Friday, February 4, 2011

African Education Raffle #2

Okay, folks, there's another raffle going on for the kid's next semester of tuition here!

The picture below is Michael and Grace on their first day or high school last September. The picture to the left is of volunteer Shallee McArthur with two of the younger children in 2005.

School fees, which include room and board for the entire semester, total about $2,500 for all five kids. Any extra money we make will go to fund additional semesters. The prizes this time are of a writerly bent, so if you're interested, please click here to enter the raffle!

The RULES:

An initial donation of $5 gets you one entry in the raffle. Make a secure, tax-deductible donation to Literacy for Life here. (PLEASE PUT "Reach for the Stars" in the message line so your donation goes to the right project.)

Every additional $5 you donate gets you another entry (so if you donated $20, you would get 4 entries).

After an initial $5 donation, blogging about the raffle will get you 1 additional entry. Tweeting/Facebooking about the raffle will get you 1 additional entry (1 total, not one for each).

Fill out the form below so I can tally your raffle entries. The raffle ends February 25th.

The PRIZES:

THREE winners will be chosen by Random.org to receive one of the following prizes.

#1: A 10 page manuscript critique OR synopsis critique from freelance editor C.A. Marshall!

C.A. Marshall is a freelance editor, lit agent intern, YA writer, and loves to play with her dog Mollie. She dreams of one day owning a small house near the water, preferably in England, with a shelf full of books she has written and has helped others to write. She can be found in Emmett, MI.

#2: A critique of the first chapter of your manuscript from literary agent Sarah LaPolla at Curtis Brown!

Sarah LaPolla began at Curtis Brown in 2008, working with Dave Barbor and Peter Ginsberg. Sarah is interested in literary fiction, narrative nonfiction, urban fantasy, paranormal romance, science fiction, literary horror, and young adult fiction. She loves complex characters, coming-of-age stories, and strong narrators. Sarah graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Writing and English, and went on to receive her MFA in Creative Writing from The New School.

#3: A critique of the first chapter of your manuscript from me! And since I'm not nearly as cool as the other prizes, I'm throwing in a copy of the incredible book They Poured Fire on Us From the Sky: The True Story of Three Lost Boys from Sudan.

You have a chance to help five kids gain an education to beat poverty-- AND to get some amazing critiques to help you in your own work! Thanks in advance for all your help!