It’s a spooky time of year

October, to me, is all about the crossing of a veil. The mood of the city shifts and the darker days really start to settle in. I know that technically fall started a month ago — in this hemisphere, anyway — but this is the time when I really feel like the air is full of ghosts and the memory of light. Luckily, all the editors are wearing their costumes, which is one way to keep those spirits at bay. Plus we’ve got another few tricks – and treats – up our sleeves, starting with the ultimate question. There’s no better way to banish our fears than to face them. So let’s get right to it.

This week’s ultimate question: what went bump?

Answer this question in exactly 42 words for the gargleblaster micro challenge, or use it to inspire your submission to the other competitive grids. The nonfiction challenge opens on Monday, the speakeasy fiction|poetry challenge opens on Tuesday and the gargleblaster micro challenge opens on Wednesday.

No tricks, just treats: fall writing contest

On November 2 we’re throwing open the door to a four-week writing contest on each of the competitive grids: non-fiction, fiction|poetry and micro. The editors will be scoring the entries across all three grids, and at the end of the contest, the writer with the most accumulated points will win $200 cash. If you invite a friend to the challenge and your friend wins instead of you? You each get the $200 cash: your friend for winning and you for referring the winner to yeah write. We’ve got some great prizes lined up for second and third place as well.

All the details are waiting for you behind this closed door. We dare you to knock.

Who’s on fourth?

This week, Arden interviews Silverleaf of The Silverleaf Journal in our monthly who’s on fourth? series. It’s a great opportunity for all of us to learn a little bit more about our fellow yeah writers. The interview goes live on Monday at noon US Eastern, so be sure to pop back in and give it a read!

Winners’ round-up

In case you missed them, you can find the yeah write #184 editors’ picks and crowd favorites all laid out for you on Friday’s winners’ post. Go ahead, don’t be afraid. Leave the winners some love in the comments. I’m fairly certain they won’t bite.

The weekend’s not over: the moonshine grid is still open. Have something to add? Old posts and new are welcome. No moderation, no voting. It’s a laid-back relaxed kind of place. Drop by, share your work, and while you’re there, visit your fellow yeah writers.

How yeah write works

We’ve got three competitive challenge grids — nonfiction, fiction|poetry and microstories. They are all moderated. Submissions which do not meet our editorial guidelines will not be passed through to the voting grid.

Though the focus of each challenge grid is different, there are a couple of things that we are looking for across the board: compelling stories with strong narratives free from grammatical errors while demonstrating exceptional attention to structure and language. Posts must be written specifically for the challenge and may not be dated earlier than today. Yeah write does not accept commercial and sponsored posts.

Looking for the schedule? Need more detail? Check out our FAQ.

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