Week 11 Story: Gellert

(Warning that this story is kind of a downer!)

Gellert could smell the wolf. He knew his owner, the prince, couldn’t smell it because he had left his young behind unguarded, sleeping in its crib. Gellert heard the horn calling him to help on the prince’s hunt, but he stayed put. The dog had always loved the child with its gentle touch and kind laughter; he wouldn’t dare let the wolf get to it. He needed to get the sleeping infant out of the bedroom--now. As he grabbed for it, it awoke and made happy noises, showing excitement to see the dog and completely oblivious to the dire situation. The wolf was getting closer and closer, and Gellert realized there was no time. No escape could be made. He smelled the prince miles away, just now turning back from hunting to come back to their home.

The wolf entered the room and Gellert growled at it. He placed the baby behind the crib and stood in front of it as a barrier. Gellert bared his teeth and the wolf attacked. They bit and clawed, tore and ripped at each other. The wolf pounced on the dog and they hit the crib, tipping it over and trapping the baby inside. The child cried but Gellert ignored his instinct to curl up next to it and provide comfort. He had to keep the child safe--that was his mission. Limping and in agony, he noticed the wolf was breathing heavily and gravely wounded from Gellert’s most recent attack. The dog saw his opportunity, took one last leap and sunk his teeth into the wolf. It whimpered, then stilled. Gellert had won. He went over to the child and licked its face through the bars of the crib. The child immediately stopped crying and started petting the dog. Gellert ignored his pain, blood seeping out in too many places. He had the child, safe and sound. That was all he cared about now. 

A moment later, he sensed his owner outside coming quickly. Feeling that the child was safe now, Gellert ran out to meet his owner and safely guide him back to his young. Gellert felt the prince was unsettled, though, upon meeting him. His owner took one look at Gellert, covered in blood, and suddenly picked up his pace.

He’s fine, Gellert tried to say. Your baby is safe. The wolf is gone.

It was no use, though. As the prince stumbled into the bedroom, he took a quick look around at the room and cried out. Gellert didn't understand why he wasn't going to his child. It was right there, right under the crib. Could he not see it? 

Anger like Gellert had never seen before flashed on the prince’s face. He pulled out his sword and swung it at Gellert, much to the dog's confusion. The last noise the dog heard was the baby’s cry and the prince’s remorseful sobs of grief. 

~

Author's Note: I rewrote the story of Beth Gellert from the dog's perspective. In the original, the prince goes out hunting but is not joined by his normal companion (Gellert the dog) even after calling for him (with the horn). The prince comes back and sees Gellert covered in blood and thinks the dog had killed/eaten the prince's baby, even though Gellert had been a wonderful companion to the prince. When the prince goes into the baby's room, he doesn't see his child or the wolf (since they were covered by the crib) and assumes too quickly that Gellert had killed his child. The prince, in his grief and anger, kills the dog and a moment too late realized what had actually happened. 

I wanted to tell the story from the dog's perspective because I was wondering how the actual event would have occurred (since only the aftermath is mentioned in the original story). It's probably pretty obvious that I've never written action scenes before so it's definitely something I need to work on, but it was fun to make an attempt! 

I considered changing the ending so that the dog didn't die but I feel like that was a really important part of the story, especially because the original story is a Welsh legend and there is an actual grave for Gellert in the village of Beddgelert in Wales. Wikipedia has a really great article to summarize everything about the legend here. 

Bibliography: Beth Gellert, Celtic Fairy Tales (1) unit. Story source: Celtic Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs with illustrations by John D. Batten (1892).

Image information: Beth Gellert from Wikimedia Commons

Week 12 Story Lab: Storybook Research

For my next (and final!) storybook story, I plan to (it could change) write about the Hufflepuffs in their common room. We don't know much about their dorms, since it was the only one Harry didn't visit in the series, but there is a lot of information floating around online. I know it's really gorgeous, well-protected, and has tons of plants and natural light. Here is actually an entire article about it by JK Rowling herself. I'll need to refer to that a lot. If you Google the Hufflepuff common room, you get a lot of good images for it. Here's my favorite:

Hufflepuff common room from WizardingWorld.com

Some great information about Hufflepuffs:

• Harry Potter Wiki
• Fandom Wiki
• Famous Hufflepuffs Through the Ages

Characters to potentially use/mention:

• Cedric Diggory (take place before book 4?)
• Tonks
• Prof. Sprout
• Hannah Abbott
• Ernie Macmillan
• Other minor Hufflepuff characters

Stories I could re-tell (replace characters with witches/wizards--potentially a legendary Marauders story):

• The Emperor's New Suit
• The Fairy Bride
• The Little Boy and Girl in the Clouds
• The Smart Woman Chief
• One of these Brother's Grimm stories
• Beth Gellert

Here is the link to all of my notes for those stories. 

Coat of Arms Hufflepuff from Wikimedia Commons

Extra Credit Reading Notes: Andersen Fairy Tales

The Princess and the Pea - I had never actually heard the full story of this before, and it was pretty surprising to me. I thought it would be deeper or more meaningful, but all it really concludes is that princesses are used to comfort and will complain even if they were graciously given a place to stay for the night. I wish there would have been more significance to the pea, or a different trial the princess could have been put through for the queen to be able to tell she was a princess. I really love the below image, though. The art style is so beautiful!

The Emperor's New Suit - I really liked this story, although I feel like it could have been made more concise. I thought it was so clever that the emperor never realized the weavers were tricking him and selling him nothing. I also like that the excuses people use to not tell the emperor the clothes aren't real are actually legitimate-sounding. It makes sense that they're too insecure or scared to say something about it. The writing does a good job of making the reader understand that.
~~~

Bibliography: Andersen Fairy Tales unit. Story source: Fairy Tales and Stories by Hans Christian Andersen, translated by H. P. Paull (1872).

Image Information: Illustration by Dulac

Extra Credit Reading Notes: Brothers Grimm

Cat and Mouse in Partnership - This was a good story, and I certainly did not expect the ending to be a sad one. I was surprised the cat didn't get punished somehow for stealing the food they were supposed to save. Instead, the innocent mouse got punished for no good reason. The story even ends with, "You see, that is the way of the world." Just a brutal, honest truth. This would be a good one to re-write, and honestly I might actually keep a bad ending. I like the idea of changing it up and not writing a happy ending for once, even if that doesn't always satisfy the writer/reader.

I also really liked this image for the story. It shows the cat eating the food that they were trying to save for winter.

I knew the Brothers Grimm had a lot realistic/pessimistic ideology in it, but I didn't realize how blunt it could be. In The Wolf and the Seven Young Kids, a wolf is trying to deceive children and asks a baker to help him. The baker complies because he is afraid of being eaten. The next line, then, is, "Yes, that is the way people are." I find it so interesting how brutally honest these stories can be. 

From The Seven Ravens, I loved how brave the girl had to be. Writing a story about her would be so fun because she really just took it upon herself to save her brothers. I'd also be interested in just re-writing the story all-together because it's kind of confusing but has so much potential. 

~~~

Bibliography: Brothers Grimm unit. Story source: The Grimm Brothers' Children's and Household Tales translated by D. L. Ashliman (1998-2013).

Image Information: illustration by Walter Crane

Week 12 Reading Notes: Celtic Fairy Tales (Part B)

Beth Gellert - I absolutely loved this story, even though it was quite tragic. It reminds me of The King, the Falcon, and the Drinking-Cup. In Beth Gellert, a man thinks his dog killed his baby, but the dog was actually protecting the baby from a wolf (and the baby was fine and safe under his crib). The man doesn't realize this until after murdering the dog out of grief. The story ends by mentioning that the area is now called Beth Gellert, and there is a grave for Gellert there.

It turns out Gellert (also spelled Gelert) is a legendary dog in the village of Beddgelert in Wales. There is a whole Wikipedia article on him, and there is actually a grave for him there.

This story was pretty emotional, especially when you know that there was likely truth in the fairy tale somewhere. If I were to re-write this one, I'd definitely want to keep the emotional aspect. 

~~~

Bibliography:

Celtic Fairy Tales (1) unit. Story source: Celtic Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs with illustrations by John D. Batten (1892).

Image Information:

Gelert image by Charles Burton Barber from Wikipedia.

Gelert's grave from Wikipedia.

Week 12 Reading Notes: Celtic Fairy Tales (Part A)

Gold-Tree and Silver-Tree - I love comparison stories (where there are two or three characters and it's a good vs. evil kind of thing) so this was definitely my favorite from part A. As mentioned in the note of the story, it's similar to Snow-White, but I think I prefer this version. I feel like them being related (Silver-tree is the mom, Gold-tree is the daughter) creates a more realistic reason for the girl to be so jealous of another girl's beauty. If I were to re-write it, though, I think I'd make them siblings.

I did think it was weird that the king wasn't taken aback by his wife's request to eat her daughter's heart and liver when she (his wife) was sick. I feel like there was potential in there for him to question what he valued and why he was married to her.

I liked the theme of the daughter not dying no matter how many times her mom tried to have her killed, although it did get repetitive and started getting confusing at some point. I think the main reason it was becoming hard to follow was because of the daughter and mom's names. It was hard to remember who was who. Changing the names would be really important if I re-write this story.

I had never heard of a story ending with "I left them there" instead of "and so they lived happily ever after." I'm not sure I would use it, but it's something to consider if I re-write this one. I'm always interested in lesser known phrases to use in stories so this one works great for that.

~~~

Bibliography: Celtic Fairy Tales (1) unit. Story source: Celtic Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs with illustrations by John D. Batten (1892).

Image Information: The queen looking for the trout to tell her who the most beautiful is.  Gold-Tree and Silver-Tree Illustration from Wikimedia Commons.

Week 11 Reading Notes: Blackfoot, Part B

The Smart Woman Chief - I was really interested in this story for its plot. Men and women are separated, and it explains how they came together. In the end, the woman refuses to accept one man's poor treatment and turns him into a pine tree. If I were to re-write this story, I would definitely use some of the personality traits of that woman and focus more on her refusal of poor treatment (because it was only a small part in the original). I thought her actions were really clever, especially when she told the other women not to choose Old Man because she wanted him but she actually didn't, leaving him alone (like he deserved for his actions). I could also see telling a story from the man/pine tree's perspective, where they story leaves us at the end. Maybe he uses the lesson he learned to teach others to not be so arrogant.

~~~

Bibliography: Blackfoot unit. Story source: Blackfeet Indian Stories by George Bird Grinnell (1915).

Image information: Pine tree from Wikimedia Commons. This is what the woman turned Old Man into.

Week 11 Reading Notes: Blackfoot, Part A

The Buffalo Stone - I loved the object in this story. It has the power to bring the owner closer to buffalo so that he/she can kill it. I like how the writing introduces the object first, then goes into the story of how the first one was found.

The Theft from the Sun - This story also has an enchanted object: leggings that set on fire to drive out deer when hunting. I like how this story is an interaction between the sun personified (or at least I assume that is what the intent is) and Old Man. The man kept trying to steal the Sun's leggings and run off but would always wake up in the Sun's home:

"When morning came he found himself still in the Sun's lodge. You see what a fool he was; he did not know that the whole world is the Sun's lodge. He did not know that, no matter how far he ran, he could not get out of the Sun's sight."

I really liked how that part was written. It makes it feel really meaningful. The sun ended up giving the man the leggings but got revenge on him by making him unable to outrun fire the leggings created, which burned the leggings to pieces.

~~~

Bibliography:  Blackfoot unit. Story source: Blackfeet Indian Stories by George Bird Grinnell (1915).

Image information: Leggings from the story, image from Wikipedia.

Week 10: Story Lab - Storybook Research

The next story I'll be writing for my storybook project will be about Draco Malfoy going to the Department of Mysteries.

For the object:

• One idea I had for the object Draco is looking for is similar to the Buffalo Stone. Instead of it bringing the owner of it closer to buffalo, though, it would bring the owner closer to the enemy they are in search of.  
• Book of Life or Stones of Unification from the Three Brothers of Fortune story.
• Elixir of life from the Fox-Fire story
• Here's some good information on Elixir's of Life from different places around the world

Potential stories to re-write:

• Fox-Fire (this one especially)
• The King, the Falcon, and the Drinking-Cup. 
• The Crane and the Crab

Potential images to use - I'll probably end up using the Fox-Fire story, so here are images for that:

•  
• Fox in Vintage Camouflage from Public Domain Pictures 
• 
• Red Fox Drawing from Wikimedia Commons
• 
• Ghana, West Africa from Flickr
• Most of these are good, too

I think this is a good start to the story. The more I've researched, the more I've settled on the idea of using the Fox-Fire story and having the fox be the storyteller. 

Week 10 Reading Notes: American Indian Fairy Tales, Part B

The Fairy Bride - I love how this story starts immediately with a question--what is Neen-i-zu up to when she wanders off alone? It introduces us to the fairies quickly and gives us this as a clue. I do think the writing lingers too much on details (settings, history, etc.) more than I would like, so I would take that out if I re-wrote it. I love the idea of "Happy Land" that is mentioned, where nobody is sorrowful and Neen-i-zu hopes to go.

I love that Neen-i-zu stands up for herself when her mother wants her to marry a man who hunts and kills deer. She is still forced to marry, though, and on the day of her wedding she goes off to the hills that she liked to wander off to. Everyone looks for her, and I like how the writing focused on not what Neen-i-zu was doing but instead what the wedding guests, family, and her fiance were doing while waiting for her. It really builds up the anticipation for what Neen-i-zu is doing:

"Time passed; but Neen-i-zu did not return. Then so late was the hour that the wedding guests wondered and bestirred themselves. What could be keeping her so long? At last they searched the hills; she was not there. They tracked her to the meadow where the prints of her little moccasins led on and on—into the grove itself; then the tracks disappeared. Neen-i-zu had vanished."

I do think it ends rather abruptly, but I can't help but love how the last paragraph is written. It summarizes what a man who was looking for Neen-i-zu saw: She was in the woods and marrying a fairy in the forest. It ends with, "So Neen-i-zu became a bride, after all," which I love because it forces the reader to just accept that we would not hear any more about how this happened or how her family responded.

~~~

Image info: The Fairy Bride image from mythfloklore blog

Bibliography: American Indian Fairy Tales unit. Story source: American Indian Fairy Tales by W.T. Larned, with illustrations by John Rae (1921).

Week 10 Reading Notes: American Indian Fairy Tales, Part A

The Little Boy and Girl in the Clouds - I loved how the story was introduced:

"In the days when all animals and men lived on friendly terms, when Coyote, the prairie wolf, was not a bad sort of fellow when you came to know him, and even the Mountain Lion would growl pleasantly and pass you the time of day—there lived in a beautiful valley a little boy and girl."

It's a good basic introduction and goes on in the next paragraph to describe the setting even more clearly. It sets the reader up to understand that this place is a happy, safe place for people and children to live in. The writing also is willing to admit that some aspects of the story have no explanation ("Nobody knows how it happened" in reference to a rock that kept growing upward when the children climbed on it) which is frustrating but also interesting to think about.

I absolutely love the part where all of the animals are trying to jump on the top of the rock to get to the kids, but none of them can jump high enough. A worm comes by and offers to try, and everyone laughs at him. They let him try, though, and he climbs higher than any of them were able to jump. He ends up rescuing the children. I really loved the message of this and how high the stakes were (saving children's lives). The writing made it such an important task by building the tension, which makes the worm even more of a hero.

"But everybody thinks of the Measuring Worm because the Big Rock is still there, and the Indians have named it after him. Tu-tok-a-nu-la, they call it, a big name indeed for a little fellow, yet by no means too big when you come to think of the big, brave thing he did."

~~~

Image info: Little Boy and Girl in the Clouds image from Gutenberg.org

Bibliography: American Indian Fairy Tales unit. Story source: American Indian Fairy Tales by W.T. Larned, with illustrations by John Rae (1921).

Growth Mindset: Learn From Other Students

Quote 1: 

"DO IT NOW: Instead of procrastinating, we need to use the present time! It's hard to not push things off, but in the end, now is better than later! Doris Lessing: Whatever you're meant to do, DO IT NOW. The conditions are always impossible."

I especially love the last sentence of this quote. I always tell myself that I'm too tired, too busy, too whatever--but in reality, there's always something. The conditions will always feel overwhelming, making you feel like you can excuse a necessary task and procrastinate on it. I hope I can apply this thought process to hobbies, such as reading and writing. Since there is technically no due date on those hobbies, I tend to put them off because I have more important things to do. Reminding myself of this quote would be really helpful in those situations. 

How procrastination tends to go. 

Quote 2:

"WHAT I AIM AT: When thinking about this, I remembered a key chain that I had in high school; it was a novelty gift from a theme park. It had my family name and crest, and the motto was "He hits what he aims at." I always liked that. To me, it said, "you will accomplish your goals when you work toward them."

I've never heard this one before and I really love it! I could use this approach to obtain better focus in school. I find myself straying and getting distracted/discouraged a lot when studying, but if I could just remind myself that I am aiming for a degree and I have been working hard for it, I can get back on track.

++++

Image information: Procrastination from Nikhil Baliga on flickr

Typing Test Tech Tip

For some reason I have always loved typing tests. They've been fun to me since I started learning to type in first grade. I hadn't tried this particular test that was recommended in the instructions, but I think it has been my favorite typing test thus far. It's short and simple, which is great to just generally judge your typing speed quickly. I've also tried this one, which is nice because you can adjust the settings and decide what most accurately expresses your typing speed. I usually end up getting around 90 wpm on it, though, so I'm not sure why I did better on the KeyHero test. Anyways, typing is really important these days so it's nice to always try to improve your typing speed and accuracy.

My results from KeyHero

Growth Mindset: Motivational Cats

This growth mindset meme has part of one of my favorite quotes in it: "You’re not bad at it, you just haven’t learned it yet." I love the idea of yet. It reminds me that things take time to learn, but you'll get it eventually. It's a great reminder for when situations get tough and you feel like it's not worth the effort. It's also just great to start any process with this mindset because it removes the idea that you have to do something right the first time around.

I love this one because it gives a new meaning for the word "genius." Too often people worry about not being smart enough but truly the most important part of intelligence is the desire to know more. Genius shouldn't just be about being able to memorize information. It should instead be thought of as a trait that entails exploration and curiosity. 

~~~

Image information: 
-Haven't Got It Yet image from Growthmindsetmemes blog
-Genius image from Growthmindsetmemes blog

Tech Tip: DuckDuckGo

I have used DuckDuckGo before, a very long time ago. I had actually forgotten about it until recently. It's super handy because it shows you results that you might have to search for harder on Google. I'm not sure if this is because Google favors sites that make them money or if there is another reason, but I've definitely noticed that. I love that DDG doesn't track my personal information because it won't prompt annoying and repetitive advertisements. A disadvantage of it, though, is that it's not as convenient as Google. Google is the go-to search engine, and it's honestly just what we're used to. It's hard to make a switch like this for most people. I think it makes a good alternative to Google for the times when you are searching for more sensitive information (for whatever reason) and are hoping to look through an unbiased sorting of results.

From the DuckDuckGo site page (here)

Week 9 Story: The Museum of Fortune

Welcome to the Museum of Fortune! 

The following display contains three magical objects that were once in the possession of three brothers: Suan, Iloy, and Ambo. They have long since passed but their stories prevail, survived by these artifacts. Please treat them with respect. Look and read, but don't touch. 

~~~

Ambo's Book of Life

The possessor of the Book of Life has the ability to bring anyone back to life. It has been said that it was given to Suan when he encountered an old woman during his travels with his two brothers. She enticed him by saying the book could bring anyone back to life. He bought it and kept it safe until eventually using it to bring a young woman named Maria back to life.

Illoy's Flying Mat

Illoy's Flying Mat has the ability to fly the possessor to wherever he or she desires to go. On their journey, the three brothers came across another old woman who was selling this mat. It most interested Illoy, who quickly purchased it and eventually used it to transport him, his brothers, and the aforementioned young woman, Maria, to a ship heading towards a new country. 

Suan's Stones of Unification

Ambo's Stones of Unification can be used to reunite portions of any separated object, person, entity, etc. Its powers are much more complex that the previous two objects, and many of its abilities are unknown. What is known from history is that Ambo found the stones on the ground while traveling. He saw that on occasion they would unite to form one round black stone, then eventually split. While the three brothers and Maria were on their way to a new country, their ship wrecked. They would have been stuck in the middle of the sea if not for Suan's stones, which repaired the ship's planks and safely got them to shore. The three brothers then fought over Maria, eventually concluding that each brother at least deserved a portion of her. They divided her into three parts. Ambo and Illoy threw their parts away, seeing them as useless. Suan, on the other hand, used his stones to reunite all three parts and won Maria over.

__________________________

Author's Note: This is based on The Three Brothers of Fortune, a Filipino tale about three brothers who stumble upon these three objects and end up using them in their own ways. Since it is based around these three articles, I felt like a museum would be a great way to tell their story. The first two brothers were able to use their objects (book and mat) to save and transport the young woman (Maria, who was unnamed in the original story) as well as themselves to a new country. Suan used his to repair the boat and also reunite Maria's body.

__________________________

Image Information:
-Book from pxhere
-Polonaise carpet with flying cranes from Wikimedia Commons from Kashan (Iran)
-Pebbles from pxhere

Bibliography: Three Brothers of Fortune from the Filipino Tales unit. Story source: Filipino Popular Tales by Dean S. Fansler (1921).

Week 9 Reading Notes: Flipino Popular Tales, Part B

The Greedy Crow - This story follows a crow who sees a small bird with a dead rat. The crow abandons his own meat and goes after the small bird but ends up not catching her. When he goes back to his food, exhausted, he sees that a hawk had taken it. I like the flow of this story and how it's short and simple.

The small bird was a kasaykasay, which is a bird in the Philippines that is also referred to as a southern silvery kingfisher (according to Wikipedia). It looks like this:

I love origin stories, so this one about the sun and the moon was really interesting to me. If I were to re-write it, I might instead write about how both the sun and the moon shine differently (not that one shines more brightly than the other). They both have their own aspects of beauty. 

~~~

Bibliography: Filipino Tales unit. Story source: Filipino Popular Tales by Dean S. Fansler (1921).

Image Information: Southern Silvery Kingfisher, Joseph Smit - Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London, 1878 from Wikipedia.

Week 9 Reading Notes: Flipino Popular Tales, Part A

Three Brothers of Fortune - I'm a fan of any story that deals with three people obtaining three different objects/things and then finding out that only one of the objects was truly valuable. In this story, the first brother (Ambo) bought a book, the second (Iloy) bought a mat, and the third (Suan) picked up stones ("with them he would be able to unite things of the same or similar kind"). I like this idea of uniting things--that could be really meaningful.

With the book, Ambo brought someone back to life. Iloy used his map to transport the woman and the other two brothers to a ship that took them to another country. The ship wrecked, though, and Suan used his stones to repair the broken planks. Once the four got to safety, they argued over who would marry the woman. Each brother listed an individual reason he should have her (which is also a classic writing tool that I like). A king decided to divide the woman into three parts for the brothers. The first two brothers obviously couldn't do anything with their portions, but the third brother used his stones to unite his brothers' shares and brought the woman to life again. I like how the story ends: "after all, Suan was the most fortunate."

In Cochinango, a boy hears that whoever can answer a set of questions correctly can marry the princess. On his way to her palace, he meets a series of people (who end up being God), helps them, and obtains certain objects:

1. a weary traveler; Cochinango gives him food; traveler gives C buyo
2. old man; C helps him get to other side of stream; man gives C magical cane that magically supplies food
3. old woman; C gives her a centavo; woman gives C magical purse that supplies endless money
4. "young fellow with a small guitar"; C gives him donkey; boy gives him guitar that can make anybody dance

The princess puts the boy in prison because she doesn't like that a poor boy could answer all of her questions, and she refuses to marry him. He shows off his objects in prison and helps people with it. The princess wants these objects of his but C won't give them away unless he can kiss her. Eventually after C uses the guitar to make people dance, the princess agrees to marry the boy. I really liked how this story progressed, although in the end it almost seemed like he forced the princess to marry him against her will (he wouldn't stop playing the dancing guitar until she married him). I would definitely change that bit. 

In The Enchanted Prince, I really like the heart/spirit of the girl who ends up becoming queen. I could see writing a story solely about her, or her journey (since the original story focused on the prince). 

The Wicked Woman’s Reward - I might write a story based on the last paragraph, where the boy grows up. I would love a story about him learning about his past and what happened in this story. 

The Monkey and the Crocodile - I love the moral of this one (use your own judgement and don't rely on others too much for their opinion) and I think it could make for a great re-telling. 

~~~

Bibliography: Filipino Tales unit. Story source: Filipino Popular Tales by Dean S. Fansler (1921).

Image Information: Three Brothers from Wikimedia Commons. The image is unrelated to the Three Brothers of Fortune, but I still thought it was a great image for the concept of a three-brothers type of story.

Extra Credit Reading: King Thrushbeard

Grimm: King Thrushbeard - One thing I liked from this story is that right from the start you get a sense of who the princess is. It gets straight to the point with her calling her potential suitors rude names. I also really liked this line: 

"Look now!" said the man; "you are no good at any sort of work; I made a bad bargain when I took you.

It is hopefully a line that would make the princess realize she needs to change herself--even a beggar realized he didn't want her. A few lines later her pots she was selling broke and she thought "what will my husband say?" which I feel like is a great step in character development because she is considering the thoughts of others. In the end, when it turned out that the "beggar" was King Thrushbeard (whom she had made so much fun of originally), I really liked the reveal because he was gentle and kind, even though she did not deserve it. 

I could potentially use this story for my Department of Mysteries story in my storybook project (although I'm thinking of switching it to Dumbledore's office, but I'm still unsure). This would be a great story to use as a frame tale to show a character that they can change and be better. 

+++

Image information: illustration by Walter Crane

Bibliography: Brothers Grimm (Crane) unit. Story source: Household Stories by the Brothers Grimm, translated by Lucy Crane and illustrated by Walter Crane (1886).

Week 8 Progress

Looking back, I am happy with my progress so far. I am most proud of the ability I am beginning to develop to ignore perfectionism. Even though my stories aren't perfect, it feels good to have written them. Feedback is also a lot less scary now that I've received a good amount of it and nobody has been harsh.

My weekly routine works really well for me in this course, except that I procrastinate on writing stories because of lingering perfectionism. I'm slowly improving on that, though, as I mentioned. My favorite assignments are ironically the ones that I procrastinate on the most: the story writing. It's hard for me to be decisive about a story I want to re-write when I end up liking so many from that week, but once that part is over, I feel a lot better.

I have been using the extra credit options, more just for fun than for finishing the course early. The extra credit reading works great for my storybook since I really need to learn about more myth/folklore stories for it. In terms of developing my blog and building my website, things have gone well. I've figured out how to use the basics of the platform and I think that's really all I need for this course.

Looking forward, one change I would like to make for the second half of the semester is to not feel like I have to rush through my assignments. I usually end up finishing them fairly early in the week, anyways, but I've always been one to want to finish things as soon as humanly possible, even if that sacrifices quality. I'd like to try and slow down and absorb more of the stories we get to read for this class.

A pitfall I want to avoid in this second half of the semester is giving up. I have a hard time finishing strong because I put so much effort into the first half of things that I'm burnt out for the second half. I'd like to be mindful about maintaining my current amount of energy and effort for the rest of the semester.

Something new I might want to try in my writing would be choosing an option outside of my comfort zone from the list of storytelling ideas. If I come across a week where I just really cannot come up with a story idea on my own, using one from that list would be a great exercise.

I found the below image to bring me some motivation and self-awareness for the last half of the semester:

It's a good reminder that we can spend a lot of time and effort creating obstacles and excuses for ourselves, and yet that same amount of time and effort could have been instead spent creating and working on what we're avoiding. Also, don't take everything so seriously! The girl on the left is having fun just creating, never overthinking it. I struggle with that a lot, and I'm working on fixing it. 

~

Image information: Comic by Sara Zimmerman at unearthedcomics.com. A really wonderful artist with a ton of wonderful and inspirational comics!

Week 8 Comments and Feedback

The feedback I am receiving from other students is very helpful. Most of them are just kind comments on what they liked, which is useful because it helps me realize what I did right. I would give a high rating to the quality of comments and feedback they are giving me because none of it has been overly critical or harsh.

The feedback I am leaving for other students usually also focuses only on the good. I never want criticism to seem like an attack so I don't like saying anything critical, but the feedback tips we're given is teaching me how to give constructive criticism in a way that doesn't sound condescending or rude. I really like the tip about saying "I wonder..." because it doesn't state my criticism as a fact but instead as an option that the writer can choose to use or ignore. It's more of a question on my part, wondering if the author would like to consider what I have to offer (instead of telling them they must do what I recommend).

I do have a sense of getting to know people by connecting at their blogs. While there usually aren't replies to comments, I feel that I learn a lot about people through their writing. I'd say I'm more familiar with my peers in this online course than I am with those in my in-person classes. Also, a lot has changed since my introduction post was made, and I've considered changing it but I felt like that would confuse new commenters since previous people have commented specifically on certain aspects of my post that would have to change. I've added in an "edit:...", so I think that works well enough currently, though.

The feedback assignments are pretty useful already, and I don't think I would do anything differently. Sometimes I find it hard to reach the word minimum, but then I look back at the assignment instructions and re-read the suggestions for what to give feedback on. That helps a lot. Also, I actually did make some changes to my Comment Wall after I saw the creativity that other people had! I changed my image to Platform 9 ¾, and I changed the words at the top. I love that this course allows the freedom for us to edit our content whenever! It allows for constant growth, and it helps me realize nothing needs to be perfect because I can always revise and improve.

For an image that expresses what I think is an important aspect of the feedback process, I chose the one below:

This image does a great job of summarizing the best ways to give feedback. Two of my favorites are nonjudgemental and easy to understand. Being nonjudgemental is so important for giving feedback because you have to remember to be sensitive to something someone might be proud of. You don't ever want to make them feel ashamed of something they worked hard to create. As for the easy to understand tip, a lot of feedback can be confusing and is not thought out well enough. You really have to remember that nobody can read your mind, and it can be helpful to make specific references to specific sentences/parts you are giving feedback on.

~~~

Image information: 21 Components of Effective Feedback from Growth Mindset Memes Blog

Week 8 Reading and Writing

Looking back: Overall, the reading and writing assignments are working well for me. I was overwhelmed at first but once I got into a routine, I realized that this class can be really fun if I don't allow myself to stress out (and if I finish assignments early). Taking notes helps a lot, and I love that we can write them however we want to. That gives me freedom to learn about how I best analyze and research for writing projects. I've realized my best bet for note-taking is writing out the basics of the story, and then after every few sentences I write why I like/dislike them. This helps me a lot when looking back because it gives me specific examples of aspects of a story I like.

I am fairly satisfied with how my writing is going for my project and story posts, although it could use improvement. Also, the creative writing bits are definitely the parts of the class I procrastinate on the most. This is mostly because I want them to be perfect, but I'm finally starting to let perfectionism go since we've had to write so much at this point that I feel a lot less scared to just run with whatever idea pops into my head. This is my biggest accomplishment in the class thus far, I think. I've never felt so free to write before. Being forced to write really does help, and it's reminded me of how much I love to write!

I've been adjusting my blog and project website layouts throughout the semester, so I think where they are now is where I am most happy with them. I'll keep tinkering with them just because it's fun, though! I have started adding a banner image to each page on my storybook website, which I think enhances the stories a lot.

Image: My favorite image from my blog so far is this one that I used recently:

(Bay of Kiau Chau from Wikipedia)

It's from my Week 7 story, but I originally saw it in a story from the Chinese Fairy Tales unit. I thought it was such a beautiful image and I adore the art style, so I had to use it. It has a very calming effect on me, which I definitely need halfway through the semester. 

Looking forward: I don't think there is anything I want or need to do in order to get more out of the reading and writing experiences in this class. I really feel like it is such a perfect course for me and the pacing is so helpful--it's not too slow or fast, and it gives us time to breathe but also work hard. I'm really excited about the second half of the course, and I'm excited to see if any of my current note taking or story writing strategies will change with all of the suggestions we're given.

Extra Credit Reading Notes: The Lost Light (Alaskan Legends)

This reading is to help me find more stories for my project. I'm currently searching for a story for the Department of Mysteries, where my character encounters a magical object of some sort. For the below story that I took notes on, I was thinking I could write about my character finding the sun/moon in the DoM and having the story be about some characters trying to restore the sun.

In The Lost Light, the sun disappears and a group of people goes to search for it. They ask around and travel for a while, and eventually learned that there is a woman who keeps the sun and moon in her house. The temperature continues to drop and they start to run out of food (which gives a great feeling of anticipation and a little bit of anxiety to the reader). They go to five different places and the same sequence of events are repeated at each place:

1. They run out of food and become cold.
2. They meet a community that gives them food.
3. Someone tells them that there is a woman at the next place they are going to who has the sun and moon. 

Finally they come across a woman named Itudluqpiaq who gives them a "small ball." A man in the group refuses it and asks for the larger one. The woman gives it to him and they take it outside to tear it up. Daylight comes out of the ball and the weather becomes warmer. It turns out that if they had taken the smaller ball, they would have gotten light but the weather would have stayed cold--the small ball was the moon. 

I really liked the sequence of events in this story, although I feel like it was a bit anticlimactic. I might change some details in it to make it a little more interesting. 

+++


Bibliography: The Lost Light, from the Alaskan Legends unit. Story source: Myths and Legends of Alaska, edited by Katharine Berry Judson (1911).

Image Information: The Sun by Lima Andruska from Flickr

Tech Tip: Favicon

I saw that someone else did this extra credit assignment and I love fun stuff like this so I decided to do it, too! I chose this potted plant icon for my blog because I love plants (who doesn't these days). Also, plants make me think of growth and that's a big part of this course. I didn't know much about favicons before but I've always wondered if you could change the little icon by the name of the site in the tab so this was a great thing to learn!

My favicon from favicon.cc

Week 7 Story: Freedom Over Fortune

"You know, when you said you would come back after seeking your fortune, I figured you'd only be gone for a couple of hours. Not eighteen years," said the princess, upset but keeping her temper in check. Her childhood lessons of remaining dignified and calm in the face of negative emotions were finally useful.

Her husband looked at her unapologetically. "I was seeking a better life for both of us!"

The two were standing in their little hut, which was clean from the princess' presence and her husband's long absence. He had just gotten back from his lengthy trip and expected to be wrapped in his wife's longing arms, with her crying about how much she had missed him and how thankful she was that he was back. Instead, he was met with a terrifying but restrained indignation.

Through gritted teeth she said, "I have been waiting here for you, loyal and enduring the worst of my father's arrogance. Even when he told me repeatedly that I made the wrong decision by choosing to marry and live with a beggar--I stayed loyal to you. Even when I was starving for days and had to live off of scraps, I stayed loyal. And now you come back here, with no apologies and no messages for eighteen years, and you expect me to be okay with that?"

"Well, yes," her husband said, feeling that what he was about to say would make her anger dissipate. "It worked! I did find fortune--I'm an emperor now. We're rich!"

His wife could not take the ignorance but kept her tone even. "You are insufferable. I don't care about riches! I chose you, against my father's wishes. I chose a life with you, not caring that it would mean moving from a castle to a hut. I'm glad you found your fortune, but I hope it was worth losing me."

"You don't mean that," he said, taken aback.

"At least you'll know I'm not coming back," she said, gathering her few belongings from the dirt floor. "Unlike how you left me wondering for eighteen years."

"Wait--" he said as she stepped outside.

She cut him off with a sharp glare, daring him to give her a good reason to stay. He didn't have one. His best reason was that he was now an emperor, but if she didn't care about that then he had nothing. The man sat in astonished silence, watching his wife leave and unable to say or do anything to stop her.

For the first time in her life, she felt happy and free. She didn't go back to the castle or the hut but instead made her way through countrysides and cities and found a better life, far, far away. She made her own good fortune and realized she never needed someone else to make it for her.

~~~

Author's Note: I wrote this story based off of The Favorite of Fortune and the Child of Ill Luck. In the original story, the princess is the "child of ill luck" and chooses to marry a beggar who seems to have good fortune. After being married and moving to his little hut, the man goes to seek better fortune and return with it. He ends up being gone for eighteen years (which I emphasized so heavily in the story because that's insane to me) and the wife just easily accepts him back after that. She even ends up dying only a few weeks into his reign as emperor. I felt that she deserved more credit than that and wanted to show her standing up to him. Even if she would lose her "good luck charm", I felt that he wasn't really one anyways. I know some of the phrases and the general idea is kind of cliche but I just badly wanted recognition for the woman and retribution for the man.

~~~

Image information: (Bay of Kiau Chau from Wikipedia.) The image isn't really relevant except that I mentioned "countryside" and this is the kind of place I imagined the princess traveling through, but I thought it was a really beautiful art piece and wanted to keep it here!

Bibliography: The Favorite of Fortune and the Child of Ill Luck, from the Chinese Fairy Tales unit. Story source: The Chinese Fairy Book, ed. by R. Wilhelm and translated by Frederick H. Martens (1921).