Tag Archives: contest

Enter to win a $175 e-gift card to Barnes & Noble!

Posted on December 2, 2016 | Comments Off on Enter to win a $175 e-gift card to Barnes & Noble!

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Christmas is a time for giving. So her we come a-caroling!

Some of my favorite author-friends and I have banded together to giveaway a $175 e-gift card to Barnes & Noble.
Click on a Rafflecopter giveaway to enter.
Would you like to find out more about the authors behind this giveaway? Jingle on over to their websites.

Julie Reece
Jennifer Bardsley
Jennifer DiGiovani
Melanie McFarlane
Suzanne VanRooyen
Dorothy Dreyer
Shaila Patel
Melanie McFarlane
Suzanne VanRooyen
Liza Wiemer
Nicole Conway
Jennifer Anne Davis
Jennifer M. Eaton

bn

***Click on a Rafflecopter giveaway to enter!***

And don’t forget to check out all the great book written by your sponsoring authors!

Fine Print:
NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. A PURCHASE DOES NOT IMPROVE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.
1. Promotion Description: The ‘$175 Barnes & Noble Giftcard’ (“Sweepstakes”) begins on 11/28/2016 at 07:00 AM (Pacific Time (US & Canada)) and ends on 12/13/2016 at 08:00 AM (Pacific Time (US & Canada)) (the “Promotion Period”). By participating in the Sweepstakes, each entrant unconditionally accepts and agrees to comply with and abide by these Official Rules and the decisions of Jennifer Bardsley (“Sponsor”), which shall be final and binding in all respects. Sponsor is responsible for the collection, submission or processing of Entries and the overall administration of the giveaway. Entrants should look solely to Sponsor with any questions, comments or problems related to the Sweepstakes.
2. Eligibility: Open to legal residents of who are or older. Void where prohibited or restricted by law. Sponsor and their respective parents, subsidiaries, affiliates, distributors, retailers, sales representatives, advertising and promotion agencies and each of their respective officers, directors and employees (collectively, the “Promotion Entities”), and members of their immediate families and/or persons living in the same household as such persons, are ineligible to enter the Sweepstakes or win a prize.
3. Winner Selection: The winner of the Sweepstakes will be selected in a random drawing from among all eligible Entries received throughout the Promotion Period. The random drawing will be conducted by 48 hours by Sponsor or its designated representatives, whose decisions are final. Odds of winning will vary depending on the number of eligible Entries received. Winner will be notified by email at the email address provided in the Entry Information on or about 48 hours after the random drawing. Potential winner must accept a prize by email as directed by Sponsor within 48 hours of notification. Any winner notification not responded to or returned as undeliverable may result in prize forfeiture. The potential prize winner may be required to sign and return an affidavit of eligibility and release of liability, and a Publicity Release (collectively “the Prize Claim Documents”). No substitution or transfer of a prize is permitted except by Sponsor.
4. Prizes:
– 1 (#) winner(s) will receive [(1) $175 Barnes & Noble e Gift Card ] (approximate retail value or “ARV”: $175 USD)
Only one prize per person and per household will be awarded. Gift cards and gift certificates are subject to the terms and conditions of the issuer. Prizes cannot be transferred, redeemed for cash or substituted by winner. Sponsor reserves the right in its sole and absolute discretion to award a substitute prize of equal or greater value if a prize described in these Official Rules is unavailable or cannot be awarded, in whole or in part, for any reason. The ARV of the prize represents Sponsor’s good faith determination. That determination is final and binding and cannot be appealed. If the actual value of the prize turns out to be less than the stated ARV, the difference will not be awarded in cash. Sponsor makes no representation or warranty concerning the appearance, safety or performance of any prize awarded. Restrictions, conditions, and limitations may apply. Sponsor will not replace any lost or stolen prize items.

 

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Agent Contest for YA with Critique for winners. Hurry! I almost missed this one.

Posted on April 8, 2014 | 6 comments

Oh! I love me a contest or two. Especially when the prize is something like a critique, and bonus points for no entry fee.

And easy entry, too. Just the first 200 words of your manuscript.

This one is put out by Writer’s Digest, which is super cool. I am shamelessly re-blogging this from the Writer’s Digest Web Site:

PRIZES!!!

Top 3 winners all get:

1) A critique of the first 10 double-spaced pages of your work, by your agent judge.

2) A free one-year subscription to WritersMarket.com ($50 value)!

MEET YOUR (AWESOME) AGENT JUDGE!

Screen Shot 2014-03-24 at 10.31.23 AM

A literary agent for close to fifteen years, Andrea Somberg represents a wide range of fiction and nonfiction, including projects aimed at a young adult and middle grade audience. Previously an agent at the Donald Maass Agency and Vigliano Associates, she joined Harvey Klinger Inc. in the spring of 2005. Andrea has also been a MediaBistro instructor, teaching courses on writing nonfiction and memoir book proposals. Learn more about Andrea on Twitter, Facebook, or Publishers Marketplace.

Click below for the scoop. But Hurry!  You need to enter by April 9th!

http://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/guide-to-literary-agents/15th-free-dear-lucky-agent-contest-young-adult-fiction

 

_JenniFer____EatoN

 

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If you are thinking of entering a contest – READ THE FINE PRINT

Posted on June 30, 2013 | 26 comments

I was going to keep my big alligator mouth shut, but I can’t.  I just can’t.

A call for submissions was recently announced that is an incredible opportunity…  A contest to write a prequel to one of the classic children’s movies from the 1980’s. How cool would that be. Right?

A group of friends and I gathered our kids, and we watched the movie.  We brainstormed, and we were excited.

Afterwards, I breezed over to the web-site and looked up the history of the time period that they provided as a basis for the world-building… and ideas started to flow.

Then I checked the fine print

As I looked over the terms and conditions, a few things popped out at me as HUGE red flags.  I thought, “Hmm, this is a major publishing house, and a big American iconic company.  There’s no way that I can be reading this right.”

So, I did the smart thing, and contacted a lawyer.

I’m so glad I did.  What they told me, horrified my socks off.  Really, it did.  Those suckers flew right across the room.

In a nutshell, whether you win or lose… if you enter the contest they have the right to use your story, and your name to sell it at any time.  Even years later… once you’ve hit it big.  They have a story by you that they own… and there’s not a dern thing you can do about it.

Here’s the worst part — We writers enter these things all the time.  We figure that if we don’t win, we can change the names and the world and sell it as something else, right?

Nope.  You can’t. NEVER. They own your story for eternity.

I’m going to give you the direct quote sent to me. If you re-write the story and publish it with different names and change the world…

“Are you sitting down? – they can sue you for using your own story that they now (and forever) own, and they would 100% win in court.”

That’s insane. And I’m ashamed.  I’m ashamed because I LOVE the brand behind this contest and everything having to do with them.  I grew up with them and I was uber-excited to have a chance at being part of it.

Not anymore.

In respect of the brand that I love so much, I will not tell you who it is.  If you don’t know, then you are not in danger, but if this sounds familiar, and you are considering it, PLEASE take a look at the terms and conditions.

Do I still think this is an incredible opportunity?  Yes, I do.  But you need to weigh the risks against your chances.

If I spend six months creating a masterpiece, and it is not chosen, I deserve the right to revise and use my story elsewhere.  In my mind there is no such thing as a story “Dependant on” the original.  Anything can be revised.

If you are going for it, good luck.  I wish you the best.

Sadly, I will not be any competition.

JenniFer_EatonF

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The Amazon Breakthrough Novel Contest. Did you enter?

Posted on February 9, 2013 | 34 comments

The window for submitting to the Amazon Breakthrough novel contest has closed.  Did you enter?  Did you even know about it?

With a $50,000 first prize, it does cause quite a stir.

When I first found out about it months ago, I brushed it off because my current WIP, Fire in the Woods was complete, but hovering at a pitiful 42,000 words and didn’t make the minimum word count.  Then a few weeks ago people started talking about it again as the submission window opened, and guess what?  I was now ABOVE THE REQUIRED WORD COUNT.

So, did I enter?  You bet your left butt cheek I did!

Do I have high hopes?  Well, 1 in 10,000 is really not all that bad in odds, if you consider that 50% of the entries will probably be junk.  I’m a realist though…

Round one is based on your pitch.  Pitching is not my strong point.  I like my pitch, but I have no idea if it is good enough to be selected as a top choice.  When I looked at the pitches of past winners, I had to scratch my head.  If I saw some of those, I would have passed them over… so who knows what they are REALLY looking for (or were all the others really that bad?) Ha!

So, I have no idea how I will do… but what this did force me to do is speed up my editing process, and completely re-write my beginning.  My manuscript is a lot sharper now than it was a few weeks ago, so if anything, that’s a plus for me.

Do I have a chance of winning?  Well, I kind of look at it like this… I looked at past winners, and I felt the same way as I do about the Oscars.  Movies that win an Oscar are the ones that I would rather get a root canal than have to sit through.  To me, Oscar=boring.  That’s the way I feel about a lot of the past Breakthrough Novel winners as well.  I am sure they were well written, but not “my cup of tea”.

So, no…. Fire in the Woods is not the “Artsy” type that usually wins this type of thing.  But I entered.  At least I tried — and I did a lot of polishing to get it there.

Who knows?  This year might be the year of the manic chase/explosion novel!

Good luck to everyone who entered!

_JenniFer____EatoN

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#FreeFridays Giveaway! #Win a #free copy of “HUSH, LITTLE BABY” Everyone loves #freestuff and #freebooks!

Posted on January 11, 2013 | 16 comments

Yay!  It’s Free Friday!

First of all, congratulations to last week’s winner. Celestine Nudana chose my anthology “For the Love of Christmas” as her title.

Enjoy, Celestine!

Free_Fridays!

Now this week, we are happy to have….

PKO_Alien 1 0003414

Me!

Jennifer13Umm, no.  Actually we have Deborah M. Piccurelli here today.  She’s an author.

No!  You will interview me!

Jennifer13No no no!  Not this time.  You don’t have a book to give away.

Alien Huh Close

Huh?  Since when do you need to give away abook to get on here?

Jennifer13It’s new.  This is Freebee Friday.  I’ll interview someone, and then give away their book.

PKO_Alien 3 0003387

For nothing?

Yeah.  Pretty much.

Well, what fun is that?

It’s great fun, if you win.

Alien PKO_0003410

Hmmm.  Can I interview her?  I’ll be good.  I promise.

I don’t know.

Pleaaaeeeeeese

Jennifer13Ergh.  Okay, but BE NICE.

This is a very nice author with a nice, wholesome book.  Pretend to be a good girl. Okay?

.

Alien SmileYay! Okay, here is my very first interview!

Cheer me on, Earthlings!

.

Alien Zig ZagAlien Zig ZagAlien Zig Zag

PKO_Alien 3 0003387So, who are you and what do you want?

Like Jennifer said, my name is Deborah M. Piccurelli and I am an author who writes about controversial issues. My goal is to help stop heinous acts performed by evil people. I plan to give a portion of the proceeds from every book published from here on out, to a charity that works against them. It is one way for me to contribute to Kingdom work.

PKO_Alien 3 0003387Why do you think your book is good enough to talk about with someone as great as me?

Because it’s for a worthy cause, and I put my whole heart and soul into it.

PKO_Alien 3 0003387Oh!  I know about putting heart and soul into things… Like taking over the world!  Is this about taking over the world?

No. Sorry.

PKO_Alien 3 0003387No? Then why would anyone want to read it?

It has unique characters, a unique story, and it contains humor, romance, and suspense.

PKO_Alien 3 0003387Well, I guess those things can be fun, too.

So, entice me.  What’s it about?

Here’s the back cover blurb:

Investigative journalist, Amber Blake, is a little person bent on payback for the death of her average-sized twin sister. Enlisted by her former partner and estranged husband, Evan, she poses as a counselor in an abortion clinic to expose the doctor responsible for fetal harvesting. As a Christian, she struggles with concealing her beliefs to maintain her cover, while the doctor’s romantic overtures tumble her stomach. Amber agrees to date him for the sake of the story . . . but nothing prepares her for what’s behind a mysterious door in his office.

PKO_Alien 3 0003387Wow.  That sounds really really deep!  Are you sure she doesn’t blow him up at the end?  Because that would be a great ending.

No.  Sorry, no explosions.

PKO_Alien 3 0003387Are you sure?  Would you consider writing one in?

No.

.

PKO_Alien 3 0003387Come on!  I have to get at least one explosion story out of you.  Have you ever fantasized about exploding things?

Not really. 

Am I boring?

PKO_Alien 3 0003387Do you really want me to answer that?

.

Jennifer13Hey!  You said you would be nice!!!!!

Not everyone wants to explode things!  This sounds like a great, really tense story!  What an interesting and kinda Creepy premise.

Thank you, Jennifer.

.

Jennifer13Okay, Deborah, let’s give her a taste of your writing.  That should win her over. 

Oh!  I know! Describe your favorite dessert to her.

Right now, I’m thinking of Olive Garden’s Lemon Cake. The lemon custard filling is smooth and silky on my tongue, almost melting away as it passes through the mouth and down the throat. The taste is simultaneously slightly tart/slightly sweet. The delicate layer cake that sandwich’s the filling is light and airy. It, too, seems to melt on the tongue, and the discreet vanilla flavor comes together with the fine sugar powder that’s sprinkled over top of the cake to create a quick burst of sweetness before it’s swallowed, and then it’s gone . . . until you fork up the next morsel.

Alien Huh PKO_0003376Okay okay!  You win!  Is there an Olive Garden I haven’t exploded yet?

Yes!  Here it is!

Now, how does one use one of these map things…

Jennifer13Okay, Deborah, quick, while she’s distracted, what are you giving away this week?

.

I must say this has been a truly DIFFERENT experience.  I’m giving away a copy of my book, Hush, Little Baby or if the winner prefers, a .pdf version.

Jennifer13Awesomesauce!  Thanks for stopping by, and I’m really sorry for the Little Blue Lady.

Okay guys, comment below for a chance to win Hush, Little Baby by Deborah M. Piccurelli in your choice of paperback or PDF.  If you want to know more about Deborah, Check out her web site here.

Don’t forget to comment!  A random winner will be chosen on Monday.

Good_Luck!

JenniFer_EatonF

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Flash Finish Contest for a FREE COPY of “For the Love of Christmas”– Part of the Still Moments Halloween Blog Hop

Posted on October 22, 2012 | 20 comments

This post is just supposed to be a spooky story, but I decided to bend the rules a bit and have fun.  Yes, this is a giveaway.

One random participant will receive a free copy of Still Moments Publishing’s “For the Love of Christmas”, so you can cuddle up with my Holiday Tale “Connect the Dots” as soon as it is available.* Yay!  It’s so cool to be giving away something I wrote!  Wahooo!

Oh Yeah!  By entering here, you will automatically be entered into Still Moments’s main prize drawing, where you can win one of the prizes listed here:  Click me to see the pretty jewelry PLUS books too!!

Okay.  Rules.  Don’t worry, I’ll make it easy.

Click here to follow me on Goodreads (Extra brownie points if you add my book to your “to read” list

Follow this blog (Easy.  Just press the follow button on the right)

Click here to make friends on Facebook.

Okay.  Now the fun part.  I’m going to start a short Halloween story.  All you need to do is finish the story in as few as one line, or as many as 100 words.  (I won’t count your words 🙂 )

NOTE:  YOU MUST INCLUDE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS IN YOUR COMMENT TO BE ENTERED INTO THE GRAND PRIZE DRAWINGS

Winners will be chosen at random from everyone who’s followed the rules.  (Which means this isn’t rocket science.  We are out to have fun here, by golly!)

Oh Yeah!  By entering, you will automatically be added to Still Moments list of participants, where you can win one of the prizes listed here.

Okay… The spooky story all ready for you to finish… Here we go!

The hinges creak as I push the door open with trembling fingertips.  The light from my candle casts an eerie glow throughout the chamber.  I set the taper down, and search the room.  Where had that sound come from?

A dull thud from behind chills the very blood in my veins, cooling my heart and transfixing me. No one else should have access to this hall.

The glow of the candle flickers over the poker leaning against the fireplace, the only weapon close enough for me to …

A footstep sounds behind be, and cold fingers wrap around my arm.

***

There you go!  What happens?  It could be one sentence, or a few.  I can’t wait to see what you come up with.  Have fun!

The contest will close October 26th and I will announce a winner soon after.

Note:  Still Moments will draw their Grand Prizes from all participants across the entire blog hop.  Please feel free to visit the other participating blogs to increase your chances.  Grand Prize drawings will take place on October 26th. Email Addresses are required for the Grand Prize drawings.  Entries without email addresses will be discarded.

Want extra chance to win?  Hop along the Blog Hop trail below, and good Luck! (I want that stinking necklace… so cool!)

Participating SMP Authors:

October 22, 2012
Terri Rochenski – http://www.terrirochenski.blogspot.com/
Jennifer Eaton – http://www.jennifermeaton.com/
Ceri Hebert – http://cerihebert.wordpress.com/

October 23, 2012

Liv Rancourt – http://www.livrancourt.com/
Denise Moncrief – http://denisemoncrief.blogspot.com/
Dani-Lyn Alexander – http://www.danilynalexander.com/blog.html

October 24,
2012
Mackenzie Crowne – http://mackenziecrowne.com/
Maggie Devine – http://maggiedevine.blogspot.com/
Liberty Blake – http://libertysspells.blogspot.com/

October 25, 2012

Darlene Henderson – http://dandwh.wordpress.com/
Em Epe – http://www.emeperomances.blogspot.com/
Clara Waibel – http://www.pomadness.blogspot.com/

*Note:  “For the Love of Christmas” Will not ba available until December, BUT I’M GOOD FOR IT! — PROMISE!

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Did anyone save Jennifer? Who will take home a free copy of the Make Believe Anthology?

Posted on October 6, 2012 | 6 comments

Oh, Okay.  I will let you go.

Whew!  Thanks.  That gag was really starting to hurt!

I’m sad

Hey!  I’m the one who’s been tied to a chair for three days.  What’s your problem?

They like you.

Huh?

They like you.  Did you see?  All those people came to beg and plead… and now I can’t explode anything.

Awe, it’s okay Little Blue Lady.

No it’s not!  No one likes me!

Umm, well, maybe if you didn’t always try to blow everything up…

No one likes me.

Okay, well, whatever… so I guess I need to send someone a copy of the make Believe Anthology, huh?  So, who was it?  Who pleaded the best to set me free?

They all did.

All?  Umm, I don’t think that will make my publisher very happy.  You need to pick just one.

That’s my problem.  I liked a lot of them.  I liked them enough to let you go.

Awe!  Super thanks to everyone who helped set me free!

Okay, let’s take a look at this.  Who was the most creative?

Oh look!  Vanessa Chapman wrote a poem.  That’s creative.

Yeah, it reminded me of a song.  Shall I hum it?

Ummm… No.    Hmmm.  You talked to Wendy Reid for a while.

AAAA!  Wendy Reid scared me!

Ha!  Really?  You should read her book if you want to see scary. [Jennifer Shivers]

I think she likes you

Huh?

Nevermind

Ummm… okay, so… What’s this with Heylookawriterfellow?

Mike Allegra?  He’s an abomination!  He lured me to his website, and made me feel welcome… but it was all a distraction while he tried to set you free! And I was going to buy his book!  He’s a children’s author, you know… and he has this great post on…  Wait!  No!  Ban Mike Allegra for tricking me! Heylookawriterfellow is not my friend!

Well, I kind of liked Mike’s distraction… it stopped you from setting off firecrackers under my chair for a while.

And what’s with Widdershins?!

Oh!  Widdershins is a fellow alien.  I must make a note to friend Widdershins on Facebook.

Ha!  What else do we have here?

Richard Leonard tried to convince me that there was something wrong with Mars.  Pfft.  I checked.  Sandy and red as usual.  It’s fine.

And Jmmcdowell threatened to dump nuclear waste on Mars… Like it wouldn’t explode on the way… silly archaeologist.

Oh!  I have an idea!  To be totally fair, l let’s take our top picks of the most creative and let people vote, okay?

Oh!  Then can we vote on how I take over the world?

Umm, yeah, I guess, but for now let’s see who wins the contest, okay?

So, here we go!  The finalists are below.  Please vote for your favorite.  The highest number of votes gets a copy of the Make Believe Anthology and can do their very own review of my debut story “Last Winter Red”.  So let’s get voting for your favorite!

And then will you finally give me an interview?

Ugh… Here we go again.

.

Please vote for your favorite in the form below! You can see their full entry in the comments from October 3rd’s post

In review…

Vanessa Chapman – Poem “Ode to the Little Blue Lady”

Wendy Reid – Scared the pants off the Little Blue Lady (Maybe I should rephrase that)

Heylookawriterfellow (Mike Allegra) – Kept Blue Lady occupied on his own site to give Jennifer time to escape.

Widdershins – Fellow alien, keeps humans as pets

Richard Leonard – Planet Mars Is Dead.  There’s nothing to go back to.

JMMcdowell – Dump Earth’s garbage, politicians, has-been entertainers on Mars. Ticking time bomb.

(By the way, convincing all your followers to vote for you is completely and utterly not fair … but I have no possible way of proving you did it, so… umm… never mind… I shouldn’t have even said anything.)

Voting closes tonight (Saturday, October 6th around 10:00 PM Eastern Standard Time)

Good luck to the finalists, and thanks again everyone for convincing the Little Blue Lady to set me free!

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And the winners are? – The Sunshine Awards Flash Fiction Contest – Read and pic your favorite

Posted on April 8, 2012 | 9 comments

Wow, I really love these three entries.  These guys put a lot of thought into this.

I am so glad that I can give the award to all three of them, so here is your little flowers badge ladies!  Thanks for playing!

Just for fun, I am going to open this up for voting.  It doesn’t matter who wins, but which one do you guys think is the best?  Give your favorite a click!

Entry from the Lovely Ms Erin

The late August sunshine filtered through the leaves, playing patterns over her face. Sweat glistened on her forehead and pasted the grey tank-top to her back. Wiping her eyes with the back of her hand, she peered into the viewfinder of her Nikon. It was worth it to brave the southern summer heat for this. She adjusted the focus on the zoom lens until the object of her attention came into sharp focus. She smiled.

Note from me:  Wow, what a visual.  I totally see this!

The entry from the Lovely Ms Beth

He’d been following her since daybreak.   It was not for a full mile past the ribbon stall that she laughed aloud, tickled as a little boy chased his sister with a bug-eyed fish.

He hastened to snatch the vial from his threadbare cloak and collect the threads of shimmering yellow that danced before his eyes, invisible to all but him.   Once it was a third full he stopped it up with the cork and stored it in his pouch.

The Master would be pleased. At long last, he had succeeded in his final test.  He had bottled sunshine.

Note from  me:  Fantastic concept

Add the entry from the talented and gutsy Wendy Reid

Huddled behind a jetting outcrop, she pressed her knees to her chest so hard that her muscles ached. Shoulders hunched against the frigid cold of the moonlit desert, she put her hands up to her ears in the hopes to stop the cold wind from entering her head. The sand under her bottom was bitter cold and hard as ice, a far cry from it’s daylight properties.

Facing Eastward, she watched as the orange ball slowly appeared over the horizon. Nikki had never been happier to see the sun shine and feel the heat of its rays.

Note from me:  Oh, this sounds so much like the start or middle of something good.  This one had me wanting more.  I mean really wanting more.  Nicely done, Wendy.

If you like spicy adult recreational reading material, check out Wendy’s collection of short shorts called BEDTIME STORIES on Amazon.

For an intense read, for the not-so faint at heart, check out Wendy’s suspense novel:  A MOTHER’S LOVE on Amazon.

Okay, so here we go.  Which entry was your favorite?

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“Can you hit a perfect pitch?” Writer’s Contest

Posted on January 15, 2012 | 16 comments

Yay!  I love contests, especially when they mean MAJOR EXPOSURE.  Here’s a great one, sponsored by Brenda Drake.

Here’s the scoop (Copied from Brenda Drake’s website.)

Here’s how the contest is going down …

On January 15th post a two sentence pitch (no more than 35 words) along with the first 150 words (if it falls in the middle of a sentence, go to the end of that sentence) of your finished Young Adult or Middle Grade manuscript to your blogs. From January 15th-16th hop around each others’ blogs and critique or praise them. Revise your entries, if you want, and post them by 8:00am (EST) January 17th to the official entry post. DO NOT POST THEM TO THIS POST. If you want, you may skip the blogfest/critique portion of this contest and just enter the contest. I will have the official post up, along with details on how to format your entries, on January 15th so that you can start posting when you’re ready. To participate, sign up on the linky below. (Go to Brenda’s site to jump on the linky)

You want to know the prizes? The prize (or prizes) is a request to read more from agent, Ammi-Joan Paquette. I’m crossing my fingers for all of you. Have I told you how much I LOVE LOVE LOVE this agent? Okay, well, I can’t say it enough! I totally ❤ her!

What are you waiting for? Sign up now!

Here is my entry.  Please help me decide on Pitch #1 (My original pitch) or #2 (One I came up with tonight)

Please feel free to comment and/or make suggestions.

Title: HIDDEN IN PLAIN SIGHT
Genre: YA Science Fantasy
Word Count: 110,000

Pitch #1:

A common boy unknowingly imprinted with the dangerous powers of the Goddess, must find a way to change his fate and the fate of the galaxy, before a jealous prince manipulated by Darkness murders him.

Pitch#2

A young boy, cursed with a power he cannot control, must save the Goddess before she is smothered by Darkness.  It would be easy, if he could only remember who he really is.

First 150 words:

“I’m not going to sit here locked in a closet all day.” Magellan pulled away from his mother, leaving his whimpering brothers and sisters clinging to her skirts.

“Magellan, come back here.”

“No. I wanna hear Dad’s speech.” He pressed his cheek against a large crack in the door and closed one eye.  Sconces lit the long stone hallway that lead to the auditorium. “I wish I could see something.”

“Get back mine scum!” A guard threw something against the door, slamming the wood against his face.

“Ouch,” Magellan rubbed his cheek. “Jerk.”

Footsteps clomped away, and his mother exhaled. “Magellan, your father said…”

“I know what he said.” Magellan furled his eyebrows.  “Right before they locked us in here.”  He flicked a bug from the damp stone wall beside him. “I’m not a baby anymore. I want to help.”

He ran his fingers across the locking plate, and jumped as flames flashed across the metal, spinning and swirling around it. 

Thanks for looking!

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Blog Contest: Just how good is your character’s voice?

Posted on November 30, 2011 | 8 comments

Yay!  Another blog contest!

I haven’t done one of these in a while, and for the first time, I will not have to scramble to get my entry done.  (Especially since my Frozen Computer is working FINE)

This is a really great contest for everyone, because there are NO GENRES.  Yay!  And all you need is a first 250 pages.  Now, I think most of you have at least 250 pages written, so I firmly expect you all to jump all over this contest and give it a try.

Not that I want more competition, but these contests are GREAT.  It is a wonderful experience… not to mention you get to see what else is out there, and sometimes you get some feedback from new people, which I totally love.

So all of you be good little boys and girls and hop on over to http://brenleedrake.blogspot.com/  I see you guys bopping around here all the time, I’d love to read parts of your manuscripts.

Submit!!!! What do you have to lose????

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