In fact, I’m not at all sure I’m actually in this week. I’s pretty sure I’m still in last week.
Certainly if you look at the pile of work on my desk that has yet to be done I should be in last week. . . there are many many things there that ought to be finished if it’s this week that most assuredly are not! (as anyone who is awaiting the results of the Halloweensie Contest can tell you! – SORRY!!!)
But I got to have a lovely visit with my son in sunny Brazil (where it is NOT snowing!😊) so with apologies to all of you for keeping you waiting on the things that should be finished and aren’t, I’m very glad I went!
Let’s just skip right ahead, shall we?
First, I’m happy to announce that the Winner of the September Pitch Pick is Kim with her pitch for P.I. Goat: The Case of the Missing Bone! Congratulations, Kim! Your pitch is on its way to editor Erin Molta for her thoughts, which I’m sure will be along at her earliest convenience!
Congratulations to our other pitchers as well! You all did a terrific job of putting together a pitch, bravely sharing it so you (and all of us!) could have the opportunity to evaluate and learn from it, revising your pitch based on the feedback you received, and hopefully ending up with a better, stronger pitch than you started with, even if you didn’t get the chance for Erin’s input. We are lucky to have such thoughtful, perceptive, dedicated and helpful readers to aid us in improving our pitches! Thank you all!
And now it’s on to the October Pitch Pick! (There will be no grass growing under anyone’s feet around here! 😊)
Please read through the revised pitches below and choose the one you think most deserving of a read and comments by editor Erin Molta, then vote for your choice in the poll below by Sunday November 24 at 9 PM Eastern.
#1 – Sri – Mighty Little Nikita (ER/PB 4-8)
Nikita’s friends call her “Little Nikita” because she is really small but Nikita does not like it a wee bit. When a huge dragonfly enters the class, it scares the jelly out of everyone, except Little Nikita. Nikita shows everyone just how brave she can be even when facing a scary insect, thus earning a new nickname that she is absolutely proud of.
#2 – Greg – Furrysaurus Rex (PB 4-8)
Amateur paleontologist Edwin spies a furry looking dinosaur roaming his neighborhood. He convinces his best friend Jennifer to help him hunt for the creature. They discover his brother in a T-Rex costume, but no dinosaur. Jennifer doubts Edwin saw a dinosaur. Edwin persists and ends up discovering something dinotastic.
#3 – Melissa – Mandy’s Magical Quest (PB 4-8)
Mandy, desperate to save her ailing grove of trees, seeks the help of the four elemental Goddesses. Led by her black crow, Bram, they journey to the far corners of the earth, battling the harsh environment. Mandy falters and is anxious to return home. If she does not complete the quest, the trees will not survive.
#4 – Natalie – The Unexpected Suitcase (MG Mystery 8-12)
When eleven-year-old Henry plummets into a dark abyss, inside a tattered suitcase, he’s unexpectedly transported to 1950s Central Park. His only route home is through the suitcase popup portal. During several journey’s, Henry grows by overcoming the fear of starting middle school and owning up about hiding the suitcase from grandma. But first, he needs to discover what’s hidden within the suitcase while helping his grandma clear out her house and keeping his secret safe.
We should probably rest after all that reading and voting. It’s very stressful having to choose between such great alternatives. Luckily I am here for you. And I am thinking that Oreo Cheesecake Chocolate Cake would be a very excellent antidote to our voting-induced stress 😊
Don’t you feel better? De-stressed and fully operational? Ready to tackle anything that comes along?
Fantastic! Because what’s coming along is today’s pitch which comes to us from Lu – author, former LD teacher, Santa maker, and collector of homeless artifacts.
Here is her pitch:
Working Title: Mary Janes
Age/Genre: Picture Book (ages 4-8)
The Pitch: All 6 yr. old Bella wants is a pair of new shoes, not just any shoes, but red Mary Janes. On her Saturday shopping outing with her grandmother, she notices the shoes of others. There are jump-roping girls wearing Keds, ice cream eating girls in black and white saddle shoes, and well-heeled ladies at her uncle’s butcher shop. Bella’s dream comes true in an unexpected way.
So what do you think? Would You Read It? YES, MAYBE or NO?
If your answer is YES, please feel free to tell us what you particularly liked and why the pitch piqued your interest. If your answer is MAYBE or NO, please feel free to tell us what you think could be better in the spirit of helping Lu improve her pitch. Helpful examples of possible alternate wordings are welcome. (However I must ask that comments be constructive and respectful. I reserve the right not to publish comments that are mean because that is not what this is about.)
Please send YOUR pitches for the coming weeks! For rules and where to submit, click on this link Would You Read It or on Would You Read it in the dropdown under For Writers in the bar above. There are openings in February, so you have time to polish your pitch before putting it up for helpful feedback and a chance to have it read and commented on by editor Erin Molta!
Lu is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch! I am looking forward to sharing the results of the Halloweensie Contest with you – hopefully tomorrow!
Hello, Everyone, and welcome to another exciting installment of Would You Read It Wednesday!
We’ve missed a couple weeks for Halloweensie, so it will be good to get back to our regularly scheduled programming!
First off, today (while you’re all warmed up from voting for Halloweensie winners) we have the September Pitch Pick.
Our pitchers, committed to making their pitches the best they can be, have reworked their original versions to reflect the helpful feedback you were all kind and thoughtful enough to provide. So here are the new, updated pitches for you to vote on:
#1 Erin – Airport Goat (PB 3-8)
Under the zooming planes is a herd of goats munching the lawn day after day, but one goat is tired of grass, grass, grass. He follows his nose to the land of concrete in search of exciting things to eat. The luggage is leathery. The sanitation truck is less appealing. But then he gets a whiff of something new. His search creates chaos and sets airport security on a chase, but deep inside the airport is the most delectable discovery: the food court. THE AIRPORT GOAT is a cross between humorous animal stories like DUCK ON A BIKE and airport transportation books like THE AIRPORT BOOK for kids ages 3-8.
#2 – Kim – P.I. Goat: The Case of the Missing Bone (PB ages 4-8)
P.I. Goat has just opened his private investigator office when Puddles, a puppy, hires him to find Paw-Paw’s bone. Elderly Paw-Paw thinks Goat is a pig, but Goat has a worse problem: he faints when startled! A cast of wacky animals helps Goat discover the surprising truth behind the Case of the Missing Bone and that being a P.I. is not for the faint of heart—KLUNK!
#3 – Marcia – Isaac’s Apple Tree (PB ages 4-8; Informational Fiction (includes Author’s Note)
I dropped that apple—the one that helped Isaac Newton discover gravity. I am Isaac’s Apple Tree, and I have a story for you—one that begins with that apple-drop and goes all the way to the International Space Station and back. That’s where my seeds (pips, people, pips!) floated in zero gravity, then came back to Earth where they grew into six beautiful saplings—my space children. At almost 400 years old, my amazing story spans centuries and continents—and space itself!
Once you’ve had a chance to read through and evaluate the three September pitches above, please vote for your favorite – the one you feel most deserves a read and comments from editor Erin Molta, and vote for it in the poll below by Sunday November 17 at 9PM Eastern.
Thank you!
Wow! Nothing like voting to work up an appetite! And you know what that means… 🙂 Time for Something Chocolate!
I think today would be a great day for Chocolate Blackout Cupcakes, but then again, is there ever a bad day for those? 🙂
Okay! Onward and upward! Today’s pitch comes to us from Lynne who says, “I’m an avid reader who is working to push through the fears of coming out of the writer’s closet! Growing up overseas in the 60s and 70s nurtured my love to escape into imaginary and other worlds with books. My daughter’s struggle with dyslexia in elementary school made me realize the importance of great children’s books to keep her engaging in her battle to overcome her reading disability and develop a love to read. She won:)”
Find her on the web at
Here is her pitch:
Working Title: Samantha’s Swimsuit
Age/Genre: Picture Book (ages 3-7)
The Pitch: Samantha is a girl who knows what she wants when it comes to fashion. When she was imagining the absolutely dreamy suit for summer swim lessons, Samantha forgot about one. Little. Detail. It would get wet. What if water ruins her perfect swimsuit?!? Now Samantha must decide if she is relegated to the lounge chairs (safely outside of the splash zone!) or if she takes a chance in the pool!
So what do you think? Would You Read It? YES, MAYBE or NO?
If your answer is YES, please feel free to tell us what you particularly liked and why the pitch piqued your interest. If your answer is MAYBE or NO, please feel free to tell us what you think could be better in the spirit of helping Lynne improve her pitch. Helpful examples of possible alternate wordings are welcome. (However I must ask that comments be constructive and respectful. I reserve the right not to publish comments that are mean because that is not what this is about.)
Please send YOUR pitches for the coming weeks! For rules and where to submit, click on this link Would You Read It or on Would You Read it in the dropdown under For Writers in the bar above. There are openings in January, so you have time to polish your pitch before putting it up for helpful feedback and a chance to have it read and commented on by editor Erin Molta! But no harm in reserving your spot. . . they tend to go like hotcakes!
Lynne is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch! I am looking forward to seeing this little guy . . .
. . . okay, full disclosure, he doesn’t look exactly like that anymore – more like this
but you know how moms are 🙂
Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone!!! 🙂
Oh, and by the way! I will do my best to post the Halloweensie Winners ASAP, but I’m going to have to be doing it while getting myself to the airport and onto a plane, so I apologize in advance if it takes me some extra time! Have an extra Chocolate Blackout Cupcake while you’re waiting! 🙂
A plot, one might say, involving sneaking, secrecy, and skulduggery!
I know what you’ve have been up to.
On a dark and stormy night, you all got together in a cobweb-covered barn and, sipping a delectable steaming potion concocted of chocolate and cream, with bobbing marshmallows and a dusting of cocoa powder, you rubbed your hands together gleefully and cackled, “Oh, what a trick we can play!”
Forthwith, you applied yourself to submitting 324 – yes, that’s THREE HUNDRED AND TWENTY FOUR!!! – amazing entries to the 9th Annual Halloweensie Contest!
I think it’s safe to say you nearly did us in.
We are but shadows of our former selves, haggard from a solid week of reading and re-reading, evaluating and re-evaluating, trying desperately to narrow the tremendous field down to 12 finalists.
I’m going to tell you straight out it was an impossible task.
There were SO MANY well-written, fabulous, entertaining, delightful entries. In order to pick 12 for you to vote on we had to put aside literally hundreds, many of which were of equal quality. So I recognize that many of you may feel you would have chosen differently. I get that. In the final analysis, try as we might to be objective, an element of subjectivity almost has to come in to play in order to choose between multiple entries of similar quality. Please know we admire everyone for their talent, throughly enjoyed every story we read, and that we did the best we could.
12 entries made the finals.
312 did not.
A mere 3.7% made it to the top. If you’re in that 3.7%, give yourself a congratulatory handshake. If you’re not, rest assured you’re in extremely good company.
We were ruthless about some things because we simply had to be.
The judging criteria were clear:
1. Kid-appeal! – These stories are intended for a young audience, so entries that were well-written but lacked child-friendliness did not make the cut. Same for entries where the appeal, humorous or otherwise, seemed more directed toward adult readers than children.
2. Halloweeniness – the rules stated a Halloween story, so entries that failed to mention anything Halloween-y did not make the cut even if they were well-written. Surprisingly 5-10 fell into this category and were stories that could have taken place at any time – not specifically Halloween.
3. Quality of story – the rules stated that entries were to tell a story, so if they appeared to be more of a description or mood piece, they didn’t make the cut. We looked for a character and a true story arc.
4. Quality of Writing: we took note of spelling, grammar, punctuation etc. In addition, for the rhymers, we looked at rhyme and meter (for which we are sticklers!) We also looked at overall writing quality and use of language. There were a lot of problems in this department, and since the competition was so fierce, we did cut people for punctuation, capitalization, and word usage errors, as well as for relatively minor glitches in meter – one or two lines that threw the rhythm off – because there were so many that were perfect.
5. Originality and creativity – because that is often what sets one story above another.
A surprising number of this year’s entries were amazingly written… but in spite of the warning, still failed to really tell a story. This is SO TOUGH in 100 words – I totally get it. But some people managed better than others. There were any number of entries that were superbly written that we wanted to choose, but when we got right down to it, there really just wasn’t much story… not compared to some of the other entries that really managed to tell one. They were more descriptions, lists, or mood pieces. So as awesome as they were, we had to make some very hard calls. A couple were too adult. Some, because of the cruelly limiting word count were a little hard to follow. Some of the rhyming ones we really liked were too off-meter to make the cut. Some entries were just so close, but missed out because of one relatively small thing! GAH! So hard!
(There is nothing like reading through so many to give you an editor’s perspective. Read through 300+ stories and you’ll quickly see how there can be A LOT that are really quite good, so there has to be something to make them stand out. Something that sets them apart from the ocean of very-strong-nothing-particularly-wrong-with-them-but-nothing-that-makes-you-say-WOW submissions. It will make you realize exactly how important it is to make your manuscript fresh and heart -or mind-capturing in some way. You want yours to be the submission the editor (or contest judge) can’t stop thinking about.😊)
So now, just quick before we get to the finalists, 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 many!
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, before I list the finalists, I want to say one final time how truly difficult it was too narrow such a field! 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. So if yours didn’t make the final cut please don’t feel bad. 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 100 words if you like and maybe submit at some point to a magazine or as a PB manuscript. A lot of people have successfully done that at this point – we have quite a few books in the world that were born or had new life breathed into them in Halloweensie, Holiday, or Valentiny Contests! So bravo to everyone who entered!
So, without further ado, I present to you the 2019 Halloweensie Contest Finalists. A mix of poetry and prose (weirdly weighted toward rhyme – just the way it panned out), stories for younger readers and slightly older (but still kid) readers, funny, spooky, and cute. Please read through them carefully, take your time, think it over, and vote for your favorite. To help with objectivity, finalists are listed by title only, not by author.
And I’d like to be very clear about the voting process. You are MOST welcome to share a link to this post on FB, twitter, or wherever you like to hang out, and encourage people to come read ALL the finalists and vote for the one they think is best. Please do that. The more people who read and enjoy these stories the better, and the more objective votes we get the better. HOWEVER (and I want to be very clear on this) please do not ask people to vote for a specific number or title, or for the story about the sombrero-wearing witch or whatever. Trolling for votes or trying to influence the outcome is counter to the spirit of this competition which is supposed to be based on merit. I thank you in advance for respecting this.
So here we go!
#1 – Sneaky Sister
My sister swore her potion
Was succulently sweet.
She whispered if I’d drink it, I’d grow feathers on my feet.
My skin would glow magenta,
My ears would multiply,
The cobwebs sprouting from my nose would smell like mildew pie.
My sister said “Don’t worry,
There’s not a thing to fear!
Tomorrow all the side effects will (mostly) disappear…
You’ll be the perfect monster
For this year’s trick-or-treat!
Just guzzle my concoction, and you’ll terrify our street.”
But now she’s flabbergasted
Because I’m feeling fine.
I guess she doesn’t know:
I poured it in her cup
Not mine.
#2 – A Halloween Visit
The pumpkin-moon rises on Halloween night,
A tiny black coffin with eight bats takes flight.
An eight-legged driver with dagger-fanged jaws?
That’s not old Saint Nick, it’s his pal Spider-Claws!
His cobweb-wrapped presents of potions and spells
Will flip-flop your tummy with nose-burning smells.
He creeps down the chimney with barely a noise
To leave scary gifts for all ghouls, girls, and boys.
He might bring you nightmares or haunt all your dreams
With hair-curling howling and spine-tingling screams.
Then Spider-Claws shrieks from his cold, coffin seat—
“Happy Halloween all, and to all Trick-Or-Treat!”
#3 – The Nickname Cure
Matilda’s nickname gave her a case of the gloomies.
Especially today on Halloween.
Since her first day at Spookamentary School,
the zombies, ghouls, and mummies called her
W A R T I L D A !
The name didn’t suit Matilda. After all, her wart was teensy-tiny.
Moments before trick-or-treating, Matilda slipped into the science lab.
She picked a sticky cobweb and two bat wings from a box.
She stirred them up with one juicy, lizard’s gizzard.
“This potion will do the trick!” said Matilda.
She dabbed the mixture on her chin and…
Ka-BOOOM!
Matilda’s wart grew large and hairy.
“Perfect!” said Matilda. “Now my nickname suits me.”
#4 – Itchy Witchy Underwear
Every year on Halloween,
there’s pumpkins, costumes, and a scene
that thrills the region’s flight fanatics:
Myrtle’s Fright-Night Aerobatics!
But Myrtle’s stumbled on a hitch:
her witchy britches make her itch!
Charms and chants and incantations–
none relieves her aggravations.
Myrtle checks a cobwebbed cranny
for a brew to soothe her fanny.
“Use this potion if you dare.”
She pours it on her underwear.
“It’s done the trick! Oh, lucky witch!
Britches gone, but so’s the itch!”
Feeling breezy on her broom,
Myrtle zips to practice. Zoom!
On Halloween she wows the town–
but…
DON’T watch Myrtle upside down!
#5 – Tricky Witch Test
It’s Halloween! Tonight’s my chance. I’ve got to join the witches dance!
If I can pass this potion test, at last I’ll with cackle with the rest!
Two strands of cobweb, eye of newt, a pinch of stinky goblin root…
GULP!
Do you smell smoke? I feel a spark! I think I’m glowing in the dark!
What’s that? I passed? I got it right? I’m now a pumpkin burning bright?
Hooray! I’m glad I did so well, but how do I undo this spell?
BURP!
That’s all it took to make the switch? Tonight I get to be a witch!
#6 – Let’s Go Scarecrow
Bloop-blop
Past the oozing potion.
Let’s go, Scarecrow.
Shuffle-shuffle
Under drooping cobwebs.
There’s the door.
TIP-toe TIP-toe
Shhh, Let’s go, Scarecrow.
DING-DONG!
“TRICK or TREAT!”
“MWA-HA-HA-HA!!
AAAAHHH!
Let’s go! Let’s go!
Under the cobwebs.
Past the potion.
Through the maze.
Over the bridge.
Down the path.
Through the leaves,
PHEW!
Finally, safe at home again.
#7 – Tacky Trick
Itty-bitty corner,
teeny-tiny shed.
Eensie-weensie spider
hanging by a thread.
Spiderling is spinning.
Complicated! Tricky!
Can’t construct a cobweb.
Help! The strings aren’t sticky!
Searches for solutions,
while Halloween is new.
Awkwardly appears
arachnid has no glue.
Witchy whizzes in then,
(broom repair, you see),
catches Spider sobbing
among the web debris.
Witchy comforts Spider
with a shushing motion.
Utters muttered verses,
promptly pours a potion.
Golden drop is plopped
on Spider’s little backy.
Silken threads appear.
Some twirl and tie—they’re tacky!
Spider’s on the broom now,
trying to repay.
Sticky silk will mend it.
Witchy’s on her way!
#8 -Vampire Stains
Curses! No! It can’t be so!
I need to get to my chateau!
Zis cloak is now adorned with stains
From zees night’s many spurting veins.
Vhere’s my blood removal lotion?
Bleh! I vill just make a potion.
To rid ze blood, resume abductions,
Follow zees precise instructions:
Curls of cobwebs, vings of bats
Vort of toad and tails of cats.
Zen a scoop of Oxyclean
To look my best on Halloveen.
Ah-ha! That vorked! A vondrous trick!
Now back to hunting very quick.
Bleh! I’m shiny as a spark!
I’m much too clean; glow-in-ze-dark!
#9 – Boo Quiet To Spook?
It’s Halloween, and Glenda Ghost
must face the thing she dreads the most:
to haunt tonight, each ghost and ghoul
must prove they’ve mastered Spooking School!
So Glenda waits to do her best
while witches pass their potions test.
Next up, the werewolves howl and growl,
and black cats hiss and monsters scowl.
As Glenda’s turn approaches fast,
she fears her timid “Boo” won’t pass.
Would trick-or-treaters shrink in fright,
or laugh if Glenda spooks tonight?
The spiders spin,
then Glenda’s next!
She LOOMS—nose twitching, fingers flexed.
With cobwebs clinging, quiet “Boo!”
becomes a spookier
“AhhhhhHHHHHhhhhhhhHHHHhhhhhhhhh-Choo!”
#10 – Ghost’s Pest Problem
Ghost peeked out the window.
GHOST: Ahhhh!!!
He picked up the phone and dialed the number.
WITCH: You’ve reached Lotions, Potions, and Other Solutions, how may I help you?
GHOST: I’ve got a pest problem!
WITCH: Okay, I’ll send the exterminator.
Later…
Knock, knock.
Ghost opened the door.
GHOST: Finally, you’re here! They’re all over the front porch!
SPIDER: It’s that time of year. Halloween always brings them out, especially to haunted houses.
GHOST: You’re sure the traps will work?
SPIDER: Oh yeah, they always get caught in them.
Ding-dong.
GHOST: They’re here! Quick! Spin the cobwebs!
“Trick-or-treat!”
#11 – Gloona The Grinchy Witch
Gloona the witch was a ghastly old soul-
more greed than a dragon, more warts than a troll.
On Halloween evening, she mixed up a brew
with lizard tail, bedbugs, and pickled worm goo.
From out of her potion, a ghoulish mist crept.
It oozed through the streets until everyone slept.
Beaming with glee, Gloona flew out unseen.
She swept through the city and stole Halloween.
She took every cobweb, each pumpkin and light,
the scarecrows, the sweets, the decor made of fright,
and inside her cottage, she laughed with conceit.
That is, ‘til she heard, “Ring-a-ding. Trick or treat!”
#12 – Broom Or Bust
The Witches-Who-Confer convene,
just once a year on Halloween.
The youngest witch to ever try
to earn her broom and learn to fly,
Sabrina stood before the crowd;
enacting words she spoke out loud:
“A pinch of cobweb, extra dusty,
metal shavings, not too rusty.
Put them in a pumpkin shell.
Add the potion; mix it well.”
Sabrina ducked behind the chair
as pumpkin pieces pierced the air.
And once the chaos came to rest
Sabrina said, “I tried my best!
I’ll go back home; I’ll hone my tricks
and I’ll be back when I am six!”
I know this is a tough choice! But please read and consider and choose your favorite and vote for it in the poll below by Monday November 11 at midnight Eastern time! That gives you 3 whole days to vote!
Due to the large number of entries and the amount of time it took to get the finalists posted, my schedule is a disaster. There will be a Tuesday Debut on Tuesday and a Would You Read It on Wednesday which were previously scheduled, so I will try to post the contest winners on Thursday. I am leaving for Brazil on Wednesday, however, which will make handling the prize distribution and related emails a bit tricky until I get back. So I beg your indulgence and appreciate your patience! I will get it all sorted out just as quickly as I can!
I apologize for the fact that I am behind schedule posting the finalists. I know you are all waiting. I did not anticipate 324 entries or I would have given myself and the other judges more time. We will do our best to have the finalists posted by tomorrow or Saturday.
Lizard toes and dragon scales! It’s time for . . .
The9THAnnualHALLOWEENSIECONTEST!!!
~ 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 potion, cobweb, and trick. 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 235 fantastic entries last year, so I know you can do it!) Also, you may use the words in any form – e.g. potions, cobwebbed, trickery, 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 Thursday October 31st by 11:59 PM EDT and add your post-specific link to the list below (not your blog’s main url because if you post again after your entry during the dates of the contest, the judges will find the wrong post!) 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 I can’t 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 before the start of the contest! Please submit your entry only ONCE! If you add it to the blog link list, and the comments, and email me to post it, things get very confusing! I try to stay as glued to my desk as possible, but sometimes I have to get up so if I don’t respond to your email or approve your post immediately, don’t panic! I’ll get to it as soon as I can!
The Judging: in a grueling marathon over the coming days, my devoted assistants and I will narrow down the entrants to 369 12? top choices (hee hee hee – you know how much trouble I have with winnowing, so we’ll see!) which will be posted here and voted on for a winner on Monday November 4th (if the judging takes longer than we expect if could be later…but we will do our best!) The winner will be announced on Thursday November 7th (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!!! 🙂
Go Directly To Go! Skip The Slushpile at Blue Whale Press and Get Your PB Manuscript Directly On The Editor’s Desk!!!
Submit your picture book manuscript directly to editor Alayne Christian for her consideration and critique. Helpful feedback is a certainty, publication could be a possibility!
Blue Whale Press is an SCBWI PAL publisher of children’s books that focuses on stories involving themes of friendship and/or personal challenge. Most often, stories are selected for publishing due to their inherent educational or moral value. But as a general rule, a good dose of humor or a tug at the heart doesn’t hurt their chances of being published either. While a few chapter books and a middle grade are on their list, their focus is picture books. As a boutique publisher who doesn’t mind taking risks, Blue Whale Press considers itself to be a launch pad for authors and illustrators hoping to establish themselves.
Hone Your Skills with the Lyrical Language Lab Rhyme & Meter Self Study Crash Course (11 Lessons) from accomplished writer and poet Renee LaTulippe
INTENSIVE RHYME AND METER CRASH COURSE
This option contains all the same lessons as Module 1 of Renee’s fully guided course, including all supplemental materials, downloads, and audio/video components. This is the option to choose if you need to build a strong foundation in the mechanics of rhyming picture books and poetry. The major focus is on the four main types of meter and how to use mixed and varied meter. Other topics include rhythm, cadence, breath, scansion, rhyme, sound devices, figurative language, imagery, and diction.
.
You also have the opportunity to submit two of your assignments to Renee for feedback, and have email access to ask questions about the lessons as you complete them. Although lessons will arrive every other day, you are free to complete them at your own pace.
See the course description above for more information.
Rhyming Picture Book Manuscript Critique from Carrie Finison, author of DOZENS OF DOUGHNUTS and DON’T HUG DOUG, forthcoming from Putnam in August 2020 and Spring 2021.
Fiction OR Nonfiction Picture Book Manuscript Critique (non-rhyming please) from Darshana Khiani, author of HOW TO WEAR A SARI forthcoming from HMH/Versify, Spring 2021
Picture Book Manuscript Critique (non-rhyming please) from Gabi Snyder, author of TWO DOGS ON A TRIKE, forthcoming from Abrams Appleseed, May 2020 and LISTEN, forthcoming from S&S/Wiseman, Spring 2021
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 my sample entry (which I seriously almost did not get done!) I seem to have developed a bad habit of having editorial deadlines that land in the middle of these contests, so I freely own up to the fact that I way exceeded the word count because I simply didn’t have time to make it shorter. My apologies for totally cheating! It’s not even like it’s any good as a result… but it does come to a sort of an ending😊 If nothing else, it should fill you with confidence in your own MUCH MUCH better efforts!!!
Runaway Imagination
(so many words I’m not even writing it down!😊)
Costumes, make-up, pounding feet
Rushing out to trick-or-treat.
Almost at the farmyard gate
Witch Lucinda hollers, “Wait!
In this Halloween commotion
I forgot my poison potion!”
Sets her plastic pumpkin down.
“Go ahead! We’ll meet in town!”
Grabs her potion. Comes back quick.
But someone’s played an awful trick!
Her pumpkin pail, left on the ground,
Has disappeared and can’t be found!
Nevermind. A bag will do.
The witch zooms off to join her crew.
But halfway down the old farm road
She sees a sight that stops her cold.
In the shadows of the night
Glides a shape of ghostly white
Issuing an eerie moan
That makes Lucinda RUN for home!
Ghost flies past her fleeing faster
Surely this will be disaster!
Stops short at the barnyard fence.
Suddenly it all makes sense.
Head stuck in her pumpkin pail
Covered in a cobweb veil,
This is not a scary ghost!
Just a foolish baby goat!
Never say I’m not willing to embarrass myself for you! 😊😊😊 That is true love!😊
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 4 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 the197!!! fabulous entries that are posted in the comments below! (And HURRAY! I FINALLY figured out how to make links (THANK YOU AMY!) so you can click directly through to each story to read and comment for the talented authors!!!)
(Where authors’ first names were the same/same spelling I tried to add last names)
It’s Would You Read It Wednesday again and something about the title of today’s pitch made me think of that old game we used to play on long drives in the car. I’m sure it goes by different names, but in my family we call it “I Packed My Grandmother’s Trunk.” (e.g. I packed my Grandmother’s Trunk and in it I put something beginning with A – apple – and so on through the alphabet, and as each person took their turn they had to recite all the things that had come before) and it occurred to me out of nowhere (a lightning strike of inspiration!) that today we should start with Would You Write It Wednesday! 🙂
So why don’t we pack our October/Autumn/Halloween stories, and in them place something that begins with O (as in ghostly moans OOOOOOOHHHHH! 🙂 ) and then write an October/Autumn/Halloween story with your “O” word in it?
The obvious Halloween-related choices are October, Owl, and Orange, so feel free to write your Would You Write It Wednesday October/Autumn/Halloween story about one (or more) of those. But I thought, why not go with something less obvious and challenge yourself to put that in a story?! So for those of you who want to go advanced, put an Orangutan in your story! 🙂
Since I have Halloween on the brain, and we are all writing our Halloweensie Contest stories (even if choose not to write about Halloween orangutans today) and therefore need serious creativity fuel, I think our Something Chocolate today should be this scarily delicious Death By Chocolate Halloween Cake!
If THAT doesn’t jump start your creative process, I don’t know what will! The amount of sugar and caffeine in a chocolate cake that dark and delicious-looking ought to be enough to set your pen on fire and have you writing like the wind!
Now then, onto today’s pitch which comes to us from Natalie who says, ” I have been writing for over a year now and I am loving every minute of it. I am a substitute teacher with three young kids. So, trying to write sometimes is impossible when they need my undivided attention. I am looking forward to one day having one of my own stories to be physically in my hands because I love the smell of a new book and its crisp pages.”
Find her on the web at Twiter@CohnNatalie
Here is her pitch:
Working Title: The Unexpected Suitcase
Age/Genre: MG Mystery (ages 8-12)
The Pitch: A clumsy, eager boy named Henry discovers a tattered suitcase under a floorboard, at grandma’s house. Figuring out the mystery of the suitcase won’t be easy, eventually, he will need to tell the truth to his grandmother, but when Henry falls inside the suitcase, he is taken on an unexpected journey back in time in the 1950s, maybe forever.
So what do you think? Would You Read It? YES, MAYBE or NO?
If your answer is YES, please feel free to tell us what you particularly liked and why the pitch piqued your interest. If your answer is MAYBE or NO, please feel free to tell us what you think could be better in the spirit of helping Natalie improve her pitch. Helpful examples of possible alternate wordings are welcome. (However I must ask that comments be constructive and respectful. I reserve the right not to publish comments that are mean because that is not what this is about.)
Please send YOUR pitches for the coming weeks! For rules and where to submit, click on this link Would You Read It or on Would You Read it in the dropdown under For Writers in the bar above. There are openings in January, which is not as far away as you might think! so sign up for a date and polish up your pitch because you could put it up for helpful feedback and a chance to have it read and commented on by editor Erin Molta!
Natalie is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch! I am looking forward to writing an Autumn/Halloween story that involves Orangutans, Oreos, and Ovaltine 🙂
When I was in elementary school, I had a Latin teacher who let us play a game she called “Dictionary” on the day before we got out for school vacations. (Undoubtedly she realized we weren’t going to learn anything on those days, so there was no point in teaching! 🙂 ) Someone would randomly select a word from the dictionary and write the correct definition on a slip of paper, and the rest of us would try to make up a definitions that sounded plausible and write them on our own slips of paper. Then the teacher would gather them up and read all the definitions aloud and we’d vote on which one we thought was the real definition. Whoever got the most votes won… and usually we did NOT choose the actual definition. It was fun!
It’s not a game we can play here, I don’t think, but instead we can celebrate National Dictionary Day by closing our eyes, opening the dictionary to a random point (this is assuming you all still HAVE an actual dictionary and don’t rely solely on online versions) and point to a word on the page you open to. Whatever that word is, let it be a story prompt for your writing today!
Maybe you have to use the word, or the idea of the word, in your story. Or maybe the theme of your story has to be what the meaning of the word is. Or maybe you play anagrams with the word and come up with three words made out of the letters from your word and include those three words in your story. Or maybe you choose the antonym of the word and write your story using that. Or maybe your main character’s name has to be the word… which could make for some interesting names… and characters… 🙂 Who knows?
Give it a try and see what you come up with!
And to fuel your creative efforts, let’s have Something Chocolate! After all, there’s nothing like chocolate to get the old brain in high gear! 🙂 I think today we should have Chocolate-Covered Coconut Chocolate Chip Macaroons. Only 4 ingredients – that’s my kind of simple 🙂
Now THAT’S a breakfast that will fill you with energy and ideas!!!
Alrighty then! Onto today’s pitch which comes to us from Melissa who says, “As a girl, I roamed the hills and forests. Connecting with nature is still a magical experience that leaves me fulfilled and happy. I hope my manuscript encourages others to appreciate what lies just outside their door and inspires them to nurture our beautiful lands and creatures.”
Here is her pitch:
Working Title: Mandy’s Magical Quest
Age/Genre: Picture Book (ages 4-8)
The Pitch: Mandy and her black crow, Bram, journey to the four elemental Goddesses in the far corners of the earth to save their grove of trees. The journey is not easy, but they persevere. Mandy is rewarded with a thriving grove and a magical thank you.
So what do you think? Would You Read It? YES, MAYBE or NO?
If your answer is YES, please feel free to tell us what you particularly liked and why the pitch piqued your interest. If your answer is MAYBE or NO, please feel free to tell us what you think could be better in the spirit of helping Melissa improve her pitch. Helpful examples of possible alternate wordings are welcome. (However I must ask that comments be constructive and respectful. I reserve the right not to publish comments that are mean because that is not what this is about.)
Please send YOUR pitches for the coming weeks! For rules and where to submit, click on this link Would You Read It or on Would You Read it in the dropdown under For Writers in the bar above. There are openings in January, so you have time to polish your pitch before putting it up for helpful feedback and a chance to have it read and commented on by editor Erin Molta, but it doesn’t hurt to snag a date now!
Melissa is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch! I am looking forward to the New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Fall Conference which I am attending today! I’ve never been before, so I’m looking forward to seeing what it’s all about! 🙂
…and from the mist-shrouded forest a ghastly voice shrieked, “BOO!!!!”
Please ignore the fact that it’s morning and the kitchen smells comfortingly of fresh coffee and toast with strawberry jam and the only sound is your preschooler singing the alphabet song. We’re setting a mood here! 🙂
And I bet you can guess why!
Because it’s time to announce the rules for. . .
The9THAnnualHALLOWEENSIECONTEST!!!
~ 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 potion, cobweb, and trick. 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 235 fantastic entries last year, so I know you can do it!) Also, you may use the words in any form – e.g. potions, cobwebbed, trickery, 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 12:00 AM EDT Monday October 28th and Thursday October 31st by 11:59 PM EDT and add your post-specific link to the list that will accompany my special October 28th post. 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 of my October 28th post once it’s up (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 before the start of the contest!
The Judging: in a grueling marathon over the following days, my devoted assistants and I will narrow down the entrants to 3 top choices (hee hee hee – you know how much trouble I have with only 3, so we’ll see) which will be posted here and voted on for a winner on Monday 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 Tuesday November 5th (good lord willin’ and the creek don’t rise 🙂 ) If we get more than 25 entries, I will post 6 finalists and give prizes for 1st – 3rd. If by some chance we get the kind of turnout we’ve had the past couple years, I may post as many as 10-12 finalists and I’ll probably end up giving everyone a prize 🙂 But we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it!
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.
The Prizes: SO AMAZING! What a generous community we have to donate so much awesomeness!!! 🙂
Go Directly To Go! Skip The Slushpile at Blue Whale Press and Get Your PB Manuscript Directly On The Editor’s Desk!!!
Submit your picture book manuscript directly to editor Alayne Christian for her consideration and critique. Helpful feedback is a certainty, publication could be a possibility!
Blue Whale Press is an SCBWI PAL publisher of children’s books that focuses on stories involving themes of friendship and/or personal challenge. Most often, stories are selected for publishing due to their inherent educational or moral value. But as a general rule, a good dose of humor or a tug at the heart doesn’t hurt their chances of being published either. While a few chapter books and a middle grade are on their list, their focus is picture books. As a boutique publisher who doesn’t mind taking risks, Blue Whale Press considers itself to be a launch pad for authors and illustrators hoping to establish themselves.
Hone Your Skills with the Lyrical Language Lab Rhyme & Meter Self Study Crash Course (11 Lessons) from accomplished writer and poet Renee LaTulippe
INTENSIVE RHYME AND METER CRASH COURSE
This option contains all the same lessons as Module 1 of Renee’s fully guided course, including all supplemental materials, downloads, and audio/video components. This is the option to choose if you need to build a strong foundation in the mechanics of rhyming picture books and poetry. The major focus is on the four main types of meter and how to use mixed and varied meter. Other topics include rhythm, cadence, breath, scansion, rhyme, sound devices, figurative language, imagery, and diction.
.
You also have the opportunity to submit two of your assignments to Renee for feedback, and have email access to ask questions about the lessons as you complete them. Although lessons will arrive every other day, you are free to complete them at your own pace.
See the course description above for more information.
Rhyming Picture Book Manuscript Critique from Carrie Finison, author of DOZENS OF DOUGHNUTS and DON’T HUG DOUG, forthcoming from Putnam in August 2020 and Spring 2021.
Fiction OR Nonfiction Picture Book Manuscript Critique (non-rhyming please) from Darshana Khiani, author of HOW TO WEAR A SARI forthcoming from HMH/Versify, Spring 2021
Picture Book Manuscript Critique (non-rhyming please) from Gabi Snyder, author of TWO DOGS ON A TRIKE, forthcoming from Abrams Appleseed, May 2020 and LISTEN, forthcoming from S&S/Wiseman, Spring 2021
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! Lay in a good chocolate supply (no better time than right before Halloween for THAT!)! Butt In Chair! Pencils, pens, or keyboards ready! Fire up the old idea generator! And write those prize-winning stories!!!
I’ve been thinking about it and I feel pretty certain that Would You Read It Wednesday needs a theme song! Wouldn’t that be fun?
(Beverly Hillbillies tune)
Let me tell you all a story ’bout a perfect pitch One for which an editor will find a niche…
Okay, so it needs a little work! 🙂
Feel free to submit theme songs in the comments! 🙂
Let’s have Something Chocolate, shall we? It might help us write better pitches. And theme songs! I think this morning we’ll have fudge – the breakfast of champions! (Well, one of the breakfasts of champions, the most well-known being Little Chocolate Donuts! 🙂 )
Mmmmm! Isn’t that delicious? Creamy, chocolatey fudge and ooey-gooey salted caramel on top? With a nice cup of coffee?
I admit it. I’m swooning 🙂
Now then, onto today’s pitch which comes to us from Greg who says, “I’m a chocolate loving, hockey playing happily married, father of an energetic seven year old who keeps me young and inspires me to write silly stories.”
The Pitch: Having seen a live furry dinosaur roaming around in his neighborhood, Edwin grabs his friend Jennifer to investigate. After several false dinosaur sightings, his amateur paleontologist title is on the line.
So what do you think? Would You Read It? YES, MAYBE or NO?
If your answer is YES, please feel free to tell us what you particularly liked and why the pitch piqued your interest. If your answer is MAYBE or NO, please feel free to tell us what you think could be better in the spirit of helping Greg improve his pitch. Helpful examples of possible alternate wordings are welcome. (However I must ask that comments be constructive and respectful. I reserve the right not to publish comments that are mean because that is not what this is about.)
Please send YOUR pitches for the coming weeks! For rules and where to submit, click on this link Would You Read It or on Would You Read it in the dropdown under For Writers in the bar above. At this point, we’re pretty much looking at the new year (there might be one spot left in December) so you have time to polish your pitch before putting it up for helpful feedback and a chance to have it read and commented on by editor Erin Molta! But there’s no time like the present to secure your date! 🙂
Greg is looking forward to your thoughts on his pitch! I am looking forward to Warwick Children’s Book Festival this weekend! Always a well run, super fun event! I hope I’ll get to see some of you there!!!
Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone!!! 🙂
Oh! And P.S.! Hopefully a special post tomorrow on something we’ve all been anticipating…! 🙂
I don’t know about you guys, but now that autumn is officially here I’m wondering what’s up in the animal kingdom.
The only wooly bear caterpillar I’ve seen suggested a mild winter (mostly brown, only a little black at nose and tail.)
But the acorns are falling like nobody’s business – pattering down on the garage roof and the driveway and all through the woods almost constantly –
and the bears are out and about more noticeably than usual.
Last week I saw one little bear in the woods while out horseback riding (luckily my fearless steed was unperturbed by the experience. And by “unperturbed” I mean she happened to be looking the other way and was thusly oblivious 🙂 ) Then, not two days later, another little bear trundled across the Clove Valley Road in front of my car – not so close that we were in any danger of bumping into each other, but close enough for a good view! (This video is actually from last summer, not last week, but I was unable to video whilst driving 🙂 )
What does this mean?
In the old days, I’d think it was a sign of a hard winter. But these days, what with global warming, that doesn’t seem possible. So I think Mother Nature is just having fun at our expense 🙂
In any case, it definitely calls for Something Chocolate because, well, really , around here, doesn’t everything? 🙂 Today I think we should feast on Pecan Pie Bars Dipped In Chocolate, partly because they sound delicious (and everyone knows pecans are good for you! 🙂 ) and partly because they come from a website called Hugs And Cookies and what could be better than that?!
Now then, onto today’s pitch which comes to us from Sri who says, “A little bit about me: I love writing stories and reading them to my little kids who turn out to be some of my strongest critiques. I have self published some of my stories but I am looking forward to that day when I can call myself a published author in the more traditional sense!”
Sri gained her inspiration to write stories because of her two young kids who love to read books. Her kids love her stories and are in fact her best critics! Sri presently lives and works as a research administrator in the beautiful Pacific Northwest. Sri is also the author of Tales of Rishi and Neela which was published in April 2019. When she is not working or driving her kids around for classes and play dates, Sri likes to spend her leftover time creating jewelry or listening to podcasts.
Here is her pitch:
Working Title:
Age/Genre: Early Reader/Picture Book (ages 4-8)
The Pitch: Nikita has a problem, rather a huge problem. The problem is that she is small – smaller than all of her friends. Everyone in her kindergarten class call her little Nikita. Her friends think it is cute to call her that way but Nikita does not like it a wee bit. Nikita complains to her mom who is also hmm…short but her Mom dusts her off saying that’s just in our genetics. Genetics .. whatever that means, Nikita thinks. Nikita’s fate withLittle Nikita continues until one day a huge insect comes into the class and scares the peanut butter out of everyone; well, everyone except Nikita, who is small but really brave. The rest of this funny story revolves around how Nikita works bravely to trap the huge insect to release it outside. She thus rewrites her name from Little Nikita to Mighty Nikita – a name that she is absolutely proud of.
So what do you think? Would You Read It? YES, MAYBE or NO?
If your answer is YES, please feel free to tell us what you particularly liked and why the pitch piqued your interest. If your answer is MAYBE or NO, please feel free to tell us what you think could be better in the spirit of helping Sri improve her pitch. Helpful examples of possible alternate wordings are welcome. (However I must ask that comments be constructive and respectful. I reserve the right not to publish comments that are mean because that is not what this is about.)
Please send YOUR pitches for the coming weeks! For rules and where to submit, click on this link Would You Read It or on Would You Read it in the dropdown under For Writers in the bar above. There are about 2 openings left for this year, so if you want one, let me know! You can polish your pitch and put it up for helpful feedback and a chance to have it read and commented on by editor Erin Molta!
Sri is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch! I am looking forward to writing something new today. Who knows what? Maybe something fun! 🙂
And you’ll all be thrilled to know that we get to start today’s proceedings with a triple Straight From The Editor!
You’ll recall that back in June we had a tie between Deborah and Ana.
Deborah’s pitch was for Farmer Jo and the Chicken Coop Calamity (PB) –
Henrietta, Goldie, and Pearl are three chickens with grand ideas. After convincing Farmer Jo to build improvements on their hen house, word spreads and many new chickens come to the farm to roost. But the weight of the situation proves to much to bear and the results are shattering as the hen house splinters apart.
Erin said:
This pitch has potential and could be very funny but it’s not telling the story. Are the three chickens with grand ideas the protagonists or is Farmer Jo? Is the conflict that the hen house collapsed or that too many hens came to roost? If the three hens are the reason for the problem—too many hens in the hen house—how do they resolve it? That’s what you need to get across. Who are the protagonists? What is the conflict and what’s the resolution? Right now you have the first two, but not the solution.
Ana’s pitch was for Bella The Best Quits Again (PB) –
Bella, a Latina girl as sassy as Junie B. Jones, quits everything she (barely) tries because she’s not the best at it: her backflips look like giraffes rolling downhill & her dulce de leche frosting: crocodile skin. Bella must learn it’s ok to try again or she won’t be good @ anything. For kids who enjoy The Girl Who Never Made Mistakes. Back Matter Famous Div. People who struggled. #PB #Humor
Erin’s said:
Bella seems like a great girl and the story could be sweet but the comparisons you make—like Junie B Jones and The Girl Who Never Made Mistakes are taking away from YOUR story. You can say those things outside of the pitch but it would be better to let your story shine through on its own merits. What if you said something like, “Bella, a sassy seven year-old Latina, won’t do backflips because she looks like a giraffe rolling downhill and her dulce de leche frosting tasted like crocodile skin (which are great images BTW), so she refuses to make anymore…” And then you need a sentence that tells the reader how she comes to accept that practice makes perfect…
The July pitch winner was Nancy with her pitch for Cupid’s Tango (PB)
Cupid, the prairie chicken, has his feathers all in a twist over his flock’s step dance contest. If he fails, no hen will pick him to go to the All Species Ball. The problem – he is horrible at step dancing and when he’s nervous, he’s worse. When the contest ends in disaster, Cupid is determined to find a dance he loves and win a hen’s heart to go to the ball.
Erin said:
This looks intriguing. I’d tweak the bit about if he fails no hen will pick him to go to the All Species Dance (which is adorable, BTW) because somebody’s got to lose so only one prairie chicken will go to the All Species Ball from all the contestants? That’s what it sounds like. Even if you phrase it more like “no hen will want to go to the All Species Ball with a chicken with two left feet” it will make a big difference.
So much fantastic pitch feedback straight from our talented and generous neighborhood editor! I hope you all find Erin’s thoughts as instructive as I do!
I’m sure we will all absorb that helpful information much better with Something Chocolate to stimulate our brains! How about some Chocolate Mini Cheesecakes With Oreo Crust?
Now then, onto today’s pitch which comes to us from Marcia who says, “Aspiring writer, not yet published…I have lived in every New England State but one. I am slowly restoring an 1858 cape and love to explore historic houses. On a mission to visit as many presidential homes as I can, in between responding to the demands of my Siberian princess of a cat. Member NESCBWI and 12×12.”
Find her on the web at:
Twitter: @MZ_Parks
Here is her pitch:
Working Title: Isaac’s Apple Tree
Age/Genre: Narrative Nonfiction Picture Book (ages 4-8) – includes Author Note
The Pitch: The tree that facilitated the discovery of gravity (leading to the principles on which all space missions depend) now has “space offspring.” In Isaac’s Apple Tree, the tree under which Isaac Newton sat that fateful day tells its own astounding and far-reaching story.
So what do you think? Would You Read It? YES, MAYBE or NO?
If your answer is YES, please feel free to tell us what you particularly liked and why the pitch piqued your interest. If your answer is MAYBE or NO, please feel free to tell us what you think could be better in the spirit of helping Marcia improve her pitch. Helpful examples of possible alternate wordings are welcome. (However I must ask that comments be constructive and respectful. I reserve the right not to publish comments that are mean because that is not what this is about.)
Please send YOUR pitches for the coming weeks! For rules and where to submit, click on this link Would You Read It or on Would You Read it in the dropdown under For Writers in the bar above. There are 2 or 3 openings left for this year at the end of November/beginning of December, so you could still get your pitch up before 2020 for helpful feedback and a chance to have it read and commented on by editor Erin Molta!
Marcia is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch! I am looking forward to seeing my new book! Did I say that last week? I think I might have! But I’m still waiting for the books to arrive (because I live on a blueberry-covered mountain in the apparent Middle Of Nowhere! 🙂 )
. 
Susanna Leonard Hill 
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