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...

THE GATES CLOSE TONIGHT!

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

The Curse Is Broken

Today we saw people of all affiliations defend democracy.

Today we saw Americans arm the Sword of Truth.

Today we saw the Sword of Truth break the curse.

A new chapter begins, this time in blue. 

We know there is a LOT of work to do.

But for today, let us rejoice and may the healing begin.

NB: All animation/Sleeping Beauty images are owned by Disney. The artists for both wallpapers (book, and butterfly on books) are unknown.

A Kingdom Lost For A Drop Of Honey (A Very Relevant Folktale for Today)

This folktale from Thailand and Burma, sometimes titled "A Drop of Honey" or "Not My Problem" is perfect for where we're at as a society today. We'll leave you in the capable hands of writer and storyteller Margaret Read Macdonald, who includes it in her book Peace Tales: World Folktales to Talk About. It's a very short story and perfect to share with families too. 

We've found a lovely sequence of illustrations that are perfect to scroll slowly through if you'd like some illustrated visuals to accompany the storytelling. Just click play then scroll down. (If your video stops once you've scrolled beyond it, open it in a separate tab in YouTube, press play, then click back to the tab with this page and scroll slowly as the tales unfolds. It works wonderfully.)

Enjoy!

There are variants of this story in other countries too, specifically Myanmar, Iran, and Armenia. There are even two lovely illustrated versions from Armenia, which you can see the covers for below the illustration sequence, though they're a little difficult to track down. 

The beautiful illustrations in this post are by Wenda Collins. Go give her a "like" on her page! We think this tale should be much better known and illustrations like hers make tales much easier to share!