 Fantasy: June 15, 2011 Issue [#4446] |
  Fantasy
This week: Fairy Tales ~ Not Just for Kids Edited by: Kate - Writing & Reading  
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"All that we see or seem is but a dream within a dream."
Edgar Allan Poe
Greetings, I am honored to be the guest editor for this issue of the Writing.Com Fantasy Newsletter ^_^ I believe that all creative writing, be it poetry or prose, has an element of fantasy. We write what we know, perceive, and imagine.
The word "fantasy" has myriad definitions; but thumb through any dictionary, or surf dictionary.com or wikipedia.com, and you will see that they all begin with "imagination."
Is that not what the writer does? ~ Observe, perceive, or visualized an object, emotion, situation, and with pen/pencil, or keyboard, use words to develop a story or a poem that relates that observation, perception, or vision.
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Greetings, Fairy Tales are not just for kids, and I'm not alone in my view.
Fairy Tales have a long and rich history in literature and as oral folktale. The term itself is credited to a French writer in the second half of 17th Century, Marie-Catherine d'Aulnoy, who used it to describe her collections of popular tales and adventure stories. I've read some partial classic translations online (www.surlalunefairytales.com) and have to agree that these stories were originally written for her adult peers. Current English adaptations of these stories have been revised to make them more suitable for younger audiences, but the originals are still recognizable and engaging..
Spin back in time to Chaucer's "Canterbury Tales," and further back to Ancient Greece for Aesop's famous "Fables" (6th Century BCE) and, some historians claim, even farther back to ancient Egypt around 1300 BCE!
The oral folk tradition of fairy tales is even longer, and draws from the rich history and mythology of the people whose culture it reflects. Some are woven into legendary narratives of interactions with the fairies, elves, dragons and giants which once lived more openly with mortals throughout the world. The 'fairy tale' as we now characterize it usually features characters found in such folklore (i.e., fairies, goblins, elves, giants, talking animals) and enchantments, often involving a fantastic sequence of events and most often ending happily. They do not refer to specific locations, persons or time periods, as they often begin "once upon a time."
Perhaps the best known fairy tales are the stories compiled by the Brothers Grimm. These began their collected life in print as a compendium of oral folktales, originally written in the early 1800s, where the Brothers Grimm sought to preserve the characters and plots of oral German folk tales in written form. In later editions, the stories were edited to make them more suitable for children, and were published in the late 1800s as a collection entitled Children's and Household Tales. Pressure from publishers in the 1900s resulted in even more rewriting in translations to make them suitable for younger children, and today's common image of the child's fairy story was defined, perhaps along with the coinage of a happy ending as a 'fairy tale ending.' . (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairy_tale)
The Fairy Tale continues its evolution today, while also holding fast its original and common literary image. American Heritage Dictionary defines a fairy tale as both "1. A fanciful tale of legendary deeds and creatures, usually intended for children," and "2. A fictitious, highly fanciful story or explanation." They are embraced throughout the world, by adults and kids alike. From nursery rhymes (often a child's first exposure to literature), to some manga {i.e., "Sandman"), and individual stories worldwide, creative authors of poetry and prose incorporate at times elements of oral history, science, local color, images, comics, film, manga, along with myth and fantasy. This literary form, having survived and grown over millenia, thus continues to delight, enthral, and at times compel readers.
Fairy Tales today evolve with the vision of the writers of stories and poems who transport us to magical and mystical places and show us events that occurred, or may yet occur, "once upon a time." So, have a story to share in story or verse of something that might have been, once upon a time?
"The way to read [and write]a fairy tale is to throw yourself in."
~W. H. Auden~
So, how do we make our fairytale memorable and engaging, whether revisiting one from memory or envisioning one today in our world or perhaps one parallel to ours?
 What's the moral of the story? What lesson will your fairytale teach. For example, was not 'Little Red' cautioned not to talk to strangers? What of 'Jack' trespassing? See where this is going? Generally, a fairy tale is also described as a fable that teaches an important moral. The message of the story may be subtle, but it is what makes the fairy tale endure for generations of readers. Be careful what you wish for, you might get it.
Characters that make you care, both good and not-so-good, but ones that your reader can relate to. Generally, a fairy tale needs both a hero and a villain. The interaction between good and evil is a critical element in the success of your story. Remember, these characters need not be human, perhaps a couple of little pigs, or a gnome, elf, goblin, faeries, witches, giants. The sky, and beyond, is the limit.
A fairytale needs someone to root for. They're not perfect, but someone to empathize with or to pull for, like 'Jack' and 'Red' - you want them to succeed.
Now for the 'bad guy' who works as an antagonist to the good character. The evil character usually has powers of some sort and they must use those powers in a way to cause the good character pain or or create obstacles.
A magical character or object which can be the evil character but many fairy tales have both good and evil magical characters that work to off-set the other's influence.
Obstacles your good character is going to have to face. Whatever the obstacle it should seem insurmountable and genuinely require a bit of creativity by your good character and a little magical assistance. Some obstacles or challenges could be: a person or creature to rescue, a curse to break, finding true love, helping a family or clan member, finding something or someone long lost. Keep going, I'm sure you'll think of more.
Write a happy ending. A fairytale isn't a fairytale unless it has a happy ending. Your good character must succeed and your evil character must lose and lose in a big way so you can write your "happily ever after."
Engage the Journey.
Write On!
Kate
Kate - Writing & Reading
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First, I invite you to visit an 'otherworld' shared by J. A. Buxton  in response to my previous guest appearance, where we explored worldbuilding ~ you will be pleased with the journey
J. A. Buxton "Some time back, I wrote a short story about a human and a satyr. As many ancient gods did in the past, they weren't satisfied to leave humans alone. One night, the god Vulcan made me create a new world, and the result is my version of mythological history. I invite you to visit Luzon, home of the gods."
Now, check out these tales in prose and verse from 'once upon a time' envisioned by several members of our Community and engage the journey with your comment or perchance a review
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Have a story or verse to share ~ stop by here
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I'd like to share with you a few comments from my past guest appearance here, where we explored worldbuilding, and invite you to visit with the authors who've woven some 'otherworlds' to engage your reading (and reviewing) pleasure
From: LJPC - the tortoise 
Wow, Kate, that was a very organized, step-by-step explanation of world-building. You're right, world-building is critical to fantasy and sci-fi. Readers need to be transported to somewhere they've never been before where the most unusual things appear and the most unlikely things happen. This is one of the reasons why J.K. Rowling is so successful. Her world-bulding is as phenomenal as Tolkien's. Thanks for the great newsletter!
-- Laura
I'm glad you enjoyed the exploration and found it useful to weaving your own 'otherworlds' ~ which I look forward to visiting.
From: J M Silva
Thank you for the excellent newsletter! I have a question. During the process of my novel I have set up an outline of the story arc. I have realized the importance of worldbuilding for the fantasy genre and started the project. This project has become anathema to me. I have come up with a plethora of story ideas and now I am unsure as to where to actually start my story. I can imagine this is a common pitfall to many authors. How do I decide where to actually start my story? Do I interlace some of the history I have created into the main story or do I save it for other projects? Your advice would be appreciated.
Thank you for your encouragement. Wow, 'a plethora of story ideas' is exciting!! But I can see the potential obstacles in trying to make them all fit without distracting from the story with backstory. What if you start with a precipitating event or action, then challenge your character to solve or resolve a solution. He/she will have to engage, along the way, some obstacles and helpers (mortal, non-human, real or imagined) who will reveal some of the history through their interaction and perhaps their very existence, drawing an image of the 'world' the characters inhabit.
And, if it doesn't quite fit 'this' world, consider setting it aside temporarily for a sequel or the next story in a series? Just my humble thoughts I look forward to visiting your otherworld as it is revealed.
Thank you all for sharing this exploration and I hope you have some fun creating your own 'once upon a times'
Write On
Kate
Kate - Writing & Reading
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