Writing How to start writing a Fairytale?

[LilTV1155]

I already have the ideas of how the entire story should go with its set themes. But I am having troubles with trying to begin or write a fairytale story. How do you guys do it?
Especially with phrases like "Once upon a time" or "There was" and etc.?

Thank you.

 

[Deleted member 45782]

Legends have it...
A long, long way ago in a far away place...

You mean introducing a lore into a story? Like a story within a story?

Tbh, it can be really written in any and all kinds of different ways.

 

[Biggest-Kusa-Out-There]

1 brazilian years ago, a young master offended a little turtle.
"Junior, do you dare?" the turtle spat with a thunderous cry.
"You don't have the qualifications!" the young master offered a mocking grin which split his white-jade skin.
"You court death!!" the turtle's face changed color. It couldn't believe that a mere pup would dare slap him in the face with such viciousness. It wanted to vomit blood, but didn't know wether to laugh or cry.
They fought and the turtle won. However, no lethal strike was dealt. The young master had blundless profound potential in the way of the dao. The Myriad Dimension Goat Cheese Salad had said so in a vision.
So, the turtle helped the young master.
"You saved me... why?" the young master could not believe the amount of face the turtle was saving him. It was enough to build a pagoda!
"Mhh..." the turtle smiled at the young pup. Still, the turtle's skin was thick as city walls! The turlte looked down at the young master and said in a voice that resounded with the Heavenly Law, "Monkey..."
The turtle then became the Heaven Ruling Turtle of Endless Clouds, founder of the Bloody River Sect.

 

[Cipiteca396]

1 brazilian years ago, a young master offended a little turtle.
"Junior, do you dare?" the turtle spat with a thunderous cry.
"You don't have the qualifications!" the young master offered a mocking grin which split his white-jade skin.
"You court death!!" the turtle's face changed color. It couldn't believe that a mere pup would dare slap him in the face with such viciousness. It wanted to vomit blood, but didn't know wether to laugh or cry.
They fought and the turtle won. However, no lethal strike was dealt. The young master had blundless profound potential in the way of the dao. The Myriad Dimension Goat Cheese Salad had said so in a vision.
So, the turtle helped the young master.
"You saved me... why?" the young master could not believe the amount of face the turtle was saving him. It was enough to build a pagoda!
"Mhh..." the turtle smiled at the young pup. Still, the turtle's skin was thick as city walls! The turlte looked down at the young master and said in a voice that resounded with the Heavenly Law, "Monkey..."
The turtle then became the Heaven Ruling Turtle of Endless Clouds, founder of the Bloody River Sect.

I'm starting to think you're a tsundere. For how much you complain about these things, you love writing about them.

"Once upon a time"

There's nothing wrong with this one. If you don't want to use it though-

The key is to be vague. A fairytale is a story that should be both easy to relate to and overly ridiculous. You can also start by clarifying where it happened, though treating it like a personal recollection is also common. And they can also attempt to give a moral, though it isn't necessary.

"Just down the street from here, I saw a man drinking a watermelon. By that, I mean he was stuffing his face in a freshly cracked watermelon and inhaling it like a vacuum. I've never seen anything like it."

"In the land of eternal summer, there was-"

"I remember this one time..."

"I heard a story once,"

"There was a rumor that-"

"Do you know why shadows stay so close to their owner? It's because- "

 

[ElijahRyne]

I already have the ideas of how the entire story should go with its set themes. But I am having troubles with trying to begin or write a fairytale story. How do you guys do it?
Especially with phrases like "Once upon a time" or "There was" and etc.?

Thank you.

One day…
it was a cold morning when…
a long long time ago…
When fire flickers, it is…
Time is made of…
Too many ducks leads to…
You know…
Love is a …
Somewhere …
Following the…

And finally:

 

[Biggest-Kusa-Out-There]

I'm starting to think you're a tsundere. For how much you complain about these things, you love writing about them.

It's not like I like it or anything! You b-baka!
But really, there are criticism to it. But there are also good sides to it aswell. The way they present fairytales is okay most of the time. When it's not politically charged of course.
The moral of the little text was man vs nature and how even though humans disrespect it, nature forgives and gives chances. A bit of a stretch with the added sarcasm but yeah, lol.

You could also begin with a rhetoric question, or a trick question and then explain the problem with a fairytale.
How much does your shadow cost? People would think in terms of money to sell it, but the answer is normalcy. Then you go and tell the tale of a boy who sold his shadow for pocket change and bought some candy. The boy went back home and nothing happened. The next day, however, people alienated him because he was not normal without a shadow. It could serve as a tale to warn about greed and not sell ourselves for short-term profit which makes us look different to other people and thus lose our connection to them.

You could also begin with the answer already. "Boredom is a slow and insidious killer", then tell the tale of how this one smart dude was too bored with the world around him so he commited warcrimes or something extreme to scare children.

You could also refer to it as a story: "This story is from about eighty years ago." but the trick is that it always is "from about eighty years ago", perpetuating the vagueness of when it truly began. Fairytales usually have unreliable narrators, so you can use it as an extra layer.

You could also begin "This story is from before our time", or "according to our ancestors..." and cement tradition.

 

[Jemini]

I already have the ideas of how the entire story should go with its set themes. But I am having troubles with trying to begin or write a fairytale story. How do you guys do it?
Especially with phrases like "Once upon a time" or "There was" and etc.?

Thank you.

What's the premise of the story? That makes a difference in terms of how you begin it.

Also, what's your tone? If you want to go narrative story-book style, possibly with a parody air to it, using the single most cliché and common "once upon a time" is a fairly effective way to communicate that tone quickly.

This is also one of the many reasons why a lot of people write their fantasies as isekai these days. It's a lot easier to introduce your character in our world than in the fantasy world.

 

[FallingLeaf]

How to start a fairy tale?

Once upon a time there was a happily ever after. The end.

more seriously-some good tips already mentioned in the thread, and it depends on what you’re hoping to frame the story as. Is it a cautionary fairy tale? A children’s bedtime story? A screwed up horror story like a lot of the Brothers Grimm stuff? That will impact what you want to start with and how you set the scene for the story

 

[RepresentingCaution]

Jump straight into the action to hook the reader. That's a good rule of thumb no matter what genre you are writing.

 

[LilTV1155]

For some reasons, when I try to begin the fairytale. I get this rage-urge to heavily info dump everything at the very beginning.
How "vague" do I need to make it especially when I am talking about monster evolution?
Information I am trying to shove into my fairytale by impulse: Like Plants can become ladies after cultivating or beasts become lords after training for years and they all have to serve their master/ mistress stuff.

But as for my tone, I am intending to give the fairytale story a very grim tone from the beginning due to sensitive subjects and to transform the story into happy ending sort.

 

[greyblob]

But as for my tone, I am intending to give the fairytale story a very grim tone from the beginning due to sensitive subjects and to transform the story into happy ending sort.

I'm not sure if this is a good idea. I'd say go for a short happy introduction and transition to the grim or jump right into it.

 

[Cipiteca396]

For some reasons, when I try to begin the fairytale. I get this rage-urge to heavily info dump everything at the very beginning.
How "vague" do I need to make it especially when I am talking about monster evolution?
Information I am trying to shove into my fairytale by impulse: Like Plants can become ladies after cultivating or beasts become lords after training for years and they all have to serve their master/ mistress stuff.

This doesn't sound like a fairytale, more like normal fantasy/(whatever cultivation novels are called). Then again, the Lord of the Rings and the Chronicles of Narnia might be a fairytale format that info dumps you at every turn.

Spoiler: The Hobbit, The Magician's Nephew, and the Lion, W, W

In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit-hole, and that means comfort.

This is a story about something that happened long ago when your grandfather was a child. It is a very important story because it shows all the comings and goings between our world and the land of Narnia first began.

Once there were four children whose names were Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy. This story is about something that happened to them when they were sent away from London during the war because of the air-raids. They were sent to the house of an old Professor who lived in the heart of the country, ten miles from the nearest railway station and two miles from the nearest post office. He had no wife and he lived in a very large house with a housekeeper called Mrs. Macready and three servants. (Their names were Ivy, Margeret and Betty, but they do not come into the story much.)

Wow, Narnia stories love the info dump, yeah?

Anyways, you might want to give a read to LotR, if you haven't done so lately. Or a few shorter fairytales, I suppose. Maybe watch Tangled or Frozen, if you can't stand the idea of reading.

Ah, maybe try doing your info dumps in small bursts, when needed.

The third was Bella. She was once a flower, but after long years of growth and bathing in dense mana, she grew into a Fairy. Upon awakening, she was discovered by the Witch Margaret and became her familiar.

 

[ElijahRyne]

For some reasons, when I try to begin the fairytale. I get this rage-urge to heavily info dump everything at the very beginning.
How "vague" do I need to make it especially when I am talking about monster evolution?
Information I am trying to shove into my fairytale by impulse: Like Plants can become ladies after cultivating or beasts become lords after training for years and they all have to serve their master/ mistress stuff.

But as for my tone, I am intending to give the fairytale story a very grim tone from the beginning due to sensitive subjects and to transform the story into happy ending sort.

That depends, when telling dark to light fairytale ie. Hansel and Gretal, do you do you start with explaining the motivations or actions of the witch?

Spoiler

Trick question, you do neither. You start with them being abandoned in the woods by their parents and leaving bread crumbs to track their way back.

You need to simply and organically discribe caracter motivations. Don’t start with Cinderella’s mother is abusive because… Start with showing Cinderella’s abuse. It allows you to somewhat be brought into the characters’ world!

Example Vague start: Wen was a young kid. In the morning they were taught cultivation. They had trouble keeping themselves awake during those lessons.

One day Wen spent all day playing with friends.

“Tag!” A young kid said while rubbing his nose. “Now count down from ten while we hide.” The kid continued while grinning.

……………………