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Children's literature has been around since the fifteenth century. It began with picture books, and progressed from short stories that recorded oral traditions to full-blown novels that contained social commentary and the retelling of myths. From there, children's literature evolved into autobiographical writing, serial novels and films. more »
For centuries, children's books have been used to teach children morals. Because of the times that many of these stories were told, there are gender stereotypes that have been attached to them that have not changed too much over the centuries. Only in recent times has there been a significant change in gender stereotypes in children's... more »
"Auld Lang Syne" is a song traditionally sung at midnight on New Year's Eve in English-speaking regions such as North America and the United Kingdom. People sing "Auld Lang Syne" and say goodbye to the old year. The song began as a poem written in 1788 by Scottish poet Robert Burns, which he then set to a folk melody. more »
You want to write a fantasy novel. Great, but which type of fantasy do you select?
The fantasy genre has spawned many new subgenres with no clear counterparts in the myths or folklore upon which the tradition of fantasy storytelling is based, although inspiration from mythology and folklore remains a consistent theme. Since the rise... more »
Many creative people harbor the dream of writing children's books. Oftentimes, these writers have drawn or painted a series of illustrations or invented a story that they have shared with children, and they want to test the story in the publishing market. However, learning some basic rules about writing children's books will... more »
Romance, fantasy, mystery and horror are only the tip of the iceberg. Writers have had several...
Compelling stories have a hook that grabs the reader, ups and downs that keep the pages...
Children love to watch a puppet show. They pay closer attention to what is being said and retain the information better with visual clues. With a... more »
Magic wands have made a comeback. In the imagined world, wands have immense power. They have been owned by fairies, witches, wizards, sorcerer and... more »
In the beginning radio stations broadcast hundreds of scripted shows across the airwaves. Although it is rare to hear radio dramas broadcast over... more »
Shadow puppets are an ancient art form, consisting of silhouettes projected from wood or cardboard figures onto a white sheet or screen. Some... more »
If you're young at heart, enjoy making up stories for kids and have a long memory when it comes to backyard games of "let's pretend," the next... more »
A fairy tale is a fictional story that may feature folkloric characters such as fairies, goblins, elves, trolls, giants, gnomes, and talking animals, and usually enchantments, often involving a far-fetched sequence of events. In modern-day parlance, the term is also used to describe something blessed with princesses, as in "fairy tale ending" (a happy ending) or "fairy tale romance", though not all fairy tales end happily. Colloquially, a "fairy tale" or "fairy story" can also mean any far-fetched story. Fairy tales commonly attract young children since they easily understand the archetypal characters in the story.
In cultures where demons and witches are perceived as real, fairy tales may merge into legendary narratives, where the context is perceived by teller and hearers as having historical actuality. However, unlike legends and epics they usually do not contain more than superficial references to religion and actual places, people, and events; they take place once upon a time rather than in actual times.Catherine Orenstein, Little Red Riding Hood Uncloaked, p 9, ISBN 0-465-04125-6
Fairy tales are found in oral folktales and in literary form. The history of the fairy tale is particularly difficult to trace, because only the literary forms can survive. Still, the evidence of literary works at least indicates that fairy tales have existed for thousands of years, although not perhaps recognized as a genre; the name "fairy tale" was first ascribed to them by Madame dAulnoy. Literary fairy tales are found over the centuries all over the world, and when they collected them, folklorists found fairy tales in every culture. Fairy tales, and works derived from fairy tales, are still written today.
The older fairy tales were intended for an audience of adults as well as children, but they were associated with children as early as the writings of the précieuses; the Brothers Grimm titled their collection Childrens and Household Tales, and the read more at » http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairy+tale
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