Showing posts with label course. Show all posts
Showing posts with label course. Show all posts

Sunday, November 8, 2020

The Gates for Entry to Carterhaugh's Gothic Fairy Tales Course Close TODAY!

Red by Jay Bendt
"What beautiful eyes, you have" the wolf whimpered, as I carved out his heart."
Carterhaugh Is Still Open To Take Students for:
BUT HURRY...


This unique 4-week course begins MONDAY, November 9th, 2020!

Why Gothic Fairy Tales?

Gothic fits 2020. 

Not because it’s full of horrors (though there is that in common), but because, deep down, the gothic is about transgression. It’s about subverting power. It’s about shadows - but it asks us to think about why there are shadows, how to find beauty in them, and, when necessary, how to dispel them. 

The gothic is about grappling with the darkness and facing down monsters.

Just like fairy tales.

In this course, you’ll take a deep dive into the gothic mode and into fairy tales. You’ll learn what they are, how they overlap, and how their dread glamour and magic feed each other. And you’ll learn how they can ignite your own creative process.

The modules include:


We will also be using the fairy tale anthology Beyond the Woods: Fairy Tales Retold edited by Paula Guran, so if you don't already have a copy, check your local library or find a copy online today (used copies can be found for around $5).

Click HERE to go to the course info page for more details
and to SIGN UP.
Photo by Tiko Giorgadze

Tuesday, April 21, 2020

3 Scholarships Available for "Rapunzel's Circle: Finding Enchantment Under Quarantine"!

Rapunzel by Wenjia Tang

A special note from Dr. Brittany Warman (also charmingly known as "Briarspell" on her social media accounts), Carterhaugh School of Folklore and the Fantastic's co-founder, folklorist, teacher, writer and a slew of other giftedness - regarding the new course we just posted on, "Rapunzel's Circle: Finding Enchantment Under Quarantine": 
We should also mention that we're offering THREE full scholarships for this course,
so please e-mail us at
carterhaughschool@gmail.com
or watch our Facebook group for more information on that :).

How awesome is this? More than a few are having serious financial issues with the important and life-saving, but also challenging order to #stayathome, so now more folks can be involved, by-passing this difficulty altogether. (Our Fairy Tale Professors ROCK!)

Hope to see some familiar faces and/or names in the course next week!

"Rapunzel's Circle: Finding Enchantment Under Quarantine" - A New Fairy Tale & Folklore Course, Designed Specifically To Help Us Weather This Pandemic Storm

by Antonio Mora

Feeling overwhelmed, tired, frustrated, trapped and worried about so very many things?

Us too.


Having trouble finding magic in your days?

Us too.


Wishing fairy tales had answers or at least some refuge and hope?

We have something to offer!


Carterhaugh's School of Folklore and the Fantastic have gently been offering light and hope via social media, especially through their community on Facebook, on Instagram and sharing inspiring posts on their blog - which we recommend subscribing to.

As mentioned in a previous post, they've even offered a huge list of free resources aka "Rapunzel's Toolkit".

But now they're offering even more, specifically to help folks of the fairy tale and folkloric persuasion, in finding rest, solace, hope and community during this time of upheaval.

Fairy tale professors Dr. Sara Cleto and Dr. Brittany Warman have created a special course, designed to help RIGHT NOW:

"This course draws deeply on folklore and fairy tales to help you weather the storm. Our mission is to re-story you, to connect you to the community and combat loneliness, to inspire you creatively, and to help calm your restless mind.
(That is this-coming MONDAY folks!)
The course will include live lectures, an invitation to our private Facebook group, access to all the fairy tales we discuss, weekly fairy-tale incantations, and so much more. This course is, above all, about community. It is about coming together during a time of crisis and loneliness to meet with other, like-minded folk and form a space where compassion is alive and magic is still afoot. Your spark hasn’t gone out - we will find it together."
And if you want to take part but the last thing you feel you can manage is something else on your plate, you should know this course is designed, not as an intensive study, with tons of reading, huge projects or assignments but as something you can flit in and out of, whenever you find a few minutes of downtime. You can dip your toe in and get wonderfully refreshed in just for 10 minutes, or soak for a few hours and deep dive to your heart's content - it's up to you and the course allows for both approaches.

Here's an overview of what will be focused on in the weeks to come:

CLICK HERE FOR MORE DETAILS AND TO SIGN UP
This 4 week course is being offered at a lower than usual price to be more accessible to folks, and Carterhaugh offers different payment plans to make it easier too.

It should also be noted that these courses are a GREAT way to find other fairy tale folk and become part of a community. You are not alone at home, or in your quirky folkloric and enchanted interests! There are many folks out there like you (like us!) and these courses are a great way to discover thoughtful and kind people from all over the world - and, importantly right now, in a very safe way. Connecting while social distancing is made possible through communities like this one and creates a great introduction for when we can wander the world safely again, perhaps this time to share coffee, tea and conversation with new friends.

Note: Rapunzel's Circle logo for Carterhaugh School of Folklore and the Fantastic by Cheryl Honeycutt

Friday, November 29, 2019

Give A Truly Folkloric Gift This Season: A *New* Winter Folklore Mini-Course Or A Self-Guided Long Course In Fairy Tale Classics! (Psst! BlackFriday Deal Alert!)

The award-winning Carterhaugh School of Folklore and the Fantastic have TWO new courses enrolling, a winter folklore mini-course and a self-guided master course on fairy tales... AND they're both 15% off right now with code WINTERMAGIC! (Sale through Monday 12/2/19.)

Here are some more details to entice to you join - or gift! - the growing community of folks avidly learning about folklore and fairy tales under the guidance of folklorists Professor Brittany Warman and Professor Sara Cleto. We got the chance of a fly-by catch-up with our fairy tale professors to ask them a couple of fun questions for you about the courses as well... (see the text in blue below each of the course descriptions):

The first course is perfect for the Winter Season and has been created by popular demand after the rousing success and high attendance in Carterhaugh's Halloween mini-course. The new interactive Winter course begins on January 8, 2020:

Enrollment is OPEN for our new mini-course “Kindling a Light in the Darkness: Winter Folklore and Fairy Tales”!
Let’s face it: the long dark of January and February is BLEAK. Once the December lights come down, the turkey (or, if you’re like us, Tofurkey and every last potato in town) has been gobbled up, and the fizzy champagne countdown to New Years is over, facing the cold winter months can feel seriously depressing, And so, we want you to join us in kindling a light and sharing a story or two when the year seems darkest.
By popular demand, we’ve conjured up another interactive Carterhaugh mini-course for you, poised right in the coldest and loneliest time of year. We invite you to take shelter from the wind and snow, pull up a chair by our fire, and gather round for stories, fellowship, and rituals to warm you down to your toes. Through a combination of video lectures, written tales, extra resources, and group discussion, we will lead you through some of our favorite winter folklore and fairy tales!
For more info and to enroll, visit HERE.

Speaking of favorite Winter folklore, we couldn't resist a pop-quiz question on the topic for the Carterhaugh School Fairy Tale Professors:

OUAB: You are having a decadent Winter Feast and need to invite: one folkloric character, one fairy tale person, one ghost and one animal. (Don't worry. They have promised to keep their hooves/paws/trotters off the table). Whom would you invite to your festive evening?

SaraPersephone (because, between bouncing back and forth between the underworld and the surface, she's learned to be a good conversationalist with all kinds of different people), Lady Mary from the fairy tale "Mr. Fox" (because she's one of my fairy-tale heroes - girl is FIERCE), the Ghost of Christmas Present (because he'd be so happy to be there), and Tatterhood's goat (because she is a fine and noble steed)!

BrittanyThe White Cat (who yes, is from a fairy tale too, but fairy tales are folklore, sooooo 😝!), the 13th fairy from “Sleeping Beauty” (because one simply does not NOT invite her, as we all know!), the Ghost of Christmas Past (bc I’d love to have a peek back in time of a Christmas with some of those I’ve lost over the years), and one of Santa’s magical reindeer (probably Vixen, I always loved her name!)

BONUS FOR EAST COAST FOLKS: For those interested in the darker side of Christmas, Yule and Winter holiday traditions and tales, on December 17th, 2019 there is a LIVE Profs and Pints talk in Washington DC – “You Better Watch Out: A Look at Terrifying Holiday Folklore Around the World” – A little note: these live sessions have been SELLING OUT so if you're genuinely interested in going, grab your tickets ASAP HERE. Here's a taste:
Today, the December holidays are all about joyous magic, warm evenings curled by the fire, and celebrations of the good in the world. Traditionally, however, the winter season also ushers in the terrors of the dark and the cold, teaching us to bar doors, whisper warnings, and, above all, to be good for goodness sake. 
While many are now familiar with the holiday terror of the Krampus, this talk will explore a few less familiar, but no less frightening, folkloric characters of the season. 
You'll hear tales of the Icelandic Jólakötturinn, a gigantic cat that devours naughty children, and learn how to best the Welsh Mari Lwyd, a skeletal horse with a taste for song and poetry. You'll get to know the Eastern European Christmas witch Frau Perchta and trace the history of the sometimes mischievous, sometimes terrifying Yule Lads and their monstrous mother, Grýla.
The second offering is an in-depth master course in the classic fairy tales, consisting of ten comprehensive lessons:

Introduction to Fairy Tales
A self-guided course through classic tales and traditional folklore

Once upon a time...
A girl in red walked into the woods with a basket for her grandmother. There, she wandered from the path, talked to a strange wolf, was eaten, was saved.

Or, once upon a time…
The girl, who did not wear red, went into the woods. She met a werewolf, chose the Road of Needles instead of the Road of Pins. She performed a striptease for the wolf, tricked him, and ran back home, and slammed the door behind her.

Or, once upon a time…
A girl, once more in red, walked into the woods. She wandered, talked, was eaten. She was not saved, and she remained in the wolf’s belly.

A teeny preview of one of the beautiful
'grimoire' pages created for participants
to download & collect into their
own personal study volume.
To read the info-goodies you will have
to join..


In this self-guided online course, “Introduction to Fairy Tales,” we welcome you across the threshold of Carterhaugh to explore a collection of wonder tales from around the world- stories you may know, stories you may think you know, stories that are strange and unfamiliar. Through a combination of video lectures, supplemental readings, and extra resources, we will introduce you to the wide world of fairy-tale scholarship and provide the history, context, and tools to begin analyzing these stories and applying them to your own life.

For more info and to enroll, visit HERE.

Applying fairy tales to one's own life felt like it deserved a pop-quiz question too. Sara & Brittany very kindly humored us with wonderfully reflective answers...

OUAB: As you explain in this course, fairy tales are classified by their "tale-type" or "the things that happen in the fairy tale" and can sometimes reflect people's lives. While therapists can use this as a tool of exploration, just for fun, what would you each say is a "tale type" you feel reflects an aspect of your lives? (To make it harder we're nixing the reply of regularly losing shoes like Cinderella...)

BrittanyI’m going to have to go with “Sleeping Beauty” for this question. Most people know it’s my favorite fairy tale, but I also feel a deep connection to the story. All my life I’ve been shy, quiet, and typically not too willing to stick up for myself... sleeping, in some sense. But the older and more confident I get, the more I feel I am “awakening” from that, awakening to the person I’m truly meant to be. And that, to me, is kind of what “Sleeping Beauty” is all about.

SaraThe answer I give to this question will change depending on the day, but today, it's "Snow White." "Snow White" was my least favorite fairy tale growing up, because I thought Snow White was really weak and passive - and I wanted so badly to be strong and confident. As I've grown older (and given this fairy tale a lot more thought), I've realized that "Snow White" is a story about survival and success, despite incredible odds. I've grown much more compassionate towards Snow White herself (who is only seven years old in the Grimm version!) and more compassionate to myself, especially when I think about my own challenges through the lens of this particular fairy tale. 

Thanks Sara & Brittany! We love the humor, delight and insight you bring to every conversation - even pop-quizzes!

We at Once Upon A Blog have participated in a few Carterhaugh courses and highly recommend them both to people new to fairy tale studies, as well as those looking for something a little more in-depth. Both Sara and Brittany are wonderfully enthusiastic while being well-researched and clear in their unique tag-team style teaching. There's nothing quite like it anywhere else, and best of all, being based in an online format, their courses are available for ANY enthusiast, no matter their background, level of education, or location (yes - there are students joining from all over the world!) and they are committed to making this learning opportunity available at an affordable price. They are forever expanding their courses and the ways in which they are teaching and we feel lucky to have seen the formation of this wonderful school that was recently awarded the Dorothy Howard Prize, as recognition of
excellence, relevance, and innovation in folklore education, by The American Folklore Society. (In case it's not clear - this school is considered excellent by all those professional folklorists you respect!)

We hope to see some of you in the courses to come!

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

The Carterhaugh School of Folklore and the Fantastic Wins AFS Dorothy Howard Prize! + Sign-Ups Open for 'Folklore of Halloween' Mini-Course


Huge congratulations to Brittany Warman and Sara Cleto for winning the 2019 Dorothy Howard prize for The Carterhaugh School of Folklore and the Fantastic!

The prize recognizes excellence, relevance, and innovation in folklore education; essentially saying that Sara and Brittany are doing awesome and important work in their area of passion, which is, making excellent folklore education available to everyone. What wonderful confirmation that all their hard work and effort is worth it. To be recognized by your professional peers for a unique initiative is truly fantastic!

"The committee called Caterhaugh School “a folklore school for the digital age” that brings the scholarly study of folklore to a “global audience” online ." (from @BriarSpell's Twitter account)

Congratulations ladies!

We look forward to seeing what Carterhaugh is busy teaching folks for many years to come.

As for our readers, if you'e been sitting on the fence, wondering whether taking one of Carterhaigh's courses is worth it, hopefully, this helps convince you it is. Not only are the courses intriguing, beautifully presented, accessible to anyone with an interest, and taught with humor and magic, but they are also excellent in their content too.

Here's a quick overview of what they've offered to date:
And they're busy finishing up preparing a new big course which will be released very soon. In the meantime, they have something special for the season...

They put together a special new mini-course on Halloween Folklore (a very popularly requested topic) which will go live on OCTOBER 28.  It's being offered at a SUPER LOW PRICE of $25, (a one-time offer!) with a whole lot of benefits and a great way to sample the sorts of things Brittany and Sara put together.

Let us assure you, Sara and Brittany, are here for the fun on all aspects of Halloween as well as ready to impart sme serious lore, tales and hints for dealing with everything from lost spirits and Halloween fairies to useful rituals (and where those rituals came from). They've been posting some very fun content on the Carterhaugh blog, such as:
  • Witchy Playlists (music to get you in the mood)
  • Vampire Stories (to help you get the shivers, despite the unseasonal heat!)
  • Gothic fashion (it's the season for trying new looks and costumes after all)
Our favorite, though, is Sara's article on the witch Watho, from George MacDonald's fairy tale The Day Boy and the Night Girl. See the author's description:
“THERE was once a witch who desired to know everything. But the wiser a witch is, the harder she knocks her head against the wall when she comes to it. Her name was Watho, and she had a wolf in her mind. She cared for nothing in itself — only for knowing it. She was not naturally cruel, but the wolf had made her cruel. She was tall and graceful, with a white skin, red hair, and black eyes, which had a red fire in them. She was straight and strong, but now and then would fall bent together, shudder, and sit for a moment with her head turned over her shoulder, as if the wolf had got out of her mind onto her back.” – George MacDonald (images from a 1988 edition)
Yep - she's a shape-changing witch, a werewolf witch, really, but not just that. She's not only mystically but had a (mad)scientific mind. In fact, the fairy tale begins with her deciding to do an experiment... She's not your average antagonist!

(And now we'd like to see all the suggestions for a Watho Halloween costume please!)

You can read all about the course HERE, including what will be taught and all the exclusive downloads, access and opportunities.

But be quick.
Places close at Midnight on October 27th!

Tuesday, December 20, 2016

Interview Pt III: In which we discover the different paths of study (Scholar! Artist! Writer!) in 'The Fairy Tale' course at Carterhaugh School

Did we mention we're pretty excited about the new online course on The Fairy Tale that's transformed from wishes to reality, thanks to the enchanting, whip smart -and possibly a little devious- duo of Brittany Warman and Sara Cleto, the fairy godmothers behind the new Carterhaugh School of Folklore & the Fantastic?

So far we've learned about the magical beginnings of Carterhaugh School, peeked behind-the-scenes at the ladies who made this dreams a reality and discovered why studying The Fairy Tale at Carterhaugh is going to be different from all other fairy tale study offered to date.
If you missed our first two interview posts you can find them here: 
Pt 1: 'Carterhaugh School of Folklore & the Fantastic' Brings Us The Best Gift Ever: Fairy Tales! 
Pt II: In which we discover what studying Carterhaugh School's 'The Fairy Tale' is like
But there is another, very unique and exciting aspect to this course that will make it unlike anything you've done before. Not only will participants:
  • study beyond the typical introduction to fairy tales (ie. "Did you know the originals before Disney were dark..?" etc)
  • explore a wide variety of tales - both from the classic canon and many beyond
  • explore tales from a range of cultures and authors/sources
  • dive into the magical melting pot of salon conversations
  • be treated to insights by special guest lecturer, Shveta Thakrar, for the Beastly Bride Day
... they will also have the opportunity to explore fairy tales in a specifically personal way: by choosing one of three paths...
There will be a final assignment prompt for which you may choose the path of the scholar, the path of the writer, or the path of the artist. Personal feedback on completed final assignments is available upon request – we would love to see what you come up with!
Oh the possibilities! Let's find out more in Part III today of our exclusive behind-the-scenes interview.

Thank you again, Mistresses Brittany and Sara, for joining us today.


In the introduction to this 10 week course you mention a final assignment in which the participant has the option to choose a) the path of the scholar, b) the path of the writer, or c) the path of the artist, all of which sound intriguing. For people who might struggle between choosing, can you tell us more about the paths (is this a case of needles and pins?), and what the purpose is of structuring the assignment this way? (Should folk be thinking destiny? The path less traveled? Or something else?)
We offer the three paths in order to make the final project useful and relevant to a broader group of students with diverse interests and ways of processing stories and information. The Path of the Scholar is the option most similar to a traditional college paper, but there are many avenues that you might take to writing it, including a persuasive paper about a possible meaning or interpretation for one of the tales( Why is this meaning or interpretation important to you? To what extent can you sustain it with concrete details from the text?) or a personal essay (If you had to choose one of the narratives we have read to apply to your own life, what would it be and why? How does this narrative help you make sense of your own story?) The Path of the Writer invites you to retell or adapt one of the narratives we have explored. You could write a short story, a poem, a letter, a short play, or other written form that: retells the tale from the perspective of a different character (or from the perspective of an object); makes significant plot changes to the tale, explains a “narrative gap” or an instance of “leaping and lingering,” a moment that isn’t narrated or doesn’t make sense to you, in one of the tales; explores a character’s interiority; or sets a tale in a contemporary setting. The Path of the Artist asks to you respond to one of the stories through a visual medium. You can create a painting, a carving, a garment, a piece of jewelry, a drawing, a sculpture, a comic, or other visual form that: retells a particular moment in one of the stories; captures the emotion you felt upon reading a particular passage or expresses the emotions you think the characters would have experienced during their journey; recreates an object or character from one of the tales; depicts a moment that is not narrated (a moment from before the tale begins or after it ends.) We’ve also had students create their own path or expand/ adapt these prompts in order to accommodate their own interests.

Is there any accreditation given (or magical powers bestowed) to participants who successfully complete the course? Will there be any keepsakes that participants can stow as proof they went into these woods and talked to the many Others therein?
While we cannot offer any official accreditations, we do plan to issue certificates to those who complete the course. As we talk about below, we’ll also be sending a special package in the mail with keepsakes!

You recently had a 'short course' Folklore for All Hallows Eve. Can you tell us about how that went, (at the cross roads, in the dead of night in the thinning mist) the different sorts of things participants studied (eg. etiquette for greeting the grateful dead) and what the results were?
The Folklore for All Hallows’ Eve course was our first course at Carterhaugh, so we approached it very much as an experiment- if it went well, we would expand and offer more classes, and, if not, we could say we tried and move on. However, we had a fantastic experience teaching this first course. The three lessons were all oriented around seasonal, spooky folk narratives, so we had a lesson each on eerie ballads, creepy fairy tales, and urban legends. The reception thus far has been very positive- final projects are rolling in from our students, and they are wonderful! And many students from that course have already enrolled for the Fairy Tale Course, so we think we’re on the right track!

Being online -a̶l̶l̶o̶w̶s̶ ̶f̶o̶r̶ ̶m̶a̶g̶i̶c̶a̶l̶ ̶i̶n̶p̶u̶t̶ ̶b̶y̶ ̶t̶e̶c̶h̶-̶s̶a̶v̶v̶y̶ ̶f̶a̶i̶r̶y̶ ̶g̶o̶d̶m̶o̶t̶h̶e̶r̶s̶- brings so many possibilities to a course, including the possibility of meeting like-minded people from places you would never be able to visit in your lifetime. Is there any portal available for current and prospective participants to meet, interact and share fairy tale ideas, discoveries and related works?
Yes! That’s one of the things that has been so great about this venture so far. Every course will have their own special Facebook group only for students - the one for the “Folklore for All Hallows’ Eve” was very lively and fun! We also have a main Facebook group where people can ask us questions about the courses and connect with others as well. You can find that already active group here - https://www.facebook.com/groups/305213463204876/

We'll wrap up our interview in the next post as there are yet more goodies up for fairy tale participants that we simply have to save, to showcase all by themselves... 

Join us tomorrow for Part IV, our final part of the interview with these amazing women who are busy spreading magic to all they can, and who encourage knowledge and exploration of the world, of tales, of history and of our future potential - something which our world sorely needs right now.

To sign up for Carterhaugh School's, The Fairy Tale long course and take advantage of this wonderful study opportunity, as well as embark on a uniquely and personally tailored fairy tale journey, click HERE.

And remember that this makes for a perfect last minute holiday gift: No wrapping, convenient payment options and fairy tale happiness for many months to come! It's a pretty wonderful way to give a fairy tale enthusiast a gift they'll love and never forget.

Once again, here is a summary of the details:
Dates: January 16th, 19th, 23rd, 26th, 30th, February 2nd, 6th, 9th, 13th, 16th – note that these are simply the dates that materials will be posted! You will be able to access everything indefinitely and watch whenever is most convenient to you. 
Total Number of Lessons: 10 
What’s Included: Welcome Letter, Mailed Special Welcome Package, 10 Video Lectures, 10 PowerPoint Presentations, 10 Beautiful PDF “Grimoire Page” Lesson Summaries, PDFs or Links to Any Supplementary Reading, Personal Feedback on Completed Final Assignment if Desired 
Any Additional Materials Needed: No 
Registration Closes: January 15th at Midnight 
Price: $150 – you can pay in one, two, or three installments! Full payment must be complete by the time registration closes on January 15th.
Click HERE to sign up yourself, or a lucky fairy tale friend.
Stay tuned tomorrow for the last part of our special interview series with the roses of The Carterhaugh School!
* Artwork used is all by Edmund Dulac, except for the Carterhaugh School Facebook header directly above.

Monday, December 19, 2016

Interview Pt II: In which we discover what studying Carterhaugh School's 'The Fairy Tale' is like

As promised, today we continue our interview with the enchanting folklore mavens behind the newest - and perhaps the only - school dedicated to fairy tale magic on the planet: The Carterhaugh School of Folklore & the Fantastic.

(Miss our Introduction and Interview Part I? You can find that right HERE.)

In this Part II of our tour behind the scenes of creating the school and online course in The Fairy Tale, we ask Brittany Warman and Sara Cleto for more specifics on why our readers - many of whom know more about fairy tales than even fairly well read folk - would not only enjoy the course, but might come to view it as their (online) fairy tale equivalent of Hogwarts. Let's see what they said:


For our readers, most of whom have done more than dabble in the delights and dangers of fairy tales than most people, what is unique about your course and why would it complement their deeper-than-average delvings into fairy tales?
One of the reasons we think a school like this might be welcome to people already well-versed in these materials is the fact that folklore is an enormous category that unfortunately breeds a great deal of misinformation, even in printed materials. Fairy tales fall victim to this kind of misinformation all the time. In a Carterhaugh class, we will be your guides – we know exactly how to navigate this material and can teach you to do the same! At OSU we have taught all kinds of courses, earning nominations for teaching awards and commendations from both supervisors and students. When we aren’t teaching or working on our dissertations, we are scholars and writers who have published peer-reviewed articles, sold stories and poems, written book introductions and encyclopedia entries, and published both creative and academic reviews. A class with us isn’t going to be the same ol’ “did you know the ORIGINAL fairy tales had dark endings?!” you see so often on the Internet - we’re going to take you beyond that, exploring the subtleties of those “dark” endings, exposing you to the real secrets of the stories you thought you knew, showing you their range across cultures, and hopefully introducing you to an unfamiliar text or two as well. The other reason we think you’ll find our courses unique is that, although we will be supported by our backgrounds in academia and creative writing, we aim to use our knowledge and our passion for these subjects to share their wonder, solidify their importance in society, and spread a bit of magic into the world. You will be taking classes with two teachers who embrace and believe in the power of these tales. These courses are designed for people who dreamed of elven battles while studying economics, those who have always sworn they could see ghosts, those who longed for a school of magic to send them an unexpected acceptance letter. We’re doing our best to bring that kind of school into the banality of the “real world” while maintaining academic rigor.  

What would an average week look like as a course participant in 'The Fairy Tale'? (eg hours needed, how much reading [is it provided or does it require extra purchasing of texts], sorts of lecturer presentations, project work etc) Does 10 lessons mean 10 consecutive weeks, or is that flexible? Do wings and wands come as standard accessories?
The length and structure of each Carterhaugh course varies, but the course on The Fairy Tale will span five weeks with two lessons released each week for a total of ten lessons. An average week would include two recorded lectures and supplemental readings (a few short stories.) However, a student can take as much time as they like to go through the materials- everything is theirs to download and view at whatever time is most convenient for them. The workload can be whatever the student wishes to do- we will provide all the readings (no extra purchases are necessary), and students can read everything, skim, or pick whichever texts most interest them to focus on. The final project is optional, and it can be as simple or elaborate as a student wishes to make it. Carterhaugh can be whatever a student needs- it can be very in-depth and rigorous, and it can be leisurely and casual, depending on the time that a student wants to devote to the course. Sadly, wings and wands are not included in this particular course, but we encourage their use and will provide other necessary materials.

What fairy tales are you planning to cover in the course? Do you have a spell to fold space/time to fit in the hundreds we're all interested in?
Tragically, we don’t have that spell yet. If you come across it, PLEASE tell us! We’ll hit the classics like Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, and Beauty and the Beast, but we’ll also explore lesser-known fairy tales. For example, we’ll take a look at Asbjørnsen and Moe’s “Tatterhood,” peek into Baba Yaga’s hut, and read some of the ornate, outrageous stories written by French conteuses. And even the classics might surprise you- we’ll look at a Chinese Cinderella story that predates Perrault and the Grimms, a Sleeping Beauty who must contend with an ogre in addition to a curse, and a Beast who is half-hedgehog and rides around the woods on a rooster while playing a bagpipe. No, we are not making this up. 
Note to readers: Carterhaugh School have now released their course schedule so we are including it at the end of this part of the interview to whet your appetites and see the wonderful range of tales and topics that will be covered. It's pretty exciting stuff!

Is there any recommended pre-reading, rituals or spell practicing that fairy tale news readers might wish to prepare themselves with?
We plan to provide all the materials you’ll need for the course, so there’s really no need to prepare anything in advance!

What other sorts of irresistible and goblin-fruit-laden courses are you planning to offer in the future, and will they have similar formats?

This is our first long course, so we’ll have to see how this one goes first! We would love to do courses on folklore generally, fairylore and other supernatural lore, folklore and fantastic literature, “mythpunk” literature, and a huge variety of other things as well. We’re still developing our format but all of our courses will likely be similar in structure.   
We'll stop here for today, but are including the course schedule below.

Stay tuned for Part III of our interview, posting tomorrow!

And don't forget - if you're feeling inspired to sign up yourself, or give the wonderful (wonderful!) gift of registration to a fairy tale enthusiast, here is the detail summary for easy reference:

 
Dates: January 16th, 19th, 23rd, 26th, 30th, February 2nd, 6th, 9th, 13th, 16th – note that these are simply the dates that materials will be posted! You will be able to access everything indefinitely and watch whenever is most convenient to you. 
Total Number of Lessons: 10 
What’s Included: Welcome Letter, Mailed Special Welcome Package, 10 Video Lectures, 10 PowerPoint Presentations, 10 Beautiful PDF “Grimoire Page” Lesson Summaries, PDFs or Links to Any Supplementary Reading, Personal Feedback on Completed Final Assignment if Desired 
Any Additional Materials Needed: No 
Registration Closes: January 15th at MidnightPrice: $150 – you can pay in one, two, or three installments! Full payment must be complete by the time registration closes on January 15th.

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Carterhaugh School of Folklore & the Fantastic: The Fairy Tale - Course Schedule
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Here is a tentative schedule for the upcoming fairy-tale course. Some of the individual stories are subject to change, but the themes for each lesson are set! Take a look:

Lesson One: January 16th, 2017
Intro to Fairy-Tale Study / Little Red Riding Hood / The Story of Grandmother


Lesson Two: January 19th, 2017
Cinderella Day – Cinderella / Donkeyskin / All Kinds of Furs / Yeh-hsien / The Princess in the Suit of Leather
Lesson Three: January 23rd, 2017
Jack Tales Day – Jack and the Beanstalk / Whickety-Whack, Into My Sack / Old Fire Dragaman
Lesson Four: January 26th, 2017
Beastly Bride Day – The Swan Maiden / The Crane Wife / The Loathly Lady / The Story of Uloopi and Arjuna
Featuring a guest lecture by the amazing Shveta Thakrar!
Lesson Five: January 30th, 2017
Awkward Husband Day – Bluebeard / The Robber Bridegroom / Mr. Fox / Fitcher’s Bird
Lesson Six: February 2nd, 2017
Sibling Day – Hansel and Gretel / Jorinde and Joringel / The Juniper Tree / Brother and Sister / Tatterhood
Lesson Seven: February 6th, 2017
Sleeping Maiden Day – Sleeping Beauty / The Ninth Captain’s Tale / Sun, Moon, and Talia / Snow White / Gold-Tree and Silver-Tree / The Glass Casket
Lesson Eight: February 9th, 2017
Search for the Lost Husband Day – Beauty and the Beast / Hans My Hedgehog / Small Toothed Dog / The Pig King / East of the Sun, West of the Moon
Lesson Nine: February 13th, 2017
Salon Day – The White Cat / The Great Green Worm / The Rose Cloud
Lesson Ten: February 16th, 2017
The Golden Key / Wrap Up
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