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There were three finalists in this LitWit Challenge: jaime, Cacs and joyeah.

jaime’s story is well-written and gross, which is not necessarily a bad combination except that it doesn’t have actual magic in it.

Cacs’s story is our favorite because we like big intergalactic battles, but the magical objects aren’t actually in it. It’s really a trailer for the magical objects story.

joyeah’s story has character, plot, movement. It has a sense of place. We can see the tale unfolding like a movie.

The winner is joyeah. (Applause.) Congratulations, joyeah! You can pick up your prize at the Customer Service counter of National Bookstore, Power Plant Mall, Rockwell, Makati any time in the next 8 weeks. Just give your full name. Their number: (02)8974562.

Watch for next month’s LitWit Challenge. If you have any suggestions, let us know.

The LitWit Challenge is brought to you by our generous friends at National Bookstore.

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The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings trilogy are available at National Bookstores. These editions, about Php565 per book.

The assignment: Write a story of at least 500 words in which the character/s must destroy a magical object.

The prize: A set of J.R.R. Tolkien’s fantasy classic about a magical object that must be destroyed.

Post your entries in Comments. Entries will be judged soon after they are posted. As always, cliche openings will be mocked most cruelly. Remember: It’s not easy to destroy a magical object. It will defend itself, or find defenders.

We’re accepting entries until 12 noon on Sunday, 28 April 2013. The winner will be announced shortly after that.

This LitWit Challenge is brought to you by our friends at National Bookstore.

The Annotated P&P and Death Comes to Pemberley are available at National Bookstores.

And win these two books: the annotated P&P, and P.D. James’s murder mystery-Austen hommage.

Post your entries in Comments. The winner will be announced this weekend.

We got the idea from this.

We like this story because while it is personal it acknowledges the outside world and the mysteries of life. Too many of the entries are one-note: Me Me Me Me Me. They’re talking to themselves. This works if the language is fascinating; we’re not quite there yet. Why should we be interested in them when they’re not interested in us?

No Permanent Address tackles a social reality without getting preachy. The narrator starts out as a bored, self-absorbed youngster; by the end she has discovered compassion. She learns about herself by interacting with other people. In the process she gains a little knowledge of the world.

Also, the gun that appears early in the story is fired near the end. (Read A Brief History of Chekhov’s Gun in Breaking Bad.)

Jesse and Heisenberg in Breaking Bad

Congratulations, Ronigurl! You or your representative can pick up your prize at National Bookstore, Power Plant Mall, Rockwell, Makati starting Tuesday, April 2. Just go to the Customer Service counter (telephone 8974562) and give your full name.

The next LitWit Challenge is in April.

Here is the winning piece, in our edit.

No Permanent Address

No TV, no books, no radio, and no neighbors for kilometers. This hell was my summer. I was sent to the boondocks where I could spend time with my grandparents so my Mom would have one less mouth to feed. At least the grandies were rich enough to have running water from faucets and a toilet and bath, not like others in this province who only had holes in the ground and a wooden plank to squat on. We also had a half-finished swimming pool with no tiles and no water, and a big lawn with no gardener.
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This LitWit Challenge is closed. The winner will be announced tomorrow. Read the entries and our notes in Comments.

The Devil in Silver by Victor LaValle, Php995. Limited edition Pilipinas Moleskine journal, Php1100. Pilot disposable fountain pen, Php105. Available at National Bookstores.

A good book, check. A great notebook, check. A very cool fountain pen, check. You’re all set for the summer—specifically our idea of summer, which does not include sunshine and sand.

If you want this Survival Kit, write us an essay or short story of at least 500 words on that classic topic: How I Spent My Summer Vacation. Could be any summer vacation. Could be a summer vacation that never happened, as long as it sounds convincing. Just make your essay/story as entertaining as hell. Deadline for submission of entries is Wednesday, 27 March 2013 at 12 noon.

To make things more interesting, entries will be judged INSTANTLY. Tip: Stay away from the “It was a dark and stormy night” opening.

This LitWit Challenge is brought to you by our friends at National Bookstore.

Our favorite books of 2012 that were published in (or around) 2012

This year has seven weeks to go, but by now you should have a good idea which books are your favorites for 2012.

We want to know which 2011/2012 releases really hit the spot. What books published within the last 18 months do you love/possess ten copies of/wish to be buried with?

Post your lists (You can name as few as 5 titles but not more than 20, please) in Comments and we’ll publish the survey results in three weeks. At the end of the survey we’re raffling off gift certificates from National Bookstore—just in time for the holiday shopping frenzy.

The podcast will be uploaded shortly; we’re just figuring out how to take away the echo. We sound like we’re in the Batcave, which is appropriate because we ended up babbling about comics. (Note to self: For the next episodes prepare script outlines. Listeners can only take so much spontaneity.) We have read a lot of comics lately, and by “a lot” we mean “All the comics that friends have recommended over the years, devoured in a two-month spell of excruciating boredom.” If it hadn’t been for Moore, Morrison, Millar, Ellis, Whedon et al, we would’ve gone berserk. Thank you, comics.

In the meantime, tell us what comics you’ve read over the years and which titles you like. Jimmy Corrigan? Ghost World? Little Audrey? Asterix? Does anyone have any old Zuma komiks they want to trade? Does anyone besides Chus remember that komiks series Goombooroomboo where creatures pop out of someone’s boils? Post your answers in Comments. Randomly-selected commenters will receive these comics, which are all available at National Bookstores.

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Click on the Podcast button on top to see all episodes.

Jessica Rules the Universe Podcast
Episode 1. 17 Aug 2012. Jessica and co-host Budjette attempt a proper introduction to the series but quickly disintegrate into comics-induced chaos.

We’re still tweaking the site, feeds, etc. It will be available on iTunes shortly. For now you can listen to the podcast or download it.

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Ejia, you or your rep can pick up your prize at the Customer Service counter, National Bookstore, Power Plant Rockwell. Just give them your full name.