There are very few deadlines in my life. I think the only story I've actually written to a deadline since I started writing full time was for Windstorm Creative's slug anthology. I figured since my first sale was to a Windstorm Creative anthology, it was worth going out of my way to write a story that included a slug to submit to them again. Also, as themed topics go, "something with a slug" has a fair amount of freedom.

At any rate, due to the almost complete lack of meaningful deadlines for freelance sci-fi writers who haven't gotten book deals yet, I decided to create my own deadline. Four stories a year. That way, I can always submit something to Writers of the Future, as long as I'm still eligible.

Unfortunately, last year, I followed the letter of that law and not the spirit. I went easy on myself and counted two pieces that don't count for WotF -- a children's piece and the first draft of my novel. So, after being ahead in stories for years, I'm finally out of pieces that WotF hasn't seen.

Between editing my first novel and working on my second novel, it'd be really easy to stop writing shorts now... But, I've actually developed a taste for them over the last five years. So, I think I will write a story specifically for the June WotF deadline. It'll be interesting to see how long I keep it up for after that. My dedication to submitting to WotF has never really been tested before.