For Christmas this year, Andrew gave me Once Upon a Time: The Storytelling Card Game. It’s exactly as described: a game, involving cards, where you tell stories. It’s simple and easy to learn, and each game only takes about half an hour.

Once Upon a Time is based in the western fairy tale tradition, but there are several expansions that broaden the storytelling world, including “animal tales,” “knightly tales,” and “seafaring tales.” In the basic version, cards include classic fairy tale elements. These are divided into categories:

• Characters (a witch, a beggar, etc.)
• Items (a crown, a book)
• Places (a dark forest, a castle)
• Aspects (lucky, poisonous)
• Events (someone gets hurt, two people fall in love)

Each player starts with a hand of these cards, plus a single ending card. The ending card goes something along these lines: “And thus the prince was cured of his madness” or “The princess was finally restored to her true form.” The goal is to build a story, using your other cards, toward this ending. When you’ve played all your cards and you end the story with your ending card (and it makes sense), you win.

At the same time, other players are trying to redirect the story toward their own ending card. They can interrupt you with special “interrupt” cards, or by playing a card that fits into the story you’re telling. For instance, if you play an “ogre” character card by saying “The ogre lived deep in an enchanted swamp,” and your opponent has a “swamp” place card, he can interrupt and take over the story. You can also lose your turn if you fail to make your story logical and coherent.

This game is perfect for readers, writers, and fairy tale enthusiasts. I think it would also appeal to children, because it’s all about creativity and imagination. It could even be—gasp—educational. It’s also just plain fun. Andrew and I have a great time coming up with wacky stories, incorporating inside jokes, and making fun of each other’s plot holes.

And if you’re a writer, it’s a great way to stir up your creative juices. The artwork is gorgeous and evocative, and while the stories you produce in the game probably won’t be of publishable caliber, they will be different. They’ll spark fresh ideas, make you look at things from a new angle. I’m working on a short story inspired by a magical tree from our most recent game—so, there you go.

If you’re looking for something to do at your next writing retreat, or just a fun activity for your family, I’d recommend trying Once Upon a Time.