Topic Research

I have chosen to focus on the topic of fairy tales with rags-to-riches.

Beauty and The Beast: Basque Legends
I chose this legend because it tells the story of the mistreated daughter who eventually married a serpent who turned into a handsome prince.

The Poor Turkey Girl
I chose this story because it is similar to Cinderella, starting with a poor girl who is never noticed. This was an interesting twist to the original Cinderella, because it involved the main character to be interacting with animals (turkeys). Through her hardworking and kind spirit, she was the queen of the ball, or so she thought. In the end she was just the same poor turkey girl as before.

Puss in Boots
I chose this story because it allows us to see a man go from rags-to-riches, which is a bit different than what we're used to seeing in many fairy tales rags-to-riches stories.

Cinderella

Feedback Strategies

Point Out Anything That Is Confusing

This was an informative read. It allows you to understand the importance of asking questions and allowing the author to understand that what they wrote may have not been the most clear.

I think this would be helpful for myself, because sometimes when I'm writing I may get ahead of myself and forget to add in an important detail in the story.

So anyone pointing anything out that may be confusing to them will be helpful.

Show Appreciation For The Details

Appreciating the little details that one may put into their story can be super helpful as well as a confidence booster.

I know for myself, adding in little details can be difficult, because you never know if the little details are helpful or if they are just extra words that don't need to be there.

Showing appreciation for the small details may help the reader feel like they made a good call on adding in the extra scene or adding "flowery" words to a certain conversation.

Thanks

                                                       

Topic Research

I think I want to focus on fairy tales for my topic for the rest of the semester.

After reading through different fairytales including different characters, scenes, plots, and endings, I think I've chosen some of the specifics for my project.

I may want the scene to be set in a kingdom which includes kings and queens whom live in a castle in a far away place.

Of course, I want my fairytale to have a happy ending that leads the readers wanting more.

I really like the story of Beauty and the Beast, so I may try and to work that into my story somehow.

One of the fairytales that I enjoyed reading about was mainly focused on English Fairytales.

The Three Little Pigs could be an interesting story to change up. There could be numerous outcomes, considering there are many characters that could be changed.

In the story linked above, I liked how the author used some of the same storyline as the original story, but also added in some extra scenes. This is what I plan on doing for my project.

                                             
                                                                                     Rose

Week 3 Story: The Whale and The Mermaid

Authors Note:
For this story, I've decided to take a whole new route. I've changed up the main characters who in the previous story were many fish, a saint, and his friend. I've decided to use the same scene as the previous story, but have a whole new story plot and ending. A little background on the original story, which includes the fish in the sea, the saint (Saint Gudwall), and his friend. The saint and his friend lived on a tiny island together and were beginning to worry because the waves from the sea began rising and crashing into their home. Devastated and cold, they had no where to go. Sure enough, the fish in the sea came to their rescue. The fish began to build a sea bar to create a barrier so that the waves would no longer crash onto their island. Saint Gudwall and his friend were able to return home and live on the island.

Saints: The Fish Who Helped Saint Gudwall
Author: Abbie Farwell Brown (1900)

The Whale and The Mermaid

Many years ago, a beautiful girl, named Coral, lived on an island all by herself. She didn't mind living alone though, for she found it to be peaceful.

Coral lived on a tiny island that had all she needed. It had a small cave to where she had shelter, and many trees to where she found fruit hanging on them to eat.

To fulfill her days, Coral would go out into the ocean and swim with the fish and sea turtles. She had always felt some sort of connection with the sea and the animals that lived in it.

Coral always thought there was something different and unique about her. She could swim hours upon hours in the ocean and never become tired. She was a fast swimmer and found racing the fish and turtles to be fun!

One afternoon, she noticed that the waves were unusually large and violently crashing onto the shore. The water was beginning to rise and started washing into the cave. She started to become worried.

Later that evening, she was awoken by the cold water touching her skin. The water had flooded her cave and she had no choice but to leave the cave and go somewhere else. She walked to the shore line and saw a whale that had washed up on the beach.

"I have come for you" the whale said.

"You have come for me?" asked Coral.

"You are the chosen one, and you must come with me now." exclaimed the whale.

"I can't just leave my island, it's been my home for so long" Coral replied.

"If you don't come now, the water is going to continue rising and wash away your island" said the whale.

Hesitantly, Coral took one last look at her island and swam with the whale into the ocean.

As Coral and the whale began to swim, she started to feel weird and tingly. She became concerned.

"Don't be afraid, you are the chosen one" said Whale.

Confused, Coral continued to swim.

A bit later, Coral had noticed she was swimming unusually faster and didn't even need to hold her breath under water. She also noticed that all the animals in the ocean were following and smiling at her.

She soon realized that she was in fact the "chosen one."

She had been chosen to become a mermaid and become the queen of the ocean. Everyone began congratulating and applauding her as she grew her mermaid tale and wore her crown.

Coral was much happier in the water and loved being surrounded by her friends. 

                         

                                                        Palm Trees by The Sea

Reading Notes: The Fish Who Helped Saint Gudwall, Part B

Saints: The Fish Who Helped Saint Gudwall
By: Abbie Farwell Brown (1900)

This story, like many others, has a happy ending, which is why I was so drawn to it. The story also involves marine life, and who doesn't love animals, right?

This story was about a Saint, named Gudwall and his friend who went unnamed. These two found themselves in some trouble as the sea water began to rise and rise and eventually forced them to travel to higher grounds.

Troubled and worried, they didn't know where to turn and weren't sure if they were going to be able to stay on their tiny island for the coming summer and winter months.

As they watched the water rise higher and higher, Saint Gudwall's friend noticed a brown patch in the water. Interested and confused, Saint Gudwall soon realized that the fish in the sea were helping to build a sand bar to form a barrier between them and the crashing waves.

The fish helped save Saint Gudwall and his friend, allowing them to stay and live on the island.

                           
                                                                 Coast of Wales

Reading Notes: The Water Babe, Part A

Jewish Fairy Tales: The Water Babe
By: Gertrude Landa (1919)

This story had a few main characters followed by a few side characters.
Main characters: King of Egypt, Moses, and Princess Bathia.

Throughout the story, the main focus was on the boy, who was names Moses. He was found floating down a river and was cared for by a family of royalty.

The plot of the story was a bit up and down. At times the boy was loved and played with, and at other times, some resented him.

As the story went on, the King would interact more and more with Moses but didn't quite know how he felt about him. Princess Bathia would encourage her father to interact and get to know Moses more, but the King hesitated.

There was a lot of pressure put on the boy to make a decision towards the end of the story. He had to choose between a dish full of gold and jewels, or a dish full of steaming coals. Whichever one he chose would symbolize the "intentions" that he had.

This story was told in a rather different way than you might have heard before. It was focused mainly on Moses and his relationship with the king.


                                                   
                                                      Photo Source: The Water Babe