I’ve had connections with Alabama all my life; some good, some not so much. But now I have a great connection and I’m tooting my horn!

I sent one of my all-time favorite children’s stories to the Alabama Writers’ Conclave Writing Competition and I won…er, something. The actual prize (First, Second or Third) won’t be announced till July, but in any case there’s a little Fame and Fortune coming my way. Stay tuned next month and I’ll tell you all about it.

But maybe more importantly is the story behind the winning story. I kept working on that little story till I got it right. You know how you have a gut feeling after you’ve written something? A feeling that says, “Dang! That’s some good writing!” But then, when you send it out into the world, no one else seems to think so. Still, my gut was telling me not to give up on “The Chocolate Cake Bait.” (My gut was awfully chatty, wasn’t it?)

I believed in that children’s tale of boyhood friendship. And I guess the good writers in Alabama did, too!