#Fun fact! When I was a kid I won second prize in a “Goosebumps” writing contest! | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

joemerl · 11 months

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It's no longer Halloween where I live, but anyway: Dictionary.com (of all places) had a contest guest-judged by my childhood hero, R.L. Stine. It was to write the first 50 words of a story involving a haunted house.

Sadly, neither of my entries won, but I thought I'd post them here just for fun.

Entry #1:

"Those who enter Strongmore Manor will haunt its halls forever."

I can vouch for that. I sneaked in for a dare in 1986, becoming the lucky thirteenth victim of Gregor Strongmore's curse.

I watch as another group of kids creep through the door. As if this place wasn't crowded enough.

Entry #2:

Steven could tolerate his roommates at first. The piercing screams, slamming doors and visions of hanged bodies were a small price to pay for buying a Victorian mansion so cheaply.

Then they took his cookies.

The cookies CLEARLY labeled with HIS name.

"That's it!" he screamed. "I'm calling an exorcist!"

#Writing #Ghost #Haunted house #R.L. Stine #Halloween #Fun fact! When I was a kid I won second prize in a “Goosebumps” writing contest!#(There was one “grand prize” winner + 25 “first prize” winners + 50 “second prize” winners. So I was in the top 76.)#It was actually kind of the opposite of this. They gave you the opening (plus some prompts to include) and you had to write the rest.#Anyway that's how I got a signed copy of R.L. Stine's autobiography and it's still one of my prized possessions.

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