The 2022 Valentiny Contest WINNERS!!!

March 23, 2022March 23, 202211 Comments

Once upon a time. . .

. . . on a blueberry-covered hill not all that far, far away in upstate New York. . .

. . .a princess lived in a little house in the woods.

(I know. You’re wondering why the princess lived in a little house in the woods. “That’s not right!” I hear you saying. “Princesses are supposed to live in castles, or be trapped in towers or dungeons!” But this is not your usual run-of-the-mill princess. . .)

This princess was a champion pogo-sticker (yes, that is too a word.) She had been training for years, doing hours of jumping, and keeping to a strict diet of Spring Beans and Garbouncebos. It was very effective. The villagers could often be heard proclaiming, “That princess sure is full of beans!” And, “Boy! Can she bounce!”

The Bouncy Trouncy Pouncy Flouncy Pogosticking Championship, the most prestigious of all pogosticking competitions in the Universe, was only days away, and the princess (whose name was Poppy – so fitting, don’t you think? due to all that popping up and down? it’s almost like her excellence in pogosticking was foreseen when her parents picked her name. . .) but anyway, Poppy passionately wanted to win the competition and the life-size golden pogostick trophy that was the prize!

There was just one small problem. . .

She was supposed to have posted the winners for the 7th Annual Valentiny Writing Contest and she had spent so much time jumping and bouncing and eating beans and various other explosive foods that she had not done it. NO, SHE HAD NOT!

So her mother said, “Poppy, there will be no Pogosticking Championship for you until you have met your obligations! I will not have shirkers in my little house in the woods!”

Well. Poppy REALLY wanted to get to that Championship! So she sat on her hippity-hop (great indoor leg strength building for bouncing and jumping muscles) and made the list of winners and honorable mentions in record time (because Poppy was all about making records, whether in pogosticking or in judging whilst hippity-hopping and continuing her bean eating!)

“I am so proud of you, Poppy,” her mother said. “Not only have you fulfilled your obligations, you have kept up with your exercise regimen and your bean eating at the same time, showing great commitment to your sport and your goals! Now, go to the Bouncy Trouncy Pouncy Flouncy Pogosticking Championship and jump the socks off your competitors!”

There will now be a short commercial break to announce the WINNERS of . . .

The 7th Annual Valentiny Writing Contest

~ for children’s writers ~

(don’t worry – you’ll find out what happened to Poppy after this break from our sponsors)

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 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 nearly 150 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. And remember that the judging is based on the contest criteria. If you wrote a great story that didn’t showcase pride enough or that was too grown-up or not related to Valentine’s Day, you didn’t make the final cut. But that 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!)

Lori Sheroan for The Proudest Pencil

Susannah Lee for Shelby’s Heartache

Claire Noland for The Valentine Surprise

Chayala Nachum for My Icky Sticky Valentine (great kid appeal too!)

Rachel Bandy for V’s For Valentine

Terri Hellard-Brown for Isabella’s Valentine

Becky Goodman for ValenTalent Show

Lauri C. Meyers for My Gummy Love

Susanne Whitehouse for The Mural

Judy Sobanski for Sloth’s Original Valentine

Laura Bower for Llama Love

Sara Kruger for The Perfect Present

2. For Great Read Aloud:

Brigid Finucane for Love Somebody (makes you want to sing and dance 😊)

3. For Great Story For Younger Readers:

Patti Ranson for Valentines Breakfast For Mom

Cindy Greene for Valentine’s Day Heartache

Tara Knox Cerven for The Purrfect Valentine

Lori C. Evans for Never Too Many Valentines

4. For Humor:

Donna Kurtz for Don’t-Let-The-Dung-Beetle-Make-The-Valentine-Brownies!

Jill Purtee for Gumballs

5. For Fun POV/Character:

Jenna Elyse Johnson for Hammie’s Valentine Surprise (dog)

Deborah Foster for Gary Groundhog Conquers The Shadow Monster (groundhog/snowhog)

6. For Great Ending:

Alayne Kay Christian for What Kind Of Cupid Am I?

Kristy Roser Nuttall for Love Inside

Mary Schultz for Taffy’s Sweet Surprise

7. For Well-Written Story With Great Sibling Interaction:

Julianna Helt for Allie’s Biggest Heart

Armineh Manookian for Lost But Found

Erika Romero for You Make Me So Proud

8. For Beautiful Writing:

A. Kidd for Three Hearts

Corine Timmer for It’s A Matter Of Taste (also educational and funny ending!)

9. For Best Short Valentiny Story:

Marty Findley for A Valentine For You (64 words!)

10. For Sweet Valentiny:

Heather Ferranti Kinser for Teeny Houdini

Kathy Crable for Valentine Barks

Lindsay Moretti for A Valentine For Mr. Weatherly

11. Best Story From A Young Writer:

Sophie Moore (age 10) for Detective Spot And The Search For A New Cupid (also clever and funny!)

Congratulations to all of you for fantastic elements of your stories! Please 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’ve done this for previous contests 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…

Michaela Almeida
for
A Change Of Heart!!!

Congratulations, Michaela! Terrific job 😊

In Second Place

Daniella Kaufman
for
Sweet Valentine

Congratulations, Daniella! You get to pick your prize after Michaela.

In Third Place

Katie Brandyberry
for
Valentine Delivery – Part II

Congratulations, Katie! You get to pick your prize after Michaela and Daniella.

In Fourth Place…

Jesse Anna Bornemann
for
Showdown In Smoochalot

Congratulations, Jesse! You get to pick your prize after Michaela, Daniella, and Katie!

In Fifth Place…

Allison Strick
for
Percy’s Performance

Congratulations, Allison! You get to pick after Michaela, Daniella, Katie, and Jesse!

In Sixth Place...

Katie Palazzola
for
Oog Love Rock

Congratulations, Katie! I’m sure you get the idea of how the prize picking goes by now 😊

In Seventh Place…

Sarah Meade
for
V-Day!

Congratulations, Sarah! You get to pick next 😊

In Eighth Place…

Amy Leskowski
for
Cupid’s Confidence

Congratulations, Amy! You get to pick after Sarah 😊

In Ninth Place…

Laura Bost
for
Flicker’s Valentine

Congratulations, Laura! You get to pick after Amy! 😊

In Tenth Place…

Kate Thompson
for
The Valentine’s Cake

Congratulations, Kate! You get to pick after Laura! 😊

In Eleventh Place…

Sara Petersohn
for
Valentine Wins

Congratulations, Sara! You get to pick after Kate! 😊

In Twelfth Place…

Kimberly Shrack
for
The Perfect Valentine

Congratulations, Kimberly! You get to pick your prize after Sara! 😊

In Thirteenth Place…

Emily Keener
for
Special Delivery

Congratulations, Emily! You get to pick after Kimberly!

In Fourteenth Place…

Zach Schloss
for
Hoppy Belated Valentine

Congratulations, Zach!

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 😊 .

Oh! And as a special reward I will tell you that Princess Poppy went to the Bouncy Trouncy Pouncy Flouncy Pogosticking Championship and pogoed with astounding energy, bouncing and jumping as, one by one, all the other competitors fell victim to Jelly Legs and toppled off their pogo sticks, and she was so impressive that not only did she win the competition and the life-sized golden pogo stick trophy (“That’s my girl!” her mother said proudly), they also named a brand of beans after her, so now you can buy Princess Poppy Beans – Beans That Pop With Flavor and Will Make You Jump For Joy! They are high in fiber and an excellent source of protein so you really can’t go wrong! Try some with your chocolate! (er… or maybe that WOULD be wrong 🤣)

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 Wednesday, everyone! 😊

The Prizes: Swoonworthy! As always, we are so fortunate to have an abundance of wonderful prizes donated by our very generous friends in the kidlit community! Just look at all these goodies!

⭐️ Picture Book Manuscript Read & Critique from agent Mary Cummings of Great River Literary, “an agency devoted exclusively to representing authors and author/illustrators of books for children and teens. Strong relationships with editors have resulted in a rapidly growing list of sales of board and picture books, chapter books and novels to such publishing houses as Knopf; Philomel; Viking; Nancy Paulsen/Penguin; Balzer & Bray; Walker; Little, Brown; Henry Holt; Holiday House; Feiwel & Friends; FSG; Running Press; WorthyKids; Abrams; Random House; Wiseman S & S; Chronicle; Candlewick; HarperCollins and many others.”

⭐️ 1/2 Hour Zoom Picture Book Manuscript Critique or Mentoring Session with author 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 from 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)

⭐️ 30 Minute Zoom Ask Me Anything with Keila Dawson, author of THE KING CAKE BABY (Pelican Publishing 2016), NO VOICE TOO SMALL (Charlesbridge 2020), and OPENING THE ROAD: VICTOR HUGO GREEN AND HIS GREEN BOOK (Beaming Books, 2021)

⭐️ Access to author/editor Alayne Kay Christian‘s webinars! Alayne is the author of BUTTERFLY KISSES FOR GRANDMA AND GRANDPA (Blue Whale Press, 2008), SIENNA THE COWGIRL FAIRY: COWBOY TROUBLE (Blue Whale Press 2021), THE WEED THAT WOKE CHRISTMAS (Blue Whale Press, 2020), and AN OLD MAN AND HIS PENGUIN (Blue Whale Press, 2020)

⭐️ Picture Book Manuscript Critique (fiction) 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), SADIE’S SHABAT STORIES (Spork, 2020) and PLANTING FRIENDSHIP: PEACE, SALAAM, SHALOM

⭐️ Picture Book Manuscript Critique from Rebecca Gardyn Levington author of BRAINSTORM! (Sleeping Bear Press, Summer 2022), I WILL ALWAYS BE…(HarperCollins, Spring 2024) and a contributor to the delightful anthology HOP TO IT: POEMS TO GET YOU MOVING (Pomelo Books, October 2020)

⭐️ Picture Book Manuscript Critique (nonrhyming) from Rebecca Kraft Rector, author of SQUISH SQUASH SQUISHED (Nancy Paulsen Books, Penguin Random House, 2021), LITTLE RED AND THE BIG BAD EDITOR (Aladdin, September 2022), and TRIA AND THE GREAT STAR RESCUE (Delacorte/Random House)

⭐️ Picture Book Manuscript Critique and Query Letter Critique from Jessica Stremer author of the forthcoming GREAT CARRIER REEF (Holiday House, 2023)

⭐️ Picture Book Manuscript Critique from Cathy Ballou Mealey author of WHEN A TREE GROWS (Union Square Kids, 2019), SLOTH AND SQUIRREL IN A PICKLE (Kids Can Press, 2021), and the forthcoming MAKE MORE S’MORES (Sleeping Bear Press, 2023)

⭐️ Personalized Signed Copy of THE KING CAKE BABY by Keila Dawson

⭐️ Personalized Signed Copy of PLANTING FRIENDSHIP: PEACE, SALAAM, SHALOM by Melissa Berger Stoller

⭐️ Personalized Signed Copy of IT’S A MUFFULETTA! IT’S A WHATA? (Spork 2021) by Patricia Saunders

⭐️ Personalized Signed Copy of Winner’s Choice of any available Susanna Leonard Hill picture book

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! 😊

With Prideful Heart – The 7th Annual Valentiny Contest Is HERE!!!

February 11, 2022March 15, 20221,776 Comments

Hi Everyone! I’m so sorry, but there is absolutely no chance I’m going to have finalists Friday morning as I originally posted. I’m not even sure when to say I will have them, though I’ll get them up as soon as I can. It will not be over this weekend, I’m sure of that. Thank you all for your patience. I’m so sorry for the delay!

[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!

Whether your characters are filled with pride and joy, puffed up with pride, or in danger of pride going before a fall, the time has come for . . .

The 7th 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 proud! They can be proud in a good way or a bad way. They can be proud of themselves for asking someone to be their Valentine, or they can be proud of how they asked. They can be proud of a Valentine they make, or a Valentine celebration they plan. They can be proud of giving something up, or proud of asking someone they’re not sure about for some reason in order to be nice. They can be proud of their performance in a Valentines Day play or concert or parade. . . sky’s the limit! Just make sure it is clearly Valentine-centered! 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 proud (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 in the comment section below between right now this very second and Sunday February 13th by 11:59 PM EDT. There will be no regularly scheduled posts for the duration of the contest (Tuesday Debut, Would You Read It, or PPBF), so the post and all of your entries will stay up for everyone to enjoy. 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. [Also, a small note: I have a serious family situation at the moment. I didn’t want to cancel the contest at the last minute, but please be patient with me if it takes me a while to post emailed entries and update the link list etc. I will do my best, but apologies in advance for delays.]

The Judging: my lovely assistants and I will narrow down the entrants to 6-12 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 Friday February 18th (or possibly a day or two later if the judges need extra time.) The winner will be announced Monday February 21st 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 pride, and success in making us feel the pride (whether it’s good pride or bad)!
Valentine’s Day appropriateness – this is a VALENTINE story and Valentine’s Day must be central to it!
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: As always, we are so fortunate to have an abundance of wonderful prizes donated by our very generous friends in the kidlit community! Just look at all these goodies!

⭐️ 1/2 Hour Zoom Picture Book Manuscript Critique or Mentoring Session with author Lynne Marie!

⭐️ Picture Book Manuscript Critique and Query Letter Critique from Jessica Stremer author of the forthcoming GREAT CARRIER REEF (Holiday House, 2023)

⭐️ Personalized Signed Copy of THE KING CAKE BABY by Keila Dawson

⭐️ Personalized Signed Copy of PLANTING FRIENDSHIP: PEACE, SALAAM, SHALOM by Melissa Berger Stoller

⭐️ Personalized Signed Copy of IT’S A MUFFULETTA! IT’S A WHATA? (Sprok 2021) by Patricia Saunders

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

I can’t wait to read your stories!!!

Eager Readers: Check out the comment section for all the fabulous entries! 😊

ENTRIES (all entries are linked) [will be linked tomorrow – sorry for delay]

The Perfect Present – Sara Kruger
Dr. Basil Discovers His Secret Admirer – Royal Baysinger
Teeny Houdini – Heather Ferranti Kinser
How To Win At Wordle – Anne Lipton
Eva Valentina’s Day – Katie Fischer
Chick Forgot Valentine’s Day – Jess Burbank
The Make-A-Valentine Contest – Hanna Geshelin
Never Too Many Valentines – Lori C. Evans
Proud As A Peacock – Bru Benson
Valentine Farm – Jennifer Lowe
Gary Groundhog Conquers The Shadow Monster – Deborah Foster
Tucker And The Sneezies – Susan E. Schipper
When Dad Is Away – Aileen Stewart
It’s Valentine’s Day, Thomas, The Worm – Maria Lahman
The House On The Corner – Elyse Trevers
Staying In The Lines – Elizabeth Meyer zu Heringdorf
Top Of The World – Christine Alemshah
The Canape Caper – Cathy Stenquist
My Icky Sticky Valentine – Chayala Nachum
The Best Card Maker – Stephanie Maksymiw
Dad Gets Weird On Valentine’s Day – Debbie Day
The Valentine Tiff – Sally Yorke-Viney
Glitter & Glue – Janna MacLean
Heart Aflutter – Kelly Clasen
Little Things – Molly Ippolito
Veronica’s Surprise – Janel Caverly
My Quiet Valentine – Amanda Sherlock
Who’s Ana? – Ellie Langford
Prince Of The Pride – Jessica Seitz
Cupid’s Big Day – Marty Bellis
A Match Made In Socks – Laura Heath
Momma’s Smile – Amber Hendricks
The Perfect Valentine – Kimberly Shrack
Miss Frog And Mister Turtle – Sharon McCarthy
The Trees Of The Girl Who Raised Bees – B.J. Genovese
Mailbirds: Valentine’s Day – Reed Ambrose
The Perfect Card – Keely Leim
Valentine’s Day Is For Everyone – Janet Scratchley
Valentine’s In The Jungle – Melissa Rafson Friedman
The Lovesick Groundhog – Debbie Daugherty
Rosas For Senor Perez – Carmen Castillo Gilbert
Get Well Soon, Mrs. Love – Rebekah Hoeft
A Valentine For You – Marty Findley
Cupid, A New Generation – Linda Staszak
A Valentine For Her – Marty Findley
Mr. Sunder’s Valentine’s Day Cookie – Marta Cutler
Valentine Countdown – Marta Cutler
V’s For Valentine – Rachel Bandy
ValenTINY – Jessica Milo
Three Hearts – A. Kidd
I Whale Always Love You – Kimberly Horch
Isabella’s Valentine – Terrie Hellard-Brown
Dear Moon – Carissa Brown
A Nose For Love – Julie Kurtz
Rabbit [heart] Rebecca – Anne Bromley
The Heart Of A Wizard – Jany Campana
Sweet Valentine – Daniella Kaufman
The Valentine’s Cake – Kate Thompson
Gene’s Forbidden Valentine – Vanessa Konoval
The Best Part – Sarah Meade
V-Day! – Sarah Meade
The Special Valentine Card – Sherry Roberts
Cutting Is Hard – Ashley Chance
Hammie’s Valentine Surprise – Jenna Elyse Johnson
Pinky’s Message – Elizabeth Muster
Everyting You Taught Me – Shuba Mohan
It’s A Matter Of Taste – Corine Timmer
Broken Hearts Need Love Too – Stephanie Henson
All Aboard – Debbie Whittam
Dove Letters – Amy LaMae Brewer
My Furry Valentine – Tiffany Hanson
A Squawking Serenade – Tiffany Hanson
Proud That You Are Mine – Tonnye Fletcher
Mother, You Are One In A Million – Elaine D’Alessandro
King Of Love – Sue Ko
Rose’s Creative Valentines – Elaine D’Alessandro
Dear Valentine – Jill Burns
Subterranean Lovesick Blues – Andrea MacDonald
Love, Mama And Me – Karen Olmstead
A Gift For My Mami – Lana Montalban
Baby Bear’s Heart – Lori Himmel
Gumballs – Jill Purtee
Beaming With Pride – Paul Kurtz
Proud As A Peacock – Paul Kurtz
Don’t-Let-The-Dung-Beetle-Make-The-Valentine-Brownies! – Donna Kurtz
Best Valentine’s Day Ever! – Donna Kurtz
To Sarah – Elizabeth Westra
The Heart-Shaped Mitten – Sherri T. Mercer
Love Inside – Kristy Roser Nuttall
Valentine’s Field Trip – Darcee Freier
Heart And Hands – Marjorie David
Flicker’s Valentine – Laura Bost
A Valentine For Birders – Geraldine Oades-Sese
The Floofabims – Sabrina Shah
I Wanted To Say I Love You – Joy Curtis
Percy’s Performance – Allison Strick
Showdown In Smoochalot – Jesse Anna Bornemann
Theo’s Not-So-Perfect Valentine’s Day – Kelsey E. Gross
Mama, Are You Proud Of Me? – Pamela Swanson
Awesome Together – Sarah Hetu
Valentine’s Breakfast For Mom – Patti Ranson
Special Delivery – Emily Keener
Harriet’s Cards – Jessica Reed
Dolley’s Favorite Month – Lincoln Mansch
Llama Love – Laura Bower
Will You Be My Valentine? – Michelle S. Kennedy
Sunshine Valentine – Vashti Verbowski
Shelby’s Heartache – Susannah Lee
Taffy’s Sweet Surprise – Mary Schultz
Where Is Puppito? – Bridget Magee
Princess Candace – Sheila R. Schmotzer
Suzie And Jordan’s Special Day – Shadi Kafi
Valentine Delivery – Part II (sequel to 2021 Valentine Contest Entry) – Katie Brandyberry
A Friend For Valentine’s Day – Daniele Arndt
Hoppy Belated Valentine – Zach Schloss
Remember The Love – Ashley Murray
The Proudest Pencil – Lori Sheroan
My Gummy Love – Lauri C. Meyers
Love ME – Melissa Rutigliano
Love Potions And Laughter – Tiffany Hanson
A Cake-tastrophe – Tiffany Hanson
The Valentine’s Day Invitiational – Lori Keating
Lost But Found – Armineh Manookian
L-O-V-E – Ronda Einbinder
Shakesbear In Love – MaryLee Flannigan
A New Friend – Steve Jankousky
What Kind Of Cupid Am I? – Alayne Kay Christian
My Hero – Dawn Young
Valentine’s Day Dance-Off In Nestville – Lynn Marie Moore
Hidden In These Hallowed Hills – Shuba Mohan
A Rose For Toad – Ashlee MacCallum
I Do NOT Like Rohini Rao – Sandhya Acharya
Untitled – M.M. Sutanto
A Heart Of Gold – Ryan Schneck
Haiku Valentines: Love In 5-7-5 Rhyme – Brenda Whitehead
Kate’s Valentines – Sheila M. Hausbeck
A Nest For Bluegill – Katie Palazzola
A Puzzling Valentine – My Side Of The Phone Call… – Ingrid Boydston
Smelly Kelly – Glenda Roberson
Underneath It All – Carrie Charley Brown
How To Find A Valentine – Bevin Rolfs Spencer
My Daddy’s Valentine – Gayle Krause
Proud Valentine’s Day – Deborah Hunt
A Valentine For Annie B. Bear – Charlotte Dixon
Valentine’s Day Heartache – Cindy Greene
Valentine Shenanigans – Vasilia Graboski
You Make Me So Proud – Erika Romero
I Am Proud To Be Your Friend – Kerry Porter
Love Somebody – Brigid Finucane
Marcus Is Not An Elephant: How A Woolly Mammoth Makes A Friend – Susan Schwartz Twiggs
Purple Lace – Liz Kehrli
Puppy Love – Kathy Halsey
Valentine’s Day Booty – Danielle Sharkan
Wholeheartedly – Catherine Brewer
Valentine Barks – Kathy Crable
Oog Love Rock – Katie Palazzola
C.I.T. (Cupid In Training) – Colleen Murphy
Allie’s Biggest Heart – Julianna Helt
Detective Spot And The Search For A New Cupid – Sophia Moore (age 10)
The Valentine Surprise – Claire Noland
The Purrfect Valentine – Tara Knox Cerven
A Valentine For Mr. Weatherly – Lindsay Moretti
A Proud Mum – Shariffa Keshavje
Valentine’s Day At Sweet Pig’s – Patricia Corcoran
Poppy’s Gift – Melanie Adkins
Go Tell Bully Brady – Mona Pease
Valentine Surprise – Abby Wooldridge
Full Of Heart – Allison Burke
Two Little Valentines – Judy Abelove Shemtob
A Change Of Heart – Michaela Almeida
The Mural – Susanne Whitehouse
The Perfect Friend Chip – Cheryl Simon
Sloth’s Original Valentine – Judy Sobanski
Be My Fred – Lisa Furness
Cupid’s Confidence – Amy Leskowski
The Flower Code – Ashlee Hashman
A Valentine For Jake – Andrew Fairchild
Cardi V – Alicia Meyers
The Heart Of The Matter – Sarah Marhevsky
Bear And Fish – A Love Story – Aly Kenna
Valentine Wins – Sara Petersohn
Sweet Breakfast – JC Kelly
ValenTalent Show – Becky Goodman
Marla’s Mistake – Jessica Watts
The Koi That Should Have Been In The Zodiac – MeiLin Chan
Surprise Valentine’s Day Party – Una Belle Townsend
My First Love – Adolfo Gomez-Herrera

Tuesday Debut – Presenting Rebecca Kraft Rector!

February 23, 2021February 23, 202123 Comments

Good morning, everyone, and welcome to another exciting episode of Tuesday Debut!

Today’s debut-ess and I are clearly kindred spirits! Her book is being published by Nancy Paulsen, who has one of my books due out next year, her publication date is one of my daughters’ birthday, and her name is Rebecca, which is my sister’s name! There’s a pretty good chance we are twin princesses separated at birth 😊

So I am delighted to introduce you to Rebecca Kraft Rector and her fun-looking book, Squish Squash Squished! (I don’t have my copy as of the writing of this post but I hope it will be here soon!)

Squish Squash Squished
Written by Rebecca Kraft Rector
Illustrated by Dana Wulfekotte
Published by Nancy Paulsen Books, Penguin Random House
February 16, 2021
Fiction, ages 2-6

When Max and Molly complain about being squished in the back seat of their gracious-spacious automobile, Mom invites their animal neighbors to ride along. They’d better figure out what to do before they’re truly SQUISH SQUASH SQUISHED!

SUSANNA: Welcome, Rebecca! Thank you so much for joining us today! We’re excited to hear all about how Squish Squash Squished came to be! Where did the idea for this book come from?

REBECCA: Family car rides were a big part of my childhood. But the story was not inspired by us kids being crowded in the back seat, because we were very well behaved. 😊 In fact, SQUISH SQUASH SQUISHED grew out of another story I was working on. That story was about the car itself. Gradually I started focusing on the children and adding humor and word play. My most successful stories happen when I’m making myself laugh.

SUSANNA: How long did it take you to write this book?

REBECCA: I wrote and revised the story with the help of my critique group in about three months. It didn’t sell and I put it away. That was twenty years ago!

SUSANNA: Did you go through many revisions?

REBECCA: SQUISH SQUASH SQUISHED was revised at least 15 times before it was submitted.

I revise before sharing with critique partners and then I revise again. (and again) When I think a story is finished, I do a few more passes. I use Word to turn the text into a 4 x 8 table. It’s an easy process under Insert/Table/Convert Text to Table. Each cell of the table represents a page of a 32-page book. The table lets me see where page turns will fall, if one page will have more words than another, if I’m repeating things unnecessarily, etc. A new revision tool I use is Read Mode in Word. I can see the text spread across two pages, just like a book. And if I enlarge the font to 18 (or so) it has fewer words on the page, so it reads like a picture book. I also like to change the font size and color of the text. It gives me a totally new perspective on the story.

SUSANNA: When did you know your manuscript was ready for submission?

REBECCA: After many revisions and feedback from my critique group, I felt I had a solid story. It made me laugh and the words flowed smoothly when it was read aloud.

Rebecca’s work buddies, Ollie and Opal 😊

SUSANNA: When and how did you submit?

REBECCA: My agent submitted the story three times before we parted ways. Then I submitted to publishers that took unsolicited manuscripts. I put the story away when it was rejected and only pulled it out again, almost 20 years later, when I needed a story to work on for a workshop. Cecilia Yung, Art Director at Penguin Random House, saw the story at the workshop (text only since I can’t draw), loved it, and took it to editor/publisher Nancy Paulsen. A week later, I received an email from Nancy offering to publish the story!

SUSANNA: Was the contract what you expected in terms of advance, royalty percentage, publication timeline, author copies etc.?

REBECCA: This was my first picture book contract so I only had a vague idea of what to expect. The advance was divided into two payments—half on signing the contract and half on “delivery and acceptance of the manuscript.” I believe “delivery and acceptance” referred to a revised manuscript after editorial feedback. The number of author copies was negotiated from 10 to 24. The contract’s timeline for publication was 18 months after acceptance of text and illustrations. 18 months seemed a long, but reasonable time to wait. However, the timeline was actually about three and a half years. Publishing is sloooow.

SUSANNA: Can you tell us a bit about the editorial process?

REBECCA: The editorial process was wonderful. Nancy was awesome to work with—responsive and open to discussing any questions I had. Yes, I had to make some changes. But she really did listen to my concerns. One example is that she had revised the story so that the animals exited the car in one paragraph—the dogs got out at the puppy school, the ducks got out at the duck pond, and the pigs got out at the market. I really wanted to show the car gradually emptying—the dogs got out but Molly still had two ducks on her head quack-quacking and Max still had a pig on his lap oink-oinking. (Those lines are all paraphrased.) Nancy’s changes were made so that the story would fit into a 32-page picture book. After some discussion, she decided to go with a 40-page picture book so that we could include my original text!

SUSANNA: What was your experience of the illustration process like?

REBECCA: I was included in the illustration process from the start. I had input on illustrators and I was able to give feedback on sketches. I hadn’t included any art notes but I had pictures in my head, of course. It took a little time to adjust my vision when I saw the sketches. But they quickly grew on me. I was so lucky that illustrator Dana Wulfekotte came on board to create the world for SQUISH SQUASH SQUISHED. She even made some changes based on my suggestions.

text copyright Rebecca Kraft Rector 2021, illustration copyright Dana Wulfekotte 2021, Nancy Paulsen Books

SUSANNA: Did you get to see advance reviews from Kirkus, SLJ, etc?

REBECCA: Nothing yet.

SUSANNA: How long did it take from offer to having the first copy in your hand?

REBECCA: July 2017 to January 2021. Three and a half years.

SUSANNA: What was the initial print run for your book?

REBECCA: 10,000 copies.

SUSANNA: What kind of marketing and promotion has your publisher done for this book?

REBECCA: The associate publicist is pitching widely to national and regional media, targeting trade and book-interest sites, illustrator and educator media, and parenting media.

SUSANNA: Describe any marketing/promotion you did for this book.

REBECCA: I’m doing blog interviews and I’ve joined a debut picture book group—21 for the Books. It’s been a great, supportive group. We have a blog https://oneforthebooks.wixsite.com/2021 and we create graphics and interviews to publicize each other’s books.

SUSANNA: How long was it between the time you started writing seriously and the time you sold your first picture book?

REBECCA: It was a long time—at least thirty years.

SUSANNA: What is the most important/helpful thing you learned on your way to publication? (Or what is your most helpful piece of advice for up and coming writers?)

REBECCA: The most important thing I learned was Don’t Give Up! Keep writing and keep trying. This might not be the right time for this story, but who knows? Maybe it’ll sell next year (or twenty years from now).

RebeccaKraftRector.wordpress.com
RebeccaKraftRector on Facebook
RebeccaKRector on Instagram and Twitter

SUSANNA: Thank you so much for taking the time to join us today and give us a glimpse of your publication process, Rebecca! It is such a privilege to get to learn from you! I know I speak for everyone when I wish you the very best of luck with this and future titles!

Readers, if you have questions for Rebecca, please post them in the comments below and if she has time I’m sure she’ll respond!

You may purchase Rebecca’s book at:
(all links below are book-specific)

Indiebound
Amazon
Barnes&Noble

We can help our debut authors successfully launch their careers by:

– purchasing their books

– recommending their books to friends and family

– recommending their books to our children’s teachers and librarians

– recommending their books to our local libraries and bookstores

– suggesting them as visiting authors at our children’s schools and our local libraries

– sharing their books on social media

– reviewing their books on Goodreads, Amazon, Barnes&Noble, and other sites where people go to learn about books.

Thank you all for stopping by to read today! Have a lovely, inspiration-filled Tuesday! Maybe today is the day you’ll write your debut picture book 😊

Missed any previous Tuesday Debuts? Check them out!

Christy Mihaly – Hey! Hey! Hay! A Tale of Bales And The Machines That Make Them

Jessie Oliveros – The Remember Balloons

Beth Anderson – An Inconvenient Alphabet: Ben Franklin And Noah Webster’s Spelling Revolution

Hannah Holt – The Diamond And The Boy

Laura Renauld – Porcupine’s Pie

Annie Romano – Before You Sleep: A Bedtime Book Of Gratitude

Melissa Stoller – Scarlet’s Magic Paintbrush

Sherry Howard – Rock And Roll Woods

Kate Narita – 100 Bugs! A Counting Book

Vivian Kirkfield – Pippa’s Passover Plate

Laura Roettiger – Aliana Reaches For The Moon

Matthew Lasley – Pedro’s Pan: A Gold Rush Story

Natalee Creech – When Day Is Done

Margaret Chiu Greanias – Maximillian Villainous

Wendy Greenley – Lola Shapes The Sky

Danielle Dufayet – You Are Your Strong

B.J. Lee – There Was An Old Gator Who Swallowed A Moth

Cathy Ballou Mealey – When A Tree Grows

Pippa Chorley – Counting Sheep

Sandra Sutter – The Real Farmer In The Dell

June Smalls – Odd Animals ABC

Jill Mangel Weisfeld – Riley The Retriever Wants A New Job (self pub)

Kathleen Cornell Berman – The Birth Of Cool: How Jazz Great Miles Davis Found His Sound

Eleanor Ann Peterson – Jurassic Rat

Sarah Hoppe – Who Will? Will You?

Marla LeSage – Pirate Year Round

Stacey Corrigan – The Pencil Eater

Shannon Stocker – Can U Save The Day?

Nadine Poper – Randall And Randall

Christine Evans – Evelyn The Adventurous Entomologist

Karen Kiefer – Drawing God (religious market)

Susan Richmond – Bird Count

Dawn Young – The Night Baafore Christmas

Heather Gale – Ho’onani: Hula Warrior

Ciara O’Neal – Flamingo Hugs Aren’t For Everyone (self pub)

Theresa Kiser – A Little Catholic’s Book Of Liturgical Colors (religious market)

Lindsey Hobson – Blossom’s Wish (self pub)

Kirsten Larson – Wood, Wire, Wings: Emma Lilian Todd Invents An Airplane

Valerie Bolling – Let’s Dance!

Janet Johnson – Help Wanted: Must Love Books

Susi Schaefer – Cat Ladies

Heather Kinser – Small Matters: The Hidden Power of the Unseen

Kelly Carey – How Long Is Forever?

Mary Wagley Copp – Wherever I Go

Nell Cross Beckerman – Down Under The Pier

Claire Noland – Evie’s Field Day: More Than One Way To Win

Sharon Giltrow – Bedtime, Daddy!

Gabi Snyder – Two Dogs On A Trike

Sarah Kurpiel – Lone Wolf

Vicky Fang – Invent-a-Pet

Lisa Katzenberger – National Regular Average Ordinary Day

Pam Webb – Someday We Will

Abi Cushman – Soaked!

Teresa Krager – Before Your Birth Day

Lindsay H. Metcalf – Beatrix Potter, Scientist

Nancy Roe Pimm – Fly, Girl, Fly! Shaesta Waiz Soars Around The World

Jolene Gutiérrez – Mac And Cheese And The Personal Space Invader

Julie Rowan-Zoch – Louis (picture book illustration debut!)

Janie Emaus – Latkes For Santa

Amy Mucha – A Girl’s Bill Of Rights

Hope Lim – I Am A Bird

Melanie Ellsworth – Hip,Hip…Beret!

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 ~

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!

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!

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!

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!

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!

Susanna Leonard Hill

Children's Author

Tag: Squish Squash Squished

The 2022 Valentiny Contest WINNERS!!!

Michaela Almeida
for
A Change Of Heart!!!

With Prideful Heart – The 7th Annual Valentiny Contest Is HERE!!!

Tuesday Debut – Presenting Rebecca Kraft Rector!

The 2021 Valentiny Contest WINNERS!!!

Sarah McDermott
for
Lemur in Love!!!

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

Michaela AlmeidaforA Change Of Heart!!!

Sarah McDermottforLemur in Love!!!

Michaela Almeida
for
A Change Of Heart!!!

Sarah McDermott
for
Lemur in Love!!!