Erma Bombeck Style
A few weeks ago, I was asked to be a judge for the Erma Bombeck Writing Competition. This is the second time I’ve had the honor of reading and judging essays submitted in the spirit of Erma Bombeck, and I have to say, it is a privilege to be part of Erma’s extended world.
The Erma Bombeck Writing Competition is hosted every two years by the Washington-Centerville Public Library. The goal is to encourage other writers to submit essays in the style of Erma Bombeck. Her style was like no other. Erma’s unpretentious observations of life laced with her relatable brand of humor made readers feel connected to a world where nothing was perfect, yet everything had value.
Erma was a national treasure, and a proud native of Dayton, Ohio. She graduated from The University of Dayton in 1949 where, somewhere along her tenure as a student, someone of academic expertise told her she was a good writer. She cultivated a sense of confidence in her ability to write and went on to earn national recognition as a syndicated columnist and author. And the rest, as they say, became history.
Over the past week, I’ve been keeping company with a multitude of essay submissions. As I read them, I feel like I’ve been given the opportunity to pull up a chair into the lives of so many who find meaning and appreciation in the ordinary. Every essay is different, so rich in experience from both big and small-scale experiences. Weaving meaningful insight into human happenings bring such rich value to narratives that could otherwise fall into the pile of forgotten memories.
Given the plethora of essay gems, I know writing and submitting essays to a writing contest is not easy. It’s like taking a trip along a forbidden runway of dreams and finding out you had spinach in your teeth the whole time. The whole experience is a see-saw dance between being confident enough to push “send” on your keyboard and the voices in your head that constantly tell you “this is so dumb.” Of course, in no way am I speaking from experience (well, maybe a little bit), but ultimately it’s a good exercise to be ok with spinach in your teeth and push “send” anyway.
I guess what I’m getting at is this. The multitude of those who have reflected, written words to express the gamut of life and submitted essays to this writing contest have already enriched the world just like Erma Bombeck. I remember reading many Erma Bombeck essays and actually have several yellowed newspaper clippings of her articles tucked in a bottom drawer file of my den cabinet. They remain treasures. As I read the precious and varied contest essays crafted in Erma’s style, I so appreciate the similarities that reflect life, love, pain, and yes, the humor that threads it all.
My trip down this year’s Erma Bombeck Writing Contest continues to enrich me. Not only am I humbled and delighted by the essays I’m charged with appreciating, I’m also reinforced by Erma’s examples of where inspiration is born. It’s the notes on a napkin, the thoughts scribbled on a grocery receipt, or the value of a crayon when you can’t find a pen that have the potential to transcend small stories into big connection. I’m not sure how many of you submitted essays to this contest, but every one of you has lifted the collective spirit of us all. After reading so many submissions, all I can offer is encouragement. We all have a bit of Erma awaiting a voice. For more information, go to https://wclibrary.info/erma/.