Book Give Away and Character Naming Contest

What? Give away? What’s the catch?

That’s right, here at Crazy Joe’s Crazatorium, we’re giving away a couple books…..for FREE. Maybe I’m feeling guilty for not blogging in a few days, maybe I’ve finally solved the gnome problem in the front flower bed, maybe I’m just feeling overly benevolent. Or maybe, just maybe, there is a catch…..

SEE! I KNEW it!!! Heehee…you got me. You found me out. There is a catch, but it’s a fun catch. I need your help naming a side character. The best name (as selected by a panel of my children, with me holding supreme overlord final decision power AND a diabolical weather altering device. WHAT??) wins one of the two books I am giving away. I’ll draw randomly for the second book. And, if all eventually goes well, you’ll see the character you named published in “Russell Sprout: Imagination Unleashed”.

Come on, come on already…what are the books? Well, this time I’ve got:

The Scene Book by Sandra Scofield –  “A fundamental guide to crafting more effective scenes in fiction. In clear, simple language, award-winning author Sandra Scofield shows both the beginning and the seasoned writer how to build better scenes, the underpinning of any good narrative.”

First Draft in 30 Days by Karen S. Wiesner – “Award-winning author Karen S. Wiesner’s 30-day method shows you how to create an outline so detailed and complete that it actually doubles as your first draft….provides you with a sure-fire system to reduce time-intensive rewrites and avoid writing detours.”

Now, all you have to do is help me name Russell’s fifth-grade teacher at Reginald A. Warbenmanjensen elementary school. She’s kind but quirky, artsy and a former actress in off-Broadway plays. She is tremendously patient and kind of a hippie. She’s middle-aged, maybe late thirties, early forties. I’ve included a picture I use as a visual reference.

So, what do you say? Help me out? It’ll be fun for you and me. Just leave your suggestion as a comment. Tell your friends, your family, hobos you meet in the park. If this goes well, I’ll do more give aways in the future. Deadline is midnight, Sunday, June 5th. Please, one suggestion per visitor. I need at least 10 suggestions to have a good pick, otherwise I’ll just randomly draw for both books.

Thanks a bunch and I look forward to your suggestions!!

-JPM