It's officially mid-April. Now where is my rejection to Clarion? It's funny that I've mentally started preparing to not get in. I think there are a number of reasons for this, at least one of which is paranoia.

Truthfully, in retrospect, I should have waited until closer to the deadline to apply. That would have helped with the waiting, and more importantly, allowed me to really look at my application stories more objectively. As I may have mentioned, one has since been completely rewritten, and the other, while I think it's a decent story, is a bit simple, and more of an idea story.

Also, from all the Clarion journals I've read, it seems the people who get in get accepted way before the mid-April deadline. I imagine for fairness they have to leave at least a few slots open until April first, but I haven't seen who the people who get those slots are.

Regardless, the waiting will be blessedly over soon. I do want to get in, lets be clear there, I'm just preparing myself so I'm not too destroyed if it doesn't happen. It's much the same process I use when waiting for my stories to be rejected. (One of these days I'm going to sell one and not even realize it at first, I get myself so eager for the rejection slips).

So other than that there is the end-of-semester chaos. I have that twenty page paper (the one that's a disgusting seventy percent of my grade) looming, as well as a couple of presentations. Oh, joy.

It'll be over soon though, one way or another, and then I can relax for a bit (a very little bit if Clarion happens) until the next semester arrives. I'll probably work on my thesis or something.

So, does anyone know about sports injuries? I think I may have hurt my shoulder, but I'm not sure. It could just be aching from being used so much. In fact, that's most likely the case as it hurt much less yesterday, even after playing racquetball, that it did the day before, and even less today than yesterday. Still, I'm glad that I'm not playing today. I love it, but I need the break.

I've decided beyond a doubt not to take Kevin up on his self-publishing offer. However, I'm not entirely sure how to tell him this without hurting his feelings. And it really does have nothing to do with him. I just feel that I write few enough stories that I need to get them all out into paying markets. It'd be nice to be in print, but it'll be nicer to be paid to be in print.

Oddly, though it's not the money that made up my mind. It's the circulation. I love writing, words, stories, and I want to share those things with other people. I don't think a self-published anthology will reach as many people as a paying market. Therefore, it defeats part of the purpose of writing.

Well, this has been a nice ramble, but I have homework to finish and cleaning to do. Bye, all!