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WritingAfterDark

Blogs of Writer, Artist, Photographer, & Caregiver Joanne D. Kiggins

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Location: United States

Joanne has published more than 2,500 articles and was award recipient of the 1990 Woman of the Year for Beaver County, Pennsylvania, for her accomplishments and excellence in journalism and to the community. Her co-authored book, “Unforgettable Journey,” won fifth place in the Grand Beginnings romance contest. An excerpt from her WIP, “Unearthed,” placed her fifth in the Absolute Write Idol contest. Most recently, her essay, “Perseverance,” is published in the Stories of Strength anthology in which 100% of the profits are donated to disaster relief charities. Her most recent articles were published in ByLine Magazine, Writer's Digest, AbsoluteWrite.com, and Moondance.org. She has a monthly freelance writing column at Absolutewrite.com. Currently, she is the sole caregiver for her 85-year-old mother.

Sunday, March 20, 2005

Contest deadline over. Now we wait.

The deadline has come and gone for entries to be posted for the contest. I just checked the Absolute Write website and saw 308 entries. I’ve read some 60 entries so far and there are some terrific writers in the contest. I don’t think I have a snowball’s chance in hell of finishing in the top ten. There are at least 20 entries that I wrote down as being possible winners. What are the odds? Only the judges know, and while they make up theirs minds, I’ll continue to edit my completed novel.

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Monday, March 14, 2005

Entered Absolute Write Idol contest.

Today I did something for fun that nearly sent me into the world beyond. I entered the Absolute Write Idol contest with an excerpt from my WIP. My heart pounded against my rib cage and I nearly had a panic attack when I clicked the send button to post my work. It’s not like I’m afraid of people reading my work, I write monthly columns for many publications. For some reason, posting in a contest was different—the writing will be judged. It’s not out there giving a message, teaching a writing technique, or sharing a personal experience; it’s out there for three judges to decide if it’s good enough to stay in the running for an ongoing weekly contest. For me, it’s more of a test to find out if the WIP I’m writing is good enough to catch a reader’s eye.

The judge’s decisions will be posted April 1. In honor of my entering this contest, I’ve decided April 1 will be the day I quit smoking. Though, if I do make the top ten finalists, I’m not sure this is a good time for me to quit my nasty habit. Not smoking could be my downfall if I do happen to be a finalist. Then again, it may give me more incentive not to smoke. We’ll see.

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