Sending a Story to the King's Court

I had a period where I thought I might not be good enough to publish.
Stephen King (https://www.brainyquote.com/topics/publish)

So I finished that short story I have been working on and where did I send it?  The New Yorker lol.  I know, I know...sounds pretty grandiose  but I sent it there for two reasons:

 1) I owed them the first reading (whether they want it or not lol) because they kind of offered the seed for this story to grow.  What I didn't mention prior to my grand inspiration at 4 am that night was that I had happened upon an article earlier that day that  addressed this labelling and assumption thing I was going through  from a medical perspective. The article written in the New Yorker addressed to physicians  spoke about the dilemma "they had" in dealing with certain patients who they labelled a certain way. It rattled me so much. I hate labels anyway but it was like, what about the patient you took an oath to care for, what about the human behind the label?  Have you thought about what your labelling would do to them? So I told myself even though the article is 15 years old that I would write a non fiction response to it, which I intended to do. That night, however, the muses of fiction were calling me and out the story came. It offered me a way to release a deep seated grievance so I could forgive and move on.

At first, I didn't even connect my inspiration to write this particular story to  the article I read.  The realization, that it was entirely based on that article, came to me as I was searching for a place to send it. Instantaneously, it became clear as to where I had to send it. It was all deeply inspired action and that is pretty cool...Even if the editors at The New Yorker don't think so, the Universe knows how inspired this all is. :)

2) I am tired of thinking small and being retracted. If I am going to put myself out there, to step out of my comfort zone, I might as well do it big...the go broke or stay home cliché.  If I am going to get rejected, it might as well be by the best of them lol.  If I am going to be slapped into some slush pile it may as well be one that is soft and well cushioned by thousands of other unwanted manuscripts. I know there I will be in good company. 

Not that any press is  less worthy of my submissions lol...I appreciate any consideration and usually seek the comforting arms of small lesser known presses to wrap my submissions in. When I write about sending my story to "the top" I am just looking at what others have crowned with royal acclaim. In the literary realm, where is the King's Court writers want to be called to?...In the office of the New Yorker.

This is the second time I sent to them...the third... if you count the time 20 years ago when I sent a story to "The New York Times" thinking they and The New Yorker were one and the same thing.  I got a long , have you any idea how stupid you are  letter back from someone there. (That's so funny now as I think about it.)

You may ask, considering my very miniscule chance of ever being published there, "What for?" and I want to answer "What if?" What if and why not feel so much better than what for and how could you.

How do we feel when we think big and  reach for the stars?  That is the big question in life, as it is in writing.  It really isn't about publication: where, how, when or even if.  It is about writing and completing the cycle .  The submission process is an important  part of the writing cycle. It feels good to think about having a story being considered by The New Yorker even if the consideration doesn't get past my name, title and word count.  :) It still feels good.  It feels good to know that I took a chance...that I am taking risks, that I am allowing myself to expand. It's fun!!!

This whole writing thing can be fun!!! And it is exciting as we think about the unlimited possibilities. Feeling good  is what it is all about and that is why I submitted to The New Yorker.

Isn't  the life of a writer...any writer, published or not... grand? Isn't life itself grand?

All is well in my world!