Roger the Christmas Squirrel: 7th Annual Holiday Contest -by Kathy Halsey

Yes, readers, it's time for mistletoe, holly and Susanna Hill's contest. Snuggle up with some hot cocoa and sugar cookies. For this story I recommend munching on Christmas trees. (You'll see why soon!) 

The rules are deceptively simple...actually writing these teensy stories is more complicated than it looks. Squeezing a story into 250 words can be quite the task. (My entry is 249 words.) In a nutshell, rules indicate the word count and a holiday surprise story for kids up to age 12. (The nuts for my "nutshell' are acorns, also germane to my story.)

For this tale I mined memories of my mother and the special relationship she had with my niece. Mom created a tradition that stayed with Lauren her entire life. Now she's sharing this tradition with her first child, Eloise. I dedicate this story to Mary Hackman, Lauren, and Eloise. May Roger's legend continue.

Roger the Christmas Squirrel

by Kathy Halsey

             Lori longed for a large family so she befriended the backyard animals. Cardinals robed in red cheered winter skies. Whitetail deer peeked from the brush. She fed them acorns and blackberries.

            One frosty day, she heard chatter. A bright-eyed squirrel skittered in the old oak. Lori held out a handful of acorns. He scampered to her. She smiled. His eyes twinkled knowingly.

            “I’ll call you ‘Roger.’  Let’s celebrate Christmas.”

            He chitter-chattered his agreement.

            Lori searched for Roger everyday. He left little surprises in the oak hollow — a shiny coin, a berry crown, a heart-shaped rock. She gathered the gifts and shared them with mom.

            As the days grew shorter, Roger visited less. Lori missed him. Was he hunting for food before snowfall?

            She and Mom baked pine-shaped cookie treats for her friend and placed them in the special oak tree. They disappeared. Where was Roger? She watched the barren backyard for signs.

            In the crook of the oak, she spotted a note written on brown paper. Lori’s hands trembled as she read.   

           

            Merry Christmas Lori,

            I found your cookies — much better than acorns. I am the Christmas squirrel. I only       visit this time of the year. Remember me by the present under your tree.

            Love,

            ROGER

            Lori darted inside, surprised by the pinecone doll. She cradled it gently.

            Years passed. Today Roger’s magic returned. Under Lori’s tree lay a pinecone doll with a note, “ For Roxie: Love, Roger.”

            “Momma, who’s Roger?” asked Roxie as Lori’s eyes twinkled knowingly.

Original illustration by Teresa Robeson

Bonus gift. My brother found a few notes from the real Roger. 

This is a section of one note. Mom has been gone 7 years, but her special traditions live on for my niece and grand niece now. (Roger always wrote in capital letters, too.)

Bwahahaha -Halloweensie Is Here by Kathy Halsey

Ghoul friends, writers and readers, it's time for Susanna Hill's Halloweensie contest. You still have a few days before the bewitching hour to write your own. OR - read them all and share with family and friends. Soon you'll be able to vote on your fave. 
Competition's always keen, but we writers are good spirits and cheer each other on. 

Rules state only 100 words or less, kid-friendly, a true story arc, and use of these words: Candy Corn ( count as 1 word), monster, shadow. (Other forms of the required words may be used, too.)

Hope you find mine delightful and not too frightful.

Candy Corn's Dilemma

Candy Corn is forlorn.

It's almost Halloween.

She wants to mix with goblins who trick,

But Mom says, "Don't be mean."

Monsters and ghouls roam this night,

Yet Candy frets in despair.

Sweet and cute are her strong suit,

Tonight nobody seems to care.

"If I could just be a zombie, a mummy,

or shadowy, or spooky, or scary...

Not syrup and honey, not yellow and sunny,

I'm just too darn ordinary."

Her doorbell rings; kids stand and stare.

"EWWW," they scream as one boy states,

"Run away, run away, don't take the bait,

that Candy Corn is out-of-date."

And We're Off to the Races: 50 Precious Words Contest by Kathy Halsey

Say, what? Yes, another contest...it's time for author Vivian Kirkfield's 50 Precious Words modeled off Bennet Cerf's challenge to Dr. Seuss to create a story using only 50 unique words. This was the origin of GREEN EGGS AND HAM. I recycled an old picture book manuscript and shaved it down to 47 words, no easy feat, believe me. 

Let's have a bit of word association before we begin, shall we? There's "feat" and "feet," but in my story we have  a race to the finish with "hoof" versus "paw." Yes, it's Blaze Cheetah versus Giraffe. (Did you know that a giraffe's hooves are as big as dinner plates? Did you know they can cruise at 35 mph? Did you know that we PB writers learn many odd facts?) Onward to our race!

Kalahari Elementary Track Meet

by Kathy Halsey

Blaze's fast,

Always best.

Giraffe laces up,

Cannot rest.

They'r-r-r-e OFF!

'Round the track.

Blaze zooms ahead,

Giraffe bounces back.

Giraffe tangles up.

Legs run amok!

Neck and neck,

Hoof to paw.

Near the half mark,

Shock'n awe.

Photo finish.

Who will win?

It's...GIRAFFE!

Mile-wide grin.

Saw-whet Owl's Valentine by Kathy Halsey

Hi all, time for a fun contest from Susanna Hill! It's the second annual Valentiny contest. Check out Susanna's blog for more Valentine fun and her books here! Read other stories and leave comments. Share the Valentiny love. These stories must feature a confused character and be "tiny," only 214 words because Valentine's Day is 2/14. That clever Susanna!

My story is about an owl I fell in love with on Facebook. He was posted by author/illustrator friend Teresa Robeson! Isn't he cute? Thanks, Teresa. And, yes, my story is only 202 words.

The Northern Saw-whet Owl, a Solitary Creature

Saw-whet Owl's Valentine 

High in his tree, Saw-whet slept. He was rarely spotted in the woodlands, and he liked it that way. 

Tiny Saw-whet was verrrrry shy but verrrrry devoted to Fox, Squirrel and Rabbit. He watched over his forest friends while he roosted.

Today as his friends scurried about, Saw-whet woke with a start. 

Saw-whet smoothed his feathers, mustered his courage and said, "Say, what is happening today?"

Fox pulled red ribbons. He tied knots. 

"Say, what are you up to with those bows, Fox?"

Fox winked.

Squirrel fluffed his tail as if to hide... something. 

"Say, what is behind your tail, Squirrel?"

Squirrel puffed up more before he snuck away.

Rabbit hopped 'round making odd-looking snow tracks. 

"Say, what are you doing, Rabbit?

Rabbit giggled and wiggled his behind.

Saw-whet sighed. No one would say what was up today. He turned his head left. He turned his head right. He turned his head all the way around and found...

Fox with a present wrapped in red, 

Squirrel with a heart-shaped candy box,

and Rabbit's message that read," Happy Valentine's Day!"

Saw-whet smiled. He sailed down to hug his friends on the forest floor and said, "Say, WHAT a day, Valentine's Day!"    

"Say what? Say Happy Valentine's Day!" 

  

12 Days of Christmas 2017- Successes

Not to brag just to look back at some of the accomplishments that moved me farther on my road to even more writing success. The journey is the destination. Looking back help us move forward.

1. Sent out more submissions than the year before.
2. Joined NaNoWriMo for the 1st time. Did not achieve 50,000 words but did write more in 1 month than I ever have before.
3. Wrote in a new genre- turned a PB into a MG - still in progress.
4. Had one of my dream agents ask for more of my work. Did not achieve representation, but was invited to submit new work again. 
5. 1. Began the weekly Story Trail class at the Gahanna Public Library working w/ 5 middle/intermediate students, 2 high schoolers and 2 librarians to write a picture book to be illustrated and mounted at Friendship Park this spring.
6. Continued blogging at the GROG with other kid lit writers. We now have 213, 111 page views. I wrote 14 posts, so at least 1 a month. 
7. Signed up for the spring NESCBWI conference and critique w/Julie Bliven at Charlesbridge. Made new friends and extended myself in a new environment.
8. Did a ReFoReMo read/study Charlesbridge NF bios.
9. Was chosen to be a mini-metee for Stacy McAnulty along with 4 other PB writers. We agreed to critique each others work.
10. Attend many workshops: OH SCBWI workshop "Take Your Work to the Next Level, webinar on "How to Be a Better Critique Partner" w/Heather Alexander, and attended monthly SoCenOH SCBWI meetings. 
11. Worked on another partial revision of PB bio.
12. Wrote a story for Susanna Hill's Valen-tiny Contest. I really liked it an it had a true plot arc. 
13. Dove into reading MG and have read 17 books since September for a reading challenge at the school from which I retired.
17. Participated in  ReFoReMo in March.
18. Presented at 2 professional conferences: Mazza Summer Institute 2016 and Virginia Hamilton Conference on Multicultural Literature for Children.
19. Revised 4 PB mss to submission level.
20. Taught my first class on writing PBs a the local library and got paid. My first check as a writer!
21. Worked on the Ohio Educational Library Media Association's Author Committee 2016.
22. Reinvigorated my goodreads account.
23. Asked to write a blog post for a company, no pay but publicity for me.
24. Created a professional website w/the help of Lisa Amstutz. Secured my domain name, too.
25. Moderated the intermediate school Battle of the Books in Canal Winchester.
26. Submitted a poem to SCBWI.
27. One ms was chosen for a first pages review from a reputable blog.
28. A submission from "Open Coop" day received a detailed response from an agent.
29. Read and volunteered to lead chapter discussions over at Word by Word FB group. We read: SAVE THE CAT, ANATOMY OF NONFICTION, and SECOND SIGHT.
30. Joined a new critique group. 
31. Met periodically with a small group of Central Ohio SCBWI members to write for 2-3 hours and then share our work.
32. Have several CP partners who have agents or have work in acquisitions. How is this my success? I have helped them hone their mss to a new level. When one boat rises, so do they all.

50 Words Contest - Dancing on Daddy's Feet

I love a fun contest & Vivian Kirkfield gave us a challenge to write a story in 50 words, just like Dr. Seuss did. If it's good enough for the good Doctor, it's good enough for me. Check out her blog for other stories. 
My story came to mind while reminiscing about my dad, Richard Hackman, a jazz lover, zoot-suiter, and educator, gone to soon. So this goes out to all of you who learned to dance while DANCING ON DADDY'S FEET.

DANCING ON DADDY'S FEET

By Kathy Halsey

I love to dance with Daddy.

He dances to and fro

And me? I dance with Daddy

always on my toes.

I love to dance with Daddy.

He really keeps a beat,

and when we dance together,

we both have happy feet.

Daddy and me?

What a treat!