For the first time ever, Bookends has decided that it's time to see how our customers fare when it's their turn to do the writing! The short story competition will run throughout the entire summer, and is open to all kids up to the age of sixteen. There's no lower age limit, so if you know any five year old prodigies who can spin a tale, their work is welcome too.
CLOSING DATE 1 SEPTEMBER 2009
The catch? You'll have to exercise your brains in order to come up with a story that fits this title:
THE CASE OF THE NANNY GOAT'S CHIN
We kid you not. The title is, in fact, the product of Bookends Bookshop proprietor Jim Townsend's subconscious, which threw up the idea one night whilst he was sleeping peacefully - or not, as the case may be! When he woke up, he decided that 'The Case of the Nanny Goat's Chin' was just begging to have a story written to it, and so he's decided to throw it open to the juvenile world at large.
So what are you waiting for? Start rattling your leetle grey cells and see if you can solve this particular mystery! It doesn't have to be a crime story, despite the title - it can be funny, or sad, or dramatic. It can even be a comic, if you're artistic. All we ask is that the story fit the title, and note that any stories that are NOT written to this title will automatically be disqualified.
There are two categories.
Category One: This is for stories up to 1,000 words long and you may include illustrations.
Category Two: This story must be around 5,000 words long.
Please note that there are no age restrictions on either category!
The stories will be judged by a panel that includes local author Colin Bateman and a Bangor publishng agent. Depending on length, the winning story may be published in local newspapers. All stories will be published here on our website.
Click HERE to download the Entry Form. This contains the terms and conditions and is in .pdf format. Install Foxit Reader and make sure that you keep the tick for the Foxit Toolbar (but you can untick 'use Ask as default search'). After you've opened the .pdf with Foxit Reader, go to 'View' and then hit 'Typewriter Tools'. You will then see a little icon with a pen hovering over paper along the top. When you hit this, it allows you to edit the document just as you do in Word.
You can get Foxit Reader here. Adobe Acrobat Reader may do the same job, but Foxit is small and fast, so give it a go!