I got an interesting email in my inbox today. The Strongest Start Novel Competition 2009* is underway. Deadline for entries is May 16, 2009. The First Place prize is sweet with $500 cash and a self-publishing package! The prize provider is BookSurge, an Amazon company. Amazon also sponsors the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award contest.
I am thinking about entering this competition, as I did not get to enter the 2009 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award contest due to having undiagnosed Celiac disease at the time. I got my diagnosis in February of this year, and I'm just now making significant progress and able to go back to work. Plus the Strongest Start competition is only requiring the first three chapters for submission and not the whole novel. I can do that. Editing the first three chapters in two weeks is a much less overwhelming task than trying to edit a 50k word manuscript in three months. I did not have time to edit my whole novel for the Breakthrough Novel Award contest. Which is a pity, because I think my novel might have had a chance. This year when I compete in NaNoWriMo I will have a better idea of what I'm looking at and what I need to have accomplished by December so that editing won't be such a daunting task.
I'm really blessed that I have a job where I can take my manuscript and edit while I am at work.
*Membership at the site is required. The yearly fee is $49.95. Maybe I can swing that? We'll see. *sigh* Stupid recession.
Everyone has been talking about Susan Boyle. If you haven't heard of her, remember her name because chances are very good that you will hear a lot more about Susan Boyle in the near future. If you don't know who Susan Boyle is, or why everyone is talking about her, watch this video. Similar videos on YouTube have had over 35 million hits: Susan Boyle
The YouTube videos have gone so viral all the YouTube links have been disabled. I had to go searching for an imbed code. This one is courtesy of MySpace. The YouTube videos of Susan Boyle have reached over 100 million views so far.
I love Susan Boyle, I truly do. For a lot of reasons. I think the song she picked out was wonderful, and it spoke volumes both to her and to the audience. She's only 4 years older than I am. she had this dream of being a singer all her life. She'd never been given a chance to birth this dream. But when the chance came, she grabbed it and ran with it. She knew it was now or never. Most chances that will change your life forever don't come around more than once. Forget fear, forget embarrassment. Susan knew what was inside of her. She knew it was good because others had told her it was good. But most of all, she believed in herself.
I love what Susan Boyle teaches us, just by her very existence. Don't judge a book by it's cover. Real beauty comes from the inside. Believe in yourself even when no one else does. Never give up on your dreams. Those dreams aren't just for the young. Age is life experience, not a disqualification. Don't let life kill your dreams. Never give them up. They just might come true when you least expect it.
What lessons does Susan Boyle have for me? The first lesson she teaches me is: Feel the fear, then do it anyway. Even if you are shaking in your shoes while you are doing it. But do it. I wrote my first novel. Now I need to edit it and submit the manuscript. I can't let the fear of rejection paralyze me anymore. If it's rejected, I'll go to the Dollar General and buy a frame. I'll take that rejection slip, frame that sucker and hang it on the wall beside my computer. Then submit the manuscript somewhere else. Repeat if necessary until submission is accepted.
The second lesson is: When one dream comes true, dream another one quickly. Dream fulfillment works in steps. Susan got three "Yes" votes on "Britian's Got Talent" but she's not stopping there. She's made television appearances, and given interviews. And I'll bet that when that video hit the U.S., several music label execs were booking flights to Britain to join the British music execs who were contacting Susan. So now Susan will probably have another dream come true. She wants to be as famous as Elaine Paige. I'd say Susan is well on her way. For those who haven't heard or don't know who Elaine Paige is, check this out:
Susan's dream is a realistic one. The third lesson is: have an attainable dream. I'm a writer, so my dream isn't to win American Idol. I had a dream that I wanted to write a novel. That dream came true. I've gotten the first draft written, and I'm working on the second draft as we speak. So I had to dream a new, attainable dream. My current dream is to have a published novel.
And one lesson that I've learned on my own: Gratitude. Never take your success for granted. Life turns on a dime. Appreciate it all, the good and the bad. You cannot know joy if you don't know sorrow.
P.S. Simon, shame on you. You should have gotten off your arse and given Susan Boyle a standing ovation just like the whole audience did, and the other two judges.
There was a time when men were kind
When their voices were soft
And their words inviting
There was a time when love was blind
And the world was a song
And the song was exciting
There was a time
Then it all went wrong
I dreamed a dream in time gone by
When hope was high
And life worth living
I dreamed that love would never die
I dreamed that God would be forgiving
Then I was young and unafraid
And dreams were made and used and wasted
There was no ransom to be paid
No song unsung, no wine untasted
But the tigers come at night
With their voices soft as thunder
As they tear your hope apart
And they turn your dream to shame
He slept a summer by my side
He filled my days with endless wonder
He took my childhood in his stride
But he was gone when autumn came
And still I dream he'll come to me
That we will live the years together
But there are dreams that cannot be
And there are storms we cannot weather
I had a dream my life would be
So different from this hell I'm living
So different now from what it seemed
Now life has killed the dream I dreamed.
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