Will’s eyes followed the shadow while his fingers untwisted the last ribbon. He took off after it, swiftly but stealthily, slipping behind tree trunks and bushes, not once looking behind him to check if everything was as it should be. The shadow was moving away from the green, towards the other end of the village, […]
Tag: Fairy Tale
The Wrong Daisies
Will’s mouth gaped. What had just happened? Willa used her wand to stir the drops of potion that remained in the cauldron. Everything was as it should be: she could see tiny pieces of daisy petals, willow bark, nettle leaf and yellow buttercup pollen. She ran to the door to look at the forest of […]
Daisies Everywhere
The villagers were not surprised when the stone goblin disappeared from beneath the willow tree, or when Will moved in with Willa. What might have bothered them was that he was less than half her size, although his face looked older. Willa was quick to point it out when she released him from the weather […]
Back Under the Willow
Time passed under the willow. The weather witch did not return and the stone goblin, believed by the villagers to be a sleeping gnome, was still propped against its trunk. Over time, dogs and cats sniffed at him, robins perched on his head, but no magpies visited. He soon disappeared beneath a clump of brambles […]
The Willow Tree Goblin
Long ago, a goblin lived beneath a willow, where daylight was green, and leaves rustled in the breeze. His name was Willow – Will for short. He was friends with a magpie that landed on the topmost branch each day to share gossip. One day, as Will watched a robin build a nest, the tree […]
The Selfish Giant’s Garden
They visited every day For the grass, starry flowers And space to play for hours. In spring, peach trees burst into blossom And the happy children feasted on fruit all autumn. After a seven year visit with a Cornish ogre, Summer saw the return of the owner, A selfish giant who scared them away With […]
The Gnome in my Garden
In our forest of a garden, Beneath the corkscrew willow, Reclines a sleeping gnome; We’re happy that he lies there And the garden is his home. He gives me inspiration Among the wildlife and flowers: I can see him from the window As I write in daylight hours. When everyone is sleeping And I am […]
The Little Robber Girl
My response to Mindlovemisery’s Menagerie Fairy Tale Prompt When I was a child, I remember reading The Snow Queen by Hans Christian Andersen and wondering about the little robber girl who helped Gerda in her search for Kai, who had been lured away by the Snow Queen. One freezing, dark night in the middle of […]
The Three Children of Fortune
A Grimm tale in response to imaginary garden with real toads Poetry To The Third Power Once upon a time, a father said to his three sons: ‘I am growing old and about to die; I am poor and have no money But I will give you each a gift. Go to a place […]
The end of The Juniper Tree
Part 3 When the bird’s song was over it flew away; Gone too were the handkerchief and the boy And pretty Margery smiled with joy. It landed on the roof of a goldsmith’s house, Singing: ‘My mother killed her little son; My father thought me lost and gone; But sister Margery pitied me And laid […]
writing in north norfolk 