 Short Stories: August 10, 2022 Issue [#11495] |
This week: Once Upon a Time... Edited by: Lilith 🎄 Christmas Cheer  
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Quotes from a few popular fairy tales:
"Remember, you're the one who can fill the world with sunshine"
~ Snow White
"My heart has wings and I can fly. I'll touch every star in the sky. So this is the miracle I've been dreaming of."
~ Cinderella
"Love is putting someone else's needs before your own."
~ Frozen
"Love doesn't have to be perfect. It just needs to be true."
~ Beauty and the Beast
"Today's special moments are tomorrow's memories".
~ Aladdin |
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We learn a lot from fairy tales as a kid that ends up helping us with our adult decisions. The magic found in fairy tales still nourishes our imaginations, even today! Even though they take place in magical kingdoms far, far away, these stories teach us important life lessons.
So, you want to write a fairy tale? What are the 5 elements of a fairy tale?
Every fairy tale has 5 elements that make them a fairy tale, and here they are:
 Hero/Heroine & Villain:
Good versus evil is a common theme in fairy tales. Traditionally, this involves a kind-hearted hero against an evil character. Heroes in fairy tales don’t always need to be purely kind, they can have a dark side making your story more interesting to read.
Magic:
A fairytale with no magic is no fairy tale at all! Think curses, magical spells, and enchanted items.
Magic can be the root of evil, and it can be the only savior in a tough situation for your hero or heroine.
Conflict & Resolution:
Every story needs some sort of conflict. A challenge your hero must solve. The bigger the conflict, the better. The key to good conflict in a fairy tale is to make the conflict feel impossible to solve. Until the last key moment, where your hero comes out on top.
Moral/Lesson:
The reason fairy tales are so popular is the life lessons they can offer to readers. The most common lesson learned from most fairy tales is that being kind can beat any evil in the world, and no matter who you are, dreams do come true!
A Happy Ending:
The majority of fairy tales end with a traditional, “happily ever after” ending. A hero overcomes a challenge and celebrates their win – The end. The princess marries her prince or the poor boy and never feels poor again, and the Queen never feels alone again. More modern fairytales are moving away from happy endings; leaning toward cliffhangers or a sad ending.
Ok, now that we've established what you need to write a fairy tale, here are the steps to help get you started!
 Step 1: Decide on your fairy tale moral
A moral is an important lesson your reader learns when they finish reading a story. For example, the moral of Cinderella is showing kindness to everyone, no matter how they treat you. It is her kindness that wins the Prince over and helps her to live happily ever after. We can find other great examples of morals from reading Aesop’s fables. Just check out this post on the top 12 life lessons from Aesop’s Fables.
Step 2: Create your hero
Some common traits of your hero or heroine could be kind, humble, innocent, and kind-hearted. They must be someone that your reader could relate to and feel something for. Therefore, make your main character a normal, everyday person who could change throughout the story. Think about Jack in Jack and the Beanstalk or Snow White.
Step 3: Create your villain
A fairy tale without a villain would be pretty boring. Create an evil character to test your heroes’ abilities and cause them some pain. The villain in fairy tales is normally the source of conflict. For example, they might stop your hero from achieving their goals or hurt them. Some common villains include the Big Bad Wolf, Cinderella’s stepmother, or the evil queen.
Step 4: Think about the magical element
Magic is the best part of any fairy tale. It is the magical element that guides your hero and helps them get their happy ending. Think about the fairy godmother’s role in Cinderella or the Genie in Aladdin. When creating your magical element, use the “What if” technique. What if the teapot could talk? What if the cat had magical powers? This is a useful technique to help you be innovative and create some really magical elements for your fairy tale. And remember, any everyday object can have magical powers in a fairy tale!
Step 5: Describe the setting
Different settings can create different moods in your fairy tale. For example, a nice little cottage in a forest is the perfect place to create a cozy, warm feeling. While a gloomy castle might set the scene of a dark, gothic fairy tale. Other examples of common settings in fairy tales include an enchanted forest or a royal palace. When choosing your setting, you can also choose the time period of your fairy tale. They set most fairy tales in the 18th or 19th century, but what if your fairy tale is set in the future?
Step 6: Write a happy ending
An important factor of your fairy tale is a happy ending. All fairy tales end in happy endings, so what are yours? Think about how the conflict in the fairy tale will be resolved or how the villain gets defeated. For example, in Cinderella, the glass slippers fit her foot or in The Ugly Duckling, the duck turns into a beautiful swan.
Here's where the challenge comes in...
Write a new fairy tale, send it to me, and I will review it for you!
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Thank you all for your comments regarding my last Short Story newsletter - "The Benefits of Writing Short Stories" :
Beholden  wrote:
Another reason to write short stories is they're more suited to the age and this particular medium. Who has the time these days to read novels? And, if you grew up reading O Henry, you already have a good reason.
markmore  wrote:
Great idea thanks.
Cathryn wrote:
Informative posting.
Poet Chase Twitchell suggests writers not follow Falkner's advice about "Kill your darlings". Instead has a "Keeps" document where she adds all the rejected 'darlings" in tight, scrunched-up lines for possible future use. Once had over thirty-nine pages and has whittled them down considerably. "What doesn't fit in one context, might fit perfectly in another," she said.
Sansa
Thank you for your sincere suggestion. I've made up my mind to start writing short stories every week, and it is of great benefit for me to practice my writing English. Thank you.
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