Twice per academic year, the BCL Young Adult Department runs a literary contest, which means that it's time to launch into Poison Pen: the Super Short Scary Story Contest on Wednesday. (Clearly, Ian and I used to be English majors -- look at that wordy contest title.)
The Poison Pen Contest will run from Wednesday, October 1st, through Friday, October 31st. The entries will be split into two categories: 6th-8th grade authors and 9th-12th grade authors. The story should be between 1-3 pages in length (12 point font, double-spaced), and each student may submit up to 2 stories. We're looking for originality, use of creative writing devices, and overall impression & flow. The first, second, and third place winners in each category will win giftcards to Powell's City of Books.
Encourage your students to enter the Poison Pen Contest this October! To pick up an entry form, stop by the Young Adult Room at the library. If you can't make it, let us know and we'll email you a copy... or even better, we'll send you a batch by snail mail. Whether it is satire, gothic horror, goofiness, or just plain imaginative, we want to read those stories!
