Scribes Valley Notes

Ladies and gentleman, the Amberstrong family proudly presents their fifth annual Christmas Joy Display! Over one-point-five million lights and sounds of the Season, guaranteed to give you the Christmas spirit!               Night exploded into artificial day and a shockwave of “We Wish You a Merry Christmas” caused the crowd to take an involuntary step back. People shielded their eyes as they watched the Amberstrong house and grounds come alive with over twenty artificial Christmas trees and at least that many real ones. Dozens of plastic Santa Clauses, candy canes, reindeer, penguins, elves, gingerbread houses, and other items twinkled, blinked, and flashed, a plastic jungle synchronized to music that I could actually feel in my chest.             My eyes could take only about a minute of this assault before I had to turn away. A man next to me appeared to be shouting into his wife’s ear. She stared at him, then shook her head and pointed to her ear. I knew exactly what she me

Scribes Valley is pleased to announce the winners of our 2012 writing contest: Karen Dorsey                   The Book Ronna L. Edelstein          Wednesday Night Girl David Empey                   Cow and Cat Alex G. Friedman            The World Beyond the Shell Kathleen Ratcliffe            Hell Found Me Carrie Rogers                   At Your Grave I Stand Mary Smith                      A Haunted House Rachel Worrall                 The Cherry Tree Michelle Wotowiec          Notes on Taking Up Space Congratulations to each and every author who entered our contest. All of you should be very proud of your talent and hard work.

I enjoy visiting aquariums and zoos. However, while the displays of many and varied fish and animal species amaze me, I usually find myself much more fascinated by another species. You know the species I mean: bipedal, sporting opposable thumbs, mostly hairless, and pays the admission price at the front door. That’s right, the human species. Below are my zoo and aquarium notes and observations on this species. Knowitallus Speakupus : This member of the species is usually leading a pack of its own offspring. As it approaches a display, it loudly announces the species being displayed, adding an I-am-way-too-smart-to-be-among-the-common-populace quality to its voice. Most of the time its announcement is word-for-word what is on the plaque mounted next to the display, but since it thinks no other member of the species can read as well as it does, it continues to enlighten everyone within earshot. Potcallingus Kettleblackia : There’s one in every group declaring, “Man, that

WRITING TIP: Be careful how you word things. In this case, just one unnecessary word completely ruins the intention of what this person wanted to say. Found this sentence recently on the Internet. It was posted by a person looking for a house to rent, and he/she sounded desperate: “In need of a new place to live badly!”   One could (and should) take this as: “The place where I’m living badly now no longer meets my needs, so I’m looking for a new place in which to continue living badly.”   Wow, nothing like trying to improve your way of life! It would be better—and keep the intended meaning—if stated: “In need of a new place to live!” Simple and to the point.   The deadline for our writing contest is quickly approaching. Join those who have already entered our annual contest. Click to see complete details .

For the tenth annual Scribes Valley Short Story Writing Contest, we are looking for stories that enthrall us, leave us breathless, make us say “Wow!” and stay in our minds even weeks after we read them. You've worked hard on your story, studied every word, developed characters so real you know them personally, and created a setting which pulls readers out of the real world. Don’t keep it to yourself! Let others read it. Let US read it!

IT'S MURDER! CRIME SCENE:       The Chiseler's Inn THE VICTIM:       Sheriff Moose Perry THE SUSPECT:       Sam Maple, leader of Cougarville, a small gathering of gypsies PROSECUTOR:       Regan Candolin, an alcoholic, domineering attorney with everything to lose ONLY PERSON WHO KNOWS THE TRUE KILLER:       Lolly Candolin, a young girl who wants nothing more than her father's love Will Lolly keep quiet, let an innocent man die, and win her father's approval; or will she speak up and risk losing her father forever? So much pressure on such a young girl. LESSONS FROM THE GYPSY CAMP, the fascinating debut novel by Elizabeth Appell, has all the answers. Presented in both hardcover and KINDLE editions, Lessons From the Gypsy Camp enjoys top rankings on Amazon: 4.7 out of 5 stars! “One reason for not being angry is that you might go to hell where it is hot all the time and flames burn your feet and you breathe terrible gas

Technology is taking over. “It’s everywhere! It’s everywhere!” screams the black-and-white movie hero as he runs through the darkened town, trying to alert the sleeping residents that their end is near. As someone who watches scary movies from the 50s and 60s, and can remember the time before cell phones and high-definition TV (and even COLOR TV), I wonder when technology is going to bite us all in the butt. When is our ever-increasing knowledge going to turn on us? Now, I’m not one of the doomsday forecasters who sit around waiting for the apocalypse. I don’t subscribe to the “end of the world is just around the corner” philosophy. I’m generally happy with the way things are going in the world that affects me. But…. Okay, let’s just say this comes from what happened to me today. I was taking my son to school this morning. Just like every morning. We pulled onto a busy section of road going to the school, when I noticed the silver car next to us had a key hanging from the

The thrill of competition! The thrill of seeing your name in print! The thrill of your work being read by someone! The thrill of recognition by your peers and others! All this and more can be yours. All you have to do is enter: The Scribes Valley Publishing Company's TENTH ANNUAL SHORT STORY WRITING CONTEST !

Cover of new antholgy I love old pictures of people (as opposed to pictures of old people). There’s something about looking at someone from a by-gone era. Maybe it’s the look in their eyes, maybe it’s their smile—or lack of a smile, maybe it’s the way they are posed…. I don’t know. It’s hard to put into words. Whenever I look at an old picture of people I realize it shows so much more than just people. It is a microcosm of the time the picture was taken, a museum display of their era, a depiction of their when . My modern eyes stare into their ancient eyes and something seems to pass between us, not only from the picture to me, but from their time to mine. It’s amazing to think that, at the time the picture was taken, they had the modern eyes, they were up-to-date. In this age of digital pictures, I wonder what our legacy will be. A hundred years from now, will people stare at our pictures on computer screens and wonder how we lived? I think they will. I guess it’s ju