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Week 15: Story Lab (Writers Write)
Write What You Care About "Write what you care about and understand. Writers should never try to outguess the marketplace in s...
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Hi! I'm Madeline McGill, but I go by Madee. I'm from a Ada, Oklahoma a small town about an hour away. I am a senior and a Human Rel... -
Once Upon a Time, there was an interior designer that loved to design homes for others. She was so talented, creative, and so good at her jo...
Hey Madeline,
ReplyDeleteOk I am in love with your topic!! At the end of every fairy tale we read or the narratory says and they lived happily ever after so the fact that you are making a storybook about this is like every disney obessed person's dreams come true. Your take to make them into these modern women with jobs and everyday lives is brilliant.
Your introduction alreay introduced the tone you would narrorate their lives with and I think its the perfect tone. You keep it light, funny, and sarcastic like most of these women. And the lives you have already set up for them fit the characters so well. I wonder how much you will include the husbands in these accounts. I can not wait to see how you will paint the Happily Ever After neighborhood. Keep up the good work! Can't wait to read more!
Hi Madee,
ReplyDeleteI love the idea of your story book. It is so interesting! We often don't see the ending of a fairy tale, like what happened after the "happily ever after". I am glad you go into detail about. Also, the way you described each story really gave a different perspective on them. This is the beauty of storytelling! You can take about any story and run with it, and it ends up a completely different story! My only suggestions are to make your story flow better maybe by spacing your paragraph out or adding some dialogue. A hint at a twist in the story could also be good! I am so excited to read about what happens. Are they going to be independent woman and break up with their husbands? Are their husbands going to cheat? There are just so many possibilities! I can't wait to read more next week!
Hey, Madee!
ReplyDeleteThis is a fantastic idea for a storybook project -- when I saw your title in the list of projects I knew that I had to check it out! You've got some real reality TV vibes going on here (in the best way) and I love the little additions you made to the characters to put them in the spirit of reality TV personalities (e.g. Rapunzel's new life as a hair product designer and blogger). Super funny.
I'm really hoping we get some dialogue or commentary from the princesses in future stories -- I'd love to hear what these well-known fairy tale stars sound like after fame has gotten to them! I think it will add so much personality and flavor to the storybook.
I'd also love to see a few more pictures on your project! Your splicing of the princesses with the Real Housewives TV poster was clever -- I think more of that would look good on your homepage.
I'm excited to see what happens "next episode"!
Hi Madee,
ReplyDeleteThe concept for your storybook is the perfect mix of craziness and cuteness! I love the banner image you were able to find for your storybook site. One thing that stood out to me though was that it's a little hard to read the title of your site on the home page. Maybe you could adjust the image on the home page the same way you did on the Intro page so it's easier to read the title of your storybook?
I love the images you've found so far for your site, but I agree with Spencer that I'd love to see more images! I think they would really contribute to the humor of your storybook.
I think the modern updates you've given the princesses really fits your Real Housewives theme. My favorite was mentioning how Snow White living with the seven dwarves makes sure she has lots of help around the home, but also gave her enough material to write books about dysfunctional families and meditation! I love the image this creates of Snow White with her hair all a mess trying to meditate while the dwarves cause chaos around her.
While I got a good picture of Snow White's character, I think your description of Belle could be expanded a little bit. I know you briefly mentioned how she met the Beast, and most people know the story of the Beauty and the Beast, but I think since you're kind of changing the narrative it would be helpful to describe their lives together in your version of the story in a little bit more detail.
I'm looking forward to your stories!
Hi Madee,
ReplyDeleteHonestly, because your picture was Disney related I had to click right away! You combined Real House Wives and Disney and I cannot think of a better combo. I like that you have developed these characters to the modern world in an approach that fits will with their character. I am excited to read more about the stories you still write as the weeks progress! I liked that you went with the original story for Rapunzel and Belle. Most people just know the Disney Version and not the original tales these movies were derived from. i like that you kept the story tone in a fun way. It like a fun narrator in one of those sitcoms if I am making any sense right now. You are providing a sequel to my young Disney loving heart in your own creative way! I am as excited as when The Incredibles 2 came out from me being 5 to 21 Disney nostalgia has me good! I am definitely excited for your project!
Hi Madee,
ReplyDeleteI think this is absolutely genius and I am so excited to be able to read your stories every week. I love that you were able to take two very popular yet very different entities (Disney and The Real Housewives series) and marry them to make a sort of grow-up version of popular fairytales. I will definitely be bookmarking your site to keep an eye on your stories. I don't know if you've ever had the opportunity to read the original versions of some of the princess stories but I think you should definitely check them out. The way their stories are portrayed in the movies is definitely not how they were originally written (I would start with the original Little Mermaid tale). It might be cool to incorporate some of the elements of the original stories into the stories in your storybook as well. Great job!
Hi Madee,
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun topic. I really like the idea of writing about the lives of the princesses after their "happy ever after".
Some comments:
I would take out one of the "all"s in the first few sentences.
In this sentence: "Anyways, before living in Happily Ever After life was not always easy for these women." I think you should add a comma after Happily Ever After.
In the next sentence, maybe change the "and" to "but".
e.g. "complicated situations but"
When you are talking about Snow White, I think you can just say "beautiful black hair" and drop that second "has".
Thoughts:
I love how they are drinking wine and catching up, it seems pretty normal. I also really like how you are writing it like chapters of a book so that the chapters continue the story rather than splitting it into one per princess. I think you've got an original idea and are pulling it off well. I am excited to read your finished storybook.
Hey Maddee,
ReplyDeleteI am making sure to keep up with your Storybook!! I really liked your intro when I read it a few weeks ago and knew I just needed to read your first story ASAP! I really enjoyed all the dialogue that you included in this story. I think it would be interesting to even have a side story where all the husbands get together for a beer!Keep up the great work!
Hi Madee!
ReplyDeleteOkay I love your topic so much. I love how you were able to fully incorporate key characteristics from all of the princesses and The Real Housewives and combine them together so well. The introduction was perfect- it fully explained each of the princess's background and how they came to be friends in Happily Ever After (very clever name by the way). Your cover images are also amazing and fit perfectly with the Real Housewives theme.
In your "Happy Hour" story, I loved how you were so descriptive with the dialogue between each of the characters. I didn't get lost a single time, and you do a great job at incorporating the princess's original stories with current situations. There were a few grammatical errors that I noticed every now and then, like a few capitalization errors and missing words. Maybe just read over it again to catch those little things. I love your idea though and I am so excited to see where you go with it
Hey Madee!
ReplyDeleteI love this topic so much. You have such an original idea and I cant wait to see your finished product. Is your last story going to be their season finale where they get together and scream at each other with a host? That would be so entertaining to read and probably to write.
You also wrote the backgrounds very well. The way you incorporated them into the story worked seamlessly and matched how the actual TV show works. I also never knew I needed Snow White to complain about her step mom over a glass of wine, but now I need it as a TV show.
I keep picturing the house wives episodes where everything falls apart. I picture Rapunzel throwing a shoe or something wild. Its happened on the Real Housewives, so why not the princesses?
Hi Madee!
ReplyDeleteSince the focus this week is on images I wanted to start with your banner image. I love it! It's so fun. I don't know where you found something that encapsulates your theme so perfectly. The picture on your intro page was similarly perfect for the theme. The image on your first story I thought was fun but I think a picture of snow white somewhere on the page would bring home the fact that the first story is about snow white. I really liked your intro it really brought the whole scene together while giving some insight into where each of them are now. I thought your first story did a good job of setting up why all the princesses are gathered together. I do wish there had been some more detail/focus on Snow White's actual fairytale story. It felt like that was kind of an afterthought since it was so short. I'm excited to see where this goes!
Hello, Madee!
ReplyDeleteWow, I really like the theme you chose and how you set up the project to be like the Real Housewives shows! I think this is a fantastic way to set up these stories in a way that will draw readers in and add humor to these typically dark Brothers Grimm tales! Also, the banner you chose made me laugh so much--the idea of Disney princesses drinking is hilarious! I really like how you made the story of Snow White your own and that last part about the dwarf getting stuck somewhere really made me laugh! Just a few minor typos: the plural of dwarf is dwarves and a few times you changed the tense from past to present (it sounds better in past tense!). These are really small things, though--I really like the direction you are taking and think your website is beautiful and funny! Great job and I am excited to read about the drama in the lives of the other princesses!
Hi Madee,
ReplyDeleteI'm from Indian Epics but your stories stood out because of the Real Housewives reference-I actually watch those shows so I was curious how your story would play out. Good job! I liked how you handled the humor even on some darker, sad topics. I think just rereading and catching grammar mistakes like (dwarfs vs dwarves, verb tense) would be good! I think explaining how they rekindled or like how they are on goodish terms might be helpful also. It seems like they had a pretty rough patch, but then we know they're okay, but not okay? It seems like it was never truly rekindled. Maybe there was a reason? The stepmom needed Snow's presence for legal reasons? She was the people's princess so getting rid of her so fast made the stepmom dislikable? There are many ways to go about it and it would add a new dimension to the drama. Great work and I look forward to reading more!
Hey Madee!
ReplyDeleteFirst off I just wanted to say I think you’re off to a great start with your project. This is the first time this semester I have gotten to look at your project, and I love how much time and effort you have put into the layout of the site. From the headers to the background, it really draws you in and it definitely has its own unique style. Since this was my first time looking at your project, I just looked at the intro and the first story.
I think telling the story of old using old characters using a modern medium like reality TV is a really cool idea. I think you have done really well to still keep a lot of the feel of the old stories while updating and keeping it all relevant. Thanks for sharing your stories, best of luck the rest of the way!
-JD
Hey Madee,
ReplyDeleteI've been keeping up with your wall and read your latest story! I like how you had Rapunzel suggest someplace like Cabo which is so open unlike her castle. Also it was a nice touch that Bella was drinking
Rose. I think those type of details really helps tie in the original princesses stories and personalities. Your author's note was also very informative. I didn't know all of the details of the french version of Rapunzel and found it fascinating. I think I might go read it to see what else is different. Keep up the good work!
Hi Madee,
ReplyDeleteI was excited to come back to your story and see what was happening with the princesses. I really liked that your author's note was so informative. I guess I really only know the disneyesque version of the fairytale. The part with the parrot is so fun and interesting I had no idea there was a parrot in the story! It would be kind of fun to include these unfamiliar aspects of the fairy tale into your stories. Once again, I think you did a really good job of having the princesses seem like Real Housewives. The dialogue was very Bravo. I also love that they're going on a trip to Cabo, what a classic Real Housewives plot point. I do feel like the part of your story that's about Rapunzel could be a little more detailed. It seems really short and doesn't have a lot of the detail or character that you build in the rest of your story. Keep up the good work!
Hello, Madeline!
ReplyDeleteLet me start off by saying that I am not sure how you managed to find a picture of Cinderella and Snow White holding those types of beverages, but I really do appreciate the image! It is always nice to see how those two princesses would be like as modern housewives.
As a child that grew up watching all of the Disney classics, I always thought that I knew the stories involving all of the princesses. I am a little surprised to learn that Snow White was the only original princess at that table! I also had no idea that the original Snow White story involved an envious Queen that tried to end the life of her stepdaughter. That being said, I really like your author’s note because of how much background information it has for the reader. If I am honest, I initially thought that you got the Snow White story wrong, which I based on my knowledge of the movie. If you hadn’t said anything in your note, I would have erroneously continued to believe that I was correct!
Hi Madeline!
ReplyDeleteThis is my first time visiting your site and I think the theme you chose is really clever and fun to read. You do an excellent job with framing your stories as ordinary, adult conversations between Disney princesses. I particularly appreciate how you creatively presented the characters as typical modern people but modeled their character using their original fairy tale. I do think that it would have been interesting if you would have had Rapunzel tell the story of her rescue from her own, first person perspective to provide a unique spin on the original story. Regardless, I enjoyed reading you story. It's hard not to smile thinking about Rapunzel and Bella taking a vacation in Cabo. Your storybook is excellent so far. Keep up the good work!
Hi there Madeline!
ReplyDeleteI love the concept of exploring what happens in the lives of fairy tale princesses after "Happily Ever After". Just out of curiosity, is there any particular reason you chose to focus specifically on these three princesses? I always enjoy reading stories about fairy tale characters in a more modern setting, and I think the drama of the real housewives angle is such a fun take. I love the content of the stories, but I feel like the verbs make the phrasing awkward in a few spots (I struggle with the same thing in my writing). Maybe focusing on eliminating passive voice and using really vivivd action words could make your stories even more amazing! Looking forward to reading more from you!
Kate
Hey Madeline,
ReplyDeleteThis is my first time getting to see your website and project come together, and I think you have done an excellent job! The website layout, theming, colors, images, and overall feel really lend itself to creating an experience for the reader that adds to your stories a lot! I like how the princesses are able to have these conversations and still have their old upbringings and biases, but are still in this modern context. I really enjoyed reading your stories and I thought it was fun to see these beloved characters in a different context and watch them interact. Great work! I can't wait to read more!
Hey Madeline,
ReplyDeleteI truly enjoyed your storybook and I really like how you gave the characters a modern day twist. I would have liked to know more about each of the characters and I would have liked for the story to be more full but overall you did a great job. I enjoy the layout of your site and I love how much color was on your website. I also feel like your website captured the idea of your storybook. I also love the picture at the beginning of your project as I loved seeing the Disney princesses as part of the inspiration of your stories. I found it interesting that you included Rapunzel within your trio of princesses. many times when people think of the three main disney princesses its Cinderella, Snow, and Belle. I love how you changed Cinderella in that trio to Rapunzel. I am glad to have had the chance to read your project and it is really awesome.
Hi Madee,
ReplyDeleteGreat story! I really liked “Happy Hour”. I think that you did a great job creating a personal and entertaining story. I love how you related your story to modern times. I also thought it was very smart how you created a lot of dialogue to create images for the reader. I was able to mentally picture your story. Your story was very creative and fun to read. Overall, I don’t have any critiques for your story, but I do think that it would be really interesting to elaborate on this story, maybe make a part 2. I would love to know what Rapunzel had to say to Bella that couldn’t be said in front of Snow. I have loved reading your stories on Fairy Tales and look forward to reading more. I was a huge princess person as a kid and I totally agree with you that Snow is one of the original princesses. Great Job!
Hi Madee,
ReplyDeleteI have been following this project since the beginning and I have very much enjoyed it.You did a great job of rewriting such well-known characters. I loved how realistic and modern you made these classic princesses that most of us grew up with. It is super cool. I enjoyed reading about their friendship, as it seems so natural and sweet. Just like real world friendships.The drama about Belle and her dwarves was handled exactly how a similar situation would be handled in real life amongst my friends, so I thouroughly enjoyed that bit. And what a great way to end the last story with the Belle news. How exciting! I like the way you designed your website, the pictures really add to the story and your head picture is so perfect!
Thanks for writing this, and I hope you keep writing after this class ends.
Best,
Ann
It's fun to compare your storybook to the real stories we know from disney. Usually the fairy tales the movies were based off of aren't the same, and I can definitely see some of the differences poking out of your storybook. Creating a situation where a bunch of princesses know each other and gossip or get each other through hard times is a cool idea, even if I don't exactly like that they may be "housewives", they do fit the role very well. It's nice to see them getting together as sort of a therapy session but in a way, a way for you to get their stories out there. I do like how each of your stories narrates one princesses life, but true to their original story. It's like getting to know the princesses again! Like, seeing Bella as a very simple and carting individual, if not a little soft spoken, it really speaks for her character that she isn't materialistic as some of the other princesses are.
ReplyDeleteHello Madee,
ReplyDeleteLet me just start off by saying that your website looks beautiful. I really like the combination of colors on the website. The images that you use are also really good. I like the fact that you include more images in your story. I do have one recommendation. Have you tried changing the image of the page headers? I think it is a really good picture but having different picture relating to the stories in the different pages helps get the readers attention. Not that is a big deal as you already have pictures there, and having the same background helps with continuity, I just thought it might look better. I find your writing to be really creative and I loved the way that you made those stories your own. Anyways, I really liked your project. I hope you have a great finals week, good luck with everything!
Hey Madee!
ReplyDeleteThis is my second time visiting your site and this time was just as fun as the first. It's funny to think about the Disney princesses we all know sipping wine while talking about a trip to Cabo and being pregnant. It kinda makes me feel like I'm getting old for some reason. Anyway, I like how you chose to tell the original story of how Bella and the Beast met. And I think it was a good call to leave out the part where Bella nursed the beast then gut off his head. They may be grown up, but that doesn't make them barbaric. I would have liked to see the two stories tied together a little closer though, rather than presenting it like a flashback. But I'm being nit-picky. Great work!