For my novel; Which way should I spell 'fairy'?

Question

Fairy

Faery

Faerie

other (please specify)

Answer 1

Definitely Faerie. It just looks more like what a mythical creatures name should be.  

Answer 2

I always spell it "faerie." Mainly 'cause not many people use it. Plus, it looks prettier than "fairy," I think.

Answer 3

I like Fairy best, even though it's not particularly sci-fi/adventur-ish as the other two... I do like Faerie though, because there's something very pretty about it :)

You could always make up a creature in place of a fairy: just add a detailed description, i.e. "A delicate winged creature with the daintiest of features fluttered by, the long threads of its silvery mane shimmering gracefully as it flew through the shadows of the towering canopies above." (Just a crappy example, don't mind it!)

And then you could go on to say something like: "The gracious Pulcherie swooped down to greet the forest newcomers, the folds of its tulle and organza gown flapping in the slight breeze and glittering like the scales of a rainbow fish."

You see, 'Pulcher' is Latin for beautiful, and I think can sometimes be used in place of 'fairy' (je ne sais pas!), but I think it has a nice, gentle ring to it when converted to Pulcherie. You can quite literally make anything up --- the French word for fairy is 'Fee' with an acute accent on the first 'e', Welsh is something like 'hun o'r tylwyth teg', Italian is anything from 'fatato' to 'fatata, delicato, delicata' and so on and so forth.

The possibilities are endless! Anyway, it sounds much more creative when you've created it by yourself! I hope that helps!

Answer 4

Depends on your audience - I believe in the science fiction/fantasy genre, the most common spelling is faerie.

I've never liked that spelling personally.  It just feels/sounds almost conceited to me, you know?  Just my opinion - if sci fi/fantasy is the genre, best to go with what is generally accepted.

Answer 5

You haven't specified whether your novel concerns fairies as beings, or Faerie, the unseen kingdom.

Fairies (singular: fairy) tend to be thought of as supernatural, or supra-natural beings. They can be human-sized and quite powerful (Morgan le Fay is an example), or the more well-known diminutive winged sprites from children's storybooks.

Faerie is rarely used as a name for beings; it's the name given to the realm in which fairies, elves, &etc exist, one presumably close to or crossing over into our own world. It's a beautiful but dangerous place, with other laws and customs than our own.

Answer 6

I just got lazy and used Fae in my stories.  But, if it needs two syllables, then I prefer to use Faerie since yeah, it doesn't seem to be used too much.  And to me, spelling it Faerie seems more mystical.  "Fairy" has just become too childish in my eye after the media's recurring interpretation of it.

Answer 7

If it involves ghosts and goblins or generally mythical creatures, then I would side towards Faerie.  It seems more historical and mythic.

Answer 8

I usually use Faerie, because most people don't use it.

-Livvy

Answer 9

Faerie; it sounds classical and very fantastic.