A few years ago, the week of Memorial Day, my mother and I took a vacation to New Mexico.  As we approached Taos through the mountains, we were passed by small groups of bikers.  Mom was very nervous and made sure the doors were locked,  and gathered herself up in her seat like a turtle every time we encountered another set, holding her breath until they passed.

I have friends that are weekend bikers and told her  many of the tough-looking leather-clad people had normal day jobs, like store managers and salesmen, and were regular, hard-working folks.  I even pointed out to her that she had a few friends who had Harleys and GoldWings in their garages.  We talked about the fancy bikes as they passed,  noting all the special equipment and graphics.

We stopped at a scenic overlook to stretch our legs and just as we perched ourselves on a rock to enjoy the view, a group of six riders pulled up and dismounted to stretch also.  Mom watched warily for a few minutes, then approached one of them and struck up a conversation.  She ended up grilling him like a reporter conducting an interview!

Later, in the car, she was very quiet for a long time.  Finally, she spoke.

“He was an accountant.”

“Really?” I asked.  “Did he tell you that?”

“No,” she said. “But his leather was all brand new.”

I choked back a laugh at her logic, but having that conversation dissolved her anxiety.  We arrived to find the whole city of Taos overrun with bikers, there for a Veteran’s ceremony on Memorial Day.  I think Mom enjoyed it – she waved to all of them and looked at their bikes and other paraphernalia, considering it part of our vacation adventure.

Sometimes you need to plunge in and face your fear.  We preach this in our writing group, encouraging members to submit to contests, magazines, or wherever else they want to publish.  The worst that can happen is rejection.  Don’t be afraid. Your life is not on the line. Experiment, take a deep breath, and go for it.  You can’t win the lottery if you don’t buy a ticket.  You won’t win contests or get published if you don’t submit.

Alice found herself in the Looking-Glass world quite by accident.  She studied the mirror…closer…closer… and suddenly found herself falling into the other side.  Sometimes we get published in odd ways, too.  We look closer and closer, and suddenly find we are there, without realizing it. 

I ‘fell’ into my first writing gig.  An e-zine I subscribed to ran an ad for someone to write a column on poetics.  On a whim I sent in a sample column, a resume, and added “I don’t have a degree but have been writing and studying poetry for a long time.  I’d love to share that interest.”  Afterwards I thought how silly I was, and figured they’d get a good laugh out of it.

I got a reply the next day.  They said there were lots of educated people but people with love of poetry were what they needed.

I wrote that column for almost three years.

guest link – http://www.gracegritsgarden.com/2013/07/rejected-again.html