Author: ccallis0246

Requester: Ink_Scars206

Category: Writing Tips

A little secret about me: I *love* fairy-tale retellings! Ever since I watched Once Upon a Time as a tiny, hopeful twelve-year-old (though thinking back, I'm probably the same size I was then, I'm pretty small) I've been obsessed with retellings. However, at least to me, most fall flat. Why?

Note: This advice is based on experience from nearly writing a fairy-tale retelling myself and research I've gathered. None of this is set in stone.

1. Don't Do It For Reads

I hate to admit it, but a lot of people on Wattpad are really only writing because they want to get famous. They see the books with tons of reads and say to themselves, "I want that for myself." Some want the money and fame that come with well-known published novels like Harry Potter, some are actually doing it because they love writing. Believe me, there are much easier ways to make money and get famous. Writing really shouldn't be your first choice for that.

But I honestly doubt anyone taking the time to read this article is like that, so I'm just going to point out a very obvious fact for you: you need to want to write a retelling. You need to like retellings.

You need to choose which story you're going to retell and why. It's great to find a fairy-tale out there that you think you can build on, but unless you have a connection with that story, I don't suggest retelling it. Choose one that feels right to you, one that you have a connection to and probably is your favorite. Why are you retelling it? If it isn't because you have a special connection to it and feel that you can expand on it, you're not going to have a great time with it.

2. Get to Know the Original Story... But Not the Rest

So the reason I've done a bit of research on this is because I was planning on writing one for Trisha DS's (TrishaDS) Second Annual Golden Writer's Competition. Without going too off-topic here, she had multiple prompts for you to choose from (story ideas she hadn't gone through with), and you signed up for one. After that, you had the whole year to write the book. The one I chose was an Alice in Wonderland retelling, though she cancelled the competition and left Wattpad. Alice in Wonderland has never been my favorite, but I thought the prompt sounded interesting. Yeah, yeah. I said to choose a story you have a special connection to and I didn't. To be fair, I never ended up writing it and I probably would've had a hard time with it. Use me as a bad example here.

Trisha provided multiple sources of inspiration for us, though I realized they produced the opposite effect for me. Why? They weren't the original source. While these sources (movies, mainly) helped her, as they were her favorite retellings, they were already retellings!

That takes me to my first piece of advice: only look at the original source! The original source tends to have the most room to grow for multiple reasons. Fairy-tales aren't very thought-out—not the old ones, anyway—and you're capable of adding so much to them. Retellings, however, have already been retold. They have a much better plot and characters with more personality (Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland is a great example), and there just isn't much room to grow from there. Look at the original source, not the retellings.

3. Study (I Promise It'll Be Better Than School)

I'm a hyprocrite in many ways, but I want to clarify that I'm not being hypocritical here. Gather your inspiration from the original text, and once you have a story idea from that, run with it. If you want to perfect your story, though, you'll have to study the other retellings.

I only recommend this once you have a firm grasp on your story. Think of this more as an improvement technique than an inspiration one.

I'm not just talking about retellings of the story you're choosing. Look at all retellings! Personally, I always felt that Cinder, a well-known Cinderella retelling that's only first in a fairy-tale retelling series, was a bit overrated. I would've preferred more content from the original Cinderella personally. Take my example and look into popular fairy-tale retellings. Pay attention to reviews. Why are they well-liked/popular? What did you like about it? What did you dislike about it? Honestly, it's better to do this with a retelling of a different story than the one you're doing, but do what feels right to you. Apply your new knowledge to your story.

4. Characterization, The Bane of the Grimms' Existence

Ah, my favorite flaw in almost all fairy-tales: characterization! There is basically no character motivation in most fairy-tales, which is where you come in. With your newly-found fairy-tale expertise, you can school the Brothers Grimm by making your retelling so much better. How? Characterization!

You'll need a lot more than just characterization in your story, but it's the sweet spot with most retellings. Wicked, for example, shows Elphaba's true intentions characterization. You can take the characters in every classic tale and show them a little more, add dimensions to them. You'd be surprised at how much you can do to these stories when you add the proper writing expertise.

5. Become Superman (Only Joking)

You're going to have to take a fairy-tale and make it into something original, which won't be easy. You'll practically have to become Superman.

Kidding! It shouldn't be too bad. All you need to do is decide how much you want from the original text. Some people (like me) prefer ones that resemble the original decently, while most people (like, well, everyone else) prefer ones that are barely recognizable as the original. With all the retellings out there, you're better off trying for the latter, though it will be more work for you. Here are some amazing ideas from an article I read (link in-line) of how to spice up your retelling.

Play With Genres: Let's take a look at Cinder again. The reason so many people love it is because it's completely original. Who would've thought about setting a Cinderella retelling in a world with moon people, androids, and cyborgs? Meyer did, apparently! Play with the genre a little; you'll be surprised what you come up with.

Time Periods and Locations: Think of all the different cultures and mannerisms you can add with a new setting! If you're not afraid of a little historical fiction, think of the different eras your retelling could be set in. I, for one, would love to see one in the Roaring '20s. Also think of different locations as well, though! Most fairy-tales are set in Europe... but what if they weren't? How would they change?

Role-Swap/Gender-Swap/Combine Roles: Once Upon a Time is a master of this, honestly. So many stories involve the same people in different roles (Rumplestiltskin as himself and the Beast in Beauty in the Beast), but also think about what it'd mean to switch the gender of certain characters or to give them different roles. What would it be like if Gaston, for example, were Belle's true love? How would that change the story?

POV Change: Probably my favorite change to a story, you're now seeing the same story unfold in a different person's eyes. Wicked is a great example here, and I love anti-heroes in general. What if, in the eyes of your villain, you realize they aren't actually the villain at all. Unfortunately, this idea has become so popular with Wicked that I'd advise switching to a different character's POV, not the villain's.

Mix 'em Up!: Don't be afraid to combine different story ideas! Look at Once Upon a Time again. The reason this series is so original is because they combine multiple stories, and it works for them. To simplify things, I wouldn't suggest combining as many stories as they did—it'll be much harder for you—but you can combine a few. The Lunar Chronicles, the book series Cinder is in, combines multiple but focuses on one in each story.

Prequels/Sequels: Love the original story and don't want to change it, yet have the desire to write a retelling? Here's the perfect way: writing a prequel or sequel! One of the best things about fairy-tales is how little they go into character motivation (not the best idea for you, but great to build a retelling on). Why did the villain do what they did? How did they turn out that way? What happens after the happy ending? I remember a very popular book in my tween/early teen years was Dorothy Must Die, where a girl gets swept into Oz through a tornado and realizes that Dorothy has turned Oz evil. If you don't want the pressure of retelling a classic tale, writing a prequel or sequel about it is perfect for you.

I got all of these helpful suggestions from that article, but what I really think you should get out of this tip is that you need a big twist. Multiple small twists won't really do it. What makes your retelling original? What's happening now that didn't happen in the original?

Conclusion

As with every other type of story, feedback is your best bet. On Wattpad people aren't afraid to comment how something made them feel and why. Capitalize on that and improve in future drafts. This article is supposed to be a starting point for you, the things you should look for when you first start writing your retelling. If you do write one, let me know! Like I said, I love retellings, and I'd be more than happy to give you feedback on yours.

If you have any questions, feel free to comment here or PM me (ccallis0246). My inbox is always open. Good luck on your retellings!

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