I have taken the time to write more now than ever, partly thanks to Red Rooms blog "assignment" emails.  As I read the last email questioning when I knew I wanted to write, I reflected on what kept me from writing and attempting to get published.  I just felt like sharing here on Red Room.

I wrote for fun and school assignments since Kindergarten.  I have the old school papers to prove it.  When I was in high school, I had a particularly great English teacher who had us write a lot and create projects.  For a final assignment, we had to write a story which would receive 2 grades.  Her grade would be a daily grade and a peer review would be a TEST grade.  I wrote what I thought to be was a fantastic science fiction piece that was part Mars exploration meets Rocky Horror Picture show (think man-eating plants).  So our teacher discusses some surprising differences in how she graded versus how students graded.  I received an A from the teacher on my story, but my peer review (which was done by one of the journalism photographers/rich kids/ guy who reads the New York Times in class), gave me a D.  

Unfortunately the grades stuck.  I got a D as a test grade.  Funny how over 20 years later that still bothers me.  It shattered my confidence that people would like what I had written.  It's probably wrong that I allow one event to keep me from doing what I love, but it happens to a lot of people, I'm guessing. 

Later, while earning my undergrad at the local university, I wrote a short piece in my freshman English class that was written impromptu and had to be read aloud.  It was an embellished piece about getting my first dog.  After I read it, someone in the class said, "I don't want to follow that."  That was followed by some giggles and moans.  I assumed they thought it was good, but I was hard on my self (again). 

Well, enough excuses, back to writing.   Maybe I just need to set a deadline for myself.  Time to enter a contest or something!