Spring Fling Kidlit Contest

I am so excited to share my entry for the Spring Fling Kidlit Contest! The contest rules are to find a spring-related gif and use it as the inspiration to write a story for kids in under 150 words! The word count was a good challenge for me, as my writing tends to be too wordy. I am learning that with picture books, more is less! The first draft of my story was almost 400 words, and I didn't think there was any way I could cut it down to 150. But I managed to do it, and do you know what? I like it even better than the original. I hope you enjoy it too!

Made to Fly

I feel the breeze and quiver with excitement. Maya unwinds my string. “Ready?” she asks. I can’t wait. She starts running. Her dad throws me into the air. I fly up, up, up. Then I look down. Maya is so far away. I panic. And fall.

Maya picks me up and runs again, but I don’t even try. Run, throw…flop. Run, throw…flop. Maya picks me up and says, “Kite, listen to me. You don’t belong here on the ground. You belong in the sky. You were made to fly!”

Maya starts running. This time, I don’t look at the ground. I look up at the sky. I let the wind lift me higher and higher toward the clouds. I am flying! I hear Maya cheering, and I look down. She is tiny, but I am not scared now. I am where I belong. I was made to fly!

*Kite gif is from YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r7yezRhh-F4