As part of my journey here on SteemIt and as a Curie Curator I want to keep a sort of journal of how things go. My purpose in doing this is to not only keep track of everything I have done, but also to spotlight those that I submitted and had accepted, but also especially the ones that didn't get accepted so they might get a little exposure.
Also, for those out there who are part of the Newbie Resteem Initiative #newbieresteemday, or anyone else who might want to send info on the exceptional posts they find, it might give you an idea of what to be on the lookout for. Of course, don't stay constrained inside a certain box, a certain type, just use these posts as a bit of a guideline. If you might be serious about possibly becoming a Curie Curator let me know and we can talk.
No More Submission After Midnight Saturday!
I went into the week with the best of intentions. I had 5 submissions and going to make sure I finished well enough to unlock the 15 submission level again. Then around Tuesday I realized that if I could go 5/5 I had a shot at becoming a Top Curator. It may even be the easiest time to hit that milestone. With just 5 posts and having to stay above a 90% approval rating it might be easier than when I have access to submit up to 15.
I was once again faced with the issue of my 5 submissions opening up later in the week. This is so much easier when you have access to the submission at any point during the week. Having them sandwiched into the final 2 or 3 days doesn't usually end up well.
Now let's get to the list of my submissions.
NOTE: Unfortunately since I am WAY late on posting this all of the posts are closed so you cannot go vote or resteem. You can still go read and then follow the authors you enjoy reading.
Submission #1
This first submission was an extremely entertaining Sci-Fi short story. Some of you may know that I am in the process of writing my third book, The Twilight Zone Trivia Book & Encyclopedia. It is one of my favorite television shows of all-time, and many would agree. When you break down the series though it is essentially just 156 short stories by a varied and great list or writers. When I read this story I could honestly see it as an episode.
I won't give away the story because I want you to read it for yourself and enjoy it. I will just say that I really liked it.
Submission
by:
Curie Status: Accepted - Paid out: $80.81 , Upvotes: 223, Comments: 4
My Pitch:
What a great short story! It definitely brings you back to some classic Martian paranoia Sci-Fi. Other than his intro post he has had just one post with a reward over a $1. He has had many stories published in a number of places. This story seems to have been published in a magazine in 2010 but it appears it isn't online, and the magazine went out of business in 2011 soon after his story was printed. It would be great to get an at least somewhat accomplished/published writer hooked on SteemIt and keep him in the community.Submission #2
This next submission was a non-fictional story written for a contest. Entrants were tasked with writing a real and personal story about themselves or someone they knew. The author shared her battle with chronic kidney failure, her struggles, and losses along the way, and finally a great realization.
Submission
by:
Curie Status: Accepted - Paid out: $84.21 , Upvotes: 237, Comments: 51
My Pitch:
This post is actually an entry into a contest which called for people to write a non-fictional personal story about themselves or someone else they knew. It doesn't get more personal than being diagnosed with kidney failure and having 2-7 years to live. This author takes us through her journey of denial, shutting down, and shutting people out, and then having almost everyone she cared for leave her at her lowest point. She persisted though and found her new tribe, an online community that has supported her and turned around her entire perspective on the life she has remaining. Such a touching story that will engage nearly everyone that reads it.Submission #3
This next submission comes from an author who is part of the Newbie Resteem Initiative I keep mentioning. She is a great part of the community and helps so many on their road to figuring out SteemIt. After I read it (the first time) I moved on with what I was doing. I initially felt it was too risky to submit. She had a previous Curie vote, a high reputation, and again I was shooting for 5/5. About an hour later someone resteemed it back into my feed. I opened it back up and skimmed over it again, and then went back to what I was doing.
Some more time passed and then I saw the author's name in my feed again. This time i think she was resteeming some posts from others. It was a while ago since I am so late writing this up, but I think she may have resteemed about 5 posts in a row. I looked at the posts which all looked pretty good and then went back to her post one more time and fully read it again. I decided something it should have taken a lot less time for me to decide - The post was exceptional enough to over come a high rep and previous Curie vote.
I did a lot of over thinking this week because of my previous back to back weeks where I had quite a few missteps. More on that later.
Submission
by:
Curie Status: Accepted - Paid out: $60.15 , Upvotes: 201, Comments: 57
My Pitch:
This author has had so little reward apart from her Curie vote at the start of January. She has been a SteemIt member since January of 2017. She also does so much good for the SteemIt community through the Newbie Resteem Initiative. A lot of the rewards she does get she gives back out to help newcomers. Her reputation may be a bit high, but I think the strong content of the post easily overcomes that guideline. Such a great story about the woman who shaped her life. She even adds in a short original poem at the end. She talks about her grandmother being a pillar in the community, please let's reward her for being a pillar in ours.Submission #4
When I see flowers I think many things, "Oh, pretty", or perhaps "That smells good." When this author sees flowers her mind goes to other places. She begins thinking how she can add it into a dish to eat, or what beneficial medicinal features it may have.
Her photography skills are off the chart as well.
Submission
by:
Curie Status: Accepted - Paid out: $65.46 , Upvotes: 231, Comments: 36
My Pitch:
This is a very interesting post about eating flowers and other uses of flowers that the majority of the population never think about. The author not only shares her own knowledge and experiences, she also links to and mentions some further reading on the topic. She is a homesteader and an artist and will likely be a great member of the SteemIt community for a long time. She is stuck in the $1-3 reward range even after a couple months here on the site.Submission #5
This fifth and final submission is where things took a turn. I sat here on Saturday wanting one more good submission. As the day went on somewhere between 6-10 posts that I had looked at and considered submitting all got accepted after other curators submitted them. The pressure mounted, the frustration set in, and it just caused me to second guess myself more and more.
This post I had found early n the day and left the tab open on my browser. I just wasn't sure about it. I really liked it for the story. A medical lab technician who would rather go out in the field instead of sit in an office and let patients come to him. He wants to go out to the remote areas and see patients who might otherwise not get any care at all. He documented a two day visit with plenty of photos. He even shared microscope slide of bacteria he found while testing every child's stool because he knew there was plenty to be found there due to the conditions in the village.
I think the downfall for me on this one was as usual I let maybe a little too much emotion play in the decision. The author had a previous vote, and that mixed with perhaps just missing the right level of exceptional and it was rejected.
Submission
by:
Curie Status: Not Accepted - Paid out: $0.43 , Upvotes: 19, Comments: 7
My Pitch:
This author did get a vote almost 20 days ago and has since had about a dozen posts with very small rewards. That previous vote was for an art process. In this post he talks about how he prefers the much tougher job of working in the field with people that otherwise might not have any healthcare rather than in a more confortable office job. He takes us with him on a two day trip to a small village where he tests for EVERYTHING! He even shares some microscope slides of the bacterieas he find. The moral of his story, which he shares at the end, simply be kind to one another.In Conclusion:
This week (now last week I suppose) I finished with 5 submissions, 4 of which were accepted. This means for the following week I would have 15 submissions. I received 40 Steem for the 4 accepted posts.
The goal for the week is to make sure I ascend into the ranks of the Top Curators. Which as I am writing this just over 24 hours before this week is over, I can tell you it is looking pretty good.
I have decided to set my own deadline of sorts. I want to try and avoid submitting anything after midnight on Saturdays. This seems to be one of the times where I make the most mistakes. As always I just want to keep learning and improving.
Now please go forth and create great content. And if you create it or find it somewhere feel free to alert me to it. You can find me on Discord 
While these posts are all closed now, I have many resteemed on my page that are still open from this week. Go check them out.
"Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great."
Mark Twain