Chances

One of my focuses of my life – my wife and some of my students will say obsessions – is my Castle Zierath world.

I’ve spent the last fifteen years lovingly creating it, modifying it, adding to it, changing it, and sharing it. The website – castlezierath.org – shows several pieces of the world, but there’s always so much more to do. I’ve added to it, my friends have added to it, and several of my former students have created huge chunks of land in it. I have writing guidelines (which will be the next major chunk added to the website as well). Sometimes, getting these people to add their material that blends into the established world is difficult, but that’s part of the fun. (although if they won’t blend, it gets very difficult sometimes. Sigh)

I have the last ten years writing a book (actually 3 books) on the world. It really didn’t start out to be three books, but that’s where it is now. Later this week, Friday, I hope, I’ll be sending my novel out to a publisher. That in itself is very unnerving. I’ve spent a fourth of my life working on this story, and now I can send it out to have someone tell me I’ve been wasting a quarter of my life. I think that is the reason why I haven’t sent it out before. It’s that lovely fear of rejection. I’ve always had this fear. I know it’s part of why I don’t take a lot of chances. I’ve almost always gone with ‘the sure thing.’ The guaranteed thing.

It’s time to take the chance.

*Gulp*