Monday, January 17, 2022

Looking Back and Looking Forward

Answering Debra's message from Friday: yes, there is still time for resolutions! Also, there’s time to celebrate last year's accomplishments.

In 2021, I was pleased to make progress in my writing. My short story “Cosway’s Confidence” won second place in the Bethlehem Writers Group annual contest and was featured in their quarterly online publication, the BWG Roundtable. Another of my stories, “Hollandaise,” received honorable mention in the South Carolina Writers Association, Surfside Chapter’s short story contest and appeared in its blog. 

Finally, three of my stories were published in the Red Penguin Books Collection (a group of anthologies) (one twice!): “Beloved Husband,” a monologue based on Norman Baskin, Majorie Kinnan Rawlings second spouse, in An Empty Stage;


“The Fairy Godmother’s Christmas” in Once Upon a Time and Stand Out: Volume Two; and




 “No Legs” accepted for The Robot and Me.

The robot story had to be about the interaction between humans and technology. My story involved Nella Bella, who existed in a fortune telling box and dispensed cards while providing security for her facilitator, a human fortune teller. Without legs, Nella had to find a way to get rid of a spectral being draining her facilitator of all energy and life. A friend of mine called it “a coming of legs” story. I really like that description!

Since October, I’ve been putting some words on paper each day. I’m not as far ahead with some projects as I would like to be, but I’m making progress.

That’s my New Years resolution: to keep moving forward and finishing work. What resolutions have you made?

I wish for all of you the very best in this New Year, in reading and writing. May you reach all your goals!



6 comments:

  1. Congratulations on all of these achievements, Paula. You obviously have a lot of wonderful stories to tell!

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  2. Kudos! Looks like you had a good year.

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  3. Thank you, Saralyn, Gay, and Debra! I appreciate so much your encouragement and being blogging partners with you. I hope you are all looking forward to a great writing year!

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  4. Congrats, Paula. I am intrigued! Where can we read these stories?

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  5. Thank you, T.K., for asking. The Bethlehem Writers Roundtable is online and the books from the Red Penguin Collection are available through Amazon. Here are the links for the stories:

    “Cosway’s Confidence” Bethlehem Writers’ Roundtable (online)
    https://sites.google.com/site/bwgwritersroundtablearchives/authors/benson-paula-gail

    An Empty Stage
    https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B091BJ7L59/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i9

    Once Upon a Time
    https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0964K9XWS/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i7

    Stand Out: Volume Two
    https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B098DT69GX/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i8

    My Robot and Me
    https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09P4VRN1G/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i3

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