Hm. Rumplestiltskin was one of those rather-foreign fairy tales, so I didn't even remember that particular detail! (In the Czech lands, Božena Němcová rules with a firm hand as a fairy tale collector and writer, and I can't say I mind; she tends to make the protagonists more interesting somehow. No wonder so many Czech filmed fairy tales are based on her work!) Of course, Czech fairies are also gendered, to the point that their actual historical name is "little women". But I think it's the way Wolf made most of the gnomes practically interchangeable that bothered and bothers me. All of his dwarfs seem to look like that, even outside this series. I guess there's no particular logic to this argument, just the fact that the animals were more interesting and relatable!
Good luck with your writing! Personally, I'm glad I got the ideas so early, because I tend towards obsessive with the editing stage (which, obviously, isn't the same as "catching the mistakes", but does take time nonetheless!).
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Date: 2015-07-14 08:51 am (UTC)Of course, Czech fairies are also gendered, to the point that their actual historical name is "little women". But I think it's the way Wolf made most of the gnomes practically interchangeable that bothered and bothers me. All of his dwarfs seem to look like that, even outside this series. I guess there's no particular logic to this argument, just the fact that the animals were more interesting and relatable!
Good luck with your writing! Personally, I'm glad I got the ideas so early, because I tend towards obsessive with the editing stage (which, obviously, isn't the same as "catching the mistakes", but does take time nonetheless!).