This guide was inspired by a question recently posted by link on this spot. The user was looking for ways to put a twist on fairytales. I began to write an answer, but my answer soon developed into an article. So here it is.
Note that these aren't specifically for fairytales; they can be used on any old, well-known stories. After listing some ideas on how you can put a twist on such stories, I'll give a few examples of movies that have done used one or more of these ideas.
1. Swap the genders of the traditional characters.
Do any of the characters behave especially "typical" for their gender? Do they follow any stereotypes that would be made more interesting and surprising if they were the opposite sex? This option allows you to put all those cliché gender roles to a more original use.
2. Set it in a different time period.
A popular way to parody stories that are hundreds of years old is to set the new version in the modern day. This is sometimes done so that the audience can relate to the characters easily, but it also pushes the writer to think carefully about their new setting. What would and wouldn't work in the modern day, compared to the original story's setting? Another option is to set the story merely in another past time period, or, if you're feeling extra imaginative, set your story in the distant future!
3. Set it in a different location.
This one is very similar to the above suggestion; once again, a change of setting might cause you to change certain parts of the story. Note that this is a risky one. You might not want to do this if the story's nationality is especially important to the plot or message, otherwise this could come across as racist. However, on the flip side, if a story's location does not matter, you could change its setting to wherever you live and throw in some accurate cultural representation!
4. Focus on someone other than the original protagonist.
In other words, make a different character the new protagonist! Tell the story from a support character's perspective, or put the villain in the spotlight. This is a very simple yet very popular idea. If you are fond of a minor character in a fairytale, why not try writing in first person from their perspective? It can be very interesting and very fun!
5. Change an event or two from the original story, just because you can.
Some fairytales are actually pretty gruesome, and so a lot of adaptations decide to go with a more child-friendly ending. Other stories, however, hardly stay true to the original tale at all and the writer only uses the original as a basis. Think about how true you want to stay to the traditional version; do you want to just put your own spin on things here and there, or do you want to base just a portion of your own version on the original, and otherwise write something new?
Examples of movies that have used one or more of these techniques:
Nickelodeon's Rags (2012 movie): A parody of Cinderella that combines #1 and #2 (and somewhat #3 in that it is set in America).
Baz Luhrmann's Romeo + Juliet (1996): Uses #2 and still manages to stick to the original script (for the most part).
Disney's Maleficent (2014 movie): A re-imagining of Sleeping Beauty that uses #4 and turns the villain into the main character.
Disney's The Lion King 1 & 2 (1994 & 1998): Shakespeare plays with African wild animals; the first being based on Hamlet and the second on Romeo & Juliet. Both movies make use of #3 and #5.
In fact, a lot of Disney classics put a twist on fairytales. Walt Disney had a rule that the company still follows; good must always triumph over evil. Some of the original stories that their movies are based on have surprisingly tragic endings, and so many Disney movies use technique #5 to ensure that they do what Walt Disney told them to a long time ago! A few of their classics also use #3 (e.g. Aladdin being set in Arabia instead of China).
(Of course, there are other movies that have done this, and you're welcome to list more in the comments, but I'd better not get carried away!)
Also, if you're interested in this sort of thing, I recommend Gregory Maguire as an author that you need to check out if you haven't already! He writes novels for adults that make great use of #4. He wrote the Wicked books, Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister, Mirror Mirror, and his most recent book, After Alice.
Gail Carson Levine's Ella Enchanted and Fairest are a couple of other book examples that reimagine famous fairytales.
Note that these aren't specifically for fairytales; they can be used on any old, well-known stories. After listing some ideas on how you can put a twist on such stories, I'll give a few examples of movies that have done used one or more of these ideas.
1. Swap the genders of the traditional characters.
Do any of the characters behave especially "typical" for their gender? Do they follow any stereotypes that would be made more interesting and surprising if they were the opposite sex? This option allows you to put all those cliché gender roles to a more original use.
2. Set it in a different time period.
A popular way to parody stories that are hundreds of years old is to set the new version in the modern day. This is sometimes done so that the audience can relate to the characters easily, but it also pushes the writer to think carefully about their new setting. What would and wouldn't work in the modern day, compared to the original story's setting? Another option is to set the story merely in another past time period, or, if you're feeling extra imaginative, set your story in the distant future!
3. Set it in a different location.
This one is very similar to the above suggestion; once again, a change of setting might cause you to change certain parts of the story. Note that this is a risky one. You might not want to do this if the story's nationality is especially important to the plot or message, otherwise this could come across as racist. However, on the flip side, if a story's location does not matter, you could change its setting to wherever you live and throw in some accurate cultural representation!
4. Focus on someone other than the original protagonist.
In other words, make a different character the new protagonist! Tell the story from a support character's perspective, or put the villain in the spotlight. This is a very simple yet very popular idea. If you are fond of a minor character in a fairytale, why not try writing in first person from their perspective? It can be very interesting and very fun!
5. Change an event or two from the original story, just because you can.
Some fairytales are actually pretty gruesome, and so a lot of adaptations decide to go with a more child-friendly ending. Other stories, however, hardly stay true to the original tale at all and the writer only uses the original as a basis. Think about how true you want to stay to the traditional version; do you want to just put your own spin on things here and there, or do you want to base just a portion of your own version on the original, and otherwise write something new?
Examples of movies that have used one or more of these techniques:
Nickelodeon's Rags (2012 movie): A parody of Cinderella that combines #1 and #2 (and somewhat #3 in that it is set in America).
Baz Luhrmann's Romeo + Juliet (1996): Uses #2 and still manages to stick to the original script (for the most part).
Disney's Maleficent (2014 movie): A re-imagining of Sleeping Beauty that uses #4 and turns the villain into the main character.
Disney's The Lion King 1 & 2 (1994 & 1998): Shakespeare plays with African wild animals; the first being based on Hamlet and the second on Romeo & Juliet. Both movies make use of #3 and #5.
In fact, a lot of Disney classics put a twist on fairytales. Walt Disney had a rule that the company still follows; good must always triumph over evil. Some of the original stories that their movies are based on have surprisingly tragic endings, and so many Disney movies use technique #5 to ensure that they do what Walt Disney told them to a long time ago! A few of their classics also use #3 (e.g. Aladdin being set in Arabia instead of China).
(Of course, there are other movies that have done this, and you're welcome to list more in the comments, but I'd better not get carried away!)
Also, if you're interested in this sort of thing, I recommend Gregory Maguire as an author that you need to check out if you haven't already! He writes novels for adults that make great use of #4. He wrote the Wicked books, Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister, Mirror Mirror, and his most recent book, After Alice.
Gail Carson Levine's Ella Enchanted and Fairest are a couple of other book examples that reimagine famous fairytales.
Are you bored? Despretly trying to find something on Google, but everytime you serch something innoceont weird and gross stuff just overflows your computor screen? Well, join this writing compeition! I will list five random genres and themes I pulled from a hat and all you have to do is write a short story from a genre or theme of your choice but it has to be one of the five. The compeition will run from November 07 2011 - November 21. Voting will start from November 21 - November 31.
Genres:
1. Mystery
2. Fan Fiction (Lucky You!)
3. Sci-Fi
4. Children's
5. Drama
As I said, there random.
Themes:
1. Magic
2. Sacrifice
3. True Story
4. Childhood
5. Anime (For Fan Fiction)
Just Post Your Entry on Fanpop and ur good to go!
The winner will recive 10 props and 5 runners up will recive 3 props. :P
Genres:
1. Mystery
2. Fan Fiction (Lucky You!)
3. Sci-Fi
4. Children's
5. Drama
As I said, there random.
Themes:
1. Magic
2. Sacrifice
3. True Story
4. Childhood
5. Anime (For Fan Fiction)
Just Post Your Entry on Fanpop and ur good to go!
The winner will recive 10 props and 5 runners up will recive 3 props. :P
A tear ran down Jannet's pale cheek. David's footsteps echoed in the hall like a man's last words, and for Jannet, they were last words David will ever say to her. We never saw David again. Never. It's a hard word to handle when inlove.
"NOOOOOOOO!!" Mike screamed. The moment was so mindblowing, we forgot we were in Mikeal's orphanage. "She's not dead! She can't be dead!" The careers grabbed him by the arms, threw him to the ground and beat him. "Mike..." Jannet whispered, wiping a tear away. "Mike!" She shouted "Jane, don't interfeare, please!" I begged. It didn't work. When a spirit is enraged they have more energy, kinda' like an adrenaline rush.
"Jannet, where are you?!" Mike shouted. "She's dead! Get over it, boy!" The Head Misstrus boomed. "LEAVE HIM!" Jannet demanded. The women stared at her in disbelif.
"NOOOOOOOO!!" Mike screamed. The moment was so mindblowing, we forgot we were in Mikeal's orphanage. "She's not dead! She can't be dead!" The careers grabbed him by the arms, threw him to the ground and beat him. "Mike..." Jannet whispered, wiping a tear away. "Mike!" She shouted "Jane, don't interfeare, please!" I begged. It didn't work. When a spirit is enraged they have more energy, kinda' like an adrenaline rush.
"Jannet, where are you?!" Mike shouted. "She's dead! Get over it, boy!" The Head Misstrus boomed. "LEAVE HIM!" Jannet demanded. The women stared at her in disbelif.
All this pain just inside...I cannot let it go.... It hurts so bad...Seeing the one you love in the arms of another.... Each night I cry myself to sleep,just hopeing the next day will be even beter...But these words always run through my mind..."You're going to die alone".. It repetes and repetes...Pain ... Oh how it hurts so... But what makes it worse...That someone that's with the one my love ...is my rival....Time has stopped to you as your tears run down slowly on my cheek.... I've lost almost everyone in my life... It's even scary just trying to be myself....They say if you keep your feelings jared up...you'll snap... That's haven't happened to me yet... And hope it will never will. Don't keep your feelings jared up... Or one day you'll snap
I loved to write songs. These beautiful poems of love, heartbreak, life and misery. I still do. Shame they'll never reach the world as I hoped.
But, life is life and death is well, death. I wish I could still play with Eyes Of The Wolf, my old band. I remember the lullaby I wrote for Jannet when she had nightmares.
'Prr, Prr
Of the Cat on the mat so peaceful
Cheep, Cheep
Of the Bird in the garden so alive
Neigh, Neigh
Of the Horse on the racecourse so swift
Woof, Woof
Of the Pup in the tulips so playful
But now please my dear Jannet rest
So tomorrow you take life's next test'
I still sing it to her every night. But she can't hear me now. Maybe i'm just not singing loud enough. Sometimes she hears me sing a few lines. I know because sometimes when I sing she'll start crying. I don't know why. Maybe she misses me. Or maybe I scare her. I don't know. The world is a very strange place
But, life is life and death is well, death. I wish I could still play with Eyes Of The Wolf, my old band. I remember the lullaby I wrote for Jannet when she had nightmares.
'Prr, Prr
Of the Cat on the mat so peaceful
Cheep, Cheep
Of the Bird in the garden so alive
Neigh, Neigh
Of the Horse on the racecourse so swift
Woof, Woof
Of the Pup in the tulips so playful
But now please my dear Jannet rest
So tomorrow you take life's next test'
I still sing it to her every night. But she can't hear me now. Maybe i'm just not singing loud enough. Sometimes she hears me sing a few lines. I know because sometimes when I sing she'll start crying. I don't know why. Maybe she misses me. Or maybe I scare her. I don't know. The world is a very strange place
This is a song inspired by Anastasia's Once Upon a December. Also, it's the main song for my novel-in-progress, Imaginary. It's a song in which one of the main characters sings to cheer her up when she's scared. And once I finally get the story posted here, you'll actually see the depth and power and horror of the song.
Written by a friend of mine from school.
Midnight settles, darkness falls
Close your eyes and remember
Fallen angels always sing
Once upon a December
Blood is flowing and it's warm,
Life's nightmares are like a storm
Demons dancing gracefully
across my memory
Broken butterflies with torn wings
The pain they will always remember
Fallen angels, I hear them sing
Once upon a December.
Written by a friend of mine from school.
Midnight settles, darkness falls
Close your eyes and remember
Fallen angels always sing
Once upon a December
Blood is flowing and it's warm,
Life's nightmares are like a storm
Demons dancing gracefully
across my memory
Broken butterflies with torn wings
The pain they will always remember
Fallen angels, I hear them sing
Once upon a December.
Scraping at the boughs,
Unknowns becomeths known,
Where shards break across my skin as my mind is shredded into nothing.
How did I get here?
How did I become this?
How do I get out?
Trapped inside a thousand mirrors,
Seeing so many façades,
Which one is me?
Carved up and bleeding,
Happy unconscious,
Pepped up to go?
Nails scratch into my brain,
As I pick apart memories,
For a clue.
An inkling.
An idea.
Lost!
I’m so lost!
Where do I fit in anymore?
Who am I?
And how did I wind up here?
Unknowns becomeths known,
Where shards break across my skin as my mind is shredded into nothing.
How did I get here?
How did I become this?
How do I get out?
Trapped inside a thousand mirrors,
Seeing so many façades,
Which one is me?
Carved up and bleeding,
Happy unconscious,
Pepped up to go?
Nails scratch into my brain,
As I pick apart memories,
For a clue.
An inkling.
An idea.
Lost!
I’m so lost!
Where do I fit in anymore?
Who am I?
And how did I wind up here?