The Princess Blog

A common misconception among princess haters is that princesses and the people who admire them are selfish and greedy  because they live in a castle and have enough money to get anything they want. True fans know that this isn't the case. Princesses from fantasy worlds are portrayed as kind and selfless and often want to escape the confines of their castle or tower. This desire for freedom often brings them to the most beautiful secluded environments of peace and serenity. Disney's 1959 animated classic Sleeping Beauty  set the standards for this with its gorgeous anamorphic background paintings of rectangular trees and woodland creatures who feel right at home alongside the lovely Briar Rose, who embraces the tranquility of her little cottage in the woods. Since then, princesses have often been associated with flowers and nature as a reflection of their own natural beauty and innocence. Recently, I discovered a Chinese drama on Netflix called Ashes of Love that brilli...

Over the past year, I have been a close follower of the books of Melanie Cellier . She has done a fantastic job of adapting classic princess fairy tales for a modern audience in both her Four Kingdoms and Beyond the Four Kingdoms series. Recently, she has branched out by writing an original series of her own called The Spoken Mage . The series takes place in a world where the written word holds immense magical power, so only noble families with the ability to control magic are permitted to learn how to read and write. It actually bears a few similarities to a screenplay I'm working on for my class at UCLA. The protagonist in The Spoken Mage series is a commoner who should not possess any magical ability, so no one knows what to do when she releases controlled magic through spoken words alone without even knowing how to write. Voice of Power  is the first book in The Spoken Mage series. It tells the story of Elena, an ordinary girl who is happy with her ordinary life. Her o...

There may not be a new Disney Princess this year, but that doesn't mean Disney isn't prepared for it. Since 2019 is odd-number year, there's going to be another D23 Expo  this summer, but that's not the only princess-related thing happening in the upcoming months. This year marks the 30th anniversary of Disney's The Little Mermaid , and we can expect Disney to celebrate it in a big way, just like they did for  Snow White's 80th anniversary  back 2017. Like most princess movies , the Ariel's official anniversary isn't technically until November, but Disney tends to stretch out celebrations throughout the whole year year. The Little Mermaid  Anniversary Edition Blu-ray is coming out next month. Maybe if we're lucky, we'll even get that live TV special we were promised a while back. Between that, the upcoming Aladdin  remake , the new Dashing Collection  for the Disney Store, and Disney's exclusive streaming service , 2019 is shaping up to be ...

Since I was completely enamored with  Aya Ling 's  Unfinished Fairy Tales books, I was thrilled to learn that she would be launching a new series of fairy tale adaptations. She has quickly raised in the ranks to become one of my favorite authors. Her new Reversed Retellings books portray gender-swapped versions of classic fairy tales, presenting brand new perspectives and challenging outdated gender stereotypes. The first book in the series is Till Midnight , based on the story of  "The Twelve Dancing Princesses."  However, this version has twelve handsome princes who are forced to sneak away at night due to a curse with a female cobbler who must solve the mystery of where they go. I absolutely loved this adaptation and cannot wait for her to release more gender-swapped fairy tales. Till Midnight  tells the story of Alix, a talented young lady working as a dressmaker's apprentice in an attempt to further her career beyond the family trade of cobbling shoes...

It's been a while since I posted anything for  Story Saturday . I am pleased to announce that one of my previous stories, "The Dragon and the Runt,"  was recited recently on a podcast called Fairy Tales for Unwanted Children ! Today, I have a different type of short story to share with you. My friends over at the Jewel Riders Archive  have posted a writer challenge  to come up with a concept for a potential third season of Princess Gwenevere and the Jewel Riders . Jewel Riders is one of my favorite shows of all time, so I had to give this challenge a shot. The concept is inspired by the fantastic art board designs by toy designer Greg Auture  for the third wave of Jewel Riders dolls that never got produced due to the show's untimely cancellation after the second season. Just to clarify, this is my own interpretation of a potential third season. I have no affiliation with the creators of the show. If you'd like to catch up with the show leading up to my concept, ...

After reviewing a somewhat mediocre book  last week from fantasy author Shari Tapscott , I was pleased to find that I thoroughly enjoyed her retelling of the fairy tale "Puss in Boots" . The Marquise and Her Cat  is by far the best book I've read by Shari thus far. It remains faithful to the original fairy tale while offering a gender-reversed protagonist along with several other fun twists. Before reading this book, I never realized how much I wanted a fully fleshed out adaptation of "Puss in Boots." Though Puss appears in Shrek 2  as well as other spin-offs and sequels from the franchise, the fairy tale itself is still pretty obscure. Even though I had read it a long time ago, I forgot most of the details and never realized how entertaining it could be with just a bit more imagination. The Marquise and her Cat  is the story of Etta, a miller's daughter with two brothers. True to the fairy tale, her brothers inherit very nice possessions from a recentl...