Preptober 2023
It has been almost a year since I started this blog, and I still have a lot I want to say here about my reading and writing journeys. As we approach November 1st, I'm particularly excited to talk about my NaNoWriMo project for this year.
Just like last year, I'm going to try and plot an entire series in the month, but instead of twelve books, I'm going for a solid four-book series, and it incorporates a lot of storytelling elements that I love. Romance, Fairy Tales, Magical Quests, and Finding Yourself. Right now, I'm calling the series "Frolicking with Fairies" because it's inspired by the feeling that I get when I watch the Tinker Bell movies from Disney. That feeling of joy and wonder when you see magic before your very eyes, and it's everything you imagined it would be and more.
The series is a combination of a lot of the things that I loved growing up, but I'm bringing it up to a new adult rating (or adult depending on how the story changes in the writing phase). I'm starting the story with the original Rapunzel Fairy Tale and building from there, which has already been a challenge because I'm trying hard not to copy "Tangled", one of my favorite Disney movies of all time. (Seriously, I almost gave one of my main characters a pocket dragon, but then I realized that I was making my version of Pascal). But I'm also incorporating elements of the Disney Fairy movies, and the earlier Barbie movies, like Barbie and the Magic of Pegasus and Barbie as the Island Princess. These movies always made me feel cozy and happy growing up, and recently, I rewatched them as an adult and I'm happy to say those feelings did not change. So, my goal is to encapsulate those feelings into a new story.
While this story concept is new, the characters I'm using are actually from another story concept I had for a Cinderella retelling I wrote during NaNoWriMo 2021. I tried to make them work in that context, but after trying to rewrite it three times, I needed to make drastic changes to the story. Not only that, but I've learned so much more about storytelling since then, through reading more books and writing more novel drafts. Not to mention, getting a degree in filmmaking. I have a better idea of how to make great characters, a compelling plot, and, most importantly, how to come up with a story that I can't help but write.
Recently, I read 7 Figure Fiction by T. Taylor, and she describes that the best way to create a story that you and readers will be obsessed with is to use some "universal fantasies." She describes "universal fantasies" as butter because "Butter Makes Everything Better," and so will they. One of the simplest ways I can describe universal fantasy is to think of it like a daydream. For example, is it realistic for you to have a dream where you bump into a billionaire randomly one day, and you two fall in love, ending with him taking you out of your mundane life into one of luxury and comfort?
Absolutely not.
But this is a daydream, and here we get what we want. Many of us would love to live in this daydream, and through reading billionaire romances, we can live in it over and over again.
That's the type of stuff that I want this story to include. I want the fairy prince to fall for the fair maiden and take her into his magical world. I want to live in this world filled with magical artifacts and beings that is opposite from my daily life. I want to write this romance where two people are so in love, and they have found someone that they can't live without.
This series is essentially a huge daydream, and figuring out what makes it my ultimate daydream inspires me to write it.
Fairytale Vibes? Check.
A World-Changing Romance? Check.
Cozy Feels and Magic? Check.
And don't forget, inclusion for the win with main characters who look like me. Triple Check!
Something else that I’m really excited about when it comes to this story is expanding the romance beyond Happy Ever After.
I’ve always been one to enjoy the “established relationship” tag on fanfiction sites because I love seeing what happens after the couple gets together. I want to see the couple be a couple, you know. I want to see them thrive in their relationship without the dreaded “third-act break-up” scene lingering overhead. The first book in the series will deal with their initial romance of getting together while the following three will follow the ups and downs of their relationship after getting together and I have so many ideas of what to do with them during these phrases. Love letters, dancing in the rain, heartfelt talks, the list goes on.
Yeah, I'm really excited to write this series. If you want to keep up with the progress I make on this story, follow me on Instagram and this blog for more.
I'm excited to one day share this novel with you all.
XOXO,
Ivey
P.S. If you're interested in being writing buddies, go and find me on the NaNoWriMo site: https://nanowrimo.org/participants/thediaryofanauthorintraining
