Snow Wimp

Why is it that all the Disney-fied fairy tales we were subjected to when we were children (and sheepishly revisited when we were quite a bit older) contained only two types of female characters – the innocent, doe-eyed damsel-in-distress, or the evil, vain villainess? Every story it's the prince, or the brave goat-herder who saves the princess from the fate she has been condemned to. The girls don't ever seem to show any initiative. Don't despair, dear readers! I have, with the aid of Google and my personal fairy tale collection (some of the older books are just gorgeous) found some pretty cool 'self-rescuing princesses'.

As you're probably aware, thanks to Disney, the Brothers Grimm, Hollywood and half a dozen other sources, there are a lot of versions of the same story in existence. Some of the differences are minor, like whether or not Snow White's wicked step-mother foisted a poisoned comb off on the girl or not. But others are pretty extreme. Many fairy tales were supremely gruesome, even before the Grimm boys got to them. In fact, the Grimms were the first step in a long process of watering-down. Of course, some tales simply could not be watered down. Ever heard of The Little Match-Girl? It's a Danish fairy tale, short and incredibly sad.

I digress. If you're after a bit of swash-buckling girly action, here's where you might start – and I'm listing a whole bunch of different mediums, from books to movies to plays. These girls step out and face up to the 'big bads' for love, for family and for justice.

Arabian Nights, the Hallmark version, directed by Steve Barron and released to TV in 2000. The DVD isn't too hard to get. Stories within stories, our heroine is named Scheherezade (try saying that five times fast). This beautiful, clever woman chooses to marry the Sultan, her childhood friend, who has gone mad after his first wife tries to kill him on their wedding night (she ends up dying instead). Through stories, courage and love, Scheherezade cures him and restores the kingdom (having a mad king isn't so good for international relations). The movie also features a version of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves, in which Morgiana the beautiful slave-girl saves her master's life not once, but twice.

Sweet Vassillissa or sometimes known as Beautiful Vassillissa is a Russian tale about a beautiful girl with a cruel stepmother and two stepsisters – yeah, sounds Cinderella-ish but the similarities end there. She is sent to the house of the local witch, in hopes she will be killed, but through her solid work ethic, faith in her departed mother's blessing and her kind nature she ends the tale happily married to a kind King.

Molly Whuppie is sort of like a female Jack-and-the-Beanstalk. Which is totally cool with me, I mean, she saves her sisters from being eaten by an ogre.

Into the Woods is a mad, twisted fairy-tale-musical in two acts, a collaboration between revered playwrights Steven Sondheim and James Lapine. It's quite funny and manages to mash up things like Rapunzel, Little Red Riding Hood and Cinderella with an original (I think) tale about a Baker and his wife. Well worth seeing, doing (lots of fun) or even reading if you're into reading plays. I actually did this play for high school drama. Because it was high school, we didn't have a lot of guys in the class, and as a wacky twist, both of the princes in the production were played by girls, dressed as guys. Said girls got wigs, stuffed their pants, and one even put on a fake mustache. Good times.

East of the Sun and West of the Moon is an older fairy-tale, found in a book edited by Andrew Lang around the late 1800s. I quite like it, not only has it got beautiful imagery but it's a fun bit of role reversal – it's the Prince who's trapped this time and his beloved, a beautiful 'husbandsman's daughter' who must rescue him.

So indulge in something a bit different! Find some old fairy tales, or dig into the roots of some nursery rhymes if you're keen. They're not just for kids, and thankfully, are not all about wimpy girls with no common sense either.

Until next we meet,
Jade

Felicia-ah!

I am so very stoked right now!

Fact: I live in Perth, Australia. The big smoke of WA, we are really not a tourist capital. There's not an awful lot to see, or do. You either live here, or you're... not here. Holiday location, it ain't.

That is why firstly I was excited 2 years ago when Supanova, Australia's biggest science fiction and pop culture convention, annouced that they were coming to Perth! Previously you'd have had to truck all the way over to Melbourne, Brisbane or Sydney to attend, which can cost a surprising amount. The first Perth Supanova was flooded with eager participants, and they didn't disappoint us with guests, either. Jewel Staite (best known from Firefly, Serenity and Stargate Atlantis! I got my Serenity comic signed) came! To everyone's great joy, Supanova announced that because of the great fan reception, they'd be returning every year. Last year I was away and much to my chagrin, didn't get to go. This year I was greatly saddened to hear that James Marsters (Buffy, Angel, Torchwood, Ghost of the Robot and solo artist) was only making an appearance at Brisbane and Melborne AND was holding a concert there as well! I'd just started complaining (on Facebook) that Perth never gets anything good, when I clicked on the Perth/Sydney guest list, and there she was.

FELICIA DAY!

If you don't know Felicia... well, I suppose that's understandable. She hasn't made too much of a splash on TV or in the movies. She guest-starred on Buffy, House, and Lie to Me and according to online rumours, she's just finished shooting a movie, Red (I say 'online rumours' because she's been posting about it on Facebook, but there isn't any info on IMDB right now). How I know of Felicia is from her internet-based creative endeavors.

Felicia not only wrote the supremely popular and critically acclaimed webseries The Guild, but she directs and stars in it as well! The initially very low-budget series gained attention rapidly, eventually partnering with Microsoft, and spawned t-shirts, DVD versions and a recent comic series, written of course by Felicia. I hope to get my hands on it soon, but I'm not sure if it's come over to Aus yet.

Fans of cult-hit director Joss Whedon will know Felicia from another internet hit: Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog, in which she play's the main character's love interest. Dr. Horrible also has a DVD version, a stand-alone comic, and a promised sequel (which is taking SO LONG to do... all of the main characters are busy with other shows, but C'MON Joss!)

I just think Felicia is amazing: brilliant writer, fantastic actress, great singing voice. All-around creative genius! She absolutely inspires me with the staggering range she has, the fact that what was basically a side-hobby spawned an entire career, and she's still so down-to-earth and likes normal things, like gaming and coffee and animals.

She's proof that talent and determination can still get you places in life, despite this "it's not what you know, but who you know" mantra that the media industry (and society, really) has going at the moment. I mean, yes, her connections with the guys in The Guild and with Joss Whedon from Buffy have helped her in the industry, but they are also really cool, professional people. Skills, work ethics and a desire to reach people still have meaning, and I find that really encouraging.

Off to figure out how to make a Captain Hammer-type groupie shirt with Felicia's face on it.
Until next we meet,
Jade.

Review: On Writing by Stephen King

I searched high and low for this book, for months and months and could not find it anywhere! An enterprising (and wonderful) friend tracked it down a copy and gave it to me for my birthday.

Part autobiography and part guide-book (or as the blurb proclaims, "part memoir, part master-class"), this novel delivers up 297 pages of greatness for fans and, er, non-fans alike. I myself do not harbour much affection for the thriller genre, in book or in movie form. I simply cannot stand the suspense – and I'll freely admit I'm a bit of a wuss. The primary reason I wanted this book so badly was because I'm fascinated with books about writing, especially when they're by successful authors. I own David Eddings' Rivan Codex for this reason, which I also highly recommend if you're a fan of him, or fantasy novels in general. Eddings' book focuses more on the process and 'behind the scenes' (so to speak) of his series, The Belgariad, than on the practicalities of writing in general.

King's novel traces his own career, through accidental journalistic liasons, finding his voice in short fiction which he got published in a variety of magazines and anthologies, into the development of his very first novel, Carrie. As an aspiring writer, I found King's novel both inspiring and practical, as he details the process that he went through getting work into magazines, and explains the impact it had on him both personally and professionally, both at the time and then when he started approaching companies to get his novel published.

Infused with a potent mixture of wit and raw honesty, this non-fiction piece does not disappoint. It can be found with relative ease on eBay or Amazon, if you manage to not lose every single eBay auction (like I did). Alternately, it was published in 2000, so you miiiight still be able to get it special-ordered into your local bookstore. Even more alternately, if you can find your library card (my mother borrowed mine, and promptly lost it. Lucky for me, my university library has a rich fiction section!), you can borrow it.

Until next we meet,
Jade