Tag: Candlewick Press

The Fairy Ring Writing Contest Submission – Paul Ramey

 A few of you have contacted me about entering the writing contest without a blog. If you do not have a blog, just email me your entry at annabbps at gmail.com. I will be happy to post it on my blog so that others may read your work. Of course, you retain all rights to your work.

Here is the latest entry to The Fairy Ring Writing Contest, courtesy of Paul Ramey. If you enjoy, please comment.

Between Pages

By Paul Ramey
At first I mistook it for a pressed flower.
It was frail and dry, and as I opened the pages of the book it stood up slightly, caught deep in the fold. On either side was a slight silhouette, a delicate shadow of the form frozen on the parchment.
It was one of my grandmother’s books. I’d been in her study for the past hour, escaping from the cold reality of her funeral. She’d been laid to rest that very morning, and now people were milling around in the living room and kitchen, reminiscing over the many ways they missed her.
“What is this doing here?” I whispered as I gently pried it out. The tears had not yet come to me, and I hated knowing that I’d failed to mourn properly at the funeral of someone that I loved so deeply.
What was wrong with me?
I gave a slight tug to part of the tissue-thin material that seemed entwined with the pressed flower.
It was then that it winked at me.
I was looking at a little, living thing. It wore threadbare clothing, and had wispy, dragonfly wings. It began to unfold and expand, like an origami shape, and buzzed its wings intermittently, testing them.
Satisfied, the little figure pulled away from my fingers suddenly and took flight, coming level with my eyes. Then, buzzing around to my ear, I heard a very tiny, insect-like whisper.
“Thank you, dear.”
And then it was gone, the light breeze carrying it right out the open window and back into the world.
I walked over to the window, and I couldn’t help but smile as sudden tears lifted off my cheeks and followed the little spirit to wherever the winds decided to carry it next.

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Dancing With the Fairies – The Fairy Ring Writing Contest

 Hear ye! Yearning for Wonderland proudly announces their very first writing contest. Ever.

I know it’s what you’ve all been waiting for. Please calm yourself. No tears of joy, please.

By this point, you might be saying, get on with it!

Shhh, I am savoring…okay, here are the details.

This contest is in honor of The Fairy Ring (you know you want to read it! Or gift it to someone who believes in true magic in the world). For those of you who have not yet read my review of Mary Losure’s The Fairy Ring (Candlewick Press, 2012), please do so to know how amazing this prize is. I know several of my readers have expressed interest in the book – now is your chance to win it for free!

Galleys have graciously been provided by the beauteous Raquel Matos of Candlewick Press.

I will announce the winners by February 22nd. I cannot wait to see all the magnificent permutations of fae encounters that your creative minds will unleash. Let the games begin!

Additional Details (updated 2/14/12)
* The winner of the contest will have their link shared on the Google+ page of Candlewick Press, woot!
* The title does not count in the 300 word limit.
* In the spirit of the contest and the book, please no erotica or slasher horror. I love dark fairytales, but give us goosebumps not buckets of blood.
* Please visit all of the entries and comment – writers love feedback!
* WordPress blogs need different HTML – email me at annabbps at gmail.com if you want me to send you the alt. code.
* If you do not have a blog and would like to enter, send me your entry to the above email and I will post it on Yearning for Wonderland.
* We have an amazing new logo, courtesy of Ruth Long @bullishink

Comment with any questions. Here is the Linky Tool code to copy to your blog’s HTML:



Book Review: The Fairy Ring by Mary Losure

To the 19th century mind, the camera captured truth. You placed an object in front of it, clicked the button, and it created an indelible record of reality…or so it seemed. Yet in 1917, two young girls produced photographs which claimed to document fairies. If you are curious, click here to see the photos and find out more about the Cottingley fairies.

The Fairy Ring by Mary Losure tells the well-known story from the girls’ point of view, first from the perspective of Frances on her arrival in England (Part I), then from the perspective of Elsie (Part II) and then the story intersects to weave the tale of both girls and how their own personal fairytales ended. Losure consults primary sources like previously undisclosed personal letters to build her narrative.

In an era where Photoshop makes edits invisible, the story of the Cottingley fairies holds great fascination. To our sophisticated 21stcentury eyes, the series of fairy photographs is obviously faked, yet the girls persuaded one of the great minds of the 19th century, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
Conan Doyle, who wrote one of the most skeptical anti-heroes of all time, Sherlock Holmes, was infamous in his own lack of skepticism. He believed in mystics and communications with his dead son through séance. Conan Doyle published a public defense of the photographs in the noted The Strand magazine, much to embarrassment of the girls’ parents.
The Fairy Ring has all kinds of engaging little details, like the fact that Frances was originally from Cape Town, South Africa. Or the fact that 15 year old Elsie was rather older than Frances, at nine. The language is delightful and reminds me strongly of Frances Hodgson Burnett – my favorite author who writes children’s books that are more than children’s books. It would be the perfect book to read aloud, as the prose has a charming freshness that lends itself to speaking.
The book has excellent high-quality scans of the photographs, which in itself is a pleasure to those who love Edwardian photography. There is a lot of argument about the final photograph in the Cottingley series. Fairy enthusiasts point out how different it is from the others, which clearly contain paper cut-outs. Here is the photo. The flanking fairies look like paper, but the central creature has a magnificent translucence – what do you think?

You should read this book if you love fairies and wish there was a touch more magic in the world. 

Pre-order The Fairy Ring; also available as an audio book. 
Candlewick Press, 2012. Thanks to @quellelove for the fantastic recommendation and ARC .