"Everything in the world exists in order to end up as a book." - Stéphane Mallarmé
I have participated in Susanna Leonard Hill's Halloweensie contest twice and her first-ever Valentiny contest, and this will be my first Holiday Writing Contest. The prompt: write a children's (ages 12 and under) holiday story of 300 words or less using the basic format/concept of The Twelve Days of Christmas! Check out my entry below. THE GIFT OF READING A Picture Book Riddle by Amanda Sincavage (297 words) Twelve days before Christmas I hadn’t bought any gifts yet. My sister Margarita banged the drums in her room and I couldn’t think through the clatter. I thought about sending her to a deserted island for Christmas. Eleven days before Christmas my little brother Tommy needed help building his train track. I told him, “I think you can do it.” Mom said to help him anyway. Can you wrap confidence? Ten days before Christmas my brother Matt’s tadpole grew legs! Maybe they need froggy shoes for leaping. Nine days before Christmas we went to the zoo. My sister Molly mimicked the flamingos. She already has pink tights and a tutu. Eight days before Christmas my Aunt Pat sent me to the store for milk and…I forgot!?!? She needs a delivery service. Seven days before Christmas my friend Joe and I explored the depths of a magical pond. We didn’t discover any gifts. Six days before Christmas I took my grumpy Grandpa for a walk, and we saw four waddling goslings. A pet for Grandpa? Five days before Christmas Grandma knocked on the door with a fresh batch of cookies. Mmmm…but she told me I had to share. Four days before Christmas my cousins teased me when I said a silly phrase. Maybe they won’t get anything. Three days before Christmas the whole family pitched in to help mom make cookies. Shhhh…they weren’t as good as Grandma’s. Two days before Christmas my friend Joni and I dressed up in too-big hats and couldn't see. No hats for her! One day before Christmas Daddy hung a swing from the old apple tree, which reminded me of a story…and that’s when it came to me. I would share my love of reading! What books did I gift from my library? Reread the story (and original song) to identify which books the main character gifted to each friend and family member! Post your guesses in the comments, and I will share the answers later this week. UPDATE 12/19/16: The contest is over and results are in! I am happy to have received an honorable mention for "Thinking-Outside-The-Box Creativity." Yippee! For those of you interested, I added the riddle answers in the comments below.
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Today is not only my birthday, but also the official launch of my author website. Woohoo! It has been a challenging year - watching my 1-year old learn and grow while figuring out how to be a stay-at-home/work-from-home mom and wife, receiving a diagnosis of two autoimmune diseases and overcoming the resulting anxiety disorder, making significant lifestyle and diet changes requiring a total mindset shift, grieving the loss of my dog, and continually reading and writing and learning throughout it all. The writing communities I am a part of have pushed me to meet my writing goals for the year, including an author website. This has been on my To Do list for at least a year, and I am thrilled that it has finally come to fruition. Having a website is like dressing for the job you want and is a big step forward along my writing path! To celebrate, I am sharing my birthday treat, because I've noticed a certain affinity among KidLit writers...sweets! I've given up refined sugar and gluten (among other things) and haven't had traditional candy, cakes, pastries, etc. since August. The recipe below for Cocoa Buttercups is considered paleo and has no refined sugar. Best of all, it is rich enough that one is completely satisfying, okay, maybe two! RECIPE: COCOA BUTTERCUPS
As the year comes to an end, I look forward to sharing more about my writing goals and accomplishments of 2016, as well as the tremendous support I've received from the KidLit community.
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