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With the 48 Hour Book Challenge at the end of this very week, it is time to get prepared. That admonishment was certainly less for my readers than for me, as I have been trying to get it together while navigating a minefield of end-of-school madness added to my usual run-of-the-mill madness. But I'll start with a tease of prizes donated by Ms Yingling and continue with more during the week. So these look pretty pretty good:
There's more to come, for sure. Stay tuned! I'd also like to collect some suggestions for diverse books to explore in our collaboration with
#WeNeedDiverseBooks. So if you have a list, post, Pinterest board, or interpretive dance that you can share, well that's what comments are for. (Though obviously, their tumblr page is a pretty pretty good place to start too.)
The official sign-up will go up on Friday, June 6th but you're invited to pop into the comments of the
48 Hour Book Challenge opener for a pre-commitment support group. Remember that you don't actually have to read/blog for 48 hours to participate. Just look to reading a bit more and perhaps a bit differently than you would otherwise and we'll all have a bit of fun together.
What is Children’s Book Week?
Established in 1919, Children’s Book Week is the longest-running literacy initiative in the United States. Each year, books for young people and the joy of reading are feted for a full week with author and illustrator appearances, storytelling, parties, and other book-related events at schools, libraries, bookstores, museums, and homes from coast-to-coast.
 |
| Babel Necklace |
Now for the party part —I’m giving away a signed limited edition paperback of each of my novels The Last Timekeepers and the Arch of Atlantis, the first book in my middle-grade/YA time travel series, and Legend of the Timekeepers, the prequel to the series. Also up for grabs are signed trading cards, rubber wrist bands, a custom-crafted Babel necklace and a ceramic Spiral pendant. |
| Spiral Pendant |
BTW – this Giveaway is opened internationally, so everyone is included in this hop! It’s just one of the ways I’m celebrating the 2nd Anniversary Book Release of The Last Timekeepers series during the month of May!
Tagline and blurb from The Last Timekeepers and the Arch of Atlantis:
Children are the keys to our future. And now, children are the only hope for our past.
When 13-year-old Amanda Sault and her annoying classmates are caught in a food fight at school, they're given a choice: suspension or yard duty. The decision is a no-brainer. Their two-week crash course in landscaping leads to the discovery of a weathered stone arch in the overgrown back yard. The arch isn't a forgotten lawn ornament but an ancient time portal from the lost continent of Atlantis.
Chosen by an Atlantean Magus to be Timekeepers--legendary time travelers sworn to keep history safe from the evil Belial--Amanda and her classmates are sent on an adventure of a lifetime. Can they find the young Robin Hood and his merry band of teens? If they don't, then history itself may be turned upside down.
Tagline and blurb from Legend of the Timekeepers:
There is no moving forward without first going back.
Lilith was a young girl with dreams and a family before the final destruction of Atlantis shattered those dreams and tore her family apart. Now refugees, Lilith and her father make their home in the Black Land. This strange, new country has no place in Lilith’s heart until a beloved high priestess introduces Lilith to her life purpose—to be a Timekeeper and keep time safe.
Summoned through the seventh arch of Atlantis by the Children of the Law of One, Lilith and her newfound friends are sent into Atlantis’s past, and given a task that will ultimately test their courage and try their faith in each other. Can the Timekeepers stop the dark magus Belial before he changes the seers’ prophecy? If they fail, then their future and the earth’s fate will be altered forever.
Good luck, and don’t forget to visit all the other blogs on the hop and enjoy more giveaway fun!
Terms & Conditions
§ This Blog Hop begins May 12th and runs until midnight May 19th, 2014. The winner will be announced on my blog the next day.
§ The winner will chosen by Rafflecopter
§ I will contact the winner via email and give the winner 72 hours to accept his/her prize.
§ Prizes as stated in—no alternatives will be offered.
ADDED BONUS: Since I’m celebrating the 2nd Anniversary of my Book Release, I’m having a 2for1 book sale exclusively at my publisher Musa Publishing, so if you haven’t had a chance to read my series, this is a win-win deal! But act fast, the sale ends May 19th! I also have two Goodreads giveaways happening, so please go to this link and enter to win: a Rafflecopter giveaway
Celebrate Mom with Musa Publishing
Grand Prize
$10.00 Musa Gift Certificate
6 Paperback Books
Beyond the Third Garden by I.J. Sarfeh
Outlaws by William Wendy
Seducing Kate by Emilia Mancini
Send Off For A Snitch by KM Rockwood
Typical Day by Gary K. Wolf
Unforgettable You by Marci Boudreaux
1st Place Winner
$5.00 Musa Gift Certificate 6 Paperback Books
The Andersen Ancestry by Addie J. King
For His Love by Nya Rayne
Outlaws by William Wendy
Seducing Kate by Emilia Mancini
Send Off For A Snitch by KM Rockwood
Typical Day by Gary K. Wolf
2nd Place Winner
5 Paperback Books
Outlaws by William Wendy
Seducing Kate by Emilia Mancini
Send Off For A Snitch by KM Rockwood
Typical Day by Gary K. Wolf
Wilder Mage by CD Coffelt
Plus
2 new winners are drawn daily. Each one will receive 3 books.
And
All participants receive a download of Cooking with Musa.
All entrants are eligible for Grand Prize Drawing May 10, 2014
Winners announced May 11, 2014
Enter daily to win!
No particular order to the daily drawings for the books below
Baiting the Hook by Mary S. Palmer and David Wilton
3.99 by Richard Satterlie
Amanda's Return by June Kramin
Buried Biker by KM Rockwood
Enter to Win by Kirsten Janey
ICE blue by Susan Rae
Lies in Wait by Donna Del Oro
Love Lies Bleeding by Lainie Giles
More Tomasewski by Del Staecker
Random Survival by Ray Wenck
Runt Wade by Robert G. Rogers
Steeled for Murder by KM Rockwood
Tales of Tomasewski by Del Staecker
Annabel Horton, Lost Witch of Salem by Vera Jane Cook
2012: The Rising by Joanne Hirase
Crazy Greta by David Hardy
The Dominus Runes by Peter Lukes
The Grimm Legacy by Addie J. King
Reunion by Joanna Fay
a Rafflecopter giveaway Winners who reside outside the Continental United States will receive their prize in e-book format.
All must be claimed by May 15, 2014 or they are forfeited. Prizes will be shipped May 17, 2014.
Giveaway begins May 1, 2014 and ends midnight CST May 10, 2014
Good Monday, everyone!
(Doesn't that sound so Shakespeare-y? It's like Good Morrow :))
I know none of you has gotten a minute of rest or a wink of sleep for days, what with the torturous anticipation of finding out who the winners of the contest are!
The First Ever Pretty-Much-World-Famous Illustration Contest!!!
You've probably gnawed all the erasers off your pencils, bitten your nails to the quick, and lost 5 pounds from being unable to contemplate the idea of sustenance whilst in such a heightened state of suspense! (That's okay, it means you can have triple helpings of chocolate on Wednesday when you stop by for Would You Read It :))
So I will not keep you in suspense any longer!
(I would not want to be responsible for one more brow wrinkle or gray hair of consternation and anxiety! :))
I just have one quick thing to say, which is that EVERYONE who entered this contest should be very proud of themselves. You all showed up, put in the work, produced GORGEOUS book covers (which our authors are all so thrilled about!), followed guidelines, and worked to a deadline - all very important skills to practice when illustrating and/or writing is your profession :) Even if you didn't make the finals, be assured that your illustrations were greatly enjoyed by many upon many! Seriously! I am not making this up. The contest post with all your links had around 3 thousand views, which means lots of people were visiting you, even if they didn't all comment! So we are giving you a round of thunderous applause -
clapclapclapclapclap!!!!! - and you should pat yourselves on the back and have an extra slice of chocolate cake - you did good! :)
Also, I had a lovely time at the Hudson Children's Book Festival on Saturday. I got to see my dear friends Iza Trapani (she of illustrious judging fame :)) and Nancy Furstinger, and I had the honor of being placed at a signing table right next to none other than Jane O'Connor (you know,
Fancy Nancy Jane O'Connor!) I felt like I was very much in the wrong place next to all that famousness!
And then I spent all day Sunday driving to Boston...
What?
You don't care?
That's kind of rude, don't you think? When I was about to tell you about how I was
forced encouraged to listen to Pink Floyd's The Wall straight through from start to finish at the crack of dawn on Sunday morning? Which is not the most uplifting set of tunes, let me tell you, even though there's a lot of great music involved. And I can tell you that by the end of the entire day of driving, certain parts of my anatomy were
unComfortably Numb...
What?
Oh gosh! Right! I was supposed to be telling you about the winners! Sorry. My bad!
DDDDDRRRRRUUUUUMMMMM RRRRROOOOOLLLLLLLLLL PLEASE!!!!
The winner of the First Ever Pretty Much World Famous Illustration Contest and a portfolio critique by Michael Garland!!! is:
Julie Rowan-Zoch
with her stunning cover for Elliah Terry's The Jackrabbit Who Cried Gila Monster!
Congratulations, Julie! That is some cover! It knocked a lot of socks off! :)
In second place, winner of a $50 gift certificate to Dick Blick Art Materials is
Donna Marie
with her bold and colorful cover for Mike Allegra's Goldilockup
Congratulations, Donna Marie! Your cover was absolutely fabulous!
In third place,*
Louis Davilla Wiyono
with his humorous cover for Mike Allegra's Goldilockup
Congratulations, Louis! Your cover was arresting! :)
In fourth place,*
Colleen Kosinski
with her winsome cover for Mike Allegra's Goldilockup
Congratulations, Colleen! Your sweet cover made us feel sorry for the naughty Goldi :)
In fifth place,*
Anne Mitchell
with her delightful cover for Jennifer Caritas's The "Princess" And The Pete
Congratulations, Anne! Your cover was so appealing!
In sixth place, winner of a Canson sketch pad and a small set of Derwent or Faber Castell colored pencils is
Tiemdow Phumiruk
with her mischievous cover for Elliah Terry's The Jackrabbit Who Cried Gila Monster
Congratulations, Tiemdow! Your cover was such fun!
* Third, fourth, and fifth place winners each have their choice of any
one of the following books:
Winners, please
email me so we can talk details :)
Thank you again to all the illustrators who participated in this contest and treated us all to such beautiful artwork; to our wonderful judges, Iza Trapani and Lisa Thiesing, without whom we could not have done this!; and to all the readers and viewers who visited, commented, and voted to celebrate these talented artists! It is all of you who make these contests fun and worthwhile! Hear! Hear! What the heck! Even though it's not Wednesday, let's have a little chocolate all around! :)
Thank you, thank you, thank you, ALL!!!
Have a magnificent Monday, everyone! :)
O H M Y G O O D N E S S !!!
O H M Y G O O D N E S S
(Sorry! I can't help jumping up and down!)
Do you know what time it is???
It's time to announce the finalists for
The First Ever Pretty-Much-World-Famous Illustration Contest!!!
But first I have to say that I was thrilled with what a great turn out we got for a first-ever contest! I was hoping we'd get 10, and really hoping we'd get 20, so how completely wonderful that we got 35 entries!!!
And they were all so beautiful and creative and well done!
There were 8 fabulous stories for the illustrators to choose from - stories that won the March Madness Writing Contest last month. Happily, every single story inspired at least 2 illustrators, so all the stories were represented. The entries broke down as follows:
1. The Three Wiggly Worms Bluff by Wendy Greenley - 6 illustrations
2. Goldilockup by Mike Allegra - 5 illustrations
3. Goldibawks And The Three Pairs by Dawn Young - 2 illustrations
4. The Sweetie Witch by Pen Avey - 4 illustrations
5. The Princess And The Stinky Cheese by Lauri Myers - 9 illustrations
6. Mongoose's Holi Party by Darshana Khiani - 2 illustrations
7. The "Princess" And The Pete by Jennifer Caritas - 3 illustrations
8. The Jackrabbit Who Cried Gila Monster by Elliah Terry - 4 illustrations
So a very nice spread!
And now, a few words from our illustrious judges, award-winning author/illustrators Iza Trapani and Lisa Thiesing:
Iza said, "Thank you everyone for the wonderful entries! Lisa and I enjoyed them and regret that we could only pick 6 finalists. You all did a great job. Keep up the good work!"
Lisa said, "We were so impressed with everyone's enthusiasm and how much effort you all put in!"
I say, many thanks to our wonderful judges for donating their time and expertise to pore over all these entries, carefully weighing the merits of each until they could reach a consensus as to which ones should qualify for the finals. Many thanks as well to all the very talented illustrators who took the time and care to produce such beautiful book covers for these original stories! We have enjoyed your work so much, and it's been different and fun to experience a competition for illustration instead of writing!
Please consider each of the following finalists carefully and vote for the one you think you'd be most likely to pluck off a bookshelf :) Remember that the contest rules specifically asked for art only. Some artists chose to include the title/author/illustrator anyway, but covers which do not show title/author/illustrator should not be penalized in your judgment.
Although there's no real way to keep these anonymous, I will show the pictures only, no artist names for now (they will all be shown when I announce the winners on Monday May 5.) I encourage you to share this post with your tribe - the more views these talented illustrators get the better - but I ask that you please not try to influence the vote by saying "Vote for #3!" or whatever. Let's let these gorgeous book covers speak for themselves. It's not supposed to be a contest about who has the most FB friends or whatnot. Thank you all for playing fair. Because many of the finalists are for the same stories, I have identified them with little notes in parentheses to help you remember which is which on the voting poll.
And now, without further ado, I am pleased to present the finalists! Each cover is accompanied by a few words from the judges :)
#1. Cover for The "Princess" And The Pete
 |
| Cover image for The "Princess" And The Pete |
Judges comments: This is a cool image and the illustrator has left plenty of space for a great type design.
# 2. Cover image for Goldilockup (green border)
Judges comments: The girl is sweet and nicely drawn. The details and design elements were carefully thought out.
#3 Cover image for Goldilockup (black border)
 |
| Cover image for Goldilockup |
Judges comments: This illustration is very well done. It is a humorous, strong, eye-catching image. It would be very appealing to a lot of young readers.
#4. Cover image for The Jackrabbit Who Cried Gila Monster (black background)
Judges comments: The character is funny, quirky, interesting and we wonder what he's thinking. We would want to read this book. The whole design is great.
#5. Cover image for The Jackrabbit Who Cried Gila Monster (3 beds)
 |
| Cover image for The Jackrabbit Who Cried Gila Monster |
Judges comments: The bunny is cute, with an especially nice face. The picture makes us curious about the story.
#6. Cover image for Goldilockup (bears pointing thru bars)
Judges comments: We thought this cover was a good drawing with a nice composition and colors. We could see it standing out on the Barnes & Noble book wall.
Ready, set, VOTE!
First Ever Illustration Contest 2014Please vote for your favorite by Sunday May 4 at 5PM EDT!
Boy oh boy is it going to be hard to wait until Monday to find out how these finalists finish up!
Have a great weekend, everyone! :)
By:
Susanna Leonard Hill,
on 4/24/2014
Blog:
Susanna Leonard Hill
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Fasten your seat belts and prepare for take off! It's finally here!
The First Ever Pretty-Much-World-Famous Illustration Contest!!!
 |
the fact that this particular illustrator resembles a female
is in no way meant to deter any male illustrators! :) |
The Contest: Draw/Paint/Create a children's picture book cover illustration (no text required - art only) for one of the following stories (which you will recognize as the top finishers in the March Madness Fractured Fairy Tale Writing Contest - a little extra surprise for those authors :)):
- The Three Wiggly Worms Bluff by Wendy Greenley
- Goldilockup by Mike Allegra
- Goldibawks And The Three Pairs by Dawn Young
- The Sweetie Witch by Pen Avey
- The Princess And The Stinky Cheese by Lauri Meyers
- Mongoose's Holi Party by Darshana Khiani
- The "Princess" And The Pete by Jennifer Caritas
- The Jackrabbit Who Cried Gila Monster by Elliah Terry
Illustrations should be 8x10, horizontal or vertical, any medium, posted in jpg at least 72 px
All stories can be read on the March Madness Finalist Post HERE so you will know what to illustrate :) Illustrators may enter more than one entry if they're feeling ambitious enough to illustrate more than one book title :)
Post: Your entry should be posted on your blog between right now this very second and Monday April 28 at 9 PM EDT (contest deadline!), and your post-specific link should be added to the link list below. This post with the link list will remain up through Tuesday April 29 so that people can come visit and enjoy your gorgeous artwork! (For regular blog followers, there will be no PPBF on Friday April 25, no new post on Monday April 28, but there will be a brief interruption for WYRI on Wednesday April 30 because I forgot to leave it open for the contest :)). If you don't have a blog but would like to enter, please copy and paste your entry into the comments below. (If anyone has trouble commenting, which unfortunately happens, you may email me and I'll post your entry for you! Also, since this is the first time we've done an illustration contest, I'm not sure if you actually CAN paste your entry into the comments. If this turns out to be a problem, email them to me and I'll add them directly to this post.)
Judging: entries will be judged by multi-talented, award-winning author/illustrators Iza Trapani, author and illustrator of over 20 gorgeous picture books, and Lisa Thiesing, author and illustrator of at least 16 beautiful and fun picture books and early readers! Judging criteria to include:
- is the picture readable to a young audience,
- how well does it show the character(s) and
- is the character(s) appealing (character development),
- does it make you want to read the story,
- originality
- skill.
They will narrow down the entrants to 6 finalists (or possibly a couple more or less depending on the number of entries :)) which will be posted here on Thursday May 1 for you to vote on for a winner. The vote will be closed at 5PM EST on Sunday May 4 and the winner will be announced on Monday May 5. (No PPBF on Friday May 2.)
The Prizes!: There will definitely be a 1st prize. Whether we give prizes for 1st only, 1st-3rd, or 1st-6th will depend on how many entries we get. We need at least 12 entries to place through 3rd, and at least 20 to place through 6th.
First Prize is absolutely amazing! A portfolio critique by celebrated author/illustrator Michael Garland, who has over 20 picture books to his credit!!! - Third, Fourth & Fifth Prize will be winner's choice of one of the following books:
A couple of weeks ago,
a post by Clementine Beauvais set the cat among the pigeons here on ABBA by questioning whether reading a bad book is always better than reading no book at all. The debate that followed veered at times into a related but slightly different topic, one always likely to be sensitive with authors. What, if anything, makes a book a “bad book” in the first place? The arguments divided commenters into two broad and messily intersecting camps. The first group wished to apply their preferred canons of taste and quality: was the book formulaic, clichéd, incoherent? The second prioritised utility: even a book that was “bad” by other criteria it might still be good for a particular reader at a particular time. By that rule, there was no such thing as an intrinsically “bad” book.
I don't think we can do without either of these approaches entirely – but rather than reopen the argument about poor quality books I’d like to think about how these ideas apply at the other end of spectrum, when we’re singling books out not for opprobrium but for praise. How do we decide whether a book deserves a literary prize?
Children’s books are in strange position here. Adults, aware that they are not children’s literature’s primary audience, can feel quite uncomfortable about choosing books “over children’s heads.” When adults honour a book with a prize, is it because they deem it the “best” by the measures of literary quality they would apply to books written for people like themselves, or are they trying to ventriloquize the judgements of children – whose criteria for a good book may be quite different?
Different prizes deal with this problem in different ways. At one extreme we have the Costa Children’s Book Award, which is chosen by a panel of three adult judges, with – as far as I know – no child input at all. At the other, the Red House Children’s Book Award sells itself in part on the claim that it is “the only national book award voted for entirely by children.” Somewhere in the middle sits the Roald Dahl Funny Prize, in which the votes of hundreds of children are put into the mix, but the final decision is made by an adult panel. Of course, these prizes (and others) are doing slightly different things, but the variety of methods for choosing the “best” book suggests some confusion, even discomfort.
The sense that there are systematic differences between adults’ and children’s tastes is one factor in play here, but there are others. For example, there is the opposition between the technocratic idea that there exist expert readers who by virtue of their expertise (as writers, teachers, librarians, booksellers, etc.) are more qualified than other people to arbitrate quality, and the democratic idea that the way to choose the “best” of anything is by means of a popular vote. The authority of the Red House prize derives not just from the fact that the judges are children but also from the numbers involved.
All of this informs our original dilemma. Are there certain qualities, such as vivid writing, original plot and characterization, etc., that make a book “good”? Or is the quality of a book always to be judged in relation to the circumstances of its reading, so that a book that’s bad for one reader may be good for another, and the best book is the one that does the most good for the most people? In philosophy that would be called a utilitarian position; others may call it rule by lowest common denominator, although for them the question remains – who nominates the denominators? (And who are you calling common?)
Of course, there are other criteria in the selection of literary prize winners besides the ones I’ve mentioned. One is sales. In the United States, the children’s book world was surprised in recent weeks to discover that the right-wing “shock jock” Rush Limbaugh had been nominated as “Author of the Year” by the respected Children’s Book Council. It turns out that
the CBC’s criteria for nomination are entirely determined by an author’s sales rather than by anyone’s literary judgement, child or adult. If you are a millionaire celebrity author who can afford to buy thousands of copies of your own book you can thus guarantee not only “bestseller” status but also a nomination for a major literary award. Nor is this a new phenomenon. For years, it was an open secret that the “recommendations” of a major UK book chain could be purchased by publishers wishing to promote their books.
This approach goes beyond populism – rather, it is money masquerading as popular taste (in the case of the millionaire) or as elite taste (in the case of the UK chain) and trying to create a market in the process. Wordsworth once remarked that that “every great and original writer, in proportion as he is great and original, must himself create the taste by which he is to be relished.” Had Wordsworth read Fredric Jameson he might have added that what is true of great and original writers is even more so of trite and derivative ones. But the methods, arguably, vary.
Welcome to The Stone of Valhalla Blog Tour!
A middle-grade fantasy-adventure by Mikey Brooks.
Don’t forget to check out the GIVEAWAY at the bottom this post
for a chance to WIN a $25 Amazon Gift card and other great prizes!
Using the Old to Create Something New
A guest post by: Mikey Brooks
I discover fun and interesting things with each book I write. For The Stone of Valhalla I did a lot of research into old Norse mythology and legends. I wanted to base my “otherworld” off something that still had familiarity in ours. World building is really fun in the fact that you get to create everything from the ground up. You get to create their religion, their folk songs, their folklore, everything.
While researching I came across a cool story about a dwarf prince that was turned into a dragon because of his greed with gold and a magical ring. I wanted to put the story into mine but wasn’t sure how it would fit. I ended up using the name of the prince as a dragon in my own story. Fáfnir was the name of the dragon from the Völsunga Saga in Norse legends and he became one of the masters of the Stone of Valhalla in the history of my “otherworld”.
I loved sharing that story so much I decided to write in my own folklore. I created a story about another dragon. Nottigin is a dragon who falls in love with a princess. One night he steals her away and hides her in his cave behind a great waterfall. One night the princess goes wondering and slips to her death. Traumatized by the loss of his love the dragon throws himself off the Cliffside and drowns in the water below. Yes, a tragic story, but it added something magical to the story. The place that my character’s camp at is a grand waterfall called Nottigin’s Fall.
I had a lot of fun writing this book and incorporating many of the things I took for Norse mythology. A lot of the names you will find in The Stone of Valhalla all come from the old Norse legends. I loved taking the old and turning it into something new.
I am thrilled to announce the release of my newest middle-grade fantasy-adventure: The Stone of Valhalla. In it you’ll find sprinklings of Norse legends here and there but that’s not where the fun lies. The fun is in the story of Aaron, from our world, and how he is destined to save another.
Synopsis:
Aaron was chosen to save their world, but it might come at the cost of losing his own.
Breaking into an old lady’s basement was supposed to reward 13-year-old Aaron with new friends. Instead he finds an enchanted amulet that transports him to another world—one at war with magic. Before he knows it, he is accused of witchcraft and invited to a bonfire—where he’s the main attraction. If that’s not bad enough, a goblin army shows up and toasts the town...literally. The good news: Aaron escapes being charbroiled. The bad news: the goblins are after him. They want his amulet and will stop at nothing to get it. Battling to find his way home, Aaron teams up with a not-so-magical-wizard and learns it’s his fate to destroy the amulet and save this new world. But is he willing to sacrifice his own?
Check out what these talented authors are saying about it:
“The Stone of Valhalla is one of those books that only comes along once in a great while. Brooks doesn't just create a world, he puts you inside of it, allowing you to experience the wonder in a way that only he can. His characters are likable and fun. His twists leave you asking ‘Why?’ Treat yourself to an exciting adventure through a beautiful new land. Make new friends and be a part of the magic. This is a book that you will not be able to put down!”
—J.R. Simmons, author of Ragesong: Awakening.
“The Stone of Valhalla drew me in from the get-go. Aaron’s journey is reminiscent of Dorothy’s trek in The Wizard of Oz. Magic, sword fights, danger, and more danger, sprinkled with humor and unexpected twists. This is one of the ‘best’ fantasy adventures I’ve ever experienced!”
—BBH McChiller, author of The Monster Moon Series.
“The Stone of Valhalla is a riveting mystery revealing true friendship, loyalty and sacrifice. Brooks engages the curiosity of middle graders and older sleuths alike, until the very end. Fantastic!”
—L.R.W. Lee, author of The Andy Smithson series.
Where to Find The Stone of Valhalla:
Exclusive price for the eBook release is just $2.99! (List Price: $4.99)
And only $9.99 for the paperback!(List Price: $12.99)
On April 12th2014 the price will return to the List Price
Another special offer:
During The Stone of ValhallaBlog Tour
Mikey’s other great middle-grade eBooks will also be set to the low price of just $0.99!
The Dream Keeper:
The Dreamstone:
You’re Invited to PARTY!!
The online launch party will take place on Thursday, April 10
th at 4pm (MST). The party will run for 2 hours and you’re invited to drop by anytime. The longer you stay the more chances you have of winning prizes! We have slew of eBooks to giveaway, as well as a Stone of Valhalla necklace AND a
$25 Amazon gift card! It is hosted by LovingtheBookLaunchParty on Facebook. Just follow this link to join the event:
http://goo.gl/Q2Fd3r.
What’s that? Another Party!
That’s right! If you’re local to Utah you don’t want to miss this kickin’ party. We are having a launch party to celebrate the release of this awesome new book. Of course there will be plenty of giveaways there too, but what’s even better are the guest authors! Just check out these fabulous names: J. Scott Savage, Chad Morris, Lisa Mangum, Jenni James, Ali Cross, and many more. The Launch Party is: Friday, April 11
th from 6-9pm at the Viridian Center in West Jordan, Utah. Follow this link for a map:
http://goo.gl/dqVc0u
About Mikey Brooks:
Mikey is a small child masquerading as an adult. On occasion you’ll catch him dancing the funky chicken, singing like a banshee, and pretending to have never grown up. He is the author/illustrator of several books including the best-selling
ABC Adventures: Magical Creaturesand
Bean’s Dragons as well as the middle-grade fantasy-adventure series
The Dream Keeper Chronicles. His art can be seen in many forms from picture books to full room murals. He loves to daydream with his three daughters and explore the worlds that only the imagination of children can create. Mikey has a BS degree in English from Utah State University and works full-time as a freelance illustrator, cover designer, and author. As a member of the
Emblazoners, he is one of many authors devoted to ‘writing stories on the hearts of children’. He is also one of the hosts of the
Authors’ Think Tank Podcast. You can find more about him and his books at:
http://www.insidemikeysworld.com/.
The Giveaways!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Oh. My. Goodness!
That was the closest, most hotly contested race for a winner we've ever had!
I hope that means that my assistant judges and I made good choices for the finalists! :)
The March Madness Writing Contest!
I admit it - I get all the fun. Sitting in the judge's chair, watching the votes come in, seeing first one person and then another in the lead, biting my nails when there are ties, waiting on pins and needles to see who will emerge victorious....
Normally I'd string you along and tease you for a while, but I'm too wiped out by this whole roller-coaster process.
Truly, it is not for the faint of heart.
Up one minute, down the next. Nerves stretched like bow strings.
A person less physically fit than myself (haha snort! - can't say THAT with a straight face after this winter :)) might suffer palpitations!
And speaking of palpitations, I had them aplenty when her royal highness, Miss Scouty Brown, came sauntering back in the house this morning having found something dreadful to roll in! "What is that SMELL???!!!" all the children shrieked!
Fortunately, we are in the midst of a small flood which, aside from making the basement a delightful place for canoeing, means that there is a lot of water outside. Scouty was able to enjoy her first swim of the year... twice... with the fortuitous result that she returned from our walk refreshed and smelling mostly like wet dog instead of Something Yucky.
But wait.
What were we talking about?
Oh yes!
The contest!
So, who won?
Oh! I'm supposed to tell you!
:)
Okay.
Seriously.
I'm really going to tell.
We had 75 fantastic entries, which we winnowed down by hook or by crook, to the best of our ability, to 10 fabulous finalists.
Y'all voted for your favorites.
And the winner of the 2014 March Madness Writing Contest, who gets to send the picture book manuscript of her choice to none other than the renowned children's literary agent, Karen Grencik of Red Fox Literary is. . .
duhn duhn duhn
dddddrrrrruuuuummmmm rrrrrooooollllllllll pppppllllleeeeeaaaaassssseeeee!!!!!
Wendy Greenley
with her clever Three Wiggly Worms Bluff!!!
Congratulations on a wonderful story, Wendy! I think it's clear that a LOT of people really enjoyed it! :)
Now, I wasn't kidding when I said this contest was hotly contested. I kept asking for votes this weekend, hoping the ties would get broken, but not all of them did.
So, for 2nd place we had a tie between
Mike Allegra
with the fantabulous Goldilockup!
and
Dawn Young
with the hilarious Goldibawks!
Congratulations Mike and Dawn, on two terrific and very different twists on Goldilocks! Lori and Cori have generously agreed to each give a critique instead of just one or the other, so you will each get a picture book critique by a fantastic author!
In 3rd place, guess what? Another tie! This time between
Pen Avey
with her delicious Sweetie Witch
and
Lauri Meyers
with her daring Princess And The Stinky Cheese!
Congratulations, Pen and Lauri! I will prevail upon Corey to tire her signing hand by signing copies of her books for both of you! :) And you may email me about your gift cards.
4th place goes to
Darshana Khiani
with her delightful Mongoose's Holi Party!
Congratulations, Darshana, on a truly original tale! You may choose the two picture books you'd like from the prize list. (I'll tack it on the bottom of the post for easy reference :)) And email me about your gift card.
In 5th place,
Jennifer Caritas (hope I've got that right...!)
with another forthright heroine in The "Princess" And The Pete!
Congratulations on a terrific story, Jennifer! You may also choose the two picture books you'd like from the prize list below and email me about your gift card.
And in 6th place,
Elliah Terry
with her fun southwestern Jackrabbit Who Cried Gila Monster!
Congratulations, Elliah! I bet that gila monster is still running from the coyote :) You will receive a personalized sighed copy of SNORING BEAUTY by Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen!
All the winners should
email me to work out prize details!
But now, we are not quite done.
Because, like I said, this was a hotly contested contest. My assistant judges and I had quite a few other favorites that we felt couldn't quite make the finalist list for one reason or another, but we all thought they were worthy of recognition. So the following people (in no particular order) receive our heartfelt Honorable Mention!
Gaye Hemsley - Chocolate Muffins
Joanne Roberts - Goldi And The Three Squirrels
Vivian Kirkfield - Singerella
Katie Gast - Little Dead Riding Hood
Katie Cullinan - The Three Little Easter Bunnies
Jen Doherty - The Mischievous Fire Truck
Laura Shovan - The 12 Clumsy Princesses
Margaret Greenias - The Big, Bad-Mannered Wolf
Angela Turner - The Belle And The Sticker Burrs
Cheryl Secomb - Little Red Rider
Robert Schechter - Humpty
Erik Weibel - The Once Upon A Times
Rachel - Handsome And Gretchin
Congratulations to all of you on stories that were original, fun, and very entertaining! You may all choose
one of the following as a prize: (titles are links so you can check them out)
Kindle Edition -
The Nuts & Bolts Guide To Writing Picture Books by Linda Ashman
Kindle Edition -
Picture Books The Write Way by Laura Purdie Salas & Lisa Bullard
Kindle Edition -
How To Write A Children's Picture Book by Darcy Pattison
Kindle Edition -
The Easy Way To Write Picture Books That Sell by Robin Opie Parnell
Kindle Edition -
How To Promote Your Children's Book: Tips, Tricks and Secrets To Create A Bestseller by Katie Davis
Paperback -
Writing Magic: Creating Stories That Fly by Gail Carson Levine (also available for Kindle)
Paperback -
How To Write A Novel: 47 Rules For Writing A Stupendously Awesome Novel That You Will Love Forever by Nathan Bransford (also available for Kindle)
Paperback -
The Plot Skeleton by Angela Hunt (also available for Kindle)
Please
email me and let me know your preference!
Congratulations to everyone who entered a story in this contest. You all did an amazing job! My assistant judges and I loved every story for one reason or another. And I think it's fair to say that you entertained a LARGE number of readers!
Thank you so much to everyone who visited blogs, read, commented, and voted - these contests couldn't happen without you!
And thank you to the generous people who donated prizes - Karen Grencik, Lori Degman, and Cori Doerffeld - you're what everyone tries so hard for and you bring out the best in the writing community!
It's been another fun contest, and I thank you all!
I was going to announce the upcoming first ever
* Illustrator Contest
* today, but this post is too long already, and I really don't want to distract from the winners' moment in the spotlight, so I will either write a special Tuesday post for tomorrow or tack it onto the Would You Read It post on Wednesday.
So congratulations again to all the winners for all their wonderful stories, and to everyone who wrote a story for this contest. You are all winners just for showing up, writing something new, and practicing your craft!
Have a marvelous Monday, everyone! :)
List of Prizes:
- 1st Prize is a read and critique by
Karen Grencik of
Red Fox Literary!!! (Unless for some reason you don't want a read and critique by an agent, in which case you may swap for any of the other prizes)
- 2nd Prize is a picture book manuscript critique (for rhyming mss only) by
Lori Degman, author of 1 ZANY ZOO and the forthcoming COCK-A-DOODLE-OOPS!
OR a picture book manuscript critique (for non-rhyming mss only) by
Cori Doerrfeld, author/illustrator of LITTLE BUNNY FOO FOO and PENNY LOVES PINK as well as illustrator of many others.
- 3rd Prize is personalized signed copies of THE THREE NINJA PIGS and GOLDI ROCKS & THE THREE BEARS by
Corey Rosen Schwartz PLUS a $25 Amazon Gift Card
- 4th and 5th Prizes are your choice of any two of the following picture books PLUS a $20 Amazon Gift Card:
- THE THREE LITTLE WOLVES AND THE BIG BAD PIG by Eugene Trivizas
- CINDY ELLEN: A WILD WESTERN CINDERELLA by Susan Lowell
- LITTLE RED WRITING by Joan Holub
- THE THREE LITTLE PIGS AND THE SOMEWHAT BAD WOLF by Mark Teague
- THE PRINCESS AND THE PEAS by Caryl Hart
- THE WOLF'S STORY: WHAT REALLY HAPPENED TO LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD by Toby Forward
- GOLDILOCKS AND THE THREE DINOSAURS by Mo Willems
- 6th Prize (which just skated in under the wire - thank you Sudipta!) is a personalized signed copy of hot-off-the-presses SNORING BEAUTY by Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen
Today starts the blog tour of awesome around the internet. Twelve stops, twelve chance to win a copy of WISH YOU WEREN'T and astronaut ice cream – yum!
Here's where you'll find me this week:
Monday: Mundie Kids (I'm guest posting about -- you guessed it -- wishing on stars!)
Wednesday: Cover2Cover (This time I'm talking about other ways to wish)
Wednesday: The (Mis)Adventures of a Twenty-Something Year Old Girl will be posting a review Friday: Sher A. Hart will have a book review
In addition to the tour, I'm thrilled that the esteemed Middle Grade Ninja will be featuring me this week on his amazing blog. Tuesday he'll do his Book of the Week review of WISH YOU WEREN'T and on Thursday, I'll be answering his famous 7 Questions Interview. If you're a writer and you've never visited the Middle Grade Ninja, do yourself a favor and go now. He's got interviews with agents, editors and writers like Sara Crowe, Tina Wexler, Kendra Levin, Lynne Reid Banks and Ingrid Law. Seriously cool interviews I'll be rubbing shoulders with!
If you're looking for more chances to win, the contest is still open over at Literary Rambles. You can win a copy of the book, a wish token and a pocket watch just like the one Tör uses to manipulate time in WISH YOU WEREN'T. (Although I don't guarantee that this watch will have the same magical properties as Tör's!)
Whew! It's going to be a busy week! I hope I'll see you around the web!
And just in case you forgot, you can always get your very own copy of WISH YOU WEREN'T from these magnificent retailers :)
Amazon | Kobo | B&N | Smashwords | Solvang Book Loft
By:
Susanna Leonard Hill,
on 3/20/2014
Blog:
Susanna Leonard Hill
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Woo-hoo!!!
Spring is here!
And so is
The March Madness Writing Contest!
The Contest: Write a children's story, in poetry or prose, maximum 400 words, that is a fractured fairy tale. Feel free to add a theme of spring, or mix in one of the spring holidays if you like - St. Patrick's Day, April Fools Day, Easter or Passover, Arbor Day, Earth Day... Have fun with it! The madder* the better! :)
*as in wild and wacky, not angry :)
You do not have to include spring - that is optional.
The story can be a picture book or a short story - whatever you like.
If it's a picture book, you may NOT include art notes, because we get into a weird area of whether that's fair in terms of word count and added description etc. So if you write a picture book that's wonderful, but make sure art notes aren't necessary to understand it.
"Fairy Tale" apparently turned out to be a very debatable term, so my fellow judges and I will do our best to handle whatever you've come up with.
Title not included in word count.
Post: Your entry should be posted on your blog between right now this very second and Monday March 24 at 11:59 PM EST, and your post-specific link should be added to the link list below which will remain up through Wednesday March 26 so we can all take our time reading and enjoying everyone's stories! (No PPBF on Friday March 21, no new post on Monday March 24, no WYRI on March 26). If you don't have a blog but would like to enter, please copy and paste your entry into the comments below. (If anyone has trouble commenting, which unfortunately happens, please email me and I'll post your entry for you!)
The Judge: My lovely assistant and I will narrow down the entrants to 6 finalists (or possibly a couple more depending on the number of entries :)) which will be posted here on Thursday March 27 for you to vote on for a winner. The vote will be closed at 5PM EST on Sunday March 30 and the winner will be announced on Monday March 31. (No PPBF on Friday March 28.)
The Prizes!: - 1st Prize is a read and critique by
Karen Grencik of
Red Fox Literary!!! (Unless for some reason you don't want a read and critique by an agent, in which case you may swap for any of the other prizes)
- 2nd Prize is a picture book manuscript critique (for rhyming mss only) by
Lori Degman, author of 1 ZANY ZOO and the forthcoming COCK-A-DOODLE-OOPS!
OR a picture book manuscript critique (for non-rhyming mss only) by
Cori Doerrfeld, author/illustrator of LITTLE BUNNY FOO FOO and PENNY LOVES PINK as well as illustrator of many others.
- 3rd Prize is personalized signed copies of THE THREE NINJA PIGS and GOLDI ROCKS & THE THREE BEARS by
Corey Rosen Schwartz PLUS a $25 Amazon Gift Card
- 4th and 5th Prizes are your choice of any two of the following picture books PLUS a $20 Amazon Gift Card:
- THE THREE LITTLE WOLVES AND THE BIG BAD PIG by Eugene Trivizas
- CINDY ELLEN: A WILD WESTERN CINDERELLA by Susan Lowell
- LITTLE RED WRITING by Joan Holub
- THE THREE LITTLE PIGS AND THE SOMEWHAT BAD WOLF by Mark Teague
- THE PRINCESS AND THE PEAS by Caryl Hart
- THE WOLF'S STORY: WHAT REALLY HAPPENED TO LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD by Toby Forward
- GOLDILOCKS AND THE THREE DINOSAURS by Mo Willems
- 6th Prize (which just skated in under the wire - thank you Sudipta!) is a personalized signed copy of hot-off-the-presses SNORING BEAUTY by Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen
And don't forget, all you illustrators, that this will be followed by a related
Illustrator Contest in April!!! (to be announced and elaborated on as soon as the writing part of the contest is over! :))
And now, so that everyone will feel happy and confident about posting their stories, I will share my sample, a Wild West twist on The Gingerbread Boy at exactly 400 words (phew!):
The Cornpone Cowboy
Once upon a time (because that is the way all good fairy tales begin), Farmer Bubba and his lovely bride ThunderLily had the most beautiful ranch in the Wild West.
The grass was emerald green.
The rivers were pure as morning dew.
The cattle were sleek and fat and gave such rich, creamy milk that all the ice cream makers in the world fought over who would get it.
But even with all this beauty and excellent ice cream, Bubba and ThunderLily were sad. For though they were surrounded every spring by velvet-eyed calves and stilt-legged foals, fluffy chicks, pink piglets, and wooly lambs, they never had a child of their own.
Luckily, ThunderLily was not one to sit around moping. "If I can't have a child, I'll make one," she told her darling Bubba.
She got cornmeal and buttermilk, eggs, salt, and bacon drippings, and quick as you like she whipped up a sturdy little Cornpone Cowboy.
"We'll call him Charlemagne," she said dreamily as she plucked the skillet from the barbeque pit.
"You'll have to catch me first!" snorted the Cornpone Cowboy, and off he rode as fast as his cowpony could carry him.
He passed the pigpen and the piglets grunted, “Oh, Charlemagne! Come be our friend!”
“Don’t call me that!” said the Cornpone Cowboy, and he galloped on his way.
He passed the sheepfold and the lambs baahed, “Oh, Charlemagne! Come be our friend!”
“Don’t call me that!” said the Cornpone Cowboy, and he galloped on his way.
He passed the cow barn and the calves mooed, “Oh, Charlemagne! Come be our friend!”
“Why does everyone insist on calling me that?” said the Cornpone Cowboy, and he galloped on his way.
And so it was at the hen house…
. . . the horse pasture…
. . . and the goat shed.
Along about sundown a voice called, “Hey, Cowboy! Won’t you come set a spell by the campfire?”
“Don’t mind if I do,” said the Cornpone Cowboy, tuckered out from galloping. He hopped down from his pony, spurs a-janglin’, and came face to face with…
. . . COYOTE!
Quick as a wink he twirled his lariat. . .
. . . hog-tied Coyote . . .
. . . and lit out for home!
When Bubba and ThunderLily heard his story, ThunderLily said, “That’s our boy! Lightning fast!”
Which is how he came to be called LightningCharlie instead of Charlemagne (because really, who could live with that?) and they all lived happily ever after!
The End
Wasn't that nice of me? Now you can all feel brave and smug, secure in the knowledge that your story is better than that!!! :)
Anyone besides me feeling an urge to sing?
"
Like a Cornpone Cowboy riding out on a horse in a star-spangled rodeo Cornpone Cowboy..."
No? Darn! I was hoping the exceptional quality of my singing would distract you from that story even though "cornpone" doesn't have quite the same ring to it as "rhinestone" :)
I can't wait to read what you have all come up with! Let the fun begin! :)
And remember to check back here for entries added in the comments. I'll list them as they come in :)
Don’t miss out on entering The Great Author Giveaway!
LOTS of awesome prizes, including some donated by me 
Enter and share! Good luck!
ENTER NOW!
If you are in grades 3-6, you can enter the BE A SUPER HERO, READ! contest sponsored by Capstone Publishing and DC Comics. All you have to do is write about a super hero in your life--a real one, that is.
Winners get an exclusive tour of DC Entertainment Offices, a tour of Warner Brothers Animation Studio, and a set of Capstone Man of Steel chapter books.
Who is the Wonder Woman or Man in your life? Write about him or her and you may have the chance for some SUPER prizes.
One of the best things about writing children's books is not winning prizes.
My first book, A Dog Called Grk, was nominated for the Branford Boase, which is given to debut writers and their editors. I went to the ceremony practically dribbling with anticipation and terror.
The chair of the judges was Meg Rosoff, and up until the moment that her lips spoke someone else's name, I thought I had a pretty good chance of winning.
I left the ceremony disappointed and very drunk.
Since then, my books are been nominated for a few more prizes, and I've learnt that the best thing about them is not winning - because only one person wins, and it's invariably not me - but being there, and meeting the other writers, and talking to a bunch of excited kids who have come to the ceremony, and all the other bits and pieces generated by the fact of the prize.
I've just come back from the Salford Children's Book Award, which was held in the lovely Lowry Centre on Salford Quays. My novel The Island of Thieves was on the shortlist. I didn't win, but I went out to supper the night before with renowned blogger, the Bookwitch, and two of the other shortlisted authors, Gill Lewis, author of Sky Hawk, and Jamie Thomson, scribe and minion of the Dark Lord, Dirk Lloyd.
I'd already been shorlisted alongside Jamie for another prize, The Roald Dahl Funny Prize, which he had won, and with an evil-dark-lord-cackle, he told me how much he was looking forward to repeating the triumph.
In the end, he didn't; but Gill did, taking the award for Sky Hawk.
The ceremony was hosted with great wit and energy by Alan Gibbons. He kept a couple of hundred kids very entertained, and gave a passionate speech denouncing library closures. Here's one of the less serious moments:
I came home with the best runner-up prize that I've ever been given: something which is not merely useful, but also rather beautiful. It's with me right now: http://www.joshlacey.com
Everyone wants students to be be intrinsically motivated to write daily. While we can hope our enthusiasm is contagious, sometimes it’s not enough for reluctant writers. Working with reluctant writers means providing the… Read More →
This weekend has been overwhelming. I've been blown away by the well-wishes on Facebook and Twitter, the emails and blog posts. It's moments like these that all the years of late-night writing, tears over rejections and fighting self-doubt become worth it.
I'm so excited to celebrate my book deal with you that I'm giving away three prize packs. I know some of you are readers, some are writers and some are travelers, so I've created a pack for each of you.
Writer's Pack- Critique of your first 10 pages by me
- $25 Amazon or Barnes & Noble gift card- your choice!
- $10 Starbuck's gift card
- Journal and writing pens
- Query critique from my writing partner, Kate Fall, who has just opened her own editing business
Reader's Pack- Copies of my writing partner's books: autographed copy of ACROSS THE UNIVERSE by Beth Revis, I'M BORED illustrated by Debbie Ridpath Ohi, and a preordered copy of PROPHECY by Ellen Oh
- A Samjokgo amulet (or some spell it as Samjogo)- this represents strength and was considered the most powerful symbol in Korea during the Koguryo Kingdom. This amulet has a big role in my book!
Traveler's Pack- Traveler's journal and writing pens
- "Woman On the Go" traveler kit
- Kindle or Nook (your choice!) versions of these great YA books: TEN by Gretchen McNeil and DEFIANCE by C.J Redwine.
Fill out the Rafflecopter form below to win! a Rafflecopter giveaway
By: Rebecca Ryals Russell,
on 8/23/2012
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YA & MG Fantasy Author Rebecca Ryals Russell
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Night Owl Reviews is running another awesome Scavenger hunt. Full Moon Halloween Scavenger Hunt runs from Sept 1st through Oct 31th. Click on the banner then visit the blogs, find the information and plug it in to win. Tons of incredible prizes, free books, jewelry, and more. Continue reading →
By: Rebecca Ryals Russell,
on 5/30/2012
Blog:
YA & MG Fantasy Author Rebecca Ryals Russell
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Howdy readers! You made it through the month of May's Summer Teen Reading Party. On this posting you will have the opportunity to read Chapter 3 from Odessa, Book One Seraphym Wars Series. Afterward, comment about the excerpt and be entered in my Grand Giveaway. Continue reading →
By: Rebecca Ryals Russell,
on 4/30/2012
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YA & MG Fantasy Author Rebecca Ryals Russell
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Howdy readers! You made it through the month of May's Summer Teen Reading Party. On this posting you will have the opportunity to read Chapter 3 from Odessa, Book One Seraphym Wars Series. Afterward, comment about the excerpt and be entered in my Grand Giveaway.
Here are the RULES:
Comment on EACH of my postings (listed above with links) showing you read the posting. Commenters will acquire ONE point per comment. At the end, fill out the form on my blog, Under the Hat.
The prize? This lovely Phoenix medallion and a bag of swag including Odessa notepad, Seraphym Wars pen, Mind the Signs bookmark, coverart Postcards for each book in both series AND an eBook copy of my newest release: Harpies, Book Two Seraphym Wars Series. Continue reading →
Yes, I’m from Jersey where “lotsa” is a word.
But enough formalities, let’s get on with the prizes!
The new blog subscriber winner of the three-picture-book prize pack is: ORTHODOXMOM3!
Congratulations! I’ll be sending you an email shortly!
And now onto the KEEP CALM AND QUERY ON goodies from Ryan Gosling (aka Luke Reynolds)!
First, the winner of the signed book is: MARY ZISK!
Next, the winner of the query critique from Luke is: REBECCA COLBY!
Finally, the lucky person who gets a phone call pep publishing talk with Luke is: SUSAN G. CLARK!
Okay, ladies, try to KEEP CALM!
I’ll send you an email later today!
Congratulations to all! And remember…there’s more giveaways coming in April!
It’s Picture Book Palooza month!
(And obviously exclamation mark month, too.)
I wanted my students to be intrinsically motivated to write daily when I was a classroom teacher. When I began teaching I naively thought my enthusiasm for writing would be contagious. While my enthusiasm was enough for some students, it didn’t cut it for some of my reluctant writers. Working with reluctant writers means getting [...]
This is a quick competition post. Hopefully some of your students will feel the creative flare, especially with the added incentive of the prizes!
Alan Marshall Short Story Award
Entries open: Friday 17 February 2012
Entries close: Monday 7 May 2012
Award Ceremony: Saturday 18 August 2012
For enquiries, contact Jane Woollard on
9433 3126 or email [email protected] .
There is more information on Nillumbik Shire Council’s website
Ekphrasis Poetry Project
A new look at an ancient art form.
Poets will be invited to respond to twelve artworks from the Nillumbik Art Collection. Twelve poems will be selected for a series of postcards featuring text and images.
Entries open: Thursday 8 March 2012
Entries close: Monday 30 April 2012
Awards Ceremony: Thursday 21 June 2012.
For enquiries, contact Jane Woollard on
9433 3126 or email [email protected] .
I wanted my students to be intrinsically motivated to write daily when I was a classroom teacher. When I began teaching I naively thought my enthusiasm for writing would be contagious. While my enthusiasm was enough for some students, it didn’t cut it for some of my reluctant writers. Working with reluctant writers means getting [...]
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By:
Sara Burrier,
on 1/25/2012
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I would like to start a new tradition around here, and I want it to be something special given at least once a year.
I want to give away a painting, and I think Valentine's Day is the perfect time.
Title: "Love Floats"
Image Size: approx. 6.5 x 11 inches
Paper Size: 9x12
I created this piece just for the giveaway, and it's particularly special because of how I went about the process. In my previous post I mentioned I was going to take a watercolor class and I found many awesome videos/tutorials on youtube.
I applied much of what I learned, and something clicked last night as I completed
"Love Floats". I am VERY excited to see the new discovery in my later work.
(discovery will be revealed in next blog post)
Why the original giveaway? I truly believe my artwork goes to those it was intended for, and I know in these times it can be difficult to obtain something extra that isn't a necessity.
So, is this intended for you?
Here's how you can find out...
Mandatory Entry: Post below about one of the biggest blessings you've ever received. What truly touched you and made you stand up straight knowing you were/are loved?
Additional ways to enter (get your name in multiple times):
2 entries - Visit
my shop and share your favorite art print below
3 entries - Write a blog post about this giveaway and share the post here
Please be sure to post all comments here so that nothing gets lost. If it's not below it won't count. I will use Random.org to determine a winner.
There's More?!
Yuppers! There will be a second and third place winner too!
Second Place Prize: *Two (2) 8x10 prints of your choice from
my shop and one (1) Print of
"Love Floats"
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Gorgeous mug - and am very pleased for Gill. Must modestly say that I gave Skyhawk a glowing review very early on, on this very blog - so there you go, the ripples of pleasure from awards spread far and wide!
Great mug - better than a dust-collecting trophy any day!
Curse that Gill Lewis for crushing us both! Still, one day will we get our revenge! Mwah,hah,hah!
Though it is as you say, nice to meet other authors at this events. We don't get out much and even more rarely do we get to meet other authors.
Well, Jamie, the way you threaten people...
They'll all be hiding next time.
I want a mug like that! But I suppose I can go and buy one, at a pinch.
A mug never collects dust and it's a very lovely one! I don't win prizes, or get out much, either, but it's always great fun meeting other authors. Best of luck at the next award.
I was another loser on this occasion - but I did love my mug. Gill and I were both up for an earlier award - the Stockton Book Award - and that time I won. So I really didn't mind when she won this one. She's such a lovely woman.
I met Gill last night at Bishop's Storford college and she never breathed a word about this win! Modest of her! And no worries about not wining, Josh. It's good to be on the shortlist and after that I reckon it's a bit of a lottery!