Dammit, I Want to Win Too

But congratulations to all the recent winners. And we losers mean that with all our creative hearts. But dammit, we'd like to win one for the ripper.

I know it's the gipper, but if we were writing with paper and ink from a typewriter ribbon, we'd probably be shredding our stories, and they'd be flying through the air as if a confetti cannon just went off. That's right, we'd be the rippers, and there's nothing wrong with that. And for those of you who are that dammed young, a typewriter is an old-fashioned way of word processing.

Now, as dear old Jason seems to be throwing a temper tantrum because he still, after more than five years, hasn't won a challenge, keep in mind, appearances can be deceiving. Sure, it's sometimes a bit of a disappointment, especially when you find one of your stories that matches the heart and soul of a challenge, and it's still unmentionable.

The voices in my head are screaming loud and clear. Not that I always listen to the voices in my head. Anyone who does that might just be insane.

Insanity abounds in the world of wordsmiths because it takes a degree of insanity to put yourself out there in such a vulnerable, open-to-the-world kind of way. It reminds me of the greats who came before us. And oh, where there ever some greats. And some of them struggled to get the nod from their peers, their fans, or even their personal support system.

Even the great Steven King was once ready to throw in the towel and give up. If not for his wife, he might never have gone on to write IT, The Shining, or many others that will no doubt still be getting read or listened to in E-Book format for generations. The voices in my head talk to me. They understand things in my memory, and know when to remind me.

Maybe it wouldn't be that insane to listen, as long as it's not to that little devil on my shoulder. Sometimes he's got downright naughty ideas. Sometimes, they're delightfully delicious. Only a strong man resists the latter forever. But I digress.

The thing about the challenges is that they're a lottery ticket. They are going to come with some randomness. When the judges get pounded with what I imagine are thousands of entries, sometimes dozens by the same names, how do you know your entry gets read by fresh eyes? There aren't enough people working at Vocal for that, much less assigned to all that reading.

And that's a question!

Are they all being read?

How much reading gets done in 2026? If you're still here, you're reading further down than some people choose to make it. At times, it's not that hard to tell, particularly with Vocalites you don't know, that the comments are platitudes. They're simply going through the motions of using the platform, instead of actually reading and digesting.

That's where your fans start to make you feel better. You know that they're looking at what you put out there.

And your friends, even your cantankerous ones. You know they read your recent article that might not agree with their political ideologies, because they always want to argue with you. You dared to go down that path of beliefs in today's society, and they think you're being overly harsh to one side, so they bring up the other side.

But you know that they went through every word. They do it for the fun of it, for the curiosity of it, and for the love of it.

I've often wondered: how do the judges view their roles?

Anyway, again, Congratulations! To all the winners. And for the rest of you who didn't place, keep on working at it. Even the lottery winners don't usually win for years. Maybe your lucky ticket is just one story away.