I finally decided to do something with Chapter 1 of my Japan novel that I wrote over a decade ago. I read through it for the first time since the 2016 Minnesota Northwoods Writers Conference, polished it up a bit, and submitted it to the Gutsy Great Novelist Writers Chapter 1 Prize contest.
It’s my first time to submit something like this, so just getting this done feels like something to celebrate!
I’ve had to learn how to self-congratulate and celebrate.
Back when I was in high school, I won an essay contest with a small scholarship and a presentation at the Rotary club of my hometown at the time.
This was good in more than one way.
First, the monetary prize came in the form of a US treasury bond. Although the sense of delayed gratification was something I only appreciated later, at least it introduced me to the idea of investing in US bonds. Even when I didn’t have much money as an undergraduate student, and later as a grad student which meant that I was always living on the fringe, it started a practice for me to put some small amounts aside. The small bits were never much, but since I was an eternal student, they added up. I was able to save something and cash it in later for a larger return. Delayed gratification.
Second, I learned to celebrate this achievement.
Even though my desire to be a creative artist and writer started early on, something had convinced me to put all that aside and pursue a degree and career in science. Graduation. First job. Graduate school acceptance. Written exams. Oral Exam. Thesis. Final defense. PhD. I went through the motions never really feeling a thrill of accomplishment. Just one more step to take. But I realized when I wrote my first grant and the amount of work it took, that I should celebrate the submission. I celebrated a high ranking. I celebrated this even if I didn’t get the funding later because otherwise it would always be deflating. Then I celebrated my first research journal submission and learned about the reviews, edits and rewrites so I could celebrate again when it was finally accepted. I had to learn to celebrate. I had to practice it.
Now as I dusted off an old work of fiction that I had written over ten years ago, I felt renewal. Energized. Alive again!
Submission achieved.
Well, that is certainly worth celebrating—no matter the outcome!