Here is a brief message that was heartening to me.  It seems that public speaking events sometimes take on a life of their own that does not go exactly as planned.  I can testify to gaffs that left me having to be inventive on the spot.

An Arizona area writer friend  won a prize in a contest staged by a writer group in the San Francisco (CA) area and was invited to read her winning entry at their annual gathering staged to honor the winners.  Her sister lives in the area so she flew to S.F. for a family reunion and attendance at the ceremony.  She had practiced reading her essay and her delivery was down pat. When she was called to the lectern to read her piece, she laid the sheets of copy on the shelf with confidence and began to read. As she shuffled page 3 to the bottom of the stack  she gasped in horror.  Page 4, the final page of the manuscript, was missing.  What could she do but announce to the group that "somehow, I left the last page at home"?  However, from the audience came resounding encouragement: "Tell us the end."  She did and got a standing ovation.

Sometimes the learning curve is steep!  But we writers find ways to land on our feet.  More on writers as public speakers in a future Blog.  Cyberhugs, Willma