And the Winner Is...

Not me. Not this time, anyway. The Highlights for Children's 2010 Fiction Contest is over for this year, and I just got a letter in the mail announcing the three winners. I can't wait to read the three stories. One thing I love about Highlights is their quality fiction. I'm sure these three winning stories were good ones.

And yet, I felt like a winner too, because my form letter from Highlights had a little note scrawled in the bottom right hand.

Dear Ms. MacKinney,

We like your writing . Please try us again!

Best wishes,

Joëlle Dujardin

Just a few words, but great encouragement for a writer. Editors have zero time. Likewise, associate editors are busier than proverbial bees. A hand written note means a lot. Also, I realized later that if a SASE wasn't included (and I didn't include one) they stated they would not return your manuscript or respond. It was a surprise to hear from the editor under these conditions.

So I'm dedicating this post to Ms. Dujardin. Yeah, I didn't win this year, but it made my day to know that she enjoyed my story. I felt like a winner, because what greater pleasure is there for a writer beyond knowing that she wrote something that provided reading enjoyment for a reader? Ms. Dujardin, thank you for spending a little of your valuable time and some postage on that short note! It encouraged me!