Onward and Upward

I got the results back for my L. Ron Hubbard’s Writers of the Future, first-quarter submission this week. I’m happy to announce it won my first, SEMI-FINALIST! This made me ecstatic. Sometimes I get a little complacent and frustrated with my inability to nail down a win. That’s the ‘Leo’ in me thinking I’m ‘all that.’ I know—despite my own imposter syndrome—that I have talent. The First Chapter contest wins and the many placings in the Writers of the Future is proof enough of that. But obviously talent is not enough—and I knew that starting out.

In addition to selecting the best stories from the newest writers, Writers of the Future is an anthology. Anthologies need diversity. So maybe my stories weren’t awesome enough, but when compared with similar stories, I’m just not the ‘one’ that’s going to make it into the anthology. But I moved up this time because I followed Wulf Moon’s advice and punched the emotion in my story to 11.

Now I need to tighten my writing up and focus.