Poetry contest

I know there are some poets here and I wanted to make sure that you saw this - the Science Fiction Poetry Association is currently running a poetry contest. It's free to enter. You can enter a poem in each category: dwarf (super short poem), short, or long. All types of speculative themes are welcome: horror, sci fi, fantasy, etc. If you are not a member of SFPA, you're in the running for a special poetry award for non-members. Here's the link & good luck! I believe the deadline is September 15:

http://www.sfpoetry.com/contests.html

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"The heart has its reasons, of which reason knows nothing." -- Blaise Pascal

Thank you for the link Julie. It looks very interesting, although I suspect my poetry skills are even worse than my writing ones.

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Don't sweat the petty things and don't pet the sweaty things.

Thank you Julie. But when I look at the writing others on this board do, (and how they seem to write pages and pages every week while I tend to go months with out being able to write a word) it makes my work seem trivial.

I do keep trying though and I think that is what is important.

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Don't sweat the petty things and don't pet the sweaty things.

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"It is a rare man that is taken for what he truly is...We are not always what we seem, and hardly ever what we dream...." Peter S. Beagle

Even wildly successful authors (and people in general) have moments of doubt, and they've certainly had them in the past. At a writing conference, thriller writer Robert Dugoni told his own story of persistence, frustration, giving up after 42 rejections, and then finally success through a chance meeting at an event he'd refused to attend because he felt too defeated and surly and then realized he'd better attend if he wanted a harmonious household.

You can find the audio of his speech here:

http://booksontheradio.ca/robert-dugoni-...ers-conference/

It's funny and human and well worth a listen. (For some context, his joke about the previous day's security was that we had to share the hotel on the first day with an appearance by Bill Clinton and George W. Bush.)

As someone who can be very prolific (and I'm a professional non-fiction writer/editor), I'll tell you that high volume output isn't something I can sustain. I'll churn out stuff for a while and then hit a wall where it's like pulling teeth to get any words out (hence why I'm behind on prompts). Then I worry that it'll never get any better, despite the fact that I logically know that it ebbs and flows for me. And I have days where I'm sure what I'm working on totally sucks and I need to show some other people to get some feedback/perspective on whether something's really wrong with it and if so some thoughts on what is wrong.

A lot of authors also freak out when their work is sent to reviewers, waiting to hear if the reviews will be good or bad. Even authors who typically get great reviews and are very successful.

Unfortunately I'm a perfectionist who tells myself that nothing I do is ever good enough, and that's something I have to struggle with all the time. Sometimes I have to tell myself to just calm down and do as good of a job as I can at that moment (and give myself permission to write "shitty first drafts" rather than agonizing over every word.

Keep putting one foot in front of the other. Writing is a craft and we all improve by doing it, so, as you said, trying is the important part. And while it's human to compare ourselves to others, remember that every writer (or creative type) works differently. Holding ourselves to another's way of writing or levels of output is just a huge road to frustration if we think we have to match it exactly.

Anyway, that's my rah rah you can do it ramble.

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Eagle Whisperer

Thanks for posting this info, Jublike! As a poetry enthusiast I'm always glad to hear about such opportunities, even though I don't feel capable to reach high standards with my English! The only poems in English I wrote are either Gatch related or have been written down just for fun! And, alas ... the one that I remember has turned out quite well in English has already been published in a modest publication, so I can't enter that, either!

CD ... please know that you're not the only one who feels that way, and who was always told that you never do anything right from persons who might count in your life! Only God knows how many a time I've heard those words! Just try to forget those hurtful and untruthful sayings, and try to show yourself, if not the others, that you're more capable than they made you feel to be! All of us here are living witnesses of what you're able to do and achieve with your exquisite writing and wonderful character! Always keep in mind that who tries to make you feel small has a problem with himself/herself in the first place, and perhaps even sees you as a threat because of the great person you are!

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To be or not to be a gatchamaniac - that's the dilemma!