Remember the Pointer Sisters? No? Oh, I’m dating myself? Okay. Well, do you remember that time I entered a short story contest then? You probably don’t. Here, let me tell you about it…

I entered a local contest back in November. My first ever, since, like a lot of writers, I have substantial self doubt bordering on unmanageable anxiety about that kind of stuff. Alas, I had an idea I thought would be fantastical as a short story and that old saying “you won’t know unless you try” kept bouncing around in my head, so I entered.

Plus, there was a cash prize.

Naturally, I regretted my decision immediately after hitting the submit button. Afterwards, I re-read my submission at least 25 times. I probably would have re-read it 25 more times, beating myself up the entire time, of course, had it not been for a tiny glimmer of hope lightly tapping on the door, sashaying over the threshold of my brain and immediately beginning to unpack her Kate Spade weekender tote.

I warned her not to get too comfortable, that she wouldn’t be staying long, but she shooed me away and told me how silly I was being (right after she told me you never know unless you try). After another couple of re-reads, I thought maybe she had a point, so I stuck the story in a file on my desktop and tried to forget about it. Except, I had to wait over a month before the semi finalists were announced…

Me? Oh no, I’m cool. I have much more important things to obsess about. Like spinning these giant glass balls in one hand, for instance.

The anti-climactic ending to this story is that I didn’t end up being a semi finalist. Wha, wha, wha. The sad ending is that I felt pretty dejected. Cue Pictures of You by The Cure, please. The happy ending is that, eventually, after drowning my sorrows in 17+ pizza rolls and a glass of wine, I felt inspired to submit some flash fiction to an online magazine. Strike up the band because…

I am excited to announce that one of my stories will be published online at Flash Fiction Magazine. It’s slated for February 16, and I couldn’t be more excited! There will be Tweets, Facebook posts and a link to the story here on that glorious, glorious day. 

Take that stupid contest. Take. That.