It was an opportunity of a lifetime to win the first prize in the National Short Story Writing Competition. My teachers have been telling me how impressive my writing was. Furthermore, I had professional help. That is, Uncle Lim, an old gentleman living near my block, who is a published writer. He agreed to read my story and give me some pointers on how to write like a professional. Thus, I was encouraged to enter the competition.
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Since the closing date was a good three months away, I could wait for a while. I was advised by Uncle Lim that only amateur writers waited for inspiration; professionals wrote whether they were inspired or not. As an amateur, I waited.
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Inspiration finally came 2 weeks before the closing date. I wrote furiously and finished the essay in 2 days. I decided to show the finished work to Uncle Lim, feeling very satisfied the essay. However, Uncle Lim did not feel the same way, instead he said ""Rubbish!"" and threw my story into the bin. Then he proceeded to give me a while list of suggestions to improve my idea. I sat down to write again following Uncle Lim's instructions carefully. I finally finished the essay 1 week before the closing date, which was the following Saturday.
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On the morning that I intended to submit the story, I discovered that the entry had to be typed out in 6 copies. I rushed to my computer and frantically typed out my essay. By the time I finished printing out the copies it was 11:00am. I had 2 hours to make the deadline! I hastened to the photocopy shop to get my entries bound. To my horror, I discovered that the shop only opened at 12 noon. A cold feeling gripped my heart.
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By the time I had my entries bound, it was 12:05. I was extremely worried. I dashed to the Simei MRT station, which was just around the corner. Looking at my watch, I realized that there was no way that I could get to the Ministry of Information & Arts, at Alexandra Road - the other end of Singapore.
