Category: Contest

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Contest Words

Better Late Than Never: Words Matter Week Challenge Day 1

Yes or no: simple words that can change your life.The question: Is there a word that has changed, or could change your life? What is it, and what difference would it make?

A single word? What kind of question is that? Our lives are changed daily by words, and to choose one over the other seems nearly impossible. Therefore I’ll just share two simple, but potentially life-changing words.

“Yes.” Whether it’s a response to “Will you marry me?,” “Did you turn off the bath water?,”  “Would you like to accept this position?,” “Are we expecting?,”  “Will you drive the get-away car?,” or “Do you love me?,” this simple word can change life in an instant.

“No.” Generally meaning the opposite of “yes,” “no” packs an even more powerful punch to any of the questions posed above. If followed by the qualifier “but,” its power may be diluted.

There are many other potentially powerful words– love, freedom, truth, justice, and more, but taken alone, few hold the dynamite of a simple yes or no.

Categories
Books Contest Multiple Streams Writing

Serendipity and the NAIWE Summer Challenge

I had a few rough ideas of what I’d like to accomplish for the NAIWE 2010 Get it Done Summer Challenge. If you haven’t checked it out, the three parts of the Challenge are:

  1. Read three books that will stretch your mind and inspire your creative spirit.
  2. Finish one project that’s been nagging at you for longer than you care to admit.
  3. Brainstorm a new project that will bring you an additional stream of income, then take the first step to make it happen.

NAIWE 2010 Get it Done Summer Challenge

I read Sheri McConnell’s Smart Women Know Their Why (see review in the preceding post) for the first of my three books, and have a teetering stack from which I can choose the remaining two official Challenge books. This is the easiest part, because I know that before summer is over, I’ll have read quite a few more than three books. I schedule morning and evening reading times so that I can bracket each day in knowledge, inspiration, and sometimes, just plain fun.

The second element of the Challenge was to finish a nagging project. I finished a huge one just a few weeks ago, so considered counting it and coasting on this option. However, another nagging project has been to learn more about financial management, retirement planning, and all that goes into being a good steward of resources. So that got added to the list for Part 2 of the Challenge.

The final challenge piece is where serendipity kicked in. I brainstormed a great list of projects that could bring in an additional stream of income (some of them would also qualify as nagging projects), and was trying to decide which to pursue when a brand-new project dropped into my lap. Serendipitously, it happens to fulfill not only the final element of the Challenge, but the second as well.

For Part 3 of the NAIWE challenge, I’ll be producing a book on personal finance and estate planning. I just love serendipity! The author has provided a large collection of written work that needs to be transformed into a book and prepared for publication (compilation, editing, layout, cover, etc.). I’ve begun to work with it, and I can already tell I’m going to learn a lot about finance. It’s also going to be a very large project with a very short deadline, so I’m scheduling the rest of the summer pretty tightly. I’m grateful to have such an interesting project come my way, and doubly delighted at the serendipity of it all.

So…what are you doing for the NAIWE Summer Challenge?

Categories
Contest Writing

NaPiBoWriWee- Another Crazy Challenge

National Picture Book Writing Week, the brainchild of author Paula Yoo, is scheduled for May 1-7. I’m planning to participate, even though I’ll be at at Malice Domestic for the first couple of days. If you’re going to participate, leave a comment below, or stop back by during the week. I’d love to hear how it’s going.

Here are a few excerpts from the press release announcing the event:

In the spirit of National Novel Writing Month (“NaNoWriMo”) where people across the country try to write a complete novel in one month, the fine folks at www.paulayoo.com have decided to start the first ever National Picture Book Writing Week, affectionately nicknamed “NaPiBoWriWee.”

The goal? To write 7 picture books in 7 days.

To summarize, the basic rules:

1. Midnight May 1st to 11:59 p.m. May 7th: Write 7 separate and complete picture books.

2. You are NOT allowed to write the same picture book in 7 variations. Each book must be complete and separate.

3. No minimum word count. Instead, each book must have a clear beginning, middle and end.

4. You are allowed to brainstorm and research book topics before May 1st. Outlines are acceptable. First draft writing is NOT. Do NOT write your books before May 1st – only brainstorming, taking notes, and outlining are allowed.

5. You are NOT allowed to write a single word of your draft until midnight May 1st.

6. There is NO minimum word count required. The fine folks of NaPiBoWriWee require nothing but your word of honor. We will embrace the Honor Code. If you say you have written 7 complete picture book drafts in 7 days, we will believe you. Besides, why would you lie to us? You’re writing picture books for little children! Picture Book Authors are nice, honest people who would never lie!

7. Please register on http://paulayoo.com/ in order to write comments on Paula’s blog every day with your progress and questions. Go here for help: http://paulayoo.com/content/help-and-faqs

8. If you plan to blog about your NaPiBoWriWee journey, please include a link to:http://paulayoo.com/

9. Several winners will be chosen from random of all the people who comment from May 1-7 onhttp://paulayoo.com/ or who email me to request to be on the drawing list at paula at paulayoo dot com. Winners will receive an autographed copy of my books “SHINING STAR: THE ANNA MAY WONG STORY” (Lee & Low Books 2009)  and “SIXTEEN YEARS IN SIXTEEN SECONDS: THE SAMMY LEE STORY” (Lee & Low ’05), along with items from our NapiBoWriWee Store(http://www.cafepress.com/paulayoo) and a couple of surprise autographed book prizes from special guest authors!

10. For those of you attending the national Society of Children Book Writers & Illustrators(http://scbwi.org/) conference in August, let me know and I’ll arrange for an informal gathering during the conference so we can meet in person and celebrate our first NaPiBoWriWee!

Categories
Contest

A Short, Short Contest from Writers Write

Are you up to a 12-word challenge from Writers Write in South Africa? Here’s the scenario:

The Date is 5th November 3011.

You have just arrived on Planet Moana.

The first thing you are required to do is to send an Inter-Galactogram, to your commander.

Warp speed has been a problem ever since the Great Intergalactic Wars of 2991.

You are only allowed to send 12 words before the entire system freezes.

What do you say?

Send your 12 words to amanda   @  writerswrite.co.za and you could win a case of Leopards Leap Wine.

Rules:

Only one entry per subscriber (To subscribe, send your name, email address, contact numbers and city of residence with your entry)

If you write more than 12 words, your entry will be discarded.

The competition closes on 25 January 2010, and the judge’s decision is final.

~~~~~

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