For the uninitiated, we’re talking about fairytale retellings. Retellings are my thing, and I’m sharing the Cinderella stories generated by AI with my indigenius elaborate prompt.

Recap

Two weeks ago, on Tuesday and Wednesday, I attended AWS workshop on prompt engineering. One of the exercises was to make Claude write a story at least 800 words long. I think each of the attendees would have gone in different directions for this one. Me, being bit with the story-telling worm, tried very specific prompts.

Did I succeed in first attempt? Hell, no!

I tried three times, and here are the three attempts. I couldn’t copy the prompts for each of them, but I did ask for Cinderella specfically. This is the second attempt. Enjoy!

Cinderella is So Last Season

Cinderella was a young woman who lived with her wicked stepmother and two stepsisters. Her real mother had passed away, and her father had remarried a cruel woman who mistreated Cinderella. The stepmother and stepsisters were jealous of Cinderella’s kind nature and beauty, and they forced her to do all the hard work around the house, treating her as a servant in her own home.

Despite the hardships she faced, Cinderella remained kind and gentle, never losing hope that one day her fortunes would change. She spent her days tending to the chores, dreaming of a better life, and finding solace in the company of the birds and mice who were her only friends.

One day, the kingdom announced that the prince was hosting a grand ball, and all eligible maidens were invited to attend. The stepmother and stepsisters were thrilled at the prospect of attending the ball, as they saw it as an opportunity to catch the prince’s eye and become his bride. Cinderella, too, longed to attend the ball, but her stepmother and stepsisters refused to let her go, mocking her and telling her that she was not worthy of such an event.

Heartbroken, Cinderella retreated to the garden, where she sat by a tree and began to cry. Suddenly, a glowing light appeared, and Cinderella’s fairy godmother emerged. The fairy godmother, seeing Cinderella’s distress, took pity on her and decided to help her attend the ball.

With a wave of her wand, the fairy godmother transformed Cinderella’s tattered dress into a beautiful gown, and her worn-out shoes into a pair of sparkling glass slippers. She then turned a pumpkin into a magnificent carriage, and some mice into horses to pull it. The fairy godmother warned Cinderella that the magic would only last until the stroke of midnight, and that she must return home before then.

Cinderella, filled with excitement and gratitude, arrived at the palace and was immediately noticed by the prince. They danced the night away, captivated by each other’s charm and grace. As the clock began to strike midnight, Cinderella remembered the fairy godmother’s warning and quickly made her way out of the palace, losing one of her glass slippers in the process.

The prince, smitten with Cinderella, tried to follow her, but she disappeared into the night. All he had left was the glass slipper that had fallen off her foot as she ran.

The next day, the prince announced that he would search the entire kingdom to find the woman who fit the glass slipper, and that he would make her his bride. The stepmother and stepsisters, desperate to be the ones to capture the prince’s heart, tried to force their feet into the slipper, but it was no use – the slipper was too small for them.

Cinderella, meanwhile, had returned home and kept the other glass slipper hidden, afraid that her stepmother and stepsisters would discover it and prevent her from attending the ball again.

As the prince’s servants went from house to house, trying the slipper on every eligible maiden, they eventually arrived at Cinderella’s home. The stepmother and stepsisters tried in vain to squeeze their feet into the slipper, but it would not fit. Just when all hope seemed lost, Cinderella stepped forward and asked to try on the slipper.

To the shock and dismay of the stepmother and stepsisters, the slipper fit Cinderella’s foot perfectly. Suddenly, the other glass slipper appeared in Cinderella’s hand, completing the proof that she was the one the prince had been searching for.

The stepmother and stepsisters, realizing that their deception had been exposed, were filled with shame and anger. But Cinderella, with the help of her fairy godmother, had finally found her happily ever after.

The prince, overjoyed to have found his true love, immediately proposed to Cinderella, and they were married in a grand ceremony. Cinderella’s stepmother and stepsisters, unable to bear the sight of her happiness, were banished from the kingdom.

Cinderella and the prince lived a life of love and prosperity, and Cinderella never forgot the kindness and generosity of her fairy godmother, who had helped her to overcome the cruelty of her stepfamily and find her true destiny.

Parting Thoughts

The story of Cinderella has become a timeless classic, a tale of perseverance, kindness, and the triumph of good over evil. It has been retold and reimagined countless times, but the core elements of the story – the mistreatment of Cinderella, the magical transformation, the lost slipper, and the happy ending – remain the same, captivating audiences of all ages and inspiring them to believe in the power of dreams and the resilience of the human spirit.

Drama Review: Mohini Mansion Ki Cinderella (Episode 1)

Drama Review: Mohini Mansion Ki Cinderella (Episode 2)

Stay tuned for more book reviews, drama reviews and stories.

Until next time, happy reading!