Fairy tales organize our thoughts, a bit like language does. Both represent a set of symbols people call upon to express themselves and their values. They are cultural and shape the way that we think the world, the way that we build the world.
We are in need of rebuilding and Tomorrow Tales are key in rebuilding the world.
Before fantasy, science fiction, weird tales or horror, there were fairy tales. They are the original speculative fiction ā free to explore all themes, make impossibly large thought experiments, and awe people as they experience the familiar as unfamiliar.
Philosophy also took from them to make parables: memorable stories that invite thoughtful questions or teach lessons. Early understandings of child psychology are all throughout these traditional tales.
But are the lessons of so long ago relevant anymore, particularly when transplanted into non-European contexts as part of the colonial project? Donāt we need new heroes, with better representation, to catch up with changes in values?
It's time to get intentional about the lessons we pass on to the next generations. We need fewer stories about āexceptionalā people for whom the rules of physics (or of law) do not apply and more tales about communities solving problems together. Out with the sexism of evil step mothers and in with diverse, complex, and loving chosen families. Letās stop the promotion of racist and royalist agendas; how about a story about living with science and love to inhabit the world responsibly?
Let's make modern classics here!
But thereās still plenty we can learn from traditional folk tales:
ā¦ Removing the importance of authorship by having different people telling, re-telling, or collaborating on the same stories
ā¦ Responding to the needs of our society today
ā¦ Understanding that childrenās tales are like compasses that help us navigate the world
ā¦ Story-telling together, rather than reading alone
ā¦ Embracing weirdness, darkness and beauty
Tomorrow Tales are for a world at the frontier of environmental catastrophe, armed or bureaucratic conflict, rife inequality, everyday injustice, and isolating individualization.
Tomorrow Tales are for all of you, who are able to help shape this project in new ways.
We believe that these types of stories are so important that they should be available free of charge to all. We vouch to keep the stories freely available.
The Tomorrow Tales team are open to collaboration.
Submissions are open and accepted in all languages (preferably with translation provided). Expressions of interest to edit or collaborate on fairy tales also open.
Selected pieces may be workshopped.
As a fledgling platform, we cannot currently pay contributors ā but we will be working on raising funds to support future productions, and to thank and promote our collaborators.
