Every person is a gamble, and every situation is a wager. To me, work is the high stakes table. I've seen 300 lb. Marlins or Sturgeon the size of Cadillacs surface and jump in my lap, wearing elbow-patched tweed suits and apathy on their face. They reel me in and deal me in. It's all like poker: how you check, how you look, how you raise. I grind it, I play it cautious. I have the time, why worry?

But now a completely different opportunity comes through the door, caked in black with a wool beenie on his head. I recognize him. A few days back I was strolling along the internet, getting nostalgic and reading about my favorite game series: Ultima by Origin. My first passion in life was to create games. Every time I interacted with a character, every time I saw a cutscene, every time the plot snaked around another corner I swelled with envy. I felt the same way when I found this website of a team of computer game designers, dedicated to the revision of the last Ultima made. They called it Ultima 9: Redemption. Temptation multipled inside of me and I had to do it: I asked if they needed a writer and editor for dialogue and in-game books. They already had some people but I had to try.

So there my dream is, taking off his hat and just sitting across from me. He's interested. He asks me for either a sample of my work or to write something for him based on a few guidelines. The ball's in my court and the bet's to me.

Here's the skinny: I've got three incomplete short stories in my hand. I can finish only one of them in a day or two; that's about as long as I've realistically got. I could try and push on the epic poignant one, The Dead Reburied, but it's too complicated and long. There's the fantasy humor piece, Althrek, which might work but it's pushing 16 pages...and then there's a farse I've got, this silly story I cranked out awhile ago that's barely 6 pages. I figure if I can finish it under 8, edit it and hand it over, I stand a decent shot. It all rides on if he laughs or not.

And so I'm staring at him, looking down at the unfinished manuscript in front of me, excited and scared. I could really do it, I could really write something that'd be enjoyed by tens of thousands of people. All it takes is dedication.

Getting hired for a job is a skill...and I may just pull it off.

previous - next