The Fairy Tale Blog Tag!

 GOOD MORNING, CYBERSPACE!

Today I’m coming at you with YET ANOTHER BLOG TAG! Aha. I know. I’m so original. But the fact of the matter is, there’s only one more day left of February. Which means that there’s only one more day left to enter the Fiary Tale Blog Tag linkup over at Fairy Tale Central.

WHICH MEANS THAT IF I DON’T POST THIS NOW, I’M NEVER GOING TO POST THIS. And that, my friends, simply cannot be. This is a tag about fairytales. I LOVE fairytales. Therefore we are doing this tag, peasants.

So sit back, relax, and listen to me squeal for the next half hour. *flings cookies in your face*

THE TAG!

i. What’s an obscure fairy tale you love?

All righty. I should probably admit that I haven’t exactly read a whole lot of obscure fairytales. I have a giant book filled with them, of course–what self-respecting fantasy-lover DOESN’T?–but I haven’t exactly . . . erm . . . read them all yet.

BUT! I do think I have an answer for this, even if it isn’t AS obscure as I once believed it to have been: Snow White and Rose Red. There’s a very specific reason I love this fairytale so much, and though I can’t really dive too deeply into that because of SPOILERS, I can tell you that, with any luck, you’ll be able to read my rendition of this fairytale someday.

. . .maybe.

. . .moving on.

Another very obscure fairytale that I can remember enjoying was one about a prince who was a bird and a tree with a lock and an old hag of a witch who cursed said prince. . . I honestly can’t remember what it was called, though, so apparently it was so obscure I forgot all necessary information for finding it again. Ah, well.

ii. If you got to choose Disney’s next animated princess movie, what fairy tale would you choose to be adapted?

Oh, DEFINITELY Rumpelstiltskin. I would absolutely adore to see Disney’s spin (aha. spin. get it?) on this one, though I think perhaps I’d rather write my own version of it before they get their greedy little paws on it. . . I’d better get started on that, tbh.

iii. What is the first fairy tale you remember hearing when you were a child?

I . . . honestly don’t remember. Probably Cinderella or Snow White, if I had to guess. I vividly remember one of my first-ever written works being a very strange concept of Cinderella, so obviously I had to know the general gist of that tale rather early on. BUT, I know for a fact that it would have been the Disney version of said fairytale that I was drawing inspiration from. The first REAL fairytale I ever read–or remember reading, at least–was Rapunzel. And that, my friends, happened not all that long ago.

I also remember watching The Little Mermaid quite a bit as a kid, so that might be in the running for “first fairytale ever heard” as well. But if I had to guess? Cinderella. (which I’m assuming will be a LOT of bloggers’ answers. just a guess.)

iv. If you were to embark on a fairy tale quest, what necessities would you pack in your bag?

OOH! What a marvelous question! I guess I should probably think on this for a moment before spewing out nonsensical answers. A fairytale quest sounds quite dangerous–and, of course, magical–so I definitely want to go prepared. . .

Let’s see. If I were to venture off on a fairytale quest, I would probably bring:

• THE PIRATE PENCIL . . . The pirate pencil turned out to be quite a hit in my previous post, so clearly he needs to come along with me on my questing adventures. That, and I desperately need something to write with, because I’m also bringing–
• A NOTEBOOK . . . Leather-bound, deckled edges. If I’m really going on a fairytale quest, then I’m going to need something to document the entire adventure down in. There’s no WAY I’m going on a quest and not journaling about it! Something like that needs to be remembered for centuries, even if my handwriting is sloppy and I’m writing late into the night beside the dwindling embers of a long dying fire.
• HAIR TIES . . . This one is probably really dumb, but I mean??? You think I’m going on a long, tedious, quite possibly DEADLY quest without hair ties? You think I’m going to let my hair hang loose and frizzy whilst vanquishing my enemies? I DON’T THINK SO, PEASANT. This mess is getting lopped up into a party pony before I go slicing off appendages, and there ain’t NOTHING you can do to stop me.
• CELL PHONE + CHARGER . . . What? You never said I couldn’t bring technology! XD PLUS I’m definitely going to be calling my mom like every single night before bed, so I need something to contact her with. Pigeons are way too slow, and I’ve never been good with smoke signals, so my cell phone and texting it is. (also I get lost super easily, so I think Google Maps would be a great asset to have at my disposal, no?)
• A GOOD PAIR OF BOOTS . . . I have recently discovered what a bad pair of footwear can do to your feet, and also to your general sense of productivity. Assuming this quest is taking me o’er hill and dale–and possibly a few mountains–I’m going to need a really good pair of hiking boots, or this girl ain’t moving. And to go along with those hopefully fuzzy hiking boots. . .
• COLORFUL SOCKS . . . I’m a simple girl. I love colorful socks–especially if they’re not matching. So in order to stay in a positive mood throughout the whole quest, I’m gonna need some cute, colorful socks. (look, I don’t make the rules. I just enforce them.)
• A GNOME COMPANION . . . YOU ALL SHOULD HAVE SEEN THIS COMING. I love gnomes. Gnomes are very fairytale-esque. If I’m going on an adventure, I WANT A GNOME. I mean, I’m not sure if he’ll fit in my pack or not, but gnomes are small, and my pack can hopefully be one of those bottomless magical bags. (<< ooh, that’s actually a good idea. can I choose what KIND of bag I’m taking along with me??? No? Yes? Are there rules here???)

Oh! And one last thing!

• A PITCHFORK NAMED RUPERT . . . If you didn’t see the gnome coming, you should have most definitely seen this one.

vi. What’s your favorite fairy tale trope?

Okay, so this one is probably going to shock some people, but . . . I kind of like the whole “Happily Ever After”/”True Love Prevails” trope? Which I know is WEIRD for someone who hates romance, but I mean??? It’s kind of sweet, okay? Who DOESN’T dream of finding their own happily ever after? What little girl DOESN’T want to find her true love? I think it’s adorable and sweet, and even though romance in fiction is something I think we could all do with a little less of, I still believe that fairytales should have that sense of Happily Ever After.

v. If you could be any fairy tale character archetype (the princess, the soldier, fairy godmother, talking animal, mischievous imp, wise old woman, evil stepmother/sister, etc.), who would you want to be and why?

Um . . . does creepy-but-super-cool villain count? Like, I wouldn’t want to be the evil stepmother–that’s a little too overdone for me–but if I could be a villain who’s fun and crazy and slightly psychotic. . .??? YES, PLEASE! Anything Moriarty-ish would do. Or Joker-ish. Basically just make me a crazy, unpredictable psycho, and we’re good. XD

However, on the complete flip-side of that, I’d also love to be the hero of the story. I’ve always loved the idea of princesses who aren’t afraid of saving themselves. I’ve always loved singing and talking to trees and animals and swishy skirts and smacking people in the face with a frying pan. . . So although being the villain would be exceptionally fun, I also think being the heroic princess would be just as interesting.

vi. What animal/mythical creature would be your sidekick for fairy tale adventures?

I’m sure y’all are thinking I’m going to pick a gnome here–and in most cases, you’d probably be right–but I think for this particular question I’m going to pick someone a little more personal to me: my birdie. Durachi is already my little creature sidekick, so bringing him along for my fairytale adventures just feels . . . right. That, and most fairytale princesses have a weird connection with birds, so I think that just proves the fact that I should probably be a fairytale princess, rather than a villain.

(although Maleficent has that crow, so I mean??? I could still be a villain with a bird? [actually I need a villain with a bird story now… huh.])

vii. What is your favorite historical era, and what fairy tale would you love to see in that setting?

This question is going to be difficult to answer, because I’ve never really liked any historical era. Aha. Is it possible to just skip this one? No? Okay, here goes. We’re just gonna pick a random fairytale and a random historical era, and we’re gonna fly with it:

*flips coin* The Twelve Dancing Princesses during *spins wheel* The Roaring 20’s.

Honestly, that sounds kinda fun. We’re gonna roll with it. XD

viii. If you could change a fairy tale’s villain into a hero, who would you choose and why?

Ursula. Maybe that’s a weird answer to have right off the bat, but recently I’ve become very fascinated by her character. I would love to delve deeper into what made her the person–or . . . sea-octopus-witch-thingy??–that she is. And I would LOVE to have a story where she becomes–if not a complete hero–at least a somewhat anti-hero. I think that would be a really intriguing story to have.

and also one to write, but I digress.

ix. Do you prefer fairy tales with happy endings or sad/tragic endings? why or why not?

HAPPY ENDINGS!!!! I mentioned this already, but I just LOVE happily ever afters. Even if they’re not completely perfect (yes, there can be some deaths. yes, there can be some tragedy. what else should we expect from a story??), there should still be a happily ever after to look forward to. After all the pain and the heartache our characters are forced to endure, they deserve–at the very least–to find some semblance of happiness at the end of their journey. It may not be the ending they wished for at the start of the book–it may be a little bittersweet–but an ending that is good and right is so much better than one that feels sad and tragic just for sad and tragedy’s sake.

That’s my opinion, anyway.

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TALK TO ME, PEASANTS!

And that’s a wrap on the Fairy Tale Blog Tag! Goodness, I’m kind of shocked that I managed to finish this in time. I think I deserve a cookie. XD

QUESTIONS!:

• What’s your absolute FAVORITE fairytale of ever? . . . this can be as unknown or cherished as you like. Mine is probably Rapunzel. Or Snow White and Rose Red. Or Peter Pan. XD
• What would YOU take in your fairytale questing pack?
• If you could pick an animal sidekick, what would it be?

and most importantly. . .

HAVE YOU EVER WRITTEN A FAIRYTALE RETELLING???

I love fairytale retellings. I’d love to find other writers who enjoy spinning classics in their own way!

As always, until next time. . .