Writing Surprises
I like surprises—but it has to be a good surprise. I don’t
want to hear the dog just stole my son’s burrito and hid it in the clean
clothes pile…or someone stole my bike again. Those kind of
surprises are detrimental to my health, raising my blood pressure.
As a writer, I get surprised any time I submit a story or
novel for publication. Anticipation builds as I wait for an answer. The
publishing industry is overcrowded, too many writers competing for too few
spots, so the response time could be six months after submitting a story.
Sometimes I’ve gotten a response in a week, but usually I wait over two months,
checking my email and snail mail with persistent hope every, uh-hum, two
minutes. Too much anticipation isn’t fun. When I least expect it, a reply glows from my
inbox of a thousand emails not yet deleted. My hope waivers from “Maybe it’s a
yes and they loved my story and can’t wait to publish it” to “It’s got to be
another rejection.”
I know it’s a no if the letter begins with a “thank you for
submitting your story.” I don’t have to read any further; it’s not going to be
a good surprise day. A “but” is coming. A week ago I had a double surprise of
two stories not placing in a top literary journal contest. The emails started
with a thank you. You’re welcome.
Yesterday I almost choked on my Raisin Bran as I saw my name
next to 2nd Place in the Best of the Best Faithwriters contest. I
hit a grand slam homerun—a good surprise day! Of course after the excitement
wore off, my next thought slipped to pessimism. “What if people read it and
think it’s ridiculous? It didn’t deserve to win.” I have to bounce back and
remember the judges liked it enough to paste a ribbon to it…and that’s a good
thing. Now I won’t have to pretend it doesn’t bother me that I didn’t win on my
birthday of all days. I did win a place right next to the 1st place
author I’ve admired since I started writing for Faithwriters. That’s a pleasant
surprise. I’ll have to cling to that until the next response arrives. Or I
could focus on the blessings in my life—my preferred option to moping.
After all, where does winning a writing award or getting
published fall on my life importance scale? Not too high. Someday I’ll meet God
and my earthly awards won’t matter—only the heavenly awards will remain. The
best surprises I’ve encountered in my life were not related to writing: “It’s a
boy!” four times and “It’s a girl” once. Those were good days.
For the Son
of Man is going to come in his Father's glory with his angels, and then he will reward everyone according to what they have done.
Matthew 16:27
It’s
refreshing to realize God won’t care if my rejection letters outweigh my acceptance
ones. He has his own judging scale and surprises beyond what I can imagine.
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Links to Francy's "Best of the Best" Faithwriter's contest stories:
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