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Now...if you want to follow our blog, you are more than welcome to do so. If you'd like to invite your friends, co-workers, cousins, distant relatives and long lost high school buddies to 
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Okay - don't forget to comment in order to enter for the 
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Mrs. P says CONGRATS to the winners!
Stop by the initial post about the Mrs. P contest to read the criteria for winners, etc.
Although I was born in Australia, I spent many childhood years in Oregon. Not far from Powells Books. My mother has been a die hard Powells fan for many years. When I saw that the Mrs. P contest was sponsored by Powells it immediately spurred my interest.
As many of you know, I also have a background in early childhood, freelance and education. I also own a book business so…a contest like this was SURE to spark my interest 
In my hope-chest I have a copy of the very first book I ever wrote. I was 9 years old and wrote a short story about a flying horse. My father, being the professional artist that he is, had to illustrate my book (haha). I remember worrying that if I turned in a book, filled with my father’s obviously stunning (grown up) illustrations, the teacher would dock points – because I had not done the drawings myself. With trembling hands, I gave her my book for grading. Kindly, she asked if I had written the story all on my own – and I certainly had.
I have saved that book, along with her kind words written on the inside cover, for all this time. On more than one occasion I looked back at that book when people downplayed my desire to be a writer. “Oh, writers are a dime a dozen – choose something else.”
I can tell you this much from my years of experience working with children: all children have gifts and talents that need to be fostered. A budding author is no different. If we tell these authors (even the ones who did not win the Grand Prize!) that they CAN write valuable and resourceful pieces and expect them to rise to that place, they WILL.
“It is the nature of man to rise to greatness if greatness is expected of him.” John Steinbeck (1902-1968) American writer
Read below to find out more about the budding authors who won the Mrs. P Writing Contest!
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MrsP.com Announces Winners of First Nationwide Kids’ Writing Contest
Future bestselling authors from North Carolina and New York:
January 15, 2010 – MrsP.com announced today the names of the two Grand Prize winners in its first annual “Be a Famous Writer” contest. Gabrielle Fuller, 8, from North Carolina, takes top honors in the 4- to 8-year-old category with her comic fairy tale, “Pretty Princess and Funky Frog.” In the 9- to 13-year-old category, Isabella Penola, 12, from New York, charmed the panel of famous judges with her poignant tale of an elderly gardener, “Spattered Mud and Crushed Petals.”
“Like everyone, I’m concerned about the state of education in America. But based on the quality of writing for my contest, I’m happy to say a lot of teachers out there must be doing a wonderful job,” said TV star Kathy Kinney, who portrays Mrs. P and is one of the creators of the website.
The Grand Prize winners will have their stories produced as videos featuring Mrs. P, which will be presented on her popular free, interactive digital website. Original artwork by award-winning illustrator, Robin E. Kaplan, will help bring the stories to life. The videos will be posted for a limited time on the website (www.MrsP.com) beginning in March for viewers all over the world to watch and enjoy. In addition, each winner will receive an actual bound copy of the story and illustrations as a keepsake to treasure for years to come. Powell’s Books (www.Powells.com), the largest independent bookseller and the sponsor of the contest, will provide the Grand Prize winners as well as the 8 other finalists with gift certificates to its store.
The judges for the writing contest included four top professionals in the writing field: Dave Barry, Pulitzer Prize-winning humorist and author of dozens of bestselling books; Andre Bormanis, writer and producer of the popular fantasy series, Legend of the Seeker and author of Star Trek: Science Logs; Craig Ferguson, host of the CBS Late Late Show and author of the acclaimed novel, Between the Bridge and the River; and Diana Leszczynski, author of Fern Verdant and the Silver Rose, a comic adventure recently selected as a Smithsonian Notable Children’s Book and currently being developed as a motion picture.
The MrsP.com writing contest is an annual event and runs every September. It was created along with the website to encourage a love of reading.
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