So I did a thing.

I entered my very first writing challenge. This is very different to entering a manuscript or book to Book Awards and such. And for me, this was both fun and nerve-racking.

The challenge was to write a short story of no more than 3000 words. I had ten days after receiving my instructions which was to choose 1 of 5 characters, 1 of 5 settings and the story had to include a certain thing and write a story. I couldn’t do it.

I spent the first two days trying to think up plots for any of the characters. I settled on one and then tried to put that character into any one of the settings. And nothing worked. I didn’t feel like I was owning it. The words were not flowing. I paid $20 for the registration. Anything I write would be forced and it wouldn’t come across to any reader, let alone a judge as being from my authentic self. And so I closed my laptop and put it away. I was not going to force out 3000 words and submit it simply to justify spending that 20 bucks.

And then about 60 hours before deadline, I had a full blast of inspiration. I had not been thinking about the challenge, nor the characters and settings up until that point. And luckily I was home and my laptop was in easy reach. I punched out 2000 words in just under 2 hours. I read what I had written and it was good, not great, but good.

Then I realised I had 1000 words left in the bank, but my story could literally go on for another 7000. I was in trouble. There was no way, that I could get the story that was in my head down to 3000 words. And so, that is saved in my works-in-progress folder in the cloud and will probably end up being a Novella soon.

I found myself with a blank Word document open on my laptop with just over 50 hours till deadline. What did I do? I got myself a Monster Energy drink from the fridge, grabbed a pack of crisps and got to work. The words didn’t flow as they always do, but I was happy with the first draft of the story. And by the time I had polished it all up, I was content with the final manuscript.

I am hopeful for some positive feedback, which I can expect anywhere from 8 to 12 weeks. Did I do it for the money? It would be nice. Honestly though, it would just be nice to be published by someone other than myself. The top five stories will be published on the company’s website and this will already be an accomplishment all on its own.

Did I learn anything from this challenge? Heck yes! I learned that I do not perform well under pressure in terms of writing deadlines. Something I definitely should work on, if I were to ever be picked up by a traditional publishing house. What I really enjoyed about this challenge was how it forced me to think outside of the box. Of the five characters I was given, I probably would write about two if them in any normal novel / novella situation. The settings were nice but again, for what I usually write only one of those would have been worth my time and words.

All in all, I would probably only enter competitions with a longer time frame to write. As a mum of a very busy 6 year old, carving out time in my day to write is not easy. I’m generally writing in the late evenings. And this challenge kept me on my toes towards the end and I found I was opening my laptop for five minutes here and ten minutes there – which is never good for a proper creative flow.

So for now, I continue writing my very first (and hopefully not last) book series. I really want to start teasing this one, but I do have to get the first drafts off to my editor first. I will keep you updated over on my socials, as and when I get any updates from the Writers Playground regarding my short story which I have submitted just a few hours ago.

Until next time,
Gretchen