Writing has helped me meet so many interesting people.

At the Dallas conference, I spent time with people of all shapes, sizes, and levels of fame. I saw so many new faces, it reminded me of the first day of school when I have 180 new students and I desperately want to remember each and every one of their names. I can still recall every face, from Nora Roberts to the newbie writer from Georgia who sat with me at the new member gathering.

I have “met” several more new people since I started judging for Indiana RWA’s Golden Opportunity Contest. The entries are all around fifty pages of manuscript and a synopsis, and I’ve been working on them for a few weeks, hoping to have them done before school starts in (shudders) two weeks. What is interesting is that I feel like I know these women very, very well after spending so much time develing into their work.

One thing I really dislike about some of the contests I’ve entered is that a judge will count points off, but she won’t always explain why. I decided that if these writers were paying our chapter good money to enter this, then, by golly, they were going to get a damn good critique. (That and the fact that the English teacher in me cannot seem to help herself.) This takes time, but the process also helps me get inside each writer’s head.

I have laughed aloud at some of their work. I have been choked up by a scene or two. And I’ve wanted to scream in frustration when one of them makes the same mistake consistently. The only excuse for that is that no one sat them down and said, “Hey. This is how you punctuate dialogue.” I realize now just how blessed I am to have my Critters, my father-in-law, and my mother. They did take me aside and tell me what I was doing wrong. God love you all! I truly appreciate your caring and your help.

As I continue to write, I hope I always continue to be so very lucky to meet and get to know so many talented people.