Nice Words to Read

I must share this paragraph from the new issue of Children's Writer magazine. Patricia Curtis Pfitch wrote an overview of her experience judging the historical fiction contest, in which my story, "Stronger Than Magic," placed second:

"In 'Stronger Than Magic,' Hippocrates is portrayed as an early prototype of Western medicine. As we watch Hippocrates diagnose and heal in defiance of the gods and the prevailing views of illness, we feel like we are seeing the birth of medicine as we know it. But more, we suffer with the young slave Xanthias as his sister falls ill. We feel his agony when he thinks it is his fault. We race with him through the streets of Abdera to find Hippocrates." (Children's Writer, March 2011, p. 7)

It's a great feeling to know that my fiction had the intended effect on the reader. I hope to get that feeling over and over during my career.

Oh, Happy Day!

Well, this fiction-writing thing might just work out yet.

I just found out I won Second Prize in the Children's Writer Historical Fiction short story contest. I could not be more thrilled.

My story, "Stronger Than Magic," is about a Thracian slave boy who asks the famous doctor Hippocrates to save his sister's life. All that classical education came in handy once again.

Not much substance or thought to today's post. I'm too happy to ponder.

Stories of Old

Unroll your parchment. Dig out your quill pen. Dust off your IBM Selectric. Pick your favorite historical period and write about it for fame, glory, and untold wealth. Children's Writer is sponsoring a contest for a 1500-word historical fiction short story targeted at 13-year-olds. Check out the complete rules at Historical Fiction Writing Contest. Deadline is October 30, 2010, so there's still plenty of time to conjure up the past.