Start the Year off Write 2014 Writing Challenge

I'm proud to say I will be participating in Shannon Abercrombie's Start the Year Off Write 2014 writing challenge, which will run from January 5 through January 26, 2014. The idea is for those of us who have stories to revise, to spend 21 days in January working on, and revising, those stories and ideas. There will be a writing exercise to do each day. Hopefully, by the end of the challenge, some of our stories will be ready to find "new homes" in the publishing world.

Sounds like a great idea, doesn't it? Yes, it is! Even though you will be working by yourself in the comfort of your own home, you can share the experience with all the other writers who will be participating in the challenge.

How much does it cost? Nothing. Zip. Zilch. Zero. Nada. It's FREE!!!!

Who can join? Anyone can!!

Why should you join in? Well, in addition to the fact that you will be part of a community of writers who will be doing the same thing as you, and in addition to the hope that you will end up with some marketable manuscripts, ALL participants who follow the rules (and yes, there are some rules to follow) are eligible for PRIZES!!

What are the rules? Glad you asked. Here they are:

• You should Tweet, Facebook, blog or if you’re not tech-savvy, sing from the mountaintops that you are participating in the challenge. There is no registration required. You just have to follow!
• Display the "Start The Year Off Write" badge on your, which I have at the top of this blog.
• You MUST either join the Start the Year Off Write Facebook Group OR sign up to receive updates via email (in sidebar).
  
• You MUST comment on each exercise you complete in order to earn an entry towards the grand prizes. 
  
• If you complete EVERY exercise during the challenge, you will be eligible for the SUPER SECRET GRAND PRIZE.

Sound too good to be true? Trust me, it's true. I participated in Shannon's 100 Days of Summer Writing Challenge. Yep, that's right. She sponsored a writing challenge that lasted for 100 days. Participants were encouraged to follow daily writing prompts. Everyone who completed a prompt was eligible for weekly prizes. It was fun and it kept me writing during the summer.

Now I can hardly wait to Start the Year Off Write!

Are ya ready to join in??? I hope so....

Roger the Reindeer - Contest Entry

I'm posting this Christmas story, ROGER THE REINDEER, as my entry into Susanna Hill's latest Holiday Mishap contest (click the link to read more contest entries). The challenge was to write a story of 350 words or less that had something to do with a holiday mishap, mix-up, miscommunication, mistake or potential story. I think this fits the bill.

Here's my story:

ROGER THE REINDEER – word count 306

 

“Are you ready, Rudolph?” Santa asked.

“Ready, Santa,” Roger said.

Roger pranced proudly beside Santa. The fake, glowing nose Roger had rigged up must be working if Santa didn’t suspect anything

Roger was tired of Rudolph getting all the attention. First, everyone made fun of his nose. Then, everyone thought it was wonderful he could make his nose glow. Roger had been working his way up the ranks to be on Santa’s team, and then Santa chose that upstart Rudolph.

Roger had put Rudolph out of commission by lacing his oats with sleeping potion. Rudolph wouldn’t sleep all night, but by the time he woke up, it would be too late. Roger would be flying high through the skies, pulling Santa’s sleigh.

“I need you to line up with the rest of the reindeer.” Santa led Roger in front of Dasher and Dancer. As he was about to snap the lead in place, he said, “Rudolph, what’s wrong with your nose?”

“I don’t know, Santa. What’s it doing?”

“Your nose is blinking. Shouldn’t it just be glowing ?”

“Um…” Roger stammered. He scrunched up his face “Is that better?”

“No,” Santa said, as with a spit and a sputter, the light in Roger’s nose went out.

“What’s wrong Santa?”

“Your nose. It’s not glowing anymore.” Santa leaned over Roger. “It looks like there’s something on the end of it.” Santa touched it. “What’s going on?” When the fake nose slipped off, Santa asked, “Who are you?”

“I’m...I'm...um... Roger.”

“Where’s Rudolph?”

“He’s asleep in the barn.”

Pointing at some elves, Santa said, “Go get Rudolph.” To Roger he said, “I’ll deal with you later.”

When Santa took off with Rudolph in the lead, Roger hung his head, ashamed at what he’d done. “It sounded like a good idea at the time,” he said to himself.