Maragaret and Sam share their winning stories in the SPILLING INK WRITING CONTEST

Please welcome the 2nd and 3rd place winners in the Spilling Ink Writing Contest.The writers had a choice of two writing prompts taken from the book, Spilling Ink, co-authored by Anne Mazer and Ellen Potter. They had to limit their stories to 250 words. 

You'll be impressed by Margaret and Sam's stories and you'll also get an idea how tough it was to judge a contest with so many talented young writers. So thank you, again, Anne Mazer and Ellen Potter, for judging this contest for me!

The runner up in the Spilling Ink Writing Contest is Margaret Bruetsch. Please welcome Margaret and join me in congratulating her.Margaret received a $15 gift certificate to the bookstore of her choice and an autographed copy of Hill Hawk Hattie.  Congratulations, Margaret!  Please leave a comment for Margaret and let her know what you loved about her story.        


The AUTHOR in her own words: 
I am sophomore at Sullivan West H.S. I love to read and sing and act. I'm an aspiring author and I also write songs. I have so many favorite books but my top two are The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkein and The Stand by Stephen King. Favorite book series on the other hand are The Magic Treehouse series (I learned to read with those books) by Mary Pope Osbourne and the Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling...and of course your books. :) [She means me. . .Clara Gillow Clark. How sweet is that?]  I love music from the sixties and seventies like The Beatles, Carole King and Jackson Browne


                                                  "Butterflies"

   As I walked down the hallway, I caught his eye and the butterflies in my stomach made me feel sick. I had to do this; I had to ask him one question. He had his backpack in hand and his jacket in another and was ready to leave. I was hoping he’d wait for me and as if he had read my thoughts he stopped and turned around.
      “Hey there,” He said and I smiled the butterflies calming down.
      “Hi,” I shyly said and prayed for a little courage, “Are you busy tomorrow night?”
      “No,” he replied and I saw him smirk a bit, “Why?”
      “We’re going to the Liberty show and I was wondering if you wanted to go with me?”
      “Yeah definitely,” he smiled and I felt a little better, “Now it’s my turn.”
      “Your turn for what?” I asked the butterflies returning.
      “Asking you to the movies next Friday,” he laughed and smiled, “You free?”
      “Yeah,” I smiled and looked up at him, “I am.”
      “Cool,” he whispered and the butterflies finally stopped.
      We walked out to the buses together and, as the buses pulled out of the parking lot, I realized one thing. I had taken a risk and it didn’t hurt me, it helped me. The boy I had been crushing on for almost two years had agreed to go out with me and then; he had asked me on a date. Spring had sprung and had given me something new. Goodbye butterflies.

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Please welcome and join me in congratulating the final winner in the Spilling Ink Writing Contest. Sam Murphy chose my book, Willie and the Rattlesnake King as his prize. Take a bow, Sam!

The AUTHOR in his own words:   My name is Sam Murphy. I was born in Fort Dodge, Iowa. I was born in the year of 1997. I have two sisters and one brother. I have an old English bulldog named Gunner that is two years old. I have a Dad that’s in the Army and a Mom that stays home with us. My brother is five, my sisters are eight and eleven. I also have another dog that lives with my Grandma and Grandpa. Her name is Amy Linn. She’s about twelve years old. I've lived in Humboldt, Iowa most of my life.

      I like to play just about every sport, but mostly I play basketball. I like to play football with my friends at the park. I’ve moved about five times in my life because of my dad’s job at Fareway. I have more friends than I could count because of all the moves. In my free time I like to draw. I mostly draw superheroes or cars. I also like to write stories about people getting into all kinds of trouble.

      Thanks for choosing me for one of the winners.

 

"Who is that Mystery Man?"

      One day in New York a man named Michael was walking down Main Street to see his mom at the local store, when all of a sudden he was handed a box by some stranger. He said, “Now I want you to go home and don’t open this until 6:00 at night. So that’s what he did. When he opened it this is what he saw in a vision.
      He saw something so amazing in that box. He saw him as a kid and growing up. He saw his football season in high school. He loved the part when he fell and got ice cream in his face. He kept watching and laughed at all kinds of stuff. He liked watching when he got his first car and his first jersey.
  He liked knowing that if he kept the box he could live his whole life every day. He just wished he knew the mystery man that gave him this box. He kept watching and seen him and his brother on their bikes they got for Christmas. He saw his Grandma before she got in that car wreck ten years ago.
      After that he shut the box and said, “Wow, I can’t believe I relived my life.”

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It was a pleasure to host this writing contest and share these young authors with all of you. Please take a moment to leave a comment for Sam and Margaret to let them know what you liked about their stories or to congratulate them on winning! Thank you, dear readers.