IS IT JUST ME?
I was astonished to read, in the
correspondence pages of a writer-orientated magazine, a letter of complaint
from someone who had written 'two really good stories' which did not fit the
criteria of a story competition she wanted to enter. What about, she asks, insisting on a synopsis
and a higher word count, or changing the competition to that of a novella
rather than short story?
The arrogance of suggesting that
the organizers of the competition should change it to an entirely different
form leaves me amazed.
After I'd managed to close my
mouth, I thought, Why doesn't this person try writing to the competition's
word-specification? Or else enter a
different competition? Why does she
think she could receive special treatment?
But then I am often surprised by
reactions like these, especially from people who have not yet succeeded as writers. Nearly every
authorI know or have met (and in the course of a longish career, that's
plenty) is not just humble but entirely unassuming. If someone likes what they've written, that
is a cause for genuine celebration.
There is such a difference between quiet self-confidence and self-importance. In my experience, it's the former who get
there in the end.
