Category: Would You Read It

Straight From The Editor! #2 And Then Some

25 Comments

I hope you’re all revved up and rarin’ to go this morning, because we’re going to have all kinds of fun.  If you’re not revved up yet, you will be after this! 🙂

First:  today my blog is being critiqued by the awesome and wonderful Laura Barnes over at Laura B Writer.  She’s running a series of blog critiques to help us all learn how to do things better, and I’m the second to go.  Her blog, in general, is a font of valuable information about marketing and how we, as writers, can make the most of our presence on the web.  Please check out her blog if you haven’t – you’ll be glad you did!

Second:  my friend, Catherine Johnson over at Catherine Johnson, Writer, was kind enough to send me her copy of The Preacher’s Bride by Jody Hedlund because she knew I wanted to read it.  (It’s historical romance.)  I thought it would be fun to make it into a Book’s Journey.  Catherine made a page that goes in the front and put her name, where she’s from, and the date she read the book, and then she sent it to me.  Now I have done the same and would like to send it on.  Eventually, we’ll send it back to Jody and she’ll have a copy of her book that’s gone (hopefully!) all over the world!  So – first come, first served!  Whoever is first to say in the comments that they’d like to read The Preacher’s Bride will get it.  The only requirement is that you play along with the game and when you’re done, pass it on to someone else 🙂

In addition, since I thought up this idea, I thought it would be fun to do with one of my own books, so first I’ll take a vote as to which book to send (poll open for a week, from now until midnight October 24th) and then I will circulate one of my books for the same fun!  Only I want mine signed directly in the book so I can eventually bring it on school visits and show the kids where it has been!  So, please vote below for which book I should send on a journey 🙂


<a href=”http://polldaddy.com/poll/5590405/”>Pick A Book For A Book’s Journey!</a>
Third:  this week’s theme for Fun Friday Foto Fextravaganza (which I hope you are REALLY impressed that I’m remembering to post today instead of forgetting until Wednesday :)) is PUMPKINS/JACK O’LANTERNS!

Fourth:  I hope you’re all getting excited for the Choose Your Own Adventure Bloghop next Monday, October 24th!!!

Fifth:  (I told you there was all kinds of stuff going on today!)  I spent the weekend at the New York State Sheep and Wool Festival.  Really, if you’ve never been to such a thing, you owe it to yourself to go.  Sheep, llamas, alpacas, gorgeous wool, knitting and crochet meetings and books and patterns and products – WOW.  It’s a whole world I knew nothing about and it makes for a lot of fun!

Anyway, there I was, signing copies of Can’t Sleep Without Sheep, when a woman came up to me and asked me to sign one for her daughter.  “How old is she?” I asked, pulling a book from the pile and uncapping my pen.  “Well,” said the woman, “she was just born a couple days ago.  She was premature, so she’s in the NICU, but she’s going to be fine.”  But here’s the kicker.  The woman went on to say, “This will be her very first book.”

Can you believe it?  I was so honored!  To think something I wrote was going to be the very first book in this child’s library; that one of these days, that mother will sit with her little daughter and read Can’t Sleep Without Sheep to her.  How special is that?!  I am tucking this one away for those moments when I’m afraid my career is over and I’ll never sell another story (well, that would be right about now!) so I can pull it out and look at it and remember something good.

And finally, the moment you’ve been waiting for! STRAIGHT FROM THE EDITOR!

To remind you, our September winner was Aimee.  Her pitch was as follows:

TITLE: Listen to Me
GENRE: YA Contemporary with a dash of Magical Realism (target age 13-17, but I hope for crossover appeal)
PITCH: Stacy can talk to herself-in-twelve-years - but will the impossible relationship with Older Me help her navigate the high school rites of bullying and unrequited love, or just fuel her destructive self-loathing?

Here are Erin’s comments:

Here are my thoughts about your pitch: It is a little confusing. “Talking to herself-in-twelve-years” doesn’t quite get across the idea that she’s talking to herself in the future. I had to read it a few times to get that. You might want to just say her future self. Also, is the relationship impossible because nobody can talk to themselves in the future or because she doesn’t get along with herself? I don’t think you want to use that word impossible. Perhaps just go with relationship. Keeps it simple and to the point.  Also, “fueling her destructive self-loathing” leads to more questions and could possibly turn an editor off. It might be better to give the resolution so that the editor might be intrigued as to how it happens. See what I’ve done. Do you think it gets the main point of the story across? If not, then you need to rework it so that it does. Perhaps be more specific than bullying or unrequited love.
Stacy can talk to her 26 year-old future self. But will her relationship with Older Stacy help her successfully navigate the high school rites of bullying and unrequited love, or just make things worse?
Lastly, fyi, there is a young adult novel coming out in November by Jay Asher and Printz Honor-winning author Carolyn Mackler — THE FUTURE OF US, in which two best friends log onto AOL in 1996 and discover a window to their future Facebook selves. Razorbill is publishing it. It sounds very similar to yours and I just wanted you to know it was out there.

I hope you all find Erin’s comments as interesting and insightful as I do.  Not only does she bring her experience as a career editor, but she knows what else is out there.

So, are you feeling revved up and rarin’ to go for your week now?

What?

You’re in donut withdrawal?

OK.  But just one!  These are pumpkin, BTW, in keeping with this week’s FFFF theme 🙂

courtesy google images 


					

		
		
			





			
				



	
	

					
Would You Read It Wednesday – The 12th Pitch… Plus!
			


	


				

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Has anyone seen the original Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (you know, the good one with Gene Wilder?)


There’s a scene where Charlie’s teacher says, “I’ve just decided to switch our Friday schedule to Monday, which means that the test we take each Friday on what we learned during the week will now take place on Monday before we’ve learned it.  But since today is Tuesday, it doesn’t matter in the slightest.  Pencils ready!”


That’s what I feel like this week 🙂  Columbus Day threw a monkey wrench in my “schedule” (can’t really say that with a straight face because, really, I don’t have much of a schedule :))  So today we’ll have Would You Read It as planned, and then I’ll slide Straight From The Editor in with the Fun Foto Fextravaganza on Friday.  Or maybe just save it for next Monday.  Who can say?  The test will be last Tuesday 🙂


Oh, and BTW, the theme for this week’s Fun Foto will be MIGRATION.  So start rooting around for those 0-12 year-old-friendly photos that shout migration to you!


Okay.  So back to our regularly “scheduled” programming…


Oh, but first, remember that surprise I promised?
Do you?
Are you still interested?
Actually, the surprise is likely a lot more fun for me than it is for you, but I have to share it anyway!


You know my story Not Yet, Rose?  It’s about a little girl who is waiting for a new sibling and isn’t sure how she feels about it.  Well, ROSE has been picked up by Frecklebox.com, a website that creates all kinds of awesome personalized gifts for kids.  The result?  As of right this very minute you can order Not Yet, Rose in either hardcover or paperback, for the girl of your choice, as in Not Yet, Olivia, Not Yet, Alexandra, or Not Yet, Brunhilda!  How fun is that?


Check it out:




Even if you don’t want to order one, you can play around with changing the name and see how it looks, which is totally fun 🙂


But should you ever have a little girl in your life who is about to become (or has just become) a big sister, now you can make a very special gift just for her.  Plus, I know the author, so I know how you can also get your book personally signed 🙂  The book is exactly the same as the original, with all of Nicole’s beautiful artwork.  They just change the name for your special girl.  And there’s a place for you to add your own printed dedication, too.


So, apologies if you were expecting a better surprise than that, but it seems very fun to me!


Now.  Onto today’s Would You Read It!


Today’s pitch comes to us from the amazing Christie, who blogs about picture books and holds picture book contests over at WRITE WILD.  Here is her pitch:


Working Title: Gleek
Age/Genre: MG Contemporary
The Pitch:  A math whiz but not great at reading and writing, eleven-year-old Art Schaeffer unknowingly stumbles upon the school bully’s rule-breaking science fair project and must find a way to expose him before the judges make their final decisions.






So what do you think?  Would You Read It?  YES, MAYBE or NO?




















If your answer is YES, please feel free to tell us what you particularly liked and why the pitch piqued your interest.  If your answer is MAYBE or NO, please feel free to tell us what you think could be better in the spirit of helping Christie improve her pitch.  Helpful examples of possible alternate wordings are welcome.  (However, I must ask that comments be constructive and respectful.  I reserve the right not to publish comments that are mean because that is not what this is about.)




























































Please send YOUR pitches for the coming weeks!  For rules and where to submit, click on this link Would You Read It or on the Would You Read It tab in the bar above.




















































Christie is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch!
















And don’t forget to join us Friday for Fun Foto (Migration) and Straight From The Editor!


(Oh, and should you happen to order a personalized copy of ROSE from Frecklebox, you will earn major brownie points and possibly even be elected King and have a servant whose only job is to bring you fresh donuts whenever you snap your fingers, but of course, you know, it’s up to you :))

					

		
		
			





			
				



	
	

					
Fun Friday Foto Fextravaganza Etc. Etc.
			


	


				

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Whoopee!  It’s Fun Friday!  And today we have Fun Times Five!!!


Fun Times One:  My Foto for the Fun Friday Foto Fextravaganza.  Those of you who have been paying attention will know that this week’s theme is HARVEST.  Here is mine:











courtesy goole images






Quite a haul, don’t you think?  🙂


Anyone who would like to join the fun, please post a 0-12 year-old-friendly photo on your blog, then pop back here and put your link in the comments so we can all visit and enjoy, and possibly be inspired to write a story!  Be sure to check out Fellow Fun Friday Foto Fextravaganzist Catherine’s photo too 🙂




Fun Times Two:  I’d like to take this opportunity to remind you to save the date of October 24th for the More-Fun-Than-You-Can-Stand Choose Your Own Adventure Bloghop.  I’ve read a number of the entries, and it promises to be edge-of-your-seat fun!











Woo-hoo!!!!!






Fun Times Three:  I’m cooking up an idea for Halloween.  Some of you already contributed on my Face Book page yesterday, but for anyone who would like to join in, I need 3 Halloween-related words.  If you have some good ones, please post them in the comments below 🙂




Fun Times Four:  I’m going to have an exciting announcement Monday but you’ll have to wait until Monday.  (I know.  That was just mean, wasn’t it?  Hinting and then making you wait?  I didn’t think I had it in me.  Who knew?)




And finally, as promised, Fun Times Five!!!: the reason you came over here today in the first place!  It’s time for me to tell you who won the September Pitch Pick!




But first, I want to tell you a story my mother-in-law told me about her gall bladder….




Tee-hee.




Actually, my mother-in-law has more gall bladder (and other far worse) stories than you’d ever care to hear, but I’m not really going to make you sit through any of them.




Anybody need a chocolate break?  Should I wait to make the Pitch Pick announcement until you’re back with a fistful of Snickers bars?




No?  You’re ready now?




Well, all right.




The winner of the September Pitch Pick, whose pitch will be sent to the wonderful and only Erin Molta, editor extraordinaire, for helpful hints and thoughtful critique is….




ddddddddddrrrrrrrrrrrrruuuuuuuuuuummmmmmmmm rrrrrrrrrrrrrooooooooooooollllllllllllllllllll!!!!!


AIMEE!!!!!


Congratulations, Aimee!  And congratulations to Kimberly, Saul, and Catherine, too – your pitches were all great.  You guys really gave Aimee a run for her money 🙂  Thank you all for being brave enough to put your work out there and good luck with your books!


So now, go have fun with the fotos, put some Halloween words in the comments, and hold you breath until Monday 🙂


Have a great weekend!

					

		
		
			





			
				



	
	

					
Would You Read It Wednesday – The Eleventh Pitch!
			


	


				

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You know, one of these days I’m going to stop spelling out what pitch it is and just put numbers… they’re easier to spell at the crack of dawn 🙂  (Probably also easier on the eyes if you happen to be up reading at this hour :))


Because, in case you were wondering, it is the crack of dawn.  Actually, technically, it’s before the crack of dawn since sunrise will not occur until 6:55 AM this morning according to the national weather service which may or may not have anything to do with reality.  But in either case, it’s dark and it’s early and the coffee is still brewing so read on at your own peril 🙂


To begin with, a sneak peek at how the votes in the Pitch Pick are shaping up.  I don’t know how this works out, but there always seem to be two contestants who are neck-in-neck.  Therefore, I implore you to get thee to the polls and cast your vote!  We really cannot have a tie, because that would be imposing on Erin’s good will.  So please, take your pick!


Next up, a quick mention of this week’s theme for Friday’s Fun Foto Fextravaganza:  HARVEST  So sorry I forgot to mention that on Monday (OK, truth time – Catherine and I didn’t think it up until Tuesday, so there was no chance it could have been mentioned Monday), but hopefully you’ll still have time to dig up a 0-12 year-old-friendly photo that says “HARVEST” to you in capital letters.


And now, the reason you turned on your computer this morning, DUN-DUN, DUN-DUN… It’s time for Would You Read It!!!


This week’s pitch comes to us from Carla, a writer, mother, teacher, scientist and explorer who has climbed the Great Wall of China and run a marathon (not at the same time…)  Click on her name to check out her awesome blog.


Working Title:  Witches Don’t Dance
Age/Genre: Picture Book
The Pitch:  What happens when witches dance?  Little Linda knows it can get messy, but she also thinks it might just be the witches’ only chance to save their Halloween Party.




So what do you think?  Would You Read It?  YES, MAYBE or NO?




































If your answer is YES, please feel free to tell us what you particularly liked and why the pitch piqued your interest.  If your answer is MAYBE or NO, please feel free to tell us what you think could be better in the spirit of helping Carla improve her pitch.  Helpful examples of possible alternate wordings are welcome.  (However, I must ask that comments be constructive and respectful.  I reserve the right not to publish comments that are mean because that is not what this is about.)




















































Please send YOUR pitches for the coming weeks!  For rules and where to submit, click on this link Would You Read It or on the Would You Read It tab in the bar above.












































Carla is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch!




And please don’t forget to VOTE on the Pitch Pick – it’s very crucial.  I do not want to have to flip a donut to see who wins 🙂













					

		
		
			





			
				



	
	

					
Would You Read It Wednesday – The Tenth Pitch!
			


	


				

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The results are in!  Although the showing was a little disappointing (a mere 13 votes when I had hoped for more like 100 to make it really official) the clear winner in the Would You Read It Official Snack Poll was Something Chocolate.  Since, technically, chocolate donuts qualify for this category, I am happy 🙂  I’m pretty sure you Something Cereal folks can eat Count Chocula, and the Something Salty folks can eat their Pringles with chocolate milk (OK, yuck, but you get my meaning :))  With a little ingenuity, anything can qualify as Something Chocolate!


Now, just quickly before we get to this week’s pitch, I have to show you something fun that our friend, Jenny, posted on my FB wall yesterday:




Raise your hand if you want this in your writing space 🙂  I totally do!  (Although they forgot “tear your hair out in frustration!” 🙂


Okay!  Are you ready for the pitch?  Here it comes!


Basking in today’s Would You Read It spotlight is Aimee, a Portland, Oregon girl currently living in New Zealand.  She has a great blog at Seeking The Write Life.  Here is her pitch:




TITLE: Listen to Me


GENRE: YA Contemporary with a dash of Magical Realism (target age
13-17, but I hope for crossover appeal)


PITCH: Stacy can talk to herself-in-twelve-years - but will the
impossible relationship with Older Me help her navigate the high
school rites of bullying and unrequited love, or just fuel her
destructive self-loathing?


So what do you think?  Would You Read It?  YES, MAYBE or NO?






























If your answer is YES, please feel free to tell us what you particularly liked and why the pitch piqued your interest.  If your answer is MAYBE or NO, please feel free to tell us what you think could be better in the spirit of helping Aimee improve her pitch.  Helpful examples of possible alternate wordings are welcome.  (However, I must ask that comments be constructive and respectful.  I reserve the right not to publish comments that are mean because that is not what this is about.)












































Please send YOUR pitches for the coming weeks!  For rules and where to submit, click on this link Would You Read It or on the Would You Read It tab in the bar above.




































Aimee is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch!




And I am looking forward to a chocolate-covered chocolate donut with a glass of chocolate milk 🙂






















					

		
		
			





			
				



	
	

					
Mish Mash Monday
			


	


				

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Geez, Louise!  I’ve got so much to share with you today!  And none of it has anything to do with anything else, hence the Mish Mash Monday theme 🙂


First things first:  the Would You Read It Official Snack Poll is here!  You have until 11:59 PM EST (unless we’re on EDT because honestly I never know which is which) tomorrow night (Sept. 27) to cast your vote.  I know!  Not much time!  So get right on it!  Because of course we need to have the answer ready for Wednesday morning and Would You Read It with Aimee and her YA pitch!  Ready?  GO!



<a href=”http://polldaddy.com/poll/5533977/”>Official Would You Read It Snack!</a>
I totally love polls, don’t you?  It’s so fun to see how people vote 🙂


Second:  We have a winner in the Present Game from last Monday!  Since I am too cheap broke smart to pay for Random.org, I assigned each entry a number and the used the free sequence generator to pick the winner.  And the winner is *drum roll*  *dramatic music*  *confetti*  *wild cheering*  ROSALIND!!!  Rosalind, please use the handy Email Me button in the right hand sidebar to let me know your choice of prize – any one of my books signed however and for whoever you’d like, or a $10 Amazon gift card.


Third:  This is so much fun I can hardly stand it.  Kerri over at Craft Junkie is running a Choose Your Own Adventure Bloghop on Monday October 24 and I AM IN IT!!!  I hope you’ll all save a little time to choose your adventures that week.  I think there are 24 of us participating in this thrilling tale and it promises to be a most enjoyable experience.  Check out the awesome badge created by Mel:




I’m guessing that sea serpent has you pretty much tingling with excitement and anticipation! 🙂


Fourth: the theme for this week’s Friday Fun Foto Frenzy Festival Fextravaganza (yes, it’s true, we haven’t decided on a name yet – I know you couldn’t tell) is:  OOPS!


So get those wheels turning and start looking for an entry.  We would love to have more than 1 participant this week 🙂  (Although I think the one, Debbie, should get bonus points for being the first to join in :))


So please, hang around, join the fun, have an as-yet-to-be-decided snack!  It’s all fun and games around here 🙂

					

		
		
			





			
				



	
	

					
Would You Read It Wednesday – The Ninth Pitch!
			


	


				

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Well, I am just full of fun and games this week!


First, we had our present game on Monday, which got a way bigger response than I expected!  I think I will leave it open until the wee hours of Friday morning and then post the winner on Friday, just in case anyone else wants to join in and hasn’t had a chance yet.  (If that’s you, go here.)  I got so many amazing, original responses – it was like opening presents for me to see what you all said!


Second, my friend Catherine Johnson and I want to try something fun on Fridays.  We will post a theme for the week and then on Friday, you put a photo on your blog that represents that theme and put the url to that post in our comment section (hers or mine or both until we figure out how to do a linky list – turns out they don’t seem to work with Safari, which is what I have so…) and then everyone can visit each other’s photos to see how they interpreted the theme!  I think we might get more than a few writing prompts from this 🙂  Since we both write kidlit, we want to keep the photos in a range appropriate for ages 0-12.  This will also separate us from other similar photo game/lists because, as far as we know, no one does a kid one.  We hope you’ll all think this is fun and join in!  This week’s theme is “CONFUSION”  So search around and find a photo that represents that.  It can be a family photo or one you find elsewhere.  As we continue, the game may evolve to writing captions or using the photos as prompts, but for now, we’re starting simple, and the first week is a bit of a trial run, so please bear with us – but do join in so we can see if it works 🙂


And now, the moment you’ve all been waiting for… *dramatic music* … It’s time for Would You Read It!!!    (And no, we have not yet decided on an official snack – although muffins warm from the oven are sounding pretty good right about now….  Maybe I’ll put up a poll.  Or maybe I’ll just decide all by myself.  But I digress…)


Today’s pitch comes to us from the lovely and talented Catherine from Canada – yes! the very same Catherine I’m doing the photo game with (how serendipitous is that? :))


Here is the pitch:


Working Title:  The Fairy Wood
Age/Genre:  MG
The Pitch:  Annabel gets distracted by flowers and fairies and cannot find her family in the woods, but the mystery of the disappearing flowers distracts her even more.  Annabel has no idea how close her family really are or who to trust.






So what do you think?  Would You Read It?  YES, MAYBE or NO?


























If your answer is YES, please feel free to tell us what you particularly liked and why the pitch piqued your interest.  If your answer is MAYBE or NO, please feel free to tell us what you think could be better in the spirit of helping Catherine improve her pitch.  Helpful examples of possible alternate wordings are welcome.  (However, I must ask that comments be constructive and respectful.  I reserve the right not to publish comments that are mean because that is not what this is about.)




































Please send YOUR pitches for the coming weeks!  For rules and where to submit, click on this link Would You Read It or on the Would You Read It tab in the bar above.




























Catherine is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch!




And we are both looking forward to your contributions to the photo game on Friday so please come join us 🙂  (With the added incentive of finding out who won the present game!!!)




There will always be plenty of fun around here 🙂













					

		
		
			





			
				



	
	

					
Straight From The Editor!
			


	


				

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Happy Monday, Everyone!


I hope you’re all feeling bright-eyed and bushy-tailed this morning 🙂


To start off, we have a new piece of the Would You Read It feature (which makes me realize I’m going to have to put some sort of organized posting calendar in my sidebar so everyone will know when to look forward to what, but I digress…)  This exciting part includes editor Erin Molta’s thoughts on the winner’s pitch – an educational opportunity for us all!


To remind you, the winner was Alisha, and her pitch was as follows:




Working Title:  Finding The Reindeer Beat


Age/Genre:  PB


The Pitch:  When Santa’s sleigh team decided to retire, a new group of reindeer trained with Coach Dasher, almost crashed in front of Santa, and discovered the secret to staying together.




Here are Erin’s comments:






Your pitch is intriguing, but in order for an editor to hit reply and write out a note to say she/he wants to read more, it needs to have a little more punch!





For instance, here’s your sentence: “When Santa’s sleigh team decided to retire, a new group of reindeer trained with Coach Dasher, almost crashed in front of Santa, and discovered the secret to staying together.”





I think it needs more action and decisiveness, like this: Santa’s sleigh team retired. A new set of reindeer trained with Coach Dasher but crashed in front of Santa. Finally, after (they are threatened with replacement or after many trials or something . . .) they discovered the secret to working together.





That basically tells the story in a nutshell and though it’s three sentences, it gets the point across in a decisive manner without the wishy-washy verbs—“decided” and “almost” are passive and seem like you’re not sure. Always go with the action.







Of course, our contest was for one sentence – perhaps something to consider modifying slightly in the future if this type of comment comes up again.  But hopefully Erin’s thoughts about action will be helpful to us all!




Now for item number 2.  And I hope you’re all paying attention because even though it’s Monday morning, that is no excuse to ignore our health.  So please follow along with this important exercise program:




Exercise for the weak:


Begin with a 5-lb potato bag in each hand. Extend your arms straight out from your sides and hold them there as long as you can.


Each day you’ll find that you can hold this position for just a bit longer.


After a couple of weeks, move up to 10-lb potato bags.


Then try 50-lb potato bags and then eventually try to get to where you can lift a 100-lb potato bag in each hand . (I’m at this level.)


After you feel confident at that level, put a potato in each bag 🙂
(Courtesy of my friend Teri through her friend Bev.)


     


I hope that gets your week off to a good start 🙂


Feel free to share your thoughts on the editor’s comments as well as any successful exercise programs of your own in the comments below, and don’t forget to tune in Wednesday for Would You Read It, this week starring Saul with an Early Reader!


OH!  And I almost forgot!  Marissa Oachs over at The Review Stew did a nice review and giveaway for my books (go here: http://www.thereviewstew.com/2011/09/childrens-books-by-susanna-l-hill.html) so please hop over and check out her site and enter the giveaway if you’re so inclined 🙂





					

		
		
			





			
				



	
	

					
Smorgasbord Friday!
			


	


				

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(Today’s post contains 3 very important items: 1) the first Pitch Pick Winner, 2) 5 great writing opportunities, and 3) my First Campaign Challenge entry.  If you’re in a hurry, please feel free to scroll down to the part you’re most interested in 🙂  Also, for those who haven’t had a chance to comment on this week’s Would You Read It, please go here.  Okay, here we go!)


My fingers are actually tingling!


And, NO, it’s not because I’ve had too much coffee.


Really.


It’s 5:30 AM.  How much do you think I could have drunk already?


No, my friends!  I am tingling because the BIG DAY is finally here!  The BIG DAY on which I will announce the winner of the first Pitch Pick, the one whose pitch will be sent to editor Erin Molta for comments and insight.  Ah, the thrill!  The excitement!  The suspense…


But first, I want to tell you a story about paint drying.


You see, we need to paint our downstairs hallway…


Tee hee.  I’m just foolin’ with you 🙂  (We do need to paint our downstairs hallway, but I’m not going to tell you a story about it.  Not now anyway.  Not while you’re dying to know who the winner is.  That would just be cruel.)


Okay.  Are you ready?


Really?  Are you sure?


Alrighty, then.  Drum roll please!


The winner of the first Pitch Pick for July/August 2011 is none other than the fabulous


ALISHA!!!


Congratulations, Alisha!!!  Your pitch will wing its way across cyberspace momentarily and land in Erin’s inbox, ready for her priceless expertise!


Before we move on to item 2 of today’s smorgasbord, I just want to say, congratulations and good work to everyone who participated.  You all wrote strong pitches, and your books all sound wonderful!  I’m sorry there could be only one winner.   But please remember – you are of course allowed to send more pitches!  So feel free to try again for a spot in Erin’s Inbox!


Item 2 on today’s agenda is about fun, fun, fun for the writers in our audience.  There are a number of opportunities either currently running or coming soon that I think you might find interesting:


The Lucky Clover Picture Book Writing Contest:
Held by Christie at WRITE WILD, this picture book contest is run four times a year (Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter), with categories for Early PBs, Regular PBs, Non-Fiction PBs, and Rhyming PBs.  The prize is a free critique, and entries for the Summer Contest are open until the end of September.


The Rule of Three Blogfest:
Held by J.C. Martin at J.C. MARTIN, FIGHTER WRITER and Damyanti at WRITING ON WRITING: AMLOKIBLOGS as well as a couple others, this is a month long blogfest that takes place in a shared fictional world within which you will create a story.  Sign up by October 3.


The Synopsis/Query Stand Out:
Held by Cynthia at RANDOM THOUGHTS, Stand Out Synopsis/Query is a weekly feature posted on Mondays where authors can get help on their synopses and/or queries.  It is a slightly different take on Would You Read It Wednesday 🙂


The Hooked On Hooks Event:
Held by Kimberly at ZOOKBOOKNOOK, the Hooked On Hooks event is a chance for writers to hone their hooks.  Stop by on September 30 and add your hook to the linky list!


And, last but not least, the new Choose Your Own Adventure:
Fun for writers and readers alike, Kerri Cuevas at CRAFT JUNKIE is hosting her 2nd Choose Your Own Adventure Story.  19 writers (including Yours Truly!) will be participating in this fun, fabulous bloghop.  (I believe the list is now closed, but if you want to join, ask Kerri.  She originally said she would take as many as 30, so there may still be a possibility of spaces.)  It will take place at the end of October.  More details to come 🙂


Item 3 on today’s agenda is my entry for Rachael Harrie’s First Campaign Challenge which, as of the time of this late writing already has 352 entries!  The Challenge is:  200 words beginning with the words, The door swung open and ending with the words, The door swung shut.  Here is my entry:


The door swung open with a hiss and a clunk.


Red and yellow lights flashed a warning.


“Up you go, Liam,” Mom said with a smile.


Liam looked at the steps.  Steep steps.  BIG steps.  Steps he might trip on.  Steps that led into the rumbling yellow belly of a monster.


“No!” he said.


He was not going forward.


Liam wanted to turn around and hold on tight to Mom, but eyes watched him.  Lots of eyes.  Maybe a hundred!


He could not turn back.


Mom squeezed his hand.  “It’s going to be all right, Liam,” she said.  “I promise.”


Liam looked up at her.  He wanted to say something, but his throat was too tight for talking.  He had to blink six times in a row to make sure no tears spilled out.


Mom ruffled his hair and gave him a gentle nudge.  “Go on,” she said.  “You can do it.”


Liam took a deep breath and stepped into the monster.


He looked down the monster’s throat.


Hey!  There was Connor.  And Justin!


“Hi, Liam!” they shouted.


Liam sat next to Connor, waved to Mom and smiled.


This might not be so bad after all.


The door swung shut.


Phew!  Sorry for the long post!  I told you it was a smorgasbord!  Please post your comments for our Pitch Pick winner below, as well as your comments on the Challenge piece.  And please enjoy a few minutes checking out the writing opportunities!


Have a great weekend everyone 🙂


P.S.  For any fellow campaigners, should you happen to like my Challenge piece enough to “like” it on Rach’s site, I’m number 355.  (I’ve discovered I’m having trouble finding people on there so thought this might be helpful!)

					

		
		
			





			
				



	
	

					
Would You Read It Wednesday – The Seventh Pitch!
			


	


				

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Fasten your seat belts and put your tray tables in the upright position!  It’s time for the highlight of everyone’s week… Would You Read It!  (I really wish I could make that flash and sparkle, but since I don’t know how, you’ll just have to imagine that it’s very fancy!)


Before we get to today’s pitch, I’d just like to thank everyone who has voted so far for the July/August Pitch Pick (and for those of you just joining us, that’s the vote on whose pitch was best and will get sent to editor Erin Molta for valuable comments and feedback!)  I’m so interested in how the votes are falling, and it’s REALLY hard to keep a secret and not give you hints….


… OK.  You twisted my arm.  How about one hint.  The current leader pitched a picture book.  That’s not too much of a hint since 4 of the 6 pitches were for PBs 🙂


But it’s still definitely a competition, so if you haven’t voted yet, please do!  Go here and scroll to the poll.


Alrighty then.  It’s time for today’s pitch, our first YA to date, and the first of the September competitors for Erin’s reading time!


Today’s pitch comes to us from the awesome Kimberly, who has lived a very interesting life, part of which was spent in a hut in the rainforest with a lot of wildlife I wouldn’t want to meet too up close and personal! She writes a terrific blog (ZookBookNook), so feel free to hop over and get to know her.  For our fellow campaigners, she is also participating in the Writer’s Platform Building Campaign.  So here it is:


Working Title:  Surfacing In Clouds
Age/Genre:  YA
The Pitch:  Rigo and Esteban struggle to survive in a land without electricity, but when they set out to reach a world consumed by technology their friendship is ripped at the seams. This story chronicles the remarkable resilience of human nature in the face of losing what was once taken for granted: silence, privacy, and a connection with nature.


So what do you think?  Would You Read It?  YES, MAYBE or NO?












If your answer is YES, please feel free to tell us what you particularly liked and why the pitch piqued your interest.  If your answer is MAYBE or NO, please feel free to tell us what you think could be better in the spirit of helping Kim improve her pitch.  Helpful examples of possible alternate wordings are welcome.  (However, I must ask that comments be constructive and respectful.  I reserve the right not to publish comments that are mean because that is not what this is about.)




















Please send YOUR pitches for the coming weeks!  For rules and where to submit, click on this link Would You Read It or on the Would You Read It tab in the bar above.  (I figured y’all would get tired of me rewriting the same paragraph every week about the rules of the game so I put them up there :))












Kim is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch!




P.S.  Tune in Friday for the results of the vote and find out who the winner is!!!  And don’t forget, if you haven’t voted, please do!  Vote here.