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capri0mni... before I banish her for a month. She's insisting that I should at least be sure of my format before I start. And I suppose she's right.
The story I want to do is a retelling-reworking of Hans my Hedgehog. The biggest change I want to make to the original story is that the marriage to the "Good Princess" would come closer to the middle than the end of the story, and it would not break the spell. Hans would remain in his half-man / half-hedgehog form. After all, Hans's form brought more pain and shame to his father than it ever brought to Hans, himself. And also, it's a more interesting story if, after he inherits his bride's kingdom, he's given the challenge of being a monarch when his subjects view him as a monster... It's easy to inspire loyalty when you're pretty to look at...
But: right now, I'm wambling between two, or possibly three, different time-settings-tones. And whichever one I ultimately pick would radically change the mechanics of my plot. So I'm going to list the pros and cons of each one, and then, I'll post a poll for all you good folk to give me feedback. Whether your answers tickle me, or annoy me -- either way, I'll be clearer on my true desires (fingers crossed that there's no three-way tie).
Option One: Present Day / Near Future
Pros: 1) Allows me to put the modern Medical-Industrial-Complex in context with Monster Control policies, and be more explicit about society's ableism, 2) would add a level of the surreal, if a clearly "Fairy Tale wish" came true in a non-Fairy Tale world, 3) Would, perhaps, be a stronger foundation for a satirical tone.
Cons: 1) So many of the key events in the original story depend on the social castes that exist in a Fairy Tale Monarchy, that trying to come up with modern, technological, society analogs could lead to my getting lost in the thickets, rather than moving forward smoothly with the plot, 2) A story set in modern times would become dated incredibly fast (like, by the time I finish the revision, should I choose to revise), 3) Satire is not my strong suit, and I doubt I could sustain such a tone for thirty days.
Option Two: Keep the Story in its Original Fairy Tale Time Frame
Pros: 1) Unlike a story with a present-day or near-future setting, "Once Upon a Time" will never be dated, 2) The fairy tale tone is my strong suit, 3) I could still many of the same changes to the narrative that I would in a modern setting.
Cons: 1) But I couldn't make my explicit point about the medical-industrial complex, or society's ableism, 2) And I'd lose the surreal aspect of the wish that shouldn't come true, but did.
Option Three: Combine the Two
Pros: 1) There is already a clear delineation point, half-way (roughly) through the story, where I could switch over, 2) Starting in modern times would allow for the critique of the Medical Model of Disability; ending in "Once upon a" times would allow for Hans to challenge the belief (of the readers and the citizens in-story) that Beauty=Good and Ugliness=Evil (which would be more ambiguous in a present-day setting [our society already gives lip service to "Don't judge a book by its cover," so writing that into a modern setting is more likely to get smug moralistic nods than a jolt of recognition that challenging a comfortable trope would]).
Cons: 1) If Hans passes through some sort of portal to an alternate universe for the last part of the story, that would likely leave the impression that that universe had always been his "true home," reinforcing the ableist notion that disabled children are sent as "special messengers" to teach moral lessons to the "normal" people, 2) Abruptly changing the tone midway through the story runs the risk of derailing the narrative, and losing the reader.
And now: The Poll!
(If you're reading this on LJ, and don't want to log into Open-Identity, you can just tell me which of the three options you think I should pick in a comment.)
And finally, for your enjoyment and my inspiration... A key plot element of Hans-my-Hedgehog is his love of playing the bagpipes (they were never just Scottish). Here's someone playing a replica of a 17th Century set of the smallest of the German Shepherd's Pipes -- which would be the most likely right size for an eight-year-old hedgehog boy. Imagine being lost in a deep, dark wood, and hearing a sound like this drifting down from somewhere in the canopy above you:
The story I want to do is a retelling-reworking of Hans my Hedgehog. The biggest change I want to make to the original story is that the marriage to the "Good Princess" would come closer to the middle than the end of the story, and it would not break the spell. Hans would remain in his half-man / half-hedgehog form. After all, Hans's form brought more pain and shame to his father than it ever brought to Hans, himself. And also, it's a more interesting story if, after he inherits his bride's kingdom, he's given the challenge of being a monarch when his subjects view him as a monster... It's easy to inspire loyalty when you're pretty to look at...
But: right now, I'm wambling between two, or possibly three, different time-settings-tones. And whichever one I ultimately pick would radically change the mechanics of my plot. So I'm going to list the pros and cons of each one, and then, I'll post a poll for all you good folk to give me feedback. Whether your answers tickle me, or annoy me -- either way, I'll be clearer on my true desires (fingers crossed that there's no three-way tie).
Option One: Present Day / Near Future
Pros: 1) Allows me to put the modern Medical-Industrial-Complex in context with Monster Control policies, and be more explicit about society's ableism, 2) would add a level of the surreal, if a clearly "Fairy Tale wish" came true in a non-Fairy Tale world, 3) Would, perhaps, be a stronger foundation for a satirical tone.
Cons: 1) So many of the key events in the original story depend on the social castes that exist in a Fairy Tale Monarchy, that trying to come up with modern, technological, society analogs could lead to my getting lost in the thickets, rather than moving forward smoothly with the plot, 2) A story set in modern times would become dated incredibly fast (like, by the time I finish the revision, should I choose to revise), 3) Satire is not my strong suit, and I doubt I could sustain such a tone for thirty days.
Option Two: Keep the Story in its Original Fairy Tale Time Frame
Pros: 1) Unlike a story with a present-day or near-future setting, "Once Upon a Time" will never be dated, 2) The fairy tale tone is my strong suit, 3) I could still many of the same changes to the narrative that I would in a modern setting.
Cons: 1) But I couldn't make my explicit point about the medical-industrial complex, or society's ableism, 2) And I'd lose the surreal aspect of the wish that shouldn't come true, but did.
Option Three: Combine the Two
Pros: 1) There is already a clear delineation point, half-way (roughly) through the story, where I could switch over, 2) Starting in modern times would allow for the critique of the Medical Model of Disability; ending in "Once upon a" times would allow for Hans to challenge the belief (of the readers and the citizens in-story) that Beauty=Good and Ugliness=Evil (which would be more ambiguous in a present-day setting [our society already gives lip service to "Don't judge a book by its cover," so writing that into a modern setting is more likely to get smug moralistic nods than a jolt of recognition that challenging a comfortable trope would]).
Cons: 1) If Hans passes through some sort of portal to an alternate universe for the last part of the story, that would likely leave the impression that that universe had always been his "true home," reinforcing the ableist notion that disabled children are sent as "special messengers" to teach moral lessons to the "normal" people, 2) Abruptly changing the tone midway through the story runs the risk of derailing the narrative, and losing the reader.
And now: The Poll!
(If you're reading this on LJ, and don't want to log into Open-Identity, you can just tell me which of the three options you think I should pick in a comment.)
Poll #14360 Help me Decide!
Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 3
So -- which time-setting should I choose?
And finally, for your enjoyment and my inspiration... A key plot element of Hans-my-Hedgehog is his love of playing the bagpipes (they were never just Scottish). Here's someone playing a replica of a 17th Century set of the smallest of the German Shepherd's Pipes -- which would be the most likely right size for an eight-year-old hedgehog boy. Imagine being lost in a deep, dark wood, and hearing a sound like this drifting down from somewhere in the canopy above you:
no subject
Date: 2013-10-13 10:32 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-10-13 11:33 pm (UTC)Ah! So you have a sense of my frustration...
if you simply created an alternate 'verse in which monarchy/medieval castes were never done away with despite the advancement of science/industry/etc. it could still work without too much difficulty.
I will let that tumble through my mind, and see what shape it turns into. Also, the thought occurred to me that the father could, in the fairy tale 'verse, cross paths with a sorcerer-type, who repeatedly promises magical cures that seem to work at first, but don't.