Hachette Book Group is at it again with another extremely generous giveaway just in time for Halloween. Five readers of book-blog.com will win ten books each. Here’s the story:
What you can win:
1. THE HERETIC’S DAUGHTER By Kathleen Kent $24.99, 0316024481
2. ISOLATION By Travis Thrasher $13.99, 0446505544
3. THE 13 BEST HORROR STORIES OF ALL TIME By Leslie Pockell $21.99, 9780446679503
4. THE MONSTERS: Mary Shelley and the Curse of Frankenstein By Dorothy Hoobler , Thomas Hoobler $14.99, 9780316066402
5. THE MYRTLES PLANTATION: The True Story of America’s Most Haunted House By Frances Kermeen $7.99, 9780446614153
6. GHOSTLY ENCOUNTERS: True Stories of America’s Haunted Inns and Hotels By Frances Kermeen $7.99, 9780446611459
7. THE TERROR By Dan Simmons $14.99, 9780316017459
8. DRACULA By Bram Stoker $10.99, 0316014818
9. WHEN GHOSTS SPEAK: Understanding the World of Earthbound Spirits By Mary Ann Winkowski $24.99, 9780446581189
10. THE HISTORIAN By Elizabeth Kostova $9.99, 9780316067942
The background:
Over at TwitterLit, I post the first lines of books twice daily. The sentences have to be brief enough, however, to fit into a Twitter post: Twitter posts can only be 140 characters long, including spaces and punctuation. I’m always looking for lines that are intriguing for some reason–that make you want to read on because they’re unexpected or intriguing or well-written. Here are the lines I posted for Halloween in 2007, for example:
Your task:
Your job is to make up the first sentence of a book that is somehow appropriate for Halloween, but also compelling–something I’d post on TwitterLit if it were from a genuine book.
Your sentence, however, including punctuation and spaces, can only be 140 characters long. If it doesn’t fit in this box, then it’s too long:
To enter the contest, respond in the comments below with your made-up first line of 140 characters or fewer. Be sure to include your name and email.
Who will win?
From the entries submitted, I will select the three that I like the most–those that are definitely TwitterLit-worthy. Two of the remaining entries will be selected at random, for a grand total of five winners of ten books each.
The fine print:
1. Contest open to residents of U.S. and Canada only.
2. Books cannot be shipped to a P.O. box.
3. All entries must be submitted by 9:00 AM EST, October 31st, 2008.
4. The drawing will be held shortly after the contest closes on the morning of October 31, 2008 and announced at book-blog.com. Winners will also be notified by email, so make sure to provide your email address with your entry.
5. One enattempt per person.
