Hold Your Breath...For Four and a Half Months

Ladies and gentlemen, I am entering the Rooglewood Contest. You may have already known that, but then again, maybe you didn't. Now you do.
You can click on the link above to learn more about the contest. In fact, it's not too late if you want to enter. Basically, this particular contest asks that you write a short story or novella based on "Beauty and the Beast," but with your own twists. From the myriad of submitted entries, Rooglewood Press chooses 5 winners who are then plunged into the publishing process. Their stories are eventually marketed as a collection of retellings.
I would like to win. I can even say now that I am hopeful of winning. But I would still enter even if I knew that I wouldn't win. Why? Because whenever I take on a project like this, I come out of it a better writer than I went into it. The process of writing, the determination of finishing, the weeks of editing, and the leap of courage that it takes to submit my story -- these things mold me. I can look at my work and see that I have improved. And for me, that makes a contest worth it.
The hard part of the contest is the waiting part. Winners will be announced on March 1st, 2015. That is four and a half months away. It seems like forever.
I am reading through my story today, applying final touches before I send it. Even though the submissions deadline is in December, I hope that I can send mine this month...and that I remember to breathe.
I'll keep you posted...

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More Snippets from Snow White Rose Red

One of the shadows moved. “Were you just going to chuck it in there with no thought for the poor folks on the other side?” Flip’s voice drawled out. It was a deep voice and it made my heart skip a beat. He moved away from the trees and came to stand in front of me. “Some hard-working fellow is plowing his field and then – whop! Out of nowhere, a poisoned apple flies out and hits him upside the head.” He clucked his tongue reproachfully.

A Short Story Break

via Pinterest It has been a while since I penned a short story. Usually it takes something like a "short story contest" to inspire me. But I have noticed my writing skills improve with each contest so there is something to be said for writing short stories. I say all this to lead into the fact that I am going to try another short story. There is no contest looming on the horizon, but it has been so long that I think I am due to write a short piece. Life cannot be entirely devoted to novel-length plots... I am rolling around different ideas in my head. There is no one to give me the first three words or a picture to base my story on. There are no restrictions, no props, and no judges. Methinks I will try something that is both epic and ordinary...something I have seen before. After all, personal experience, great things, and the expression of the ordinary are part of what makes a story.

The Countdown: Eight Days

Eight days. Do you know what that means? Barely over a week. Tomorrow will be one week from the announcement date. Are you excited? I am. So, today, I want to talk to those who wrote something for the contest, whether or not you entered it in the end. What made you start writing your story? What was the first inkling of an idea that tickled your brain? What was it that you liked about your premise? As you wrote, did you have a favorite character or a favorite scene? And are you glad you wrote it down? Do you feel like you learned and grew in your ability as a writer as you tried out things for this contest? And, if your story isn't included in this year's Rooglewood anthology (either because you didn't submit it or because it didn't fit with the other four stories selected), what will you do with it? Will you market it elsewhere? Or will you lock it away in a drawer?

The Pen of a Ready Writer

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