When a writer blogs, she has to be her own editor

Writing on a blog is a wonderful thing. You are the master of your domain. You control the content in every sense. 

For some writers, this can also be an obstacle. Without someone to give you pointers or to be a second pair of eyes, sometimes things can get a bit out of hand. With our moderated grid, our submissions editor tries to lend a hand by letting you know when your post isn’t 100% ready for our grid. However, since everyone wants to get through moderation without seeing one of Obed’s love letters, let’s talk a bit about things you can do on your own before you submit your post to yeah write.

Deal breaker numero uno

Forgive me, but I’m going to be blunt: you need to proofread. We know you know this. You may be thinking this is elementary, and it is. But, even seasoned writers need to proofread and, then, when they’re done, they need to proofread again. It’s easy to miss the little things when you know what you’re trying to say. Maybe you wrote “there” when you meant to write “their.” Or, you stuck an apostrophe in “who’s” when you were trying to show a possessive. Spell checks won’t pick up those things, and you must be vigilant in checking your usage. If you’re not sure about common errors we all make sometimes, try resources like OWL or Grammar Girl.  A quick Google search should help you find the information you need.

Your post may well be the best post we’ve ever read in all of our lives. However, if you have errors in punctuation, spacing, or grammar, your entry is not a yeah write winning entry. If the invitational grid opens, a post with errors won’t be added. 

What else do the editors look for?

The editors want to see that you respect your work. You wouldn’t just slap your first draft up there, would you? None of us is fooling anyone when we write a piece in twenty minutes. (If you do happen to write a post in twenty minutes that ends up winning or on the top row, no humblebragging about it)

We want your post to have one central idea you’ve carefully developed. When you’re running here and there and stopping at a few places in between, we get dizzy. Focus on one story. If you can’t boil your post down into a one-sentence thesis, your work is not done.

The so what has to be there. A journal entry, a rant, an open letter—most of the time, these posts don’t show what we’re looking for. Show us passion for your central conflict. Give us a story where something happens. Show us why we should care.

We’re here to help you. If you’re a current supporting subscriber, we can take a look at your piece before you submit to make sure you have all the elements in place. Learn more about that option here.

Say hi to Kevin and Comment Bob

Kevin stands out in a crowd with his fuchsia scarf effortlessly tossed across his shoulder and his top hat jauntily perched upon his head. Are you a kiwi? Will your post stand out in the crowd? Obed M, our submissions editor, will choose his favorite post each week we’re under 30 posts on the grid, awarding that post the week’s kiwi badge.

Bob loves the yeah write community spirit, and cheers on anyone who shows it on each post published to the challenge grid. Do you love to leave comments? Bob says go for it. Are you better at hitting the social media share buttons than you are at leaving comments? Bob says that’s awesome. Go for it. On voting day, do you campaign fairly for the best posts on the grid, feeling inspired by (instead of threatened by) your competition? Bob loves you so much, and will likely visit your blog’s sidebar, pom poms waving. Comment, share, like, vote fairly. Win your own Bob.

 

Moderated grid and scaled voting

After you submit your work, our submissions editor will review it to be sure it meets our guidelines. If it does, you’ll see your thumbnail appear below. If not, it will be returned to you with a love letter letting you know how you could improve it. Take those notes, and keep at it. We love to see writers who don’t give up. 

When we get to 30 or more entries on the challenge grid, the invitational grid opens and the yeah write editors select their favorites.The jury prize is chosen as the best submission of the week. Invitational or not, we will host a popular vote where you’ll be able to select your favorites from the grid. The number of votes allotted is determined by the number of submissions on the grid:

• 01-10 submissions: one vote
• 11-20 submissions: two votes
• 21-30 submissions: three votes
• 31-40 submissions: four votes
• 41-50 submissions: five votes

The more submissions, the more votes. Now’s the time to tell your writing and blogging friends about our friendly little competition. Write a blurb beside your yeah write challenge button inviting them. Send a personal email. Stumble over a blog post you think would be perfect for the challenge grid? Email us the link, and if it’s a good fit, we’ll add it ourselves.

Spread the word of yeah write weekly writing challenge

Are you a member of a writing forum or a literary blogging community? Please leave a link with your friends over there telling them all about us. If you don’t have another writing home online, be sure to follow us on Twitter and Facebook where you can easily share or retweet us. The more we grow, the more we can learn from one another. Your endorsement of what we’re doing here is invaluable.

Odds, ends, reminders

• The badge you will need to add to your planned submission is over in the sidebar
• This immediate past Sunday is the earliest your submission can be dated
• Your post can be no longer than 600 words
• Personal essays or traditional blog anecdotes only
• There are no weekly prompts; the topic is yours. Be compelling
• The grid is open from Tuesday at 12:01 a.m. to Wednesday at 11:59 p.m.
• There is voting. Voting will take place Thursday from midnight to 10:00 p.m. US eastern
• The challenge grid is limited to 50 bloggers
• The winners’ post will be published by noon on Friday
• No self-promotional posts are allowed on the yeah write grid, including those containing links to other blog events and Internet contests

Yeah write #153 is open…

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