Challenge Deadline Reminder!

Don't forget, today is the last day to complete any of the Blogoversary Challenges for extra points at registration!  The roundup post has links to all the challenges you can still complete. 

Blogoversary Challenge #12

So I figured we'd make this a round dozen of challenges. Once again, this will be another great way to rack up points to earn prizes.

October 1st is a very important day in the kid lit blogosphere. It marks the opening of the Cybils (Children's and Young Adult Literary Awards) nominations. I've been participating in the Cybils for 5 years now, so they are near and dear to my heart. But the awards wouldn't be possible without nominations, which brings me to this challenge.

Challenge Details:
Points: +1 for every nomination you submit.  There are 10 categories, and you can nominate up to 1 book per category, for a possible point total of 10 points.
Deadline: Nominations are open until Oct 15, but if you want points for this, you must submit your nominations by midnight on October 3rd
How To Enter: Head over to the Cybils page to enter your nominations.  Once you're done, come back here and leave a comment on this post with the titles of the books you nominated.

Blogoversary Challenge #11

Well, we're getting down to the wire here.  Registration for the Giveaway Extrvaganza starts tomorrow, so I figured I'd better get up these last two challenges before then.  Both of these are pretty easy, so this is a great way to rack up points right before the end here.

As some of you may know, and some of you may not, I'm hosting my first reading challenge this fall: the Tamora Pierce reading challenge. The idea is to celebrate the upcoming relase of Pierce's new book in October.  All you have to do for this challenge is sign up to participate, or spread the word about the challenge.

Challenge Details:
Points: +5 for signing up for the challenge, +1 for grabbing the button, +1 for linking to the challenge page
Deadline: Midnight on October 3rd
How To Enter: Sign up on the challenge page.  If you have grabbed the button for your blog/website or linked to the challenge page, leave me a comment on this post with the link to enter.

Blogoversary Challenge #10

Woohoo!  We made it up to 10 challenges!  Now, the deadline to complete these is fast approaching, as most of them have deadlines of October 2nd.  If you missed any, don't forget to check the roundup page which has all of the currently active challenges listed.  And if you're curious about the prizes you will be winning with the points you earn, the first prize preview was posted yesterday. 

Today's challenge comes from blog reader M. A. D. (Mary).  In honor of poetry Friday, your challenge today is to compose a haiku poem about the best book you've read (so far) in 2011.  You can complete up to three poems, at three points each.  And there will be bonus points if your poem is shared at the end of the blogoversary challenges. 

And if you don't know what a haiku poem is, you can check out this Wikipedia article to get you started. Basically, it's a 3 line poem: first line made of 5 syllables, second line with 7 syllables, and last line with 5 syllables.

A few examples taken from this site to get you started.  These are mostly classics, but you should use a book you've read this year:

"The Raven" by Edgar Allen Poe
Black shiny feathers
Quoth the raven nevermore
That bird won't shut up

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis
As young Edmund learns,
You should never take sweets from
Strange women in white.

Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
Crescent moon shining?
No, it's the smile of a cat
strange place, wonderland.

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
Earth, mostly harmless
Blown for Hyper-space bypass
Book says, Don't Panic!

Anyway, you get the idea. As always, you can look these up online, so PLEASE come up with your own and DON'T CHEAT!

Challenge Details:
Points: +3 for each poem, up to 3 submissions, bonus +5 if one (or more) of your entries is shared at the end of the celebration
Deadline: Midnight on October 3rd (since it is so late in the month)
How To Enter: Fill out the Google form below to enter. If you have problems with the form, you can also email me your entries at shadygladeATmailDOTcom.

Blogoversary Challenge #9

I've been thinking a lot today about happy endings (hence the post earlier today).  And you know you can't think about happy endings without thinking about fairy tales.  So here is a totally random, unplanned, and impromptu blogoversary challenge! 

One of my favorite things in the world is retold/fractured fairy tales.  I love them, and I can't get enough.  So for this challenge, I want you to recreate a fairy tale/folktale.  It can be a story, a poem, whatever.  As long as it's based on a fairy tale/folktale of some kind.  Now, I know this takes a lot of creativity, so there are big bonus points at stake for this one!

Now I don't issue any challenge without completing it myself.  So yesterday I sat down and wrote this new version of "The Three Little Pigs" in about 20 minutes.  If you're interested, you'll find it at the very end of this post, after the form below. So be creative, put your thinking caps on, and get writing!  Depending on the entries, I may share some of them at the end of the blogoversary (along with the other good stuff we got going on). 

Challenge Details:
Points: +15 for your retold fairy tale, bonus +5 if your story is shared at the end of the celebration
Deadline: Midnight on October 2nd
How To Enter: Fill out the Google form below to enter. Remember, you can do a story or a poem (or anything else you can think of) but it must be original and completely yours. No plagiarizing, please. If you have problems with the form, you can also email me your entries at shadygladeATmailDOTcom.





The Three Little Pigs
(A Modernized Version)
By Alyssa

Once upon a time there were three little pigs. The time came for them to go out into the world and seek their fortunes. The first little pig decided to build his house of straw (he wasn’t a very smart pig), the second little pig built his house of sturdy wood (sticks aren’t so easy to find anymore), and the third little pig built his house of nice strong cement (bricks are so yesterday).

One day the big bad wolf happened upon the first pigs’ house. “Little pig, little pig, let me come in,” the wolf cried. The first little pig replied, “Not by the hair of my chinny chin chin!” So the wolf huffed and puffed, and huffed and puffed, and when nothing else happened, he took a blowtorch to the side of the little pig’s house.

Straw being very flammable stuff, the little straw house was immediately engulfed in flames. The first little pig managed to escape out of the back door, and ran with his little singed tale all the way to his brother’s house.

Before long, the big bad wolf followed his nose to the second pig’s house. He knocked on the door and said again, “Little pigs, little pigs, let me come in!” Now, the second pig was sure that his wood house was nice and strong, and so he shouted back, “Not by the hair of my chinny chin chin!”

So the wolf huffed and puffed, and huffed and puffed again, and nothing much happened (he was getting a little old after all). Well, the wolf was getting very hungry, and wasn’t about to let a couple of little pigs outsmart him with a wooden door. So the big bad wolf backed his truck through the door of the little wooden house.

Wood is nice and strong against wolves, but it just can’t stand up to a Hemi V8 engine. So as the little wooden house fell to splinters, the two little pigs just managed to escape through the back door and ran all the way to their brother’s house. (Why the wolf didn’t just chase them down in his truck, we’ll never know. Maybe he forgot his glasses that day and didn’t see them run through the gaping hole his truck left in the second little pig’s living room.)

Now, the third little pig was much smarter than his brothers. He had built his house of cement, knowing that he would be safe from big bad wolves. And although his brothers were somewhat stupid (who builds in flammable materials anyway?) they were still his brothers. So he let his scorched and splintery brothers into the door and that was the end of that.

Of course the big bad wolf wasn’t going to give up on his nice ham dinner now, so he eventually followed his nose to the third little pig’s house. He wearily knocked on the door, and in a tired voice he said, “Little pigs, little pigs, let me come in!” The third little pig could tell the wolf was getting tired, so he confidently said, “Not by the hair of my chinny chin chin!”

So although it hadn’t really worked before, the wolf huffed and puffed, and huffed and puffed, and huffed and puffed some more, trying to blow the cement house down. (It was tradition, after all). When that didn’t work, the wolf tried to burn the cement house with his blowtorch, but all that did was leave a few black marks on the door. Then the wolf tried backing his truck into the cement house. Unfortunately, all that did was smash in his bumper and ruin his suspension.

The smart thing for the wolf to do at this point would be to just give up. In fact, that’s exactly what the three little pigs expected to him to do. But this particular wolf, in addition to not being as young as he used to be, was rather henpecked by his lady wolf wife. So he was determined to come home with ham for dinner, no matter what.

After spending several minutes thinking about what he wanted to do, the wolf climbed onto the roof of the cement house, and walked over to the chimney, and threw a stick of dynamite into the cement house. The resulting explosion finally let the big bad wolf into the third little pig’s house. Unfortunately, both the wolf and the little pigs had been blown into too many smithereens to care.

Blogoversary Challenge #8

As promised, here is the second blogoversary challenge of the day. Have you been keeping up? There's only a few more days to complete them...

Today's challenge partly comes from an idea submitted by Lieder Madchen, and partly from something I saw in a forum a few weeks ago. I call it Titles in Other Words. The idea is to create a new title for a book using alternate language. Here's two great examples I found on this Scholastic blog. Can you guess what books they are?
1. The Starving Contests
2. Harold Planter and the Two Quarters Hemoglobin Royalty

Did you get them? How about these from another site:
3. Exaggerated self-esteem and bigotry
4. Derivative of Adelaide's encountering of danger within imaginary land replete with marvels

Give up? The answers are The Hunger Games, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Pride and Prejudice, and Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.

You get the idea. So get creative and recreate those book titles! You can submit up to 5. If I get enough responses, I'll have a little quiz at the end of the blogoversary and you can guess the best ones for even more bonus points.

There are only two rules:
1.  They must be book titles and
2.  I know you can Google these, so PLEASE come up with your own.  No cheating!
(Young adult books or classics are preferred, but that isn't a requirement)

Challenge Details:
Points: +2 for each title, up to 10 points. Bonus +3 if one (or more) of your titles is chosen to share for the quiz
Deadline: Midnight on October 2nd
How To Enter: Fill out the Google form below to enter. You can submit up to 5 entires, and make sure you include what the answer is.  If you have problems with the form, you can also email me your entries at shadygladeATmailDOTcom.

Blogoversary Challenge #7

Oops!  I meant to post this challenge and completely forgot apparently.  So you'll get 2 challenges today, one now and one later on! 

There was a great response to Eleni's guest post on how reading has changed her life.  This has caused my own reflections over the past few days, and inspired the idea for this challenge.  So here's what you need to do. 

I want you to share a favorite reading memory.  Maybe you remember the first time you discovered you enjoyed reading.  Maybe it's about a book that particularly excited or touched you.  Maybe you remember going to the library for preschool storytime or a family member reading to you as a child. 

To jump start your ideas, here's one of my fond reading memories:

I don't really remember when I decided I loved reading.  But I can remember when my reading habits took off.  You remember those Scholastic book orders you used to get in school?  Some of them had subscription-type clubs on the back page, where you could sign up to have a book(s) with some sort of theme sent to you every month.  When I was in 2nd grade, my mom signed me up for the Boxcar Children club.  I'd get 3 books a month, along with a newsletter of related acitivities like how to make your own peanut butter, etc.  And I never touched them.  So by the 5th month, she cancelled the subscription, saying she was sick of paying for books I never read.  So all 15 books just stayed on my shelf, sitting there unread. 

About a year later, one night I decided to pick up the first book on a whim.  It took me 5 months to get through the first 3 books in the series, but I was determined to finish them.  By the time I started the 4th book, I was starting to really get into these books.  By the time I was reading the 7th one, I would start the book when I went to bed, and stay up late into the night (without my parents knowing) so I could finish the book and solve the mystery.  It was wonderful, and I've considered myself a bookworm ever since. 

So what's your favorite reading memory?  I'll post some of your memories later on in the blogoversary, so we can all share and celebrate our love for reading and books.  :)
Challenge Details:
Points: +5 for sharing your memory with us
Deadline: Midnight on October 2nd
How To Enter: Fill out the Google form below to enter. If you have problems with the form, you can also email me your entries at shadygladeATmailDOTcom.

Blogoversary Challenge #6

Going along with today's post about the book trading website Paperbackswap.com (PBS), I'm hosting a new blogoversary challenge for those who want to sign up. The main reason for this is that one of the prizes I am giving away at the end of the celebration will be specific to people who have signed up for Paperbackswap, and I'm trying to guage how wide my audience is. So I get a better idea of numbers, you get extra points, it's a win-win situation. And the site is a great way to share books you're done reading with people who'd like the chance to read them, and get new books yourself.

This challenge is open to both new and old members of Paperbackswap.com

Challenge Details:
Points: +3 for completing this challenge
Deadline: Midnight on October 3rd
How To Enter: If you are new to PBS - Sign up to create your account, and use my username Greycat133 as your referral when you sign up. This means your name will show up in my account and record that you completed this challenge.

If you are already a PBS member - You can also earn points for this challenge if you have a PBS profile. Send me an email at shadygladeATmailDOTcom and send me a link to your profile. If you don't have a PBS profile, then you can also sign up for one.

If you have any questions, or any trouble, feel free to email or comment. Good luck!

Blogoversary Challenge #5

Today's blogoversary challenge is a great way to earn some extra points by doing something that's really easy.  When I asked Ashley if she had any suggestions for a challenge to go with her guest post, she had told me she was always surprised by the amount of book bloggers who don't use the library.

I agree that libraries can be great tools (for bloggers or any reader) so your challenge today is to use your local library! Sign up for a library card if you don't have one, and if you do, go down to your library and find something you haven't read before (try something new!). 

Challenge Details:
Points: +3 for completing this challenge
Deadline: You have one week to complete this challenge.  Visit your library before Sep 27
How To Enter:  This one is on your honor.  If you'd like, feel free to share your library finds in the comments below. 

Blogoversary Challenge #4

In honor of International Talk Like a Pirate Day, we're having a pirate challenge! In the vein of today's post, tell me about your favorite pirate books. They can be about pirates, involve pirate characters, etc.

Submit as many ideas as you want. Share your "pirate name" with us to earn a bonus point. Make something up and be creative. :) Some of these will be added to the list that went up later today to share with other pirate-enthusiast readers.

Challenge Details:
Points: +3 for submitting at least one idea, +2 for sharing your pirate name
Deadline: Submit ideas before midnight on September 22nd
How To Enter:  Submit your ideas using the Google form below, or email to me at shadygladeATmailDOTcom

Blogoversary Challenge #3

I hope you're all ready to get your creative juices flowing, since this challenge requires a thinking cap!

I'm a bit of a cover art junkie.  I'm one of those people who considers repurchasing a book when it's released with new cover art just to have the pretty new cover (its one of the reasons why I have multiple copies of Pride and Prejudice). 

So in being a cover art enthusiast, I really notice when a cover doesn't hit the spot.  Take this one for example.  It's nice, and this is one of my favorite series so I like it for that reason.  But there's just something off about it.  It's just not as great as the old covers for this series (which is unusual for me, because I tend to like updated covers much better than the old ones). 

So I decided to do my own version a little over a year ago:

Volia!

Your challenge for today, should you choose to accept it, is to redesign a cover that you think could have been done better.  It has to be a book that is already out and available (no pre-release titles), but other than that, it can be any book.  Since this challenge requires more time and effort,  you will get a lot more points for completing it.  I'll be selecting a few of the entries to share at the end of the month, and you will get bonus points if your cover is one of the ones selected. 

Challenge Details:
Points: +15 points for submitting a cover (that's a lot of points up for grabs).  If your cover is chosen to highlight at the end of the month, then you will also get +5 for being selected. 
Deadline: Covers must be submitted by October 1st at midnight Pacific Time.
How To Enter:  Email your entries to shadygladeATmailDOTcom with the subject line "Cover Contest".  You can either email the picture as an attachment, or post the cover on your blog, photobucket, flickr, etc. and send me a link.  Whatever works for you.

Questions?  As always feel free to ask!

Blogoversary Reading Challenges

Ready to win some more points for the prize auctions at the end of the month?  Well, here's your chance.  Your second challenge is... the Blogoversary Reading Challenge!

Throughout this month there will be a series of book lists posted (guest posts, announcements, etc.).  You will get points for every book on these lists you read during this month.  Easy, right? 

I'll be collecting links from the various eligible posts here, so keep checking back to see which books are eligible. 

• Read something chosen from our Book Battle Reader's Choice Awards (or the ultimate winner)
• Read a historical fiction book from guest poster Erica's list
• Read a pirate themed book
• Read a book that guest poster Ashley  said changed her life

  

Challenge Details:
Points: +1 per book read
Deadline: September 30th. 
How To Enter:  One point for every book on the above linked list (updated throughout the month) you read during the month of September.  Rereads count, but they must be read IN SEPTEMBER.  Keep track of what you read, you will be asked to tally up during the prize registration on October 1st.

Blogoversary Challenge #1

As I mentioned in my post about prizes, every so often I will be posting a challenge for you to complete to win extra points to win prizes with at the end of the month.  Well, today is your first challenge.

So what is it?  Well, it's to help me out.  I've got some ideas for challenges, but I always love hearing everyone's ideas too.  So here's the challenge: submit your own idea for a challenge!  It can be a reading challenge, commenting on a certain post, doing something, anything you can think of as long as it is blog or book related in some way.

Challenge Details:
Points: +2 per idea submitted, +5 for any challenges used this month.
Deadline: Submit ideas before midnight on September 17th.
How To Enter:  Submit your ideas using the Google form below, or email to me at shadygladeATmailDOTcom

Comment Challenge 2010

Totally forgot to post this earlier, but better late than never!

I know many of you are participating in the Bloggiesta this weekend, so here's another good challenge for you.

Courtesy of MotherReader, it's time for the second annual Comment Challenge 2010. Since it takes 21 days to form a habit, the idea is to make at least 5 comments per day for 21 days. You can read all the details at the original post and then visit this post to sign up.

And yes, there are prizes! I know I've seen a lot of resolutions to comment more the past week or so in the blogosphere, so get out there and start commenting. :)