Happily Ever After: Without the Prince?

ATLANTA, —This Christmas season thousands of single belles will hang their silk stockings and say their prayers before a quick night’s sleep-then it’s off to work they go. This ever growing group of Carols, Noels, and Merrys will shop, party and cook as they celebrate the holidays with families and friends. Two successful single gals will ring in the New Year with a resolution; offering parents an updated version of the traditional fairy tale. No longer a “Damsel in Distress,” this princess travels the world, helps others, and finds “happily ever after” even before she finds her Prince!

With wisdom gleaned from their careers as single, globe-trotting flight attendants, first-time authors Susan Johnston and Kimberly Webb have crafted a modern-day book that celebrates singleness. A contemporary fairy tale for all ages, Princess Bubble was written to reduce the overwhelming sense of failure, self-doubt, and despair that some single women face.

“Knowing how low self-esteem and depression plague many single females, we wanted to spread the message that ‘happily ever after’ can occur even before Prince Charming arrives… or even if he never does,” said Webb.

“We’re definitely not anti-Prince,” said Johnston (whose college nickname was “Bubbles”). “We’re not anti-family or anti-marriage, if anything we’re anti-‘Damsel in Distress.’ Our message—the single life can also be a fairy tale. The End!”

Princess Bubble stars a princess who is confused by the traditional fairy tale messages that say she must find her “prince” before she can live “happily ever after.” Princess Bubble dons her “thinking crown” to research traditional fairy tales, interviews married girlfriends, and even takes counsel from her mother, who advises her to sign up at FindYourPrince.com. With a little help from her fairy godmother (this is still a fairy tale after all), Ms. Bubble discovers that “living happily ever after” is not about finding a prince. “True happiness,” the book reveals, “is found by loving God, being kind to others, and being comfortable with who you are already!”

“We’ve had countless women all over the nation tell us they wish there had been a book like this when they were young,” said Johnston. “This is a story women can truly believe in and feel comfortable sharing with their children.”

ABOUT PRINCESS BUBBLE and BUBBLE GUM PRESS: Self-published in 2006, Princess Bubble is now available through most online retailers and in over 70 retail outlets. The Princess Bubble message, cleverly articulated by former Delta flight attendants Susan Johnston and Kimberly Webb, seeks to find an alternate ending to “happily ever after” and change the notion that life begins and ends with finding your Prince Charming. Looking to bolster the poor self-esteem of female youth and the stigma that many single adult women carry, Johnston and Webb believe “this is a book for women of all ages, a story they can believe in and share with their children.” In upcoming adventures, Princess Bubble will travel to distant lands where the knowledge of every new culture will enrich her flourishing life.