Can you believe I've been blogging about princesses for the past eight years? How time flies! I like to do something special each year for my blogiversary. A few years ago, I filmed a special music video. This time, it's something I haven't done in over five years. I wrote a new book! That's right, folks. We're finally getting a new fairy tale novella. Titania's Reflection is a combined retelling of "Fairer-than-a-Fairy" and Shakespeare's classic A Midsummer Night's Dream. It's currently available on Amazon in ebook, audiobook, and paperback formats. If you've enjoyed my other works in the past, you should absolutely check this one out! It's like nothing I've ever done before.
Titania's Reflection would not exist if it weren't for all the princess-related research I do for my blog. I first discovered "Fairer-than-a-Fairy" when I spent a winter reading all twelve of Andrew Lang's Fairy Books looking for hidden gems. This story stood out to me as one that should get more exposure. It had some fascinating imagery, including a talking rainbow and a castle suspended in the air by four chains, and was surprisingly progressive because it contained a princess who wakes a sleeping prince instead of the other way around. It also contains a fascinating love story in which the princess fell in love with the prince without ever knowing what he looked like, showing that real love isn't about appearances. I knew I wanted to explore this fairy tale further, but I wasn't sure how at the time. So I continued blogging and waited for inspiration to strike.
Among the book deals I received this year, no series stood out to me quite as much as Sara Farnsworth's Realms of Caelia, which begins with Beauty in the Tower, a combined retelling of "Rapunzel" and "Sleeping Beauty." Her books made me realize that the best way to enhance a story might be by combining it with other ones. That was when I remembered watching the 1999 film adaptation of A Midsummer Night's Dream. The world of the faeries presented there blended perfectly with the world that the young princess was spirited away to in "Fairer-than-a-Fairy." A Midsummer Night's Dream has been used as a backdrop for many other fantasy works, including Nickelodeon's The Other Kingdom, Disney's Gargoyles, and a series of novellas by Tara Grayce. The Shakespearean classic also helped me come up with built-in names for all of the characters, since only the wicked fairy in "Fairer-than-a-Fairy" had a real name, which I replaced with Titania. The princess in the book is named "Fairer-than-a-Fairy," but that's way too much of a mouthful, so I had Titania call her Hermia instead.
Another inspiration for this book was the musical Between the Lines, which was based on a novel and concluded with a lovely message about creativity and sharing your story with the world. I was obsessed with this musical for a few months. It was one of the biggest catalysts that motivated me to start writing again. Its plot about a fictional character who falls in love with a girl from the real world gave me a lot of ideas for developing the dynamics of Hermia's relationship with Lysander, a prince trapped in the reflection of a rainbow. Helena and Demetrius were fun characters to write because I based both of them on the modern warrior archetype, which wasn't as popular in Shakespeare's time, at least for female characters. They created just enough drama to flesh out the fairy tale into a full-length book.
As I celebrate eight years of blogging about princesses, I'm thrilled to share my latest creation, Titania's Reflection, a unique retelling of "Fairer-than-a-Fairy" and A Midsummer Night's Dream. This novella would not have been possible without the research and inspiration I've gathered over the years. With its blend of fascinating imagery, progressive themes, and Shakespearean magic, Titania's Reflection is a true labor of love. If you've enjoyed my previous works, I invite you to experience this new tale, now available on Amazon in ebook, audiobook, and paperback formats. Thank you for joining me on this journey, and I look forward to sharing more princess-themed adventures with you in the years to come!
A new season has begun, which means there are tons of new anime shows available from Japan. Going over the long lists of new shows every three months can be overwhelming, so I'm here to curate the most princessy shows each season for you. This Spring brings us two unique princess shows and two villainess shows , which is a popular princess-adjacent genre with new offerings for every anime season. For me, the standout series of the Spring 2026 anime season is Always a Catch , which places a unique spin on the broken engagement trope . What makes Always a Catch unique is that it subverts the trope of modern princess anime shows that start with a wicked prince breaking off his engagement to a noble lady, resulting in her winning over a different prince. In this show, Prince Renato attempts to break off his engagement with Lady Aida, but he hasn't seen her in years and confuses her with her outspoken cousin, Mimi. As an apology for the mistake (and because he finds Mimi charming),...
Part 2 of the Winx Club reboot dropped on Netflix yesterday, and it seems like fans are completely disengaged with this franchise. No one is talking about it, and it was pretty poorly received in So Diva! Magazine . The latest drop was fairly short, with only six episodes. This batch of episodes focuses more on the Winx girls than Damien, who seemed to be the star of the initial drop. However, the reboot is stuck between old and new story developments with a lot of revisited material from the superior original series , and not all of the changes they made to it are for the better. The first episode of the drop, "The Truth About Bloom," threw me for a loop because the reboot didn't make it clear that Bloom didn't realize she was adopted. Those of us who have been watching the original series for years were well aware of this fact, and dragging it out slowed the reboot to a crawl. After Bloom learned that she was the secret keeper of the dragon flame, had a magical gui...
Today is a major accomplishment for me. I started this blog 100 days ago, and I've managed to write a new post in it every day since then. Some of the topics were easier to come up with than others. I also had to go back and edit some after the fact due to poor proofreading. Speaking of which, I'm really sorry about the disastrous short story from my first Story Saturday post . The whole thing was written on my phone on the way to a Mermaid Art Show event in San Diego, so I was a little distracted. I promise to put more effort into future Story Saturdays, which should be easier now that I will no longer be writing new posts every day. Don't worry, though. I will still keep everyone informed of the latest princess news and review all the new princess movies and specials. Without further ado, in celebration of my 100th post, here is a list of 100 princesses with all of the posts I've made about them (in no particular order). Thank you so much for reading my blog. 1-11:...
Today is the day that Disney's live-action Snow White comes out on Disney+, providing an opportunity for the many people who did not see it in theaters to watch it. In honor of this occasion, I have explored many of the previous live-action interpretations of this character that have come before. Although I still have strong feelings about remaking the first feature-length animated movie of all time in a live-action format, I did not think that Disney's newest adaptation was the worst one. Yet, it had so much competition from its predecessors that it did seem a bit unnecessary. Let's explore all the live-action Snow Whites that came before and see where this one falls. Please note that this is purely for fun and not an official ranking by any means. All opinions are my own. Feel free to share yours in the comments, whether you agree or disagree with my list.. 10. Snow White and the Huntsman (2012) I tried to watch this movie again recently because I didn't remember i...
If there's one fairy tale that's been adapted more times than most people can count, it's "Cinderella." With a rumored Disney spinoff on the way , this timeless rags-to-riches story has even more film adaptations than "Snow White." That's not even counting books , musicals , television , and other media ! Therefore, I thought it would be fun to rank ten different movie interpretations of the beloved tale, including some you might not be familiar with. In fact, I just learned about my number ten spot earlier this week! As always, my rankings are subjective and may change based on my mood, so don't take them too seriously if you don't agree with all of them. 10. The Glass Slipper (1955) The Glass Slipper is a lesser-known Cinderella adaptation, and for a good reason. This film lacks many of the qualities that make Cinderella movies great. There's one mediocre song, and the main actress was cast more for her ballet abilities than for her...
Only one month after my recent obsession with Find Me in Paris , the time-traveling ballerina princess drama dropped its third and final season on Hulu today. Though somewhat predictable, this season offered a satisfying conclusion to the show's unique concept that combined dance with science fiction and tied up all remaining loose ends from the previous seasons. We finally learned the truth about Lena's birth and why she's always being chased by anyone remotely interested in time travel. Nearly every character got paired off at the end, even if it meant some questionable decisions on behalf of the writers. The season also offered some of the most beautiful dance sequences in the show yet for its key story moments. While I could have done without the repetitive recap sequences, the final episodes made it clear that this was always meant to be the end and gave the cast and crew many happy memories to look back upon. The final season of Find Me in Paris incorporated the ...
It's been four years since the announcement of a new Sofia the First series. Today, that series is finally available to watch on Disney Jr. and will be coming to Disney+ tomorrow. Sofia the First: Royal Magic is everything I hoped it would be, with callbacks to the original show and most of the original cast and crew returning alongside many new faces. Sofia is back with her iconic purple dress, magic amulet, and the same sweet and cheerful personality that we all know and love. The show's pilot included a cameo from Rapunzel that referenced a "council of princesses," but this hint to additional Disney Princess adventures is not mentioned again in the rest of the eight episodes that premiered today, so we will have to wait and see how she encounters other classic princesses in the future. Sofia the First: Royal Magic does an excellent job of blending new characters and settings with the ones from the show's initial, welcoming new audiences without alienatin...
Have you ever wished you could put on a princess dress and fly away to a magical realm where anything is possible? The Labyrinth Masquerade Ball is the closest thing you can get to that, and it just came back to the Millenium Biltmore Hotel here in Los Angeles for its twentieth year! My husband I had the pleasure of being among its may attendees last night. As a bonus, it even gave me a rare excuse to wear my wedding dress again. I was surprised how many compliments I got on it, considering how many elaborate fantasy and faery costumes there were. Beginning in 1997, the Labyrinth of Jareth was inspired by the masquerade scene featuring the late David Bowie in Jim Henson's 1986 film, Labyrinth . In order to recreate the dreamlike quality of the film, the event requires all attendees to wear either formal attire and masks or elaborate fantasy costumes. People go all out for this each year, donning tons of glittery, enormous wings, face paint, ...
Five new episodes of Sofia the First: Royal Magic launched during World Princess Week , and they contain quite a few nostalgia-based throwbacks to a number of different properties. Although the fast-paced reboot lacks the heart of the original series , it's still a wholesome and magical adventure that gives fans a taste of what they've been missing since it stopped airing. The first episode of the reboot teased a visit from Rapunzel , who returned briefly in the new episode "Crown Chaos." Yet, the return was lackluster at best, particularly due to the lack of Mandy Moore , who originated the character in both the Tangled film and series. In the original Sofia the First series, princess cameos were a huge deal. They were rare and often appeared during hour-long specials, accompanied by songs and important guest stars. With Royal Magic's 10-minute episode formula, there's barely enough time to get excited about a princess's appearance before a new story be...
The first Descendants movie premiered in 2015, with two moderately successful sequels that proved nobody cares about continuity when it comes to Disney as long as it's fun. The franchise took a five-year-long break from 2019 to 2024 and came back with The Rise of Red , which introduced new characters, a new storyline, and tons of new plot holes. Featuring the daughters of Cinderella and the Queen of Hearts, The Rise of Red was one of the weakest entries in the franchise, giving Disney ample opportunity to redeem themselves with the latest sequel, Wicked Wonderland . Did they succeed? Surprisingly, yes, at least in my opinion. Though it's a direct sequel to The Rise of Red , Wicked Wonderland could not be more different in terms of story and production values. Chloe and Red are significantly more fleshed out as protagonists, and Pink, Red's little sister, is a wonderful new addition. The movie has better music, set design, writing, and characters, overshado...
Comments