Sunday. Cloudy with rain. On my desk are 21 submissions for the “Narrator” position at the Pfister Hotel. This is my third round of go-around, shop pick one, the right one.

I’ve completed my first read-thru, trying to give each pitch my complete attention. Listening to Dewey’s nostalgic big band stuff on Frontier Radio helps.

So far I have two piles of submissions and have narrowed my choices to seven. But the instructions to the panel of choosers say we’re to meet soon with our top six selections in tow. More writers will get my no-go, cialis sale but which ones? Of the aforementioned two piles, one contains any writer who dares use the word…”truly.” There is no small amount of guilt associated with dumping writers who use (ugh!) “truly.” It’s a bias I am unable to overcome. I’m also attracted to writers who graduated from the University of Iowa, where my grandfather Moriarty graduated in 1890. Forgive me. Forgive me. Iowa is in my blood. That said, the writing program at UW-Milwaukee is solid, too.

Included in the “no” pile are applicants who ramble on and on. Comes now another personal bias….I seem drawn to writers who are actually enrolled in, or have graduated from programs focused on the art of creative writing, but I also like blue-collar voices with rumpled edges. The Narrator gig pays $1,000 per month for six months and involves interviewing folks in and around the Pfister, and then posting the stuff on the hotel’s blog. For techies, this is no big deal, but can they write without stumbling over themselves? Without getting in the way of the tale?

Yes and no. Maybe. Perhaps. Should I reconsider a few applicants?

The twitter handle is discussed. Of this I know nothing.

Today is a real straw poll. Yes, we vote by depositing straws. The scene unfolds in the Rouge Room off the busy opulent lobby. Joe Kurth, the grand hotel’s General Manager, sits apart from the panelists. He has no vote, but we pay attention to his cogent comments. He’s 6’6” tall and is not to be confused with a Way Back Green Bay Packer of the same name.

The past narrator and the current narrator are females. Should we swing to males? A panelist remarks that this is about writing ability and not gender. Another panelist comments about “gerunds.”

I am but one voice on the panel, and to date, (Tom Strini from thirdcoastdigest.com & Bobby Tanzilo from onmilwaukee.com have been added ), but I’ve never picked a winner. When the finalists are selected, they come forth for a video interview, and then the panel gathers again to read sample blogs and watch the hopefuls sweat (or not) on a big screen. Frankly, I’d like to see the video part go the way of the dinosaur. A person may be a fine candidate for the position, but come across like a deer caught in the headlights of a few video moments. Oh well, the Marcus marketing folks (two on the panel) like it like that, and because this is a team effort, I remain relatively quiet.

Okay, time to re-read my favorites. Time to dice those who deserve more. What to do? What to do? Maybe give the writer who used “truly” another shot? The panelist next to me also dislikes the “truly” word, but says he’d let it pass if they only used it once.

When the final choice is announced by the Marcus folks, I’ll get back to you with the verdict. I’m feeling humble.

Later: I’ve narrowed the pile. The initial Pfister meeting is over, and after a Pepsi and handful of nuts, I remain humble. One of my choices made it to the top of the heap this time.