#50 Precious Words Writing Challenge is Almost Here

Posted on February 15, 2017 by viviankirkfield

Are you ready for a whole lot of fun?

As many of you know, I’m a BIG fan of writing contests and challenges. I love them because

they encourage writers to write
they push us to submit our work
they engage us in the kid lit community and provide us with positive feedback and inspiration.

March 2^nd is the birthday of the incredible Theodore Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss. Last year I put together a little contest based on Random House founder Bennet Cerf’s 1960 challenge to Seuss to write a children’s book using only 50 words. And the classic Green Eggs and Ham was born. It’s true that the story has over 700 words…but only 50 unique words.

My challenge is a bit different…yout MAX WORD COUNT for the entire story is 50.

If you are currently writing picture books…or just reading them, you’ll notice that the average word length for many is getting shorter and shorter. So I thought, wouldn’t that be a great challenge…to write a story for kids with only 50 words? With a beginning, a middle, and an end. I wondered if I could do it. I opened the challenge to everyone. Much to my surprise and amazement, there were 128 entries! And now it’s time to DO IT AGAIN.

Please put on your thinking caps and get busy writing. You have a couple of weeks until you need to post your story. Here are the guidelines:

#50 PRECIOUS WORDS WRITING CONTEST

Write a story appropriate for kids ages 12 or under, using only 50 words…they can all be different words, or you can use some of them over and over…just as long as the total word count for the story is 50 or less.
It can be prose, rhyme, free verse, silly or serious…whatever works for you.
Title is not included in the word count.
No illustration notes please.
The contest officially opens on Thursday, March 2^nd, in a special post on my blog.
Between March 2^nd and March 6^th, post your story on your blog if you have one and put the link in the comments of my #50 Precious Words Challenge blog post OR post the entire story in the comments of my #50 Precious Words Challenge blog post. Last year, because the stories were so short, eventually, we had all of them in the comment thread. Please make sure you put your name in the post.
Deadline for posting the story or the link in the comments is Monday, March 6, at 11:59pm.
Winners will be announced Thursday, March 9.
Winners? Of course, there will be winners…and prizes, too! The book prizes are limited to USA addresses, please.
1. A critique from my beloved agent, Essie White (some of you may remember that the winner of last year’s contest chose Essie’s critique as her prize…and she subsequently signed with Storm Literary Agency!)

2. A seat in author Susanna Leonard Hill’s amazing Making Picture Book Magic online writing class (the first writing class I ever took and it set me on the path of writing wonderful picture book manuscripts).

3. A seat in author Kristen Fulton’s incredible Nonfiction Archaeology online writing class (that was the class that opened the door for me to discover the joy of writing nonfiction picture books).

4. This next prize can be chosen by two people…there are TWO 50% off coupons for Alayne Kay Christian’s ART OF THE ARC online writing class (this is the next class I would love to take).

5. OR…if you have already taken Alayne’s awesome class, you can choose 50% off an in-depth critique from her (when Alayne says it is an in-depth critique, she isn’t kidding. I had one of those…it is supercalifragilisticexpialidocious).

6. A seat in one of the KidLitCollege webinars (I’ve attended a few and they are FABULOUS!) OR $19.99 off a critique, donated by Jodell Sadler, JCLA Editorial Agent and Founder of KidLitCollege. Winner choses one and will get a special code.

7. A manuscript or query letter critique from author Rebecca Colby.

8. A picture book critique from author Lori Degman

9. A picture book critique from author Anna Forrester.

10. A fiction picture book critique from author Ariel Bernstein

11. A picture book critique from author Rosie Pova

12. A book on the craft of writing from author Rosie Pova

13. A copy of Bunny’s Book Club from author Annie Silvestro:

14. A book on the craft of writing from author Maria Marshall

15. A copy of Hello, My Name is Tiger from author/illustrator Jennifer P. Goldfinger.

16. A copy of LIZZIE AND LOU SEAL plus an adorable SEAL NECKLACE from author/illustrator Patricia Keeler.

17. A copy of CLAMS ALL YEAR by Maryann Cocca-Leffler.

18. A SUPER HAPPY book prize package from author Marcie Colleen with copies of Super Happy Party Bears Gnawing Around and Super Happy Party Bears Knock Knock on Wood.

19. A copy of Mutt’s Promise, a middle grade dog adventure written by Julie Salomen…donated by illustrator Jill Weber.

20. A picture book critique from me and a copy of my parent-teacher book, Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Esteem Through Reading, Crafting and Cooking.

I am exceedingly grateful to all of these kid lit pros who generously donated prizes…to find out more about these wonderful people, please click on each link above to visit their websites…follow them on social media..and buy their books!!!!

Please help spread the word and share this around your social media…the more the merrier… #50PreciousWords.

Are you excited?

I am!

And I just can’t wait to read all of your precious words.

P.S. Don’t forget…this is NOT the post you will be using for the contest entries…that post will go live on March 2nd.

Valentiny Contest Entry: A Valentine’s Day Cake for the Queen

Posted on February 11, 2017 by viviankirkfield

Today’s post is a treat…my story for Susanna Leonard Hill’s 2^nd Annual Valentiny Contest.

Before you read my entry, it might be fun for you to see a bit of the process I used in writing it.

I read Susanna’s guidelines. Whether you are entering a contest or submitting a story to an agent or editor, ALWAYS make sure you follow the guidelines.
When my kids were young, I loved baking cakes for their special occasions…and they loved eating them. I figured that a story about a cake might be something kids could relate to.
Since the guidelines called for confusion on the part of one of the characters, I thought that it would add a bit of humor and tension to have the pastry chef perplexed by the stacking of the layers of the cake.
Children need to identify with a character in the story so I added a young kitchen boy who saves the day.
I wanted to add some fun words, so I checked the thesaurus for alternative terms for confused…I found a LOT and chose two that made me smile: befuddled and discombobulated…I hope they make kids smile also. I also gave her a name that’s a play on the famous Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady. Kids may just laugh at the name, DOUGHLITTLE, but parents and teachers may enjoy the deeper joke.
I wanted the reader to know that Eliza, the pastry chef, was a bit arrogant and full of herself…but in picture books, we are not supposed to TELL…we are supposed to SHOW. I didn’t say: Eliza was arrogant. Instead, I said: Eliza STRUTTED into the kitchen. If you close your eyes, you can just imagine how she entered the room. And before she began, she PUFFED UP HER CHEST. Yes, she’s quite vain about her baking abilities. When the young boy wants to help, Eliza PURSED HER LIPS AND RAISED HER EYEBROWS. Quite hoity-toity (hmmm…that’s another fun word…maybe next story).
Keeping within the 214-word limit was a challenge…but I made it! I hope you enjoy my little story. If you want to read a whole bunch of wonderful Valentine’s Day tales or enter with your own story, please hop over to Susanna’s post.

A Valentine’s Day Cake for the Queen (210 words)

Pastry chef Eliza Doughlittle strutted into the castle kitchen. Valentine’s Day was tomorrow. The king had ordered a 7-layer cake for the queen. Eliza snapped her fingers. She puffed up her chest—she could do it!

She pulled out pans. She lined up ingredients. She studied the recipe.

“Can I help,” said a small voice from behind the flour sacks.

“How can you help me?” Eliza told the kitchen boy. “You scour pots and pans!”

Eliza measured. She mixed. She poured. She baked. She frosted. Perfection!

Eliza stacked the layers.

The cake leaned to the left.

Befuddled, Eliza tried again.

It leaned to the right.

Discombobulated, Eliza rearranged the layers.

The tower teetered

and

tottered.

“Please,” said the kitchen boy. “Let me help.”

Eliza pursed her lips. She raised her eyebrows. “What do you know about making cakes?”

“Not much,” said the boy. “But I stack stones by the riverbank.”

Eliza moved aside. The kitchen boy set the largest layer on the platter.

One

one,

stacked

each

layer.

Eliza peered at the cake from every side.

No teeter.

No totter.

Perfection!

“Thank you,” said Eliza. “Now I have a Valentine’s Day cake to present to the queen.”

“You’re welcome,” said the boy. “Now I have a job as assistant pastry chef.

I HOPE YOU ENJOYED THE STORY.

If you’d like to read the other entries, please hop over to Susanna’s blog. The contest ends on February 14.

And on February 15^th…HOLD ON TO YOUR HATS…we are going to unveil the 2^nd Annual #50PreciousWords contest. You’ll have plenty of time to prepare your entry…the contest opens on March 2^nd, the birthday of Theodore Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss. YOU DON’T WANT TO MISS THAT POST!

Picture Book Review and Activities for THE GREEN UMBRELLA

Posted on February 10, 2017 by viviankirkfield

Hello friends!

It’s Perfect Picture Book Friday…and I’ve got the PERFECT PICTURE BOOK for you! It’s another wonderful 2017 debut! We are part of the book blog tour…if you’d like to visit any of the other stops, please click here.

green-umbrella-cover

THE GREEN UMBRELLA

Written by Jackie Azua Kramer

Illustrated by Maral Sassouni

Publisher: NorthSouth Books (2017)

Ages: Preschool – Grade 3

Themes:

Friendship, sharing, imagination

Synopsis:

From Amazon:

When Elephant takes a peaceful walk with his green umbrella, he’s interrupted by Hedgehog, Cat, Bear, and Rabbit—all claiming that they’ve had exciting adventures with his umbrella. After all, it is an umbrella, and it certainly hasn’t been on any adventures more exciting than a walk in the rain. Or has it?

Here is what the reviewers are saying:

Illustrated in spreads that alternate the rainy-day narrative in vignettes with full-bleed spreads that allow the flight-of-fancy retellings to render a deeper mood, the animals’ stories are delightfully descriptive…The lesson about sharing and generosity is elegantly wrapped around lovely language. (Kirkus Reviews)

Debut author Kramer’s imagination-fueled encounter makes good use of fellow newcomer Sassouni’s gift for conjuring up fairy-tale landscapes…And Kramer’s storytelling passages sustain their lofty tone with no off notes—no easy task. (Publishers Weekly)

A sweet story of a blossoming friendship between five lovable and imaginative characters, united by one special green umbrella. I want to jump right in to the lush paintings and join in their fun!(Lauren Castillo, Author/ Illustrator of Caldecott Honor Book “Nana in the City”)

Whimsical and cartoonlike animals, depicted with a touch of vintage style, will delight readers as the story shows all the imaginative ways an umbrella can be used. The brightly colored acrylic illustrations complement the conversational text, which is suitable to read aloud to an audience. (Mindy Hiatt, Salt Lake County Library Services School Library Journal)

Here is a story for those who love an object, be it a blanket, a toy, or in this case a green umbrella, so much so that it’s very being is imbued with memories that make it unmistakably yours. And a story for those who have lost one such object and wish more than anything to have it back. Azúa Kramer reminds us all that many memories can be shared over a single prized possession. And as Sassouni’s art plays in the worlds of joy and longing over a green umbrella, we see a group of characters come together to discover what they can offer another in need. There’s no mistaking how easy it is to share this book. (Matthew Winner, All the Wonders Podcast)

Opening Lines:

“One rainy day an Elephant was taking a walk with his green umbrella. Along came a Hedgehog.

“Excuse me,” said the Hedgehog. “I believe you have my boat.”

Why I like this book:

I love books that encourage young children to use their imaginations!
Wonderful read-aloud!
The illustrations are absolutely beautiful and match the text perfectly!
Each page turn compels you to…turn the page.

RELATED ACTIVITIES

Paper Plate Elephant

elephant-paper-plate-med-300x225 Photo courtesy: http://www.activitybucket.com

Just like paper bags, paper plates are wonderful to use for crafting with kids.

You will need: 1 paper plate, construction paper, markers or crayons, scissors, glue.

Color the paper plate with crayons or markets (or paint if you are adverturous)…what color does your child want the elephant to be…encouraging children to use their imagination is one of the most important things we can do. Maybe the elephant needs to be purple with green stripes…let your child be creative.
Cut out ears, eyes, trunk, mouth and glue in place.
Use markers or crayons to add detail to the features.
For in depth instructions: http://www.activitybucket.com/creative-crafts/elephant-paper-plate

Other activities to do after reading the book:

Take a walk in the rain, with and without an umbrella.
Buy a small umbrella just for your child.
Let your child chose a possession…mug, pillow, toy…who else could use this and how? For example, a mug might be a bathtub for a little mouse. This type of activity helps children start thinking out of the box.

This post is part of a series for parents and teachers called Perfect Picture Book Fridays hosted by Susannah Leonard Hill. Click on her link and find lots of other picture book suggestions with summaries and activities.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. Tomorrow’s post will be my entry into Susanna Hill’s Valentiny Contest…I hope you are able to stop by and let me know what you think of it.