We had an astounding 113 entries in the Poet’s Week contest. After all the dust settled, Valerie Byron, aka gooduklady, emerged as the winner of $200 for her entry:

Congrats, Valerie!

My wife discovered this gem in an old box last week. My oldest stepson wrote this as a school project when he was about 9 (20 years ago). These days, a book like this would have him talking to the principal, a counselor, a psychologist, etc. — if not expelled! In retrospect, though, considering he survived and turned out to be a pretty great grown-up, it’s really, really funny.

Do you have any gems like this from your kids? Or even perhaps your own childhood? Turn them into a BookRix book to make it easy to share with your friends online.

We received some great news from BookRix author Michael M. Pacheco recently:

Because of your support, I have good news to share. Nayeli’s Nightmare has been accepted for publication by an anthology sponsored by the University of Houston. After 828 reads, 81 stars and 61 comments on Bookrix, I’m thoroughly thrilled.

Congratulations, Michael!

Unfortunately, to protect the publisher’s rights, Michael had to pull Nayeli’s Nightmare from BookRix, but you can stop by his profile to congratulate him and check out his other books:

Ever wondered how to effectively promote your book on BookRix? Our resident marketing genius Tim “maicherinho” Maicher has put together a great collection of tips and tricks to help.

Don’t sweat it that it’s on the German site – the book’s in English (promise!).

If you’re looking for more ideas on marketing your book, be sure to check out these groups in our community:

• Marketing Tips For Writers
• Marketing for writers

Have you ever had the feeling the phrase
"Iambic pentameter"
Really ought to have three more syllables?

If you get that joke, then be sure to check out Poet’s Week, starting August 13. You could win $200 and bragging rights.