Thank you to Theresa Smith for featuring me on her series: The Origin of the Writer.
Origin of the Writer: Renee Dahlia
OCTOBER 23, 2017 / THERESA SMITH WRITES
Origin of the Writer is a series of essays giving emerging writers the opportunity to share their writing journey so far.
Most Australians are familiar with the race that stops a nation, the Melbourne Cup. In the lead to the big race is the Spring Racing Carnival, and 2017 threw up the epitome of the Aussie have-a-go attitude. The decision of trainer Amy Johnston to enter her middle grade horse Skyfire in the Gr1 Turnbull Stakes against champion mare Winx created much media discussion. Why bother when Skyfire is so far outclassed by Winx?
For the ultimate racing fan, this is simple. The owners get to rub shoulders with the best horse in the world (not an exaggeration*), to stand in the birdcage with her is pure fandom. *Winx is currently rated the number one racehorse in the world by the International Federation of Horse Racing Authorities.
And then there is the gamble, with only seven horses in the field, and prizemoney paid out to eighth place, the owners were guaranteed at least a $10,000 payout. That isn’t to be sneezed at. Skyfire’s owners saw an opportunity and grabbed it. It’s the Aussie gambler at its finest. No matter where Skyfire finished, the owners win, which is why it didn’t matter that Skyfire ran last (seventh). The owners had a fabulous day out, and trainer Amy Johnston donated her trainer’s portion (10% of prizemoney earned by the horse) to charity, creating even more emotional winners on the day.
How does this relate to being an emerging writer? As an emerging writer, I have the same long term dream as Skyfire’s owners – to be seen on the same stage as the established, champion writers. For all of us, it is an outsider’s chance in a competitive field, with thousands of other writers submitting their work to publishers. And it might not have worked for Skyfire, but outsiders do win. Often enough to give hope to the dreamers.
Read the rest of the article at Theresa Smith Writes: https://theresasmithwrites.com/2017/10/23/origin-of-the-writer-renee-dahlia/