50 Something Moms is one of several blog sites that work together under the banner of the Silicon Valley Moms collective. Every week the McClatchy-Tribune news service reviews all the blogs and selects four pieces to go out for syndication. Each piece has the opportunity of landing in newspapers and news sites all over the country.

Those bloggers and their pieces are announced on Friday by Jill via our Yahoo group. It is a big deal. Truly. I am not sure I can stress that enough. To be a writer, and that is what bloggers are, is to want to be published and read and recognized. Writing that never sees the light of anyone’s day might as well sit in a trunk in the attic.

I have secretly hoped that one day I would be chosen. This blog marks the first time I have signed a writer’s agreement or worked in a professional writing setting. As I mentioned the other day, I am as nervous as I am excited. 

Today, as I was scanning the new posts at Yahoo, I noticed that Jill had the weekly picks up and that my Tweener essay had been chosen for next week’s syndication.

Holy shit!

I emailed her immediately with questions and she shot a message right back with her phone number. She congratulated me on setting what might be a record for being picked up. It was my first piece and it went up on Tuesday of this week. She told me to set up a Google Alert on Monday to see where the piece “lands” and that I should print it where I find it or contact the newspaper for a copy.

I called Rob right away and of course he was pleased. Rob completely believes in my writing ability and is confident that I will be able to turn this into a career and be his sugar mama. Then I called Dad, who seemed happy for me as well though I don’t think he really understood what I was talking about. Dads are good at seeming pleased for their daughters even when they aren’t interested or think their daughters’ passions are too silly to ever pay bills. I alerted my Facebook peeps after that because anyone else I know has a real job and isn’t home to call. And then I wrote this for my dear readers (some of whom are also my Facebook peeps and/or aren’t home.)

It’s funny that this news should come on a day when my Technorati rating has tanked in a Dow Jones kind of way, and when I was seriously questioning the time commitment involved what with the deadline for starting my memoir looming. 

I remembered something that Sally commented a while back about when things start to fall together they do so quickly. Maybe I am in a favorable alignment of fate and stars right now? 

I need to bask. I am so proud of myself.