Dear Editor,
You said, 'Be complex, be interesting, and be new.' And when I asked you what you meant by it, all you said was, 'The life of an editor is awesome.' While I appreciate the wry humour, let me tell you something. My stories come to me when I least expect them to. A line, it’s sometimes the beginning of a story or an end, but a line always comes dancing into my head unexpectedly and drives me crazy. But somehow when I sit with that line in front of a keyboard and begin hammering out sentences, I feel freedom. I feel joy and most of all; I feel like I’m finally home. I do not know how great writers get their ideas and I definitely do not claim to be a great writer. All my life I’ve been told that I'm average. Second best. So, when I realised I could write moderately well, all I wanted to do was be great, for once in my life. Being great isn’t easy, excellence; they say comes with a cost. And I'm not sure I'm rich enough to pay it. Criticism, however, is free of cost. I like critisicism, you know, the constructive kind. Some people say, ‘Why don’t you write happier things?’
These stories, they’re accidents, like an unplanned pregnancy. So how do I decide in advance how my story is going to turn out? I haven’t yet found my niche. I do not know how to tell stories with ease. I still Google for synonyms and do my spell check on Word. I forget to edit and I miss punctuation sometimes (ok, most times.) I’m self-conscious of my stories and I’m afraid people aren’t going to like them so when you tell me, ‘Be complex and be new,' I wonder what you mean. I wonder if I’m not a good writer, and I wonder if you’re saying ‘Never. Write. Again.' oh-so-subtly. So be kind, if possible, to a new writer and maybe take a little time off from your busy schedule and tell me what exactly you mean when you tell me to be new and complex. Like I said, criticism is always welcome. You know, the constructive kind.
Yours Sincerely.