Category: writing fun

The 2014 March Madness Contest Winners!!!

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Oh. My. Goodness!

That was the closest, most hotly contested race for a winner we’ve ever had!

I hope that means that my assistant judges and I made good choices for the finalists! 🙂

The March Madness Writing Contest!

I admit it – I get all the fun.  Sitting in the judge’s chair, watching the votes come in, seeing first one person and then another in the lead, biting my nails when there are ties, waiting on pins and needles to see who will emerge victorious….

Normally I’d string you along and tease you for a while, but I’m too wiped out by this whole roller-coaster process.

Truly, it is not for the faint of heart.

Up one minute, down the next.  Nerves stretched like bow strings.

A person less physically fit than myself (haha snort! – can’t say THAT with a straight face after this winter :)) might suffer palpitations!

And speaking of palpitations, I had them aplenty when her royal highness, Miss Scouty Brown, came sauntering back in the house this morning having found something dreadful to roll in!  “What is that SMELL???!!!” all the children shrieked!

Fortunately, we are in the midst of a small flood which, aside from making the basement a delightful place for canoeing, means that there is a lot of water outside.  Scouty was able to enjoy her first swim of the year… twice… with the fortuitous result that she returned from our walk refreshed and smelling mostly like wet dog instead of Something Yucky.

But wait.

What were we talking about?

Oh yes!

The contest!

So, who won?

Oh!  I’m supposed to tell you!

🙂

Okay.

Seriously.

I’m really going to tell.

We had 75 fantastic entries, which we winnowed down by hook or by crook, to the best of our ability, to 10 fabulous finalists.

Y’all voted for your favorites.

And the winner of the 2014 March Madness Writing Contest, who gets to send the picture book manuscript of her choice to none other than the renowned children’s literary agent, Karen Grencik of Red Fox Literary is. . .

duhn duhn duhn
dddddrrrrruuuuummmmm rrrrrooooollllllllll pppppllllleeeeeaaaaassssseeeee!!!!!

Wendy Greenley
with her clever Three Wiggly Worms Bluff!!!

Congratulations on a wonderful story, Wendy!  I think it’s clear that a LOT of people really enjoyed it! 🙂

Now, I wasn’t kidding when I said this contest was hotly contested.  I kept asking for votes this weekend, hoping the ties would get broken, but not all of them did.

So, for 2nd place we had a tie between

Mike Allegra
with the fantabulous Goldilockup!

and

Dawn Young
with the hilarious Goldibawks!

Congratulations Mike and Dawn, on two terrific and very different twists on Goldilocks!  Lori and Cori have generously agreed to each give a critique instead of just one or the other, so you will each get a picture book critique by a fantastic author!

In 3rd place, guess what?  Another tie!  This time between

Pen Avey
with her delicious Sweetie Witch

and

Lauri Meyers
with her daring Princess And The Stinky Cheese!

Congratulations, Pen and Lauri!  I will prevail upon Corey to tire her signing hand by signing copies of her books for both of you! 🙂  And you may email me about your gift cards.

4th place goes to

Darshana Khiani
with her delightful Mongoose’s Holi Party!

Congratulations, Darshana, on a truly original tale!  You may choose the two picture books you’d like from the prize list.  (I’ll tack it on the bottom of the post for easy reference :)) And email me about your gift card.

In 5th place,

Jennifer Caritas (hope I’ve got that right…!)
with another forthright heroine in The “Princess” And The Pete!

Congratulations on a terrific story, Jennifer!  You may also choose the two picture books you’d like from the prize list below and email me about your gift card.

And in 6th place,

Elliah Terry
with her fun southwestern Jackrabbit Who Cried Gila Monster!

Congratulations, Elliah!  I bet that gila monster is still running from the coyote 🙂 You will receive a personalized sighed copy of SNORING BEAUTY by Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen!

All the winners should email me to work out prize details!

But now, we are not quite done.

Because, like I said, this was a hotly contested contest.  My assistant judges and I had quite a few other favorites that we felt couldn’t quite make the finalist list for one reason or another, but we all thought they were worthy of recognition.  So the following people (in no particular order) receive our heartfelt Honorable Mention!

Gaye Hemsley – Chocolate Muffins
Joanne Roberts – Goldi And The Three Squirrels
Vivian Kirkfield – Singerella
Katie Gast – Little Dead Riding Hood
Katie Cullinan – The Three Little Easter Bunnies
Jen Doherty – The Mischievous Fire Truck
Laura Shovan – The 12 Clumsy Princesses
Margaret Greenias – The Big, Bad-Mannered Wolf
Angela Turner – The Belle And The Sticker Burrs
Cheryl Secomb – Little Red Rider
Robert Schechter – Humpty
Erik Weibel – The Once Upon A Times
Rachel – Handsome And Gretchin

Congratulations to all of you on stories that were original, fun, and very entertaining!  You may all choose one of the following as a prize: (titles are links so you can check them out)

Kindle Edition – The Nuts & Bolts Guide To Writing Picture Books by Linda Ashman
Kindle Edition – Picture Books The Write Way by Laura Purdie Salas & Lisa Bullard
Kindle Edition – How To Write A Children’s Picture Book by Darcy Pattison
Kindle Edition – The Easy Way To Write Picture Books That Sell by Robin Opie Parnell
Kindle Edition – How To Promote Your Children’s Book: Tips, Tricks and Secrets To Create A Bestseller by Katie Davis

Paperback – Writing Magic: Creating Stories That Fly by Gail Carson Levine (also available for Kindle)
Paperback – How To Write A Novel: 47 Rules For Writing A Stupendously Awesome Novel That You Will Love Forever by Nathan Bransford (also available for Kindle)
Paperback – The Plot Skeleton by Angela Hunt (also available for Kindle)

Please email me and let me know your preference!

Congratulations to everyone who entered a story in this contest.  You all did an amazing job!  My assistant judges and I loved every story for one reason or another.  And I think it’s fair to say that you entertained a LARGE number of readers!

Thank you so much to everyone who visited blogs, read, commented, and voted – these contests couldn’t happen without you!

And thank you to the generous people who donated prizes – Karen Grencik, Lori Degman, and Cori Doerffeld – you’re what everyone tries so hard for and you bring out the best in the writing community!

It’s been another fun contest, and I thank you all!

I was going to announce the upcoming first ever * Illustrator Contest * today, but this post is too long already, and I really don’t want to distract from the winners’ moment in the spotlight, so I will either write a special Tuesday post for tomorrow or tack it onto the Would You Read It post on Wednesday.

So congratulations again to all the winners for all their wonderful stories, and to everyone who wrote a story for this contest.  You are all winners just for showing up, writing something new, and practicing your craft!

Have a marvelous Monday, everyone! 🙂

List of Prizes:

 – 1st Prize is a read and critique by Karen Grencik of Red Fox Literary!!! (Unless for some reason you don’t want a read and critique by an agent, in which case you may swap for any of the other prizes)
 – 2nd Prize is a picture book manuscript critique (for rhyming mss only) by Lori Degman, author of 1 ZANY ZOO and the forthcoming COCK-A-DOODLE-OOPS! OR a picture book manuscript critique (for non-rhyming mss only) by Cori Doerrfeld, author/illustrator of LITTLE BUNNY FOO FOO and PENNY LOVES PINK as well as illustrator of many others.
 – 3rd Prize is personalized signed copies of THE THREE NINJA PIGS and GOLDI ROCKS & THE THREE BEARS by Corey Rosen Schwartz PLUS a $25 Amazon Gift Card
 – 4th and 5th Prizes are your choice of any two of the following picture books PLUS a $20 Amazon Gift Card:
     – THE THREE LITTLE WOLVES AND THE BIG BAD PIG by Eugene Trivizas
     – CINDY ELLEN: A WILD WESTERN CINDERELLA by Susan Lowell
     – LITTLE RED WRITING by Joan Holub
     – THE THREE LITTLE PIGS AND THE SOMEWHAT BAD WOLF by Mark Teague
     – THE PRINCESS AND THE PEAS by Caryl Hart
     – THE WOLF’S STORY: WHAT REALLY HAPPENED TO LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD by Toby Forward
     – GOLDILOCKS AND THE THREE DINOSAURS by Mo Willems

 – 6th Prize (which just skated in under the wire – thank you Sudipta!) is a personalized signed copy of hot-off-the-presses SNORING BEAUTY by Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen

The March Madness Writing Contest Is Here!!!

474 Comments

Woo-hoo!!!

Spring is here!

And so is

The March Madness Writing Contest!

The Contest: Write a children’s story, in poetry or prose, maximum 400 words, that is a fractured fairy tale.  Feel free to add a theme of spring, or mix in one of the spring holidays if you like – St. Patrick’s Day, April Fools Day, Easter or Passover, Arbor Day, Earth Day…  Have fun with it!  The madder* the better! 🙂
*as in wild and wacky, not angry 🙂

You do not have to include spring – that is optional.
The story can be a picture book or a short story – whatever you like.
If it’s a picture book, you may NOT include art notes, because we get into a weird area of whether that’s fair in terms of word count and added description etc.  So if you write a picture book that’s wonderful, but make sure art notes aren’t necessary to understand it.
“Fairy Tale” apparently turned out to be a very debatable term, so my fellow judges and I will do our best to handle whatever you’ve come up with.
Title not included in word count.
Post:  Your entry should be posted on your blog between right now this very second and Monday March 24 at 11:59 PM EST, and your post-specific link should be added to the link list below which will remain up through Wednesday March 26 so we can all take our time reading and enjoying everyone’s stories!  (No PPBF on Friday March 21, no new post on Monday March 24, no WYRI on March 26).  If you don’t have a blog but would like to enter, please copy and paste your entry into the comments below.  (If anyone has trouble commenting, which unfortunately happens, please email me and I’ll post your entry for you!)

The Judge:  My lovely assistant and I will narrow down the entrants to 6 finalists (or possibly a couple more depending on the number of entries :)) which will be posted here on Thursday March 27 for you to vote on for a winner.  The vote will be closed at 5PM EST on Sunday March 30 and the winner will be announced on Monday March 31.  (No PPBF on Friday March 28.)

The Prizes!:  

 – 1st Prize is a read and critique by Karen Grencik of Red Fox Literary!!! (Unless for some reason you don’t want a read and critique by an agent, in which case you may swap for any of the other prizes)
 – 2nd Prize is a picture book manuscript critique (for rhyming mss only) by Lori Degman, author of 1 ZANY ZOO and the forthcoming COCK-A-DOODLE-OOPS! OR a picture book manuscript critique (for non-rhyming mss only) by Cori Doerrfeld, author/illustrator of LITTLE BUNNY FOO FOO and PENNY LOVES PINK as well as illustrator of many others.
 – 3rd Prize is personalized signed copies of THE THREE NINJA PIGS and GOLDI ROCKS & THE THREE BEARS by Corey Rosen Schwartz PLUS a $25 Amazon Gift Card
 – 4th and 5th Prizes are your choice of any two of the following picture books PLUS a $20 Amazon Gift Card:
     – THE THREE LITTLE WOLVES AND THE BIG BAD PIG by Eugene Trivizas
     – CINDY ELLEN: A WILD WESTERN CINDERELLA by Susan Lowell
     – LITTLE RED WRITING by Joan Holub
     – THE THREE LITTLE PIGS AND THE SOMEWHAT BAD WOLF by Mark Teague
     – THE PRINCESS AND THE PEAS by Caryl Hart
     – THE WOLF’S STORY: WHAT REALLY HAPPENED TO LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD by Toby Forward
     – GOLDILOCKS AND THE THREE DINOSAURS by Mo Willems

 – 6th Prize (which just skated in under the wire – thank you Sudipta!) is a personalized signed copy of hot-off-the-presses SNORING BEAUTY by Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen

And don’t forget, all you illustrators, that this will be followed by a related Illustrator Contest in April!!! (to be announced and elaborated on as soon as the writing part of the contest is over! :))

And now, so that everyone will feel happy and confident about posting their stories, I will share my sample, a Wild West twist on The Gingerbread Boy at exactly 400 words (phew!):

The Cornpone Cowboy

     Once upon a time (because that is the way all good fairy tales begin), Farmer Bubba and his lovely bride ThunderLily had the most beautiful ranch in the Wild West.
     The grass was emerald green.
     The rivers were pure as morning dew.
     The cattle were sleek and fat and gave such rich, creamy milk that all the ice cream makers in the world fought over who would get it.
     But even with all this beauty and excellent ice cream, Bubba and ThunderLily were sad.  For though they were surrounded every spring by velvet-eyed calves and stilt-legged foals, fluffy chicks, pink piglets, and wooly lambs, they never had a child of their own.
     Luckily, ThunderLily was not one to sit around moping.  “If I can’t have a child, I’ll make one,” she told her darling Bubba.
     She got cornmeal and buttermilk, eggs, salt, and bacon drippings, and quick as you like she whipped up a sturdy little Cornpone Cowboy.
     “We’ll call him Charlemagne,” she said dreamily as she plucked the skillet from the barbeque pit.
     “You’ll have to catch me first!” snorted the Cornpone Cowboy, and off he rode as fast as his cowpony could carry him.
     He passed the pigpen and the piglets grunted, “Oh, Charlemagne! Come be our friend!”
     “Don’t call me that!” said the Cornpone Cowboy, and he galloped on his way.
     He passed the sheepfold and the lambs baahed, “Oh, Charlemagne! Come be our friend!”
     “Don’t call me that!” said the Cornpone Cowboy, and he galloped on his way.
     He passed the cow barn and the calves mooed, “Oh, Charlemagne! Come be our friend!”
     “Why does everyone insist on calling me that?” said the Cornpone Cowboy, and he galloped on his way.
     And so it was at the hen house…
     . . . the horse pasture…
     . . . and the goat shed.
     Along about sundown a voice called, “Hey, Cowboy! Won’t you come set a spell by the campfire?”
     “Don’t mind if I do,” said the Cornpone Cowboy, tuckered out from galloping. He hopped down from his pony, spurs a-janglin’, and came face to face with…
     . . . COYOTE!
     Quick as a wink he twirled his lariat. . . 
     . . . hog-tied Coyote . . .
     . . . and lit out for home!
     When Bubba and ThunderLily heard his story, ThunderLily said, “That’s our boy! Lightning fast!”
     Which is how he came to be called LightningCharlie instead of Charlemagne (because really, who could live with that?) and they all lived happily ever after!

The End

Wasn’t that nice of me?  Now you can all feel brave and smug, secure in the knowledge that your story is better than that!!! 🙂

Anyone besides me feeling an urge to sing?
     “Like a Cornpone Cowboy
     riding out on a horse in a star-spangled rodeo
     Cornpone Cowboy…“

No? Darn! I was hoping the exceptional quality of my singing would distract you from that story even though “cornpone” doesn’t have quite the same ring to it as “rhinestone”  🙂

I can’t wait to read what you have all come up with!  Let the fun begin! 🙂

And remember to check back here for entries added in the comments.  I’ll list them as they come in 🙂 (Titles link to stories in comments – give them an extra moment to load)

Jennifer C – The Princess And The Pete
Pat H – Jack And The Giant
Angela – The Belle And The Sticker Burrs
Sean – No Spring Chicken Little
Shelly – Prince Frog
Kirsten B – Goldi And Red
Pen – The Sweetie Witch
Connie – Chocolocks And The Three Bunnies
Karen – Little Red Hen’s Shiny New Friend
Teresa S – Little Red’s Green Cloak
Eric – A Sleeping Beauty
Katie – Little Dead Riding Hood
Robert – Jack And The Beanstalk
Lisa – Rabbi Wolfberg And The Boarmans Celebrate Sukkot
Denise – The Biscuit Man
Kristen – The Boy Who Cried Spring
Jennifer Mc – Little Red Ray
Debbie – The Three Kittens
Gaye – Chocolate Muffins
Nancy – Big Bad Wolf And Red Riding Toad
Robert2 – The Emperor’s New Clothes
Kelsi – Goldinocks And The Three Scares
Jen – The Mischievous Fire Truck
Heather – Rap-unzel
Robert3 – Humpty
Hilary – Hare And Tortoise
Sandy – The Three Little Pigs And The Shoemaker
Kelly V – A Fractured Fairy Tail (Literally)

Would You Read It Wednesday # 126 – Martin’s Perfect Web (PB) PLUS The February Pitch Pick

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I am SO excited!

Only ONE MORE DAY! until the Match Madness Writing Contest opens!

I cannot wait to read the fabulous entries I hope will soon be pouring in to distract us from the fact that it is still 10 degrees even though tomorrow is the official first day of spring!

(The only small fly in the ointment is that I STILL don’t have an idea for my sample story…  EEK!  I am seriously running out of time!!!)

One quick note on the contest: apparently the definition of “fairy tale” is a knotty one, not, as I thought, clearly the Snow White, Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Goldilocks, Sleeping Beauty, Ugly Duckling, Rapunzel, Rumplestiltskin etc. type of story.  So many people have argued their cases for nursery rhymes, fables, etc. and I don’t want to have to disqualify anyone over a difference in the definition of fairy tale, because different definitions do appear online, so whatever you guys have written is fine.  Apparently the rules were not clear enough, so my fellow judges and I will figure it out 🙂 But, I do hold the line on art notes.  Even if your story is intended to be a picture book, no art notes because we get into a weird area with word count.  And in answer to someone’s question, your title doesn’t count in the word count.

I think Something Chocolate might fuel the creative muse.  Let’s have some of Teresa’s French Chocolate Silk Pie, shall we?

Teresa’s French Chocolate Silk Pie – gorgeous, isn’t it?
And here’s a tasty view of a delicious slice – YUM!

Ah!  I feel more creative already! 🙂

But now let’s get down to brass tacks!

First, the February Pitch Pick.  Here are the contestants:

#1 Kristine
The STEM Girls Take Off – Picture Book (ages 5-8)
Sophia wants to win the school science fair, but when her project won’t cooperate, she uses perseverance and teamwork to bring home the goal, proving that every girl can be a STEM girl.

#2 Pam B
Fee Fi Fo Flub – Picture Book (ages 4-8)
The giant Mini wants to continue her school’s tradition of putting on the annual production of Klurg and the Beanstalk. But during practice, Mini’s co-star makes jokes and goes off-script, and Mini fears he will ruin the show. It is only when Mini makes her own blunder on opening night that she realizes the value of creativity and flexibility, and works with her co-star to make the show a success.

#3 Julie G
Diary Of A Linky Kid – Picture Book (ages 4-7)
Herman wishes he was like everyone else, but when all the other kids are gazing at their belly buttons during gym class, Herman is hiding his coil shaped tummy under his t-shirt. When just another day at school turns into a daring rescue mission, Herman becomes an unlikely hero when his flexibility saves the day.

#4 Steve
Silly Tilly – Picture Book (ages 4-8)
Tilly’s dreams of having a baby come true when a hatching egg presents her with a fluffy bundle of … crocodile! Everything is bliss until Charlie starts to grow. AND grow. When her friends start disappearing, Tilly worries that she’s next on the menu. But when Charlie invites her down to his cave, she’s in for a big surprise … party!

Please vote in the poll below by Friday March 21 at 11:59PM ET for the one you feel most deserves a read by editor Erin Molta.

Many thanks!!!

Today’s pitch comes to us from Beth H. who says she is a, “Chocaholic, reformed Catholic, (I don’t feel guilty anymore about eating chocolate), red wine lover – (no I was not an altar girl) seeking to publish children’s books that introduce children to self love, thinking out of the box and just plain silliness.”  

Here is her pitch:

Working Title: Martin’s Perfect Web
Age/Genre: Picture Book (ages 5-7)
The Pitch: In a quest to build the perfect web, an obsessive compulsive spider confronts his biggest fears through an unlikely friendship with an inquisitive dragon. In a wild ride on the dragon’s tail, Martin learns how to relax and enjoy the simple process of creating – leaving a beautiful web behind him to his utter disbelief.  

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 Beth 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.  There are openings in July so you’ve got a little time to polish up your pitches and send yours for your chance to be read by editor Erin Molta!

Beth is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch!  I am looking forward to the contest!  The March Madness Writing Contest!!  Which starts tomorrow!!!  I’m so excited!!!!  Oh, wait.  I’m having deja vu.  Did I already say that???  Never mind.  It’s still true.  Start counting the hours!!!

(And won’t I feel silly if my sample – which promises to be quite dreadful since I don’t even have an idea yet, and therefore have yet to write a single word with less than 12 hours before I have to post it –  is the only entry!  So please, save me from myself and enter! :))

See you tomorrow even though it’s Thursday…

Have a wonderful Wednesday, everyone! 🙂

A Monday Birthday Dog Day Short & Sweet

66 Comments

Good Morning Everyone!

Guess what day it is?

If you said International Skeptics Day, you’re right, but that’s not what I’m thinking of 🙂

Today is my Brown Dog’s birthday!  She is 7.  That means that she and I will be the same age this year.  (I’ll let you figure the math :))

I think she would enjoy a rousing chorus of

Happy Birthday to you
Happy Birthday to you
Happy Birthday dear Stinky (yeah… she rolled in something awful yesterday and in spite of the bath is still a little odoriferous… which makes her very happy… have you noticed a theme here? :))
Happy Birthday to you!!!

And of course I will be making her a cake, so stop by later for a slice 🙂

Speaking of cake, which is sweet, reminds me that we haven’t done a Short & Sweet for a while, and what better time for inspiration than now?

badge created by Loni Edwards

In between navigating my basement by canoe and bailing (oh how do I love thee, unnatural January rain?  Let me count the ways… uh, okay, maybe not :)) I persuaded my old computer to part with this picture of Baby Brown Dog.

In honor of her birthday, let’s think up stories for her to star in :))

You can think up a title, or an opening line, or a one sentence pitch or, if you’re really ambitious, all three!

I’ll go first.

Title: One, Two, Three!  Play With Me!
Opening Line:  One, two, three!  Play with me!  How many puppies do you see?
Pitch: A little brown dog wants to play, eat, play, walk, play, roll, and play some more, counting everything as she goes.

Now it’s your turn 🙂  Miss Brown says thank you in advance – she knows she will love your ideas to turn her into a literary star! 🙂

Have a marvelous Monday everyone!  And don’t forget to stop by later for a slice of birthday cake (or two :))

Ho! Ho! Ho! The 3rd Annual Holiday Writing Contest Is Here!

923 Comments

WOO-HOO!  Let the joyous news be spread!  It’s time for

The 3rd Annual Holiday Contest!!!


The Contest:  Write a children’s story about a Holiday Mishap, mix-up, miscommunication, mistake, or potential disaster (a la Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer :)).  Your story may be poetry or prose, silly or serious or sweet, religious or not, based on Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa or whatever you celebrate, but is not to exceed 350 words not counting the title (aren’t I being generous?! 🙂  It can be as short as you like, but no more than 350!)  Did the dog knock over the Christmas Tree?  Did little Johnny’s costume get grape juice all over it moments before the holiday pageant?  Did the menorah go missing?  Did travel arrangements get snarled or miscommunicated?  Did Santa’s sleigh have to make an emergency landing?  The field is wide open!  Have fun!  (And because so many people have mentioned this, the story does not have to be funny!  You can have a holiday mishap that is serious or sweet or mysterious…  Please don’t feel that you have to go the humor route!  Also, because a number of people have mentioned it this time, no art notes please.)

Post:  Your entry should be posted on your blog between now and Friday December 13 at 11:59 PM EST and your post-specific link should be added to the link list below which will remain up through Sunday December 15.  (There will be no WYRI or PPBF this week.)  If you don’t have a blog but would like to enter, please copy and paste your entry into the comments below.  (If anyone has trouble commenting, which unfortunately happens, please email me and I’ll post your entry for you!)
The Judging:  My lovely assistant(s) and I will narrow down the entrants to 6-12 finalists (depending on the number of entries) which will be posted here on Monday December 16 for you to vote on for a winner.  The vote will be closed on Wednesday December 18 at 5 PM EST and the winners will be announced on Thursday December 19.  Whoever gets the most votes will be first and so on down to sixth place.  Remember, judging criteria will be kid appeal/friendliness, originality/suitability of mishap, quality of story, and quality of writing.
The Prizes!:  Well, I hope these prizes are going to knock your socks off!!!  In the spirit of the holidays, winners will be named for 1st – 6th place.  In addition to the incredible fame of being able to say you won or placed in the Pretty Much World Famous 3rd Annual Holiday Contest, the following AMAZING prizes will be awarded:

 – A Picture Book Manuscript Read and Written Critique by Karen Boss, Editor at Charlesbridge!!! (Priceless!)  Karen Boss is the editorial assistant at Charlesbridge Publishing in Watertown, MA. She has a master’s degree in children’s literature from Simmons College and is currently editing projects that range from picture books for younger readers to picture books for older readers to middle-grade novels, both fiction and nonfiction. (But let’s face it, folks!  You’re getting YOUR picture book manuscript in front of an actual editor at a highly regarded publishing house!  Who knows where that could lead?)

 – A Gold Membership to Julie Hedlund’s 12×12 in 2014 (a $150 value)
    Little GOLDen Book Membership includes:

  • Full access (view and post) to the Main 12 x 12 Forum and Critique Connect (where you can find critique partners)
  • Access to the members-only 12 x 12 Facebook Group
  • Ability to view the Events, Member Books, Videos/Trailers and Help An Author Out (HAAO) sections of the 12 x 12 Forum
  • Opportunity to win craft-related prizes from the monthly featured authors
  • Full (view and post) access to the Events, Member Books, Video/Trailers and HAAO sections of the 12 x 12 Forum
  • FULL (view and post) access to these additional sections of the 12 x 12 Forum: Query Corner (get feedback on your query letters), Pitch Perfect (get feedback on loglines and pitches), and Manuscript Makeover (get feedback on the first 250 words of your ms)
  • Access to the Submission Station section of the 12 x 12 Forum, which will provide information about that month’s agent or editor and instructions on how to submit to him or her.

 – 2 signed Picture Books by Linda Ashman – RAIN! and PEACE, BABY! (Keep for yourself or give as a holiday gift to a little person in your life :)) PLUS
    a $25 Amazon Gift Card

 – A Picture Book Manuscript Critique by Erin Molta Erin is an experienced senior editor of picture book, early readers, chapter, middle grade, and YA books, as well as novelty and licensed titles. She has been in childrens publishing for more than twenty years and has a keen understanding of early reader through YA audiences. She has an excellent reputation with established authors, illustrators, and agents.

 – Enrollment in the Online Writing course Making Picture Book Magic in the month of your choice (a $99 value)

 – A signed copy of TUGBOAT by Michael Garland (not even released yet!) AND
    a signed copy of A TROOP IS A GROUP OF MONKEYS by Julie Hedlund (Keep for yourself or give as a holiday gift to a little person in your life :))  PLUS
    a $25 Amazon Gift Card

 – A Picture Book Manuscript Critique from author/illustrator Sarah Frances Hardy, author and illustrator of PUZZLED BY PINK (Viking Juvenile, April 2012) and the forthcoming PAINT ME!. A great choice for someone who is both an author and an illustrator – and I know we have quite a few of those here 🙂

 – 2014 Children’s Writer’s & Illustrator’s Market by Chuck Sambuchino (your choice of paperback or Kindle edition)

 – The Crock Of Charms Anthology – a three volume collection of stories for readers of all ages from writers all over the world including some you probably know 🙂  Robyn Campbell, Cheryl Secomb, Clarike Bowman-Jahn, Theresa Milstein, Lenny Lee, and me, to name a few 🙂

(Run your mouse over the prizes, books, authors, etc… most of them are links)

The Contest Winner will have first choice of the prizes.  2nd place will have next choice of what’s left and so on.  (I’m doing it this way in the hopes that no one will get something they already have – for example, if you’ve already signed on for Julie’s 12×12 or taken Making Picture Book Magic or own RAIN! and PEACE, BABY! etc.  – and also because I think all the prizes are fabulous and I wouldn’t want to make anyone feel less valued by giving them as 6th place as opposed to 1st.)

Wow!  Let’s get the Holiday Party started! 🙂

Here is my sample… to prove that in can in fact be done… and because I wouldn’t ask you to do anything I won’t do myself…  (But seriously, whose idea was 350 words?  It’s cramping my style! :))

The Trouble With Santa’s Suit (350 words)

On Christmas Eve the sleigh was packed.
The reindeer waited, snug in red velvet blankets.
Santa struggled into the tuxedo he always wore and turned pale.
“Elton!” he hollered.
Chief Elf Elton came running.
“Oh, dear!” he gasped.  “Dry-cleaning disaster!”
The sleeves barely reached Santa’s elbows.  The pants fell short of his knees.  He looked like an underdressed penguin.
“You’ll have to wear something else,” said Mrs. Claus.
But Santa was stuck in his shrunken suit.
“I can’t get it off!” he said.
“Go on a diet,” suggested Elton.
“I don’t think that will work in ten minutes!” said Santa, “I’ve got to go!”
“Call the fire department,” suggested Elton.
“I’m not on fire!” said Santa.
“Everyone calls the fire department for emergencies!” said Elton.
The fire department arrived in a jiffy.  Chief Bumpkin took charge.  “Grab the hose, men!” he ordered.  “We’ll blow that suit off the Big Guy!”
“The hose?” asked Santa.  “I don’t think…”
Icy water blasted Santa off his feet.
“STOP!” spluttered Santa.
“Plan B!” ordered Chief Bumpkin.
The firemen picked up their axes to cut the suit off.
“No axes!” said Santa.
“Well,” said the Chief, “there’s always Plan C…”
The firemen divided into four groups, one by each arm, one by each leg.  On the count of three they pulled the suit to shreds.
“Great job!” said Chief Bumpkin.  The firemen shook hands, gathered up their hose, and left.
Santa sat glumly in a puddle.  “Now I have nothing to wear.”
“How about this?” suggested Mrs. Claus holding up Santa’s Bermuda shirt and shorts.
“It’s TWENTY BELOW ZERO!” said Santa.
“Good point.  Overalls?  Your bunny costume from Halloween?”
“I don’t like to mix my holidays,” said Santa.
“You’d better agree to something or you’re going to miss Christmas!”
Just then Elton returned breathlessly with a red velvet suit.
“How about this?” he asked.
It fit perfectly.
“I love it!” Santa exclaimed.  Then he sniffed.  “Does anyone else smell reindeer?”
“Not me,” said Elton.
Santa climbed aboard the sleigh.  “Merry Christmas!” he called.

And away he flew in the red velvet suit he’s worn ever since.



So now!  Everyone filled with confidence about their entries?  I certainly hope so after that display!  Never let it be said that I’m not willing to be a fool for my art 🙂

I can’t wait to read all of your (much better!) stories!  I hope there will be a lot – the more the merrier!  And there are still 4+ days to write, so you have time if you haven’t written yet and want to join the fun.  Feel free to spread the word to your writing friends as well.

Remember to put your post-specific link (not your general blog link or people will find the wrong page if you post again before the contest is over) in the list below!

Don’t miss 38 entries in the comment section below (which thanks to Penny I’ve figured out how to link, so if you click on the person’s name it will take you directly to that story so you can read and comment… just give it a second to load 🙂  And this intelligence just in – if you’re trying to work these links on iPad or iPhone you will need the google Chrome app to get them to work – Safari won’t do it.)
Nancy – Toby’s Christmas: Ho Ho Ho Or No No No?
Suzy – Reindeer In The Eggnog
Mandy – One Squirrelly Christmas
Lakshmy – Santa’s Stocking
Kristen – The Great Christmas Morning Mix-Up
Teresa S – Always Ready Or Not
Michele – Santa Is Stuck
Kim – Popcorn For Santa On Christmas Eve
Ryan (Rino) – The Adventures Of Jonathan James
Alissa – Santa’s Stuck On the Toilet
Kirsten (not to be confused with Kristen above) – Blackout!
Karen – Santa’s New Toy-Making Machine
Anne – The Gingerbread House Disaster
Ann – The Christmas Present
Sue – Pup Unwrapped
Tim – O Deer
Diane – Frank’s Adventure With Santa And The Elves
Karen Z – Santa’s Snow Angel
Michelle S – Cookies For Papa Noel
Pat – Santa’s Paws
Vicki – Mrs. Claus Saves Christmas
Charlotte – Goldilocks’s Night Before Christmas
Susan – The Christmas Wagon
Pia – Santa Baby
Rachel – Fresh Frosting
Bonnie – The Sound And Smell Of Christmas
Martha – A Christmas Surprise
Patty – Santa’s Special Gift
Susan S – Snowman On A Roll
Kristen 2 – No Sleep For Santa (same author as The Great Christmas Morning Mix-Up above)
Debbie – Home For Christmas
Rita – George’s Christmas Present: A True Story
Sue – Blue Latkes And Salsa
Ruth – Santa Claus Has Lost His Voice
Heather – Behind Schedule
Morgan – A Brother For Christmas
Kelly – Happy Birthday Bambino
Kristen S – Dasher Does A Dash


Happy Writing and Happy Holiday Season!!! 🙂

Perfect Picture Book Friday – Turkey Trouble AND Announcing The 3rd Annual Holiday Writing Contest!!!

68 Comments

So many great things to share today!

First, a Perfect Picture Book just right for this week!

Title: Turkey Trouble
Written By: Wendi Silvano
Illustrated By: Lee Harper
Amazon Children’s Publishing/Two Lions, Oct. 2009, Fiction

Suitable For Ages: 4-8

Themes/Topics: problem solving, holidays, animals

Opening: “Turkey was in trouble.  Bad trouble.  The kind of trouble where it’s almost Thanksgiving… and you’re the main course.  But Turkey had an idea…“

Brief Synopsis: In an attempt not to be Thanksgiving dinner, Turkey tries to disguise himself as another animal.  After all, “Farmer Jake wouldn’t eat a horse for Thanksgiving…”  But for one reason or another, no disguise is quite right.  Will Turkey be dinner after all?

Links To Resources: Children can think up or draw their own disguises for Turkey.  Children can think up what would make a good Thanksgiving dinner besides turkey.  Turkey contemplates disguising himself as Rooster and rejects the idea – discuss how are Turkey and Rooster alike?  How are they different?  Here’s a great Activity Guide recommended by the author, Wendi Silvano.  Very fun activity HERE.

Why I Like This Book: The concept of this book is fun.  Haven’t we all imagined turkeys trying to come up with a way to escape being Thanksgiving dinner?  Turkey has a plan.  And when Plan A… and B… and C… don’t work, he proves that he’s resourceful by coming up with a backup plan that does the trick.  For now…  But the art is what puts this cute story over the top.  You have GOT to see Turkey in his various disguises!  It would be a pretty tough audience who wouldn’t at least chuckle over Turkey dressed up as a horse, cow, etc.  The short simple text is perfect for a wide range of ages, and kids will have fun guessing, at least the first time through, what Turkey’s going to think up next 🙂  And after this, you’re probably going to want to read Turkey Claus 🙂

For the complete list of books with resources, please visit Perfect Picture Books.

Now then!  As per approximately half of your requests from Monday’s informal poll, may I present

The 3rd Annual Holiday Contest!!!


The Contest:  Write a children’s story about a Holiday Mishap, mix-up, miscommunication, mistake, or potential disaster (a la Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer :)).  Your story may be poetry or prose, silly or serious or sweet, religious or not, based on Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa or whatever you celebrate, but is not to exceed 350 words (aren’t I being generous?! 🙂  It can be as short as you like, but no more than 350!)  Did the dog knock over the Christmas Tree?  Did little Johnny’s costume get grape juice all over it moments before the holiday pageant?  Did the menorah go missing?  Did travel arrangements get snarled or miscommunicated?  Did Santa’s sleigh have to make an emergency landing?  The field is wide open!  Have fun!  And I’m adding, because so many people have mentioned this, the story does not have to be funny!  You can have a holiday mishap that is serious or sweet or mysterious…  Please don’t feel that you have to go the humor route!

Post:  Your entry should be posted on your blog between Monday December 9 and Friday December 13 at 11:59 PM EST (no WYRI or PPBF that week), and your post-specific link should be added to the link list on the official holiday contest post which will go up on my blog on Monday December 9 and remain up through Sunday December 15.  If you don’t have a blog but would like to enter, please copy and paste your entry into the comments on my December 9th post.  (If anyone has trouble commenting, which unfortunately happens, please email me and I’ll post your entry for you!)
The Judging:  My lovely assistant(s) and I will narrow down the entrants to 6-12 finalists (depending on the number of entries) which will be posted here on Monday December 16 for you to vote on for a winner.  The vote will be closed on Wednesday December 18 at 5 PM EST and the winners will be announced on Thursday December 19.  Whoever gets the most votes will be first and so on down to sixth place.  Remember, judging criteria will be kid appeal/friendliness, suitability of mishap, quality of story, and quality of writing.
The Prizes!:  Well, I hope these prizes are going to knock your socks off!!!  In the spirit of the holidays, winners will be named for 1st – 6th place.  In addition to the incredible fame of being able to say you won (or placed in) the Pretty Much World Famous 3rd Annual Holiday Contest, the following AMAZING prizes will be awarded:

 – A Picture Book Manuscript Read and Written Critique by Karen Boss, Editor at Charlesbridge!!! (Priceless!)  Karen Boss is the editorial assistant at Charlesbridge Publishing in Watertown, MA. She has a master’s degree in children’s literature from Simmons College and is currently editing projects that range from picture books for younger readers to picture books for older readers to middle-grade novels, both fiction and nonfiction. (But let’s face it, folks!  You’re getting YOUR picture book manuscript in front of an actual editor at a highly regarded publishing house!  Who knows where that could lead?)

 – A Gold Membership to Julie Hedlund’s 12×12 in 2014 (a $100 value)
    Little GOLDen Book Membership includes:

  • Full access (view and post) to the Main 12 x 12 Forum and Critique Connect (where you can find critique partners)
  • Access to the members-only 12 x 12 Facebook Group
  • Ability to view the Events, Member Books, Videos/Trailers and Help An Author Out (HAAO) sections of the 12 x 12 Forum
  • Opportunity to win craft-related prizes from the monthly featured authors
  • Full (view and post) access to the Events, Member Books, Video/Trailers and HAAO sections of the 12 x 12 Forum
  • FULL (view and post) access to these additional sections of the 12 x 12 Forum: Query Corner (get feedback on your query letters), Pitch Perfect (get feedback on loglines and pitches), and Manuscript Makeover (get feedback on the first 250 words of your ms)
  • Access to the Submission Station section of the 12 x 12 Forum, which will provide information about that month’s agent or editor and instructions on how to submit to him or her.

 – 2 signed Picture Books by Linda Ashman – RAIN! and PEACE, BABY! (Keep for yourself or give as a holiday gift to a little person in your life :)) AND
    a $25 Amazon Gift Card

 – A Picture Book Manuscript Critique by Erin Molta Erin is an experienced senior editor of picture book, early readers, chapter, middle grade, and YA books, as well as novelty and licensed titles. She has been in childrens publishing for more than twenty years and has a keen understanding of early reader through YA audiences. She has an excellent reputation with established authors, illustrators, and agents.

 – Enrollment in the Online Writing course Making Picture Book Magic in the month of your choice (a $99 value)

 – A signed copy of TUGBOAT by Michael Garland (not even released yet!) AND
    a signed copy of A TROOP IS A GROUP OF MONKEYS by Julie Hedlund (Keep for yourself or give as a holiday gift to a little person in your life :))  AND
    a $25 Amazon Gift Card

 – A Picture Book Manuscript Critique from author/illustrator Sarah Frances Hardy, author and illustrator of PUZZLED BY PINK (Viking Juvenile, April 2012) and the forthcoming PAINT ME!. A great choice for someone who is both an author and an illustrator – and I know we have quite a few of those here 🙂

 – 2014 Children’s Writer’s & Illustrator’s Market by Chuck Sambuchino (your choice of paperback or Kindle edition)

 – The Crock Of Charms Anthology – a three volume collection of stories for readers of all ages from writers all over the world including some you probably know 🙂  Robyn Campbell, Cheryl Secomb, Clarike Bowman-Jahn, Theresa Milstein, Lenny Lee, and me, to name a few 🙂

(Run your mouse over the prizes, books, authors, etc… most of them are links)

The Contest Winner will have first choice of the prizes.  2nd place will have next choice of what’s left and so on.  (I’m doing it this way in the hopes that no one will get something they already have – for example, if you’ve already signed on for Julie’s 12×12 or taken Making Picture Book Magic or own RAIN! and PEACE, BABY! etc. and also because I think all the prizes are fabulous and I wouldn’t want to make anyone feel less valued by giving them as 6th place as opposed to 1st.)

Wow!  I hope you think everything on that list would be worth getting!  Plus bragging rights!  So put on your thinking caps!  Sharpen your pencils!  Fire up your imagination!  And start writing those holiday stories 🙂  You’ve got 2 whole weeks! (plus a couple extra days thanks to the people who wanted a little more time 🙂  Actually, if you were to post on Friday December 13 you have 3 weeks from today!)

AND, as if all that Perfect Picture Book and Holiday Contest Excitement weren’t enough, tune in Monday for my official Holiday Gift-Giving Guide For Writers (a link you’re going to want to give everyone you know so they’ll get you the right presents this holiday season! :))

You’ve probably forgotten all about PPBF by now, so let me remind all you lovely PPBF bloggers to please leave your post-specific link in the list below so we can all come visit you! (assuming we’re not so giddy at the prospect of those prizes that we can’t concentrate on anything but starting our Holiday Contest stories! :))

Have a great weekend everyone! 🙂

Halloweensie Contest 2013 WINNERS!!!

104 Comments

Hey!

What are you all doing here?

Don’t you know it’s Thursday?

I don’t post on Thursdays.

Go home.

I’ll see you tomorrow for Perfect Picture Books.

Oh!

You’re here for a reason?

Well, I’ll be darned!

You must have all come over to hear about my hangnail!

Aren’t you just the sweetest to be so concerned!

Let me tell you, it’s a doozy.  It started on Monday when I was washing the dishes.  It was just that little tiny painful beginning, you know?  And I noticed it when I went to dry my hands and that painful little poinky end got caught on the dish towel and I was like, “Oh, man!  Not a hangnail!”….

Wait a minute.

You’re all managing to look very patient.

But I heard yawning…

…and I see some eye-rolling in the back over there….

You didn’t really come over to hear about my hangnail, DID you!

I KNEW it!

So why are you here on a Thursday?

Go home, I tell you!

Jeez Louise!  You’d think I had nothing better to do than to entertain you lot with the

ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE HALLOWEENSIE CONTEST WINNERS!!!!!

Heeheehee!  I’m sorry!  I just can’t help myself.  Heeheehee.  I don’t even HAVE a hangnail!  Heeheeheeheehee!

Okay, really.  I’m sorry for tormenting you with my juvenile behavior.  Let’s start with a few surprises, shall we?

As you are all aware by now, we had a record turnout for the Halloweensie Contest – 79 entries!

I was thrilled beyond measure to see so many wonderful stories!

But with large entry numbers come hard choices.  My assistant judges and I worked hard to winnow the total down to a manageable number of finalists that we felt were truly all-around deserving of that distinction, and those were the ones we presented to you on Monday for your vote.

There were, however, many other entries that were outstanding in certain areas even though they might not have qualified all-around for one reason or another.

So my assistant judges and I would like to award recognition and a small prize to the following authors for the following merits:

1.  For Honorable Mention In The Competition As A Whole:
     Vivian Kirkfield for Halloween Dance Party Countdown
     Carrie Finison for Callie’s Prize-Winning Potion
     Lauri Meyers for White Cat’s Halloween
     Suzy Levinson for Black Cat Goes To Spooky School

2.  For Best Use of Poetic Language:
     Kathy Moncrief for Halloween Night!
     Heather Greene for Untitled (Hallowed Eve)
     Julie Rowan-Zoch for Halloween Comes To The Farm
     Bradin Farnworth for The Witches’ Song
     Kimberley Moran for Black Glass Cat

3. For Spookiest Entry: (not already in the finals)
     Teresa M.I. Schaefer for Grim Concoction
     Laura Shovan for The Old Hotel
     Jackie Wellington for A Disappearing Act
     Deirdre Sheridan Englehart for The Spookiest Night!

4.  For Funniest Entry: (not already in the finals)
     Mike Allegra for Spooky Piggy
     Janet Johnson for Brewster’s Trick
     Sheila Renfro for Helga’s Black Cat Search

5.  For Sweetest/Cutest Entry: (not already in the finals)
     Deb for Boo: The Scaredy Halloweenie Cat

6.  For Great Kid Appeal: (not already in the finals)
     Michelle Barnes for The Witching Hour
     Meg Miller for The Halloween CAW Ball
     Kirsten Bock for Scare D-Cat

7.  For Most Original Format:
     Nancy Hatch for Cackle… The Spooky Black Cat – in rap! 🙂

8.  For Best All-Around Entry By A Newcomer To The Blog: (not already in the finals)
     Juliana Lee for Sleepless Hallow’s Eve
     Doris K. Stone for The Fat Black Cat Sat

9.  For Favorite Character:
     Stacy Couch for her Ninja Ballerina in Olivia vs. The Witch 🙂

Congratulations to all of you for fantastic elements of your stories!  You may all email me at susanna[at]susannahill[dot]com to collect your prize, which is your choice of one of the following: (the titles are all links so you can go see what they’re about)

For Kindle:
The Emotion Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide To Character Expression by Angela Ackerman & Becca Puglisi , OR

The Postitive Trait Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide To Character Attributes by Angela Ackerman & Becca Puglisi, OR

The Negative Trait Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide To Character Flaws by Angela Ackerman & Becca Puglisi, OR

In paperback:
Show & Tell In A Nutshell: Demonstrated Transitions From Telling To Showing by Jessica Bell

And now…

…the moment you’ve all been waiting for…

…a picture of my hangnail!

… THE WINNERS OF THE 2013 HALLOWEENSIE CONTEST ACCORDING TO THE POPULAR VOTE!!! (which did not have the consideration to work out very neatly as you will see…)

In First Place, winner of a picture book manuscript critique from Corey Rosen Schwartz (celebrated author of The Three Ninja Pigs and other wonderful picture books) AND a copy of Linda Ashman’s brand new Nuts & Bolts Guide To Writing Picture Books…

DDDDDRRRRRUUUUUMMMMMRRRRROOOOOLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!

Nata Romeo
for Drusella, The Black Spooky Cat

Congratulations, Nata!!!

In Second Place, winner of a picture book manuscript critique AND a query letter critique from Heather Ayris Burnell, author of Bedtime Monster,

Marcie Rinka Wessels
for Miss Sadie

Congratulations, Marcie!!!

In Third Place, we have a tie between

Eric Weibel          and          Margaret Greenias
      for The Dare                  for One Ghostly Halloween

One of them will win the signed copies of Halloween Hustle by Charlotte Gunnufson, The Monster Who Lost His Mean by Tiffany Haber, and Marathon Mouse by Amy Dixon, which was the original 3rd prize.  The other will win The Writer’s Workout: 366 Tips, Task andTechniques From Your Writing Coach by Christina Katz AND Rip The Page: Adventures In Creative Writing by Karen Benke – they will have to fight amongst themselves and/or come up with a way to split and share the spoils 🙂

Congratulations, Erik and Margaret!!!

In Fifth Place, we have another tie! between

Laura Renauld          and          Cheryl Secomb
for Foe or Friend?                     for On Halloween

Since I didn’t previously announce prizes past 3rd, I’m going to keep this tie fair by awarding both Laura and Cheryl a $20 Amazon Gift Certificate – that way they won’t have to fight like Erik and Margaret 🙂

Congratulations, Laura and Cheryl!!!

All the winners should email me at susanna[at]susannahill[dot]com with the subject heading Prize Winner so we can work out details for you to receive your prizes!  Finalists who did not finish in the top 6 (Joanna, Nancy, Katie, Donna and Buffy) may also contact me for their choice of the Kindle or paperback prizes listed above.

Congratulations again to all our winners – it was a stiff competition!! – and congratulations to EVERYONE who wrote and entered a story in the contest.  You all deserve a huge round of applause, a confetti parade, and a large amount of chocolate cake 🙂

Thank you to everyone who helped make this contest SO MUCH FUN, whether by writing an entry, reading people’s stories, leaving comments for the authors, and/or voting in the finals.  It’s because of all of you that this contest was such a success, so many, many thanks from the bottom of my heart!

And before we go, I will give you all advance warning so you can start planning a little time into your December schedule…

The 3rd Annual Holiday Writing Contest will be coming up sometime in the neighborhood of December 11-18.  I’m running it a little bit earlier this year so we can all fully enjoy it and still have time for last minute holiday things.  And to whet your appetites and get your thinking caps on, I will tell you that first prize is something AWESOME!  A picture book manuscript read and critique by an actual editor at an actual highly regarded publishing house!!!  But that is all I’m saying for now 🙂  You will just have to stay tuned for more details as the Holiday Contest approaches.  And I will do my best to post the rules well in advance so you all have time to work on your stories!

Have a terrific Thursday everyone, and thanks again for making the Halloweensie Contest such a wonderful time for all! 🙂

Happy Columbus Day! AND Announcing The 3rd Annual Halloweensie Contest!!!

53 Comments

Happy Columbus Day, Everyone!

You know what Columbus Day means, don’t you?  It’s time for a little (twisted) history:

Four score and seven years ago… plus a couple hundred… Columbus set sail from Peppermint Bay on the Good Ship Lollypop,

searching desperately for a recipe for a perfect pie crust that would be light and flaky and never tough.  Instead, he found a brave new world.  “Woe is me!” he wailed.  “What use is a new land if I cannot bake a decent pie?”  Pocahontas led him through the wilderness to the Culinary Institute of America but he was expelled when after 6 months his pie crust still had the consistency of truck tires.  “Who cares?” he shouted maniacally as he was led away in footie pajamas.  “You guys might make better pie crust, but I’ve got my own holiday!  So nanny-nanny-poo-poo!”  And he was right, because lo and behold these many years later we are thankful and celebrate ole Chris because we don’t have work or school on his holiday, and anyone can just buy a pie crust any old time from the frozen food section of the grocery store.

And if that is not the version you’re familiar with, well, lets just say there’s a reason it’s called hiSTORY!

Either way, the fact that we don’t have work or school means that we are here… ready… and waiting with baited breath (which, what does that mean really?  That your breath smells like bait?  Because that would be icky… but I digress…)  We are here, and ready for the announcement of…..

The 3rd Annual HALLOWEENSIE CONTEST!!!!!
That’s right!  It’s time!

courtesy google images

The Contest:  write a 100 word Halloween story appropriate for children (title not included in the 100 words), using the words spooky, black cat, and cackle.   Your story can be scary, funny or anything in between, poetry or prose, but it will only count for the contest if it includes those 3 words (you can count black cat as one word) and is 100 words (you can go under, but not over!)  Get it?  Halloweensie – because it’s not very long and it’s for little people 🙂  (And yes, I know 100 words is short but that’s part of the fun and the challenge!  We got over 40 fantastic entries last year so I know you can do it!)

Post your story on your blog between 12:00 AM EDT Monday October 28th and Thursday October 31st by 11:59 PM EDT and add your post-specific link to the list that will accompany my October 28th post.  There will be no Would You Read It that week, so the post and the list of links will stay up all week for everyone to enjoy.  If you don’t have a blog and would like to enter, you can simply copy and paste your entry in the comments section of that post once it’s up.

The Judge: my lovely assistant and I will narrow down the entrants to 3 (hee hee hee – you know how much trouble I have with only 3, so we’ll see) top choices which will be posted here and voted on for a winner on Monday November 4th.  The winner will be announced with Would You Read It on Wednesday November 6th.  If we get more than 20 entries, I will post 6 finalists and give prizes for 1st through 3rd.

The Prize:  yeah… I’m still working on the prizes 🙂  Feel free to chime in the comments if there’s something you’d particularly like to win! 🙂  But prizes will include (in some way, shape, or form) a hardcover copy of Charlotte Gunnufson’s picture book Halloween Hustle and an e-pub or PDF copy (winner’s choice) of Linda Ashman’s new Nuts And Bolts Guide to writing picture books.  Plus whatever else I dream up in the meantime 🙂

So that’s it!  Have a marvelous Monday, everyone, and use that Columbus Day holiday free time to get started thinking about your Halloweensie Contest entry!

Have fun! 🙂

Would You Read It Wednesday #108 – Proberta Gerber And The Terrible Mess (PB) PLUS The September Pitch Pick

52 Comments

Woo-hoo!

It’s Would You Read It Wednesday!

Let’s get this party started, shall we?

I motion that we begin with Something Chocolate!

Scout (who must still be known as Skunk Dog but is getting better) seconds the motion, and Jemma thirds it, so the motion carries!

Help yourselves to chocolate cupcakes with cream cheese icing!  (That way we get vegetable – from the cocoa BEAN – and dairy and protein from the cream CHEESE.  I am nothing if not concerned for your health and well-being, so I try to make sure we cover as many food groups as possible :))

Now then, I’ve got the September Pitch Pick ready to go and it’s only October 9th!  (Yes, it’s really me, and no, I am not feverish, nor is my mind being controlled by aliens… although that’s what I would say if my mind were being controlled by aliens, so I guess you never know… :))

So without further ado, let’s have a look-see at our new and improved pitches and vote for the one we think deserves a read by editor Erin Molta!

Here are our contenders:

#1 Kirsti
Upside Down In Frown Town – PB ages 3-8
Where Sam lives, smiling is frowned upon. But, no matter what he tries, he can’t wipe the smile off his face. Even a frowning contest doesn’t make a frowner out of Sam. When he can’t change himself, he decides to change the town instead.

#2 Kathy
The Garden Disaster – PB ages 4-7

Jasmine’s daily chore is to collect pollen and nectar, but she never seems to collect enough. Her Mom said it’s because she plays too much, but Jasmine knows the real reason.  Today was different though. Today a new hairy beast showed up!  Jasmine must think up a great idea to outsmart this new bee chasing beast and then she will finally be able to fill her bucket to the tippy-top.
The Garden Disaster is a 480 Word PB for early readers ages 4-7.

#3 Wendi
The Superhero Rejects – MG
Morphus is ashamed that his superpower is turning into lame objects like paper clips, rubber bands and light bulbs. At ZITS (The Zapdor Institute for the Training of Superheroes), he and the other Superhero Rejects are relegated to practice their pathetic skills in the old gym in the basement. When the nefarious Scorpius attacks the school and puts everyone upstairs into a hypnotic trance, Morphus and his band of rejects might be the only ones that can save them!

#4 Donna
The Lightbulb And The Lab Coat – PB ages 8-12
Thomas Edison befriends an orphaned robin, who provides him with companionship and inspiration as he faces a tight deadline to deliver the first incandescent light bulb. As tests are feverously conducted to find the right bulb filament, the industrious robin shows him that the answer was right under his nose all the time!

Please cast your vote below for the pitch you feel most deserves a read by Erin by Sunday October 13 at 11:59 PM EDT.  Thank you all so much!


Today’s pitch comes to us from Linda, who has visited us a couple times before (WYRI #79 – Twitch (MG) and WYRI #72 – The Good For Plenty Bibs (PB) and WYRI # 60 – Alpha Bitty (PB) – did I miss any Linda? :)).  Linda is a former gifted and talented teacher and the author of a number of books including the multi-award winning picture book, The Blue Roses.  Please take a moment to visit her website at www.lindaboyden.com.

Here is her pitch:

Working Title: Proberta Gerber And The Terrible Mess
Age/Genre: Picture Book (ages 4-8)
The Pitch: Once upon a time Proberta Gerber once had a purple and pink bedroom; now all she has is a terrible mess. Dad wonders why? Big brother Arbuckle helps: “Clean one thing at a time. Start with your bed.” Proberta can’t find it. She blames the mess on the Dust Bunnies who live in her closet, but Mom says, “Stay there until it is cleaned, young lady.” Sniffling, Proberta makes a special wish for help. And who appears? The REAL Dust Bunnies who help, but not in the way she thinks. 

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 Linda 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.  There are openings in January so you have a little time to polish up your pitches and send them for your chance to be read by editor Erin Molta!

Linda is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch!  I just got the final proofs for the Crock of Charms Anthology project I participated in (along with a few devoted readers from this blog :)) and I am looking forward to seeing it in print!  I will share full details when they are available, hopefully by early December 🙂

Have a wonderful Wednesday, everyone!

Ready, set, WRITE! (or read, or teach, or go play on the swings, or whatever happens to be on your agenda today :))

Would You Read It Wednesday #107 – The Great UFO Hunt (ER) PLUS Straight From The Editor

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I love my dogs.

I really do.

They keep me company while I work.  They are warm and cuddly and sweet and lovable.  They’re always up for an outing if the writing is not going well.

Really, how can you not love these two?
(Even though they are blurry because it’s next to impossible
to get them both in the same picture :))

But yesterday?

Yes, well, yesterday, I can’t say I was terribly happy with either one of them.

First, on a perfectly lovely morning run, during which I don’t recall losing sight of Scout (although Jemma disappeared for a while to investigate the neighbor’s compost heap), Scout somehow managed to get skunked.

we run here – no cars, so no leashes

Those of you who have dogs know that anything to do with skunks IS NOT FUN!

How could I have not seen it happen?  I was right there!

Nevertheless, skunked she was.  And I didn’t have time to wash her – I had to get my daughter to school!  So I had to gate her in the kitchen, open all the windows, and pray that her extreme odor wouldn’t asphyxiate either dog while I was gone and that I would somehow be able to get the smell out of the house when I returned.

Then came the bathing.

Although she will get in any scummy, algae covered, filth-laden mud puddle, pond or stream as long as it isn’t actually iced over, Scout does NOT like to be bathed!

And when I am alone, with no one to hold on to her, bathing Scout is an Olympic sport, let me tell you!

Afterwards, she sulked.

See?  She wouldn’t even look at me.

Then, while she was still QUITE wet (it’s hard to comprehend how much water that coat holds if you haven’t experienced it firsthand), the guy showed up out of nowhere to service the furnace.

“But you said October 3rd!” I sputtered, when he insisted the dogs be shut up before he got out of the truck.

So I had to shut them in my office… which now smells like wet skunk dog with a trace of lemon dish soap.  Quite the scent.  I think Febreze will be introducing it this fall.

So then, when he finally left, I put them out in hopes of airing out the house…

… and they conveniently found something dead to roll in….

…so we had another round of baths….

…and now my house smells like wet skunk dog mixed with barely concealed dead animal and a trace of lemon dish soap.

Truthfully it’s a miracle I was even able to write this 🙂

I think that calls for Something Chocolate if anything ever did!

Let’s go hog wild!!! (with many thanks to Kathy P. for the photo!! :))

It’s called Candy Shop Truffle!
(but it kind of looks like cereal so let’s pretend it’s good for us :))

So, after all that!, we have the August Straight From The Editor.  You will recall that Lisa won the August Pitch Pick with her pitch for The Golden Egg, a PB for ages 5-8.

Here is her pitch:

The golden egg that doesn’t hatch creates quite a stir among the feathered friends on the farm. The Eggsperts are called and the Whisperers weigh in. In the end, Mother Hen must decide whether to follow their advice or listen to her heart.

And here is what Erin had to say:

This sounds like it has potential, but in order for an editor to be intrigued you have to clarify it a bit. I love the Eggsperts and can imagine all the other hens giving advice, but who are the Whisperers? Are they the horses, or the cows? Some other animal entirely? If so, if you are envisioning the horses, perhaps you can say something like the Whisperers neighed their opinions or the Whisperers mooed their recommendations. If it’s a snake then the Whisperers would hiss . . .  It helps to draw a picture in the reader’s mind.  Good luck!

As always, I find Erin’s comments interesting and enlightening!  Thank you, Erin, and thank you Lisa!

Now, onto today’s pitch which comes to us from Kari who says, “I live in upstate NY and resurrected this children’s series I started way back in elementary school.  My stories are based in part on things that happened to me and my friends when we were younger.  Living in a very small town in the middle of nowhere, you had to make your own fun, just like Mekayla and her friends do.”

Twitter (I just joined twitter so there’s not much there yet):https://twitter.com/kariwithey 

Here is her pitch:

Working Title: The Great UFO Hunt
Age/Genre: Early Reader
The Pitch: Aspiring space explorer Mekayla is convinced she sees a UFO crash land in the woods behind her house.  But despite finding evidence of something from another world, no one but her friends believe her!  With weird things happening in their small, sleepy town, Mekayla and her friends are out to save their town and prove life from outerspace does exist.

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 Kari 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.  There are openings in January so you have a little time to polish up your pitches and send yours for your chance to be read by editor Erin Molta!

Kari is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch!  I am looking forward to when my house no longer smells like wet skunk dog with barely concealed dead animal and a trace of lemon dish soap!

See you all on Friday for PPBF!

Have a wonderful Wednesday, everyone! 🙂