Kids Being Creative

Last weekend I was honoured and inspired to present the young writer’s awards at the 2019 Daylesford Words in Winter Festival.

The event took place inside a blanket fort, the brainchild of one of the young writers I was lucky to meet.

There were so many things I loved about this event. So much colour and so many amazing primary school aged creators.

Prep to Year 2 winners

The stories I read were evocative and powerful, sometimes funny, always imaginative.

I was moved not only by the creative vibe I found in Daylesford, but also the love of story and story creation.

Grade 3-4 winners

There were hundreds of entries in the competition and every prize winner and contestant at the event was accompanied by at least one proud and supportive adult. I was born into a household where writing wasn’t considered to be a ‘real job’ so it was heartwarming to see the family and community support for these young writers.

Grade 5-6 winners

Many of the writers had also been encouraged to enter the competition by a supportive teacher or librarian.

I was so lucky to be invited to be part of this event, and it reinforced to me how much we can do to encourage kids to write, and to love writing as much as I do.

 

Adult Summer Writing Competition Winners Announced

The standard of submissions in the DeeScribe Writing Summer Writing Competition was amazing.

It was extremely hard to pick the winners, and I’d really like to congratulate everyone who entered.

Writing a complete story is a huge achievement, putting your work out there and submitting it is an even bigger one.

Thank you for sharing your work with me.

And a big thank you to Alison Reynolds for donating a Query Letter critique as part of our first prize.

THE WINNERS

I am pleased to announce that the winners are:

Congratulations to our worthy winners,  Belinda Lyons-Lee, Georgie Donaghey and Elizabeth Smart.

ALSO TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE ‘HEAT’ ANTHOLOGY

Congratulations to the other 7 authors whose entries have been selected to be published in the Heat e-book anthology.  Your work will be published alongside some established authors.

PLEASE NOTE THAT THE FOLLOWING NAMES ARE IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER BY FIRST NAME AND DO NOT REFLECT ORDER OF MERIT.

Thanks again for entering the competition.  Your certificates and assessments where applicable, and details of the anthology will be emailed shortly.

Happy writing:)

Dee

Summer Writing Competition for Adults – Optional editorial feedback on your entry

Over the last year or so I’ve been focussing on writing competitions for kids over at my blog http://writingclassesforkids.com

But I am constantly made aware of how hard it is for adult writers to be published, and also for them to receive feedback on their work.

That’s why I’ve decided to run a Summer Writing Competition just for adults.

The theme for the competition is Heat, and I’ll be publishing the top 10 entries in an e-book anthology on Smashwords.

I’m also offering mentoring prizes for the first 3 placegetters, and the opportunity for writers to receive a 1 to 2 page editor’s report.

The entry fee for the competition is $25 and for an extra $25 you can receive editorial feedback on your work. Payments can be made using PayPal at http://writingclassesforkids.com/products/

If you have any questions about the competition, please feel free to email me. Dee@deescribe.com.au

Summer Writing Competition for Adults – Optional editorial feedback on your entry

Over the last year or so I’ve been focussing on writing competitions for kids over at my blog http://writingclassesforkids.com

But I am constantly made aware of how hard it is for adult writers to be published, and also for them to receive feedback on their work.

That’s why I’ve decided to run a Summer Writing Competition just for adults.

The theme for the competition is Heat, and I’ll be publishing the top 10 entries in an e-book anthology on Smashwords.

I’m also offering mentoring prizes for the first 3 placegetters, and the opportunity for writers to receive a 1 to 2 page editor’s report. And author, Alison Reynolds will provide a query letter critique to the winning entry.

The entry fee for the competition is $25 and for an extra $25 you can receive editorial feedback on your work. Payments can be made using PayPal at http://writingclassesforkids.com/products/

If you have any questions about the competition, please feel free to email me. Dee@deescribe.com.au

 

Summer Writing Competition for Adults – Optional editorial feedback on your entry

Over the last year or so I’ve been focussing on writing competitions for kids over at my blog http://writingclassesforkids.com

But I am constantly made aware of how hard it is for adult writers to be published, and also for them to receive feedback on their work.

That’s why I’ve decided to run a Summer Writing Competition just for adults.

The theme for the competition is Heat, and I’ll be publishing the top 10 entries in an e-book anthology on Smashwords.

I’m also offering mentoring prizes for the first 3 placegetters, and the opportunity for writers to receive a 1 to 2 page editor’s report.

The entry fee for the competition is $25 and for an extra $25 you can receive editorial feedback on your work. Payments can be made using PayPal at http://writingclassesforkids.com/products/

If you have any questions about the competition, please feel free to email me. Dee@deescribe.com.au

WINNERS OF KAREN TYRRELL’S BLOG COMPETITION ANNOUNCED

Congratulations to Mary Lou Cassotto and Laura Doyle who are the lucky winners of last week’s competition at this blog.

You have won an e-copy of Karen’s book, Me & Her: A Memoir of Madness.

Karen will contact you directly about your prize.

Thanks to everyone who entered and took the time to leave their comments.

Happy writing:)

Dee

WRITING A MEMOIR

Today, Australian author, Karen Tyrell is visiting to share her tips and experiences writing her just released memoir, ME & HER: A Memoir of Madness

1. What was the most difficult thing about writing a memoir?

Working out what was important to my story and what would drive my narrative forward.

2. How did you decide on which real-life characters to use?

In my earliest drafts, I had a cast of over fifty characters. I had to cut back to those characters who made the greatest impact on my story and recovery. I often combined two real people to become “one” character.

3. How did you know where to start and when to finish?

I started at a pivotal turning point in my story, where I hooked the reader in, enticing them to read more. I ended my story when all the conflicts were resolved and all the questions were answered.

4. Did you have any legal considerations?

My memoir surrounds the real life drama of parents harassing me, a teacher, to breaking point. I had to protect myself from being sued. I changed the names of the bullies, their descriptions and specific details of the harassment. I omitted dates and places.

5. How difficult it was to write about something so personal?

It was extremely difficult to reveal the most traumatic events. Originally, I showed these via short flashbacks. Later when I became braver, I disclosed my gradual decline and disintegration over six chapters.

Any tips on how you handled that?

I had to be comfortable with what I disclosed and only added the confronting events when I was emotionally ready. I had to ask myself, ‘Do I want the world to know this detail?’

ANNOUNCING … ME & HER eBook

To find out more about Karen Tyrrell and where to purchase ME & HER: A Memoir of Madness, please check out her website.

Please go to http://www.karentyrrell.com and click on BUY BOOK to purchase an eBook!

eBOOK GIVEAWAYS!

ME & HER: a Memoir of Madness launches this week on Amazon as an eBook.  Please comment here or ask a question, sharing why you want to be in the draw for a FREE eBook. Two copies to be won!

CATCH UP WITH KAREN ELSEWHERE ON TOUR

Karen is also visiting these great blogs:

ME & HER Blog Tour 14^th – 20^th May

14^th May Kaz Delaney- Writing Inspiration http://kazdelaney.wordpress.com/

Prachi S.Vaish – Psychologist – Interview http://www.hopenetwork.in

15^th May Tuesday Writing Tips- Writing Memoirs https://deescribewriting.wordpress.com/

Dr Happy – Happiness after the Gloom http://www.thehappinessinstitute.com/blog/

16^th May Sally Odgers – Writing & Editing Process http://spinningpearls.blogspot.com.au/

17^th May Gabrielle Sheppard, UK – Bipolar Recovery www.bi-polargirl.com/blog

18^th May Natasha Tracy, Canada – Writing for Recovery http://natashatracy.com/

19^th May Jill Smith- Book Review & Interview http://authorjillsmith.wordpress.com

Kids Book Review- Mental Health Books 4 Kids http://www.kids-bookreview.com/

20^th May Ang Hall – ME & HER Book Review- http://bluedingonet.wordpress.com/

Win an e-book here Tomorrow!

WIN A FABULOUS NEW YOUNG ADULT E-BOOK!