Topic Brainstorm

Villains Speak Out: The first storybook idea I have is to create a collection of common fairy tales told from the villain's point of view.  One of my favorite children's books is called The True Story of the Three Little Pigs by Jon Scieszka tells the story of the Three Little Pigs from the Big Bad Wolf's point of view in a way that makes him seem like the protagonist of the story. I think telling stories in this way makes the stories feel more like real life because most people generally don't see themselves as a villain intentionally causing harm. Using this same style, my storybook would retell classic fairy tales in a way that justifies the villain's actions. I'm hoping to retell stories that most people are at least somewhat familiar with. Some of the stories I could use as the starting point for my own new stories are Ashenputtle or Snow-White in the Brother's Grimm: Crane Unit. 

Cinderella Illustration (Photo from Wikimedia Commons)

Advice to Incoming Freshman: I went on OU's ghost tour a couple years ago and love it. I found that learning about the ghosts was a unique way learn about the history of the University. I think retelling the ghosts stories as if the ghost's were giving advice to new students at the University could be an interesting way to frame the stories that would give more personality to the ghosts than the way in which ghost stories are typically shared. I would most definitely want to check out Campus Ghosts of Norman, Oklahoma by Jeff Provine but some information can be found on OU's website.

Photo of OU's Clock Tower (Photo form Wikimedia Commons)

Heracules Hate Mail: From what I know about Heracules, he may have been very strong and completed the twelve labors but he also did things I assume would make people very angry (i.e. kill his own children). He is often depicted as a hero and looked up to despite his darker actions. I think it would be interesting to tell his story from the perspective of people like his wife Megara and King Diomedes who would likely be outraged with how his story is told in modern retellings like the Disney film Hercules.

Heracules and Megara (Photo from Wikimedia Commons)

If I Were A Boy - How Biblical Women Would Have Faired as Men: I think it would be interesting to reinvent the stories of biblical women if the women had been men. The patriarchal society that produced the bible had drastically different standards for men and women. Women are far less featured in the Bible so I think it would be interesting to think about how much more favorably Biblical Women would have been written about in their own time if they were men. I think the story of Mary Magdalene would be particularly interesting to retell in this way.

Jesus Appearance to Mary Magdalene (Photo from Wikimedia Commons)