Mary Shelley, the daughter of two highly celebrated authors was destined to be a writer herself. It was obvious when she began scribbling down ideas and thoughts at a young age that she should aspire to accomplish things in her life; no one ever imagined that she would produce a horrifying masterpiece.
It was the bleak and dreary English coastline that brought about inspiration to Shelley to write, not about her own life but the adventures of others. Life was too commonplace to write about oneself; people were far more interesting than her. Her vivid imagination gained inspiration by the tress in her yard which she took refuge under when annoyed with the world. It was her dreams and stories that Shelley dictated into words for only her to see and babble in.
Marriage saw Shelley's life become busier and filled with a sense of reality instead of a desire of fiction. Her life was consumed by managing a family, pleasing a husband and traveling. With her husbands urge for her to gain her rightful literary reputation Shelley reconsidered the notion. Many late hours were spent with ghost stories and visits from neighbors. It was a push of a neighbor for all parties involved in their discussions to write a ghost story that lead to the bone chilling tale of Frankenstein.
Unable to come up with an appropriate frightening subject to write about Shelley turned to her husband and neighbor, Lord Bryon's, conversations. Invention; giving life to something, molding it into your own creation became the fixations which Shelley delved on. A man who reanimated a copse with hopes of greatness is soon forced to realize that his work is terrifying; the only escape from such a horrid monster would be constant running and hiding. The mere thought of the subject brought horror to Shelley in such a way that she was not able to sleep.
Trying desperately to capture the terror which encompassed her, Shelley began to write about the inventor and his creator; anything that was able to terrify her in such a way would surely make an exquisite ghost story.