In August, your challenge was to submit a poorly written beach scene. David Lignell sent this winning entry: Putnam Twin snot flows streamed down from Putnam's nose like the tumultuous tributaries of the great Niagara cascading into the Canadian and American Falls. Darting his tongue to lick at the rivulets, the youth grabbed his Scooby Doo beach pail and scampered up the sand dune like a drunken tiger beetle, sans the large pointed mandibles, antennae that arise from the top of the head, long spindly legs which hold the body well off the ground, or the narrow thorax and broad, almost oblong hardened forewings. Seagulls flew about to avoid Putnam's approach, but gathered again like so many relatives flapping around a wedding reception for extra helpings of food and gossip. Putnam stopped, set down his pail, and used both hands to pull his loose swim trunks up over crest of his buns. He sat then and pushed the sand forward with the soles of his feet, which caused a small avalanche down the dune. The grains of sand sparkled like shards of broken mirrors reflecting the shimmering siege of the summer sun. He glanced down at the lakeshore. Seagulls fought and squawked over Fritos left on a beach blanket. A few people walked along the shoreline. Then he saw a cluster of fat and folds slothing up the dune and muttering expletives between puffs on an unfiltered Camel. "Putnam," her voice hissed like a flat tire, "Get down here." "Okay, Mom." When she turned, he reached into his pail and made a mud bomb. He had a target now.

David Lignell lives with his wife Colleen and their three children in Lawrence, Kansas. He is a member of Pam Casto's Flash-Fiction Workshop listserv, where he's met many talented writers.

Think Like an Executive by Julie Gray Copyright (c) 2007 Julie Gray I got my start writing for pay many years ago by writing first person essays for small publications. First person essays are not an easy route to go. The pay isn't that great - it ranges from free copies of the magazine to a few hundred dollars. And unless you're published in a pretty big, 4-color national periodical, don't expect much in the way of fame or fanfare. You'd be surprised what prestige means in magazines. It's not all Vanity Fair and The Nation and The New Yorker, my friends. The bread and butter periodicals are ones like Good Housekeeping, Reader's Digest, Ladies Home Journal, Parenting...the list is long. Competition is intense, articles have to be very topical and it takes a lot of elbow grease to continually be writing and submitting work. What I learned from the time I spent writing for periodicals is that editors read submissions constantly and because of that, do not get excited about great writing - rather they get excited about novelty. In other words, if you write an essay about say, how hard divorce is, or the cost of living in Southern California and how you think about moving to Nebraska or how after you had your first child you lost your sense of self - those types of essays go into the "bad egg" file. You know, the circular. The trash. The "unfortunately this submission is not for us at this time" letter. An article about how painful divorce is written by a Badger catch-and-release Game Warden - that would be snapped up immediately. Why? Because that article has an angle. A "hook", as they say in the movie business. Right? Aren't you curious about Wolverine catch-and-release programs? Who does that?? I read an article in the New Yorker last week about mushroom pickers in the Cascade Mountains. Who does that?? It caught my eye because it's so far out of my realm that it interested me. My time is at a premium. And I read a lot. So I want to read something new and different. Something that will enrich and interest me. Thinking like an editor is something that you do every day. Because your time is at a premium. And you consume a lot of media in one form or another. So you want to read something new and different. And you make choices constantly: Which TV show to watch. Which catalogue to thumb through - and which one to toss. Which newspaper article to read. Which billboard to notice. Which magazine article to read. Each day we choose what we consume based on the novelty and uniqueness of the choice. So what's the screenwriting tie-in? Keep your friends close but your enemies closer. Learn to think like an editor - or a movie exec. Their time is at a premium. And they read a lot. New and different is the order of the day. Screenwriters can be isolated at their desks with one script for months at a time. But executives have scripts all over their desks every day. And more arrive every day. Dozens and dozens of scripts. More than you can imagine. So you need to stand out from those stacks. It might initially be the title of your script that is eye-catching and attention-getting. After that, it better be a unique premise, well executed. Learn to think the way executives or editors do. Writers need every advantage we can get. So think like an editor.

About the Author

A screenwriting consultant and writer, Julie Gray currently lives in Los Angeles. www.thescriptwhisperer.com

Crab Creek Review announces its first national fiction contest. Being an editor is a pleasure and an honor. All of us here at Crab Creek are delighted and amazed by the voices and visions that fill our P.O. Box and paper our desks. To showcase this good work and celebrate fiction in 2007, we present the first Annual Crab Creek Fiction Contest! We are accepting submissions postmarked now through November 30, 2007. Our prize is $100 and publication in Crab Creek Review. www.crabcreekreview.org/contest.htm

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1st BrooWaha Contest - Contest Theme - During the month of September, BrooWaha is organizing a writing contest aiming to reward the best local news/op-ed article. Only articles with a local focus, i.e., themes relevant to the city in which you are registered, will be considered for this contest.

For submission guidelines: www.broowaha.com/contest.php

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From the Award-Winning Writer of The Problem with Murmur Lee and Before Women Had Wings, Connie May Fowler introduces her full immersion workshops for serious writers, Below Sea Level. Join Connie May on October 12, 2007, for the first three-day fiction-writing workshop in scenic Alligator Point, Florida, the inspiration for her third novel, Remembering Blue. Submissions accepted now.

Below Sea Level also kicks off its first Exclusive, Seven-day, workshop-intensive Conference in St. Augustine, Florida on June 1-8, 2008, featuring Connie May Fowler, Dorothy Allison, and Joy Harris, President of Joy Harris Literary Agency. Mark your calendars. Log onto www.writingbelowsealevel.com for more information.

You can also visit Connie May Fowler at: www.conniemayfowler.com

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WD Popular Fiction Awards

Categories include: Romance, Mystery/Crime Fiction, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Thriller/Suspence and Horror. Entry Deadline: November 1, 2007

For more information check out Writer's Digest Magazine or visit: WD Popular Fiction Contest

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Muse Online Writers Conference

This free, virtual conference will be held October 8th - 14th and features writing workshops, a virtual conference room (for registered attendees), free downloads, e-books and handouts.

For more info: The Muse Online Writers Conference

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If you're looking for a literary agent to represent your work, you may be interested in checking out the Backspace Agent-Author Seminars (November 6 & 7, 2007, NYC). Two days with 22 top agents on a program of panels and workshops with plenty of free time to network.

Scott Hoffman, Paul Cirone, Miriam Goderich, Paige Wheeler, Michael Bourret, Stephany Evans, and many more.

For more information: Backspace Agent-Author Seminars

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I received a press release for the following company - Keller Media - and thought it may be of interest to you.

Malibu, CA - Did you know that according to the Chase Calendar September is the "Be Kind To Editors & Writers Month"? Malibu literary agent, Wendy Keller, offers writers the information they need to get published so they can celebrate the holiday while working on making their publishing dreams come true. Keller, whose company specializes in nonfiction books intended for adults, has reduced more than 18 years of experience and just over 550 books sold worldwide to a compelling formula. Keller offers writers the tools to create a winning book proposal that has the five critical elements covered. Miss one of these elements and your book proposal can end up in the recycle pile. "Once people understand the Lego-like process of building a proposal, they see their dream coming true. It's a matter of knowing what to put where and when, add a dash of passion to some great content, and there you have it." says Keller.

Keller has the experience, knows what she's talking about and a dream to help more would be authors climb the best seller lists. To make this possible and affordable, Keller Media offers a beginning author live seminar and the popular "Wendy Keller's Simple, Step-By-Step Six CD Program for Getting Your Nonfiction Book Proposal Written & Sold For Maximum Money" that explains and leads people through the process of creating those "five critical elements" of a salable book proposal. Aspiring authors may erase the learning curve by visiting www.kellermedia.com/seminar_detail.aspx?id=1 and www.kellermedia.com/product_detail.aspx?id=1 and by joining the free Keller Media, Inc. e-zine.

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I found an interesting site the other day - Trent Steele's Write Street. com. I really like the blog. It's called Nick Daws' Writing Blog and it lists a lot of links that you may find useful, informative and fun.

You can check it out at: www.writestreet.com

You can access the blog through the link above or you can go directly to it at: www.mywritingblog.com

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I know this is sooo last minute, but I only received the information yesterday - sorry - but if you live in NYC, you can still attend :)

Mark your calendars for the Brooklyn Book Festival, held this Sunday, September 16! BookExpo America is proud to support the Brooklyn Book Festival and we hope you'll join us this Sunday in Brooklyn. The festival is a wonderful celebration of books and authors, (Jonathan Safran Foer, Edwidge Danticat, Colson Whitehead, and Dave Eggers, to name just a few) to be held in Downtown Brooklyn on Sunday, September 16, 2007, around Brooklyn Borough Hall. Admission is free and open to the general public. BookExpo is proud to support any entity or event that brings the written word into the hands of readers. As the second largest book fair in the world, BEA's ultimate mission is to celebrate the written word and help raise awareness of books 365 days a year. Our support for the Brooklyn Book Festival is an extension of that mission - and it's a great festival! For specific information regarding participating authors and vendors, directions, and a complete schedule of festival programs, visit, www.brooklynbookfestival.org/

For general information, call 718-802-3852.

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SIXTH ANNUAL FUNDSFORWRITERS ESSAY CONTEST - SPONSORED BY NABBW.COM

FundsforWriters and the National Association of Baby Boomer Women announce the Annual FFW Essay Contest with the theme: Make Us Want to Be You! In 750 words or less, either send us a remarkable promotional plan for your writing project or tell us what you'd do with your writing career if you had a year to devote to your passion. As always with a FFW contest, you choose whether to pay a $5 entry fee or not. The first prize for the entry fee division is $200. The first prize for the non-entry fee division is $50. Deadline October 31, 2007. Winners announced December 1, 2007. Visit our sponsor at www.nabbw.com

www.fundsforwriters.com/annualcontest.htm

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Bobbie Christmas is the "Book Doctor" and Author of Write In Style, a triple-award-winning textbook for writers of fiction and nonfiction, available wherever books are sold.

Bobbie loves to receive questions from writers and offer her expert advice. If you have any questions you need answered, please e-mail her at: Bobbie@zebraeditor.com

For the latest Q&A with Bobbie, go to AskTheBookDoctor on the CS4W site.

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If you have any announcements, please e-mail them to: sandy@coolstuf4writers.com

I love to hear from you! Peace,

Sandy