Fairy-Tale Themed Prose and Poetry for Forensics Competition or Reading Aloud

New: non-fairytale-themed prose and poetry pieces by the same author. Click to read!

When Meg and I first started putting together Wolves and Witches, we intended to release it as a book of fairy-tale based monologues for students competing in forensics or speech-and-debate, as pieces for the prose, poetry, oral interpretation, or dramatic interpretation categories. The final book turned out to be more than just monologues: we’ve got all kinds of fairy-tale retellings in there, poetry and prose, first and third person and occasionally second person, just to be weird. We still think most of these pieces would be terrific to compete with. We both competed extensively back in the day, and still read out all our work before it’s done–it’s meant to be easy on the tongue, and fun to read aloud.

So with forensics season starting soon, we took a look at our table of contents and marked it up for performers or coaches looking for new material. Reading times are approximate, based on one minute per standard page. They’re guesses, but probably close! Some of the pieces are still available online; we linked those up so you can check out our style before buying the book. (We hope you do! Many of our favorite pieces aren’t available anywhere else.) The pieces below appear in a different order in the book–we’ve sorted them by type and length below, to make it easy to find what you need.

Wolves and Witches was published traditionally in print, so it is permitted for use by both the National Forensics League and the National Catholic Forensics League. You can find the ISBN number and other publication information at the publisher’s website.

Retold fairy tales include: Little Red Riding Hood, Hansel and Gretel, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Diamonds and Toads, Twelve Dancing Princesses, the Little Mermaid, Rumpelstiltskin, Rapunzel, the Pied Piper of Hamelin, and a couple of mashups that were fun to piece together.

WOLVES AND WITCHES: PROSE AND POETRY PIECES FOR FORENSICS OR DRAMATIC PERFORMANCE

POETRY

• The Witch of the Wolfwoods – 1st person – witch – 1 minute
• Flytrap – 1st person – witch – 1 minute
• Her Dark Materials – 2nd person (advice) – 1 minute
• Untruths About the Desirability of Wolves – 1st person – Red Riding Hood – 2 minutes
• A Shining Spindle Can Still Be Poisoned – 1st person – Sleeping Beauty’s citizen – 2 minutes
• Diamond and Toad – 1st person (two voices) – cursed/blessed girls – 3 minutes
• Rules for Living Well – 2nd person (advice) – 3 minutes

PROSE

• Bones in the Branches – 3rd person – 2 minutes
• Lure – 1st person – mermaid – 2 minutes
• The Instructions – 2nd person (advice) – 4 minutes
• The Long Con – 1st person – Rumpelstiltskin – 4 minutes
• The Peril of Stories – 1st person – witch – 4 minutes
• The Best Boy, the Brightest Boy – 1st person – pied piper – 4 minutes
• The Gold In the Straw – 2nd person – miller’s daughter – 6 minutes
• A Mouth to Speak the Coming Home – 3rd person – 6 minutes
• Questing for Princesses – 3rd person – 8 minutes
• A Letter Concerning Shoes – 1st person – 12 Dancing Princesses’ cobbler – 10 minutes

To buy Wolves and Witches on Amazon, click here. (Click here to shop elsewhere.)

To read more pieces by the same authors, many of which are also legal for the NFL or NCFL, check out our websites: Megan Engelhardt and Amanda C. Davis.

To read more new fairy-tale retellings online, try these magazines: Enchanted Conversation, Cabinet des Fees, Goblin Fruit.

And if you do end up performing any of these, we’d love to hear about it! Leave a comment. We’ll be cheering you on!

Craving something longer? The Lair of the Twelve Princesses is a 9000-word sword-and-sorcery novelette, retelling the tale of the twelve dancing princesses featuring a soldier, her genie, and a castle full of treachery, available now at Smashwords or Amazon.