Friday, August 28, 2009

Tiara Day CONTEST

It's Tiara Day!! Tiara Day is all about creating positive energy, being a little silly, and having fun. To play along put a tiara on your avatar for the day--or use a picture of your tiara AS your avatar.

And enter the spectactular, sparkly, first-ever Tiara Day Contest.

I posted the rules and prizes below (here's the link for reference). They're great prizes. (I'm so excited!) Contest open NOW for 24 hours, entries in comments! Please don't forget to include your email addresses. Winner will be announced next week.

Also, not X-rated please. My kid probably won't read them, but I do write YA. :)

So, the prompt:

Write a complete story in only 50 words (less is allowed, but not more!). The entry MUST include the words 'tiara', 'sparkly', and 'princess'.

UPDATE: CONTEST CLOSED! And holy wow, batman, that was a lot of entries!! You guys are fabulous!

Those posted after midnight MST won't count, I'm afraid--in the interest of being fair. But we'll still have plenty of great entries to choose from. I'll post the winner sometime next week!

Thank you!

110 comments:

Sam Downing said...

He temped at their office for one day.

He was tall, grunty, and disturbingly hairy: it crowned his head like a tiara, curling from his sleeves in tufts.

The desk drones and the princesses working the sparkly front desk sniggered as he typed.

None suspected he was actually Bigfoot...

(50 words exactly! Email samdowning@gmail.com)

Portia said...

Princess Moira scuffed her sneaker in the dirt, watching Ben slide into second a heartbeat after Ryan caught the ball.

“Safe,” the umpire called.

Moira’s hands tightened on the chain link fence. He was so out! She threw away her sparkly tiara. Baseball caps are more fun.

portia.stewart@gmail.com

Ruth (Book Focus) said...

"Sparkly princess tiara, for sale. Never worn."

No no wait! I changed my mind! This is my entry (unless you prefer the totally-not-plagiarised example above):

-----
The tiara felt awkward. You’re beautiful, I told myself.

Others might disagree: I wasn’t your average princess. But this was my dream. I could already see Mom’s sparkly tears on opening night.

“Auditioning Rapunzel!”

I stood. It was obvious: Miss didn’t think I had what it took.

Andrew?” she said.
-----

...I haven't left my email address because me no likey posting email address publicly, but a comment on my (linked) blog will always reach me. :)

Rachel Walsh said...

“Tiara’s slipped, princess.”

Mum pushed the sparkly rhinestone crown she’d insisted on into my skull.

“And your eyeliner’s wonky. Love, what were you thinking?”

Nothing, I longed to tell her, as the church organ wheezed to life.

She squeezed my hand. “Sparkly, now. Cameras are on.”

Here comes the bride ...

Great comp, Susan!

rachelwalsh71@gmail.com

Pati Nagle said...

The vampire smiled at his prom date.

“Princess, I'm more sparkly than your tiara.”

Steph Bowe said...

I'm in Australia, so I don't know if I'm eligible or not, but I'll have a go anyway! My email is stephbowe@ymail.com

Fabulous competition, by the way.

--

Tiara perched unsteadily on your head; you peek through the curtain to the darkness beyond.

Cameras flash. Sparkly lights above you. Quaking with nerves. On stage, someone calls, Where's the princess?

Your breath catches. Time for you to step out. Your teacher nudges you forward, smiles, I believe in you.

Andufus said...

‘Where are we going?’ Jackie asked, the bride, desperate to enjoy her hen night.
‘The sparkly tiara.’ Carla, the heads bridesmaid, smiled.
‘Seriously?’ Jackie grinned.
‘Where else? We’ve got your wig ready.’
‘Wig?’
‘Princess Jackie can’t be seen in a night club, can she? No, daddy definitely wouldn’t approve!’

Andufus said...

Oh I forgot to include my email
andrew.k.and@googlemail.com

Julie Butcher said...

Thorns encircled the tower, huge pointy thorns. They dripped crimson poison and waited for the unwary climber. In the oval window, the princess in her sparkly tiara sighed and looked into the distance. She was so beautiful.
He looked at the thorns and again at the princess.
Bummer.

jimsissy at yahoo dot com

Joanne Levy said...

Standing on the gangway, waiting to board the Star Princess, Tiara looked at the shimmering sea, marveling at the sparkly reflections dancing on the water’s meniscus. She turned to her new husband, Edmund and said, “I can’t wait to get to the buffet, I need some bacon in my belly.”

joanne@joannelevy.com

Annika said...

Bella Cullen was tired of being Edward’s princess. She took off her tiara and threw it on the floor, shocking her perfect, sparkly prince.

(noirbettie at the gmail)

Meg said...

Safe for all ages.

Royal Fable #3

Her sparkly gold fish died on Thursday. Wearing my tiara in sad solitude, I buried it on Friday. My negligent princess remembered to feed it on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday.

Fable: Timely tend thy royal duties for later is oft’ too late.

Meg_evonne@yahoo.com

Pati Nagle said...

Tiara in place, polished to sparkly brightness. Gown, hair, nails—all perfect. Mantra: “You're a princess.”

Taking a deep breath, the drag queen stepped onto the runway.

(stargazer at patinagle.com)

Pati Nagle said...

Heh. I cruised on the Star Princess.
Thanks for a fun contest, Susan!

Sandra Cormier said...

Janice shoved her empty wineglass aside, adjusting her sparkly tiara. "Welcome back to our live Princess edition of Janice's Kishen." She embraced her guest chef René, pushing him against the griddle. "I lurve you."

René dropped his spatula and kissed her.

The producer grinned. "This is the best show ever!"


sfcormier(at)rogers(dot)com

Bill Cameron said...

She gazes into the sparkly depths of gin and ice, fingers her sash. "Princess," it reads. Runner up . . . Loser.

"Screw that." She sips gin and smiles. On the floor at her feet, the red-splashed tiara protrudes from a long, elegant throat.

If the winning contestant cannot perform her duties . . .

bc(at)billcameronmysteries(dot)com

Anonymous said...

Slapping the credit card down, I looked at the man behind the counter. He grinned, showing white sparkly teeth.
“You just made the cut-off princess.”
He pointed to the clock on the wall and eyed the tiara on my head.
“I just turned forty. Need more vodka. Party ain't over.”

bonotexas@yahoo.com

Michelle said...

"It's sparkly."

Rufus pinched his nose with a scowl. Ignoring him, I pried open Princess's mouth. Her tail thumped, her droopy eyes ecstatic.

"It's your fault for buying her that stupid tiara," Rufus grumbled.

"Whatever," I retorted, patting her head. "Just go get the pooper-scooper."


-----
Great contest! michelle.schusterman at gmail.com

Unknown said...

Snorting like an asthmatic pig, Jocelyn eyed the sparkly, pink torture on her bed. It was replete with a princess tiara.

Yeah, when winged donkeys fly out of my…

Jocelyn looked at her black H.I.M. tee shirt and thought of Jason.

Pretty Princess Hell could be tolerated for one dance.

A/N: What fun! YAY! The other entries are great!

My email is blackenedquill (at) aol (dot) com.

S. Mozer said...

"Mommy, today I want to be a princess."

"Okay honey, you're a princess."

"No, mommy, it doesn't work like that!"

"Then how does it work?"

"Silly Mommy."

She pulled out a sparkly tiara and placed it on her head.

"NOW, I'm a princess!"

Anonymous said...

Caroline squinted at the tiara. It glimmered at her from the pillow behind the window, all diamond peaks and sparkly valleys. Sighing, she eased the heavy stroller back into sidewalk traffic and watched twin sets of drool-covered fingers wiggling in city sunlight. “Princess of Poopy Diapers,” she thought. “That’s me.”

---

pogomama(at)gmail(dot)com

deltay said...

I hurl the tiara at the floor, and jump on it. Hearing the plastic shatter is hugely satisfying.

"Daddy's Little Princess" my butt.

The jagged shards of silver plastic are sparkly in the sunlight, dustmotes and stray glitter swirling in the beams.

This is how I am now.

Broken.



lucidconspiracy[at]gmail[dot]com

lisa and laura said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
JH said...

"Seriously?" Claire asks.

"You'll query better with a tiara."

"No!"

"Try it on. Gah! Don't you want to be published? See? There! Sparkly!"

"I'm no princess. You do know that, right? I mean you're old and everything, but you wrote me. Hello?"

"Oh, that's good, honey, let's call Don Maass."

Johanna Harness
@johannaharness
johanna@johannaharness.com

Kari Lynn Dell said...

When the ambulance had gone, we caught the horse, straightened the saddle, dusted off the formerly pristine white hat and replaced the tiara, sparkly in the sun. “Perhaps,” I said, “someone should have reminded the rodeo princess to tighten her cinch.”

Kari Dell
http://www.montanaforreal.blogspot.com

kdell@wtechlink.us

ST6153 said...

The girl cowered behind the sheer curtains of her canopy bed as the shrieks and howls began again. The lightning flashed, outlining the floating man. It must be the ghost! She gathered courage, threw aside her sparkly tiara and screeched, “You can’t haunt me! I’m a princess!”

Thanks:) Sarah Thorpe
sarah6153@gmail.com

Anonymous said...

My sister’s wedding day. As Miranda was unable to judge her appearance in front of a mirror, she turned to us.

“You need something a bit sparkly, like a tiara.”

“Oh mother,” I answered. “Such things are so…human. Not befitting a vampire; not even our princesses wear such things.”

Unknown said...

I probably shouldn't be entering because I don't actually have a 50 page manuscript, but I couldn't resist the prompt. Here's what I came up with.

Denim chafed against skin that craved silk. Hair that once trailed behind her lay braided on the bed. She hesitated before lifting the sparkly tiara from her head. Tears fell, but she picked up the rope of hair and turned toward the window. Fairytales were for princesses. She wanted more.

Oh, and my email is contessad@gmail.com

Anonymous said...

Coffee’s aroma floated Daddy’s little princess to the kitchen the morning after her bachelorette party. Sleepy-eyed, with a sparkly tiara still tangled in her hair, she cuddled against Pop in the breakfast nook.

“I’m going to miss you,” she said.

“No need, I’m always as close as you want me.”

joan.edens{at}gmail{dot}com / @neonjade / neonjade.com

lisa and laura said...

Sorry for multiple entries! We had sparkles instead of sparkly on the last one.

It was an unspoken rule. Emily was always the princess and I was stuck being her unicorn steed. Sparkly glitter flew from her crooked tiara trailing in her wake. My sister princess was killed by a dragon called Acute Myeloid Leukemia. Even her unicorn wasn’t powerful enough to save her.


Thanks for hosting such a great contest!
lisa-laura(at)live.com

sruble said...

Once upon a time, a princess wearing a sparkly tiara crossed into a world with dragons. She leaped through the portal, tamed the dragons, kissed a frog and married the prince, which broke the witch’s spells. Everyone lived happily ever after, except for the witch, who plotted revenge. The end.

--------

Thanks for the fun contest Susan and Happy Tiara Day!

Stephanie Ruble
sruble at sruble.com

Kevin said...

The school photographer uses a stuffed pig to try and get a smile out of me.

A duck got a giggle out of my sister at WowsWorld, back when she was still in her princess phase with her sparkly tiara.

But I like dark stuff. Piggy won’t work on me.


kkraut@gmail.com

Janet Reid said...

The princess phone jangled at Sparkle Sparkle and Wheeze headquarters.

"You called, you talk," answered Miss Tia Ra, of the royal Egyptian Ras.

"My sparkle isn't sparkly anymore," sobbed Miss Schwab. "My GRE is making me blah"

"Medicinal cupcakes!" TiaRa barked to her minion. "Spectacular redazzler on their way ASAP!"

Jennifer said...

Here it is, with 50 words exactly:

Leander watched as his four year old daughter tottered around the back yard, her sparkly, glitter-covered tiara perched on top of her red curls. He smiled.

“Daddy’s little princess,” his wife, Astra, said, appearing behind him. “I can’t believe she’s already four.”

Leander shook his head. “Neither can I.”

(Email: jennabee13@yahoo.com Hurrah for tiara day! :D )

Jane Lebak said...

"I hid the dart in the tiara." Blackavar set the circlet into my hair. "The headpiece is sparkly enough that they'll think it's a gem."

The gown clenched my ribs like a sheathe. "And my target--?"

Blackavar guided me to the ballroom. "Your step-sister, the princess."

(email: tabris02@verizon.net)

AmethystGreye said...

Princess hated Johnny Cash.*
Had his mother loved Cash less, she might have thought better of naming a future linebacker something so girly.
“Tiara Joe” wasn’t his preferred nickname either, but Princess endured that as well. When the ball flew and the cheerleader’s sparkly skirts swished, it was all good.

*Let it be noted I myself enjoy a little man in black from time to time.

Hope you get a ton of giggles from this, Susan.

--Amethyst
amethyst.greye@gmail.com

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Unknown said...

The bride had worn the tiara at every royal wedding for centuries. Trumpets and hautboys sounded as the footman brought it to her; it was sparkly on its purple cushion. Princess Jeliza's eyes sparkled too, in amusement.

"Get that thing outa here! Ain't no way it'll fit over my dreadlocks!"

(50 words on the button! coldcom.press@gmail.com)

Anonymous said...

“Give me Katz, right now.” The woman’s voice had a pronounced snarl as she asked for her lawyer.

“I will connect you.” The receptionist hit the telephone’s transfer button.

“Katz here.”

“What do you mean I don’t get the sparkly tiara in the divorce!! I’m the princess, not that toad!”

Unknown said...

Cool air flows across our eyes. It is morning. The heat has just kicked on (it's always cool at first).

My alarm "sparkly awakenings" is going off in the other room...because I tend to leave things (my phone, tiara) in the other room.

Brian says, "Is it going to stop, Princess?"

jmartinlibrary said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
jmartinlibrary said...

"Hi, I'm Bella Swan."

"What a pleasure to meet you, I'm Princess Madeleine of Sweden."

"My boyfriend's sparkly."

"I wear a tiara."

"But I get to cuddle with a vampire."

"How nice. I get to hand out Nobel Prizes."

Jenny Martin
e-mail: mathmartin@tx.rr.com

Rebecca Knight said...

Betty's glass shattered in her hand as the signal lit up the night. She swept the sparkly shards off her date and pulled her mask on.

"Is that a cowl?"

"It sure as Hell ain't a tiara."

She shoved him aside, jumping from the restaurant balcony.

"Go get 'em, Princess..."
___________

Exactly 50 :). That was fun!

twoheadknight(at)gmail(dot)com

Anonymous said...

“Nice tiara, princess,” my stepbrother said, knocking the goggles off my head. “It goes great with your sparkly lingerie.”

The air was the same temperature as the water, but I shivered despite by bravado. “Drop dead.” As captain of the football team, he would never appreciate synchronized swimming.

heather@cogeco.ca

Vonna said...

Five is when you get to be a princess. Like Allie, a sparkly, ballerina princess. Mimi claps. Potsy takes pictures.

Her tiara makes my heart ache. Two is so far from five.

Allie dances to me, removes her tiara and sets it on my head. Allie is a princess.

Deborah Blake said...

"Hand over the tiara, Princess," he said,his sarcasm as dangerous as the gun in his big-knuckled hand. "You're sparkly enough without it."

Vera narrowed her eyes and steadied the tiara before kicking him to the floor. "Sparkly this, Bubba." She smiled. "Next time, worry about your own jewels."

magicmysticminerva at yahoo.com

Sonia Ayoub said...

The princess gazed out the frost-kissed window, longing for the moment she could cast off her chains and bask in the sparkly world just outside the glass.

As cruel as her imprisonment was at least she could don her tiara on this, the most hallowed of days… casual Friday.

________

Thanks!

soniaayoub(at)yahoo(dot)ca

Alina Klein said...

I flicked the dirt from my tiara,
The muck from my bejeweled feet.
Then rudely I was hoisted up,
By hands that felt like cold concrete.
One sparkly eye was leveled at me.
I vowed I’d never acquiesce.
Sure enough, large lips drew near…
I bit them—hard. I’m the toad princess.

Alina Klein (alinabk @ tds.net--without the spaces.)

Fun contest. Thanks. :)

Catherine Misener said...

"Hmmm…maybe if you wore something sparkly. That's always a nice touch."

"They'll still notice my face."

"Oh, sweets. You know your Mum's pretty little princess, right?"

I took the tiara proffered by the sales clerk and tried it on. "Mum, you're the only one who doesn't see the toad."



Cool contest! ccmisener@aol.com

Megan Maynor said...

Cheerleader? No, that was so third grade. Mummy? Too boyish. Emma kicked the dirt. Her scuffed boots reminded her of the shoe polish her mom bought her. Repeatedly. Maybe she could use that somehow… Something sparkly caught her eye in the weeds. A tiara. Perfect, I’ll be The Undead Princess.

----------
mmaynor(at)jamaynor(dot)com

Anonymous said...

The tiara crumpled, sparkly stones popping and grinding between the anvil of the cold stone floor and the hammer of her hard-soled boot. Princess no more, she strode through the cook's entrance, sheathing her blade. In her wake: a pruned family tree and a kingdom adrift.

Josin L. McQuein said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Josin L. McQuein said...

The princess cut diamond sat loose on her finger. Sparkly and pink, it was the last bit of shimmer left from a vibrant life of color and fury. Fire made flesh, reduced to ashes. She was buried in her tiara, and when she arrived in heaven she outshone the sun.


(JosinLMcQuein@yahoo.com)

JenE said...

Janet ripped the tiara from the evil Barbara's head. "Now what, Princess?"

Barbara pulled from her bag a blindfolded octopus. She grinned her evil grin. "Exchange?"

They traded and backed away from each other. "Just wait, Princess. Your turn is coming. Who do you think Stewie works for, anyway? Bahaha!"


jwearp@cableone.net
This was fun! Thanks!

Monda said...

Everyone knew who she was. Even draped in a coroner’s hasty cloth, legs akimbo, we could see the bas relief tiara teetering to one side. And though I missed her already, there was this ache to reach under, reposition the bobbie pins, right the sparkly princess. But they were watching.

ohmonda@gmail.com
No Telling

Jinxie G said...

“Hey princess, you forgot your tiara.” Clancy threw the crumpled Mardi Gras party favor at his bartender.

“Thanks.” Nemy smoothed the tissue paper and wire, and frowned. “It’s not sparkly anymore.”

“You’re sparkly enough, woman.” He laughed. “Trying for vampire?”

“Only if I can bite you!”

He grinned. “You’re on.”

---------
Jinxie_G

nlgervasio@gmail.com

Anonymous said...

In my excitement I didn't include my email address.

j2danz (a) gmail (dot) com

Anonymous said...

The frog glared at the princess. “You know the rules.”

Her eyes narrowed. “Just a minute,” she snapped, whirling so fast her tiara slipped. She bent over, bustle protruding, and a sparkly cloud mushroomed through the silk. She spun back, smirking. “Excuse me.” Her eyelids fluttered and lips puckered.

Splash.





Elizabeth Lynd
elynd@sbcglobal.net

Unknown said...

Her sparkly tiara twinkled under the fluorescent light. Soon my princess would waken.
I circled the open case, the only remaining suitor. Leaning over the gold-plated plaque describing the legend of the sleeping beauty, I let my lips brush her cool skin and... nothing.
I was not her true love.



emily-casey@comcast.net

S.J.Kincaid said...

God, not the school...
Lilah admired the flames, like some kid marveling at something sparkly.
"Why, Lilah?" I asked.
"Because I lost."
"But you have the tiara!"
"They owed it to me." Her smile dizzied me. "Give me an alibi?"
I sighed. "As always."
Anything for my beautiful, psychotic princess.

Blee Bonn said...

Thanks for the great contest. Here's my entry.

My heart leaps when I try on the sparkly tiara. It’s my little sister’s, but no matter. I tear up and think this is my night. I look better than a princess. I lean in for a closer look. Then frown at the thick stubble framing my face and shave.

blee@bleebonn.com

DK Whisman said...

The world mourned the loss of King Harrison. The royal staff was baffled. He was survived only by the Queen and Princess Stay.

Court enforcer Smithy discovered a clue.

“What is it?” his partner asked.

Smithy looked up with a disheartened frown.

“A bloody tiara…”

At least it’s still sparkly.

---------------

Exactly 50 words :) (dkwhisman@gmail.com) Yay!

Chris said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
GroovyMystery said...

The muse snatched the tiara off my head.

“You lose both your sparkly tiara and all your princess-points if you don’t write!”

I stared at the screen, then began to type: Silly muse, princess-points are for kids. But DON’T TOUCH the tiara! Got that? The tiara is mine!

jimhuskins(at)gmail(dot)com

Karrie said...

The little girl with a tiara dangling from one hand, bag of candy from the other, stared at the three smiling jack o'lanterns,

Cmon,cmon.

She stepped onto the porch, the sparkly princess gown she wore falling off her shoulder.

Good girrrrl.
Don't be scared.
Not just yet.

kjpoet@aol.com

Unknown said...

Jack was born in Sparkly Springs—an odd name for a dust and wind town stranded in the Nevada desert. Its claim to fame: if the sun went down on a clear evening you could see Mount Whitney light up like a black tiara.

Jack moved to California. The Princess State.

mjfrise@gmail.com

Chris said...

Her mother was high as a kite the morning she was born which explains being named Tiara. Most of her friends just called her Tia. True to her namesake, Tia was sparkly and at least one mild mannered number cruncher considered her to be an honest-to-goodness princess.
**********************************
Great fun! -Chris
ccox@opsb.net

Kara Parlin said...

Stevie rolled the sparkly pink tulle between his fingers. The princess costume had a comforting, yet abrasive feel. The fate of the only boy in a cul-de-sac overrun by tiara-topped girlie girls.

“We give up, already. Where are you hiding?” Leila pleaded.

Not yet, Stevie thought. A few more minutes.

[kparlin(at)gmail(dot)com]

Unknown said...

repeat post (WITH EMAIL this time.... susanhellein@yahoo.com)
susanh said...

Cool air flows across our eyes. It is morning. The heat has just kicked on (it's always cool at first).

My alarm "sparkly awakenings" is going off in the other room...because I tend to leave things (my phone, tiara) in the other room.

Brian says, "Is it going to stop, Princess?"

Terri Coop said...

It came in at 50 words exactly:

--------------

Tongues wagged as the newlyweds left the church.

"Ain't she just pretty as a princess in that sparkly tiara."

"Old fool's got forty years on her. Where's her family?"

"Got none. She's an orphan."

"Bet he's happy."

They were right. The local taxidermist had finally found the perfect trophy wife.

-----------------

Thanks for the great contest!

Terri
circlexranch(at)sbcglobal.net

Saison said...

“The rhinestones that are left are dingy. They don’t sparkle anymore.”

My sister slides the tiara into her hair, and now there’s a princess where a pauper once slumped.

“They never did sparkle much. But I always will.”

If only all the girls in the trailer park knew her secret.


SaisonLibellule@yahoo.com

Anonymous said...

"Out of the way, princess."

Luke ducked, evading decapitation as they manhandled the sheet of glass across the space where his head had been seconds before. Off balance, he collided with the chandelier, down for cleaning.

Sparkly rainbows dazzled his eyes as it lodged over his head, a giant tiara.

kschafer@wildblue.net

Ben Sloan said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

“Nice tiara, princess,” my brother said, knocking the goggles off my head. “It goes great with your sparkly lingerie.”

The air was the same temperature as the water, but I shivered despite by bravado. “Drop dead.” As captain of the football team, he would never appreciate men’s synchronized swimming.

Whoops! Missed a word in the original post.
heather @cogeco.ca

Susan X Bradley said...

A sparkly fingernail traced the tattooed tiara adorning her wrist.
Now, she was one of them. A new family. A new life.
He handed her a bank statement with funds worthy of a princess.
“My assignment?”
“Steal Queen Cleopatra’s Nemes Headdress”
“Timeline?”
“Forty-eight hours”
“I’ll have it in twenty-four.”

Great contest-thanks,

bradley_susan(at)yahoo(dot)com

Nancy Keim Comley said...

Nipper trotted onto Princess Canal Street. The sun was sparkly on the water. Nipper stopped, no the sparkle was the tiara of Palasman! It guarded the safety of the country! Nipper leapt into the water and carried the tiara to shore, saving the country and earning kippers for his supper.

Nancy Keim Comley
keim_comley@yahoo.com

JenE said...

Janet ripped the tiara from the evil Barbara's head. "Now what, Princess?"

Barbara pulled from her bag a blindfolded octopus. She grinned her evil grin. "Exchange?"

They traded and backed away from each other. "Just wait, Princess. Your turn's coming. Who do you think Sparkly Stewie works for, anyway? Bahaha!"


jwearp@cableone.net
Sorry for the double post! Needed a correction!

Janice Sperry said...

Sheryl placed a tiara on her daughter's bald head. "You look like a princess."

"I look stupid." Alexis tore the sparkly tiara off and threw it across the room. "Mom, does death hurt?"

Sheryl folded her arms. "Alexis! You can't kill your brother for shaving your head while you slept."

Janice Sperry
sperrynluv at netzero dot com

Rissa Watkins said...

Throughout the years I've watched an endless parade of girls come and go. He played with them like sparkly new toys, calling each his princess. He gifted every one with a tiara before tossing them aside to return to my bed.

You don't need a tiara when you're the queen.

Rissa@rissaWatkins.com

Tabitha Bird said...

The tiara fell from the head of the little princess who was rocked by hands that bruised and never told she was beautiful.

Thirty years later I found it, a faded sparkly underneath my bed, lost among all the diamond tears I have cried.

Today I put it on.

Tabitha Bird

tab at zaeya dot com

PS. ( I am Australian, don't know if that counts me out. I just wanted to play. Thanks for the comp.)

Elana Johnson said...

Kewl contest! Here's my entry. (40 words. elanajohnson@gmail.com)

Haley rubs her bruised knuckles. Bones hurt. Teeth too.

Mrs. Allen, principal, opens the door. “Come in, my little first grade boxer.”

Haley stands. Frowns. “I am a princess. Can’t you see my sparkly tiara?” She sighs. “Braxton couldn’t either.”

LaurieM said...

“You look like real royalty dressed in that sparkly tiara and long satin gown.”

Lynn peeked in her daughter’s room. It was covered from wall to wall in scattered clothing.

She mumbled, “But I am no lady in waiting.”

She handed the princess a magic wand and the laundry basket.

Julie said...

It sank into the well, making the ripples sparkly. Her part of the trade was fulfilled, yet a hollow feeling swelled inside. The princess laughed and was soft in the bright noon. She walked away before the tiara disappeared completely beneath the water. The day still before her.


yellowand(at)gmail

Cat Moleski said...

A tiara of thoughts rages through my head as I reach for the vial that will make my world sparkly. H is my king, but he can kill. MaryJane, she’s my princess. I lost my virginity to her. I put down the vial and reach for a joint.

catmoleski@gmail.com

Midori said...

The satin pillow was empty.

“There!”

Women in ball-gowns charged the stage. The platoon of princesses fired their talents. A flaming baton sliced through the air. Singers shattered glass. Clog-dancers shook the earth.

The sparkly tiara in its mouth, the cat reached a roof hatch and disappeared into the night.

Midori said...

Oopsie, rjmoser@gmail.com

Anonymous said...

Tiara wrinkled her nose against the putrid combination of B.O. and cheap booze.

“Spare some change, Princess?”

She clutched her purse carefully so she didn’t chip the polish on her sparkly manicure. “I’m afraid not.”

The grubby man leered at her. “Then maybe you’d go out with me sometime?”

Laura at allthewritestuff@gmail.com

Jessica L. Brooks (coffeelvnmom) said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Jessica L. Brooks (coffeelvnmom) said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Mechelle Fogelsong said...

“When you come home from summer camp pregnant, there’s only one solution, Princess,” Rosa’s father grumbled.

A Peruvian beaded tiara represented something old. Her sparkly quinceanera gown, something new. The stranger waiting at the altar seemed somehow borrowed, and she was blue.

Until she spotted his Chuck Taylors and smiled.

mfogelsong@buhlschools.org

Hillary said...

Creeping across the wooden planks and ignoring the hundreds of sparkly eyes peering from the dark, I grabbed the rolled paper that documented my three year descent into hell. And then I paused. “What are you waiting for, princess, your lawyer tiara?” It was just the beginning.


Thanks! My e-mail is hillaryhujanen@gmail.com

Jessica L. Brooks (coffeelvnmom) said...

She drug herself to the bedroom after the long, exhausting day of work, kicked off her shoes, and flicked on the light.

"Oh my gosh Allen, you scared me - why on earth are you wearing that sparkly tiara?"

"Five words." her deadpan husband replied.

"What?"

"Let's pretend I'm a princess."

Jessica L. Brooks (coffeelvnmom) said...

**oops forgot the email, if you wouldn't mind I'd rather not post it on here but it's on my blogger profile:)

Editor Cassandra said...

Macey looked down at the little girl.
"If by 'Sparkly' you mean 'endless' and by 'tiara' you mean 'waiting', then yes, I'm a princess. A princess of the DMV."
The little girl smiled and skipped back to her mom.

Editor Cassandra said...

Oh, and cassandrabrownwrites AT gmail DOT com

Thanks!

Anonymous said...

I wear my tiara when I clean house. An embarrassing confession, no? I was CHS Winter Princess 1993, and I’ve still got a ten-dollar crown to prove it. Tonight, my crown and some sparkly champagne (in gold-rimmed Waterford flute) will get me through five loads of laundry. Tomorrow, dishes.

jphomsithi at hotmail dot com
49 words

Aimée Carter said...

All his daughter had wanted was to be Sleeping Beauty.

He wished he could’ve given her more than just a sparkly tiara and the false promise of a cure that never came. But as the muddy ground swallowed her coffin, at least he knew she would always be his princess.


Email: xpolmex [at] gmail [dot] com

Thanks for such an inspiring contest!

JAMR said...

She sported a tiara on our first date, and no one at the carnival raised an eyebrow. I was smitten. Still was, three decades later.

How dare the sun be so sparkly today? I throw a handful of soil onto the gleaming casket. “No flirting with the angels, princess.”

---

jamr88@gmail.com

AudryT said...

"Put on the tiara," Fate commanded.

To wear it would make me a princess -- or one of the corpses lying at Fate's feet.

"If you do not, she will." Fate pointed. The sparkling crown reflected in my sister's eager eyes.

In response, I did what I had to do. I set the tiara on Fate's head.

"Do you want ice cream?" I led my sister away from the screams of the tiara's final victim.


--------------

I don't really care if that qualifies. I just had to see if I could stand writing the word "sparkly." (I couldn't.)

Julie Kibler said...

Shelby thinks she's a high heel and I'm a smelly sneaker.

I can't resist – I position my foot between the desk rows.

Her knees crack against the floor, and the quiet kid who stares out the window during class says, "Ha. Your tiara ain't so sparkly now, princess."

julielayne(at)sbcglobal(dot)net

Mechelle Fogelsong said...

Pardon the repetition please. I’m re-submitting…

“You came home from summer camp pregnant. There’s only one solution, Princess,” Rosa’s father grumbled.

A Peruvian beaded tiara represented something old. Her sparkly quinceanera gown, something new. The stranger waiting at the altar seemed somehow borrowed, and she was blue.

Until she spotted the stranger’s Chuck Taylors and smiled.

mfogelsong@buhlschools.org

Anonymous said...

I am energy. Energy cannot sink.

I launch myself into the sparkly, treacherous river. The surface splits to caress me.

I am energy, but I sink.

I am swept into the unknown. I drift back to a time when I dreamed of becoming a princess. My tiara cracked long ago.

Thanks for the contest! The comment above mine is positively delicious!

tashiluvsu@live.com

Kristin Halbrook said...

“Did you have to bring Princess?”

The puppy snarled at me from its designer carrier.

“Like, duh.” She stopped in front of Harry Winston.

“Ooo, sparkly.”

“The tiara?”

“Uh huh.”

“You want it?”

“As if! It’s broken.”

“Huh?”

“See? It doesn’t even go all the way around your head.”
---------------------------
Super fun contest! We were glad to feature it on YA Highway. :D

Kristin
kristindmiller(at)gmail(dot)com

Lale said...

“Stupid princesses,” I muttered. “Max is never going to like them, with their stupid sparkly tiaras.”

The carriage moved through the crowd. The girl inside reached white hands to her hair, her brow creased. Strangely enough, this one actually looked nervous.

That didn’t mean I’d let her take him.


booksbya.k@gmail.com

Jay said...

He didn't believe in ghosts. But he saw one. She was a princess, tiara and all. She appeared like a colorful mist until it took shape. Sparkly shoes complimented her dress. But her face was dark, evil. She grinned. Then swung with her wand. Blood, then darkness.

Jason Dougherty -- jmdougherty (at) gmail (dot) com

http://www.jaybooks.com

Margaret said...

She relaxes against him, his big body between hers and the slender tree guarding them. Icicles, sparkly in the sun, formed a tiara crowning the foliage. Breezes whispered secrets through the branches, the solitude embracing. "I am always well, when you are near," the Princess whispers.

margaret.jamison(at)gmail(dot)com

Anonymous said...

The princess was gone when he awoke.

She'd been... which one? He remembered a floofy dress, and not much else. Guess that ruled out Jasmine.

A tiara sat on the mouse-eared nightstand, around a Guiness bottle. Hours earlier she'd waved from her float at the parade, looking all sparkly.


andreagreen21(at)gmail

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
kiaras said...

The princess sits in splendor on her balcony while children starve in the streets below. Karma, watching through the portal, scratches her nose. Shots ring out. A sparkly tiara, now splashed with blood, falls into the dust.

email: kiara [at] waitingforfairies [dot] com

Anonymous said...

The sparkly tiara sat among the cheap brooches, priced $39.00. Emily, age 5, had enough holiday money to buy it, but wondered if her mother would let her. The stones on the tiara twinkled. It would make her look like a princess. Her mother considered, then explained: "It's your money."

kizgikate{at}gmail.com