Polite Dissent

To enliven the winter doldrums, I’m happy to present the first Polite Dissent contest. I have three brand new copies of the Nikolai Dante: The Romanov Dynasty trade paperbacks to give away. This is a great book, perfect for a winter’s evening. Who doesn’t love a little romance, a little sci-fi, and a lot of swashbuckling?

Interested? It’s easy to win: all it takes is a quick e-mail. Those with a little creativity stand an even better chance.

As I have three copies to give away, there are three ways to win a copy of the book: Quality, Quantity, and Pure Luck.

Quality:
Spin me the tale of a Russian Nobleman (or Noblewoman). It can be a story, a poem, a comic, a picture, haiku, iambic pentameter or even a song. The choice of a medium is entirely up to you. Fun and creativity count the most, with actual talent coming in third.

The catch is that in addition to the Russian aristocrat, the tale must contain at least four of the following six elements: 1) a bottle of vodka, 2) a river otter, 3) a copy of The Annotated Alice in Wonderland, 4) an ice cream sandwich, 5) Spiro Agnew and/or 6) the island sounds of Don Ho.

Quantity:
Same rules as above, except — in addition to the Russian nobleman — include as many items off the Big List as you can. Whoever’s tale has the most items (and makes some sort of sense) wins. Ties will be broken randomly. Again, the exact medium is unimportant and fun and creativity are key…and a little talent wouldn’t hurt either.

Many of the items on the Big List have been purposefully left open to interpretation. E-mail me with any questions.

Pure Luck:
Simply e-mail your name to the address below and you’ll be entered in a drawing to win one of the books. It’s as simple as that. No creativity needed. People entering one of the above two contests are automatically entered in the Pure Luck drawing. One entry per person in the drawing, please.

More or Less Legal Ramblings:
1. Creator retain the copyrights to all entries, though all winning entries (and any others that catch my fancy) will be published on Polite Dissent at the conclusion of the contest.
2. Multiple entires are allowed for the creative portion of the contest, but only one entry per person for the Pure Luck drawing.
3. As the material in the book may not be appropriate for children, you must be at least 18 to enter the contest.
4. The decision of the judges is final.
5. No whining.
6. Is the NHL ever going to play a game this year?