Topic Tuesday

Today I thought I would start with something a little fun and in honor of my chosen writing genre (romance).  Read the prompt below and write your own Happily Never After for the Cinderella story.  I would love for you to share what you come up with and post it in the comment section.

Prompt:
Fairy tales have happy endings.  All of us know what happened in that mushy fairy tale, Cinderella.  Yeah it’s romantic, the prince actually finding Cinderella.  They lived happily ever after.  But happy endings can sometimes be, well…boring.  No zing. So predictable.  So…happy.  What if the shoe fit one of the sisters?  What happens then?  Play with your imagination here.  Be funny if you like. Or serious if you feel like it.  Or be an Alfred Hitchcock.  Whatever you are into, write your ending to the Cinderella story—but this time, make it so that the shoe fit one of the icky sisters.  What does Prince Charming do?  How does Cinderella cope with it?  And what about the Fairy Godmother?  Start your story here.

(Prompt provided by http://creativewritingprompts.com/)

My ending:

Prince Charming smiled up at Cinderella as he slowly slipped the glass slipper over her slim elegant foot.  Cinderella held her breath for what felt like ages as the shoe crept over her toes, then her heel to finally slip into place. But wait!  The shoe was too big.  How could this be?  Cinderella and Prince Charming locked eyes, shock etched all over her face. Cinderella’s evil half-sisters snickered in the background.

“It looks like you won’t be leaving us so soon after all Cinder-smella,” Gertrude sneered.  “Look at you getting your hopes up.  How pathetic.  Now get out of my way. It’s my turn to try the shoe on.”

“No I will not move!  This is my shoe I left it at the ball last night.”

“If it was your shoe then why doesn’t it fit?” Gertrude asked accusation and skepticism dripping from every syllable she spoke.

“That is an excellent question. I will have to ask my Fairy Godmother?”

“First you have delusions about going to a royal ball, now you have an imaginary Fairy Godmother?  Do you realize how cra-cra you sound right now?  Guards drag this crazy half-wit out of the room until my sister and I have tried on the shoe.”

“Wait no..wait…” Cinderella screamed as she was dragged from the room.  Both sisters watched with open enjoyment until their step-sisters could no longer be heard.  In true chameleon form Gertrude twirled around to face Prince Charming showing as much sweetness and charm that anyone with such a cold heart could must.

Prince Charming’s eyes roamed the room looking for an exit.  It would be a cold day in hell before he married one of these two hags.  Between the clown like make-up, rancid odor of perfume and body odor, rotting teeth and hair that hadn't seen a comb in days his little member literally tried to crawl back into him at the prospect of touching one of them.  He was taking a leap even going for the smelly servant girl, whatshername, Cindy, Ella, Cinder, or whatever.  At least that one wasn't bad on the eyes and could at least be bathed and made presentable.

“Well Prince Charming.  It looks like it’s my turn.  I can’t wait to be your wife.”

“Madame I would rather turn to bestiality and marry a pig before I would even consider either of you.  You may have the shoe and if anyone in this household makes an attempt to contact me I will have you all beheaded!”  

The Prince threw the glass slipper up in the air in the general direction of the girls standing with their mouths hanging open and made his way to the door.  Gertrude caught the shoe seconds before it hit the ground.  With little hesitation she slipped the shoe onto her foot and marveled at the fact that it fit.  “Prince Charming it fits! It fits! I’m your new bride” she shouted at the Prince’s retreating form.  Without looking back Prince Charming made his way to his carriage.  Stepping in he paused for a brief moment to talk with his valley.  “Sam my good man.  When we get back to the castle please send a chamber maid to my suite.”  Without waiting for a response he climbed into the carriage and rode off into the sunset.

The End

Hello Everyone!

An inevitable part of starting anything new is stumbling. You research, try things, fail, and eventually you get your bearings and get better. My career as a writer and my work on this blog are no different. That is why I am now revamping my blog. The new format/schedule will be as follows:

• Monday Mini- weekly release of the best chapter of my miniseries Phone sex operators need love too. It's the funny, quirky story of the self-proclaimed loneliest phone sex operator in the world and her escapades in online dating.
• Topic Tuesday- I will post a new writing topic each week and encourage you to post your response to to the topic.
• Wednesday in Review- each week I will add a new review of a book that I have read. I would love to read your work!
• Trippin Tippin Thursday- a new author will be featured in a guest post. They will give their advice or tips on things they have learned throughout their professional writing career. If you are interested in being a guest please contact me at author.o.evans@gmail.com

There is no time like the present to start something new so in honor of my new schedule below is a post by my first guest author Angeline Trevena from Devon in the UK.

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Trippin Tippin Thursday!

Angeline Trevena
Her website: www.angelinetrevena.co.uk

I began telling stories as soon as I learned to speak. I still have a copy of the very first story I wrote as a young child. It's just something I've always done, and the desire to write comes to me as naturally as breathing.

But a desire to write is one thing, turning that into hours of dedication, strict self-discipline, and an ability to ignore the inner editor, that is something quite different. Writing is hard work, and getting published is even harder work.

I started my journey towards a writing career with novels. It had never really crossed my mind that writers might ever write anything else. But I have a bit of a problem with novels. They're long. Very long. And my attention span, enthusiasm, and motivation doesn't quite match up. I've never managed to get very far past a first draft. My house is filled with abandoned novels gathering dust.

If I ever wanted a writing career, I needed a serious personality transplant, or a new writing focus. And then I found it.

In January 2011, my first short story, 'The Vincent Orphanage', was published in The Mirador Fantasmagoria anthology. That was the moment I realised; I could have a writing career without having to slog my way through a 90,000 word novel.

Don't get me wrong; short stories aren't easier to write than novels. In many ways, they're even harder. But it's a little like comparing apples and oranges – they require such a different approach, such a different set of skills. Try fitting an entire story into 1,500 words: besides the plot itself, there's themes, fore-shadowing, character arcs, sub-plots. That's a lot to fit in while still making it engaging, immersive, and exciting. It's a tough gig.

And I'll admit; I'm hooked. The moment I submit one story, I'm looking for my next call for submissions. I bounce from story to story, world to world, character to character. I barely know where I am half the time, and it keeps my adrenaline pumping. One month I'll be in the middle of a zombie apocalypse, the next I'm battling evil fairies, then I'm bedding down for the night in a haunted castle. I love that.

Besides, writing a brand new story is the best way to cope with the wait for a submission response. Writing something new saves me from checking my emails every 30 seconds.

I've been told I'm not a 'real writer', I've been told I'm 'choosing the easy option', but I know none of it's true. I can now boast to be, not just a published writer, but a paid one too. There'll always be people who think short story writers are somehow 'lesser' than novelists, but you'd be surprised how many big name writers started out writing shorts, who still write shorts, and who encourage aspiring writers to do the same.

Some runners will always be sprinters, some will always run long-distance. Neither is easier than the other, neither is less prestigious or less honourable. There are some invaluable skills writing shorts can give you, skills that you can bring to your novel, that will improve your novel and your writing style as a whole.

Find yourself a call for submissions that catches your imagination, and give it a go. You've nothing to lose, and you might just discover a new writing passion. Maybe you're a sprinter after all.

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Angeline Trevena is a horror and fantasy writer, poet and journalist from Devon in the UK. She lives above a milkshake shop and has a habit for climbing into wardrobes to look for Narnia. She has short stories published by Mirador Publishing, Crooked Cat Publishing, Angelic Knight Press, and Horrified Press. Visit her website to find out more: www.angelinetrevena.co.uk