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    Map 1:  Totem Head's Contest -- Participating states highlighted in green.

16 February 2012:    Congratulations to our 2012 contest winners!

It was a close one this year, with only a few "points" separating our finalists from our winners.  Well done, young writers!  Your stories were brilliantly written, and we're impressed with the hard work, imagination and courage you've shown to earn publication on The Adventure Write Kid's Site.  Here are the official results:


WINNERS

"David and the Rock & Roll Romanesco" By: Hanna Inoue, 17 years old, Rohnert Park CA.

"The Greater Purpose of Teenage Insanity"   By: Jared Spry, 13 years old, Phoenix AZ.

"Robby of Locksley"   By: Ethan Spry, 10 years old, Phoenix AZ.

"The Meteor"   By: Laney, 8 years old, Perham NY.


1st Runner Up

"Antarctic Mission"   By: Kristen Loughlin, 12 years old, Pennsylvania.


HONORABLE MENTION

""Sucker of Souls""  By: Jared in Arizona.

"Super Pear Saves the World"  By: Ben Free, 10 years old, Napa, California.

"The Math Book Murder"  By: Liam O'Brien, 9 years old, Carmel, Indiana.

"Always Be Patient"  By: Isaiah.

"The Admiral of the Ocean Sea"  By: Josiah.

"Aliens and the Golden Glass"  By: Sean, 9 years old, Bellevue, Nebraska.

"The Bloom"  By: Ariel, 13 years old, Merrimack, New Hampshire.

"Don't Fall Asleep in Class"  By: Sarah, 14 years old, Akron, Ohio.

"A Different Perspective"  By: Kithara in Wisconsin.


SPECIAL RECOGNITION

For driving Totem Head's Annual Contest to add a new gothic fiction category, we've awarded Special Recognition to the following young author, whose story we will publish in a new section of our website titled "Poe's Corner".

"Man in the Mirror"   By: Samantha in New York.




8 February 2012:    The results are in!  Our judges have chosen a winner in each of the 4 age categories as well as 10 entries, which will receive an Honorable Mention.  Each of the winners will receive a $50 cash prize, a certificate of achievement and publication on the Adventure Write Kids website.

Winners will receive $50 cash as well as a certificate of achievement in the mail and publication on the Adventure Write Kids website.

Those who win an honorable mention will receive a certificate of achievement in the mail, and their stories will be published on the Adventure Write Kids website.

Our Totem volunteer is hard at work creating a webpage for each winning entry.  Once those pages are complete, we will post the results of the 2011 contest and notify winners and honorees via email and USPS.  Look for results in less than 2 weeks.

2 February 2012:    Our judges have chosen a winner in 2 of the 4 age categories.  Judges will choose a winner in each of the 2 remaining age categories, and each of the winners will receive a $50 cash prize, a certificate and publication on the Adventure Write Kids website.

In addition, no more than 10 entrants will win the title of Honorable Mention and receive a certificate in the mail along with bragging rights and publication on the Adventure Write Kids Website.

We anticipate announcing the winners and Honorable Mentionees within the next 2 two weeks.

Stay tuned!

30 January 2012:    Second round judging is complete!

The competition is fierce this year, and our judges have already eliminated some very good stories.  Only the great stories remain.

These finalists will move forward to compete for a cash prize and publication on the Adventure Write Kids Website.

Our judges will award a $50 grand prize to 4 of these entrants (one in each age category).

In addition, no more than 10 entrants will win the title of Honorable Mention and receive a certificate in the mail along with bragging rights and publication on the Adventure Write Kids Website.

These are our 2011 finalists:

26 January 2012:    First round judging is complete!

These semi-finalists will move forward to compete for a cash prize and publication on the Adventure Write Kids Website.

Our judges will award a $50 grand prize to 4 of these entrants (one in each age category).

In addition, no more than 10 entrants will win the title of Honorable Mention and receive a certificate in the mail along with bragging rights and publication on the Adventure Write Kids Website.

These are our semi-finalists.



24 January 2012:    Our judges have selected nearly 100 entries as potential semi-finalists.  Now, they must cut that number in half.  It's back to the reading room for them with the unenviable task of choosing no more than 60 semi-finalists.

Those semi-finalists will compete for one of 4 grand prizes of $50 plus publication on the Adventure Write Kids Website.

In addition, no more than 10 entrants will win the title of Honorable Mention and receive a certificate in the mail along with bragging rights and publication on the Adventure Write Kids Website.

We anticipate announcing the semi-finalists no later than the end of January.

Nearly 600 young writers from 45 states submitted a story for the 2011 contest, and we've now logged all entries.

This year we sent confirmation emails for entries we received via email only.  If you sent your entry via USPS, and you'd like to confirm we received it, send us an email: admin@adventurewrite.com

We would not be able to hold this annual contest without our sponsors, and we've dedicated a page to show our appreciation for their generosity: Totem Sponsors.

Want to help?  This annual contest is a non-profit project that costs approximately $450 plus prize money to hold.  With volunteers manning the email, logging entries and maintaining the website, we've really kept the costs down.  You can help us continue to offer more and bigger prizes. Find out how.

Check out our Educator's page for a list of participating schools.  We update this page as we log entries: Educators Using Totem Head's Contest.

If you're an educator who sent entries for your class, and you'd like to see your school on our educator's page, let us know: admin@adventurewrite.com

We are very busy with the contest at this time, so if you've submitted a time capsule entry or an "Add to the Story" paragraph, be patient!  We will resume processing those entries in March.

Details for the 2012 contest are now available on our contest page.

18 January 2012:    Nearly 600 young writers from 45 states submitted a story for the 2011 contest, and we've now logged all entries.  Our judges have already chosen several stories as first round finalists as they continue to read the entries.  Look for a list of those semi-finalists in the next few days as well as some detailed statistics for the 2011 contest.

14 January 2012:    As of this date, we've logged 428 stories from 42 states, and we've still got a stack of mail from late December to open. Our judges are busy reading and are selecting their favorite stories as our semi-finalists.  We anticipate publishing a list of those first-round finalists by the end of January.

We are thrilled to have entries from our home state of Alaska this year and want to thank the Unalaska City School District for participating!  Check out our Educator's page for more participating schools.  We update this page as we log entries: Educators Using Totem Head's Contest.

9 January 2012:    We've already logged over 200 entries from 33 states, and our judges have begun selecting the semi-finalists.  We anticipate publishing a list of those first-round finalists by the end of January.

3 January 2012:    We continue to log entries and update our Totem Map with participating states.  This contest grows every year.  This year we're delighted to report that for the first time in the history of Totem Head's contest, we have entries from the Aloha State of Hawaii!

Details for the 2012 contest are now available on our contest page.

After much deliberation, we've decided that the opening line for the 2012 contest will be..."So there I was".  We decided we really like that opening, which affords our entrants complete fredom to move their story in any direction.

We will consider a new opening for the 2013 contest and welcome your suggestions.  Email us at: admin@adventurewrite.com

1 January 2012:    It's official!  Entry into the 2011 contest is closed, and as we wait for the last of the USPS entries to arrive, we're hard at work logging in the entries.  Here in Alaska, the mercury dipped to 26 below zero today--perfect conditions for indoor work.

In 2 weeks, all entries should be in, and our judges will begin the unenviable task of choosing finalists from the wonderful stories we received.  We sure wish we could send a prize to each of the young authors who submitted a stellar story, but there can be only one winner in each category.  We will continue to post updates on our progress toward choosing the winners.

As we prepare our website for the 2011 results, we're finishing up the details for the 2012 contest.  Most guidelines will remain the same.  One big change will be in the opening line.  This is the 3rd year for "So there I was", and it's time for a change.  We'll keep you posted...

28 December 2011:    The deadline for entering the 2011 contest is approaching fast.  Email or send your entry via the USPS no later than 31 December to enter.

Soon, we'll have "Totem's Map" ready and published above to show you just how many states are participating in this year's contest.  Participating states will be highlighted in green.  Come back for an update every few days!

27 December 2011:    The entries for the 2011 contest are still arriving, and we're hard at work preparing our website for the results.  In mid-January, our judges will select the first round finalists.