The agony: Realizing there’s a great chance the manuscript on which you’ve spent countless nights and pre-dawn hours might never get published.
The ecstasy: Learning that a well-respected novelist likes one of your short stories so much that he sent it to his publisher.
The agony: Having a sobering conversation with your literary agent about how much more time he can spend on your project.
The ecstasy: Being able to tell a publisher that one of their novelists suggested they give your manuscript a good look.
The agony: Receiving a form rejection from said publisher a day later.
The ecstasy: Learning that one of your best friends, a talented and graceful writer, is a finalist for a fiction contest run by a great literary journal.
The agony: Dealing with radio silence as our stories and manuscripts “make the rounds” with editors.
The ecstasy: Discovering, to your great surprise, that an online magazine editor has nominated one of your stories for the 2008 Million Writers Award.
The agony: Failing to summon the energy to write after a long day of work and parenting.
The ecstasy: Coming home the next day to find your first-grader on the computer tapping out his own story, announcing, “If you’d like to put it on your blog, Dad, that would be fine with me.”
How could I, the “editor” of Chimichangas at Sunset, say no to this aspiring writer? So, after some light editing for clarity by Mom, I bring you ….
DINOSAUR IN THE CITY
by Jack BardsleyChaptr 1One day a boy saw Nijl. He was driving a jeep the boy decided to follow but the jeep had DINOSAURS inside it.
When nijl got there he let two DINOSAURS out of it. The boy looked at the VLUSURAPTR it looked at him. the boy hid, but the raptor found him under the jeep. the boy ran uot.
From the jeep he went over the gate. He sees two DINOSAURS. he went out but it whas to late. The one DINOSAUR started to run. the boy ran home.
chaptr2 – the dinosaurThe dinosaur was veree fast it wus hard to run that fast. win he got home the teerecs chirnd uround and that mint things ar not gonu git good. so far thay hav noct over the pirumid and a cupl bildings. wot hav I dun?
thin uneagspedlee, anuthir teerex came and slamd into the uther. the uther TEEREX RAN UWAE. the teeRex behind it, he did not lic wut he did.
Chaptr. 3 the ter a bil see monstrs— To be continued —
Greg Bardsley 
March 7, 2008 at 8:28 am
Your story is DEMOLITION ruled and I was happy to nominate it. I hope things work out well on the publishing front. Sometimes I wonder if the ecstacy bits are the worst part. Sure they keep us going through the hard times, but it only gets our hopes up to be knocked down. I’m a very optimistic person but this business is a real killer.
Carry on though, what the hell else are we going to do, right?
March 7, 2008 at 10:45 am
I see more ecstasy in your future! Don’t give up the faith!
When I was your son’s age I too wrote a book about dinosaurs. However, I wasn’t sure how to spell dinosaurs, and asked my mother. She thought I had said “dime stores.” So my little book is a tale of the dreaded “dime stores” who walk through the jungle and attack smaller creatures. Sadly, it may be my best work.
March 7, 2008 at 1:10 pm
I agree with Bryon – sometimes the ecstasies make the agonies more pronounced. But, hey, both provide a kick to all that vast stuff in the middle.
There’s also a huge serendipity factor in this business. ya just gotta go with it.
March 7, 2008 at 3:53 pm
It will happen… if you live and die with it, and breathe it and love it – it will happen.
DINOSAUR IN THE CITY – – it gonna be a hit!!
March 7, 2008 at 5:02 pm
Good points . … I agree with Rachel …. You can’t experience ecstasy, and fully appreciate its joy, without having experienced agony. …
As for DINOSAUR IN THE CITY, it’s 100 percent action. …. I’ll be acting as Jack’s agent. Publishers should direct all inquiries to me.
March 16, 2008 at 4:02 pm
Kids have that unfiltered access to imagination that us adult writers struggle to unleash, don’t they? Good stuff.
JD
March 16, 2008 at 4:04 pm
Wrong link in previous comment.