How to Write
Finishing stuff is hard. I have lots of great ideas and plenty of terrific starts, but I’m terrible at finishing. The reason is simple: Hard work is, well, a lot of hard work. Ideas and starts are fun and exciting and successes and finishes are so gratifying, but that middle ground is nothing but work, and it’s really easy to lose interest in that. When I wrote the first draft of my memoir, I got it done by setting a date with myself every morning at 5am to work on one section. In time, all those small chunks of time added up to a book (that I haven’t finished editing, btw).
I was talking to a friend about this very thing, and we decided to have daily check-ins to say if we wrote or not. Two days in, and I have a nice portion of the opening scene of a fiction project I’ve been talking about writing for years. All it took was a bit of accountability and a plan. For me, it’s early morning before my day gets out of control, but pick what works for you, block the time, and consider setting a check-in with someone. You don’t have to share your work, but knowing someone is waiting on you can be quite the motivator.
Welcome to Week 363
We’re kicking off the week in style at YeahWrite with both our competitive challenge grids in one post, plus prompts, tips, tricks and more. You asked, we answered! Keep scrolling down cause it’s all right here.
Submissions for this week’s challenges open on Monday at 12 midnight and close on Wednesday at 10pm ET. Voting will then open immediately thereafter and close on Thursday at 10pm ET. The winners, as always, will be celebrated on Friday.
Having trouble getting started? Hop on over to our quick guide. And don’t forget to doublecheck the full submission guidelines before you hit that button.
Looking For Microprose?
Our tiniest challenge with the biggest bang is open the first Wednesday of every month from midnight to 10 p.m.
Nonfiction Challenge
Teaser
With my friend visiting all last week, I didn’t even get to think about writing! And it turns out I missed a really fun impromptu thing on the nonfiction grid (nod to Christine) where a bunch of people wrote about “a time they fell” in 100 words or fewer. I love directed challenges so I’m sorry I missed that. Stay tuned, though. We have more fun ideas coming up for the nonfiction grid; consider yourself teased. In the meantime, I know you have plenty of stories to tell. And remember, you don’ have to use all 750 words. There were some really great ~100 word stories last week. So get writing!
Technique Toolbox: Pitch and Submit
Got a great piece of writing but not sure how to find a home for it? Know you’re a good writer but not sure what to write or who wants it? Check out our tips and tricks for pitching, submitting, and even getting ideas (plus three bonus rants from Rowan) in this month’s Technique Toolbox!
Nonfiction challenge grid:
Basic YeahWrite guidelines: 750 word limit; your entry can be dated no earlier than this past Sunday; nonfiction personal or persuasive essay, creative opinion piece or mostly true story based on actual events.
Check the submission guidelines for our full set of rules. If you’re not sure how to link up, hop over to our quick tutorial for getting started at YeahWrite! Otherwise, click that blue button when the challenge is open, and good luck! Come back to vote starting Wednesday at 10pm, and check out our winners on Friday!
Loading InLinkz ...Fiction|Poetry Challenge
I Meant To Do That
In addition to trying out new genres this month, we’ve been practicing making a word’s definition integral to a story. If you compete in writing contests, you know that many challenges involve the integration of a prompt. The judges of the contest want to see how flexible your story building skills are; they want to know if you can write with intention. And about a dozen bells just went off in the minds of the writers taking the Fun With Words course because this week was all about intention. It’s a good skill to practice no matter what genres you’re into writing.
March Poetry Slam: Acrostics
Take one of the building blocks of learning poetry to new heights as we play a new game with the old acrostic form in this month’s poetry slam. You’ll learn one way to integrate your title into your poem with a little bit of nuance and a lot of fun! Get your spellcheck ready and let’s go!
Prompt Up!
Prompt Up is our weekly writing prompt for the fiction|poetry challenge! Here's How It Works!
The first prompt is: Use one of the definitions listed below in an INTEGRAL way in your story. In other words, your story wouldn’t work if the idea of the defined word were taken out. To be clear, you do not have to use the word in your story, but one of the definitions of the word must be a pivotal and identifiable element in your plot.
Definition of bronze (noun)
1a : an alloy of copper and tin and sometimes other elements
b : any of various copper-base alloys with little or no tin
2: a sculpture or artifact of bronze
3: a moderate yellowish brown
4: a bronze medal awarded as the third prize in a competition
(definition source: merriam-webster.com)
The second prompt, a genre prompt, comes from YeahWrite #361 Fiction|Poetry winner, MM Schreier. The genre that your story must be written in is Drama. Wikipedia defines the genre as “intended to be more serious than humorous in tone, focusing on in-depth development of realistic characters who must deal with realistic emotional struggles.” It goes on to offer the subgenres melodrama, realistic drama, crime drama, romance drama, historical epic drama (but we’re gonna skip that because 750 words), musical drama, and teen drama. We encourage you to do additional research on the genre.
Poets: write a poem that incorporates the prompt word (bronze), fits within Drama or is an acrostic. You are free to incorporate all three if you wish.
Fiction|poetry challenge grid:
Basic YeahWrite guidelines: 750 word limit; your entry can be dated no earlier than this past Sunday; fiction or poetry only.
Check the submission guidelines for our full set of rules. If you’re not sure how to link up, hop over to our quick tutorial for getting started at YeahWrite! Otherwise, click that blue button when the challenge is open, and good luck! Come back to vote starting Wednesday at 10pm, and check out our winners on Friday!
Loading InLinkz ...YeahWrite Super Challenge
Early (discounted!) registration for Super Challenge 8 (fiction) is now open! Make sure you also sign up for our email blast so you don’t miss out on any announcements for the next Super Challenge.
Winners’ Round-Up
In case you missed them, you can find last week’s YeahWrite staff picks and crowd favorites all laid out for you on last Friday’s winners’ post. Leave the winners some love in the comments. They will love you right back, we guarantee it.
Last call: This week’s Weekend Writing Showcase is still open for business until the challenge grids start at midnight! No moderation, no voting. It’s a laid-back relaxed kind of place. Just leave your commercial or sponsored posts at home. Drop by, share your work, and while you’re there, visit your fellow yeah writers.
About the author:
Michelle submitted her first entry to YeahWrite in March 2012 and they haven’t been able to get rid of her since. After nearly 20 years in the insurance/employee benefits industry, she decided to give it all up to pursue writing full time. Her work has been featured on The Huffington Post and xoJane, as well as several local sites near her northern NJ home. She blogs at Michelle Longo.
