P. A. Harper writes about sustainability in all its many forms, is the founder of the Brooklyn Writer’s Exchange, loves to read, drinks too much tea, and writes fiction.
Hire or stalk her online at PAHarper.com, Goodreads, on Facebook @AuthorPAHarper, Twitter @AuthorPAHarper, or Instagram @P.A.Harper
Free Fairy Tales to Read: Illustration by Virginia Frances Sterrett, image is public domain.
I’ve compiled a list of over a thousand “Free Fariy Tales to Read. Fairy tales have a powerful magic all their own. They can transport us to a land of make-believe and open us up to new experiences.
They can also teach us life lessons or turn an ordinary day into a precious memory to cherish for the rest of our lives. Reading a good story can also help us develop our attention spans, something many people are in short supply of these days.
Who is the is “Free Fariy Tales to Read” for?
Story Lovers
I’ve compiled this list for story lovers everywhere. A good fairy tale has the power to transport adults back to a time when our lives were more simple and full of innocent wonder.
Parents, Grandparents, and Children
Fairy tales are a powerful tool for parents. They spark the creative imagination, instill an early love of reading, and create precious memories between you and your child.
A word of caution to parents and grandparents, some of these tales are dark in nature and may not be suitable for younger children. So, you will want to screen them before you share them with them.
Storytellers and Writers
For writers looking to twist a fairytale into a new modern-day classic will find this list a wonderful timesaving resource. Please feel free to dive in and recreate the myths into a new story of your own twisting or fracture, as fantasy icon Jane Yolen calls it in her book: How to Fracture a Fairy Tale.
How to use this list of “Free Fariy Tales to Read”
Because this list is a resource, if you are looking for a particular story, it is helpful to use the search box on my site, it’s to the upper right side. And the command + find function on your keyboard to save time scrolling through the long list of titles. Note, some stories are listed in more than one book.
Please let me know if you find “Free Fairy Tales to Read” helpful! I love hearing from other storytellers and story readers alike! And if you twist a tale, feel free to share a link to your story in the comments. Also here’s a link to Fair Tales by Andrew Lang to read and try to twist into your own tale. Enjoy!
P. A. Harper writes about sustainability in all its many forms, is the founder of the Brooklyn Writer’s Exchange, loves to read, drinks too much tea, and writes fiction.
Hire or stalk her online at PAHarper.com, Goodreads, on Facebook @AuthorPAHarper, Twitter @AuthorPAHarper, or Instagram @P.A.Harper
Welcome to my list, where you can find free and discounted books in 2023. If you find yourself spending more money than you would like on reading material, this list is for you. I read for pleasure, education, and research for work, so having places I can find the books I need at a price I can afford is important. If I missed a good source, drop me a line, and I’ll add it.
Libraries
Your local library is one of the best resources for using and reading books for free. Whether you need books for reference or want a story to enjoy, your library should be one of the first places you look. Fun fact: libraries also pay royalties to writers, but it is a one-time fee and not paid each time the book is checked out. There are also digital libraries available online. Most local libraries have a digital version available where you can borrow and download digital copies to your computer or a digital reader.
Digital Libraries
Internet Archive
Internet Archive has over a million free books, movies, music, and more. If you’re looking for out-of-print books in different languages and formats, this non-profit digital library has you covered. The Internet Archive is also where you can find historical and academic books.
OverDrive
OverDirve is used by over 43,000 libraries and schools worldwide. If your library participates, you can check out ebooks, audiobooks, and magazines from its digital bookshelves. And if you’d rather read on your phone, be sure to download OverDrive’s mobile app, Libby.
World Public Library
World Public Library is the world’s biggest repository of free digital ebooks. Books can be read online or downloaded in a multitude of formats. Book genres range from classics to some of the hottest fiction of the millennia and include academic research articles. All you need is your library card!
Project Gutenberg
Project Gutenberg is a digital library of over 60,000 documents and books. It may be freely used in the United States because most are not protected by U.S. copyright law. (Note, they may not be copyright-free in other countries.)
International Children’s Digital Library
The International Children’s Digital Library is a free online library for children ages three to thirteen. The site offers its titles in over 59 languages. It’s also a good source of reading material for adults who are learning a new language.
Sister Libraries
Most avid readers know their local library is one of the best places to read books for free, but did you know some libraries also offer free cards to resident cardholders of ‘sister’ libraries in their area? Using sister libraries is a great way to gain access to more free books.
Pratt Library in Maryland
Anyone who lives or owns property in Maryland is eligible for a free Pratt Library card! In addition to checking out books and other materials, your Pratt Library account gives you access to a range of online resources and services. https://www.prattlibrary.org/library-cards/standard-library-card
New York Public Library
The New York Public Library will issue cards to any person who lives, works, attends school, or pays property taxes in New York State free of charge. Use of a New York Public Library card is non-transferrable, i.e., it can only be used by the person whose name appears on the card. https://www.nypl.org/help/library-card/terms-conditions
Other States
You can find out more about your state library and sister library programs by contacting your state library directly. https://www.lib-web.org/united-states/state-libraries/
And there are libraries that issue non-resident library cards to US citizens for a flat fee. I love that I can check out digital copies from most of these libraries online and don’t have to return them. Some even let you check out books through the mail!
Non-Resident Library Cards For US Residents
If your local library and its sister libraries have a limited selection of books available you can pay for a non-resident library card. Here is a list of libraries that issue non-resident library cards.
Florida
Orange County Library System $75/3 months, $100/6 months, or $125/year. Note: To stop spammers, they ask a question on the form about what county OCLS is in. The answer is “Orange” since OCLS stands for Orange County Library System.
Maryland
Non-Maryland residents can still enjoy access to books, audiobooks, DVDs, and other materials in the Pratt Library’s physical collection. Use the forms below to apply for an out-of-state Pratt Library Card. A $50 annual fee is required. To apply, email crc@prattlibrary.org, fax (866) 676-0061, or mail a completed Library Card Application
Non-Resident Library Cards For Residents Outside of the US
I’m thrilled I was able to find two library systems that allow people from outside the US the chance to borrow books.
Florida, Orange County Library System $75/3 months, $100/6 months, or $125/year Note: When applying, select the check box next to “Out of Country” to enter your address. They may ask a question on the form about what county OCLS is in to stop spammers. The answer is “Orange” since OCLS stands for Orange County Library System.
While libraries are the best places to find reference materials and many do offer digital copies, they don’t always have all the latest indie author titles. Below are some of the best places to find free and discounted books.
Amazon Kindle Store
Amazon’s Kindle Store has some of the best online selections of free and discounted books. It has two sections listing free kindle books: its Free Popular Classics page and its Top 100 Free Best Sellers. If you don’t own a Kindle, you can download the Kindle app for free. Note, Kindle Unlimited is a monthly subscription, so it’s not free, but you can try it out free for 30 days. I didn’t find it worth it, and I read from 4-6 books per month. Most books I read are not part of the Kindle Unlimited, but were available from my library.
Apple Book Store
Apple Books’ free section is a great option if you’re looking for free fiction, suspense books, and speculative fiction.
Baen Books
Baen Books is a wonderful hub for SFF readers and writers. Many writers list the first book in their series on Baen Books’ free ebook list, making it a great place to find a new favorite author.
Barnes & Noble Online
Barnes & Noble’s online store carries plenty of free and discounted books. It also has a “Staff Picks” list at the top of B&N’s Free eBooks page. This list includes children’s books and magazines. Note, some books can only be read on Barnes & Noble’s NOOK Reading App. It’s free to download.
BookBoon
BookBoon is a great resource for students site that provides free e-textbooks. Their free ‘Student Plan’ offers 1,000+ full-length textbooks.
BookBub
BookBub has a great selection of Free and Discounted Books. It is also an excellent promotional tool for authors and a quality source of free and discount books for readers. Authors list books for free to expose their work to new readers. You can access BookBub’s page here: Free Ebooks. Their free titles have links to download on retail sites like Amazon for free. BookBub’s category pages mix both 100% free and discount promotions.
BookRix
BookRix is a popular self-publishing platform and hosts thousands of book freebies. Most works in BookRix’s online library are original stories from brand-new authors. BookRix is more like Wattpad since ebooks can be of any length, and fanfiction is allowed.
Ebooks.com
Ebooks.com has a large collection of free books, mostly classics. Note, Ebooks.com requires you to install Adobe Digital Editions first (It’s a free program, but it takes up a good deal of storage space).
Free-Ebooks.net
Free-Ebooks.net has thousands of ebooks available to download. The site has many lesser-known indie authors.
Feedbooks
On Feedbooks, you will find ebooks to purchase, free public domain ebooks, and free original books. Feedbooks offers some books that mainstream retailers do not. Like PDF Books World, Feedbooks allows those who sign up for an account to download many free e-books.
Freebooksy
Freebooksy is a popular book promotion site for authors. It’s a hub, linking to free books on various retailers’ websites. What makes Freebooksy unique is that it only features free ebooks.
Get Free Ebooks
Get Free Ebooks isn’t an ebook hosting platform, but a website that links to other sources. However, this is the place to be if you’re seeking helpful literary lists divided by genre and subject. Check out their top compilations of ebooks for tons of interesting titles, or select a genre under the “Top Categories” list at the bottom of the page.
Google Play Bookstore
Google play carries both free and discounted books. You can find free books by searching for them on Google Play. They have lesser-known authors as well as a good selection of test prep and self-help books.
Kobo Bookstore
Kobo offers free and discounted books, some titles you won’t find anywhere else. They have a great selection of romance, thrillers, and a list of #ownvoices authors. The term #ownvoices refers to books about characters from underrepresented or marginalized groups in which the author shares the same identity.
Lit2Go is a free online archive of stories and poems in Mp3 (audiobook) format.
ManyBooks.net
All of the more than 29,000 plus ebooks on ManyBooks are free.
The Online Books Page
Speaking of academic resources, the University of Pennsylvania’s Online Books Page is a clean, accessible hub for over three million ebooks and digitized papers — some originally published more than two centuries ago. For the historically inclined, this site (which also has a pretty good search engine) is a veritable fountain of knowledge.
Open Culture
Open Culture is another good source for classic novels. Note Open Culture doesn’t host ebooks; they’re a hub promoting free online resources.
Open Library
Open Library is a division of the long-running Internet Archive. Any ebook on Open Library can be borrowed with a single click; however, the site has a narrower selection, and most recent releases aren’t available.
PAHarper.com
Readers can also find free short stories by me here on my site.
PDF Books World
PDF Books World has a vast collection of classic public domain books in PDF format.
Planet Ebook
If the refreshingly minimalist design of Planet Ebook doesn’t instantly convince you of its merits, its sizable catalog of public domain books certainly will. And because it’s based in Australia, Planet Ebook pulls from a wider public domain than in the US, so you may be able to find titles there that you couldn’t find elsewhere. To survey its full list of books, click here.
Radish
Radish is an app that offers serialized fiction from established bestselling authors and emerging new voices. Users can purchase “coin” to read the latest chapters at their time of publication or wait a week and read them for free. With so many amazing titles in every genre imaginable, you might find it hard to wait that week!
Reedsy Discovery
For those who like to properly digest their free ebooks and then share your thoughts with an audience, consider becoming a reviewer on Reedsy Discovery! You’ll receive a free ebook copy of every title you pick up for review, plus you’ll gain followers and can even get tipped for your work. If that’s not a great bargain, we don’t know what is.
Riveted
Riveted, a young adult imprint of Simon & Schuster, offers one full-length title each month that visitors can read for free on its website. In addition, several multi-chapter excerpts are available for its new releases. You might find yourself spending hours perusing these engaging titles, ranging from laugh-out-loud romantic comedies to action-packed dystopian sagas. This is a great place to read free books online for kids.
Smashwords
Many authors use Smashwords as an aggregator to distribute their ebooks; it hosts 86,000+ books available for free. You can browse them all here and select a category to make your search easier.
Standard Ebooks
Standard Ebooks is another site that’s easy on the eyes, mainly for the beautiful book covers that accompany each title in its library — perfectly in line with the project’s mission to provide free ebooks that “meet or exceed the quality of commercially produced ebooks.” Indeed, here are 500+ books that aren’t just “standard,” but exceptionally formatted. Readers in constant search of nice-looking classics, make sure to bookmark this site.
Swoon Reads
Swoon Reads is devoted to discovering new writing talent. Readers can create a free account and access hundreds of free, unpublished books. You vote for your favorites, and highly rated authors have a chance at a book deal from Macmillan Publishers!
Tor
Tor offers free original science fiction, reprints, and comics on its website. New material is added weekly. Their blog brings fans the latest science fiction and fantasy genre news.
Wattpad
Wattpad is an inviting community of 65 million users who love all things books! Amateur and professional writers across the world publish their short stories and full-length novels on the platform. There’s also a community feature where you can interact with your favorite authors, enter writing contests, and more.
For Indie Writers
Many places listed here are also good places for indie authors to offer a few of their book titles for free to open their work up to new readers.
P. A. Harper writes about sustainability in all its many forms, is the founder of the Brooklyn Writer’s Exchange, loves to read, drinks too much tea, and writes fiction.
Hire or stalk her online at PAHarper.com, Goodreads, on Facebook @AuthorPAHarper, Twitter @AuthorPAHarper, or Instagram @P.A.Harper
I wrote Spring In an NYC Tourist Neighborhood last Spring. I live in one of the most popular tourist areas in Brooklyn. Due to a lack of city planning and greed, the area has quite a few more issues than other neighborhoods. One of my favorite ways to deal with stress is humor. I hope you enjoy my poem.
Spring In an NYC Tourist Neighborhood
Snow melts from trash heaps, Seven AM truck Alarm Beeps, Tourists erupt from the trains.
P. A. Harper writes about sustainability in all its many forms, is the founder of the Brooklyn Writer’s Exchange, loves to read, drinks too much tea, and writes fiction.
Hire or stalk her online at PAHarper.com, Goodreads, on Facebook @AuthorPAHarper, Twitter @AuthorPAHarper, or Instagram @P.A.Harper
If you have a fantastic idea for a book or poem but don’t have the time or resources to work on it, this fellowship might be for you. The National Endowment for the Arts Literature Fellowship offers $25,000 to enable individuals to work on their writing, travel, or research. You must include seven to 10 pages of work history for consideration.
The Provincetown Fine Arts Center Fellowship offers a small monthly stipend of $750 and seven (7) months of training in the artistic disciplines in Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Housing is also provided to fellows. Eligibility: you must live in Provincetown, Massachusetts, during the fellowship program. There is no application fee.
The Bard Fiction Prize exists to inspire and assist fledgling fiction writers, age 39 and younger, to strive for their artistic goals and offer a vibrant, creative atmosphere in an academic setting. Each year one fellowship award goes to a promising, emerging American writer. In addition to a $30,000 stipend, the winning Fellow receives an appointment as writer in residence at Bard College for one semester, without the expectation that he or she teaches traditional courses. Fellows must give at least one public lecture during their fellowship. Candidates must be US citizens with a published book or novel.
The Emerging Writer Fellowships are designed to provide 12 months of uninterrupted time and studio space to write and mentorship with feedback from a nationally established author in their respective genre. Fellows may attend one community creative writing workshop per semester and may attend one Miami Writers Institute workshop in the genre of their manuscript in progress. Applicants must not have published in any genre a book-length work, have a book under contract, or be negotiating a contract either in the United States or abroad by the time the fellowship begins. Each fellow receives a stipend of $41,000
The Hodder Fellowship is an award for writers and non-literary artists of exceptional promise to pursue independent projects at Princeton University during the academic year. Potential Hodder Fellows are writers, composers, choreographers, visual artists, performance artists, or other kinds of artists or humanists who have “much more than ordinary intellectual and literary gifts”; the selection process leans more towards “promise than for performance.” Given the strength of the applicant pool, most successful Fellows have published a first book or have similar achievements in their own field. Provides a stipend of $75K. Open to all citizenships.
The MacDowell Colony is the nation’s leading artist colony located in Peterborough, New Hampshire. Each year about 300 Fellowships, or residencies, are awarded to artists in seven disciplines: architecture, film/video arts, interdisciplinary arts, literature, music composition, theatre, and visual arts. A Fellowship consists of exclusive use of a private studio, accommodations, and three prepared meals a day for two weeks to two months. MacDowell encourages applications from emerging and established artists representing the widest possible range of perspectives and demographics. Enrolled students are ineligible.
The Wallace Stegner Fellowship at Stanford University provides 10 two-year professional fellowships annually: 5 fellowships in fiction writing and 5 fellowships in poetry writing. Fellows meet weekly in a 3 hour class with teachers, but do not need to meet any curricular demands except for attending workshops. The Fellowship does not offer a degree. Candidates must demonstrate the quality of their creative work, their willingness to develop their skills, and their capacity to expand their expertise. Fellowships receive a stipend of $26,000 annually and Stanford University pays educational costs and medical health insurance.
PEN America’s Writing for Justice Fellowship will commission six writers—emerging or established—to create written works of lasting merit that illuminate critical issues related to mass incarceration and catalyze public debate. Proposals may include—but are not limited to—fictional stories; works of literary or long-form journalism; theatrical, television or film scripts; memoirs; poetry collections; or multimedia projects. Fellows will receive mentoring, an honorarium of $10,000 and may request up to $5,000 in additional funding for travel and research. Writers 21 and up can apply.
P. A. Harper writes about sustainability in all its many forms, is the founder of the Brooklyn Writer’s Exchange, loves to read, drinks too much tea, and writes fiction.
Hire or stalk her online at PAHarper.com, Goodreads, on Facebook @AuthorPAHarper, Twitter @AuthorPAHarper, or Instagram @P.A.Harper
Read The Sandwich Murderer micro fiction by P. A. Harper, now available as a free read on my blog. Free to enjoy and share. Photo by Erik Forsberg, CC BY-SA 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Karl looks down wide-eyed and shakes his head, staring at his filthy prone body in disbelief. How did my sandwich explode? It smelled so delicious. I didn’t even get to take a bite!And why is there a crow here?
“Shoo!” He raises his hands and waves them at the crow, but the bird only hops closer towards him, pecking at tidbits of his once beautiful sandwich. I wish I had a cage to trap it in. Karl hears laughter and looks up to see the other guests. They are all circled around Patrick, their boss, who is thanking everyone for coming to the annual company picnic. No one seems to notice Karl isn’t there. I did choose to sit behind the big oak.
Karl pretends not to notice his body as he looks back down at the remains of his sandwich and tries to pick up some remains of his beloved sandwich. I can put it back together. The problem is the bits keep slipping right through his fingers. What the heck! He shakes his head.
Karl’s last memory is the mustard container his co-worker Jack left on the picnic table just before he was about to enjoy his quadruple-layer sandwich. Jack did something to my sandwich. I know he was mad about me getting the promotion, but it’s not my fault he screwed up the Funkel account.
Dollops of mustard, carrot sticks, pickles, and other sandwich parts spread out in a circular pattern around his head like a halo or ripples in a pond. For a moment, the idea of a sandwich angle pops into Karl’s head.But he pushes the thought away. I need to focus if I want to fix my sandwich. He tries every trick he can think of to pick up one piece of his sandwich. Nothing’s working. And he slumps down onto the ground beside his body in defeat. A single tear escapes and drips down his cheek. I’m dead. My sandwich is dead. Another tear trickles out, but then he feels something else. It’s anger. No, I won’t let the creep get away with this.
Karl looks up and sees Jack flirting with Rene as his anger grows into a rage; he glides over and slaps him in the back of the head just as Patrick walks behind him. The sandwich murderer turns and hits Patrick, thinking he was the one who slapped him.
Karl dances with glee as he scoops up a piece of honey ham from his dead sandwich and sniffs it. It smells of honeycomb and grassy pastures, wonderful! He feels the corners of his mouth push up into a wide grin and munches while watching Jack beat back Patrick with a badminton racket.
“Help! Someone call the police!”
It won’t bring my sandwich back, but haunting Jack is a good start to my happy ever-after life.
Thank you for reading The Sandwich Murderer: Micro Fiction by P. A. Harper! You can find more of my short stories here: https://paharper.com/short-stories/.
P. A. Harper writes about sustainability in all its many forms, is the founder of the Brooklyn Writer’s Exchange, loves to read, drinks too much tea, and writes fiction.
Hire or stalk her online at PAHarper.com, Goodreads, on Facebook @AuthorPAHarper, Twitter @AuthorPAHarper, or Instagram @P.A.Harper
Wether you’re a writer, an artists, a businesses, or other grant seeker, find out how to keep track of your submissions here.
Jamie Todd Rubin’s Free Story Submission Tracker Spreadsheet
I love this free submission’s tracker, and not because it’s free, but because you can adapt it to your needs no matter what your submitting and need to keep track of because it is customizable. I use it for tracking fellowship, grant, publishing submissions. It’s my top choice.
Query Tracker, is a free online tool dedicated to helping writers find literary agents. If you’re a writer, this is a great tool for the shared collective knowledge.
Access to the searchable database of agents and publishers
The ability to track queries
Basic Search Filters
The benefit from the collective knowledge of thousands of other writers, enduring the query process just like you.
The premium is $25 per year, and version includes all the benefits of the free version plus:
Advanced Search Filters
Filter Your Query List based on the Status of the Query
Number of folders available
Number of projects available
Assign priority values to queries
Add private agents and publishers to the database
Access to the Data Explorer
Access to the Agent Query Timeline
Access to the Member Timeline
Access to the Agent Reply Data
Access to the Comment Feed
Access to Premium Reports
Archive old queries to keep your query list clean and organized
Export Query Lists
Print Query Lists
Duotrope
Duotrope is another submissions tracker, it doesn’t have a free version, but do offer a free trial period. However, you can also use it find publishers of visual art, including photography, and poetry. The cost of an annual subscription is $50.00 for your. https://duotrope.com
They also run a contest of sponsorship, consisting of two-year Duotrope Gift Certificates (a USD $100 value) for the First Place winners in fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and visual art categories (excluding translations and scripts/plays). They promote the contest while it is running in both the weekly (members-only) and monthly (non-member) versions of their e-mail newsletter, which currently have over 54,000 subscribers combined. https://duotrope.com/sponsorship/
P. A. Harper writes about sustainability in all its many forms, is the founder of the Brooklyn Writer’s Exchange, loves to read, drinks too much tea, and writes fiction.
Hire or stalk her online at PAHarper.com, Goodreads, on Facebook @AuthorPAHarper, Twitter @AuthorPAHarper, or Instagram @P.A.Harper
