Chasing the Rainbow

After I read the novel
“The name of the rose”
I believed I'd be able
to write serious prose.

Would it be in German,
in English, or in French?
Choosing the language
was a bit of a wrench.

I tried Schiller's tongue
which was old German
but all the letters
were a vivid carmine.

It was not acceptable
for the ink to be red,
it had to be black,
the guidelines said.

I found that very odd
and it made me think.
did success depend
on the manuscript's ink?

I immediately knew 
I was jumping the gun
as a publishing deal
had not yet been done.

A wishful thinking
that one has to suppress
is to chase the rainbow
of overnight success.

© Luigi Pagano 2022