tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post5256885994724545388..comments2024-03-18T09:09:59.625-04:00Comments on Janet Reid, Literary Agent: FINAL contest resultsJanet Reidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00615380335938685231noreply@blogger.comBlogger68125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-87816622651728367142017-03-07T14:38:36.196-05:002017-03-07T14:38:36.196-05:00Late to comment as it was a long trek from the lur...Late to comment as it was a long trek from the lurkers' cove. <br /><br />Thank you, guys, for all the lovely comments. And thank you Janet for hosting these contests. <br /><br /><br /><br />Cecilia Ortiz Lunahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00336485056322219624noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-12262501154091944572017-03-07T13:49:27.450-05:002017-03-07T13:49:27.450-05:00Congratulations to the winners. I've been read...Congratulations to the winners. I've been reading through the entries again and finding more to admire -- so much cleverness & wonderful stories. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12630132306709692520noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-32925081582488836172017-03-07T12:58:00.090-05:002017-03-07T12:58:00.090-05:00Congrats to RKeelan & Cecilia! I loved Cecilia...Congrats to RKeelan & Cecilia! I loved Cecilia's mention of the "Viking blood" - since I recently discovered that's where my blonde hair comes from out of a family of brunettes (Rus!) I have been studying carefully about the Varangian guard...And there's a reason why they called a certain group of Viking warriors - both men and women- the "Berserkers"- GO GERTRUD! <br /><br />So congrats to Winners, the Finalists, the mentionables and the unmentionables (like me!) <br /><br />Thank you Timothy & Cecilia for your wonderful comments too- glad you could relate! This was actually based on a personal true story :D - Writers write even when there are no tools to transcript :D Janice Grinyerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14363741660626407979noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-9104832976972482652017-03-07T07:18:02.313-05:002017-03-07T07:18:02.313-05:00Congratulations to the winners! Beautiful stories....Congratulations to the winners! Beautiful stories.Amy Schaeferhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17263719891092841767noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-74762716950782948182017-03-07T05:57:08.910-05:002017-03-07T05:57:08.910-05:00Congratulations, RKerlan and Cecilia! Woo hoo!Congratulations, RKerlan and Cecilia! Woo hoo!CynthiaMchttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12175917641033760408noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-23289889774248388902017-03-07T04:18:13.335-05:002017-03-07T04:18:13.335-05:00Congratulations, RKeelan and Cecilia Otiz Luna.Gre...Congratulations, RKeelan and Cecilia Otiz Luna.Great writing. Great Finalists, all. Thanks again, Janet, for a fantastic comp and the detailed comments that I always try hard to learn from! Marie McKayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11405271051226910312noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-50951865690885899222017-03-07T01:07:51.672-05:002017-03-07T01:07:51.672-05:00So, I'm a newbie here, but I think the fact th...So, I'm a newbie here, but I think the fact that the Shark herself didn't get a lot of our entries should give pause.<br /><br />We only get 100 words. We want to be subtle and teasing and clever. But sometimes (guilty) I think we lose perspective. We're supposed to TELL a story, not make the reader guess at what the story is.<br /><br />I had edited my entry after my son said 'I don't get it. It's disjointed. I have no idea what it means.' Humph. But I thought my subsequent edits made it oh so clear. Clearly not.<br /><br />Anyways, for those who care--here's what you maybe didn't get in my story. This has been a good lesson. In fact, my first version was much clearer and my head said, "Don't be so obvious!"<br /><br />And actually, here's my guess at Colin's which I really, really liked, assuming I got it.<br /><br />Colin's story: a family of witches, parents, discussing a wayward daughter who keeps disappearing. meanwhile a fly keeps buzzing, buzzing...until smashed. Unfortunately, that wayward daughter had figured out how to become a fly.<br /><br />My story:<br /><br />A mother learns that her son's anti-depressant medicine will now cost more than she can afford. She wings it--what can she do? Months later, she's yelling at her teenage son because he's a slob and won't clean up his room. When she walks in, he's hung himself and his suicide note implies that he thinks HE was the garbage she so wanted cleaned up. Depression is real....Richelle Elberghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11323766317305564428noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-21581584135361190902017-03-07T00:49:31.438-05:002017-03-07T00:49:31.438-05:00So, I'm a newbie here, but I think the fact th...So, I'm a newbie here, but I think the fact that the Shark herself didn't get a lot of our entries should give pause.<br /><br />We only get 100 words. We want to be subtle and teasing and clever. But sometimes (guilty) I think we lose perspective. We're supposed to TELL a story, not make the reader guess at what the story is.<br /><br />I had edited my entry after my son said 'I don't get it. It's disjointed. I have no idea what it means.' Humph. But I thought my subsequent edits made it oh so clear. Clearly not.<br /><br />Anyways, for those who care--here's what you maybe didn't get in my story. This has been a good lesson. In fact, my first version was much clearer and my head said, "Don't be so obvious!"<br /><br />And actually, here's my guess at Nate's which I really, really liked, assuming I got it.<br /><br />Nate's story: a family of witches, parents, discussing a wayward daughter who keeps disappearing. meanwhile a fly keeps buzzing, buzzing...until smashed. Unfortunately, that wayward daughter had figured out how to become a fly.<br /><br />My story:<br /><br />A mother learns that her son's anti-depressant medicine will now cost more than she can afford. She wings it--what can she do? Months later, she's yelling at her teenage son because he's a slob and won't clean up his room. When she walks in, he's hung himself and his suicide note implies that he thinks HE was the garbage she so wanted cleaned up. Depression is real....Richelle Elberghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11323766317305564428noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-33537325704642022252017-03-07T00:10:17.054-05:002017-03-07T00:10:17.054-05:00Ooh, I love the concept of the stories being everg...Ooh, I love the concept of the stories being evergreen. Congrats, Cecilia Ortiz Luna and Rkeelan, you're now immortal! Or, at least your stories won't ever wilt.<br /><br />And I concur with what Timothy Lowe said. As much as I value the feedback from Janet, the opportunity to read and learn from the work of some of the most talented and imaginative writers out there, and to do so within this community of support and encouragement . . . it's a rare and priceless thing.<br /><br />To any lurkers who might be on the fence about whether to join in, all I can say is that you have no idea what you're missing by hesitating to be an active part of this group. Vulnerability is strength. Do it.<br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-66395103045398955992017-03-07T00:03:16.763-05:002017-03-07T00:03:16.763-05:00Wow! A duo-as winners. Congratulations to both. Wh...Wow! A duo-as winners. Congratulations to both. What a fun round this was. Math and poetry. You guys did something truly amazing. <br /><br />And I am getting terrified at how high that bar is being set with each contest. <br /><br />Have pity, oh shark, for # 100. For we may have run out of words…<br /><br />But then, again. Maybe not. Bring it on! I say. Make it dastardly, wickedly hard. Bwaahaha…..RosannaMhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06399732751877180737noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-21977157274278525062017-03-06T22:24:27.425-05:002017-03-06T22:24:27.425-05:00Thank you, everyone, for the kind words. And thank...Thank you, everyone, for the kind words. And thank you Janet, for sponsoring these contests.RKeelanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16761835094251669865noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-27321824683613279242017-03-06T22:12:24.962-05:002017-03-06T22:12:24.962-05:00Congratulations, all! These were so fun to read.
...Congratulations, all! These were so fun to read.<br /><br />Janet: if you love math, you'll love the novel "The Housekeeper and the Professor" by Yoko Ogawa. It's a stunning novel about our relationship to each other and the beauty of numbers. Susanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05332570278984058081noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-78578877214713180292017-03-06T22:08:32.010-05:002017-03-06T22:08:32.010-05:00Congrats Cecilia and RKeelan - such great work! K...Congrats Cecilia and RKeelan - such great work! Kudos to the rest of the finalists, and to the mentions. You're a talented (and inspiring!) bunch. Janet - thank you, as always, for running these contests. They're a simultaneous thrill and tutorial.<br /><br />Kregger: a tip of the old shoe phone to you. The Cone of Silence is a running joke in our household :-)<br /><br />Claire Bobrowhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15666082441972111293noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-6599034498981384272017-03-06T21:39:30.000-05:002017-03-06T21:39:30.000-05:00Congratulations to RKeelan and Cecilia for the win...Congratulations to RKeelan and Cecilia for the win! Great entries, all, as usual. Janet, thank you for the mention and for sponsoring these contests--they truly are a gift.<br />Just Janhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12546035917149403735noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-65603753260272967062017-03-06T21:02:17.720-05:002017-03-06T21:02:17.720-05:00Wholeheartedly agree. I was trying to guess who yo...Wholeheartedly agree. I was trying to guess who you would choose<br />and guessed Cecilia Ortiz Luna. So I got it half right this time.<br />Congrats to Cecilia and Rkeelan for composing the winning entries.<br /><br />Here is a bit of trivis tht may be of interest. You probably<br />already know this, but Rkeelan is a computer programmer, else he<br />would not have known what octal is. Nowadays everybody uses hex<br />(short for hexadedcimal.) Both of those make more sense in systems<br />that store information in binary form than the older decimal number<br />system, which is not a natural system. Probably nobody outside the<br />computer world uses either octal or hex numbers. It takes some<br />doing to change our thinking from the decimal mumber system we were<br />taught in grade school to octal or hex numbers.<br /> <br />Steve Stubbshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13421775912951050610noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-43330873111588924962017-03-06T20:36:21.610-05:002017-03-06T20:36:21.610-05:00Congrats, Rkeelan and Cecilia! Very well done, tru...Congrats, Rkeelan and Cecilia! Very well done, truly awesome entries. Lennon Farishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03570629350169504234noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-4541657009663708592017-03-06T20:09:20.326-05:002017-03-06T20:09:20.326-05:00Congratulations, Rkeelan and Cecilia!
And Nate, t...Congratulations, <b>Rkeelan</b> and <b>Cecilia</b>!<br /><br />And <b>Nate</b>, that was so cool!<br /><br />Many thanks for the contest, <b>Janet</b>. I learn so much from writing my entries, and reading other entries, your comments, and others' comments. This is a great place for learning and a great community you've created.Amy Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05324408700941398495noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-91489696954514927112017-03-06T20:06:19.614-05:002017-03-06T20:06:19.614-05:00Congrats RKeelan and Cecilia! I looked back throug...Congrats RKeelan and Cecilia! I looked back through all the entries and have to say wow - there's just so much talent out there. What a great thing we are being offered here, not just the ability to have someone in the biz read our stuff, but to be able to read each others'. <br /><br />Have a great week everyone!Timothy Lowehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07514224628760035696noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-70020204281346677812017-03-06T20:04:16.818-05:002017-03-06T20:04:16.818-05:00... and I just updated the Contest Spreadsheet in ...... and I just updated the Contest Spreadsheet in <a href="http://www.colindsmith.com/TreasureChest" rel="nofollow">the Treasure Chest</a>. Congrats again to SECOND-TIME winner <b>Rkeelan</b> and FIRST-TIME winner <b>Cecilia Ortiz Luna</b>! :)Colin Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03292997431935215499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-70709805711177754672017-03-06T19:54:02.176-05:002017-03-06T19:54:02.176-05:00I was going to add the following to my comment, bu...I was going to add the following to my comment, but wanted to make sure it was okay with Cecilia first. She said it was, so let me add:<br /><br /><b>Cecilia</b>: For someone who is a native English speaker, your flash story was amazing, beautifully constructed, and worthy of winning. For someone for whom English is a second language, I’m in awe. Gobsmacked, as the Brits would say.<br /><br />To say the bar has been raised is an understatement. I think that's why so many of us went <i>elliptical</i>, as Janet put it. It's getting harder to win. I can only imagine what the 100th is going to be like. I'm scared!!! :)Colin Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03292997431935215499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-26392341045341046402017-03-06T19:45:26.963-05:002017-03-06T19:45:26.963-05:00Congratulations to the winners! Well done, everyon...Congratulations to the winners! Well done, everyone. :)Madeline Mora-Summontehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05529397293165046430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-58050024337691990472017-03-06T19:38:30.486-05:002017-03-06T19:38:30.486-05:00Some great work this week! Congrats Rkeelan and Ce...Some great work this week! Congrats Rkeelan and Cecilia! You deserved it! Well done!<br /><br />I'd also like to give a shout out to Richelle this week. REally loved her entry. It made me gasp.Megan Vhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00752842865397799428noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-55500351584437224582017-03-06T19:27:06.688-05:002017-03-06T19:27:06.688-05:00Congrats RKeelan and Cecilia!! Of course, I'm ...Congrats <b>RKeelan</b> and <b>Cecilia</b>!! Of course, I'm REALLY happy that Cecilia won, because I called it. :DColin Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03292997431935215499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-4764055609457639942017-03-06T19:21:24.144-05:002017-03-06T19:21:24.144-05:00Congrats to Rkeelan and Cecilia Ortiz Luna! What ...Congrats to Rkeelan and Cecilia Ortiz Luna! What a great win with the fantabulous competition!Lisa Bodenheimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17809067722921953857noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-50032281830407737532017-03-06T19:15:21.367-05:002017-03-06T19:15:21.367-05:00This comment has been removed by the author.Lisa Bodenheimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17809067722921953857noreply@blogger.com