We love this season! It’s really the best time of the year. It doesn’t take much to put us in that holiday mood. All we need is a Christmas carol, some Yuletide décor, and of course, 621 loglines from our STC! Holiday Logline Contest.

A big HO, HO, HO to all you Cats! who made our last “logline challenge of 2009” especially merry and bright.

As always, you have proven once again that we have the most fun contests out there. Not only do we get the most creative entries, but our challenges prove that Cats! are the jolliest bunch of writers, eager to share good tidings and good laughs all in the name of improving our craft. And make no mistake about it, this is fun, but it’s really all about making ourselves better as writers!

Silly as these entries may be, this little exercise helps keep the mind sharp, especially during those times we find ourselves away from our laptops — like when we’re at the mall buying holiday presents. So if you’re stuck on a blank page long after the Christmas season, pretend it’s just a game and you’ll find yourself throwing out story ideas just as you did with this contest.

We’re always amazed at the stories that are created in our contests. It’s probably the best place to find new story ideas — that’s a shout out to all you producers looking for the next big hit!

Where else will you find loglines like Shannon Devine’s Inglorious Elves (#381) , Greg Bevan’s Star Trek 23: The Wrath of Kringle (#257), Sébastien Manchette’s Christmas Day (#115), Jayne Cormie’s When Santa Met Sally (#234), RJ Samson’s The Wreathler (#308), Captain Perry’s No Country for Old Trees (#492), or Stephen Hoover‘s Brokeback Reindeer (#47).

Who wouldn’t go to the movies to see Hunter’s Weird Christmas (#499): Tired of being doormats, two nerdy high-schoolers use a magical computer to create their very own wish-granting Santa Claus, but when St. Nick’s magic gets used for naughty purposes, they must learn that nice guys sometimes finish first — before they both end up with coal in their stockings; or Ralph Dobbins’ Meet the Flockers (#54): A male nurse fights to win the approval of his Jewish fiance’s family and survive the weekend from hell when everyone meets his holiday-obsessed parents who flock Christmas trees for a living; and Cameron O’Hearn’s The Dark Knight Before Christmas (#186): After the Joker persuades Santa Clause into a “coin-flip” system for his ‘naughty or nice?’ list, Batman is forced to explain the stupidity of it all while still being nice.

Aren’t they all screaming “holiday classic”? And if these aren’t enough, here are the winners of the 2009 STC! Holiday Logline Challenge:

Honorable Mention and winners of a copy of Save the Cat! Strikes Back are:

Chip Hall’s I Know What You Did Last Christmas (#585)
It has been a year since four drunken reindeer ran over Grandma. Now they are being terrorized by an anonymous killer.

Judith Bassat’s Breakfast at Macy’s (#332)
Holly is forced to scale down her dreams, and her Christmas shopping.

Amber Scott‘s Deuce Bigalow: Elf Gigolo (#291)
While North Pole sitting, hapless elf Deuce destroys Santa’s Workshop. Can he turn enough ‘tricks’ to replace the toys before Mr. Claus returns?

Rick Yost’s The Passion of the Chuck (#182)
When his best friend Jesus — the only man to survive being punched by him (TWICE even!) — is wrongly accused, convicted, and sentenced to death, Chuck Norris takes matters into his own hands to set things right the way only Chuck Norris can! Along the way, he takes care of some trouble in Sodom and Gommorah too! It’s a Mid-East melt-down full of spin kicks, head butts, and holiday cheer!

John Jansen’s Rebel Without A Claus (#2)
A rebellious young man gets into trouble when a dangerous game goes tragically wrong and he kills the man who played Santa in the mall. This year, Santa is not coming to town.

And, of course, the top three winners — always our hardest decision:

Third Place and winner of a stocking full of Save the Cat! swag is:

Pat A’s It’s a Wonderful Lie (#31)
Santa explains how he got lipstick on his collar when he was supposed to be delivering presents.

Second Place and winner of a Beat Sheet consultation via email, an iPhone/iPod Touch STC! app, STC! software, and a copy of Save the Cat! Strikes Back is:

Forrest Knutson’s Santa’s Just Not That Into You (#147)
Gigi is sure she’s been a good girl after sitting on Santa’s lap and hearing his jolly laugh, but then he never calls. What’s up with that?

And First Place winner of this year’s STC! Holiday Logline Contest and a complimentary spot in our next Beat Sheet workshop, an iPhone/iPod Touch STC! app, STC! software, and STC! Strikes Back is:

Greg DeSantis’ Dude, Where’s My Sleigh? (#200)
A hard-working but hard-partying Santa Claus and his chief elf go on an Egg Nog bender after a busy month of toymaking at the North Pole. But when they finally wake up on Christmas Eve Day, they find that they’ve misplaced the magical sleigh… and all of the presents that need to be delivered to the good girls and boys.

Congratulations to our winners and all you Cats! who submitted entries and gave us another reason to enjoy the season. Happy Holidays and have a Very Meowrry New Year!