You are probably asking yourself, "What is a lipogram, anyway?" A lipogram is a piece of writing, for example a paragraph or a poem, in which one letter cannot be used. Usually, it's the letter "e" since "e" is the most commonly used letter! (Look at all the interesting new things you are learning by reading today's blog entry!)
Anyway, it's a goodthing I love lipograms because I am reading nearly 100 of them this week! That's because I am judging the Blue Metropolis Literary Foundation's 2008-2009 Lipogram Contest. The winner is going to get a $350 cash prize. Pretty good, if you ask me!
So now I'm going to write one more paragraph, in lipogram-form. Here goes (wish me luck!):
"Lipograms today, lipograms tomorrow, lipograms all day long! Lipograms to laugh at, lipograms I cry for. Zany, touching lipograms. On my back porch, lipograms for lunch. Writing lipograms is fun, but it's hard, too. Way to go for lipograms and lipogrammar and lippy lipogram-authors!"
That was, by the way, way harder than it looks. When Blue Met announces the winner of this year's Lipogram Contest, I'll post the info on my blog. In the mean time, start practising your lipograms. Perhaps you'll be able to enter next year's contest.
Oops, I was so excited about lipograms that I nearly forgot to tell you -- What World Is Left has been nominated for the American Library Association's YALSA 2009 Best Book Award!! Only a handful of Canadian authors made the list. Let's just say I'm in very good company!