{Guest Post/Giveaway} Author Danielle E. Shipley on: "If I were told I had to choose a fairytale character’s story to live..."

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Danielle E. Shipley’s first novelettes told the everyday misadventures of wacky kids like herself. …Or so she thought. Unbeknownst to them all, half of her characters were actually closeted elves, dwarves, fairies, or some combination thereof. When it all came to light, Danielle did the sensible thing: Packed up and moved to Fantasy Land, where daily rent is the low, low price of her heart, soul, blood, sweat, tears, firstborn child, sanity, and words; lots of them. She’s also been known to spend short bursts of time in the real-life Chicago area with the parents who home schooled her and the two little sisters who keep her humble. When she’s not living the highs and lows of writing young adult novels, she’s probably blogging about it.


Visit Danielle's website and follow her on Facebook and Twitter!




"If I were told I had to choose a fairytale character’s story to live..."
by Danielle E. Shipley



Embittered cynics will be all too eager to tell you we don’t live in a fairytale world. To which anyone familiar with fairytales might emphatically reply, “And a good thing, too! Have you read ‘Hansel and Gretel’?”

Be not deceived: The fairytale life is not all benevolent magical godmothers, wall-to-wall charming princes, and sparkling happy endings. If I were told I had to choose a fairytale character’s story to live, you can bet I’d make that choice with care.

Cinderella? No way. My heart of a servant notwithstanding, I don’t have the patience and gentle temperament required to work as a slave in my own house. My step-family would kick me out well before the invitation to the prince’s ball arrived, so who knows where I’d end up. An outlaw, perhaps?

Well, if I’m going to be a thief, why not be Jack of “and the beanstalk” fame? Plenty of goodies worth stealing in the giant’s cloud-top castle! Although, the odds of my ever reaching the castle are slim, since I don’t see myself selling a cow to an iffy stranger for a handful of allegedly magic beans; not without a warranty. (“Satisfaction guaranteed, or your cattle back!”)

I couldn’t handle being Sleeping Beauty. Knowing I’ve only got sixteen years to live before some dreadful curse befalls me? Too much stress! Rapunzel? Too much hair! The frog prince? I wouldn’t wish to impose on some random princess’s hospitality. Amphibian or not, I hate to be a bother.

Maybe the best story for me to live would be everybody’s favorite tale as old as time: Beauty and the Beast. Either main character could be a pretty good fit for me. On the one hand, I could be the gorgeous girl who gets to save my father’s life by moving into a cool enchanted castle. Win! On the other, I could be an ill-mannered royal cursed into a monster who gets to call the shots on who is and is not allowed into my cool enchanted castle. Half-win, at the least! Whichever role I played, I’d have the great opportunity to grow to know and love the inner beauty of my new housemate, and to eventually bask in the knowledge that the other had done the same. There are certainly worse tales to get thrown into than that.

  ~*~

O F F I C I A   I N F O:

Title: THE SEVENTH SPELL
Author: Danielle E. Shipley
Release Date: Feb. 5, 2014
Publisher: Swoon Romance / Macmillan
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/19181278-the-seventh-spell
SUMMARY:

A witch’s attempt to cast one spell too many casts everyone touched by her previous spells into chaos. Scattered throughout each other’s pasts, Sula and Edgwyn, Villem and Rosalba, and the rest of the magic’s affected have a single chance to break this last enchantment before their “happily-ever-after”-s cease to have ever been. 

THE SEVENTH SPELL
Book Three of The Wilderhark Tales 

An enchantress’s curse turns a spoiled royal into a beast; a princess’s pricked finger places her under a hundred-year spell; bales of straw are spun as golden as the singing harp whisked down a giant beanstalk – all within sight of Wilderhark, the forest that’s seen it all. 

You’ve heard the stories – of young men scaling rope-like braids to assist the tower-bound damsel; of gorgeous gowns appearing just in time for a midnight ball; of frog princes, and swan princes, and princes saved from drowning by maidens of the sea. Tales of magic. Tales of adventure. Most of all, tales of true love. 

Once upon a time, you knew them as fairytales. Know them now as Wilderhark’s.
~*~
****Giveaway*****

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THE SEVENTH SPELL
by Danielle E. Shipley?

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Comments

  1. My thanks for the feature! 'Tis much appreciated. Happy Fairy Tale Fortnight! :D

    ~ Danielle

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  2. So enjoyed this, Danielle! And I agree- Beauty and the Beast would be a lovely tale to step into.

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    Replies
    1. And that's even without the Disneyfied perk of a breathtaking library! Thanks, Sarah. :)

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  3. I am more inclined now that I am older to like the newer princesses and my favorite one to step into would have to be The Scottish world from Brave :) Merida is an awesome princess and I love the new stories because they are more empowering for young girls! They don't need men to live their lives or make them complete - Merida is self-sufficient and she doesn't even WANT to marry :) That is what we need to be teaching our kids nowdays - be yourself no matter what and be independent!

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    Replies
    1. I'm holding onto hope for the best of both worlds: Being my independent self with a true-hearted fairytale guy to have my back. ^_^

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  4. Thanks for the great giveaway first off ;) I have always loved Beauty & The Beast, it doesn't get any better than that story!

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  5. I have to agree Beauty and the Beast sounds like the best option, since i get to spend most of my time in a castle and not as a servant. I especially wouldn't want to be a servant in a fairy tale because this was a time before vaccums and other household amendities.

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    Replies
    1. Ooh, yes, a good point, that. The days of chamber pots, etc., was an extra lousy time to have to be a Cinderella. X(

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  6. Great choice! I think I'd go for Twelve Dancing Princesses, because although of course the beast turns out to be an OK guy, I'd always wonder about the power dynamics of that relationship.

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    Replies
    1. I don't know if I could party like the Twelve Dancing Princesses every night. My social energy levels would be worn straight through faster than my dancing slippers! XD Still, a nightly walk through forests of trees of silver and gold sounds divine.

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