Contest | Cathy C. Hall Writes

Many years ago, when my children were very young (they were so young, the third one was just a gleam in the Good Lord’s eye), I watched as a young mother walked out of a K-Mart and left her little brown-haired girl behind. The episode, and how the event unfolded, rocked me to the core of my beliefs. But it changed me, too.

Years later, when I started writing essays, the K-Mart story surfaced and begged to be told. I bet I wrote a dozen versions of that story. And each time I submitted the essay to a market, it came back with a “No, thanks.” I can’t say that surprised me. I knew there was something more I needed to tell, and that I hadn’t gotten to the heart of the story. Then I saw the Thin Threads Contest.

As described on the website, a thin thread is a “moment, event, setback, crossroad or encounter that connected you to a person, place or an opportunity that changed your life for the better.” I knew immediately that I had to try again.

I suppose that this time, I got it right. Because “A Little Brown-Haired Girl” was selected for Thin Threads, Special Edition: Compassion and Giving. They’re always looking for life-changing stories, and maybe you have one that’s just right for this series. Find out more at their website. Or submit your story for the Thin Threads Contest like I did.

I’ll be ordering a few copies of the Thin Threads Compassion and Giving, perhaps have a contest here and give it away. But it won’t really compare with what a little brown-haired girl gave me so many years ago.

I zipped up to North Georgia recently, where Cathy-on-a-Stick walked the line between Georgia and Tennessee. But that’s not the weird part. What’s weird is that the little town where the line runs through is called one name on the Georgia side and another name on the Tennessee side.

Okay, maybe that’s not that weird. How about this? The RIVER that runs through both states changes names from Georgia to Tennessee. That’s got to be interesting, right? And if I write about this trip, I could win over at Trazzler.

Trazzler’s a travel website where you can visit from the comfort of your laptop before you head out onto the road. And yes, they’ll point out travel deals. But what I like about Trazzler is the articles other folks have written. I can check out spots within driving distance from me to see if a. There’s something weird and wacky there and b. It’s a spot that’s arguing-worthy. Because to get the Beneficent Mr. Hall on the road is not an easy task. I have to have plenty of ammunition, as it were, for the battle.

So I’ve added Trazzler to my arsenal. And if you like traveling and writing about your travels, then you can enter one of the contests. Or you can just write about your travels for other folks to enjoy. You can read more about Trazzler here and how to write for Trazzler here. And you can vote for a friend’s totally weird trip contest entry here.

And now I’ve got my own writing to do. I think I’ll call it “Travels With My Stick.” Weird…but catchy, right?