or Win free copies of “Deadlines,” signed by the author!
Contest background:
Several scenes in the new novel “Deadlines” occur in the offices of the San Francisco Post-Dispatch – a fictional newspaper located in The City’s SoMa (south of Market) district. Up on the building’s third floor, near the Night City Editor’s desk, is a corkboard with the legend, “Hedline Hall of Fame.” (Hedline is the way that news people spell the word “headline” in notes to themselves… just as “graf” stands for paragraph, “foto” for photo, and so on.) You can find this scene on page 32 of the novel.
Pinned on that bulletin board are many genuine headlines, clipped from newspapers over the past few years. These include: “Oakland Officer Kills Suicidal Man”; “Flatulent Pigs Force Airliner Down”; “Women Die When Laughing Gas Cannister Blows Up Car”; “Dahmer Body Cremated as Parents Fight Over Brain”; “Disney Company Sued For Exposing Reality”.
- Write a fictional newspaper headline, one that refers to a recent news event, or known world figure, and try to provide it with a grandly humorous twist.
- Political points-of-view, philosophical points-of-view, teasing, and mocking can certainly be involved. However, grossly obscene elements, witless insults, overt racism and the like will not be accepted.
- Headlines must be written in ten words or less; extra points awarded for brevity.
- Headlines should be submitted via e-mail; send to buzz@paulmchugh.net, and put Headline Contest in the subject line. In the body of the e-mail, be sure to include your name, your book-signing preference, contact and surface mail information.
- One headline per general reader and one headline per librarian will be declared a winner every month, in the period February 2010-August 2010.
- Both winners will receive author-signed (or unsigned, if preferred) copies of “Deadlines” in the mail. All monthly winners – as well as two runners-up in each category (the general reader and the librarian) – will have entries posted on the website, deadlinesbook.com, on this contest page. By entering, all winners and runners-up agree to allow their entries to be quoted by any readers or mass media representatives who view their entries.
- Headline entries will be judged by a panel of experienced journalists who are willing to enjoy a good laugh, and to share one!