Me a Writer? Maybe?

What do you mean I didn’t make the short list? Now you are telling me that my piece didn’t even make the long list. It is not even in the top 128 stories of this contest. Are you kidding me? I spent so much time trying to create a short story between 1000 and 3000 words or some stupid figure like that with the prompts of finding a treasure box, a shipwreck, and a famous artisan. Whatever that is? I still don’t have a clue what an artisan was. I spent so much time creating this masterpiece for it to get rejected. I read some of the stories I was competing against. Most of them I wouldn’t even read to my old dog, who is deaf and blind. The writer's world is unfair. It is rigged. I will never enter a contest ever again.

Oh, look at this upcoming contest. It has a prize of 2500 dollars, and all I need to do is write a micro fiction of 250 words or less on a knight, carrying scissors on a foggy night. How easy! I will definitely shortlist.

What, are you serious? I didn’t make the shortlist again, and my story is not even mentioned. Is there something wrong with these judges? Are they being paid? I am never going to enter another contest for the rest of my writing life. Oh, look, there's an email from Reedsy Prompts….

Okay, maybe it is me. Maybe the judges are fair. Maybe the other stories are a little better than mine—actually, a lot better. Perhaps these writers have a ton more experience than I do. I thought it would be easy. Well, I guess I got that wrong.

What a frustrating life this can be. It should be a lot simpler. All I have to do is transfer the words coming from my head through my fingers and onto the keyboard or pen onto the screen or paper. That is what I do as a technical writer, just take the steps and images and put them in a nice, pretty format that people can understand. I receive accolades all the time. If I can be a technical writer with the best of them, why can’t I write a story? What do I need to do to get better? What must I do to get my name in Barnes & Noble, Amazon, or even in the local paper? I know I can make a big splash, and I can write a book!!

Ok, I need to come up with something. What in the world can I come up with for my book? I know I have to write it, but I do not have a clue what to write. It has to be something related to my executive management degree. That makes it a bit easier, not. Let me think, what is executive management? CEOs, CFOs, COOs? Got it. I will write on the executive suite. Wait, too broad of a subject, let me think. How about CEOs? I like it and will concentrate my efforts on Fortune 500 CEOs. How is that? Blah, don’t like it. Plus, there are hundreds of dissertations on the same subject matter. Let me see something a little more unique: how about Fortune 500 female CEOs? It is much better. However, it is still broad. What can I write about these CEOs? I know the lack of them. There have been so few in the past 50 years. Ok, it is getting better, but needs to be narrowed a bit. How about writing a plan on how to promote more women to the CEO position? That is it, time to start writing. This should be somewhat easy and straight to the point.

Well, I guess I was a little off about being easy and straight to the point. Look at all this research I have to do. Before that, I had to plan out how this book is going to be structured, how many chapters, what they are about, which one goes first, second, and so on. Now, how do I make the book sound interesting, refreshing, and capture the readers' attention without putting them to sleep? I know I do not want a book full of statistics, numbers, percentages, and facts. I don’t want my book to be a substitute for NyQuil or the other sleep medicines out there. Ok, this will take a little more effort.

Research time—oh my God, all this information I have to gather and then go through just to write a page or two. I might have to stick with technical writing, but I will push through.

Okay, I believe I have everything I need to start writing. Looking at the calendar, I am guessing it will take two to three months of intense writing to finish everything, including drafts, and send it off to the publishers.

Three years later…..

Finally, done! I think. Looked over the manuscript about 15 times already. All of the information is there and current. Now, it is time to send it off to the publishers. Now, which avenue do I take? Traditional? Hybrid? Or do I do all the work? With tradition, I must find a literary agent and hope they like the story. Then they must “sell it” to the publishers. I have heard of the many horror stories of famous authors who went traditional and had their manuscripts rejected many times before getting accepted. We are not talking just a handful, we are talking 20, 30, 40 times and more. I do not know if I can stomach it. Not now. If I can do it on my own, would I have the time, patience, and know-how to find the right people to help? Yes, there are a lot of places out there that can provide assistance, but who would I choose? Looks like I will go hybrid! Pay a price, let them do all the work, such as edit, cover, market, promote, and publish. Let’s see what happens.

The book is out. I am very happy that it is finally finished. I do not know how it will go; however, I know I sold at least three copies! Thank you, family.