Today’s story might just contain an element of truth.

The Legend of the Gift Horses
[Random] • 2,056 words

If you have ever wondered how the saying “Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth” came to be, please venture inside and learn one fairytale version of this tale.

FROM THE CURATORS: There are many elements that go into an enjoyable fairy tale, and we found that this one fired on all cylinders — from voice and structure to character and ideas.  “This is a fantastic in-universe tale, one that almost seems to delight in its own telling,” Present Perfect said.  “I actually got a thrill when Wish was saved, and I adore that Starswirl takes on certain mythic proportions of his own.”  AugieDog also enjoyed it all.  “Fun and well told,” he said.  “My only quibble is that the story ends too soon.  I wanted it all to keep going and going. That for me is the sign of a story really getting its hooks into me.”

Others found the story growing on them as it developed.  “This starts out looking like a well-constructed but slightly stock fairytale,” Chris said, “but in the aftermath of the battle (near the halfway point in the story), it suddenly becomes much more creative than I was giving it credit for.”  Horizon agreed: “This goes places I wasn’t expecting, and I have to give it props for its fusion of its two core mythological components.”  Chris further commented on the tale’s balancing act: “It deftly straddles the line between using well-known imagery and relying on cliches.”

All told, those elements added up to more than just the titular fable.  “I found myself appreciating this both as a piece of storytelling, and as story in its own right,” Chris said, and Present Perfect agreed: “This is easy to approach on its dual merits.”

Read on for our author interview, in which LiterarySerenity discusses coyote similarities, parental bookshelves, and world-hopping Merlins.
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