The October Contest was a fun read for the judges! Now you can have fun reading the winning entries! The First, Second, Third, place winners are below. The prompt for October included an instruction to make the stories appropriate for a five-year-old. Enjoy reading the kids’ Halloween stories! Each of these stories will appear in the annual Fiction in Five Anthology, scheduled for publication in August, 2011. Congratulations to all the winners!
First prize is a $25 VISA gift card, one free enrollment in a live 20/10 Webinar of the winner’s choice, publication with bio and photo on our blog with links from the I4IE Center for Writing Excellence Website for a minimum of one year. PLUS: publication in the annual Fiction in Five Anthology and a FREE e-copy of the Anthology at the end of the contest year! (First annual Fiction in Five Anthology due out August, 2011)
First place winner: Lucky Spider by Marcia Spencer of Dayton, Ohio. Marcia is a kindergarten teacher who delights in spinning stories for her students. She decided to enter the contest to see if one of their favorite Halloween stories would win, and she was right! The following story is dedicated to her current class.
Lucky Spider
Magic is in the air every year around the end of October. This is the time when black cats talk, broomsticks fly, and lucky spiders are, well, lucky. It is Halloween night and this year would be the first year that Spiky Spider was allowed to go Trick-or-Treating with his friends. He just knew this would be his lucky year. As he was getting ready to meet his friends, Spiky was thinking about all the candy he would be bringing home and did not notice the broomstick twitching in the corner of the kitchen. He scurried along the edge of the room, dragging his trick-or-treat bag along behind him. Just as he disappeared under the door, the broomstick jumped up and flew after him, smacking the door and falling down.
“Oh, come on, Princess, you can do better than that!” Max, a slinky black cat who was watching from across the room, said, chuckling in his whiskers.
“My name is Princeton, not Princess!” the broomstick retorted. “And that silly spider caught me off guard. I wasn’t expecting him this early.” Princeton huffed and swept back across the floor to his corner.
“You know you only have one day left to get rid of the spiders in this house and on Halloween spiders are lucky.” Max went on to tease Princeton, the magic broomstick. Princeton was a young broomstick, and in order for him to gain all his magic powers, he had to sweep all the spiders in the house outside before midnight on Halloween. This year was his last chance to gain his powers. If he failed, he would never become a flying magic broomstick.
Princeton slumped down on his straw and concentrated on how he was going to get Spiky and his friends out of the house before midnight. He just had to gain his powers so he could be a flying broomstick next year and give the witches rides through the night. He thought and he thought. Suddenly, he had an idea! Ignoring Max, who was dosing on the windowsill, he swept out of the kitchen, trailing straw pieces behind him.
In the meantime, Spiky had met up with his friends in the mud room behind the kitchen. “Hi guys! This is going to be so much fun! I have to be careful, though, because I think Princeton is after me – and probably all of you, too!”
“Yes, but you know spiders are lucky on Halloween,” said Herbie, the spider that lived behind the washer, his eight eyes nervously looking around the room.
“I think that is an old spider’s tale,” Selena, the spider from under the windowsill, said. “My mom used to tell me that every year until the year Princeton’s big brother swept her right outside on Halloween morning!”
“Well, no matter what, we need to be careful!” Spiky grinned at Selena and blushed as much as a spider could blush. (He had kind of a spidy crush on her.)
The spider children gathered up their trick-or-treat bags and cautiously crept out of the mud room into the kitchen, keeping all their eyes peeled for Princeton. Max opened one eye, peered lazily at the spiders as they crossed the floor, then closed his eye and pretended to be asleep again.
“Nobody in here but lazy old Max.” Selena whispered.
Just as they reached the corner where Princeton usually sat, Max jumped down from the window, arched his back, and hissed at the spiders, scaring them silly. “Hey ssssspidersssss,” he hissed, “Better watch out! Princess is on the prowl, looking for you!”
“Stop calling him Princess, Max! His name is Princeton.” Spiky did not like it when Max teased the broomstick, even if Princeton wanted to sweep Spiky outside. During non-magic times of the year, Spiky and Princeton had become great friends. The straw bundle on the bottom of the broomstick was a great place for a spider to play hide and seek with his friends.
“Hey! Look over there! That big black pot must have some good Halloween treats inside!” Herbie started crawling over to the counter so he could climb up and see what was in the pot. Selena and Spiky followed, dragging their sacks behind them. Up, up, they went, straight up the front of the cupboard to the countertop. Just as they were crawling up the side of the black pot, the door to the living room slowly opened and Princeton stuck his head in, looking around for the spiders.
“Spiky!” Princeton called out in a loud whisper, “I have an idea. Come here and I will tell you how we can both get what we want this Halloween!”
“Don’t believe him, Spiky!” Herbie was scared that Princeton was trying to trick them. Selena didn’t say anything, but watched Spiky to see what he would do. Max just grinned, thinking he knew what Princeton was up to.
Spiky trusted his friend, though, and crawled over to see what he had to say. They whispered together for a minute, then Spiky called Herbie and Selena over. Max was surprised to see the three spiders crawl up into the straw bundle just as Princeton started sweeping slowly to the back door.
“And stay out!” Princeton shouted as he shook his straw outside. “There! Mission accomplished! And I get my full magic flying powers!” He jumped up and zipped around the room to show Max his new skills. Max shook his head and slowly walked through the door to the living room.
“OK, guys, you can come out now.” Princeton said as Spiky, Herbie, and Selena crawled out of the straw bundle, dragging their full trick-or-treat bags with them. The bags were full of candy that Princeton had hidden for them. They scampered back into the mud room to eat their candy while Princeton swooped around and around the kitchen!
Second prize is one free enrollment in a live 20/10 Webinar of the winner’s choice and publication with bio and photo on our blog with links from the I4IE Center for Writing Excellence Website for a minimum of one year. PLUS: publication in the annual Fiction in Five Anthology and a FREE e-copy of the Anthology at the end of the contest year! (First annual Fiction in Five Anthology due out August, 2011)
Second place winner: Cookies and Screams, by Rodger Orr, of Newark, Ohio. Rodger has been involved with Information Technology for over 30 years. He loves reading and in the ninth grade had over 1000 books in his collection. He has been married to a wonderful woman (2nd grade school teacher Becky) for 34 years. Becky has always encouraged him, telling he should write and he finally listened. Rodger and Becky have two grown children, Greg and April. Greg has two children, Savannah and Logan. All his children, their spouses, and grandchildren have appeared in his stories. His goal is to have his stories and poems published. Well, Rodger – here is one of your stories published!
Cookies and Screams
“Hurry up Greg, we’re gonna be late!” yelled five year old April as she stood at the bottom of the steps. It was trick or treat night and April was excited about going. She loved black cats and Mom made her an outfit for the occasion. She waited for her brother with her black cape, hood with ears, whiskers made from pipe cleaners sticking out of the sides of her upper lip and her face painted to look like a cat.
Greg was two years older and decided to go as a spider. Mom had stitched up a black outfit and then stuck large and small spiders all over it with Velcro. Greg had a reason for his costume. Tonya sat next to him in class and he liked her. He thought that since she was afraid of spiders, he might try to scare her with them tonight and maybe she would notice him.
“Mandy and Molly are waiting and it’s getting dark,” called Mom as she worked in the kitchen. The children were friends with the twin girls down the street and their parents were walking with them tonight. “Remember only go to houses with the lights on and say thank you. Now before you leave I have a treat for you.” Mom went to the cupboard and pulled two black and orange cookies from the jar. “Here is a spider shape for Greg and a cat shape for April. Remember to eat them when you get outside.” Greg and April stuffed the cookies in their mouths as they ran down the walk.
Time passed quickly and darkness settled in as the four went from door to door. Mandy and Molly stopped at a house to talk to some friends while Greg and April went on ahead. Just as they reached the steps of the next house, someone let out a scream! “Get away from me, I hate spiders!” It was Tonya coming down the steps. She looked at Greg. “You really look funny. You face almost looks like a spider!” With that, Tonya ran away from the children and onto the sidewalk.
The children looked at each other confused about what was happening. “April, I don’t think we look like cats and spiders. It has to be the costume and the shadows. Besides, I think Tonya’s a little crazy”
Both children’s plastic black pots were almost full of candy when they reached the last house on the street. “April, where is everyone?” April looked around and noticed that the sidewalk was empty. “I don’t know. Let’s get this last house and then go back up the street. I’m getting cold.”
As they approached the steps, they noticed one dim light hanging down in the middle of the porch. The bushes and shrubs seem to cast strange looking shadows into the yard. The swing was making a creaking noise as it swung back and forth! Grabbing April’s hand, Greg stepped onto the porch.
Instantly the light went out and they heard a swishing sound. It was almost as if something flew past their heads. Both children let out a scream and tried to run off the porch. However, their feet seem to be nailed to the floor. Suddenly, the light flicked back on and they were shocked to see a princess sitting on a broomstick right in front of them! “Not afraid of a princess are you,” said the women in a high pitched voice “Would you like a ride?”
Both children felt like they were in slow motion and unable to respond. They found themselves walking over to the broom and with the princess’ help, climbed aboard. “There’s not room for all that candy and yourselves on this broom. Just set it down on the porch.” When the black pots touched the floor, the light went off and the broomstick took off!
“Hang on and let’s see the sights” called the princess as the broom flew up into the sky. Both children had their eyes closed tight. “Hey you two open your eyes and have some fun tonight. There’s your school right over there. You go to Garfield school don’t you?” Greg nodded, too scared to talk. April however was never at a loss for words. “This is fun, let’s fly over our old neighborhood and scare some kids!” The broom swooped down and flew right along the street. Kids screamed and ran for their parents. “Ha ha ha, that’s funny. Can this broomstick loop the loop?” The children hung on as the broom flew under a bridge, looped the loop and came out on the other side! Greg and April’s stomachs were in their throat but they screamed for more. “This is more fun than a roller coaster any day!” The princess took them around the football game scoreboard and half the crowd fainted! “What a night this has been. Who are you anyway?” they finally asked.
The next thing Greg and April knew they were standing on the strange porch with the dim light bulb. Coming to their senses they jumped off the porch and went running down the sidewalk toward home.
When they reached their house, they realized they didn’t have their buckets of candy. As soon as they got inside, they tried to tell their Mom what happened but she laughingly cut them off. “That’s very funny you two. Now go upstairs, get you pajamas on and come back down. I want to hear all about it.” When they reached their rooms, their buckets of candy were on their beds! On top of each bucket was the same black and orange cookie.
Talking to each other about what was happening; the children dressed for bed and ran down the steps to the kitchen. They entered the kitchen just as Mom was putting the broom in the closet. Sticking out from under the door was a piece of lace material! “Now children, tell me about your night.”
Third prize is publication with bio and photo on our blog with links from the I4IE Center for Writing Excellence Website for a minimum of one year. PLUS: publication in the annual Fiction in Five Anthology and a FREE e-copy of the Anthology at the end of the contest year! (First annual Fiction in Five Anthology due out August, 2011)
Third place winner: A Very Spider Halloween, by Marjorie Puckett of Calliham, Texas. Marjorie has written several short stories for children, but never published any of them. She entered the contest on a whim, and at the urging of her family, who have always enjoyed her story-telling!
A Very Spider Halloween
“Ponce ponce time, grandma!” My three year old grandson was getting ready for bed the night before Halloween and was asking for a bedtime story. He hadn’t quite mastered the words yet, but I knew ‘Once Upon a Time’ when I heard it from him.
“Ok, Jeremy, what kind of story do you want tonight? A princess story?” I grinned, knowing full well that Jeremy was not at all interested in princesses.
“No! Yuck! I want a spider story!” Halloween was on his mind after spending the evening helping his daddy hang some ghosts and skeletons in the hallway.
“Well, ok, but don’t blame me if you get scared!”
“I won’t get scared! I’m a big boy!”
“Once upon a time,” I began the story as Jeremy settled back into the pillow.
There was a family of spiders living under a log in the forest. They were very nice spiders, but the children in the big house at the edge of the woods were scared of them. Whenever the spiders came out to play, the children ran away screaming, hurting the spiders’ feelings. Then one October the spiders had an idea about how to make the children love them. They decided to have a Halloween party and invite the children!
“What fun this will be!” cried little Suzy Spider, the youngest member of the spider family. “We can play games, eat cake and candy, and show the children that we are really lots of fun to play with.”
As Halloween got closer, the spiders were busy decorating their log home with lots of pretty webs. They stuck leaves and other small bits they found on the forest floor into the webs to make them festive for the party. They were trying to figure out how to invite the children to the party when they heard someone walking through the trees. Tommy Spider, Suzy’s big brother, scampered up a branch so he could see who was in the forest. It was Skinch, the black cat that lived with the children! He could help the spiders! The children loved him.
“Hey!” Tommy called out when Skinch walked by the branch Tommy was sitting on. “Skinch, it’s me, Tommy Spider!”
“Oh, hi, Tommy. I haven’t seen you and your family lately. Where have you been?” Skinch sat down and curled his tail around by his feet. He and the spider family were old friends.
“We’re getting ready for a Halloween party! We’ve been decorating our log home.” Tommy looked around proudly at all the webs he and his family had made. “Do you think the children will come? We want to play with them, but they always run away when they see us.” Tommy was really sad now, thinking of the children running away.
“I don’t know, Tommy. The children think you and your family will bite them!” Skinch shook his head, sure that the children would not want to come to a spider party, even if it was Halloween.
“Please, Skinch, will you bring them? If they come with you, they might not be so scared of us. We won’t bite them, we promise!” Suzy had crawled up on the branch beside her brother. All eight of her eyes were brimming with tears, and Skinch just hated to see anyone cry, especially little girls.
“Oh, OK, I will see what I can do.” Skinch disappeared into the dark forest, leaving the spider brother and sister sitting on the branch. They scampered back down to the forest floor and rushed home to tell the rest of the family all about Skinch and his promise to bring the children to the party.
The next day was Halloween and the children were very excited as they got ready to go trick-or-treating. Their mother was cooking something in a big, black pot on the stove. She was stirring it with a long spoon, mumbling something that sounded like “Boil, boil, toil and trouble.” The children thought that was kind of strange, but it WAS Halloween, after all, and lots of strange things could happen!
In fact, their cat, Skinch, had been acting really strange all day. He kept meowing at them, and running toward the forest, looking back at them as if he expected something. Their mother looked up from her pot, her eyes gleaming, and said, “Maybe he wants you to follow him into the forest.” She picked up a broomstick and swished it across the floor, mumbling about spiders, cats, and Halloween.
“Let’s go see what he wants!” The children ran off toward the woods behind Skinch. As they started into the trees, they stopped and looked around in wonder. There were silky, shimmery spider webs everywhere! “Wow, how pretty!” little Jane said, “Look, Billy! There are leaves and sticks in the webs – it looks like decorations for a party!”
“And look over there!” Billy pointed at a log covered in webs, “There is a whole family of spiders! They must have made all these webs!”
“Hey! I wonder if they did this for us?” Jane said, her eyes wide as she spotted a tiny cake and a whole bunch of candy near the log. “Do you think it is a spider Halloween party?”
“Yes, yes! A Spider Halloween Party!” Suzy, Tommy, and the rest of the spider family were jumping up and down in excitement. The children sat down on the forest floor and played with the spiders in the beautiful webs. Skinch curled up next to the log and went to sleep, a satisfied smile on his face.
Center for Writing Excellence 