This is not to gloat.
This is not to tell you how awesome I am.
This is to share an accomplishment with you.
I received in the mail today my very first check for a story I've written. It is a milestone. Sure, I will gladly send stories to publications that don't pay because I love to write. But to get something beyond simple a contributor's copy is a very satisfying thing. This isn't big-time money, but it's something, another step in the right direction for my writing pursuits.
This is for "Absolution" (read or listen to it here) at Wily Writers for Speculative Fiction. The story is 4,000 words and the check is for 50 bucks...that works out to 1.25 cents per word! That's semi-pro payment, which according to this blog post I wrote last month, makes "Absolution" my first Double-A story!
I was going to post an image of the check with key details blacked out (bank account, check number, address of issuer, etc.), but decided against it. Who knows what someone could do with that information?
What will I use my new fortune for? I don't know. Valentine's Day is coming up, the upstairs DVD player has finally bitten the dust, or I could always buy new copies of the Powers Anthology and come up with the first-ever TFT giveaway contest. The possibilities are endless...or as far as 50 bucks can take me.
