Good Monday Morning, Everyone!
I know it’s Memorial Day and many of you are busy with family celebrations, parades, and honoring those who have done so much for all of us.
But in case you also have the day off and a little free time. . .
. . .let’s have some Mix ‘n’ Match fun because it’s time for Week #4!
Mix ‘n’ Match Mini is a 7 week writing challenge for anyone who needs a little boost, a little inspiration, or a little encouragement to get writing. . . or maybe just a little fun!
You get to write your own story, enjoy and be entertained by everyone else’s stories, and get yourself in the running for some awesome prizes (please see the end of the blog post for a list of all the prize goodies which continues to grow!)
To be eligible for the prize drawing you must enter all 7 weeks.
For a full description of the challenge, to read the Week #1 entries, or to add your Week #1 entry, please go HERE (Week #1)
To read the Week #2 entries or add your Week #2 entry, please go HERE (Week #2)
To read the Week #3 entries or add your Week #3 entry, please go HERE (Week #3)
Mix ‘n’ Match Mini Writing Prompt #4 for Week of May 31:
So far we’ve played with character needs/goals, writing a cumulative story, and a picture prompt with random words and a secret! This week we’re going to have some musical fun with themes! 😊
Choose a song from Column A, a theme from Column B, and an important item from Column C (optional.) Write a 100 word story for kids where your version of the song tells a story that shows your chosen theme (including your important item if you wish!) You may use the original song opening if you like, but you are not required to (just make it obvious in your writing and/or identify which song you’re using along with your title and word count), and if rhyming isn’t your thing you can write in prose as long as it’s still clear which song you’re working with. You may add or subtract characters (e.g. Bob and Joe rowed their boat gently down the stream), change the destination (e.g. Row, row, row your boat up the mountainside), change the type of action (e.g. Row, row, row your boat wildly down the stream) etc… Anything you like! Have fun with it! (For examples in kidlit, see Iza Trapani’s extended nursery rhyme songs.)
| Column A – Song | Column B – Theme | Column C – Important Item (optional) |
| Row, Row, Row Your Boat | It’s important to try new things | Necklace |
| The Itsy Bitsy (Eensie Weensie) Spider | Even when you’re bad, you’re still loved | Teddy bear |
| Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star | It’s important to stay true to yourself | Blackberries |
| Where, Oh Where Has My Little Dog Gone? | Just because it looks good doesn’t mean it is | Pink Blankie |
| The Bear Went Over The Mountain | If you work together you can solve a problem | Story book |
| Here We Go Round The Mulberry Bush | You don’t have to be big to stand up for yourself | Map |
| It’s Raining, It’s Pouring | Friends should always stick together | Tractor |
| Jack And Jill | Believe in yourself and you can achieve your dreams | Moon |
| Rock-A-Bye Baby | If you don’t succeed the first time, try again | Daisy |
Post your story in the comment section below! (If for some reason you have trouble posting, you may use the contact form to email your entry to me and I’ll post it for you.)
- Stories can rhyme or not – totally up to you!
- You can go under or over 100 words if you want to – also totally up to you! – 100 is a guideline
- If you’re deeply inspired by a theme that isn’t included you’re welcome to use it, just please say what it is at the top of your entry – the purpose here is inspiration and to get you writing!
- For simplicity’s sake (and to aid skimming readers who might be interested in a particular thing) please say which song, theme (and important item if you choose to use one) you’re using at the top of your entry along with your name, word count, and title if you have one.
I am SO looking forward to seeing what you guys come up with! You continue to knock my socks off with your creativity every week!!!
Now come join the fun! Get some writing done! Encourage your kids (or students) to give it a try! Or just have a good time together reading what other folks have written!
Ready, set, WRITE! 😊
(And remember, for full details on the 7 week challenge you can check HERE)
Check out the Week #4 stories!
It’s Raining! It’s Pouring! – Leslie Degnan
Dreams Inside! – Robin Currie
Jack And Jill’s New Adventure – Jen Subra
Untitled – Lauri Meyers
Charlie’s Search – Rose Cappelli
Rock A Bye Daisy – Laura Bower
Arachnid At Your Service – Jill Lambert
The Itsy Bitsy Spider And The Moon – Erika Romero
About Our Friends Who Tried To Row A Boat (Perhaps Under A Full Moon?) – Erin Cleary
Untitled – Lauren Scott
Believe In All You Imagine – Sally Yorke-Viney
The Itsy Bitsy Puppy – Marty Findley
All That Glitters Is Not Gold – Elizabeth Meyer zu Heringdorf
Spunky Little Teddy – Joyce Uglow
Flap Flap Flap Those Wings – Marty Bellis
Dress Dress Dress For Rain – Amy Leskowski
Mark And Grace – Colleen Murphy
I Love Shopping With My Mom – Sara Kruger
Oh Where, Oh Where Has My Pet Spider Gone – Aly Kenna
Where, Oh Where Has My Story Book Gone – Ashley Sierra
Ninja, Ninja, Little Sneak – Bevin Rolfs Spencer
Jack And Jill Revisit Their Hill – Ashley B. Pedigo
Jo And Flo – Christine Alemshah
Little Lilly’s Blunder – Elenore Byrne
Ride, Ride, Ride My Bike – Sue Lancaster
Friends For Life – Deb Sullivan
Fireflies – Lyn Jekowsky
The Rescue – Marta Cutler
Bear’s Fresh Start – Allison Strick
Rock A Bye Zombie – Susan Summers
Rainy Day Problem…Solvers – Susan Schipper
To Grandmother’s House We Go – Jeannette Suhr
It’s Raining, It’s Pouring – Dianne Irving
Tinkle, Tinkle, Potty Stress! – Michelle S. Kennedy
Where, Oh Where Has My Little Dog Gone? – Isabel Cruz Rodriguez
Use Your Map – Padgy Soltis
The Daisy – Barbara Renner
Oopsy Daisy! – Marta Cutler
Yummy, Yummy, Little Pie – Nicole Loos Miller
The Bat Flew Over The Pumpkins – Sarah Meade
Read A Book – Dawn Young
Sun And Moon – Dawn Young
The Itsy Bitsy Scratchy Spider – Bru Benson
Wait For Me – Candace Kubinec
Untitled – Sarah Marhevsky
It’s Raining, It’s Pouring – Sarah Hawklyn
Don’t Row The Boat Please – Linda Schueler
How Much Is That Bicycle In The Window – Mia Geiger
The Itsy Bitsy Tadpoles– Hannah Roy LaGrone
Rock Star Baby Brother – Katie Schwartz
Albert Went Over The Mountain – Deb Buschman
The Itsy Bitsy Spider Is Bored – Brenna Jeanneret
The Just Right Story Book – JC Kelly
PRIZES & PRIZES OF ALL SHAPES AND SIZES!
When it comes time for prizes, names of all those who complete the challenge will be drawn randomly and matched with prizes drawn randomly until we run out! 😊
Please join me in thanking these very generous authors and other writing professionals for contributing their books and writing expertise as prizes by visiting their websites and blogs, considering their books and services for gift purchases, rating and/or reviewing their books on GoodReads, Amazone, B&N, or anywhere else if you like them, suggesting them for school visits, and supporting them in any other way you can dream up! 😊
⭐️ Picture Book Critique from Penny Parker Klostermann, the lovely and talented author of THERE WAS AN OLD DRAGON WHO SWALLOWED A KNIGHT (Random House 2015) and A COOKED-UP FAIRY TALE (Random House 2017)
⭐️ 30 Minute Q&A with Penny Klostermann
⭐️ Picture Book MS Critique OR Query Letter Critique (Winner’s Choice) from Jennifer Buchet, debut author of LITTLE MEDUSA’S HAIR DO-LEMMA (Clear Fork/Spork May 11, 2021)
⭐️ Picture Book MS Critique from Jen Raudenbush, agented writer of picture books, middle grade, and poetry. (Represented by Natascha Morris of The Tobias Literary Agency)
⭐️ 30 minute Zoom chat about anything industry related (manuscript, query letter, best practices for querying) with Becky Scharnhorst, amazing author of MY SCHOOL STINKS (Philomel Books, July 6, 2021)
⭐️Picture Book Manuscript Critique with Audio Recording by author and poet Sarah Meade Sarah will do a written critique of your manuscript and include an audio recording of her first read-through of the manuscript. The audio recording is to help the author hear how the story flows and/or where a new reader may stumble when reading aloud.
⭐️ Webinar: How To Write Powerful First Pages Like A Pro by author and editor Alayne Kay Christian
⭐️ A copy of Mary Kole’s Writing Irresistible Kidlit: The Ultimate Guide to Crafting Fiction for Young Adult and Middle Grade Writers, donated by Nicole Loos Miller
⭐️ A personalized signed copy of SASSAFRAS AND HER TEENY TINY TAIL (MacLaren-Cochrane Publishing 2021) by Candice Marley Conner
⭐️ Making Picture Book Magic Self Study Class (any month)
⭐️A copy of A FLOOD OF KINDNESS by Ellen Leventhal
⭐️A copy of MAKING THEIR VOICES HEARD: The Inspiring Friendship of Ella Fitzgerald and Marilyn Monroe by Vivian Kirkfield
⭐️A copy of THERE WAS AN OLD DRAGON WHO SWALLOWED A KNIGHT by Penny Parker Klostermann
⭐️A copy of SLOTH AND SQUIRREL IN A PICKLE by Cathy Ballou Mealey
⭐️A copy of BINDU’S BINDIS by Supriya Kelkar
⭐️ Magnetic Poetry – Little Box of Happiness
Susanna Leonard Hill 
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