The long, long, L-O-N-G wait is almost over. Yes! WriteShop Junior Book D is at the printer, and we’ll begin taking preorders in just a few days. But before that happens, we want to do a fun giveaway and give you a chance to share the excitement.

A Peek at WriteShop Junior

Author Nancy I. Sanders has done it again! After creating the amazing WriteShop Primary series, Nancy has now written WriteShop Junior for upper-elementary students.

First in the series, Book D eases your 3rd-5th graders into writing. It exposes children to genre, fiction and nonfiction writing, and journal writing, and introduces exciting new brainstorming and editing tools that truly motivate young writers!

“To say that my sons were reluctant writers would be an understatement… [but] they progressed from ‘once upon a time, the end,’ to completing stories with a beginning, middle, and end.” –Rolayne, IN

“Book D was so easy to teach, I couldn’t possibly fail! The lessons were concise and fun, which made my reluctant writer start to come out of his shell. His writing skills have come a long way—and so have mine.” –Kelley, SD

Start with Book D if your child has not yet grasped punctuation or grammar skills and still needs help planning, organizing, and adding details to a story. (More reluctant 3rd graders should probably start with WriteShop Primary Book C.)

WriteShop Junior Components

1. Book D Teacher’s Guide (Required)

Easy-to-use lesson plans help you lead and guide your kiddos through the steps of the writing process.

2. Book D Activity Pack (Required)

This clever and convenient 2-pack* contains both the Student Worksheet Pack and the Level 1 Fold-N-Go™ Grammar Pack.

*Student Worksheet Pack: Activity pages your child will need to complete portions of each lesson. These worksheets introduce your child to writing skills such as brainstorming and self-editing.

“My son is enjoying the process, having fun, and looking forward to doing the activities each day. That’s a giant step for him!” – Teresa, WA

*Fold-N-Go™ Grammar Pack: Fun reference tools with simple exercises that introduce or review grammar rules and essential writing skills. Printed on brightly colored paper, pages are assembled inside a file folder to form 10 large flipbooks, one for each lesson in each WriteShop Junior book.

“Fold-N-Gos have been a wonderful opportunity to review and learn grammar concepts. If that weren’t enough, they’re fun and something my daughter looks forward to. I love that!” –Heidi, NY

3. Time-Saver Pack (Optional)

For parents and teachers who appreciate shortcuts, the Time-Saver Pack includes a number of sturdy, ready-made props for activities featured throughout Book D, such as game cards and spinners. If you prefer to make your own, you’ll find instructions for each activity in the Teacher’s Guide.

“Thank you so much for designing the cards and spinners. The less time I have to spend in prep, the more time we have for learning!” –Sandy, Texas

Enter the Giveaway!

We want to give one lucky winner a complete WriteShop Junior Book D curriculum package. Simply leave a comment below telling why you (or your children!) need Book D.

Details

• The giveaway will be open until midnight EST Thursday October 27, 2011. Winner will be announced Friday October 28.
• Share the love! You can get up to 3 extra entries by posting on Facebook, blogging, or tweeting a link to the giveaway. You must leave a separate comment for EACH entry (4 entries max per person). Winner will be chosen at random using random.org.
• This giveaway is offered to US & Canada residents only.
• This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook.
• IMPORTANT: In order to enter the drawing, you must leave a comment on THIS post. To leave a comment, scroll to the bottom of the post. (If you are reading this via RSS, you will need to visit the actual blog to post a comment.)

Pre-order Book D and Get a FREE Gift!

Later this week, we will send a newsletter announcing pre-orders for Book D. WriteShop News subscribers who pre-order through the link in the email will receive a valuable BONUS item: the Book D Time-Saver Pack ($13.95 value)! Not a subscriber yet? Sign up for our newsletter here.

Learn more about Book D

First Place

We have our winners in last week’s haiku contest! I used random.org to select the first place winner, Cullen. Here’s his haiku poem:

The grasses are green
dew is sparkling here and there
earth’s morning beauties. 

Second Place

Second place goes to Andrew K., age 9, who wrote my personal favorite and won a World of Animals StoryBuilders card deck. Here’s his haiku about a yellow jacket:

buzz-black, yellow bug
in garden flying, eating
stinging all the worms

It was a tough choice because there were some very clever and well-written entries. But in the end, Andrew’s won out because he:

1. Followed the format.
2. Avoided “to be” words.
3. Made every word count.
4. Picked a nature theme.

Thanks to everyone who participated. Keep up with your haiku!

Congratulations to EMILY! You’re the winner of a $25 WriteShop gift certificate!

Blog visitors could earn up to eleven chances in the drawing by leaving comments at our 10 Stumbling Blocks to Writing series. Emily’s name was drawn from among 110 comments (her comment, #53,  appeared here). Way to go, Emily!

If you missed this encouraging, informative series, why not begin here with this introductory article: 10 Stumbling Blocks to Writing? Then, you can read about each individual stumbling block in the following posts:

1. Lack of confidence
2. Lack of skills and tools
3. Lack of motivation
4. Limited writing vocabulary
5. Perfectionism and self-criticism
6. Laziness
7. Procrastination
8. Worry about criticism from mom or dad
9. Wondering what’s the point
10. Learning difficulties that interfere with the writing process

Are you or your children interested in entering poetry contests? It’s easy to fall prey to a slick scam, so hang onto your doubloons and watch for these warning signs.

13 Warning Signs of a Bad Poetry Contest

The main goal of a bad poetry contest appears to be extracting money from poets rather than honoring excellence. Bad contests typically show several of these warning signs. When in doubt, check with your local poetry society. 

1. Unusually large number and size of cash awards (e.g., $58,000/year)
2. Contest sponsor tries hard to sell you products that incorporate your work, like anthologies (example)
3. Contest is free to enter, but ‘winners’ have to pay a high price for own copy of book
4. Contest turns up on “Scam Warning” pages when you search for it with Google
5. Hard to contact sponsor with questions – responses are slow or evasive
6. Low standards – not choosy about who gets published
7. Name is close to that of a prestigious contest but for a small difference
8. Prize is not money or publication, but ‘agency representation’ or something you must pay for
9. Hard to find the work of past winners to judge their quality for yourself
10. Small prize relative to reading fee (e.g., $5 fee for a $50 top prize)
11. Advertised in mass market magazines (Parade) and newspapers (Sunday comics) unrelated to poetry
12. You win a prize – but have to pay to attend a convention to receive it
13. Only short poems (30 lines or less) are accepted – the better to pack them into an anthology

Copyright © 2000-2010 Winning Writers, Inc. Reprinted by permission.

Writers of all ages need an audience. And what better way to gain one than to enter a writing contest with a chance at getting published in a prominent magazine? I’ve got info on a story contest for homeschoolers that both adults and children can enter! How fun is that? And what a great way to model writing for your children as you make story-telling time a family event.

Storytime Writing Contest

The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine is very excited to host their second Storytime Writing Contest! They have two creative fiction categories: adults (16 and up, 2,500 words or less) and children (15 and under, 1,500 words or less). They’re accepting submissions through midnight, March 16, 2009.

Selecting the Finalists

This will be my second year as one of the contest judges, and it was so much fun last year reading all the wonderful entries! The Old Schoolhous reviews each entry and selects fifty finalists in each category. Those finalists will be listed on the TOS website by title, author, and city. From there, a panel of judges (including me!) who are “experts in the field” will select the Grand Prize Winners! 

Prizes 

Oh, and the prizes are so fabulous!

The Grand Prize Winners (one adult and one child) will receive:
• $100 gift certificate to the Schoolhouse Store
• Grand Prize Package valued at more than $1,000 from our sponsors! (See list of prizes here.)
• Publication in the Summer 2009 issue of The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine
• Publication on www.TheHomeschoolMagazine.com
• Certificate of Achievement

The top two winners, as well as eleven finalists in each category, will have their stories published in an E-Book, which will be available for sale at the Schoolhouse Store!

For Adults 16 and Up

They’re looking for stirring fiction, in 2,500 words or less, that will encourage and inspire homeschooling families. “Escaping the Homeschool Matrix” by Steve Walden is an excellent example of the type of story TOS is looking for. You can read Steve Walden’s story here.

For Kids 15 and under

Tell all about your characters and their zany adventures in 1,500 words or less. Think about something that you like, add some interesting characters, and set sail on your own adventure! Perhaps you could write about a mysterious map found in a dusty attic, or you could write about what you would do if you traded places with your parents for a day. Get creative! The sky is the limit!

Finding Story Ideas

For help with story ideas, check out WriteShop‘s fabulous StoryBuilders—printable card decks that make great writing prompts for silly, whimsical, humorous, or serious stories. By picking one card from each category—character, character trait, setting, and plot—you’ll have the foundation for your winning story in no time! Look for StoryBuilders under E-books in the WriteShop store. They’re only $3.95-$7.95, and they come with either 96 or 192 writing prompt cards. (You can read reviews of StoryBuilders here and here.)

How to Enter

Read the Official Rules. Then click here to submit a story, or to mail an entry, please enclose a check or money order in the amount of $7.95 along with your story, and send it to The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine at this address:

The Old Schoolhouse Magazine
Storytime Writing Contest
P.O. Box 8426
Gray, TN 37615

Here at WriteShop, we’re excited to release another great addition to our StoryBuilders series. This one is especially sure to delight your young athletes. World of Sports StoryBuilders will motivate any sports-loving student to create tales packed with action, heroic deeds, skill, perseverance, or just plain silliness!

Each printable deck of writing prompts contains character, character trait, setting, and plot cards that students can mix and match to craft their stories. StoryBuilders include instructions and ideas for using the cards with one child or a group, making StoryBuilders ideal for homeschools, co-ops, and classes.

Contest: Win a FREE StoryBuilder!

We’re giving away World of Sports StoryBuilders ($7.95 value) to 10 lucky winners. You can win one for your family simply by leaving comments on any three articles posted here at In Our Write Minds.

Here’s how to play and win:

1. Browse the Blog Categories and Archives (see the sidebar) to find some articles that appeal to you.
2. Read and comment on three articles.
3. When you’re finished, come back and leave a comment here with the titles of the three articles.

The contest will remain open until we’ve reached our 10 winners. Feel free to pass the contest details to your friends so they can join in the fun!

To order any of our StoryBuilders, including the new Christmas Mini-Builder, visit the WriteShop Store.

Thanks to everyone who took the time to cast a vote in our poster contest and post a comment. The blue poster was the overwhelming winner by four to one, with 24 votes, while the red poster received only 6 votes.

This week, we’re going to polish up the blue poster and try a couple of your suggestions to see if we want to change anything. Then we’ll print ‘em and send them off to our winners.

Speaking of winners, WOO HOO! We drew five lucky names today, and each one will receive a free poster! (Coincidentally, our winners all voted for the blue poster.)

Teresa Bryan

Marianne Handlir

Cheri Bennett

Deborah Thomson

Karen Mountjoy

Congratulations to each of you, and thanks for joining in the fun! We’ll notify you when your poster is on its way.

Edited: How remiss of me! I need to add a huge thanks to my talented daughter Karah of Blue Flombingo for designing our fabulous poster!

Cast Your Vote

Our WriteShop Starter Pack includes an 8-1/2″ x 11″ poster featuring the 5 Steps of the Writing Process. Well, after several years, we decided it’s time to retire our old poster in favor of a fresh new look.

My daughter, our talented designer, has presented us with two great choices. The problem is we love them both and can’t make a decision, so we need your help! Please vote for your favorite by adding a comment…

…for a Chance to Win a Prize!

On September 1, we’ll put all comments into a hat and draw five names. Each winner will get a free poster! We’ll announce the winner here on Tuesday, September 2.

Red Poster

Blue Poster

My friend Molly Evert is holding a contest on her blog for the month of June with an awesome prize! She’s giving away a complete set of Vision Forum’s Reclaiming the Culture DVDs. This set of teaching DVDs normally retails at over $100.

The contest is a pretty simple scavenger hunt. It shouldn’t take more than about 10 minutes to find the answers. Rules for the contest are on her blog  http://www.counterculturalmom.blogspot.com, so pop on over and join the fun!