By Danielle M. Angeline
(From the December 2006 issue of the Update.)
Three years ago, I was six months into my membership with RWA and WRW when I nonchalantly answered our group email to volunteer as a judge for the Marlene. “What’s a Marlene?” I wondered, yet I sent my information to the contest chairperson. As the holidays lapsed into New Years and the judge’s training meeting neared, anxiety caused me to question my previous actions. “Who am I to judge?” weighed heavily on my mind and that was just the beginning. The day of our January judges meeting, I was greeted with the same cold everyone else was fighting, and to top things off, I overslept and missed the morning session. Still, I dragged myself out of bed and arrived just in time
to be handed a package of information that overwhelmed me. I listened tentatively and took notes to better guide myself through my apprehension of, “What am I getting myself into?”
Once the entries arrived, my pounding heart and sweaty-palm affliction was replaced with anticipation and excitement. I opened the package and scanned through the titles. Being a “title” person, I looked at those first. One of the entries that caught my eye had a title that was the same as a popular Dixie Chick’s song. Being a lover of country music, I set that one aside, wanting to save it for last. Perusing through the other titles, I chose one that didn’t really tickle my fancy. Why? You may ask. When I was in elementary school, my mom taught me to tackle the subject I dislike the most first. I try to apply that wisdom today in my daily routine.
Back to the first manuscript entry. Judging was tough. The first four pages rambled on and on until - Eureka! One great sentence drew me into the plot. Quickly, I uncapped my red pen and circled the sentence. That was the hook, and I had to tell the author so, but I was quite hesitant to suggest it would be best placed on the first page. Again, the Doubting Thomas in me questioned, “Who am I to judge?” But I forged on, fighting the little voice in my head. When I finally finished reading and making notes on the first entry, I breathed a big sigh of relief. I had actually judged a Marlene entry!
Woo-Hoo!
Over the next three weeks, I took my time with each entry and even returned to the first entry to make sure I wasn’t too harsh. It was interesting and exciting to examine the work that other authors devoted hours to perfecting with their blood, sweat and tears. I wanted to applaud these brave writers for taking the risk to have their labor of love read, evaluated and the bottom line --judged. Overall, it was a rewarding experience. But in the end, I didn’t necessarily learn how to be the perfect judge, but I did learn two things about myself: one, it’s important to put myself out there and get involved - whether it is volunteering as a judge or entering a contest. I will never know what the results will be until I try. And two - “Who am I to judge?” I still cannot answer this question because when it comes to trying something new, I will always be a novice, and it is with time, patience, and a little confidence that I will eventually become an expert.
