Yes, it has been done before, and not only by Jane Yolen! Lots of writers and visual artists have depicted what really happens after those fairy take endings of happily ever after. There is even a wonderful journal where you can read some of these takes (and submit your own): Fairy Tale Review.
But today it is your turn to try to reimagine a fairy tale. You don't need to write a persona poem, as Yolen did in today's other blog post, or focus on a main character or a well-known tale, which she did as well. You could even go the other way and look at a being's beginnings. Your short story could be from the point of view of one of those many widowed fathers in so many of those stories. How about a painting that shows what the gingerbread house looked like before the witch? A sonnet of someone who did not help the little match girl who is talking to his therapist?
Read the Jane Yolen poem, check out the journal, and take your own creative liberties with a fairy tale or folk tale. There is a reason these stories still move us, resonate with us, and get re-worked. Join in the fun!
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