Meant to Be (Book Series)

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blackcauldron85
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Meant to Be (Book Series)

Post by blackcauldron85 »

'Cinderella' Reimagining 'If The Shoe Fits' to Launch Disney Publishing Line
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat- ... shing-line
The 'Meant to Be' line will put classic Disney princesses in contemporary stories for adult audiences.
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Re: "Meant to Be" Contemporary Princess book series

Post by UmbrellaFish »

Looks cute. Disney seems to be really going into their book publishing division nowadays. I guess those Villains books have been very successful?
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Re: Meant to Be (Book Series)

Post by Sotiris »

Cover for the first entry "If the Shoe Fits". From the description it sounds horrible, to be honest. Like a bad rom-com meets The Bachelor. Hard pass.

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Source: http://www.imjuliemurphy.com/if-the-shoe-fits
After having just graduated with a degree in shoe design, and trying to get her feet on the ground, Cindy is working for her stepmother, who happens to be the executive producer of America’s favorite reality show, Before Midnight. When a spot on the show needs filling ASAP, Cindy volunteers, hoping it might help jump-start her fashion career, or at least give her something to do while her peers land jobs in the world of high fashion. Turns out being the only plus size woman on a reality dating competition makes a splash, and soon Cindy becomes a body positivity icon for women everywhere. What she doesn't expect? That she may just find inspiration — and love — in the process. Ultimately, Cindy learns that if the shoe doesn't fit, maybe it's time to design your own.
Source: https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat- ... shing-line
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Re: Meant to Be (Book Series)

Post by UmbrellaFish »

It’s not for me, but there’s probably an audience for it and I find it less offensive than the other books which use the “real” characters in Disney sanctioned fan fiction. I also appreciate the body positivity. Could see this and the other books providing the basis for a Disney+ show if they prove successful.
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Re: Meant to Be (Book Series)

Post by Farerb »

UmbrellaFish wrote:It’s not for me, but there’s probably an audience for it and I find it less offensive than the other books which use the “real” characters in Disney sanctioned fan fiction. I also appreciate the body positivity. Could see this and the other books providing the basis for a Disney+ show if they prove successful.
Good to know that I'm not the only one who found these "official" fanfics off-putting.
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Re: Meant to Be (Book Series)

Post by Disney's Divinity »

The only thing I thought was odd was that her feet were huge. But I guess it's a play on the story detail that Cinderella's feet are supposed to be extraordinarily small. I think it must have a bit of a gender reversal, too, considering she's holding his shoe.
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Re: Meant to Be (Book Series)

Post by DisneyFan97 »

Sounds like the ”AU” category of fanfiction especially those which are set in morden day,
” archive of our own" is full of these sorts of stories.

https://archiveofourown.org/
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Re: Meant to Be (Book Series)

Post by Sotiris »

‘If the Shoe Fits’: Read an Exclusive Excerpt from Disney Publishing’s Newest Romance
https://collider.com/if-the-shoe-fits-e ... y-romance/

Read an Exclusive Excerpt from Meant to Be: If The Shoe Fits, A Rom-Com Twist on the Cinderella Story
https://d23.com/read-an-exclusive-excer ... lla-story/

Read the First Chapter of By the Book: A Meant to Be Novel
https://d23.com/read-the-first-chapter- ... -be-novel/
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Re: Meant to Be (Book Series)

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Cover for the second entry "By the Book".

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Source: https://www.jasmineguillory.com/by-the-book
A tale as old as time—for a new generation…

Isabelle is completely lost. When she first began her career in publishing right out of college, she did not expect to be twenty-five, living at home, still an editorial assistant, and the only Black employee at her publishing house. Overworked and underpaid, constantly torn between speaking up or stifling herself, Izzy thinks there must be more to this publishing life. So when she overhears her boss complaining about a beastly high-profile author who has failed to deliver his long-awaited manuscript, Isabelle sees an opportunity to finally get the promotion she deserves.

All she has to do is go to the author’s Santa Barbara mansion and give him a quick pep talk or three. How hard could it be?

But Izzy quickly finds out she is in over her head. Beau Towers is not some celebrity lightweight writing a tell-all memoir. He is jaded and withdrawn and—it turns out—just as lost as Izzy. But despite his standoffishness, Izzy needs Beau to deliver, and with her encouragement, his story begins to spill onto the page. They soon discover they have more in common than either of them expected, and as their deadline nears, Izzy and Beau begin to realize there may be something there that wasn't there before.

Best-selling author Jasmine Guillory’s reimagining of a beloved fairy tale is a romantic triumph of love and acceptance and learning that sometimes to truly know a person you have to read between the lines.
Source: https://collider.com/jasmine-guillory-m ... -the-book/
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Re: Meant to Be (Book Series)

Post by supertalies »

By looking at the cover alone, it took me a sec to realize this was a BATB retelling haha. I like the diversity, both leads seem to be people of colour.

I am a bit disappointed they're doing the very overdone fairy tales first though. There are loads of modern Cinderella and BATB retellings. I hope they quickly get into other fairy tales (or original Disney stories) that haven't been adapted into a modern setting before. Like a modern Frozen perhaps.
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Re: Meant to Be (Book Series)

Post by Sotiris »

Cover for the third entry "Kiss the Girl".

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Source: https://zoraidacordova.com/books/kiss-t ... t-to-be-3/
Ariel del Mar is one of the most famous singers in the world. She and her sisters―together, known as the band Siren Seven―have been a pop culture phenomenon since they were kids. On stage, wearing her iconic red wig and sequined costumes, staring out at a sea of fans, is where she shines. Anyone would think she’s the girl who has everything.

But lately, she wants more. Siren Seven is wrapping up their farewell tour, and Ariel can’t wait to spend the summer just living a normal life―part of a world she’s only ever seen from the outside. But her father, the head of Atlantica Records, has other plans: begin her breakout solo career immediately, starting with a splashy announcement on a morning talk show.

The night before, Ariel and her sisters sneak out of their Manhattan penthouse for a night of incognito fun at a rock concert in Brooklyn. It’s there that Ariel crosses paths with Eric Reyes, dreamy lead singer of an up-and-coming band. Unaware of her true identity, Eric spontaneously invites her on the road for the summer. And for the first time in her life, Ariel disobeys her father―and goes with him.

Caught between the world she longs for and the one she’s left behind, can Ariel follow her dreams, fall in love, and, somehow, find her own voice?
Source: https://www.amazon.com/Kiss-Girl-Meant- ... 36805336X/
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Re: Meant to Be (Book Series)

Post by carolinakid »

Sorry, but I laughed at that Ursula sized Cinderella.
Woke culture again runs amok. I hope these plus sized princesses don’t start appearing at the parks!
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Re: Meant to Be (Book Series)

Post by singerguy04 »

carolinakid wrote: Tue Oct 18, 2022 8:41 am Sorry, but I laughed at that Ursula sized Cinderella.
Woke culture again runs amok. I hope these plus sized princesses don’t start appearing at the parks!
You ever hear the phrase that if you follow up a sorry with a but, means you were never really sorry?

Anyhow, I don't see why having an oversized Cinderella in a random book would be so threatening to you or anyone else. This also isn't the first time I've seen you scoff at the idea of a bigger princess. Seems more like a personal issue on your part.

Also, and pardon my rant here, but the whole concept behind "woke culture" seems so... off-brand dollar store clearance aisle phobia to me. Like, by definition isn't being "woke" a good thing? The alternative is being asleep, and thus being complacently ignorant to the world around you. Wouldn't anyone prefer to be awake and see the world for what it is? Granted, I'm aware that there are extremes and that is present on both sides of the conversation, but overall I feel like labeling progress or creative changes as "woke" seems lazy and coded way of saying something like "I don't want to see fat people in media, I don't think fat people should be represented, or I don't want to see my fairy tales depicted as fat people." Like, we can all see what you're saying, and it's gross.
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Re: Meant to Be (Book Series)

Post by Disney's Divinity »

Forgive me for bringing up religion, but it has been mentioned in several other threads the past two days, I just had this one random thought. To me, we're supposed to be awake and watching (Watchers) instead of asleep and becoming dulled to how increasingly cruel and evil the world has become / is becoming. That's why the whole "woke" smear from conservatives doesn't really bother me.

I don't have any interest in this series though, but I don't think I'm their target audience.
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Re: Meant to Be (Book Series)

Post by carolinakid »

Igualmente, divinity... that’s how I handle smears from liberals. I quote my favorite drag queen Jinkx Monsoon, and say “water off a duck’s back”!

I already voted absentee in the midterms as my boyfriend and I will be in Disneyland for my birthday. I’m curious to see the results.

Take care!
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Re: Meant to Be (Book Series)

Post by Disney's Divinity »

Whatever the results, the U.S. midterms aren't about plus-sized characters in media.
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Re: Meant to Be (Book Series)

Post by carolinakid »

Amen, brother! They’re about much more important things than plump princesses! 🐷

Inflation, crime and a border out of control to name 3!

Take care!
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Re: Meant to Be (Book Series)

Post by Disney's Divinity »

Well, I'm glad you agree it doesn't relate to the topic. I wouldn't get your hopes up that Disney is suddenly going to stop making characters outside the hourglass or impossible figures of the past based on something like one election in one country. :? If there's any causation at all, I'd argue the rise of far right extremism has spurred Disney on to depicting more diversity, not less if recent history is anything to go by. There have probably been more princesses of color in the past 7 years than the whole studio's history before that, for example. And the recent (revived) targeting of LGBT has put Disney more firmly in the pro-LGBT camp where they were only placating and dithering before that. We're finally getting LGBT characters whole sale now, including a main character in Strange World. That wouldn't have happened without open hatred being espoused making it a subject of concern.
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Ariana Grande ~ "we can't be friends (wait for your love)"
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Re: Meant to Be (Book Series)

Post by Sotiris »

Cover for the fourth entry "Tangled Up in You".

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Source: https://christinalaurenbooks.com/books/ ... up-in-you/
She has a dream. He has a plan. Together they’ll take a leap of faith.

Ren has never held an iPhone, googled the answer to a question, or followed a crush on social media. What she has done: Read a book or two, or three (okay, hundreds). Taught herself to paint. Built a working wind power system from scratch. But for all the books she’s read, Ren has never found one that’s taught a woman raised on a homestead and off the grid for most of her twenty-two years how to live in the real world. So when she finally achieves her lifelong dream of attending Corona College, it feels like her life is finally beginning.

Fitz has the rest of his life mapped out: Graduate from Corona at the top of his class, get his criminal record wiped clean, and pass himself off as the rich, handsome player everyone thinks he is. He’s a few short months from checking off step one of his plans when Ren Gylden, with her cascading blonde hair and encyclopedic brain, crashes into his life, and for the first time Fitz’s plan is in jeopardy.

But a simple assignment in their immunology seminar changes the course of both their lives, and suddenly they’re thrown out of the frying pan and into the fire on a road trip that will lead them in the most unexpected directions. Out on the open road, the world somehow shifts, and the unlikely pair realize that, maybe, the key to the dreams they've both been chasing have been sitting next to them the whole time.
Source: https://www.amazon.com/Tangled-Up-You-M ... 1368092837
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