going forward after rejection -- and winning a fabulous necklace!

I just found out I won the "do you haiku" contest!  I had no idea until Lisa Jill, the incredible jewelry designer who provided the contest prize, looked me up online and sent a private note on FaceBook to congratulate me.

First, I'd like everyone to know that I totally took the contest seriously.  I submitted more "lyrical" entries than the ones listed on the winners' page, but the judges seem to have gravitated toward the funny verses.  I just read the honorable mentions and judges favorites and all that are listed on the page are wonderful and inspired.  (And I'm sure there are many more entries that are equally deserving of recognition.  In fact, EVERYONE who entered is brave and deserves a treat tonight [wine, chocolate, a hot bath] for putting themselves out there.)

I know it sounds silly since these poems are just tiny ditties, but I'm feeling very validated right now.  A couple of the haiku that grabbed the Skirt! judges attention were turned down by a small publication in Louisiana last year, plus a couple of years ago I submitted a few haiku to a literary journal and I didn't even get an acknowledgement (and I know the publisher!).

So again, I'm feeling validated that I can write poems/stories/copy that resonate.  What I have to keep remembering is that what I write doesn't have to grab everyone -- just the certain someone(s) I am aiming for.

Six weeks ago, I wrote a blog post about my screenwriting being rejected and how that fired me up.  Well, rejection is a wonderful stimulant ... but a pat on the back feels pretty good too.

So, I'll get "off the stage" now and in closing I'd like to leave you with a haiku I wrote in 1984.  It was published in my high school literary journal and that was the last time (until now) that my poetry has gotten any recognition.

The candle flickers
as a gentle breeze flows through
the open window.

One of my "senior" pictures from high school.  Outfit by Espirit!  The year was 1984 and it was the first time I was published as a poet.  It only took 26 years before I would be again recognized for my verse.  Ha!