The calendar says it’s fall but here in California we’re having another heat wave with Santa Ana winds and fires! The air is filled with smoke and we are hoping for rain which is not in the forecast. But, we can all have cozy fall thoughts as we eat all of Trader Joe’s seasonal pumpkin offerings. Lucky me. This is the time for the Fall Writing Frenzy Writing Contest created by author Lydia Lukidis and author/agent Kaitlyn Sanchez, giving me encouragement to think fall.
Here’s how the contest works. Writers can choose one of fifteen fall images to inspire a story, poem, or mood piece for children from babies to young adult. The story must be under 200 words. Here’s my entry based on image #5. It is written for young children learning to read on their own. (In case you’re wondering, it is a 1.9 grade reading level) Enjoy!
ROXIE AND THE WAVES
On a fall day,
Roxie wore her scarf and
looked up at the tree and saw
yellow, orange, and red leaves.
Mom and Dad raked leaves.
Scritch, scratch.
Her brother, Ray, jumped in the leaves.
Crunch, crunch.
Tree branches swayed in the wind.
Tap, tap.
A crow landed in the tree.
“Caw, caw.”
The wind blew harder,
Whoo, whoo.
And Roxie’s scarf whirled into the air.
Roxie chased her scarf and heard,
Scritch, scratch.
Crunch, crunch.
“Caw, caw.”
Tip, tap.
Whoo, whoo.
The scarf twirled and danced
with the leaves!
Roxie danced along.
Scritch, scratch.
Crunch, crunch.
Caw, caw.
Tip, tap.
Whoo, whoo.
Mom and Dad put down their rakes
and danced along.
Crunch, crunch.
Caw, caw.
Tip, tap.
Whoo, whoo.
Ray stopped jumping
and danced along.
Caw, caw.
Tip, tap.
Whoo, whoo!
The crow flew away.
Tip, tap.
Whoo, whoo!
The wind stopped.
The leaves floated to the ground.
Roxie’s scarf landed at her feet.
Roxie, Ray, Mom, and Dad laughed,
held hands, and
jumped into the leaves.
CRUNCH!
Fittingly, this picture of the New England trip I shared with friends several years ago showed up in my Facebook memory feed this morning. The sky is so blue! I so look forward to be able to travel again.
Cute story, Claire! Love all the onatopoeia.
Thanks, Tina!!
Love how you built up the sounds then took them away. Nice structure! Good luck with the contest.
Thanks so much, Rose. I love fall leaves!
Nice work, Claire! I love your sweet story with such a great repetitive structure. I used the same picture. It’s fun to see what other people were inspired to write using the same picture.
It is really interesting how so many different stories can be inspired by a single image. I love the creative story you wrote!
Such a lovely lyrical and cinematic ode to Fall. I love the onomatopoeia and progressive structure. You really capture the moment.
Thank you, Anne. Fall is such a colorful, fun season.
What a wonderful dance of family and aging Fall sounds. Just lovely!
Hi Debbie, Thanks for reading my story and for your encouraging note!