Contest Announcements! There’s FOUR of ‘em!!! Whee!

Review of Query and First Pages Contest: March 2, 2010 7-9 am AND 6-8 pm EST.

Weronika Janczuk, writer, student, and publishing intern, is offering a contest on her blog.

Be sure to read the rules carefully because the submission times are between two intervals: March 2nd (that’s today!) 7-9 AM and 6-8 PM!!!

She’s offering a query critique as well as a critique of the first pages (up to 10) of your novel. I suspect this will be useful information, so here’s the link with all the deets: http://www.weronikajanczuk.com/2010/02/query-first-10-pgs-critique.html

She states: Everyone who submits and follows the rules will receive a critique.

Thanks, Weronika, for offering this contest!

Chocolate + a book giveaway: March 1, 2010 to March 4, 2010 midnight

Karen Lange is celebrating her one year anniversary of blogging and is spreading the joy! Here’s the link to her blog (Write Now–great title!) and the deets to enter for your chance to win chocolate and a copy of Tamera Alexander’s Beyond This Moment: http://karenelange.blogspot.com/ 

Thanks, Karen, for sharing your celebration!

Come to the Beta Ball @ Danyelle Leafty’s blog: March 1, 2010 to March 5, 2010 BEFORE 5 PM MST!

http://myth-takes.blogspot.com/2010/02/lets-have-ballmarch.html Leave a comment describing what you do as a beta reader and what you expect from other betas in return. Announce the contest on other socail media and get extra points for your chance to win a critique!

Thanks to Danyelle for hosting!

“Dear Lucky Agent” Contest: February 28, 2010 to March 14, 2010

This contest series is hosted by Chuck Sambuchino at the Guide to Literary Agents Editor’s Blog (http://www.guidetoliteraryagents.com/blog/). Those of you who write Urban Fantasy and Paranormal Romance (both YA and adult) are in luck because those genres are being featured! Get your first 150-200 words of your finished MS ready, write a logline (a one sentence description of your novel), and head on over to the site to submit your entry!

Here’s the link: http://www.guidetoliteraryagents.com/blog/Dear+Lucky+Agent+Contest+Urban+Fantasy+And+Paranormal+Romance+For+Both+Teens+And+Adults.aspx

Thanks, Chuck, for hosting this contest!

*happy dance, happy dance*

I’m gonna go get my entries ready! Good luck everyone!

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A Super Fantastic Celebration Contest!

Michelle McLean, author of Homework Helpers: Essays and Term Papers (Career Press December 2009/January 2010),  is holding a Contest to celebrate the publication of her book!

Head on over to: http://michellemclean.blogspot.com/2010/02/celebration-contest.html and follow the entry rules in a drawing for…

• A query critique from agent, Krista Goering,
• A copy of the Query Ninja’s (that’s Elana Johnson–she offers query-writing magic wherever she goes) e-book, From the Query to the Call, and…
• A $20 gift card to Barnes & Noble!

The contest ends midnight on March 1st, so I’m putting in my entry RIGHT. NOW. Good luck everyone!!!

P.S. Be sure to check out Michelle’s other blog too! She gives great tips for writing papers, prose, and poetry! http://www.papersproseandpoetry.blogspot.com/

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Here a Contest, There a Contest, Everywhere a Contest, Contest!

Come one, come all! Yes, that’s right folks, step right here. Before you, on this online blog stage, free for your viewing pleasure, is the next addition of:

Check out this awesome contest!

As you can see, detailed below, is a link to “awesome contest” describing entry requirements and prizes. (It is hosted by: http://kidlit.com/ )

Simply go to: http://kidlit.com/kidlit-contest/ and enter!

For those of you who are still uncertain or wondering what it takes for to get in on the action…

Well, all it entails is completing five easy steps:

1) E-mail Mary Kole of Andrea Brown Literary Agency the beginning of your completed MG or YA novel—up to the first 500 words IN THE BODY of the message. NO ATTACHMENTS! (e-mail address is on the contest page)

2) Use subject heading: “Kidlit Contest”

3) Link her site to two places—she has a handy dandy link for easy application of this step

4) Read and comment on at least one other Kidlit post

5) Do this by January 31, 2010! (Cuz that’s the deadline)

That’s it! Easy Peasy! Good luck to all entrants!

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Contest Fever..Do You Know the Signs and Symptoms?

UPDATE (1/8/10): Shooting Stars has added MORE prizes! Check it out before it’s too late!!!

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A thirty one year old single woman enters Emergency Room with a chief complaint of “I have contest fever!”

The ER staff gasps and grabs the nearest supply of masks and gloves. Contest Fever is highly contagious and once one person has it, several dozens are sure to develop symptoms within the next several hours if proper precautions are not put in place.

Here’s what to look out for to identify if you, too, have Contest Fever:

It starts with a simple chill, then develops into a rush of excitement followed by butterflies in the stomach and shivers down your spine. After several seconds, these symptoms are followed by shaky hands syndrome, shortness of breath, and heart racing. It causes the effected person to make numerous typos and speak in stilted sentences. This may make communication difficult, further hindering proper evaluation and diagnosis.

The only treatment of Contest Fever should you encounter or experience it: Entering the contest!

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I have been a member of Query Tracker since June 2009. During that time, I have learned how to interact with others via the Internet (though I’m young in years, I’m old in techno-anything) to foster relationships with writers, and to brush up my query letter, synopsis, and first five pages. As with all things, the savvier I get, the more comfortable I am with branching out and exploring my surroundings. So, in November, I left my cozy nest and ventured out into cyberspace. Firstly, I started a blog. Then, I entered a couple of Young Adult writing contests, one of which left me humbly surprised and thoroughly ecstatic!

Positive reinforcement is a wonderful thing. Once that shiny reward is handed to me, I want to do more. So, as I make my rounds of checking on blogs, websites, and all things writing, I keep a special eye out for more contests. ‘Cuz they’re fun!!

Thanks to the fantastic community at Query Tracker, and a helpful post there, I found out that another innovative contest is on!

Click, click and there it is:   Shooting Stars: Suzette and Bethany’s Wicked-Awesome Prizes Contest!

Follow the link below to explore all the contest-y goodness.

http://suzettesaxton.blogspot.com/2010/01/suzette-and-bethanys-wicked-awesome.html

Additional info:

The Prizes (for a total of five winners):

1) Two Query Critiques

2) Two First Five Page Critiques

3) One Inscribed/Autographed copy of The Dark Divine

To enter this contest there are two things you must do.

1) Be a follower of Shooting Stars blog (in the sidebar on the right)

2) Post about this contest on your own blog (not just a mention, an actual post.)

To earn more entries you can do the following:

1) Tweet about the contest with a link to this blog

2) Link to the contest on Facebook or MySpace (i.e. paste it in your status)

3) Mention this contest in a forum (such as Absolute Write or the QueryTracker Forum.)

Best of luck to all entrants!!!

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