I'm chipping away at the inertia (slowly) and getting back into the novel. In fact, I'm making a outline of sorts. Not a detailed one, but something that gives me the steps and plot points I need to hit.

Need to get rolling.

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I listened to fellow Wordo, Stephen Stanley (a recent WOTF quarter winner), and got a story in the mail before the March 31 deadline. On the one hand it's nice to think of myself as ALMOST disqualified. My second published story will be in September. Three published stories disqualifies me from Writers Of The Future. Might as well enter while I can. Boy, don't I sound all confident and ambitious. Then on the other hand, I'd like to get into WOTF for the great workshop in L.A. and, of course, for the cold hard cash.

I've never gotten any higher than quarter-finalist. No critiques. No certificates. No finalist or semi-finalist. Doesn't seem like I can write a story that comes close to placing. Then Stephen Stanley tells me he had never gotten higher than quarter-finalist too before placing first in a recent quarter.

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A couple of Wordos made their first sales to Polyphony 5. Brian Wade and Blake Hutchins. The latter name will be familiar to my Stranger Horizon workshop 2003 classmates (you know who you are ;-). Ximena and I saw Blake at Eugene's Saturday Market and he was still in hush-hush mode. Dude, the news of your sale has been out for three days! Cheer already!