The Tiny Ghost Newsletter, edition #22, February 2, 2023
Hey Monster Masher!
In just under two weeks our first release of 2023, Chloe Spencer's Monstersona, is hitting shelves. I'm so excited for people to finally meet Riley, Aspen, and the best boi, Tigger, to experience this action-packed adventure of a story, and to discover what the monstrous secret that's following them across the country is!
So I thought in the run up to this release we could take a look at a few of histories most famous monsters and rank how they would stack up in a kaiju battle with the titular creature from Monstersona.
First up is perhaps the most famous of all the big monsters, the king of the kaiju...Godzilla!
Originally hailing from Japan, Godzilla has been portrayed time and time again in film, to varying degrees of success. As a child of the 90s, the 1998 Matthew Broderick film and accompanying animated series was a cultural touch stone for me, but recently Godzilla has been trying to get back to his roots. This prehistoric reptile is super charged with nuclear power and is known as the king of monsters. I think it's safe to say Godzilla bares the closest resemblance to the creature from Monstersona, at least as far as appearance and size go. I'm not quite sure if he has the cunning to outwit our monster however. It's a tough call but I think while they'd be fairly even in a battle, our monster would win out. 7/10
Next up is King Kong. You must have been squirrelled away in an underground laboratory if you're not familiar with this giant ape. He's been hanging off the Empire State building since he dragged Fay Wray up there in 1933, and has been recreated in film by Lord of the Rings alum Peter Jackson, and most recently as an oversized puppet on broadway. This ape may have more of a brain than Godzilla, but without the scientific upgrades our monster has he doesn't stand a chance. 6/10
Now for some romance, from the black lagoon comes an aquatic foe for our monster. The creature from the black lagoon is an amphibious terror who wreaked havoc on a scientific exploration before becoming obsessed with the only woman on board. Not dissimilar to the amphibious creature seen in Guillermo del Toro's The Shape Of Water, who was likewise captivated by Sally Hawkins. These are either some seriously romantic monsters of these guys have a problem. So it's hard to say if these creatures are lovers or fighters. But I think it's safe to say our monster has them beat, in battle and in matters of the heart! 4/10
And finally, posing perhaps the greatest threat of all is...the cookie monster!
Only kidding. Cookie would make a much better back seat pal for Tigger, Riley's loyal and obedient pup who comes along for their trip across the mid-west. And to be honest, with those cookies around, that's one fluffy blue monster who wouldn't last long if our monster gets hungry. 2/10
So that's how a selection of world famous monsters stack up against the creature featured in Monstersona. There are so many questions still to be answered...where did this monster come from? What does it want? Was it born or built and if the latter, who made it? And of course, why does it seem to be following Riley and Aspen as they drive cross country to meet Riley's father?
For the answers to these questions and to see our monster in action make sure to pre-order your copy of Monstersona, out February 14!
We're so excited for this release and we'll be announcing a slew of live events on Instagram and Tiktok in the following weeks, so stay tuned for that. As always anything you can do to help us spread the word is greatly, greatly appreciated, whether that's leaving a review on Amazon or Goodreads, posting about the book on your socials, or simply calling every number in your contacts to tell them to buy this book!
Thank you so much, and I hope you enjoy Monstersona as much as I've enjoyed working on it.
Is there a little monster in you?
Stay scary,
Josh x
