It’s a month full of fairy tale goodness! Over on Fairy Tale Central we are celebrating all things fairy tales, and as part of the celebration there’s a super fun blog tag! Which I shall be joining in on today.

All right, let’s be real. All of us at some point or another have dreamed of being a character in a fairy tale. I mean, a world of talking animals and brave princes and princesses and enchanted lands and magic sounds pretty fantastic, am I right? But what would it be like to really step into the role of a fairy tale protagonist?

WELL. That is what this year’s fairy tale tag is all about! In a choose-your-own-adventure sort of style, us FTC girls have composed 10 questions that look at the reality of a #FairyTaleLife. Sometimes it’s…not so easy. But that doesn’t mean it can’t be FUN, am I right?

So come with me to Fairy Tale Land and let’s see how well I do in a world of myth and magic and mayhem… (Probably not super well.)

FTC’S CHOOSE-YOUR-OWN-ADVENTURE FAIRY TALE TAG

Your father the king has declared a contest for your hand in marriage. But he’s allowing you to decide what kind of competition it will be. What do you choose? Is there a penalty for losing, or do the losers just go home while the winner remains to marry you?

Ah, easy peasy. I choose a contest to…

Hunt a dragon!

No, no. Put your swords away! I’m not talkin’ such vulgar practices as slaying dragons. The very thought! Nooo. This is to hunt down a live dragon…for me! As in, I want a dragon companion! I say if any guy is brave enough to go find a dragon, kind enough to befriend it, and clever enough to convince it to come to my kingdom and be my bestie, he is absolutely worthy of my hand. Because, seriously, any dude who brings me a dragon friend 100% has my heart. There’s no question. Forget proposing with a ring. Propose to me with a dragon egg!

As far as the losers. Well…hunting dragons isn’t exactly a safe sport. I think the dragons themselves will, shall we say, “take care” of the competition.

You’ve just been told that you’re the Chosen One – the heir to your kingdom’s throne. Of course you demanded proof, but you didn’t expect quite so much of it to be brought forward. You grudgingly ask the state of the land. Your kingdom is at war with two neighboring kingdoms, a third kingdom is expecting your kingdom to ally with theirs and help them fight in agreement with an old treaty, there is famine in two counties in the north, and the barons of the kingdom are fighting over who will supply the palace with food for the next year. What do you do first?

Goodness gracious. First, I would question who in all the land chose me to run a kingdom??? Because, yeah, no, that would be disastrous in so many ways.

But after that, my ENFJ-ness would kick in and I’d gather all the diplomats and whatnot, interview them each, and form a council with the most trustworthy of them who can then help me take on such a crazy task. Because surrounding myself with people whom I respect and trust to help me with my decisions is vital.

Once that is done, I’d dig into the problems, with the help of my advisers of course. I’d probably want to tackle the issue of the famine first and foremost. People starving is Not Okay, and on the politics side, it’d be hard to face a coming war with half my kingdom on the brink of starvation. Perhaps the kingdom that wants to ally with us can provide food in exchange for our soldiers?

After all matters are settled, I’d probably consider changing the monarchy into a democracy because, really, basing the whole establishment on some Chosen One prophecy or what-have-you seems terribly questionable.

You’ve set off to find your fortune but end up caught in a storm in the middle of the night in an enchanted forest…and there’s an ominous growl emitting from the trees. A warm looking cottage sits nearby but you’ve heard that questionable figures dwell in this wood. What’s your plan of action?

If there’s one thing I’ve learned from reading fairy tales, it’s that cottages in the forest are never ever safe places to go. They usually contain 1) a wicked witch, 2) a group of cannibals, or 3) a band of thieves (with the occasional cannibalistic tendency). I think I’d rather deal with some rain and a possible monster. And as some others who did this tag pointed out, the “monster” in the forest may actually be a cursed prince or something, SO.

My plan is to find a good sturdy tree near the cottage to climb and hunker onto for the night. That way, I’m high up and can keep a watch on my surroundings, and if the growling does turn out to be some horrible monster, I’m close enough to the cottage where I can make a run for it if worse comes to worst.

And hey, if the monster is trying to eat me and the cottage is full of fiends, perhaps I could lure the monster into the cottage and make a run for it while the two threats duke it out against themselves.

It is time to christen your dear new baby. It’s expected to invite the local fairies but they’re known for “gifting” babies with less-than-desirable characteristics (Ella Enchanted-style). Do you invite them anyway or “accidentally” forget to send out an invitation and risk the wrath of the petty (but powerful) fairy-kind upon your kingdom?

Dear, dear. Well, messing with fairies is never a safe practice. But I’m also fiercely protective, and I certainly don’t want to resign my child to a life of misery just because I’m a coward.

I think I’d invite the fairies BUT tell them we have a new policy: Instead of gaining gifts with a christening, we now give gifts in celebration. Everyone knows fairies love shiny things and would probably be more than happy to receive something rather than give it. And I think it’d be worth depleting a bit of the treasury in order to protect my child.

Your fairy godmother grants the choice of three gowns for your one chance to meet the prince at the ball: a dress the color of the golden sun, a dress the color of the silver moon, or a dress the color of the sky. Which dress do you choose?

UGH. They all sound gorgeous!

Buuut if the theme of my blog is any indicator, I love me some gold! Fairies aren’t the only ones who like shiny things…

AHEM

So yes. I think I’d have to go with the golden one.

Your cursed beloved tells you that only when he marries a true-blood princess will he be set free. Do you choose to aid him by finding a princess that can set him free from his horrible curse? Or do you visit the witch of the forest and make a deal with her to become a princess – but you will only get to be with your prince one day a year.

Aw boo. The people pleaser in me would most likely set off to help him find a princess. I’m also not one for making deals with questionable people…

BUT. This is a fairy tale, yeah? So the chances are high that either a) I’m actually a lost princess OR b) the terms of “princess” are a little loose and my good deeds qualifies me as a “Princess” and I end up breaking the curse through true love’s act or…something.

Or maybe I find my actual true love while on this quest, realizing it wasn’t this cursed guy after all, and we all have a double wedding!

This is how fairy tales work; let me dream!

You’ve just completed a fairy tale adventure worthy to join the ranks of the world’s greatest legends. Alas, the kingdom’s most famous minstrel is also notorious for adding his own embellishments. Would you rather have your story lost to the world, your name and deeds forgotten, or to be known as a hero throughout the land…just in a very inaccurate and mangled version of the story?

I honestly think it would be hilarious if my story was told in some wildly inaccurate way. In fact, I’d probably help in the matter by regaling people with the story in a different way every single time. Can you imagine the confusion if there’s like fifteen different versions of the tale floating around?

It’d be great.

You’ve just been approached by a man in a pointy hat who says you’re the chosen one destined to save a magical world. Before you enter the portal to this new world, you are allowed to take one piece of modern technology with you. What do you choose?

A cell phone would be great, if for nothing else but being able to take pictures of everything. Buuut I suspect there are no plug-ins around to charge it… I guess I could bring a film camera and a ton of film, old style.

I mean, maybe I shouldn’t pause to take pictures while trying to save the world but, ya know, it’s what we do.

Your parents have angered a powerful witch in your land, and she has chosen to strike out at you to punish your parents. However, since you weren’t the one who actually angered her, she’s letting you choose your own fate: 1) sleep for 100 years and leave your parents to die of old age while you sleep, 2) be locked alone in a faraway tower so your parents will never find you, 3) lose your voice so you’ll never be able to speak to your parents, or 4) give you a fatal golden touch so that you can’t hug your parents lest you turn them into statutes.

Numbers 1 and 2 are a definite NO. That sounds awful. And I’ve written a King Midas retelling and, let me tell ya, not being able to touch anyone or anything with your bare hands is quite the hassle.

So I gotta go with #3. I’ve always wanted to learn sign language anyway.

You just found out that you have a twin, and you two were separated from birth because an ancient prophecy claimed one of you would bring ruin upon the kingdom. Are you the prophesied twin of ruin, or is it your brother/sister? How do you figure that out, and what do you and your twin decide to do about it?

I, for one, would be super miffed I was separated from my sibling because of some prophecy, and would do everything I could to make up for lost time. Whether I’m the prophesied one or my sibling, I have no clue. But these things tend to be impossible to avoid… SO. I say we should just become great friends and hope that the power of love will somehow fix the prophecy in the end. That’s usually how these things work.

There we have it, friends and fae! My attempt to not completely destroy all of Fairy Tale Land and somehow come out alive through it all. In reality I’d probably just be random citizen #47 who dies in the first act, but we all gotta play our parts.

If you want to answer these questions, you can find them and all the details HERE!

The linkup runs through all of February, and we’d be thrilled for you to join.

. . . AN EXTRA DOSE OF FUN . . .

Before I go I wanted to let you all know that tomorrow (Tuesday, February 23rd) we are having a big ol’ giveaway day over at Fairy Tale Central! We will each be sharing some super fun games on the blog AND if you join in you’ll be entered to win some fairy tale retelling ebooks!!! Hayden Wand and Kirsten Fichter are both offering an ebook from their fairy tale series (and let me tell you, guys, their retellings are DELICIOUS). So you definitely don’t want to miss out. We’re gonna have such a grand time! You can find all the info HERE.

What do you think of my answers? Do you think I’d survive a fairy tale? (Probably not.) And are you planning on joining this tag? I’d LOVE to see your answers!