack, and other websites pandering to our interests in general) such a relief? I never knew the werewolf community was so diverse. Like you said, Vagrant, I am so much more well-adjusted knowing that, to put it harshly, I'm not just a "freak." There are other "freaks," by society's definition, out there.

My last two years of high school were really rough for me because I could feel my "weird" desires starting to come to the surface, and I was afraid of coming to terms with myself. I was in denial. Denial from myself, and concealment from my parents (THAT I still am to an extent). I kept trying to deny that maybe I was a little bit murderous, a bit vindictive, and bit power-hungry (okay, a LOT power-hungry). But you know what? This year, my freshman year in college, I figured out how to be myself. If people don't want to deal with the side of me that is a bit odd, i.e. more animal, then that's their prerogative.

Dang, I'd still like to teach myself to growl. It's like a dream of mine, haha. Though it's not like I walk around on all fours and snarl at people - I don't even wear wolf t-shirts and ears/tails. But there are definitely some things I'd like to do somehow explore my alternate nature a bit more - lycanthropy is and always will be a part of me.

[outwarddoodles]

I know this sounds wish-washy but: The world's much too large for anyone person to believe they're alone.

And on that note, I'm sure there's another reason so much of us love werewolves: a pack of wolves symbolize a dedicated and unconditional coalition that's hard to discover in our everyday lives. I may still be a 'lone wolf' (no pun intended) but that doesn't mean I wouldn't appreciate having a pack to support me.


(by the way, Vagrant, I'm happy you decided to speak up here. ; P )

[lycanthropeful]

I know this sounds wish-washy but: The world's much too large for anyone person to believe they're alone.

True. But, I'm sure all of us at one point felt like we were "the only one." I know I did!

[Vagrant]

That's a wonderful ideal, outward, and I do believe it now (as I've come to believe in a lot of ideals) ... but back before the Internet I felt like the World was a square shaped hole, all these square pegs were sliding on through, and as a round peg I was stuck at the gate, looking in from the outside and never really having anything to relate to.

Blimey O'Riley, sapient toddler-toys makes for such a weird and Freudian analogy. Sorry about that.

Oh, lycanth, don't give up hope on growling. The best thing to do is to get yourself acquainted with a canine companion, if you haven't already. The closer they are to Wolf, the better. I live with a Samoyed, he's really close to an arctic Wolf visually and I love that about him. ...and he howls, oh does he howl. When he howls, I howl. Then there is a lot of howling. And due to my love of him, I've tried communicating with body language and sounds as he does, my family have commented on how amazingly wrong this is, but I love it. [Edited to add: I find that growling is actually similar to snoring, if you can master snoring when fully awake, then a good throaty growl and snarl aren't far off.]

Speaking of my family ... I can understand that. But at one point, I just got tired and I snapped. I dumped the whole enchilada on them; that I'm gay, my unhealthy fascination with psychology and hypnosis, my love of anthropomorphic creatures, and so much more. It did blow their minds, but my Grandmother was fine with it all. This I could barely believe, my Sister finds me painfully weird but my Grandmother wasn't bothered at all. I even had to verify that it hadn't just gone in one ear and out the other. She's awesome. And she's direct proof that we're not just getting more open-minded with each generation.

You may have someone like that in your family, lycanth. One of them may just surprise you, and your life could be better for you, or worse ... this is something I really can't advise you on.

[Moonraiser]

Well...lol. First of all I would like to say this is my first post. (All thanks to Celestialwolf. He knows what I mean. )

So...the origin of my werewolf interest is somewhat blurred for me. The reason for this is because I really can't recall exactly how it all started, but I have looked back on my whole life and have put together the pieces as best I could. And I think I did a good job.

At a very young age, (don't ask me what age.) I realized I liked wolves. It was more of a fascination really. At that age, the stage of my facsination was simple. Basically, I knew what a wolf was and liked it. That was it. After all I was very young. (Ok, around 3 or 4.) Since then, I have never faltered on my...er...furry interest. As I grew up, my fascination basically stayed the same until elementary school.

During elementary, I did some...well...funny and crazy things. Let me explain. When I reached elementary, I had found out about werewolves. I do not recall from where or who, or what, but I'm pretty sure I knew what they were from day one. I believe I would have always been a wer and wolf fan, no matter what happened in my life. Realizing that I liked werewolves, I did some crazy things to prove it. For example.

One day on the bus, I had a friend named Cody. I had brought some "werewolf blood", and told Cody that after I drank it, I would be a werewolf. Of course, he didn't believe me, (bastard) but I didn't care. He told me that it looked like grape juice. I was astonished that my own friend didn't believe me. (And that he was right.) But, I insisted that it wasn't, and to prove it, (and hide the evidence), I drank it. After a couple minutes of staring at nothing, I started to have "fits". This consisted of me shaking "uncontrollably", and then passing out. After about a couple of minutes, making sure my friend believed me, I "awoke" to find him not paying a single attention to me and playing on his Gameboy. I told him that drinking the "blood" worked, and basically he still didn't believe me. I told him I would prove it to him one day. And I did.

It was Christmas time, and I told Cody, that I could prove I was a werewolf. I told him that I couldn't shift for him, because we were at school and everyone would see, and that the government would be after me. But I told him I could show him proof. I said I shifted that night and came to school, and that my tracks should still be there. I had him follow me to the tracks. (Not knowing that I would indeed find any.) So, looking around furiously, I eventually (to my surprise.) spotted some very large dog tracks, and pointed them out to Cody. Well, lets just say that, he did believe me, even though he did not want to admit it. (The look on his face was killer.)

Those are a couple of things that I have done, and a short story of how my interest in werewolves (and wolves) came to be. And lets just say that I will always be a fan. If you have any questions, look me up and PM me. Thanks for listening.

M

[Wingman]

Excellent job Moonraiser, that's hilarious. Reminds me of when I found out how to make fake scabs using glue, a red pencil, and one of those pinkish erasers. Made a couple people think I got mauled.

[lycanthropeful]

Excellent job Moonraiser, that's hilarious. Reminds me of when I found out how to make fake scabs using glue, a red pencil, and one of those pinkish erasers. Made a couple people think I got mauled.

Haha, I once fooled my English class and said I had third-degree burns just by strategically smearing some Indian Red oil paint on the back of my hands in my Studio Art class the period before.

I could certainly use that advice mixed with my own supplies for some fun werewolf-related injuries in the future! =D

[Kami]

Once of my favorite past times is wandering around the small forest we have on our golf course. It's big enough to keep me entertained for hours, and yet small enough that no one would expect someone to be lurking within. However, it is a favorite spot of many of the neighborhood kids. Many times, I've been stalking through the forest and heard kids approaching or already in the trees. Instead of ignoring them or immediately alerting them to my presence, I instead hide around in different areas where they wouldn't be able to see me from their locations, and then I howl. Almost every time, I hear a scream, or one of the kids says something about a "wolf in here!" Rarely do they ever hang around. I can tell when I have a friend in the forest if I can't see them, though, because they'll howl back. We'll often strike up a chorus before meeting up, and it's funny when you hear or see some younger people that were playing outside in their backyards nearby go inside. xDDD

There are coyotes that stalk the territory and live in the forested areas throughout much of the winter and spring, but according to many kids, I'm bringing wolves back into northern Texas.

[IndianaJones]

It all started when I was just a child. I remember I was watching a 1990's movie flick about a werewolf and I watched it on TV. The movie depicts a man transforming into a wolf after looking at the full-moon and the man is wearing a yellow jacket. The transformation is off-screen, which kind of sucks. But I can hear the sounds! The man is in love with a woman and he transformed in front of his girlfriend. She screamed and ran. After the transformation, the werewolf in wolf form is still wearing his yellow jacket and that looked cute. The werewolf is gray and has blue eyes.

When I was in my grandma's house when I was still a kid. I was playing around as a werewolf with a friend that I don't remember. I think he was wearing a wolf mask? Wait, is that true. It's been too long. Maybe, um. Well, I do recall that when my uncle's room's window curtains is open and exposed. Funny, it was a full moon on that day. I pointed and shouted, "Oh no, the full moon!" Then, my brother said, you are not a werewolf and you won't change. That's all I can remember so far. I kept my werewolf interest to myself for a very long time, until now.

Werewolf movies, novels, tv series, and comics inspired me and I will never lose interest of it. For it shall remain in me forever.

My voice is deep, I can't howl!

[Vagrant]

Kami: That has to be wonderful. I really wish I had something like what you have nearby, but it's all just mild woodland here, no forests to speak of. The woods are nice, but I really am going to have to travel one of these days, even if it is just to walk through a forest.

Indy: Voice too deep to howl, really? I'd never even considered that. I'm one of those people who has a low hormone count, so I look many years younger than I actually am, and my voice has never truly broken. Due to that, I can give a good howl. I consider myself lucky in that regard then, as I think I'd be lost without my ability to howl...