9 Twists to Use in a Fairy Tale Retelling

Hey everyone! This week’s writing tip is one I’m super excited about, as I love plot twists and unique spins on classic stories. And what is more classic than a fairy tale?

However, because they are so classic, there are hundreds of thousands of fairy tale retellings out there. So what are some ways one can make their fairy tale retelling stand out from the others? Obviously, besides having good characters and story quality, a way you can make your story uniquely different from many others is by plot, and more specifically, plot twists. And today I am here to share 9 twists to use in a fairy tale retelling with you!

Classic Fairy Tale Tropes

Before I can get into the twists you can employ in your fairy tale retelling, there are a few widespread tropes which, while not bad, are very common. They are common because they work, and while you can still use them and make them your own, they are typically very unsurprising twists in the fairy tale retelling world.

Common Trope #1: Gender-Bending. This basically means you reverse the roles. For a Cinderella retelling, for example, maybe a poor boy meets a princess at the ball, and the princess falls in love with him. These are becoming pretty popular today, as I’ve seen quite a few of them out there.

Common Trope #2: Retelling Common Fairy Tales. Any Disney fairy tale is a common one. Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, Rapunzel, Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast, and the Little Mermaid are all very popular fairy tales for retellings, and while they’re popular for a reason, to stand above the crowd with these retellings, you need to have a very unique idea.

Common Trope #3: Contemporary or Historical Retellings. Besides the classic fantasy retellings, the most common settings I’ve seen for fairy tale retellings are either historical or contemporary ones. And again, while almost every genre probably has some sort of Cinderella or Sleeping Beauty retelling in them, these seem to be the most popular.

Common Trope #4: Happily Ever After Endings. Again, these tropes are all popular for a reason, and if you’re writing a book in the romance genre, you must have this ending. However, if your fairy tale is in the fantasy, historical, or some other genre, this ending isn’t as demanded.

Common Trope #5: Romance. Almost all fairy tales, and most definitely the popular ones, have romance in them. Romance is the largest genre of books in the world, so it’s not surprising that most books, including fairy tale retellings, are pervaded with it. Especially since the classic fairy tales themselves have romance as a foundation.

These five tropes are the ones I will be seeking to twist in today’s post.

Twist #1: Retell an Uncommon Fairy Tale

Growing up, I would read lots of books with fairy tales in them. Obviously, there were the common ones I listed above, but I discovered my favorites were actually always the not-so-popular ones. Of course, many are similar to the popular ones in some semblance (they’re all fairy tales) but they are distinct enough to make a really neat retelling out of. Here are ten to check out for some inspiration!

• Rumpelstiltskin
• The Golden Goose
• The Enchanted Wreath
• Princess Mayblossom
• Hansel and Gretel
• The Twelve Dancing Princesses
• The Goose Girl
• Felicia and the Pretty Pinks
• Dorani
• Little Wildrose

Twist #2: The Step-Parent or Villain is in the Right and the Prince/Princess is Evil

There are a few of these “the prince/princess is evil and villain is good” retellings out here, so it’s not AS big of a twist as one might think, but it is less common than gender-bending retellings, so I figured I’d mention it. Especially in light of the twist of the step-parent being right. Imagine Cinderella and her Step-Mother and sisters joining forces to take down the evil prince?

Twist #3: The Step-Parent is Good and Actual Parent is Evil

Very similar to the previous twist, but with a unique spin, having the step-parent be good and/or the actual parent be evil. What if Beauty’s father really sold her to the beast? Or Hansel and Gretel’s step-mother actually sent them out to the woods to save them from their father who planned to hand them over to the witch? There are several different ideas to play with here.

Twist #4: Retell Using a Different Genre

As I said above, many of the popular fairy tales have been done in every genre. However, a mystery fairy tale retelling is bound to be more eye-catching than a historical one. A retelling in the sci-fi, thriller, dystopian, mystery, or even crime or detective genre space would be super unique.

Twist #5: A Retelling Without a Happily Ever After

As I said above, if your retelling is going to be marketed as romance, it must have a happily ever after ending. But if it will be marketed as another genre, you could easily play with the ending. Maybe it ends tragically, or has an open end where it’s left to the reader to say whether the main characters get together or not. Or maybe you want to make it a series. Either way, a retelling without a happily ever after would put a spin on the classic endings where the main characters get together after solving the main plot.

Twist #6: A Retelling Set After the Happily Ever After

Or, alternatively, set after the ending of the original fairy tale. Is everything really as happy and perfect as the main character thinks? Maybe he or she has actually entered into a much darker world? Perhaps the happily ever after is a nightmare and they married the true villain. Or simpler, maybe the main character is struggling with becoming adjusted to being royalty (or vice versa). Plenty of little twists you could play with here.

Twist #7: A Non-Romantic Retelling Where the Main Characters Are Siblings or Stay Friends

What if Beauty just helps the Beast break his curse through the bonds of familial love? What if the prince rescues Cinderella from her plight because she’s his half-sister or cousin? What if the human prince treats Ariel like a little sister and shows her around the human world? What if the prince who climbs into Rapunzel’s tower is just an ornery little kid who helps her break out?

Because romance is so pervasive among fairy tales, this sort of twist in a retelling would be very unique and has many possibilities of execution.

Twist #8: The Main Characters Marry Someone Other Than the Original Partner

Think of all the Disney cartoons. Cinderella gets with her prince. Beauty marries the Beast. Ariel gets the human prince (though in the real fairy tale it’s a little bit, er, darker). What would happen if one or both fell in love and married someone else? Do they stay friends? Become enemies? Still try and steal them away from the other person?

Now obviously with this one, there is something you shouldn’t do. You shouldn’t develop the relationship between your Cinderella and her prince, and then have Cinderella marry the footman instead. You must make the alternate romance just as or more developed than the original, so most people root for it over the original.

Twist #9: The Princess Doesn’t Marry and the Prince and Villain Become Best Friends

Yes, I would absolutely LOVE to see a retelling with this concept, where all throughout the story the Prince and Villain fight over the Princess only at the end to decide “nah, we’re not interested, lets go on an adventure together and slay some dragons or something”. And then the princess can inherit her throne without marriage or romance, but from her own abilities and qualifications. If you use this idea, tell me. Seriously, I want to know all about it.

---

I hope some of these twists gave you some inspiration! Do you have any twists in mind for a fairy tale retelling? What fairy tale is your favorite? Will you use any of these twists? Let me know in the comments below! ~ Kay Adelin