Don't know who Santa Claus is? Check this Wiki link!

Again: all beliefs welcome--religious, philosophical, political or otherwise. This contest is open to Prose, Poetry, and Visual Poetry in any language. You need not be a literary genius, a Christian, or a primary English speaker to enter. This contest is open to ANYONE and EVERYONE.

It's all about having fun.



Contest Objective: Write a letter to Santa

I want you to write a letter to Santa Claus. You don't have to believe in Santa Claus, be a Christian, or even celebrate the holidays to know that "Santa" represents something a little different to each of us (and nothing at all to some of us). The letter doesn't have to be cheesy or strive for something deep (unless you want it to); it can be silly, tongue-in-cheek, angry, humorous, a commentary on the state of holidays in general or a statement about religion, faith, commercialism, and/or anything else you feel compelled to talk about this holiday season. The subject matter is entirely up to you.

All it has to be is a letter to Santa.

You can include poetry. You can write it as straight prose. You can make it very formal or you can write in slang or dialect and make it personal in that regard. It can be real; it can be fake. It can include your Christmas list. It doesn't even have to be written in English! However, it must be a letter (which includes a salutation and a closing line).


Rules:

1. It must be a letter (including a salutation and closing line);
2. Your letter must be a new deviation uploaded to your gallery;
3. Prose entries cannot be shorter than 100 words or longer than 3,000 words;
4. Poetry entries must include at least two lines but cannot have more than 40;
5. Visual entries must be clear enough and large enough to be read on full-view;
6. Your entry does not have to be written in English.
7. No more than two (2) submissions per person;
8. Letters should comply with dA submission policies and standards;
9. All entries must be received by 12:01AM (GMT) on 21 December 2007;



How to Enter:

To enter, please submit your letters to the Official Litmas Category for this contest. You can do this by going to "Submit Deviation" and, from there:

"Contests & Projects---> Contests---> 2007---> 2007 Holiday Contests"

and then you're going to choose

"Litmas---> Santa Letters"

Alternatively, if you get stuck, send `GeneratingHype a note entitled "SANTA" with a link to your scrap or deviation before 12:01AM GMT on 21 December 2007. If you get really stuck, you can also post the link in a comment to this journal on `GeneratingHype's page. Please do not post a link to your entry on this news article.

Remember, you can submit more than one letter, but please do not submit more than two.


Who Can Enter?

This challenge is open to anyone. Do not be discouraged if you are not a "writer". Many of us have written a letter from time to time, and sentiment can be far more important than grammar under the right circumstances.


Prizes

Overall Winners

These entries can be poetry, prose, visual poetry or prose, or written in any language; they are simply the best entries overall.


First Place

A 1-year Premium print account
A 1-year subscription to deviantART
Winner's choice of an available devWEAR T-Shirt
One small print from `Mithgariel's account

Second Place

A dA mug (lit or otherwise).
A 6-month subscription
A print valued up to $15 USD

Third Place

A da lanyard, sticker pack, or keychain
A 4-month subscription to dA
A print valued up to $10 USD


Specialty Prizes


The Funniest Entry

The most humorous entry will receive a journal feature through *ThePurpleNurple


The Best Example of Visual Poetry or Prose

The best visual poetry or prose entry will receive:

A $15 USD print

Note: The top three visual literature entries will be featured in =BornBlitzed's journal.


The Top Foreign Language Submission^*

The top entry in a foreign language (an entry not written in English) will receive:

A dA Calendar valued up to $25 (USD)
A 3-month dA Subscription.
A *WordCount feature

_{* Judges will vary depending on the language. A rough English translation in the note or Artist's comments would be helpful, but it's not required.}


Judges

In addition to various "Honorary Judges" who will help us with translations, here are the four main judges:



_{If you can read a language other than English and are interested in being an Honorary Judge, let `GeneratingHype know.}


For additional information feel free to check the Letters to Santa (A Contest) journal entry.



This contest is in conjunction with Litmas, a dA AR holiday initiative.


Is this contest not your cup of tea? That's okay! dA Lit has a few other contest for you to check out:


Christmas Prose

In 3,000 words or less, write a Christmas-themed story. It's as simple as that! Prizes include devWEAR and subscriptions. (Run by ^GunShyMartyr)

Winter Flash

In a maximum of 600 words, write a piece of prose that deals with winter. Remember to avoid cliches! Prizes include devWEAR and subscriptions. (Run by ^StJoan and ^GunShyMartyr)

Your Holiday Landscape

Write a fixed form poem that reflects your holiday traditions. There are no line limits, either! Prizes include devWEAR and subscriptions. (Run by ^PoeticWar)

To submit to any of these Litmas contests, head to dA's 2007 Holiday Contests and then click "Litmas". After that, you can find the category for the specific contest you're trying to enter.


Still haven't found what you're looking for in a Holiday Contest? Check out *litNEWS for additional contests, including the very awesome Worst of the Holidays competition hosted by =WineWriter and *SpokenAubade