As trick-or-treating is winding down in my neighborhood, it looks like I'm going to be left with A LOT of candy...and I'm not just talking about the snack size candy... I'm talking about lots of full size candy bars:
That's right, I'm one of the full size candy bar giver-outers -- the same candy goldmines I dreamed about finding on Halloween as a kid. And I think it's super fun to pass on my full-size-candy-bar-house dreams to other kids now.
Are there any Halloween traditions/fun memories that you've continued through the years?
Before I go, I want to send a BIG thank you shout-out to Jen, the awesome blogger/writer @ Unedited! She went on a scavenger hunt to track down my Hallmark Halloween card in her hometown... not only did she find it & buy one, she sent me these FABULOUS pictures below! Thanks, Jen! You're awesome!!
Okay, so I'm posting this way later in the day (er, night) than I intended to, but the truth is that I had a REALLLLLY hard time deciding on the winners -- all of the entries to my Spooky-Good Writing Contest were awesome! Thanks to everyone who participated. Since it was tough to pick just two winners, I've decided to give everyone who entered this contest two extra entries in my next multi-prize giveaway/contest, because you all deserve something for your creativity. I'll be sure to post a reminder about the extra entries when the time comes. Stay tuned!
Now for the winners, I have several favorites... but I decided to go with the two that really grabbed my attention and left me intrigued about the characters and plots the most. Without further ado, here are my picks:
Panic set in as I stumbled through the dark, following the eerie beam of moonlight guiding me through the graveyard; I hadn't expected to be haunted by some dead teenaged girl who just so happened to be the Grim Reaper.
This entry left me dying to know more about the teenage Grim Reaper and the MC she's haunting! Love it!
True evil rose above the victim on a dark cold October night, the terror it had caused in the now lifeless corpse was just the beginning of what was to come.
This sentence chilled me to the bone! It's beyond creepy and packed with mystery. It's definitely an attention grabber!
Congrats to the winners! I will be in touch shortly about your prizes. And thanks again to everyone who participated. You're all very talented; keep up the fab writing!
Spooky-Good Writing Contest & Giveaway! Calling all Writers!
Spooky-good writing + spooky-good fun = spooky-good writing prizes!
I've held a bunch of signed book giveaways for readers on my blog, but I think it's about time to hold a contest/giveaway for fellow writers. October is the perfect month to hold such a writing contest; not only is it a spookerific time for fun contests, it's also right before NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) starts, which I know a lot of writers in the blogosphere participate in. I will be giving away two prize packs that are sure to help your writing!
*Please read entire post & entry instructions before entering!*
So here are the Spooky-Good Writing Contest details: To enter, you must create a fantastic first line of a potential book using at least FOUR out of these 30+ frightfully fabulous words:
*All words can be modified to plural, past tense, adjective, adverb, verb or noun forms when appropriate* Blood Bite Cold Terrifying (can be modified to terror or terrorize) Witch Pumpkin (can be modified to jack-o'-lantern) Ghost Skeleton (can be modified to bones) October Trick Treat (can be modified to candy) Midnight Moon Monster Mask Ghoul Dead (can be modified to corpse) Dark Grave (can be modified to graveyard or gravestone) Evil Boo Haunt Demon (can be modified to devil) Murder Panic Shiver Scream Victim Nightmare Knife
Even though this is a Halloween contest, your first line entry DOES NOT have to be scary and/or intended for a horror novel; in fact, the more creative and surprising you are with the words, the better. Your first line could be funny, mysterious, intriguing, creepy, adventurous, informative, romantic, fun, etc. It can be the first line for any age group and book genre, just remember to make it PG (or PG-13). Also, make sure to create a line that will leave me dying to read the rest of the story... and even better, will make you want to WRITE the rest of the story!
And now for the prize details:
I have purchased four reference/writing books that have helped me a lot with my own writing and publication process to give away as prizes (all books are brand new!). These prizes will be broken up into two prize packs (2 books each); one is a writing prize pack, and the other is a publishing prize pack. The two best first line entries will win ONE of the following packages:
*IMPORTANT*Please indicate which ONE prize pack you'd like your first line(s) entered for in your comment!!! Each participant can only be entered to win ONE of the two prize packs.*
Special Spooky Surprise Each prize pack will also include one of my GOOD GOURD Halloween cards being sold by Hallmark now!
Complete Contest Entry Details Breakdown - You must follow my blog to enter.
- Enter once by creating a first line for a potential book using four out of the long list of words listed above.
- Indicate which ONE prize pack you'd like to win in your contest entry (writing package or publishing package).
- You can create and enter more than one first line to increase your chances of winning your chosen prize pack by doing any or all of the following: *Tweet about this contest - +1 extra first line entry *Blog about this contest - +1 extra first line entry *Vote for The Lipstick Laws on any goodreads list that you have NOT already voted on found HERE. - +1 extra first line entry for each vote (up to +3).
- Please leave links to your online shout-outs/votes in your comment
If you do all of the above, you can enter up to SIX creative first lines to be considered for the prize pack you want to win.
We're getting closer to Halloween, a frightfully fabulous holiday (if I do say so myself)... and in turn we're in store for scary movies popping up all over the place. Not only does this mean that a bunch of new scary movies will be played in theaters and on cable, but it also means that at least 937,405 hilariously cheesy sequels and remakes will also push their way into the scary movie universe. To honor the inevitable cheese-fest, I'd like to share this video:
So now I'm curious... what's your favorite scary movie?
Winner of The Signed Copy of SPLIT by Swati Avasthi!
Thanks to all who commented for a chance to win a signed copy of SPLIT by Swati Avasthi! I used the Random Name/Word Picker Fruit Machine at classtools.net to help me randomly select the winner from the entries I received.
The lucky winner is: Maddie M. Congratulations, Maddie! You'll be receiving your signed copy sent straight from Swati herself. I will be in touch to discuss the details soon.
I'm not the most serious person in the world. I can usually find humor in just about any mundane thing.... and I'd much rather be laughing about something goofy rather than having a heated political debate any day of the week. In turn, I try to keep my blog light-hearted and fun, because that's how I like to be most of the time. However, this week has thrown my happy spirit for a loop. When I heard the horrible news about what happened to Tyler Clementi, the amazingly gifted Rutgers student who was betrayed and humiliated by his roommate and ultimately committed suicide, it not only broke my heart... it disgusted me! Now, I don't know whether the incomprehensible actions of Tyler's roommate were a hate crime, a horrible act of bullying, a ridiculous act of ignorance, a very mean prank, or a combination of all the above, but what I do know is the devastating outcome is all too familiar in our society... and it bothers me beyond words. It's truly tragic and heartbreaking!
I can't be silent about something I feel so passionately about. I have a public outlet through this blog, and I'd be doing my principles an injustice by not commenting on something so important to me. Teen bullying is a pandemic in our country that has to end! Everyone has differences, that's what makes this world such a wonderful place.... and it's about time that we as a society (and world) respect and celebrate our differences rather than stifle them with intolerance. It's about time we support and uplift our fellow classmates, colleagues and neighbors, however different they may be, rather than tear them down because of prejudice, jealousy, or ignorance. It's about time we stop turning a blind eye to injustice, cruelty and discrimination because of indifference, ambivalence, fear, or not wanting to get "involved". And it's about time we stand up to people who bully and hurt others out of callousness, spitefulness, unawareness, or the need to make themselves feel better about their own shortcomings and insecurities.
I know there are millions of people who feel the same as I do, but unfortunately to those being bullied, the voices of their bullies are louder than our voices of support and acceptance. Please unite with me to make our voices louder than the taunts of intolerance and hurt. Help our voices multiply and echo to drown out the callous voices of bullies all over the country (and world). Please take a moment to post your own anti-bullying message on your online outlet. And/or help me spread this message by adding the anti-bullying ribbon to your website or blog.
The only intolerance that should be accepted in our society is intolerance to bullying and cruelty.
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
I'm the author of THE LIPSTICK LAWS, a young adult novel published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt on April 4, 2011. I'm repped by Sarah Davies of Greenhouse Literary Agency.
