LJ Idol Presents:

I've loved, I've laughed and cried.
I've had my fill; my share of losing.
And now, as tears subside,
I find it all so amusing.

-

It's been a lovely trip, ladies and gentlemen. If you don't mind, I have a few words before I depart into the night.

We've been doing this for a long time, you know? By my count, just one month short of a year. Reflect on that for a moment — the vast majority of us have been writing for almost a full year. Add it up, and assuming an average of a thousand words a week (which some of us exceed every week), we've all written more than 40,000 words (some much more!) over this past year, because of Idol. That's an incredible accomplishment in its own right, one that should be recognized.

I'm not sad that this is the end of the line for me. I've seen the writing on the wall, and in fact want to thank the jury for graciously saving me when I was slated to fall — it means a lot to me that my peers think highly enough of me to grant me immunity. But as Gary oft mentions, at the end of the day, there can be only one. And truth be told, I never expected or even hoped that it'd be me. I simply hoped that I'd write something worth reading every week, and that sometimes it would make you laugh and sometimes it would make you cry.

I think the Idol is a game that has two parts - one part is writing, and one part is engagement (the social aspect, if you will). And I suspect that most of you have probably picked up that I don't play the social part of this game much. I don't comment except when I really have something to say, and I don't write in the GR much if at all. I've never made a post asking for votes, and never posted in any social network about Idol. But it's not because I think that the social game isn't a legitimate part of Idol, or look down on those that do the above; it's simply because I joined Idol to read good writing and create good writing, and at the end of the day, I want my writing be judged on its own merits, not on the merits of whether I left a positive comment or how close I am with the voter. Though now that it's over, there are some comments I've been sitting on for a thread that I've been absent from :)

Anyway, in a lot of ways, I've only been playing half the game, and it's only right that those who go on are those who play the entire game — those who are more invested, who help create the community, who bring others in to read everyone's entries and perhaps join in a future round... and who indeed, do not submit things late, week after week :)

I want to say one more thing: I've heard some grumbling about unfairness from a few friends of mine, and I want to gently remind them that I believe that everyone deserves to be here. Idol wouldn't be as interesting or as unique if it were all non-fiction slice-of-life memoir type writers, or all sci-fi writers, or all rom-com screenplays (pity we don't see more of those). Everyone in the top ten has a unique voice, a distinct style, and it's that uniqueness that keeps Idol alive, interesting, and a pleasure to read week after week. I think the best writers aren't content to sit in an echo chamber of their favorite works or favorite genres, but consistently work to broaden their horizons - and there are lessons that each person in the competition can teach to the rest, whether it's in plot, pacing, humor, grammar, relatability, or another aspect of the art.

And speaking of the competition, it's time to return to it, I think, and weary you no more with this monologue. Thank you, readers, for your time and the comments that you left and I hope you enjoyed each piece; thank you, writers, for creating incredible pieces, week after week and I hope the weeks ahead only bring the best out of you; and thank you, Gary, for this labor of love, and I hope every day is better than the last.

Good night, and good luck.