Little Thoughts Press and the Revision Raccoon are excited to announce the
return of our “From Trash to Treasure” Kidlit Poetry Contest!
Rather than throw out our darlings, what if we remade them? Take a discarded darling and make something new! Send us a lyrical haiku, funny limerick, inspiring quintains, creative free verse, or whatever your imagination dreams up.
What: Take a discarded-but-loved line from one of your kidlit pieces and use it as a starting point for a poem. Be it fiction or nonfiction, funny or a little dark, quirky or inspirational – whatever direction you go, the work should be appropriate for kids 12 and younger. LGTBQT+ and diverse themes are welcome. The first line of your new poem must be a line that you previously cut from a different piece. We're working on the honor system here! Please do not submit a poem that doesn't include a previously discarded line.
Who: Agented, pre-agented, published, pre-published, kids of all ages— any and all kidlit creatives are welcome to enter!
When: The contest submission period is from November 10th - 13th. A winner, two honorable mentions and a kid's choice winner (selected by our EIC's 7-year-old) will be announced here, on the Little Thoughts Press blog, and on our social media sites on Monday, November 18th! Selected poems will be featured on the blog and the winner will receive a free copy of their choice of one our magazine issues. Winning entries will be selected by Little Thoughts Press editors, Claire and Carrie.
How to enter: Post your entry as a comment on this post anytime between November 10th and November 13th. Comments will be closed on this post except for during the contest window.
Details: There is no word limit, BUT there is a maximum length of five lines per piece. 1 entry per kidlit creator. Feel free to include a sentence or two about the reason this is a “darling” and the inspiration behind the reimagining of it.
Grab your copy of our Revision Raccoon participant badge and help spread the word by sharing #trashtotreasure24 on your socials! We can't wait to see how you turn your trash into shiny new treasures!
If aliens invade your yard, you’ll want to run and hide,
Hold your breath behind the shrubs or blend in with the slide.
You could call the president and wait for help awhile…
Or be the bravest you can be, and offer them a smile!
The "if aliens invade your yard" line was at the end of a Madness Poetry poem. But shifting it to the first line let me plop different aliens into a whole new situation.
Thanks for the fun prompt!
- Lauri Meyers
"Mermaids aren't REAL," Carlie said,
but the river disagreed in every shade of turquoise
and tossed shimmers of glittery silt
into a swirling kaleidoscope of sunbeams...
or was that the flick of a tail?
For the Go Wild! issue, I had a wonderful time writing about mermaids and manatees and the Weeki Wachee river many call home. I had fun bringing the river to life in this poem!
Thanks for a super fun challenge!!
-Julie Hauswirth
Backstory - I am so immersed in promoting my picture book, “No School, My Rules!” that I envisioned the main character taking the long walk up to the front door of the school, plagued by nerves, but being inspired by a tiny flower coming out of the sidewalk. “A crack in the sidewalk” is a line from another poem I wrote about how it feels when you are in middle school and nothing is working out.
CONCRETE GARDEN OF HOPE
By Stephanie Henson
A crack in the sidewalk, covered with a chalk drawing, greets me and my fears.
But a tiny bud sprouts its way through the crevice, and a concrete garden of hope begins.
Somehow the walkway doesn’t seem…
In the early morning mist
blades of grass are frosted, kissed.
Silent stained-glass wings take flight
through the morning, through the night.
Watch them go and make a wish.
Boogie Monster Trap
With sticks and string, bucket of water, squirt of soap,
the mop, hat rack, and Dad’s overcoat,
I set the trap, then went to bed—-
SNAP! CRASH! Surprise!
Caught Mom instead.