The 2022 Halloweensie Contest WINNERS!!!

December 1, 2022January 14, 202318 Comments

Gather ‘round, my friends.

Plump up your pillows.

Burrow into your blankets.

Wrap your hands around a gently steaming mug of sweet hot chocolate.

All comfy and cozy?

Lovely! It’s time for a heartwarming story.

Continue reading →

The 12th Annual Halloweensie Writing Contest aahhhrrrooooOOOOO!!!

October 29, 2022February 14, 20232,677 Comments

Hi Everyone. Posting of finalists is delayed. I’m not exactly sure when they’ll be up, but it will be as soon as possible. Likely another week.

Eye of newt and dragon fang! It’s time for . . .

The 12th Annual Halloweensie Writing Contest!!!

~ for children’s writers ~

THE CONTEST: write a 100 word Halloween story appropriate for children (children here defined as 12 and under) (title not included in word count) using the words slither, treat, and scare.

Your story can be poetry or prose, scary, funny, sweet, or anything in between, but it will only count for the contest if it includes those 3 words and is 100 words. Get it? Halloweensie – because it’s not very long and it’s for little people 😊
You can go under the word count but not over!
Title is not included in the word count.
You may use the words in any form i.e. slithery (yes, it’s a word, we looked it up 😊), treated, scary, etc, etc, whathaveyou 😊
You are welcome to enter more than one entry – just remember you’ll be competing against yourself 😊
No illustration notes please!

And yes, I know 100 words is short, but that’s part of the fun and the challenge!

POST: your story in the comment section of the Official Contest Post (that’s this one!)( between Right NOW this very second! and 11:59PM Eastern Monday October 31st (So you have 3 full days to post – today, tomorrow, and Monday.)

For those of you who would also like to post on your blogs, please feel free to do so! You are welcome to include the link to your blog with your entry in the comment section of the Official Contest Post so that people can come visit your blog, but all entries must be posted in the comment section of THIS Post between right now and Monday October 31st at 11:59PM Eastern.
If you have difficulty posting your entry to the comments, which unfortunately sometimes happens, you may email your entry to me and I’ll post it for you! [susanna[at]susannahill[dot]com Please place your entry in the body of the email including your title, byline (that means who the story is by – you! – so for example, By Jane Doe) and word count at the top – NO ATTACHMENTS! and please do not submit any entries before the official opening of the contest at 12:01 AM Saturday October 29th. They will not be accepted.
I know how hard you all work on your entries, and how anxious you are to get them posted, but please try to be a little patient if your entry doesn’t show up immediately. Many comments have to be manually approved, and it sometimes takes me a little while to post entries that come in by email. I promise I will get to everything as soon as I can. I try never to leave my desk during contests, but sometimes it’s unavoidable 😊

THE JUDGING: over the following days, my devoted assistants and I will read and re-read and narrow down the entries to a finalist field of about 12 which will be posted here for you to vote on I hope by Saturday November 5th (though if the judging takes longer than expected it might be a little later – we will do our best! But fair warning I have two school visits that week and a long drive Friday.) The winners will be announced Tuesday November 8th (good lord willin’ and the creek don’t rise 😊)

Judging criteria will be as follows:

1. Kid-appeal! – These stories are intended for a young audience (ages 12 and under), so we’re looking for stories that children will enjoy and relate to.
2. Halloweeniness – the rules state a Halloween story, so it must be crystal clear that the story is about Halloween, not just some random spooky night.
3. Use of all 3 required words and whether you came it at 100 words or less.
4. Quality of story – entries must tell a story, including a main character of some kind and a true story arc even if it’s tiny 😊 Entries must not be merely descriptions or mood pieces.
5. Quality of Writing: check your spelling, grammar, punctuation etc. If you’re going to rhyme, give us your best 😊 Use and flow of language, correctness of mechanics, excellence of rhyme and meter if you use it, PROOFREADING!
6. Originality and creativity – because that is often what sets one story above another.
7. How well you followed the Submission Guidelines – agents and editors expect professionalism. This is a chance to practice making sure you read and follow specified guidelines. If you don’t follow agent and editor submission guidelines, they won’t even read your submission.

THE PRIZES: So amazing! What wonderful, generous people we have in our kidlit community! Just wait til you see what you can win!

⭐️ Rhyme & Meter Self Study Course – Renee LaTulippe Renée M. LaTulippe is the author of The Crab Ballet (Cameron Kids/Abrams, 2022) and Limelight: Theater Poems to Perform (Charlesbridge, 2024) and has poems published in many anthologies including No World Too Big, Night Wishes, School People, National Geographic’s The Poetry of US, One Minute Till Bedtime, Poems Are Teachers, ThankU: Poems of Gratitude, and A World Full of Poems.

⭐️ Picture Book Manuscript Critique (Rhyming or Non-rhyming, Fiction or Nonfiction) with written feedback AND a 30-minute Zoom Chat with children’s author Vivian Kirkfield, author of PIPPA’S PASSOVER PLATE (Holiday House, 2019), SWEET DREAMS, SARAH (Creston Books, 2019), FOUR OTTERS TOBOGGAN (Pomegranate, 2019), MAKING THEIR VOICES HEARD: THE INSPIRING FRIENDSHIP OF ELLA FITZGERALD AND MARILYN MONROE (Little Bee Books, 2020), FROM HERE TO THERE: INVENTIONS THAT CHANGED THE WAY THE WORLD MOVES (Clarion Books, 2021), and SHOW ME HOW! BUILD YOUR CHILD’S SELF-ESTEEM THROUGH READING, CRAFTING AND COOKING (MoneyPenny Press Ltd, 2010)

⭐️ 30 Minute Zoom Ask Me Anything with Rosie Pova author of IF I WEREN’T WITH YOU (Spork, April 2017), SARAH’S SONG (Spork, September 2017), SUNDAY RAIN (Lantana Publishing, March 2021), THE SCHOOL OF FAILURE: A STORY ABOUT SUCCESS (Yehoo Press, May 2022), and for Middle Grade readers, HAILEY QUEEN PRANKING MAKES PERFECT: THE ALIEN ENCOUNTER (Spork, April 2017) Rosie does a lot of school visits and presentations, should that happen to be of interest for your Ask Me Anything.

⭐️ Picture Book Manuscript Critique (rhyming preferred) with Andrea Denish, author of EVERYONE LOVES A PARADE (Astra Young Readers, March 2020), and THE WAY WE SAY HELLO forthcoming from Starry Forest Books February 7, 2023

⭐️ Picture Book Critique (non-rhyming) with Becky Scharnhorst, author of MY SCHOOL STINKS! (Flamingo Books, July 2021) and THIS FIELD TRIP STINKS! (Flamingo Books, August 2022)

⭐️ Connecting With School Librarians! Fabulous Opportunity for published or soon to be published authors! Winner’s Choice of either a Zoom or phone chat about how to connect with school librarians and get their ear or an Ask Me Anything Zoom or phone chat about K-8th grade author visits from a librarian’s POV from Kathy Halsey. Kathy Halsey is Storyteller Academy’s Community Manager and Ambassador. She enjoys writing picture books, humor, and nonfiction. Kathy’s active in SCBWI and blogs with other kid lit writers on the GROG. She serves on the Choose to Read Ohio Advisory Council and speaks at educational and literary conferences. Kathy’s a former K-12 school librarian and children’s bookseller. She writes monthly author studies for the Reading for Research Month along with Keila Dawson.

Writer, librarian, bookseller, blogger Kathy Halsey

⭐️ 30 Minute Ask Me Anything Zoom Chat (anything relating to writing/publishing) with Penny Parker Klostermann, talented author of THERE WAS AN OLD DRAGON WHO SWALLOWED A KNIGHT (Random House 2015) and A COOKED-UP FAIRY TALE (Random House 2017) as well as the forthcoming SPIDER LADY: Nan Songer and Her Arachnid WWII Army (Astra/Calkins Creek 2025) and another as yet unannounced 😊

⭐️ Picture Book Manuscript Critique (Rhyming) PLUS Zoom Chat from developmental editor Lou Piccolo! Lou studied English Literature, creative writing and teaching at university in South Africa. After working as an EFL teacher in France for twenty years, she studied proofreading and editing before becoming a developmental editor of children’s and young adult’s literature for independent authors. She is a graduate of Renee LaTulippe’s Lyrical Language Lab – Punching Up Prose With Poetry course and Making Picture Book Magic, the in-house writer for Editions Entrefilet’s language-learning magazine ‘Go English Kids’ for children of 8-12 in France, and a traditionally published author of MG and YA fiction with Burlington Books.

⭐️ Picture Book Manuscript Critique PLUS Zoom Chat with Ellen Leventhal! Ellen is the author of DON’T EAT THE BLUEBONNETS (Spork, 2017), LOLA CAN’T LEAP (Spork, 2018), HAYFEST: A HOLIDAY QUEST (ABCs Press, 2010), and A FLOOD OF KINDNESS (WorthyKids, 2021)

⭐️ Picture Book Manuscript Critique (rhyming or non-rhyming) with Kelly Conroy whose poems have been published in 5 anthologies (10.10, wee words for wee ones, October 2021; BETTER THAN STARBUCKS, January 2022; THINGS WE EAT, Pomelo Books, March 2022; THINGS WE FEEL, Pomelo Books, July 2022; WHAT IS A FRIEND, Pomelo Books, October 2022) and also the author of a rhyming board book due out in 2025.

⭐️ 30 Minute Picture Book Zoom Critique Session with Lynne Marie

Lynne Marie is the accomplished author of Hedgehog Goes to Kindergarten – art by Anne Kennedy (Scholastic 2011), Hedgehog’s 100th Day of School – art by Lorna Hussey (Scholastic 2017), The Star of the Christmas Play — art by Lorna Hussey (Beaming Books 2018), Moldilocks and the 3 Scares — art by David Rodriguez Lorenzo (Sterling 2019 and Scholastic 2019), Let’s Eat! Mealtime Around the World — art by Parwinder Singh (Beaming Books 2019) and The Three Little Pigs And The Rocket Project — art by Wendy Fedan (Mac and Cheese Press 2022) and American Pie — art by Dea Lenihan (Dancing Flamingo Press, April 12, 2022)

⭐️ Picture Book Manuscript Critique (Rhyming or Non-rhyming, Fiction or Nonfiction) with a recording of first read-through by children’s author and poet Sarah Meade, contributor to HOP TO IT: POEMS TO GET YOU MOVING (Pomelo Books, 2020!)

⭐️ 20 Minute Zoom Ask Me Anything with Darshana Khiani, author of HOW TO WEAR A SARI (Versify, June 2021), I’M AN AMERICAN (Viking Books for Young Readers, May 2023), and THE BOYS OF KOH PANYEE (coming Fall 2023)

⭐️ Rate Your Story Speed Pass from Lynne Marie

And maybe I’ll have some extra picture books to add in here and there to sweeten the pie. . . 😊

Please join me in thanking these very generous authors and other writing professionals for contributing their books and writing expertise as prizes by visiting their websites and blogs, considering their books and services for birthday, holiday or other gift purchases, rating and/or reviewing their books on GoodReads, Amazon, B&N, or anywhere else if you like them, recommending them for school and library visits, recommending their books for school and library purchases, and supporting them in any other way you can dream up! 😊

Happy Writing! Happy Reading! And Happy Halloween!

For those of you having trouble commenting, I apologize for the fact that my site is apparently very temperamental! I can suggest the following: if you’re trying to post comments from a phone or tablet, try a computer – sometimes it works better than way. Chrome seems to work better with this site than some of the other browsers, although one dedicated individual, determined to be able to comment, has reported that she finally managed with Microsoft Edge. Thank you for trying – it’s so important for all of you to get to hear from each other!

Now, let the Halloweensie begin!

The 239 entries listed below are linked to where they appear in the comments so you can click on the titles and get right to them! (Assuming WordPress cooperates . . . fingers crossed!) Anyone who feels kind can start at the bottom of the list so those entries get some comments too! 🎃 😊

Apparition Preparation For A Scary Halloween – Royal Baysinger
Attack Of The Zornaks – Royal Baysinger
Down In the Halloween Cave – Royal Baysinger
Sisters – Sara Kruger
Halloween Nightmare – Helen Lai
The Follower – Marla Yablon
A Frightfully Fun Time – Susan E. Schipper
The Halloween Dream Team – Jenna Elyse Johnson
Skeleton Sam Settles The Score – Jennifer Cowan
Slug Slime – Vashti Verbowski
Ghost Recipes – Julia Pierre Hammond
Rainforest Halloween – Heather Kinser
On Snail-O-Ween – Heather Kinser
The Frightful Fugitive – Anne Lipton
Little Witchy – Elizabeth Myer zu Heringdorf
Get Your Glow On – Corine Timmer
Sally The Slug Has A Sweet Tooth – Eleanor Ann Peterson
In The Middle Of A Snack – Bridget Magee
Coming Around – Emily Durant
Piper’s Pickle – Colleen Murphy
Safe From Scares – Sarah Meade
Claudia Maude Clickerticker’s Costume Shop – Sarah Meade
What Do Witches Eat? – Kelly Clasen
Ghouldilocks And The Three Shares – Claire Blumenfeld
Closer – Reed Hilton-Eddy
SSSSSScary – Jen Subra
A Shady Halloween – Jennifer Lowe
Help! – Elizabeth James
Arabella’s Halloween Treat – Colleen Fogarty
Trick Or Treat? – Corine Timmer
The Coolest Halloween Costume – Carmen Castillo Gilbert
Green Goulash Stew – Claudine Pullen
The House With The Good Candy – Vanessa Konoval
The House Creatures’ Halloween – Lauri Meyers
When Good Luck Struck – Molly Ippolito
The Haunted House Halloween Challenge – Marty Bellis
Demon On The Line – Laura Polasek
The Spooky Halloween Parade – Janet Krauthamer
Mrs. Cleary’s Cats – Susan Eyerman
A Halloween Twist – Cheryl Simon
Wilhelmina The Witch – Ashlee MacCallum
Halloween Hater – Blaire Moore
The Halloween Bake-Off – Rose Cappelli
Trick-Or-Treat, Shoes To Eat – Ashley Sierra
Tricks Before Treats – Danielle S. Hammelef
Happy Halloween – Stephanie R. Mena
A Batty Halloween – Melissa Chupp
Who Whispers In The Dark? – Erika Romero
Interview With The Vampire – Helen Lai
Slug Life – Kim Wagner Nolan
Sapling’s Halloween – Lori Sheroan
Nothing Scared Alicia Bones – Christine Evans
The Mask – Su Ko
DON’T FLUSH YOUR GOLDFISH DOWN THE TOILET OR HE WILL COME BACK TO GET YOU ON HALLOWEEN NIGHT – Sue Ko
Going As Myself – Marianna Sacra
Halloween Snack – Debra Daugherty
Halloween-ing – Lori Himmel
Something Wriggling This Way Comes – Amy Chini
Edgar Allen Crow – Kathleen Jacobs
Queen Slug’s Halloween – Kelsey E. Gross
Pull Of The Moon – Darla Christie
There’s One In Every Class – Linda Staszak
Snollooween – Katie McEnaney
A (little) STEM Halloween – Jilanne Hoffman
Trick For Treat – Linda Starszak
Mattie, The Scaredy Tabby Cat – Janet Parkinson Bryce
Nothing Scares Me – Karen Condit
‘Twas Halloween Night – Sharon Coffey
A Hotdog Halloween Hullabaloo – Sharon Coffey
Their Trick, My Treat – Carol Van Gorp
Interview With The Vampire – Helen Lai
Halloween Night Light – Daniella Kaufman
Do Goblins Gobble? – Sally Yorke-Viney
Witchy-licious Stew – Charlotte Dixon
The Ghouliest Ghouls – Marta Cutler
The Scariest Bear – Marta Cutler
Halloween Is Different This Year – S.S. Lee
The Rattlesloth – Russell Wolff
The Eyes Have It – Marta Cutler
A Scare Affair – Lori C. Evans
Halloween Haul – Stephanie Maksymiw
Halloween Is Magic – Kristen Littlefield
Command Performance – Jamie Donahoe
Zombie In The House – Isabel Rodriguez
A Wise Disguise – Jill Purtee
Truck-Or-Treat – Mia Geiger
The Halloween Dare – Marty Findley
Witch’s Brew – Marty Findley
A Halloween Tail – Katie Lee Reinert
Creepy People – Sharon McCarthy
Happy Halloween – Elaine D’Alessandro
Scared Sssssilly – Julie Lerczak
A Spooky House – Gail Hartman
A Halloween Smile – Tonnye Fletcher
A Scary Dare – Mona Pease
Stop Your Bellyaching Soup, A Jump Rope Song – Debbie Meneses
A Spell Of Transformation – Meagan T. Gentry
First Flight – Paul Kurtz
I Scare You, You Scare Me – Paul Kurtz
Spiders vs. Snakes – Linda Schueler
Pot Of The Witch – Reed Ambrose
Snake In The Grass – Judy Sobanski
Beware Or Be Scared – Norah Colvin
Bat’s First Halloween – no author listed
Children Of The Bog – Melissa Miles
In Through My Window – Eric Sondergeld
A Squishy Scare – Stephanie Henson
The Last House – Janet Smart
Jack-O-Lantern – Darcee A. Freier
Beak-A-Boo! – Jill Lambert
Jackie Saves Halloween – Brittany Richman
The Treat – S. E. Cottrill
Little Vampire’s First Halloween – Sharon Dalgleish
Franny Fruit Bat’s Friendly Halloween – Amy LaMae Brewer
Chicken’s First Halloween – Emma Hay
Moldy Mayhem – Sue Lancaster
Sea Monster – Patricia Nozell
A Halloween Lullaby – Brigid Finucane
Tricky Treats – Lisa Lowe Stauffer
KA-RUNCH! – Donna Kurtz
Scary-Fairy – Donna Kurtz
Halloween Hop – Carole Gerber
Halloween Treat – Krista Legge
Sara’s Hairy Halloween – Jesse Anna Bornemann
Scary Goat Scam – Elenore Byrne
Goulentine – Michelle S. Kennedy
My Teacher Is A Creature – Mary Ann Cortez
The Haunted House – Karen Morgan
Trick or Treat: A Forest Halloween – Sarah Marhevsky
Shadows Come Crawling – Marlee Fuller-Morris
Slithering Snake – Deborah Hunt
Jack-oh-no! – Pollu Mendoza
Jack’s Lament – Steve Jankousky
Sense The Way – Sarah Hetu
Slither and Hiss: Trick or Treat? – Cathrene Youngquist
Pumpkin Jack – Jennifer Weingardt
The Peanut Butter Cup Song – Hannah Roy LaGrone
Gregory’s First Halloween – Morgan Lau
Scary Treats – Ken Major
Super Scary Sausages – Chris James
Midnight Snack – Deborah Foster
How To Trick-or-Treat If You’re A Snake – Abigail Mumford
Scarecrows Of Halloween – Helen Ishmurzin
Sneaky Snake – Jan Suhr
Who’s There? – Dawn Renee Young
Space Rangers And Skeletons – Cynthia Mackey
A Halloween For Willard – Krista Harrington
On Halloween Night – Amanda Flinn
Early Worm’s Halloween Birthday Wish – Curtis King
Sweetie The Parrot – Barbara DiMarco
The Annual Pumpkin Carving Contest – Laura Straut
Boo – Jean Martin
Pete The Smallest Pumpkin – Tiffany Hanson
Candy Corn’s Revenge – Tiffany Hanson
A Martian’s Halloween – Angela Calabrese
Candy Monster – Patricia MacMillan
Igor’s First Halloween – Danna Zeiger
You Can’t Scare Me – Danna Zeiger
Pumpkin, Skeleton, Wolverine – Brenna Jeanneret
Tricky Treats – Ashley Sutphen Delaney
Little Sister Saves The Night – Laurie Kaiser
The Sweetest Treat – Christina Shawn
All Hallows’ Eve – Sasha Sirisena-Green
Pumpkin Cat’s Turn – Bru Benson
Frankenslug – Ryann Jones
The Costume – Nina Nolan
The Best Halloween Ever – Dianne Borowski
Tricked – Geraldine V. Oades-Sese
Trista’s Treat Or Trick? – Krissy Massey
The Scariest Costume Of All – Abby N. Wooldridge
Halloween is the BEST, but. . . – Andi Chitty
It’s A Tricky Afterlife – Katie Schwartz
Spider’s Halloween – Cassy Clarcq
Slimon’s Halloween – Imelda Taylor
The Zombie Flop – Liz Kehrli
Melanie Monster – Lindsey LeBlanc
Switch Witch Swap – Julie Fruitticher Schroeder
S-S-Selma – Nancy Forbis-Stokes
A Halloween Adventure – Gregory E. Bray
Enter If You Dare – Trista Herring Baughman
Snake’s Sweet Treats – Nadia Ali
Costume Crisis – Keatley Eastman
Tricked By The Treats – Elizabeth Muster
Halloween Friend – Thelia Hutchinson
My Dreadfully Dangerous Walk – Susan Twiggs
Slither, Treat, Scare: A Halloween Story – Lynn Greenway
I’m Not That Scared – Allison Gray
The Halloween Prize – Mary Rudzinski
Portia Pumpkin Proclaims – Judy Caldwell Hughes
Pookie The Pomeranian’s Halloween Wish – Stephanie Jackson
Boo The Ghost Gets Beaten – Stephanie Jackson
Costume Drama – David Cobb
Slither Spook – Jessica Milo
Samira’s Potion – Jessica Milo
Sabrina Squirrel Does Not Scare Easily – Liz Gill
Snake’s Stealthy Solution – Kira Barrett
What Did You See? – Kathleen Mazurowski
Father Knows Best – Janice Kay
The Costume – Amy Duchene
Trick Or Treat – Laura Seely-Pollack
Many Happy Resquirms – Diana Webb
Theodore Turkey’s Halloween Hunt – Mary-Catherine Amadu
Ghost Finds His Groove – Cindy Greene
Weird Halloween Treats – Una Belle Townsend
The Jabberwocks Of Halloween – Jenny Bowman
Sooner And Sooner Every Year! – Stephanie Henson
A Slimy Halloween: Halloweenie Competition – Erin Buhr
Candy Night – Anne Weaver
Growing Candy Apples – Hannah Roy LaGrone
Sister’s First Halloween Night – Linda Hofke
Calling All Campers to the Camp Spooky Halloween Campfire – Jamie Rodarte
A Pumpkin Named Rattlesnake Pete – Pat Finnegan
Pumpkin Pride – Pat Finnegan
Gardenia Ghost – Katie Walsh
I Am Always a Cat – Amanda Littlefield
Scaredy Snake – Kathy Hill Crable
Classroom Costume Conundrum – Cynthia Reeg
A Beckoning Spell – Les Degnan
Halloween Eve – Tarsia Rhyne
Which Witch Will Win? – Lucretia Schafroth
The Spider Web House – CJ Penko
The Monster of Barlow’s Bakery – Jill Burns
A Candy Break For Mongoose And Snake – Katie Schwartz
Kid Cobra’s Halloween – Denise Seidman
Costume Not Required – JC Kelly
Lucinda Blackletter – Karen Pickrell
Candi Corn – Liz Kehrli
Glass Lizard Halloween – Maria Marshall
Scaredy Cat And The Haunted Hunt – Samantha Cora Christian Haas
Graduation Night – Naz Alibhai
New Friends – Sarah Hawklyn
Sam Wasn’t Afraid – T. May LeGrys
Black Cats Get A Bad Rap – Colleen Dougherty
Dad’s First Trick or Treat – Annette Bethers
Skeletons Need Teddy Bears Too – Sharon Jackson
Sam And Dusty Trick Or Treat – Julianna Helt
Lost – Brenda Covert
The Snakertons – Emily Holewczynski

Goblins And Ghosties And Ghouls, Oh, My! – Announcing The Guidelines For The 12th Annual Halloweensie Contest!

October 10, 2022October 28, 202239 Comments

Holy Jack-O’-Lanterns, Batman!

Can you actually believe that this year is Halloweensie number 12?!

And are you ready? 😊🎃

Well, of course you’re not ready, because I haven’t told you the rules yet!

You’ve got 2 weeks and 5 days to write, eat miniature chocolate bars, revise, eat more miniature chocolate bars, polish, eat some candy corn (ooh, that was a surprise!) and take a little snooze before it’s time to submit your entry!

So get ready. . .

. . .get set. . .

Here are the guidelines for. . .

The 12th Annual Halloweensie Writing Contest!!!

~ for children’s writers ~

Your story can be poetry or prose, scary, funny, sweet, or anything in between, but it will only count for the contest if it includes those 3 words and is 100 words. Get it? Halloweensie – because it’s not very long and it’s for little people 😊
You can go under the word count but not over!
Title is not included in the word count.
You may use the words in any form i.e. slithery (yes, it’s a word, we looked it up 😊), treated, scary, etc, etc, whathaveyou 😊
You are welcome to enter more than one entry – just remember you’ll be competing against yourself 😊
No illustration notes please!

And yes, I know 100 words is short, but that’s part of the fun and the challenge!

POST: your story in the comment section of the Official Contest Post between 12:01 AM Eastern Saturday October 29th (the day the official contest post will go up here) and 11:59PM Eastern Monday October 31st (So you have 3 full days to post – Saturday, Sunday, and Monday.)

For those of you who would also like to post on your blogs, please feel free to do so! You are welcome to include the link to your blog with your entry in the comment section of the Official Contest Post so that people can come visit your blog, but all entries must be posted in the comment section of the Official Contest Post between 12:01 AM Eastern Saturday October 29th and Monday October 31st at 11:59PM Eastern.
If you have difficulty posting your entry to the comments, which unfortunately sometimes happens, you may email your entry to me and I’ll post it for you! [susanna[at]susannahill[dot]com Please place your entry in the body of the email including your title, byline (that means who the story is by – you! – so for example, By Jane Doe) and word count at the top – NO ATTACHMENTS! and please do not submit any entries before the official opening of the contest at 12:01 AM Saturday October 29th. They will not be accepted.
I know how hard you all work on your entries, and how anxious you are to get them posted, but please try to be a little patient if your entry doesn’t show up immediately. Many comments have to be manually approved, and it sometimes takes me a little while to post entries that come in by email. I promise I will get to everything as soon as I can. I try never to leave my desk during contests, but sometimes it’s unavoidable 😊

Judging criteria will be as follows:

1. Kid-appeal! – These stories are intended for a young audience (ages 12 and under), so we’re looking for stories that children will enjoy and relate to.
2. Halloweeniness – the rules state a Halloween story, so it must be crystal clear that the story is about Halloween, not just some random spooky night.
3. Use of all 3 required words and whether you came it at 100 words or less.
4. Quality of story – entries must tell a story, including a main character of some kind and a true story arc even if it’s tiny 😊 Entries must not be merely descriptions or mood pieces.
5. Quality of Writing: check your spelling, grammar, punctuation etc. If you’re going to rhyme, give us your best 😊 Use and flow of language, correctness of mechanics, excellence of rhyme and meter if you use it, PROOFREADING!
6. Originality and creativity – because that is often what sets one story above another.
7. How well you followed the Submission Guidelines – agents and editors expect professionalism. This is a chance to practice making sure you read and follow specified guidelines. If you don’t follow agent and editor submission guidelines, they won’t even read your submission.

THE PRIZES: So amazing! What wonderful, generous people we have in our kidlit community! Just wait til you see what you can win! (I’m still juggling the list, so in the interest of getting this posted I’m merely going to generalize the prizes right now – I will add details ASAP!)

⭐️ Picture Book Critique (non-rhyming) with Becky Scharnhorst, author of MY SCHOOL STINKS! (Flamingo Books, July 2021) and THIS FIELD TRIP STINKS! (Flamingo Books, August 2022)

⭐️ 30 Minute Picture Book Zoom Critique Session with Lynne Marie

⭐️ Rate Your Story Speed Pass from Lynne Marie

And maybe I’ll have some extra picture books to add in here and there to sweeten the pie. . . 😊

Now! Lay in a good chocolate supply (no better time than right before Halloween for THAT!)! Butt In Chair! Pencils, pens, or keyboards ready! Put on your pointy black thinking cap (you know, to get in that Halloween mood 🧙🏿‍♀️ 😊!) And write those prize-winning stories!!!

I can’t wait to read them!!! 😊

Ho! Ho! Ho! The 11th Annual Holiday Contest Is HERE!!!

December 7, 2021September 14, 20221,728 Comments

⭐️Deck the Halls! ⭐️ Light the menorah! ⭐️ Fill the Kikombe cha Umoja! ⭐️

It’s time for . . .

The 11th Annual Holiday Writing Contest

~ for children’s writers ~

The Contest: Write a children’s holiday story (children here defined as age 12 and under) about a Holiday Contest!

Your contest can be anything you want! Baking, wrapping, decorating (tree or home), raising money or collecting gifts for those in need, ice skating, sledding, caroling, fancy dress, snowman or fort building. . . sky’s the limit! But it must be about a holiday contest!

Your story may be poetry or prose, silly or serious or sweet, religious or not, based on Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Winter Solstice, New Year’s or whatever you celebrate during the Holiday Season, but is not to exceed 250 words (I know! So much freedom after the Halloweensie Contest 😊 ) (It can be as short as you like (the judges will be grateful 😊 , you are welcome and encouraged to write shorter, but no more than 250! Title not included in word count.) The field is wide open! Have fun! The more creative the better! No illustration notes please. (And yes, if you feel compelled to submit more than one entry you may, just remember you’re competing against yourself!)

Post: Your entry should be posted between right now this very second and Thursday December 9th at 11:59 PM EST, and must be posted below in the comment section of this post. All entries should include a title, byline (people always ask what this is – it means who the entry was written by, so, by Suzy Q. Writer or whoever 😊) and word count. You are welcome to also post your entries on your own blogs and include your blog address with your entry here if you’d like to encourage people to come visit your blog, but your entry must be posted in the comment section of this post or it will not be counted because we won’t see it. This post will remain up for your reading pleasure until I post the finalists. There will be no regular posts (Tuesday Debut, Would You Read It, or Perfect Picture Book) for the duration of the contest so everyone will have plenty of time to visit and enjoy. If you have trouble commenting, you can email your entry to me and I will post it for you. Please copy and paste your entry with word count and byline into the body of the email – NO ATTACHMENTS please.

The Judging: My lovely assistants and I will narrow down the entrants to approximately 12 finalists. In the interest of finishing up the contest in a timely fashion so everyone can go about their holidays, we will do our best to post the finalists here by Tuesday December 14th for you to vote on for a winner. (But it almost always seems to end up taking us longer. . . so it might be a day or two later.) The vote will be closed on Thursday December 16th at 5 PM EST. Whoever gets the most votes will be first and so on down to twelfth place (or wherever we place to), and the winners will be announced on Friday December 17th. (These dates are subject to adjustment if it takes the judges longer than we anticipate to get the judging completed.)

Judging criteria will be as follows:

1. Kid-appeal! – These stories are intended for a young audience (ages 12 and under), so we’re looking for stories that children will enjoy and relate to.
2. Holiday Contest! – the rules state a Holiday Contest story, so it must be crystal clear that the story is about a contest that in some way relates to Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Winter Solstice, New Year’s, or whatever seasonal winter holiday you choose. The story must center on the contest – the contest must not be just an offhand mention/reference in a story about something else.
3. Quality of story – entries must tell a story, including a main character of some kind and a true story arc even if it’s tiny 😊 Entries must not be merely descriptions or mood pieces.
4. Quality of Writing: check your spelling, grammar, punctuation etc. If you’re going to rhyme, give us your best 😊 Overall writing quality and use of language are also important. Please proofread!
5. Originality and creativity – because that is often what sets one story above another.
6. PLEASE FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS! Large numbers of entries make it easy to cut entries that haven’t been entered as we asked.

The Prizes!: Oh! Such wonderful prizes! All I can say is, how lucky are we to be part of such a talented and generous community that offers such amazing prizes!

Please join me in thanking these very generous authors and other writing professionals for contributing their books and writing expertise as prizes by visiting their websites and blogs, considering their books and services for birthday, holiday or other gift purchases, rating and/or reviewing their books on GoodReads, Amazon, B&N, or anywhere else if you like them, recommending them for school and library visits, and supporting them in any other way you can dream up! 😊

⭐️ Picture Book Manuscript Critique (Rhyming or Non-rhyming, Fiction or Nonfiction) with written feedback AND a 30-minute Zoom Chat with children’s author Vivian Kirkfield, author of PIPPA’S PASSOVER PLATE (Holiday House, 2019), SWEET DREAMS, SARAH (Creston Books, 2019), FOUR OTTERS TOBOGGAN (Pomegranate, 2019), MAKING THEIR VOICES HEARD: THE INSPIRING FRIENDSHIP OF ELLA FITZGERALD AND MARILYN MONROE (Little Bee Books, 2020), FROM HERE TO THERE: INVENTIONS THAT CHANGED THE WAY THE WORLD MOVES (Clarion Books, 2021), and SHOW ME HOW! BUILD YOUR CHILD’S SELF-ESTEEM THROUGH READING, CRAFTING AND COOKING (MoneyPenny Press Ltd, 2010)

⭐️ Picture Book Manuscript Critique/Zoom Chat (Non-rhyming) from children’s author Janie Reinart, author of WHEN WATER MAKES MUD: A STORY OF REFUGEE CHILDREN (Blue Whale Press, 2021)!

⭐️ Picture Book Manuscript Critique (Rhyme or Prose, fiction only) from children’s author Shelley Kinder! Shelley is the author of NOT SO SCARY JERRY (Spork 2017), THE MASTERPIECE (Spork 2018) and GOD AND ME AND THE SEA (Kregel Children’s Books, May 17, 2022)

⭐️ Picture Book Manuscript Critique (written) PLUS 15 minute Zoom Chat (no nonfiction) from Cindy Williams Schrauben author of THIS COULD BE YOU (Cardinal Rule Press, April 1, 2022)!

⭐️ Zoom Visit to a classroom or to kids at home by children’s author Ellen Leventhal! Ellen is the author of DON’T EAT THE BLUEBONNETS (Spork, 2017), LOLA CAN’T LEAP (Spork, 2018), HAYFEST: A HOLIDAY QUEST (ABCs Press, 2010), and A FLOOD OF KINDNESS (WorthyKids, 2021)

⭐️ Picture Book Manuscript Critique from Heather Gale, author of HO’ONANI: HULA WARRIOR (Tundra Books, 2019) which was one of the New York Public Library’s Best Books for Kids 2019, one of the Ontario Library Association’s 2019 Top Ten Titles, Featured on the 2020 Rainbow Book List, Featured on the 2020 Rise: A Feminist Book Project List, and received a Booklist Starred Review!

⭐️ Picture Book Manuscript Critique from Maria Marshall! Maria is a children’s author, blogger, and poet passionate about making nature fun for children. She’s a judge for the Cybils Awards and the #50PreciousWords competition. Four of her poems are published in The Best Of Today’s Little Ditty anthologies. When not writing, critiquing, or reading, she bird watches, travels the world, bakes, and hikes. The Picture Book Buzz Website Facebook Twitter Instagram

⭐️ A Reversible Handmade Christmas Stocking or Other Winter or Holiday-Themed Gift Bag from Karen Gebbia PLUS a Personalized Signed Copy of CURIOSITY’S DISCOVERY by Nancy Derey Riley to fill it!

⭐️ Personalized Signed Copy of either QUEEN OF PHYSICS:How Wu Chien Shiung Helped Unlock the Secrets of the Atom (Sterling Children’s Books 2019) or TWO BICYCLES IN BEIJING (Albert Whitman 2020) (Winner’s Choice!) by Teresa Robeson

PLUS!!!

a Personalized Signed Copy of either LISTEN (Simon & Schuster/Paula Wiseman Books 2021) or TWO DOGS ON A TRIKE (Harry N. Abrams 2020) (Winner’s Choice!) by Gabi Snyder

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⭐️ Personalized Signed Copy of THE QUEEN AND THE FIRST CHRISTMAS TREE: Queen Charlotte’s Gift to England (Albert Whitman 2018) by Nancy Churnin PLUS a Digital Copy of THE STAR IN THE CHRISTMAS PLAY (Beaming Books 2018) by Lynne Marie

⭐️ Personalized Signed Copy of MY SCHOOL STINKS! (Philomel July 2021) by Becky Scharnhorst PLUS a Kindle or Audiobook Copy of either FUNNY JIMMY (AuthorHouse 2011) or THE HAUNTED HOUSE OF RIDDLES (Avid Readers Publishing Group 2011) (Winner’s Choice!) by Vanessa Rose Lee

⭐️ Winner’s Choice of 2 of the following 4 picture books, kindly donated by Dee Knabb!

LILLYBELLE, A DAMSEL NOT IN DISTRESS by Joana Pastro
ALMA AND HOW SHE GOT HER NAME by Juana Martinez-Neal (signed by the author/illustrator)
TINY CREATURES by Nicola Davies (NF)
PIPSQUEAKS, SLOWPOKES, AND STINKERS by Melissa Stewart (NF)

With so many great prizes up for grabs I hope there will be a lot of entries – the more the merrier! And you’ve still got a couple days to write, so you can squeeze in under the wire if you haven’t written yet. Feel free to spread the word to your writing friends as well. And your reading friends – parents, teachers, etc. The more people who read and enjoy your stories, the better!!!

Contest Entrants, remember you MUST post your entry in the comment section below and include title, byline, and word count.

Eager Readers – just go along the list of links below, click on them (they’ll take you directly to whichever story you click on), and enjoy the stories!

So let the Holiday Contest begin!

Happy Writing and Happy Holidays! 😊 ☃️ ✡️ ⭐️ ❄️ 🎄🕯🕎

I can’t wait to read your entries!!!

THE ENTRIES!

It Takes A Forest – Lucretia Schafroth
The Kelpie Challenge – Bonnie Kelso
The Cookies Of Holiday Hollow – Royal Baysinger
Elf Off The Shelf – Anne Lipton
The Trolls: A Winter Tale – Royal Baysinger
Upon A Winter Solstice – Royal Baysinger
So You Think You Can Prance – Amy Leskowski
The Festive Flying Race – Nicola Beach
Birdie’s Song – Beth Stillborn
The Holiday Homework – Sue Lancaster
How Tiny Won A Seat On Santa’s Sleigh – Elizabeth Westra
The Claus’ Candy Cane Contest – Susan Schipper
He Knows If You’ve Been Bad Or Good – Colleen Murphy
Olive, The Other Reindeer – Lindsay Moretti
Go Green For Christmas – Margaret Zotkiewicz
Tree Number Nine – Lindsey Hobson
Christmas Boots – P.J. Purtee
Ellarose’s Sweater – Marta Cutler
A Fourth Grader’s Poster Problem – Jennifer Vose
A Buggie Tradition – Kay Inglis
Kendy And The Solstice Solo Show – Sarah Meade
Elsie And The Christmas Comedy Contest – Sarah Meade
The Better Elf On The Shelf – Molly Ippolito
Ernie And The Science Fair – Deborah Foster
Mr. Tweedy’s Christmas Trees – Colleen Fogarty
Best Wrapped Surprise – Sara Dean
Christmas Eve Ride Along Contest – Dawn Young
The Christmas Tree Contest – Dorothy K. Kohrherr
Alfredo Learns The Secret Of Greatness – Joan Leotta
The Pretty Ugly Sweater – Pamela Swanson
Jamie’s Holiday Surprise – Diana Sussman
Katie’s Snow Creation – Marty B.
The Tasty Treat Christmas Contest – Katie Brandyberry
Santa’s Secret Contest – Linda Staszak
Phoebe’s Snowperson – Kelly Clasen
THAT’S Not A Christmas Cookie! – Vanessa Konoval
Candy Pies – Sharon McCarthy
Solstice Skaters – Allison Strick
The Best Gift Ever – Pen Avey
The Most Christmassy House – Jen MacGregor
Candy Caribou – Steena Hernandez
A Christmas Pickle Story – Daniella Kaufman-Schloss
Shining Star – Sarah Hawklyn
Grumpy Snow Pants – Stephanie Maksymiw
The Best Reading Contest Of Winter, 1959 – Beth Schmelzer
Playground Games – Colleen Dougherty
Simply The Best – Nicole Loos Miller
Bear’s Christmas Cookie – Marta Cutler
Happy Everything! – Laura Barens
Dancing With The Elves – Jill Lambert
A Creature Was Stirring – Judy Sobanski
The Monster On Christmas Eve – Elizabeth Meyer zu Heringdorf
What Christmas Means To Me – Marty Findley
A Miscalculation – Emily Durant
Lily And The Winter Festival – Karen J Moore
2021 Monkey Merry Xmas – Shariffa Keshavjee
The Ginger Friend House – Kelly Swemba
Gingerbread House Extravaganza – Elaine D’Alessandro
Parol: This Little Star Of Mine – Lynn Grace Wong
Christmas Song – YauMei Chiang
Reindeer Games – Tiffany Hanson
The Cookie Contest Caper – Kelsey E. Gross
The Clean-Out-The-Clutter Contest – Sarah Demarest Guthrie
The Contest – Amanda Sherlock
Asher’s Chanukiah – Dina Silverberg
Best Hanukkah Ever! – Paul Kurtz
Cinder-Latke – Paul Kurtz
Bunny Claus – Donna Kurtz
Jangle Shells – Donna Kurtz
Spin – Cheryl Simon
Fantastical Fairytown Christmas Snowflake Contest – Ellen Crosby
The Winning Recipe – Judy Abelove Shemtob
The Greatest Display Of All – Barbara Kimmel
Sparky’s Wish – Ingrid Boydston
The Night After Christmas – Abby N. Wooldridge
The Claus’s Hawaiian Vacation – C. S. Boyll
Gifts For Grandma – Cindy Sommer
Keep Christmas Coming – Jeannette Suhr
The Most Special Ornament – Timothy Hicks
Santa’s Workshop Winners – Polly Owen
Elfie Selfie Contest – Stephanie Henson
The Great Holiday Bake Off – Jamie Donahoe
Laughing All The Way – Sarah Hetu
A Sack Full Of Presents – Patricia Nozell
Fairy Tale Houses – Jim Chaize
Christmas…By A Nose – Jesse Anna Bornemann
Reindeer Sing…Are You Listening? – Katie Schwartz
Christmas Carrots – Vashti Verbowski
Being Santa Lucia – Cindy Greene
Nun, Gimel, Hei, Shin – Who Will Win? – Stephanie Wildman
ANDRÉS BLUE RIBBON – Carmen Castillo Gilbert
The Chubby Bunny Champion – Alicia Meyers
Up And Away! – Kristy Roser Nuttall
Christmas Isn’t – Ingrid Boydston
The Christmas Pirate – Julianna Kurtz
Maryam’s Happy Persian Christmas – Shadi Kafi
The Most Beautiful Snowflake Of All – Cassie Silva
Fire And Ice – Jyn Hall
The Santa Spectacle – Mary Cathering Amadu
A Jarring Contest – Bru Benson
Everything – Sandhya Acharya
Similarity Despite Diversity – Eva Felder
O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree – Becky Goodman
Solstice Wars! – Phoebe Browning
Gingerbread Surprise – JC Kelly
Squirrels Christmas – Charlotte Boyer
The Holiday Contest – Denise Seidman
The Witch’s Gingerbread House – Lauri Meyers
Elf Rivalry – Michelle S. Kennedy
Dream Big, Little Pip! – Sally Yorke-Viney
An Extraordinary Elf – Becky Kimbrough
Jasmine Jingletoes And The Christmas Stocking Contest – Brenda Covert
Let There Be (MORE!) Lights – Judy Carey Nevin
Laughing All The Way – Samantha Gassman

Perfect Picture Book Friday – A Flood Of Kindness

May 7, 2021May 6, 202111 Comments

Hurray! It’s Perfect Picture Book Friday again!

I don’t know about you, but there are so many great books out lately that it’s hard to pick just one each week!

But I had no trouble picking this one. Such a beautiful story, and so well written!

Have a look!

Title: A Flood of Kindness

Written By: Ellen Leventhal

Illustrated By: Blythe Russo

Publisher: WorthyKids, April 13, 2021, fiction

Suitable For Ages: 4-8

Themes/Topics: hardship, kindness, resilience

Opening: “The night the river jumped its banks, everything changed.”

text copyright Ellen Leventhal 2021, illustration copyright Blythe Russo 2021, WorthyKids

Brief Synopsis: When Charlotte’s home is made uninhabitable by flood waters, she must go to a shelter and rely on the kindness of others for food, clothing, and shelter. It is uncomfortable, scary, and unfamiliar, and Charlotte is assailed by a flood of emotions – fear, anger, sadness, and loss. Eventually, the kindness shown to her by others allows Charlotte to pass kindness on.

Links To Resources: Kindness Lessons and Activities; 28 Kindness Activities for Preschoolers;

Why I Like This Book: As writers, we all believe that every child should have the opportunity to see him/herself in a book, to know that whatever they may be experiencing, others have experienced it too and they’re not alone. Although this story specifically relates to a flood, it’s a story that any child who has ever experienced displacement or loss will feel understood and seen by. The text is powerful in its spareness, using just the right words to tell the story so the reader can experience the emotions along with Charlotte. And the ending is poignant, sweet and hopeful, and shows that kindness multiplies. A wonderful book to show kids the importance of paying it forward.

I hope you enjoy it as much as I do 😊

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

PPBF folks, please add your titles and post-specific blog links (and any other info you feel like filling out 😊) to the form below so we can all come see what fabulous picture books you’ve chosen to share this week!

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone! 😊

The 2021 Valentiny Contest WINNERS!!!

February 22, 2021February 22, 202129 Comments

Rise and shine, my friends!

I know it’s Monday.

I know it’s freezing cold and snowing… AGAIN!

I know someone in your house probably snagged the last Poptart and you’re stuck eating All-Bran for breakfast. . .on a frigid Monday morning. . .in the snow!

But.

BUT!

I am about to cast a ray of sunshine into your freezing, snowy, All-Bran-y, Monday morning!

Yes!

It’s true!

Here comes sunshine and heart-warming happiness because I am going to SING YOU A SONG! 🎶🎵🎶

🎶How much are those Poptarts in the window,
So sugary sweet and divine?
I’m brave, but not brave enough to offer
All-Bran to my sweet Valentine!🎶

No?

Ok, how about

🎶Oh, my darling,
Oh, my darling,
Oh, my darling, Valentine!
I will give you all my Poptarts
If you promise to be mine!🎶

Oh no, wait! I’ve got it!

🎶I’m a little Poptart filled with jam
Some say I’m sweet and it’s true! I am!
But my Valentiny also true –
No one else is sweet as you!🎶

I don’t know what’s happening here.

Apparently someone (who is not a good singer) has Poptarts on the brain.

Who could that be?

But never mind, because GUESS WHAT?

It’s time to announce the WINNERS of

The 6th Annual Valentiny Writing Contest

~ for children’s writers ~

First of all, I want to thank EVERYONE who took the time and care to write an entry for this contest. You all did a fabulous job and provided great enjoyment for so many! As always, I was thrilled to see so many wonderful stories! It is amazing and inspiring, not to mention VERY entertaining! There is just so much talent out there amongst you all! The other judges and I are blown away anew each time!

Second, I’d also like to thank EVERYONE – writer, reader, or both – who took the time to go around and read as many entries as you could and leave supportive comments. This means so much to the writers who worked hard on their stories. It helps them see what they did well, as well as giving them the joy of knowing that their stories were read and enjoyed. I hope you all got as much delight and entertainment out of the reading as I did! Plus, we got to meet quite a few new people which was a wonderful added bonus! 🙂

Third, I want to say again how difficult it was too choose! There were so many amazing entries. Really. I could find at least something terrific about every single one. The sheer volume of entries meant that many good ones had to be cut. We chose 14 finalists, and around 35 Honorable Mentions which we also loved, and even with those 49 total there were over 200 entries we couldn’t list! So if yours didn’t make the final cut please don’t feel bad. You’re in good company! There was a huge amount of competition. Judging, no matter how hard we try to be objective, is always subjective at a certain point – we all have our own preferences for what makes a great story. And the fact that you didn’t make the final cut DOES NOT mean you didn’t write a great story. Everyone who plonked their butt in a chair and worked hard to write a story for this contest is a winner! You showed up. You did your best work. You practiced your craft. You wrote to specifications and a deadline. You bravely shared your writing with the world. And you have a brand new story that is now yours to expand beyond 214 words if you like and maybe submit at some point to a magazine or as a PB manuscript. So bravo to everyone who entered!

Because it was such a hard choice, and there were so many wonderful stories, before we get to the winners, my assistant judges and I would like to award bragging rights, recognition and a small prize to the following authors for the following merits:

1. For Honorable Mention In The Competition As A Whole: (entries we truly wrestled with not including in the finalists!)

Elizabeth Volkmann for Class List

Melissa Trempe for The Most Terrible, Awful, Icky Valentine Ever

David McMullin for Brave Brave Brave (also funny 😊)

Laken Slate for The Brave Little Conversation Heart

M.R. Haqq for Soon

Mia Geiger for Peanut’s Brave Valentine’s Day

Ashlee Hashman for The Wildflower

Lindsey Hobson for U R Brave

Audrey Day-Williams for Legendary Valentine

Sara Ackerman for Arrrrr Is For Valentine

Amy Leskowski for A One-of-a-Kind, Just-in-Case, Not-at-All-Pink Valentine’s Day

Donna Kurtz for The Owl and the Kitty-Kat

2. For Great Kid Appeal: (not already mentioned in the finals or other categories)

Una Belle Townsend for Six Secret Valentines

Jan Suhr for The Lost Valentine

Kaylee Gwarjanski for Mission: Cancel Cupid Call

Gregory E. Bray for A Valentine’s Day Quest in the Land of Moore

Elizabeth Muster for W-R-I-T-E For Each Other

3. For Original POV:

Molly Ippolito for Cardamom’s Courage (POV of cardamom)

Rozana Rajkumari for Lemon-Tine (POV of a lemon)

4. For Humor:

Kelly Conroy for The Monster’s Valentine Buffet (dark 😊)

Catherine J Lee for The Valentine on My Shoe

Karyn Curtis for The Valentine’s Quest

Tracy Curran for The Wibbler (also great POV – jelly!)

5. For Well-Written, Fun Story With Great Sibling Interaction:

Brenda Whitehead for Step-Brother Battle

Shannon Howarth Nelson for Super Brothers

Danielle S. Hammelef for Scaredy-Cat

6. For Beautiful Writing:

Ciara N M Greenwalt for The Gift Tree

Sandhya Acharya for Sarla Asks A Question

Jyoti Rajan Gopal for A Cocoon of Love

Amy Flynn for Tilly’s Great Big Heart

7. For Best Short Valentiny Story:

P. J. Purtee for A Simple Valentine

8. For Sweet Valentiny:

Kelly Swemba for Brave For Gigi

Anne Bromley for Caleb’s Heart

Carmen Castillo Gilbert for Roses From Valentina

9. Best Story From A Young Writer:

Sophia Zafra for Bravery Is From The Heart

Congratulations to all of you for fantastic elements of your stories! You may all email me at susanna[at]susannahill[dot]com subject line Prize Winner to collect your award badge and prize, which is five dollars in a format that can be emailed for you to put toward something you’d like at a large online store (and I’m being cryptic because when I did this for Halloweensie I got a ton of problematic spam mail because of the way I worded the post, but hopefully you can figure it out. The store starts with the letter A 😊) I know it’s not much, but hopefully it will come in handy for something!

And now…

…the moment you’ve all been waiting for…

The announcement of the WINNERS OF THE 2021 VALENTINY CONTEST as voted on by you, our devoted readers!!!

rat-a-tat-rat-a-tat-rat-a-tat-rat-a-tat-rat-a-tat

DDDRRRUUUMMM RRROOOLLLLLL!!!!!!!!!

In First Place…

Winner of the whole shebang…

who gets first choice of all the prizes…

Sarah McDermott
for
Lemur in Love!!!

Congratulations, Sarah! We had such fun reading this aloud! Terrific job 😊

In Second Place

Sarah Meade
for
Jana’s Valentine Visit

Congratulations, Sarah! So believable! You get to pick your prize after Sarah.

In Third Place

Nancy Derey Riley
for
Percy’s Valentine

Congratulations, Nancy! What a perfectly rhymed and timely story! You get to pick your prize after Sarah and Sarah.

In Fourth Place…

Jessica Hinrichs
for
Valentine’s Gotcha Day

Congratulations, Jessica! So sweet! You get to pick your prize after Sarah, Sarah, and Nancy!

In Fifth Place…

Carrie Boone
for
The Ballad of Bad Bart

Congratulations, Carrie! What a Valentine bargain! You get to pick after Sarah, Sarah, Nancy, and Jessica!

In Sixth Place...

Nicole Loos Miller
for
Stella & Hank

Congratulations, Nicole! You must have a cat and a dog to write them so well! I’m sure you get the idea of how the prize picking goes by now 😊

In Seventh Place…

Paul Kurtz
for
Someone Special!

Congratulations, Paul! You made us laugh You get to pick next 😊

In Eighth Place…

Chambrae Griffith
for
Octopus Hugs

Congratulations, Chambrae! Happy ending for shark 😊 You get to pick after Paul 😊

In Ninth Place…

Janie Reinart
for
Untangled Valentines

Congratulations, Janie! So beautifully written! You get to pick after Chambrae!

In Tenth Place…

Anne Lipton
for
Most Valuable Valentine

Congratulations, Anne! You did a masterful job of turning history and racial justice into a Valentiny story! And in rhyme! You get to pick after Janie!

In Eleventh Place…

Katie Brandyberry
for
Valentine Delivery

Congratulations, Katie! We could just see the picture book your little mail truck would make! You get to pick after Anne 😊

In Twelfth Place…

Lauri C. Meyers
for
Charmadillo

Congratulations, Lauri! You had us at the title! And we laughed at the ending 😊 You get to pick your prize after Katie.

In Thirteenth Place…

Judy Sobanski
for
Brave Little Friends

Congratulations, Judy! Little Racoon was certainly very brave! 😊 You get to pick after Lauri!

In Fourteenth Place…

Samantha Haas
for
Valentine’s Day Rocks

Congratulations, Samantha! We loved Marjorie for her kindness and understanding, and Roger for bravely (and intelligently) coming up with valentines that worked for him!

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! (The sooner the better!) And for your convenience, the whole prize list is included at the bottom of this post.

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 and a gigantic chocolate heart… or lots of little chocolate hearts… or both… really, you can never have too much chocolate 😊 . (Or, can I interest you in a Poptart? Maybe a chocolate Poptart… 😊 )

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!

Have a marvelous Monday, everyone! 😊

The Prizes: Swoonworthy!

Hannah VanVels – Agent, Belcastro Agency – PB MS Critique

Hannah will offer one lucky winner a PB MS critique. The winner may submit fiction or nonfiction, rhyme or prose – Hannah is open to anything!

Winner’s choice of Renee LaTulippe‘s Lyrical Language Lab Intensive Rhyme & Meter Self Study Course OR a one-hour ZOOM consultation with Renee to get feedback on a manuscript of your choice, ask questions about writing in rhyme/lyrical prose, or spend however you like!

– Picture Book Manuscript Critique (Rhyme or Prose, Fiction) from Dawn Young, author of THE NIGHT BAAFORE CHRISTMAS (WorthyKids 2019), COUNTING ELEPHANTS (Running Press Kids, March 2020), and THE NIGHT BAAFORE EASTER (WorthyKids January 26, 2021)

– Picture Book Manuscript Critique (fiction) from Kirsti Call author of The Raindrop Who Couldn’t Fall (Mazo Publishing, January 2019), Mootilda’s Bad Mood (Little Bee, September 2020), as well as COW SAYS MEOW (HMH) and COLD TURKEY (Little Brown) which will release in 2021.

– Picture Book Manuscript Critique from Melissa Stoller, author of SCARLET’S MAGIC PAINTBRUSH (Spork 2018), READY, SET, GORILLA! (Spork 2018), THE ENCHANTED SNOW GLOBE COLLECTION (chapter books) (Spork 2017), and SADIE’S SHABBAT STORIES (Spork, October 2020)

– Picture Book Manuscript Critique (non-rhyming, fiction) from Becky Scharnhorst, author of the forthcoming MY SCHOOL STINKS! (Philomel Books, July 6, 2021)

– Picture Book Manuscript Critique from Ellen Leventhal, author of A Flood Of Kindness (WorthyKids April 2021), DON’T EAT THE BLUEBONNETS (Spork 2017), LOLA CAN’T LEAP (Spork 2018), and HAYFEST A HOLIDAY QUEST (ABCs Press 2010)

– Picture Book Manuscript Critique (non-rhyming, fiction, fewer than 800 words) from Rebecca Kraft Rector, author of SQUISH SQUASH SQUISHED (Nancy Paulsen Books, February 16, 2021) (which means it’s coming out in the middle of our contest!😊) and the forthcoming LITTLE RED (Aladdin, Simon & Schuster, Spring 2022) and TRIA AND THE GREAT STAR RESCUE (Delacorte/Random House)

– Picture Book Manuscript Critique (nonfiction PB or rhyming PB) from Julie Abery, author of LITTLE TIGER and LITTLE PANDA (Amicus Ink 2019), YUSRA SWIMS (Creative Editions February 2020), LITTLE MONKEY and LITTLE HIPPO (Amicus Ink February 2020), THE OLD MAN AND THE PENGUIN (Kids Can Press, December 2020), and the forthcoming LITTLE PENGUIN and LITTLE ZEBRA (Amicus Ink, March 2, 2021) and SAKIMOTO’S SWIM CLUB (Kids Can Press, May 4, 2021)

A Picture Book Manuscript Critique by gifted author and former Holiday Contest prize winner, Jenna Waldman, author of the forthcoming Larry’s Latkes (October 2021) (originally written for the Holiday Contest!) and Shark-bot Shalom (August 2021) She is on twitter at @SarafinaDesign

– Either a signed copy of WHEN A TREE GROWS OR a Picture Book Manuscript Critique – winner’s choice! – from Cathy Ballou Mealey, author of WHEN A TREE GROWS (Sterling April 2019) and the forthcoming SLOTH AND SQUIRREL IN A PICKLE (Kids Can Press, May 4, 2021)

– a personalized signed copy of SUNDAY RAIN from author Rosie Pova PLUS a personalized signed copy of DEAR GRANDMA from Yours Truly.

– a personalized signed copy of DON’T HUG DOUG: (He Doesn’t Like It) from author Carrie Finison PLUS a personalized signed copy of CURIOSITY’S DISCOVERY from author/illustrator Nancy Derey Riley!

– a personalized signed copy of The Night Baafore Easter from author Dawn Young PLUS a personalized signed copy of Hop To It: Poems To Get You Moving from poet Sarah Meade!

Please join me in thanking these very generous authors and other writing professionals for contributing their books and writing expertise as prizes by visiting their websites and blogs, considering their books and services for birthday, holiday or other gift purchases, rating and/or reviewing their books on GoodReads, Amazon, B&N, or anywhere else if you like them, recommending them for school and library visits, and supporting them in any other way you can dream up! 😊

Be Brave, My Heart! – The 6th Annual Valentiny Contest Is Here!!!

February 12, 2021March 28, 20222,380 Comments

[For those trying to post, you must click on the Blog Post Title to get on the blog post page and access the comments]

Roses are red

Violets are blue

Valentinies rock

And so do YOU!

Like galloping hooves, our brave hearts are pounding with excitement and anticipation (or maybe trepidation!) because it’s time for. . .

The 6th Annual Valentiny Writing Contest

~ for children’s writers ~

They can be brave about asking someone to be their Valentine, of course, but they can also do something brave to get a Valentine (the person or the gift), or do something brave to help a friend. They could be brave about giving something up, or brave about asking someone they’re not sure they like to be their Valentine just to be nice. . . sky’s the limit! Think beyond the obvious!

Your story can be poetry or prose, sweet, funny, surprising or anything in between, but it will only count for the contest if it includes someone brave (can be the main character but doesn’t have to be) and is 214 words (get it? 2/14 for Valentines Day 😊

You can go under the word count but not over!
Title is not included in the word count.
You are welcome to enter more than one entry – just remember you’ll be competing against yourself 😊
No illustration notes please!

Post your story in the comment section below (preferred) or on your own blog between right now this very second and Sunday February 14th by 11:59 PM EDT. If you only post on your own blog, add your post-specific link to the form list at the bottom of the post. This post with all the entries in the comment section and the list of links for those who prefer to post on their own blogs will stay up all week for everyone to enjoy. If you have difficulty posting your entry to the comments, which unfortunately sometimes happens, you may email your entry to me and I’ll post it for you! [susanna[at]susannahill[dot]com

We discussed changing the entry posting. The majority voted to have all the entries in one place here in the comment section, so we’re going to give that a try. But there were some who wanted to continue blog-hopping, so I’m going to include a link list for them at the bottom of the post. For those who are willing to post in the comment section but also plan to post on their own blogs, you are most welcome to post the link to your blog in your posted entry here (see example below.) That way people can come visit you if they want to but can also read most of the entries in one place on my blog if they prefer. It is certainly easier for the judges to have as many entries as possible in one place. We’ll try it this way one time and see how it works. We can always go back to the old system 😊

(So a sample entry might look like this:
ENTRY TITLE – word count
Author Name
(link to your own contest entry blog post if you have one and would like to share it)
Amazing wonderful Valentiny Contest story.😊

Dudley’s Brave Valentine – 212 words
by Violet Hill
http://bit.ly/3aOxhZm

It was almost Valentines Day and Dudley’s heart had sunk to somewhere near his big toenail.
(etc etc amazing story continues)

I know how hard you all work on your entries and how anxious you are to be sure your entry is posted, but please try to be a little bit patient if you’re waiting for your entry to show up in the comments or on the list of entries. I try never to get up from my desk during contests but sometimes it’s unavoidable. 😊

The Judging: over the next several days, my lovely assistants and I will narrow down the entrants to 12 top choices which will be posted here and voted on for a winner on Thursday February 18th (or possibly a day or two later if the judges need extra time.) The winner will be announced Monday February 22nd depending on judging and voting time needed. The dates of the judging/voting/winner announcements are subject to finagling depending on how much time the judges actually end up needing!

Judging criteria will include:

Kid-appeal/Kid-friendliness – remember, this is a story for kids!
Creativity in using bravery and success in making us feel the bravery!
Valentine’s Day appropriateness – this is a VALENTINE story!
Quality of story – we will look for basic story elements and a true story arc
Quality of writing – use and flow of language, correctness of mechanics, excellence of rhyme and meter if you use it, PROOFREADING!
Originality – surprise us with something new and different! 😊
How well you followed the Submission Guidelines – agents and editors expect professionalism. This is a chance to practice making sure you read and follow specified guidelines. If you don’t follow agent and editor submission guidelines they won’t even read your submission.

The Prizes: Talk about a pounding heart! Just look at these fabulous prizes!

Hannah VanVels – Agent, Belcastro Agency – PB MS Critique

Hannah will offer one lucky winner a PB MS critique. The winner may submit fiction or nonfiction, rhyme or prose – Hannah is open to anything!

– Picture Book Manuscript Critique (non-rhyming, fiction) from Becky Scharnhorst, author of the forthcoming MY SCHOOL STINKS! (Philomel Books, July 6, 2021)

– a personalized signed copy of SUNDAY RAIN from author Rosie Pova PLUS a personalized signed copy of DEAR GRANDMA from Yours Truly.

– a personalized signed copy of The Night Baafore Easter from author Dawn Young PLUS a personalized signed copy of Hop To It: Poems To Get You Moving from poet Sarah Meade!

Please join me in thanking these very generous authors and other writing professionals for contributing their books and writing expertise as prizes by visiting their websites and blogs, considering their books and services for birthday, holiday or other gift purchases, rating and/or reviewing their books on GoodReads, Amazon, B&N, or anywhere else if you like them, recommending them for school and library visits, and supporting them in any other way you can dream up! 😊

Now! Put your heart into it and bravely post your entries!

I can’t wait to read your stories!!!

Eager Readers: Check out the comment section for all the fabulous entries, and the link list at the end to visit the blogs of the authors who wanted to post on their own home turf 😊

ENTRIES IN THE COMMENT SECTION: (all entries are linked)

This form ONLY for people who prefer to post on their own blogs and are ONLY posting their entries on their own blogs!

Eh, What’s Up Doc? Announcing The Guidelines For The 6th Annual Valentiny Writing Contest!!!

January 25, 2021February 19, 202165 Comments

Knock, knock!

Who’s there?

Atlas.

Atlas who?

Atlas, it’s Valentines Day!

Ok, well, it’s not quite Valentines. . .

How about this one?

Knock, knock!

Who’s there?

Iguana.

Iguana who?

Iguana hold your hand!

Ok 😊 I’ll stop 😊 Because what iguana do really is let you know that it’s time to fire up those brain cells and write your entry for. . .

The 6th Annual Valentiny Writing Contest

~ for children’s writers ~

The Contest: since writing for children is all about “big emotion for little people” (I forget who said that, but someone did so I put it in quotes!) and Valentines Day is all about emotion, write a Valentines story appropriate for children (children here defined as ages 12 and under) maximum 214 words in which someone feels brave! They can be brave about asking someone to be their Valentine, of course, but they can also do something brave to get a Valentine (the person or the gift), or do something brave to help a friend. They could be brave about giving something up, or brave about asking someone they’re not sure about for some reason to be nice. . . sky’s the limit! Think beyond the obvious! Your story can be poetry or prose, sweet, funny, surprising or anything in between, but it will only count for the contest if it includes someone brave (can be the main character but doesn’t have to be) and is 214 words (get it? 2/14 for Valentines Day 🙂 You can go under the word count but not over! (Title is not included in the word count.) If you are so inclined, you are welcome to enter more than one entry – just remember you’ll be competing against yourself 🙂 No illustration notes please!

Post your story on your blog between 12:00 AM EDT Friday February 12th and Sunday February 14th by 11:59 PM EDT and add your post-specific link to the list that will accompany my February 12th post. There will be no regularly scheduled posts that week (Tuesday Debut, Would You Read It or PPBF), 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. (Or, if you have difficulty with the comments, which unfortunately sometimes happens, you may email your entry to me and I’ll post it for you! Although I have a question I’d love addressed in the comments: would it be easier for everyone to post their entry in the comment section of my blog so everything is all together? I know it means no blog-hopping, but do you guys think it would be simpler? Or do you prefer the opportunity to visit new blogs?

The Judging: over the next several days, my lovely assistants and I will narrow down the entrants to 6-10 top choices depending on number and quality of entries (hee hee hee – you know how much trouble I have with the narrowing, so we’ll see) which will be posted here and voted on for a winner on Thursday February 19th (or possibly a day or two later if the judges need extra time.) The winner will be announced Monday February 22nd depending on judging and voting time needed. The dates of the judging/voting/winner announcements are subject to finagling depending on how much time the judges actually end up needing!

Judging criteria will include:

Kid-appeal/Kid-friendliness – remember, this is a story for kids!
Creativity in using bravery and success in making us feel the bravery!
Valentine’s Day appropriateness – this is a VALENTINE story!
Quality of story – we will look for basic story elements and a true story arc
Quality of writing – use and flow of language, correctness of mechanics, excellence of rhyme and meter if you use it, PROOFREADING!
Originality – surprise us with something new and different! 😊
How well you followed the Submission Guidelines – agents and editors expect professionalism. This is a chance to practice making sure you read and follow specified guidelines.

The Prizes: I’m still working on prizes (aren’t I always 😊), but I wanted to get the contest guidelines up so you’d have time to write. If anyone has anything fabulous to offer, drop me an email 😊 But meanwhile, start writing and watch this space for prizes which I will add as I get them organized!

Hannah VanVels – Agent, Belcastro Agency – PB MS Critique

Hannah will offer one lucky winner a PB MS critique. The winner may submit fiction or nonfiction, rhyme or prose – Hannah is open to anything!

Picture Book Manuscript Critique (Rhyme or Prose, Fiction) from Dawn Young, author of THE NIGHT BAAFORE CHRISTMAS (WorthyKids 2019), COUNTING ELEPHANTS (Running Press Kids, March 2020), and THE NIGHT BAAFORE EASTER (WorthyKids January 26, 2021)

Kirsti Call – Picture Book Manuscript Critique (fiction) from Kirsti Call author of The Raindrop Who Couldn’t Fall (Mazo Publishing, January 2019), Mootilda’s Bad Mood (Little Bee, September 2020), as well as COW SAYS MEOW (HMH) and COLD TURKEY (Little Brown) which will release in 2021.

Picture Book Manuscript Critique from Melissa Stoller, author of SCARLET’S MAGIC PAINTBRUSH (Spork 2018), READY, SET, GORILLA! (Spork 2018), THE ENCHANTED SNOW GLOBE COLLECTION (chapter books) (Spork 2017), and SADIE’S SHABBAT STORIES (Spork, October 2020)

– Picture Book Manuscript Critique (non-rhyming, fiction) from Becky Scharnhorst, author of the forthcoming MY SCHOOL STINKS! (Philomel Books, July 6, 2021)

Ellen Leventhal – Picture Book Manuscript Critique from Ellen Leventhal, author of A Flood Of Kindness (WorthyKids April 2021), DON’T EAT THE BLUEBONNETS (Spork 2017), LOLA CAN’T LEAP (Spork 2018), and HAYFEST A HOLIDAY QUEST (ABCs Press 2010)

– Picture Book Manuscript Critique (non-rhyming, fiction, fewer than 800 words) from Rebecca Kraft Rector, author of SQUISH SQUASH SQUISHED (Nancy Paulsen Books, February 16, 2021) (which means it’s coming out in the middle of our contest!😊) and the forthcoming LITTLE RED (Aladdin, Simon & Schuster, Spring 2022) and TRIA AND THE GREAT STAR RESCUE (Delacorte/Random House)

Picture Book Manuscript Critique (nonfiction PB or rhyming PB) from Julie Abery, author of LITTLE TIGER and LITTLE PANDA (Amicus Ink 2019), YUSRA SWIMS (Creative Editions February 2020), LITTLE MONKEY and LITTLE HIPPO (Amicus Ink February 2020), THE OLD MAN AND THE PENGUIN (Kids Can Press, December 2020), and the forthcoming LITTLE PENGUIN and LITTLE ZEBRA (Amicus Ink, March 2, 2021) and SAKIMOTO’S SWIM CLUB (Kids Can Press, May 4, 2021)

Rosie Pova – personalized signed copy of SUNDAY RAIN

– a personalized signed copy of DON’T HUG DOUG: (He Doesn’t Like It) by Carrie Finison PLUS a personalized signed copy of CURIOSITY’S DISCOVERY by Nancy Derey Riley!

Dawn Young – personalized signed copy of The Night Baafore Easter

So you’ve got nearly 3 weeks to write your entry! Butt in chair! Valentine Chocolate and coffee/tea on your desk! Brain in gear! Ready, set, WRITE! Be Brave! You can do it!!!

I can’t wait to read your stories!!!

The 10th Annual Halloweensie Writing Contest ~ aahhhrrrooooOOOOO!!!!!

October 29, 2020February 2, 20211,001 Comments

Viper fangs and dragon claws. It’s time for. . .

The 10TH Annual HALLOWEENSIE CONTEST!!!

~ for children’s writers ~

The Contest: write a 100 word Halloween story appropriate for children (children here defined as 12 and under) (title not included in the 100 words), using the words skeleton, creep, and mask. Your story can be scary, funny, sweet, or anything in between, poetry or prose, but it will only count for the contest if it includes those 3 words 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 325 fantastic entries last year, so I know you can do it!) Also, you may use the words in any form – e.g. skeletons, creepy/crept, masked/unmasked, whathaveyou 🙂 NO ILLUSTRATION NOTES PLEASE! (And yes, you may submit more than one entry if you’re so inclined 🙂 )

Post: your story on your blog between right now this very second and Saturday October 31st by 11:59 PM Eastern Time and add your post-specific link to the list below. There will be no Tuesday Debut, Perfect Picture Book or Would You Read It posts for the duration of the contest so the links will stay up for everyone to visit and 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 below (please include your byline if your posting handle is something like MamaWritesByNightlight so I can identify you.) If you have difficulty posting in the comments, which unfortunately sometimes happens, you may email your entry to me at susanna[at]susannahill[dot]com and I’ll post it for you. Please place your entry in the body of the email including your title and byline at the top – NO ATTACHMENTS! And please do not submit entries in more than one place because it becomes confusing.

The Judging: in a grueling marathon over the following days, my devoted assistants and I will narrow down the entrants to 3 6 9 12? top choices (give or take… you know how hard it is to choose!) which will be posted here and voted on for a winner on Wednesday November 4th or Thursday November 5th (if the judging takes longer than we expect if could be later…but we will do our best!) The winner will be announced on Monday November 9th (good lord willin’ and the creek don’t rise 😊 )

Judging criteria will be as follows:

1. Kid-appeal! – These stories are intended for a young audience (ages 12 and under), so we’re looking for stories that children will enjoy and relate to.
2. Halloweeniness – the rules state a Halloween story, so it must be crystal clear that the story is about Halloween, not just some random spooky night.
3. Quality of story – entries must tell a story, including a main character of some kind and a true story arc even if it’s tiny 🙂 Entries must not be merely descriptions or mood pieces.
4. Quality of Writing: check your spelling, grammar, punctuation etc. If you’re going to rhyme, give us your best 😊 Overall writing quality and use of language are also important.
5. Originality and creativity – because that is often what sets one story above another.
6. PLEASE FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS! Large numbers of entries make it easy to cut entries that haven’t been entered as we asked.

The Prizes: SO AMAZING! What a generous community we have to donate so much awesomeness!!! 😊

1 – Get Your MS in Tip Top Shape With Vivian Kirkfield!

Vivian is offering a PB MS Critique (fiction or nonfiction/rhyming or prose), along with a 30 minute Skype or FB video chat to discuss, along with a read-through of the revision. And top it all off she will also help you with a query/cover letter edit to go with your polished up ms! WOW!

Vivian Kirkfield is the author of SWEET DREAMS, SARAH (Creston Books, 2019), PIPPA’S PASSOVER PLATE (Holiday House, 2019), FOUR OTTERS TOBOGGAN (Pomegranate 2019), MAKING THEIR VOICES HEARD (Little Bee, January 14, 2020), and more…

2 – Penny’s Two Cents – an incredible opportunity for any picture book writer!

Sometimes it’s helpful to chat with a published author about your writing journey. Penny Parker Klostermann is offering her two cents. The prize includes General/Big-Picture Feedback on one picture book manuscript + One 30-Minute Chat (Rhyming or prose-750 words or under) Penny doesn’t claim to have it all figured out, (by any means) but she’s happy to share her two cents based on what she’s learned and continues to learn on her journey as an author.

Penny is the author of THERE WAS AN OLD DRAGON WHO SWALLOWED A KNIGHT (Random House 2015) (now available in board book and with matching pajamas! 🙂 ) and A COOKED-UP FAIRY TALE (Random House 2017)

3 – Picture Book Manuscript Critique (rhyme or prose) from Carrie Finison, author of DOZENS OF DOUGHNUTS (Putnam, July 2020) and DON’T HUG DOUG (forthcoming from Putnam in January 2021.)

Carrie-Finison-200x300 Screen Shot 2019-10-27 at 8.35.37 AM Don't Hug Doug

4 – Picture Book Manuscript Critique from Lydia Lukidis, author of NO BEARS ALLOWED (Blue Whale Press 2019) and many educational titles.

Lydia Lukidis No Bears Allowed

5 – Picture Book Manuscript Critique (fiction or nonfiction) from Teresa Robeson, author of Queen of Physics (Sterling, 2019) and Two Bicycles In Beijing (Albert Whitman, 2020)

6 – Picture Book Manuscript Critique from Kirsti Call author of The Raindrop Who Couldn’t Fall (Mazo Publishing, January 2019), Mootilda’s Bad Mood (Little Bee, September 2020), as well as COW SAYS MEOW (HMH) and COLD TURKEY (Little Brown) which will release in 2021.

Kirsti Call

7 – Picture Book Manuscript Critique from Ellen Leventhal, author of DON’T EAT THE BLUEBONNETS (Spork 2017), LOLA CAN’T LEAP (Spork 2018), and HAYFEST A HOLIDAY QUEST (ABCs Press 2010)

Ellen Leventhal Don't Eat The Bluebonnets

Hayfest Lola Can't Leap

8 – Picture Book Manuscript Critique from Heather Gale, author of Ho’onani Hula Warrior (Tundra Books, October 2019)

Heather Gale

9 – a personalized signed copy of The King Cake Baby and 15 Minute “Ask Me Anything” Video Chat with Keila Dawson, author of The King Cake Baby (Pelican 2015), No Voice Too Small: Fourteen Young Americans Making History (Charlesbridge 2020), and Opening The Road: Victor Hugo Green and His Green Book (forthcoming from Beaming Books, January 2021)

Keila Dawson

10 – Making Picture Book Magic Self Study – an online picture book writing class – any month of winner’s choice!

MPBM

11 – a personalized signed copy of EITHER ROCK AND ROLL WOODS (PB) or an ARC of SPIRITS AMONG US (MG) from author Sherry Howard

Sherry Howard (4) Cover Rock and Roll Woods Spirits Among Us

AND a personalized signed copy of TWO DOGS ON A TRIKE (Abrams Appleseed, May 2020) by Gabi Snyder

twodogsonatrike_cov

12 – a personalized signed copy of NOT SO SCARY, JERRY (Spork, 2017) by Shelley Kinder

Jerry shelley-kinder_orig

AND a personalized signed copy of MARS’ FIRST FRIENDS: COME ON OVER ROVERS! (Sourcebooks 2020) by Susanna Leonard Hill

Please join me in thanking these very generous authors and other writing professionals for contributing their books and writing expertise as prizes by visiting their websites and blogs, considering their books and services for holiday or other gift purchases, rating and/or reviewing their books on GoodReads, Amazon, B&N or anywhere else if you like them, recommending them for school visits, or supporting them in any other way you can dream up 😊

Now then, my pretties! It’s past the witching hour in the dead of night – very appropriate for a Halloween story, don’t you think? – and the time has come for me to ~~embarrass myself~~ my sample entry which should fill you with confidence in your own MUCH MUCH better efforts!!!

Halloween
A pumpkin moon
A ghostly ship
A still lagoon
Tattered sails
Like swirling mist
Ancient rigging
Creaks and twists
Skull and crossbones
Striking fear
Warning sailors
Far and near
Captain Jack
Comes thump-a-peg
Limping on
His broomstick leg
“Steady now,”
breathes Captain Jack,
“Mustn’t blow
our sneak attack!”
Silently
The ghost ship glides
Closer . . .
Closer . . .
On the tides
Guided through
The murky blue
By the ghastly
Skeleton crew
Stealthily
it comes abreast
creeping
uninvited guest
nearing windows
warm with light
no idea
of their plight
Captain Jack
Deceit complete
Unmasks and shouts out, “Trick-or-treat!”

It’s truly spooky how willing I am to embarrass myself for you! 😊😊😊

I can’t wait to read all of your entries! I’m so looking forward to them! I hope there will be a lot – the more the merrier! And there are still nearly 3 days to write, so you have time if you haven’t written yet. Feel free to spread the word to your writing friends as well. And your reading friends – parents, teachers, etc. The more people who read and enjoy your stories, the better!!!

Contest Entrants, remember to add your post-specific link to the google form below so we can all come read your awesome stories! (Post-specific means not your main blog url, but the actual url of the post that has your story in it – otherwise if you post again before the contest ends, your link will take readers… and judges!… to the wrong place!)

Eager Readers – just go along the list of links, click on them, and enjoy the stories!

Happy Writing and Happy Halloween!!! 😊 🎃

And don’t miss the 169!!! fabulous entries that are posted in the comments

below! (Hopefully each one is a link, but thanks to the new wordpress, I’ve redone the list twice with uncertain success!)

The 2020 Valentiny Writing Contest WINNERS!!!

February 24, 2020May 14, 202130 Comments

Darlings!

Do you know what today is?

Of course you do!

That’s why you’re here!

No one wants to miss National Tortilla Chip Day!

Let’s take a poll!

Which is better: potato chips or tortilla chips?

and

What is your favorite dip? Guacamole? Salsa? Queso? Other?

These are the burning questions that can only be answered by the great minds here in our little community.

Now I come to think of it, there is probably a picture book in this. . . The Search for Perfection. . . or maybe, Who Stole The Dip?

But back to the point, I think we can all agree that for un-dipped flavor, our friends the potato chips have poor plain tortillas beat hands down. Also, I would argue that ruffled potato chips have more flavor than smooth ones. But once dip is involved, all bets are off. Tortilla chips with both guacamole AND salsa may surpass the lowly plain potato chip. (Although, if you get a good barbecue or sour cream and onion potato chip, the tables turn again!)

MY! What a knotty problem! Thank goodness you’re here to weigh in!

Now off you go to your Mondays to enjoy your properly-dipped tortilla chips.

Ta-ta.

See you tomorrow for Tuesday Debut.

Thanks for stopping by.

Buh-bye now.

What?

You DIDN’T come to talk about tortilla chips?

What else could possibly be on your mind on National Tortilla Chip Day?

Ah. . .

. . . I know what it is!

You’ve spent the whole weekend in a fever of anticipation to find out who won

The 5th Annual Pretty Much World Famous Valentiny Writing Contest!!!

So I suppose, if you’re very nice to me and agree with everything I say (for example, that ruffled potato chips are better than smooth ones) and are willing to give me a tiara and elect me Princess of Clove Valley, I will tell you.

But first a few words from our sponsor (me) which I know shocks you (not!) 🙂

As always, I was thrilled to see so many wonderful stories! (Did I mention there were nearly 150?!) Really! It is amazing and inspiring, not to mention VERY entertaining! There is just so much talent out there amongst you all! The other judges and I are blown away anew each time!

But with large entry numbers, all of high quality, 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 last week 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, or that the judges couldn’t reach a consensus on. It is SO HARD! One of our favorite entries – well written and curious – was over the word limit! Two entries came in after the deadline. Many other entries were so well written but simply weren’t curious enough, although they were fabulous in other ways!

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: (entries we truly wrestled with not including in the finalists!)

Ingrid Boydston for What’s Love?

Theresa Kiser for Little Card’s Purpose

Rebecca Loescher for Crabby’s Heart Speaks

Mia Geiger for Secret Stash

2. For Great Kid Appeal: (not already mentioned in the finals or other categories)

Laura Howard for Bags Of Love (fun and sweet!)

Kelsey Gross for Moe’s Valentine’s Day Discovery (good story structure and curiosity, sweet ending)

Sarah Meade for Valenturtle

Mary Warth for Mystery Marks

3. For Original POV:

Amy Flynn for Mailbox (POV of a mailbox! – well-written!)

4. For Humor:

Genevieve Puttay for Cupid Caper (clever and funny! but we thought maybe some of the humor would escape the 12 and under set)

Katrina Swenson for Cupid’s Love Trials

Jen Bagan for Cupid And Curtis

Andrea MacDonald for Peck! (funny, original inside-the-egg POV)

5. For Well-Written, Fun Story With Great Sibling Interaction:

Jilanne Hoffman for Double-Crossed Hearts

Joy Pitcairn for February 14

6. For Well-Written Scariest Valentine Ever That Totally Gave Us The Shivers! :

Sofia Dibble for Ophelia Divine (so original and very Edgar Allan Poe!)

7. For We Loved It But Not Curious Enough!:

Aundra Tomlins for Better With Bear

Elizabeth LaGrange Muster for Cupid’s Curious Conundrum (great mash-up of holiday characters!)

MaryAnn Cortez for Yeti Wants A Valentine

Sue Lancaster for Shelly & Saul

Claire Lewis for My Piggy Valentine

Elsie Duffany for The Curious Kitten (well done, Elsie! Keep up the great work!)

Cindy Williams Schrauben for How To Find Your Valentine

Anne Bromley for A Shelter Dog’s Valentine

Kate Thompson for When Love Gives You Wings

And now…

…the moment you’ve all been waiting for…

The announcement of the WINNERS OF THE 2018 VALENTINY CONTEST as voted on by you, our devoted readers!!!

rat-a-tat-rat-a-tat-rat-a-tat-rat-a-tat-rat-a-tat

DDDRRRUUUMMM RRROOOLLLLLL!!!!!!!!!

In First Place…

Winner of the whole shebang…

who gets first choice of all the prizes…

Nicole Loos Miller
for
Seeds Of Love!!!

Congratulations, Nicole, on a beautifully written entry which had us wondering right along with your main character what would grow and what would be done with it, along with a lovely message!

In Second Place

Kelly Conroy
for
Candy Conundrum

Congratulations, Kelly, on a delightfully kid-friendly entry we loved for your MC’s very believable curiosity and subsequent taste-testing of the candy hearts and perfect final question 🙂 You get to pick your prize after Nicole.

In Third Place

Sarah Meade
for
Gibbon’s Valentine’s Surprise

Congratulations, Sarah! You did a terrific job of writing a fun, well-structured story in 214 words! We were especially fond of Sloth 🙂 You get to pick your prize after Nicole and Kelly.

In Fourth Place…

Nancy Riley
for
Finding A Friend

Congratulations, Nancy, on an engaging story of a curious little rover on a Valentine mission on Mars in perfect rhyme! You get to pick your prize after Nicole, Kelly, and Sarah!

In Fifth Place…

Charlotte Sheer
for
Scraps Of Love

Congratulations, Charlotte, on your heart-warming story. We felt Papa and the neighbors’ curiosity over what on earth Sergio was up to! How lovely that he was doing something nice for those who had helped him. . . using reclaimed and recycled items! You get to pick after Nicole, Kelly, Sarah, and Nancy!

In Sixth Place…

Jean James
for
The Stinky Valentine

Congratulations, Jean! You really had us wondering what kind of awful stinky thing was in that box! And what a fun twist that a Valentine mix-up had occurred! I’m sure you get the idea of how the prize picking goes by now 🙂

In Seventh Place…

Marty Bellis
for
Dear Cupid

Congratulations, Marty! You made us laugh 🙂 You get to pick next 🙂

In Eighth Place…

Sara Ackerman
for

Congratulations, Sara! You did a beautiful job of showing curiosity in an unfamiliar world xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx You get to pick after Marty 🙂

In Ninth Place…

Chelsea Tornetto
for
Sending Love

Congratulations, Chelsea! We loved your imaginings of how a Valentine might get from one side of the map to the other! You get to pick after Sara!

In Tenth Place…

JC Kelly
for
Always. Every Day. No Matter What.

Congratulations, JC! We loved how believably “kid” Johnny was with his curiosity over how far his mom’s love went, and how patient and forgiving his mom! You get to pick after Chelsea!

In Eleventh Place…

Michelle Howell Miller
for
Whose Valentine Could This Be?

Congratulations, Michelle, on a wonderful entry for youngest readers, beautifully done! You get to pick after JC 🙂

In Twelfth Place…

Chambrae Griffith
for
Beetle’s Valentine

Congratulations, Chambrae, on a lovely, curiosity filled story in well-written rhyme!

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 and a gigantic chocolate heart… or lots of little chocolate hearts… or both… really, you can never have too much chocolate 🙂 . (Or perhaps you’d rather have a shower of tortilla chips and some lovely dishes of dip 🙂 )

Have a marvelous Monday, everyone! 🙂

The Prizes: Oh, the awesomeness! With heartfelt thanks to all who donated!

– Penny’s Two Cents – an incredible opportunity for any picture book writer!

Sometimes it’s helpful to chat with a published author about your writing journey. Penny Parker Klostermann is offering her two cents. The prize includes six thirty-minute Skype/Google Hangout sessions with Penny. The sessions can be used anytime during 2020. Ask her anything related to writing for children and getting published. Up to two sessions can be used for general comments on a manuscript (not a full critique). Penny doesn’t claim to have it all figured out, (by any means) but she’s happy to share her two cents based on what she’s learned and continues to learn on her journey as an author.

Penny is the author of THERE WAS AN OLD DRAGON WHO SWALLOWED A KNIGHT (Random House 2015) (now available in board book and with matching pajamas! 🙂 ) and A COOKED-UP FAIRY TALE (Random House 2017)

– Picture Book Manuscript Critique from Rosie Pova, author of If I Weren’t With You (Spork 2017), Sarah’s Song (Spork 2017), and the forthcoming Sunday Rain (Lantana Publishing, September 2020)

– Picture Book Manuscript Critique (rhyming or non-rhyming) from Katey Howes, author of GRANDMOTHER THORN (Ripple Grove Press 2017), MAGNOLIA MUDD AND THE SUPER JUMPTASTIC LAUNCHER DELUXE (Sterling Children’s Books 2018), BE A MAKER (Carolrhoda Books, 2019), and the forthcoming RISSY NO KISSIES (Lerner/Carolrhoda Spring 2021)

– Picture Book Manuscript Critique from Ellen Leventhal, author of DON’T EAT THE BLUEBONNETS (Spork 2017), LOLA CAN’T LEAP (Spork 2018), and HAYFEST A HOLIDAY QUEST (ABCs Press 2010)

– Picture Book Manuscript Critique from Sherry Howard, author of ROCK & ROLL WOODS (Spork 2018)

– Picture Book Manuscript Critique from Lydia Lukidis, author of NO BEARS ALLOWED (Blue Whale Press 2019) and many educational titles.

– a spot in Making Picture Book Magic (Interactive or Self Study version – winner’s choice) – an online picture book writing course from Yours Truly. If you choose the interactive version, month to be mutually agreed on by me and the winner.

– Prize Pack #1 – a personalized signed copy of A MORNING WITH GRANDPA (Lee&Low Books 2016) by Sylvia Liu and the 2020 Guide To Literary Agents (which you may exchange for the Children’s Writer’s And Illustrator’s Market 2020 if you prefer)

Lee&Low New Voices Award 2013

– Picture Book Prize Pack – a personalized signed copy of NOT QUITE SNOW WHITE (HarperCollins 2019) by Ashley Franklin and a personalized signed copy of NOAH NOASAURUS (Albert Whitman & Co 2019) by Elaine Kiely Kearns

– Picture Book Pack From Chris and Chris: a personalized signed copy of EMILY’S IDEA (Sounds True, March 2020) by Christine Evans and a personalized signed copy of HEY, HEY, HAY! A Tale of Bales and the Machines That Make Them (Holiday House 2018) by Christy Mihaly

– Historical Women Picture Book Pack: a personalized signed copy of QUEEN OF PHYSICS: How Wu Chien Shiung Helped Unlock the Secrets of the Atom (Sterling Children’s Books 2019) by Teresa Robeson and a personalized signed copy of MAKING THEIR VOICES HEARD: The Inspiring Friendship of Ella Fitzgerald and Marilyn Monroe (Little Bee Books 2020) by Vivian Kirkfield

Asian/Pacific American Award Picture
Book and ALA Notable Picture Book

– A SURPRISE PACK! – 2 additional picture books (not signed) donated by Darshana Khiani (who will have her own book, How To Wear A Sari, out in Spring 2021!): What Color Is Night? by Grant Snider and Caspian Finds A Friend by Jacqueline Veissid

Please join me in thanking these very generous authors and other writing professionals for contributing their books and writing expertise as prizes by visiting their websites and blogs, buying and recommending their books and services to your writer friends and/or friends with kids, writing them nice reviews on Amazon, GoodReads etc if you’ve read and liked their books, and showing your appreciation to them in any way you can! 😊

Susanna Leonard Hill

Children's Author

Tag: Ellen Leventhal

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