Holy Cow! News, News and a Contest!

If you've sensed any delirium around Writer Unboxed lately, there's good reason for it. Not only have we been busy lining up some seriously kick-heinie interviews for you (see impregnated sidebar at right) we've been making plans for a cutover to a new site at WordPress. Inkygirl Debbie Ohi is designing our new masthead, so we have every confidence it's going to be spectacular. We'll be doing away with our two-unboxed-girls-breaking-into-the-biz look for a reason; first, we're inviting someone with a Y chromosome into our ranks, and second, we're inviting someone who's already broken into the biz to join us as well. We'll be officially welcoming our new friends within the next few weeks, but we're seriously jazzed to have them as part of WU and couldn't wait to at least hint that they'll be a part of the scene soon.

Kath and I have also been brewing up a contest idea for many months, and we think now is the perfect time to unveil it. To win this particular contest, you'll need to write a short blurb about what makes you an unboxed (wildly creative) writer and then send it to us at writerunboxed@writerunboxed.com.

Wanna know what you're playing for?

That's right, a brand new AlphaSmart 3000, a tool every writer should have. Kath and I each have an AS 3000 and we adore ours so much that we want to force everyone else to our way of thinking...err, I mean spread the love. Not only does this little puppy have a huge memory, it runs on batteries, allows files to be easily downloaded into the word processing program of your choice and promotes unboxed thinking by making you move forward (you can only see four lines of text at a time in the small screen). Bonus: you can pack it into a briefcase and take it anywhere; type while in the passenger seat on trips; use it at the beach (because miraculously you can see the mini-screen in the sun); and maybe even save a tree or two by using it for note taking at meetings, while brainstorming, etc...

No hemming and hawing about this now; everyone should at least try. You're unboxed, right? Working toward being unboxed? You know what it means, for chili's sake, or you wouldn't be here. If you're new to the site, then by all means search around a bit, figure it out and then craft your blip. Send it to us at writerunboxed@writerunboxed.com. What have you got to lose?

Kath and I will choose the best (most wildly creative) unboxed entry as the winner by the close of the contest--September 30th--and we'll FedEx you your new AS3000 shortly thereafter along with an assortment of Alphie goodies:

• 3 AA batteries
• AlphaWord and Calculator SmartApplets
• USB cable
• User's Guide

Extra bonus: Therese will throw in some really good chocolate.

Want to know more about the AS 3000? Click here for more detailed info. Have questions? Ask away. But here's one question I want to answer up front:

Can I post about this on our lists and blogs and websites?

Please do! We want everyone to know about what we're doing here and to join our readerly ranks as we make the jump to our new home, with our new writer friends. So thanks in advance for passing the word. Added incentive: If we get an email saying, "Hey, ERIC told us about this opportunity," then ERIC gets a chance to enter again.

Yeah, it really is as good as it sounds, so what are you waiting for? Write on - creatively!