Fable Dwelling

I lova, lova fairy tales. Yarns from countries around the world, fables from deep and shallow in the annals of time. So when I spied this house, I had to love the people who live there. They surely have the soul of a fairy tale lover to dwell in such a place.

I wish I had met them. I wonder what would've happened if I had wandered down the path to their door and rang the doorbell. I bet the chimes would've triggered something magical and suddenly I'd step into fairytale land. Mmm . . . fairytale land. Just imagine.

But even if I had remained in the here and now, just meeting such delightful, full-of-fairytale-life people would've been gleefully magical indeed. Oh, and this is a real house and yes, people really live there. It's in Bear Lake, Idaho. I took the photo when we were on vacation this summer!

You know what? - I think I'll find some way to live a bit of the fairy tale life myself. I can't build a fantastical house like these people did, but I can do something! Something magical. Hmm . . . I'll daydream about the possibilities and post my idea.

In the meantime, here are some passages to fairytale you away . . .

From the Japanese Folk Tale, The Deer of Five Colors— 
          
        Then the deer answered. "Look at me. My coat is of five colors and my antlers are white. There is no deer anywhere on earth that looks like me. I know that men are greedy and cruel, and there are many who would kill me to sell my hide for gold. That is why I have hidden deep in this forest all these years, far away from the villages of men. You must promise never to tell anyone you saw me, for if you tell, surely someone will come to hunt me, and I shall be captured and killed."


And from the Swedish Fairy Tale, Lars, My Lad!— 
       
       He lifted the lid.
       Inside the chest was another chest, and in that another. And so it continued to be; in each chest was one smaller, until they became tiny boxes. The more he opened, the harder he worked at it. He felt there must be something valuable inside to be so well hidden. 
       At last the Prince came to a miniature box in which lay a tiny piece of paper. That was all he found for all his trouble! It disappointed him, but then he discovered something written on the paper. He was just able to make out the words, Lars, my lad!
      As he pronounced these words, he heard someone answer—right in his ear— "What are Master's orders?"
       

HAPPY FAIRYTALING THIS MAGICAL TIME OF YEAR! 

The Charm of Obscure Fairy Tales

At the writer’s conference Life, the Universe, and Everything held at Brigham Young University last February, I feasted on a banquet of information.

Panelists Dr. Jill Rudy, Hailey Evans, and Kristy Stewart discussed fairy tales in one of the presentations I attended. They called it—Retelling Tales: Getting Beyond the Same Six Tales. 

These are the tales they mentioned:

     ~Cinderella  ~Sleeping Beauty  ~Snow White

     ~Beauty and the Beast  ~Red Riding Hood

                           ~Hansel and Gretel

Their teaching and insight fascinated me! I couldn’t wait to claim my own copies of rare and obscure fairy tales to read. My heart went crazy, my ears clanged, my vision sparkled—Ah! The possibilities for using such fairy tales as fodder for my own books besides the utter enjoyment of reading them!

Hailey talked about a huge gap in the fairy tale books she read while growing up—almost all supposedly girl heroes were useless and shared the same beautiful appearance. She suggested reading one of her favorite books: Fearless Girls, Wise Women, and Beloved Sisters by Kathleen Ragan. This book of stories from around the world features strong female protagonists to inspire readers instead of binding them down to harmful stereotypes.

To buy your own book click this line.

I enjoyed listening to Jill, Hailey, and Kristy with their impressive knowledge and friendly personalities. 

Some thoughts to take away from their presentation:

~It’s easy to distend belief with a retelling because the originals are already familiar.

~If you write a story that has similar things but contrasts with a known fairy tale, it means more—it’s a foil. Like an Irish girl riding a horse and losing a glove compares to Cinderella.

~If you use a motif, like glass slippers, it will make the reader recall a story they know, even if you’re not telling the same story.

~Resonance is what will connect you to your audience.

If you’d like more great information about fairy tales, check out these blogs:

Diamonds and Toads ~ Enchanted Conversations

Click on www.diamondsandtoads.com

Sarah Beth Durst’s Obscure Fairy Tales page 
on her website. 
Click on www.sarahbethdurst.com/fairytales.htm

SurLaLune Fairy Tales Blog

Click on surlalunefairytales.blogspot.com/

See you Wednesday—Happy wandering in Fairy Tale Land until then!