As a writer, you have lots of doubts, worries, and concerns. You are not that good. You will never publish. You are a horrible writer. This thinking cripples you from doing anything with your work. It collects dust in drawers. But today, I am happy to annouce that I have overcome my fear of not trying.

Last spring, I entered the Ghosts‘ Messenger in David Fickling’s Master of the Inkpot competition. Finally, after a long five months, the judges informed me that I had lost. True, I am bummed that I didn’t win, but I’m quite proud of myself for trying. Now that the winners are decided, I can move on.

1, Roaring Brook Press
2. Milkweed editions
3. Piccadilly Press
4. OnStage Publishing
5. Dial Books for Young Readers
6. Albert Whitman

This list represents my next goals. A fellow writer is helping me to reveiw my query and I definitely will ask an editor to check the letters before I send them out.

While I am waiting for replies, I am coming up with new stories to submitt. Nobody said it was going to be easy. I have yet to find a story about a famous writer whose first great novel was accepted at their first publishing house. They were rejected countless times. Their fear never stopped them and it isn’t going to stop me either.