The weather has been extreme this winter with pipe-bursting temperatures and then warmer weather and fog. One thing about weather on the plains is it will never be boring. For a while the back door was frozen and we had to take the dog out through the garage. She was confused. But with warmer temperatures we got the door back and it is working as it should.

It’s contest time and I have a couple I’ll always enter; the annual contest with my local Enid Writers Club and also the annual contest with the Oklahoma Writers’ Federation, Inc. Do you enter writing contests and if so why? I think they push me to improve my writing by having a judge look at it and give me reasons why they judged it as they did. And sometimes (not often) I win! That is good for the ego.

I always attend the OWFI conference that takes place the first weekend of May in Oklahoma City. I’ve met all my publishers there and made some great friends. And then there are the contests. If you’re interested in it, you can find out about the conference at www.owfi.org.

If you haven’t joined a writers group, I encourage you to do that. My club and the critique group have taught me more than I ever learned in school. We are all there for the same reason, to improve our writing, and to join with like minds.

I’ve been writing in this cold weather. I have things to finish. And more projects waiting on my time. My mind is always churning with new ideas. Now if I can get them on paper. But I’ll always have my club supporting me and guiding me in the direction I need to go. So I can write another story, another time.

What are you reading/writing this week?