Since there's a slowdown in queries, and since I have a book out, I think it's time for a Slushpile contest. And since I'm the moderator and have unrestricted access to posts, no one can stop me.
[Insert evil laugh here]
Contest rules: Answer the question below in a short story (750-1,000 words). You must use the characters / actions / narrative to show me the answer…going right out and telling me the answer is cheating! Submit your entries as comments to this post or email me at rjdaley 101071 (at) gmail (dot) com. You have until 8am EST on Monday, July 18 to enter.
Question: Why does Jimmy hate pizza?
Suggestions: Food allergy; his father choked on pepperoni and died; Jimmy was dropped on his head by delivery guy when he was a baby, etc. Get creative, and show me the answer!
Prize: I will send a signed copy of my book, THE MAN IN THE CINDER CLOUDS to my two favorite entries. Winners will be announced on Thursday, July 21 whenever I get around to it. Prizes will be awarded shortly thereafter.
Showing posts with label Contest. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Contest. Show all posts
Jul 14, 2011
Nov 8, 2010
Contest- Win a Query Critique
Attention Slushpile followers:
Would you like your query critiqued by a professional editor?
Lynnette Labelle is offering to do just that. Check out this post on her blog for details. The deadline for submissions is Friday, November 12.
For more information on Lynette's editing services, check out her website.
Would you like your query critiqued by a professional editor?
Lynnette Labelle is offering to do just that. Check out this post on her blog for details. The deadline for submissions is Friday, November 12.
For more information on Lynette's editing services, check out her website.
Aug 17, 2010
CINDERS- a Blog Book Tour
Attention Slushpile Followers!
Michelle Davidson Argyle, long time friend and supporter of the Slushpile (and designer of the Slushpile logo, and part of the triumvirate behind The Literary Lab) is promoting her novella CINDERS, a continuation of the tale of Cinderella:
Cinderella's happily-ever-after isn't turning out the way she expected. With her fairy godmother imprisoned in the castle and a mysterious stranger haunting her dreams, Cinderella is on her own to discover true love untainted by magic.
The blog tour is a clever way to promote her work, and Michelle is a great writer and a wonderful person, I highly recommend you learn more about the tour and CINDERS. Plus, there are prizes, and winning stuff is way cool, you know?
Click here for her official site, and good luck Michelle!
Michelle Davidson Argyle, long time friend and supporter of the Slushpile (and designer of the Slushpile logo, and part of the triumvirate behind The Literary Lab) is promoting her novella CINDERS, a continuation of the tale of Cinderella:
Cinderella's happily-ever-after isn't turning out the way she expected. With her fairy godmother imprisoned in the castle and a mysterious stranger haunting her dreams, Cinderella is on her own to discover true love untainted by magic.
The blog tour is a clever way to promote her work, and Michelle is a great writer and a wonderful person, I highly recommend you learn more about the tour and CINDERS. Plus, there are prizes, and winning stuff is way cool, you know?
Click here for her official site, and good luck Michelle!
Aug 2, 2010
Contest Alert!
Attention Slushpile followers:
Julie Cross, a long-time Slushpile follower (who I think holds the record for the most submissions ;-) is co-sponsoring a contest, and among the prizes are query and page critiques from an actual agent, an editor, and others in the publishing industry.
NOTE: "others in the publishing industry" is my way of saying "interns and assistants" but is NOT meant to belittle their professional opinions! They know what their agents like.
Julie's novel TEMPEST (once titled ENEMIES OF TIME) has been sold, resulting in a 3-book deal! She is represented by agent Suzie Townsend of FinePrint Lit.
Check Julie's blog for details, and good luck.
Julie Cross, a long-time Slushpile follower (who I think holds the record for the most submissions ;-) is co-sponsoring a contest, and among the prizes are query and page critiques from an actual agent, an editor, and others in the publishing industry.
NOTE: "others in the publishing industry" is my way of saying "interns and assistants" but is NOT meant to belittle their professional opinions! They know what their agents like.
Julie's novel TEMPEST (once titled ENEMIES OF TIME) has been sold, resulting in a 3-book deal! She is represented by agent Suzie Townsend of FinePrint Lit.
Check Julie's blog for details, and good luck.
Jun 1, 2010
Contest Alert!
And not the kind of no-prize experiments I put on here at the Slushpile. Agent extraordinaire Nathan Bransford is hosting a contest with very cool prizes. If you can write the most compelling chase and/or action and/or suspense sequence (in 500 words or less), you can win!
Check out this post for details...
Check out this post for details...
Nov 18, 2009
Genre Wars Contest Reminder
Hello all,
Just a reminder that the Genre Wars short story contest over at The Literary Lab is still open...but the deadline for submissions is fast approaching. If you have time to crank out or dust off a 1,000 to 2,000 word short story, I know the Lab is accepting submissions through December 1st.
I know most of you are really busy this month, but you deserve to take a break from NaNoWrMo (NOTE: Am I the only one who subconsciously reads that as NaNo NaNo in a Mork from Ork voice?).
Just a reminder that the Genre Wars short story contest over at The Literary Lab is still open...but the deadline for submissions is fast approaching. If you have time to crank out or dust off a 1,000 to 2,000 word short story, I know the Lab is accepting submissions through December 1st.
I know most of you are really busy this month, but you deserve to take a break from NaNoWrMo (NOTE: Am I the only one who subconsciously reads that as NaNo NaNo in a Mork from Ork voice?).
Oct 23, 2009
Writing Contest Winner- Glass Dragons's Alien Invasion
All three finalists received votes, but the overwhelming majority went to Glass Dragon's Alien Invasion story!
Thanks to all for participating! Here's the winning entry one more time in case any of you missed it; the task was to write a scene about watching paint dry, proving that it is infinitely more interesting from a written perspective than a visual one...
It started just like an alien invasion movie. One minute we were eating our Cheerios in ignorant bliss, and the next thing we knew there were so many spaceships in orbit they blocked the sun. It was like Independence Day, only with no Jeff Goldblum and Will Smith to save us. They probably died when Hollywood was hit, anyway. So, yeah. We were screwed.
Everyone had their own ways of coping with impending doom. A few of the neighbors packed up and ran for the hills. Mom packed up Grandma and headed for church. She tried to get me to come, but I figured if I had to die, I wanted to die at home. So I gave Mom and Grandma a hug and a kiss each and told them I’d keep an eye on the house while they tried to get God to run interference.
After they left my eyes fell on the cans of paint sitting by the garage door. Mom had been trying to get me to paint that door for months now. She’d finally given up and was going to do it herself today. Before Armageddon interrupted breakfast, anyway. Just that morning she had said to me, “If I wait for you to do it I’ll be dead before it’s done!”
Dead before it’s done.
I shivered. Then I picked up the paint roller. Why not? It’d be great to prove Mom wrong just once before the end.
Mom had already done all the prep work, so I got right to painting. After a while I got a creepy feeling like I was being watched. When I turned around to put more paint in the tray I saw something that stopped me cold.
There were three of them in the street, just standing there. Watching me.
No. Not me. The door. Their eye stalks were pointed at the garage door, straight at the panels I had already painted. They were watching the paint dry, and they were fascinated!
More and more showed up to watch as I painted. The street filled up with waving tentacles. They clustered on the neighbors’ lawns and rooftops. A few ships hovered overhead. I had never been so scared in my life, but I kept working. When I started a second coat I swear they all went, “Ooooh!”
When I was finished I sat on the driveway and watched the paint dry with them. As the last tacky spot hardened in the sun a collective sigh went through my alien audience. Then they took the paint and left. And I mean they took ALL the paint they could find and left the planet.
When they came back they helped rebuild the cities they’d trashed. When they found out we could make more paint, they opened trade negotiations. Humans are now major players in the intergalactic marketplace.
I saved the Earth by painting a door. Mom was so proud.
Oh, and Jeff Goldblum’s okay. Don’t know about Will Smith, though.
Thanks to all for participating! Here's the winning entry one more time in case any of you missed it; the task was to write a scene about watching paint dry, proving that it is infinitely more interesting from a written perspective than a visual one...
It started just like an alien invasion movie. One minute we were eating our Cheerios in ignorant bliss, and the next thing we knew there were so many spaceships in orbit they blocked the sun. It was like Independence Day, only with no Jeff Goldblum and Will Smith to save us. They probably died when Hollywood was hit, anyway. So, yeah. We were screwed.
Everyone had their own ways of coping with impending doom. A few of the neighbors packed up and ran for the hills. Mom packed up Grandma and headed for church. She tried to get me to come, but I figured if I had to die, I wanted to die at home. So I gave Mom and Grandma a hug and a kiss each and told them I’d keep an eye on the house while they tried to get God to run interference.
After they left my eyes fell on the cans of paint sitting by the garage door. Mom had been trying to get me to paint that door for months now. She’d finally given up and was going to do it herself today. Before Armageddon interrupted breakfast, anyway. Just that morning she had said to me, “If I wait for you to do it I’ll be dead before it’s done!”
Dead before it’s done.
I shivered. Then I picked up the paint roller. Why not? It’d be great to prove Mom wrong just once before the end.
Mom had already done all the prep work, so I got right to painting. After a while I got a creepy feeling like I was being watched. When I turned around to put more paint in the tray I saw something that stopped me cold.
There were three of them in the street, just standing there. Watching me.
No. Not me. The door. Their eye stalks were pointed at the garage door, straight at the panels I had already painted. They were watching the paint dry, and they were fascinated!
More and more showed up to watch as I painted. The street filled up with waving tentacles. They clustered on the neighbors’ lawns and rooftops. A few ships hovered overhead. I had never been so scared in my life, but I kept working. When I started a second coat I swear they all went, “Ooooh!”
When I was finished I sat on the driveway and watched the paint dry with them. As the last tacky spot hardened in the sun a collective sigh went through my alien audience. Then they took the paint and left. And I mean they took ALL the paint they could find and left the planet.
When they came back they helped rebuild the cities they’d trashed. When they found out we could make more paint, they opened trade negotiations. Humans are now major players in the intergalactic marketplace.
I saved the Earth by painting a door. Mom was so proud.
Oh, and Jeff Goldblum’s okay. Don’t know about Will Smith, though.
Oct 21, 2009
Writing Contest- Finalists
First off, thanks to everyone who submitted entries. I read them all several times and I enjoyed playing judge. My instincts were correct: watching paint dry can be interesting! There were 16 pieces to choose from, and my task was to narrow it down to three. It was difficult. I can't imagine what Nathan Bransford went through trying to whittle 2,500 entries down to a handful in his first paragraph contest...
Now to the brass tacks (NOTE: what the hell does that saying even mean, anyway? Feel free to discuss in the comments. After you vote.)
Among the entries there were three that stood out to me among all others:
Jan Melara did a great job at evoking fear and horror. It played on my senses of sight and sound, and the ending was terrible (in a good way). Click here to read the entry.
Glass Dragon cracked me up with the alien invasion story. It had a great voice and a fun wit to it. Among all the submissions, it had a very unique premise. Click here to read the entry.
Brenda also cracked me up, and did an awesome job with the build-up to the punchline. It was well-written, and I liked the way she portrayed the character of the novelist, so indignant to the suffering of her foe. Click here to read the entry.
Vote for your favorite in the comments on this post. You have until 8am EDT Friday morning to vote. Read the entries many times, but please only vote once.
If you would like to comment on any of the submissions, feel free to offer kudos and/or polite criticism to other submissions that you liked..but only the finalists listed here will be open for voting. I know there are many other entries that are worthy of accolades.
Now to the brass tacks (NOTE: what the hell does that saying even mean, anyway? Feel free to discuss in the comments. After you vote.)
Among the entries there were three that stood out to me among all others:
Jan Melara did a great job at evoking fear and horror. It played on my senses of sight and sound, and the ending was terrible (in a good way). Click here to read the entry.
Glass Dragon cracked me up with the alien invasion story. It had a great voice and a fun wit to it. Among all the submissions, it had a very unique premise. Click here to read the entry.
Brenda also cracked me up, and did an awesome job with the build-up to the punchline. It was well-written, and I liked the way she portrayed the character of the novelist, so indignant to the suffering of her foe. Click here to read the entry.
Vote for your favorite in the comments on this post. You have until 8am EDT Friday morning to vote. Read the entries many times, but please only vote once.
If you would like to comment on any of the submissions, feel free to offer kudos and/or polite criticism to other submissions that you liked..but only the finalists listed here will be open for voting. I know there are many other entries that are worthy of accolades.
Oct 16, 2009
Writing Contest- Watching Paint Dry
‘Tis the season for writing contests. Who am I to ignore the bandwagon? Apparently not one of the capable…So without further ado, I present to you The First Official Public Query Slushpile Writing Contest (TFOPQSWC, for your anagram junkies). Here’s the scoop:
Most of us are familiar with the old clichés about watching paint dry. Many would have you believe it’s the most boring thing in the world. Sure, from a visual perspective. But how about a written scene?
Who among you thinks you can write an interesting scene about watching paint dry? Who can go above interesting and make drying paint exciting? Mysterious? Funny? Scary?
Post your entries in the comments section of this post. Entries must be between 300 and 500 words. I will pick the top three finalists – based solely on my own convoluted sense of quality, humor, excitement, or whatever other qualifying criteria I make up at the time. I will post those finalists and you will vote for the winner. And the prize, other than bragging rights? On your deathbed, you shall receive total consciousness…
Deadline for submissions: 5pm EDT on Tuesday, October 20. Finalists will be posted on Wednesday, October 21 and voting will be open through 8am Friday, October 23.
Most of us are familiar with the old clichés about watching paint dry. Many would have you believe it’s the most boring thing in the world. Sure, from a visual perspective. But how about a written scene?
Who among you thinks you can write an interesting scene about watching paint dry? Who can go above interesting and make drying paint exciting? Mysterious? Funny? Scary?
Post your entries in the comments section of this post. Entries must be between 300 and 500 words. I will pick the top three finalists – based solely on my own convoluted sense of quality, humor, excitement, or whatever other qualifying criteria I make up at the time. I will post those finalists and you will vote for the winner. And the prize, other than bragging rights? On your deathbed, you shall receive total consciousness…
Deadline for submissions: 5pm EDT on Tuesday, October 20. Finalists will be posted on Wednesday, October 21 and voting will be open through 8am Friday, October 23.
Jun 1, 2009
100 Followers! And a contest!
This weekend The Public Query Slushpile picked up its 100th follower!
[NOTE: insert cyber confetti and a ticker tape parade across the World Wide Web here. Oh, and multi-colored balloons. They are quite festive.]
Thanks to everyone who stops by, whether you are submitting queries, commenting on queries posted, or even if you just lurk and read. And if all you do is lurk and read blogs all day, I hope you unplug and go outdoors occasionally. Really. It's nice out there.
And now a contest...The Best Query Competition
There are over 70 unique queries in the Slushpile. Over 125 if you count revisions. Have you read them all?
Look deep into the blog. You are getting sleepy. Wait, sorry. Wrong post. Where was I? Oh, yeah...
Look deep into the blog. Use the labels to the right, the search function at the top-left, or scan the titles in the archive. Find a few queries you never read. Re-read a few that you remember.
Leave a comment to this post letting us know which query you think is the best. [NOTE: I don't know why I said us just now, since there's only one of me here. Perhaps I need to take myself up on that "go outside" thing I mentioned earlier.]
And the prize? Sorry, I got nothing for you except this:
Thanks again for your support. And remember, you have to post to receive total consciousness on your deathbed...
[NOTE: insert cyber confetti and a ticker tape parade across the World Wide Web here. Oh, and multi-colored balloons. They are quite festive.]
Thanks to everyone who stops by, whether you are submitting queries, commenting on queries posted, or even if you just lurk and read. And if all you do is lurk and read blogs all day, I hope you unplug and go outdoors occasionally. Really. It's nice out there.
And now a contest...The Best Query Competition
There are over 70 unique queries in the Slushpile. Over 125 if you count revisions. Have you read them all?
Look deep into the blog. You are getting sleepy. Wait, sorry. Wrong post. Where was I? Oh, yeah...
Look deep into the blog. Use the labels to the right, the search function at the top-left, or scan the titles in the archive. Find a few queries you never read. Re-read a few that you remember.
Leave a comment to this post letting us know which query you think is the best. [NOTE: I don't know why I said us just now, since there's only one of me here. Perhaps I need to take myself up on that "go outside" thing I mentioned earlier.]
And the prize? Sorry, I got nothing for you except this:
Thanks again for your support. And remember, you have to post to receive total consciousness on your deathbed...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)