Why is it that nice girls get walked all over?
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Sweet Ashley St. Helens wants so many things—freedom, love, and a scholarship—but she’s overworked, overwhelmed, and feeling lost since her parents died. Then there’s the, um, foot problem...
When her eccentric godfather shows up, the magic begins. A soul-and-body makeover before senior prom—with just the right shoes—reminds Ashley how awesome she is.
NEW SONG! Listen to the newly mastered soundtrack for "A Girl Like Me!"
Love it? We thought you would!
Who We Are
Michael O'Dell is an incredibly generative musician and composer, who can play a dozen instruments and write symphonic scores from his head with just pencil and paper on a BART train. He's worked as music director for dozens (maybe hundreds?) of musicals, and he's written/produced/directed his own musical, Waiting: The Musical. His website is www.blankcanvasmusic.com.
Kristen Caven is a multi-disciplinary creative who has written books and articles about parenting, psychology, health, humor, philosophy and creativity. A mother, a teacher, and cartoonist, her forthcoming book is The Bullying Antidote: Superpower Your Kids For Life. Better yet, she created a novella version of The Souls of Her Feet for your e-reader! Learn more about her offerings, from graphic novels to greeting cards, at www.kristencaven.com, or www.littlepig.com.
What We Want
We met the year we both turned 40, and agreed to "knock this story out" in a way that would make you forget Wicked. But time (plus patience, plus perserverance) is polishing the facets of this gem in ways we could never have imagined. We both want to be successful at our craft and have fulfilling artistic careers. The Souls of Her Feet is a wonderful project that has brought out the best in our muses, and we want to see it on stage!
We want to bring this wonderful story to the big time. And our contributors will help us to help humanity see and love itself—especially young women at that "finding yourself" age—with all of the stories in this series.
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What We Need
This is the first of several fundraising campaigns as we take our "little steps" toward the stage. This campaign will fund three little steps:
- A completed score (including 2 new songs!)
- a re-formatted script, and
- Demo recordings of several songs.
Funds will be used for travel (we live 1500 miles apart) and talent—yes, you will help employ actors and musicians! All funds will go to furthering the project, whether or not we reach our current financial goal.
The other, NON-MONETARY thing that you can help us with is little stories that help fill out our backstory (see "A Penny For Your Thoughts," right). Go to www.fairytalereality.com, find a fairy tale that reminds you of you, and leave a sentence or a paragraph in the comments. YES, YOU CAN MAKE STUFF UP. This is a creative endeavor!
What You Get
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If you DO choose to donate (and we need all the help we can get), you can get some great perks, such as:
- An ebook of the novella*
- A t-shirt*
- A memento from the shoebox! This is actually a large basket of collectibles that devotees have offered over the years: a shoe keychain, shoe napkins, jewelled pencils, etc... fun, princessy, shoe swag!
- A printed book of the novella
NOTE: You can donate ANY amount above the suggested amount... just pick your perk!
*also available at the website above
The Impact
This project is a real labor of love for us. Kristen wrote the first draft a dozen years ago to create a space within the princess mythologies for real girls, translating magic into reality. The story teaches us that:
- When we're bullied, things will change;
- Friends get us through things;
- We can find awesomeness in our imperfections;
- Love happens in the weirdest ways; and
- The right shoes can make a difference.
We hope that our multi-platform expressions will help build a love of literature in all its forms in the hearts and minds of our fans, plus blast their self-esteem through the roof. (It has certainly done so for us!) In the two readings we have done in developing it, our volunteer actors have been drawn to the chewy dialogue, crisp characters and challenging music. With their help in shaping the script we hope to create a work that actors everywhere will swoon to perform.
Other Ways You Can Help
Some people just can’t contribute, but that doesn’t mean they can’t help! Please share this page — or any of our pages (website, blog, facebook page...) with anyone who you think will enjoy the project or be able to support us in any way.
In her opening song Ashley wants to "activate the greatness in the souls of everyone I serve."
And so do we! Please join us.
What We Need
