Win a Book from Teen Literacy Tips

From my other blog, Teen Literacy Tips: Get a chance at winning a new copy of Gary Blackwood’s ALA Notable book The Shakespeare Stealer for your classroom library by writing a review of the Teen Literacy Tips blog and linking back to your favorite article. The review must be at least 50 words long, and need not be positive; however, you must link back to a favorite article. Everyone who writes a review will be entered in a drawing to win the book. For details, see the complete post, Win a Free Book in the Teen Literacy Tips Review Contest.

The Top 5 Web Sites for a Deserted Island

If you were stranded on a deserted island with your laptop and a satellite internet connection that could only access 5 websites, which 5 would you want? Here are my choices: Hotmail.com - so I could check my email (oh, yeah, I guess I could email someone to come and get me, but being stranded on a deserted island for awhile might be kinda nice--for a little while at least) Google Reader - so I could keep up with all my blogging friends FreeIQ - So I could learn from the best content providers in the world and make money at the same time Blogger.com - so I could update all of you on my day to activities ("Broke open a coconut today...") Project Gutenberg - so I could finally get to all those great books I've been wanting to read (as long as my glasses didn't break, like Burgess Meredith in the Twilight Zone...) A bit off topic today, but I wanted to enter ProBlogger's Top 5 contest; why not come up with an entry of your own? You could win $1001.

Fiction so Bad It's Good

I just came across the Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest, and if you want a good laugh you should really check it out. The goal of the contest: write a single sentence of awful prose. Here's last year's winner, by Jim Guigli of Carmichael, CA: Detective Bart Lasiter was in his office studying the light from his one small window falling on his super burrito when the door swung open to reveal a woman whose body said you've had your last burrito for a while, whose face said angels did exist, and whose eyes said she could make you dig your own grave and lick the shovel clean. Be sure to visit the Sticks and Stones page to read unintentionally bad writing found in published works. Here's an example from Danielle Steele's Star: She wore a dress the same color as her eyes her father brought her from San Francisco.

A Book Gadget Contest

Kimbooktu is sponsoring a book gadget contest, complete with prizes: "I want you to come up with a reading gadget / bookish thingy. (Do not take the phrase ‘gadget’ too literally.) You can let your creativity run free and make it as wacky as you like. It can be – for instance - a piece of jewellery, clothing, a book shelf or some nifty product that comes in handy when reading. It can also be a piece of art that has something to do with books and/or reading. It is all up to you, as long as it’s bookish." The deadline is June 1st, so put on your designing cap and enter.