I’ve written a buncha fractured fairy tales and two are available this year: I THOUGHT THIS WAS A BEAR BOOK and LITTLE RED GLIDING HOOD. (That was totally unplanned! The picture book gods arranged it.)
In the video below, I offer my favorite tips for creating your own fractured fairy tales, whether you’re a kidlit writer, a teacher/educator or a 2nd grader. Below that is a PDF version with more tips and a link to a Pinterest board of more than 100 suggested fractured fairy tale picture books.
It’s a fractured fairy tale flurry of fabulousness! (Interestingly, none of my tips have to do with alliteration.)
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How to Write a Fractured Fairy Tale PDF:
Fractured Fairy Tale Picture Books Pinterest:
Teachers, leave a comment about your favorite fractured fairy tale and I’ll randomly select FIVE commenters for a FREE CLASSROOM SKYPE VISIT! I’m in a land far, far away but you’ll remember our Skype visit happily ever after! (Bwaaa haaa haaa!)
Contest ends September 21st and visits will be scheduled for October.
Good luck!
Brand new picture books!
As a children's book author and mother of two, I'm pushing a stroller along the path to publication. I collect shiny doodads on the journey and share them here. You've found a kidlit treasure box.
33 comments
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August 31, 2015 at 8:10 am
Melissa Sears
My favorite is THE TRUE STORY OF THE THREE LITTLE PIGS. My students would love a Skype visit from you.
August 31, 2015 at 8:33 am
katrinamoorebooks
My third graders LOVE writing fractured fairy tales and performing them as Reader’s Theaters. A recent favorite is THERE WAS AN OLD DRAGON THAT SWALLOWED A KNIGHT and a classic favorite would be THE TRUE STORY OF THE THREE LITTLE PIGS (as told by A. Wolf) 🙂
August 31, 2015 at 9:16 am
tudefit
I love writing fractured fairy tales and have a number of them on Amazon and other book sites. However, research shows these books are not all that popular with readers. Hope that changes.
August 31, 2015 at 10:23 am
Donna L Martin
What a great post, Tara! This falls right along the lines of what I am working on today for my ABC’S OF READING & ‘RITING post. I will include a link to your article…
August 31, 2015 at 11:14 am
mariagianferrari
Fun and informative post, Tara! I love fractured fairy tales too!
August 31, 2015 at 12:16 pm
Matt Tesoriero
Coolio! Thanks Tara!
August 31, 2015 at 12:53 pm
Sue Frye
Wonderful post, Tara! The webinar rocked, and so do your new books!
August 31, 2015 at 12:58 pm
Natasha Wing
You are so clever! I wrote a Cinderella tale that involves baked goods instead of people and the vanilla cupcake has a fairy pasty chef! It’s being shopped around so wish me luck!
August 31, 2015 at 1:44 pm
Anne Bromley
Thank you, Tara! You are so generous and your books are lots of fun!
August 31, 2015 at 2:19 pm
Helena Soprano Drennan & Jessica Drennan
Hi Tara – this is your old high school classmate Helena. My daughter Jessica loves to write and loves to read “fairytale” books. We just watched your video tips on how to write fractured fairytales – lots of giggles ensued! She would like to enter her fifth grade classroom here in Virginia at Springfield Estates Elementary for the Skype visit. In Virginia students take a writing SOL at the end of the year so teachers focus on all types of writing from the very creative fractured fairytales to position papers (remember Mr.Grosso and US History 1?). Jessica is very excited to say the least. Anyway I brag all the time about how I know a famous writer – so happy you are doing something you love and are so successful- CONGRATS!
August 31, 2015 at 2:37 pm
JEN Garrett
I’m entering for my kids’ school. They would love a visit. Too many great titles to choose from, though! I’m reading “Whatever After” series in which fairytales get mixed up a lot, and my favorite fractured fairytale (from Bullwinkle TV Show) is “Slow White and Nose Red.” But if I have to pick a picture book… just one? Are you sure? OK, “Goldielocks and the Three Dinosaurs”
August 31, 2015 at 2:46 pm
creationsbymit
Awesome post, Tara! That compilation is amazing! I have always been a huge fan of Babette Cole, and was glad to see her included with Prince Cinders. Princess Smartpants reminds me of myself!
Michele Katz
Creations By Mit
August 31, 2015 at 4:20 pm
Teresa C
I love Stella Louella’s Runaway Book and, of course, The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs. I hope our school wins a Skype visit! Thank you!!
August 31, 2015 at 4:35 pm
Tracey M. Cox
Tara, I think we are soul sist-ahs! You Crack me up! I have a book that came out this summer, The Children at the Playground, not sure if it falls in line with fractured fairytales? But it’s a twist on The Wheels on the Bus.
August 31, 2015 at 4:45 pm
Kaye Baillie
This is a terrific post, Tara. And I just love scrolling down through the Pinterest covers, so many amazing and funny ideas. Wish I had the same awesome imagination as you and the other authors.
August 31, 2015 at 5:35 pm
Darshana
Love the video and the informative handouts! Can’t wait to read your new books.
August 31, 2015 at 7:24 pm
Joanne Fritz
Tara, this is so helpful and crammed with advice. It’s like a free workshop on fractured fairy tales! Thanks so much.
August 31, 2015 at 10:19 pm
Amy Bansak
All time favorite and totally original is the Fractured Fairy Tale segment on The Rocky and Bulwinkle cartoon show. For teaching it is Goldie Sock and the 3 Libearians.
September 1, 2015 at 6:51 am
Lisa
Jack and the Beanstalk by Steven Kellogg is probably my favourite because the illustrations are seriously creepy! Which is how I think they should be in a story like that.) I also discovered a few fractured fairy tale novels this summer: Rump by Liesel Shurtliff and Twice Upon a Time: Rapunzel, the One With all the Hair by Wendy Maas. They are the “different point of view” kinds of fractured fairy tales. OH…and Goldilocks and the 3 Dinosaurs by Mo Willems. I had vowed to stop buying fractured fairy tales as my collection has become quite large. I bought 3 more after making that vow. Make that 4 because “I Thought This Was a Bear Book” just arrived this past week. I may need an intervention.
September 1, 2015 at 12:36 pm
Kari Benjamin
Fun stuff! Have you read “Dinoreilla”? That’s a cute one…
September 1, 2015 at 5:57 pm
Tara Lazar
Thanks! I had not heard of that one, so it’s been added to the Pinterest board!
September 2, 2015 at 1:12 am
Pam Miller
Tara, You make writing so fun. Love the prompts and book list. Can’t wait for my Little Red Gliding Hood to arrive in October.
September 2, 2015 at 9:32 am
nicole snitselaar
you are so unique ! I had a good laugh and you are leaving me with a smile on my face and twinkles in my eyes ! Such an intertainer ! 😉 😉 😉
September 3, 2015 at 4:52 am
nicole snitselaar
I thought it was an author’s blog… but it is much more ! 😉
September 2, 2015 at 9:35 pm
ThisKidReviewsBooks
That’s an awesome video! 🙂 I love Fractured Fairy Tales! 😀
September 3, 2015 at 8:18 pm
ptnozell
This was an awesome post, Tara, and I’ve already checked out the pinterest board. Sadly not a teacher, although I do live on the campus of a secondary school (now that’s another story!).
September 6, 2015 at 1:56 am
cravevsworld
Great resource! Thank you!
Favorite PB: The Wolf Who Cried Boy
Favorite MG: Rump: The True Story of Rumpelstiltskin
May I provide it to my 9th graders for their Picture Book writing project? They love the genre since they’re currently re-writing fairy tales using vignettes in the style of Sandra Cisneros’s House on Mango Street.
September 7, 2015 at 7:33 pm
Sheri Radovich
Great post and I’m tardy to the party, reading up on my e-mails that have stacked up with a brief glance and on to something distracting me from writing. I didn’t realize the page from Pinterest, there were so many fractured fairy tales. Can’t wait to read them all and evaluate the story I have that is similar.
September 7, 2015 at 9:06 pm
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September 9, 2015 at 11:12 pm
zircon1
I didn’t find anything that was out of wack except for the enjoyable Fracture Fairy Tale video which was amusing. I really enjoyed your Pinterest site which is full of wonderful ideas. A lot of energy on this blog so make sure you have your seat belt buckled. Cool!
September 21, 2015 at 8:24 am
Korby Saunders
We love Three Ninja Pigs. My class would love to Skypee.
October 17, 2015 at 2:13 pm
Henry Herz
Yay, Tara. There’s also my MONSTER GOOSE NURSERY RHYMES. 🙂
September 25, 2016 at 4:44 pm
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