Where Have I Heard This Before?
There’s a very fine line between relatable and trite. In fact, it’s so fine I think it’s actually blurred more often than not. If you’ve heard one toddler tantrum tale, you’ve heard them all, right? On many occasions of late, I’ve thought I should write about a thing I’m experiencing. But once I start to, I realize that I don’t have anything new to say or my take isn’t particularly funny or interesting. There aren’t details that make the experience unique at all and I can’t tell the story in a fresh way. What feels very important to me is sometimes (often?) just a retelling of a story as old as time.
When you’re thinking about what you’ll write, consider what new thing you’re bringing to it. Are you hilarious? Is there a surprise ending? Are you looking at the ordinary through a new lens? If not, consider why you’re telling the story. If it’s for fun, then have at it, of course. If it’s for a competition, make sure you spend the extra time to work it into something extraordinary.
Welcome to Week 389
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
Less is More
Whenever I shop at Target, which is often, items I don’t need jump right into my cart. I was reflecting on this phenomenon when I was at Target earlier this week and realized “Hey, writing can be like that too!” Adverbs and adjectives we don’t need manage to sneak into our stories. More often than not, if you find yourself adverbing, you chose a weak verb instead of a strong one that needs no modifier. Adjectives can be crucial, but they can be overused or extraneous too. You know this, I’m sure. But how about trimming that fat from your stories this week? There are no mandatory prompts on the nonfiction grid so pick your favorite tale not yet told. If you need a nudge, feel free to ask for a prompt in the YeahWrite Coffeehouse on Facebook!
Technique Toolbox: Pseudonyms
Every writer wants to build a brand – but what’s your brand name? Should you use your legal name? Pick a pseudonym? When and why might you want to use a name that isn’t your legal name, and how do you pick a good one? This month’s Technique Toolbox has you covered!
Nonfiction Challenge Grid: Basic YeahWrite Guidelines
Loading InLinkz ...Fiction|Poetry Challenge
Look Who’s Talking
I’ve been so excited about September’s prompts, and delighted with the creative responses to them. Opening line prompts can be difficult to work into your own writer’s voice, and developing distinct writer’s and characters’ voices can be even more tricky.
Maintaining a strong narrative (or writer’s) voice while still giving your characters unique voices can feel like you’re trying on different hats — or if you’re into a darker reading, different skins. You inhabit the minds and lives of each of your characters, giving them their own perspectives, personalities, and motivations, and then you pull yourself out again in order to develop and maintain the narrative voice.
This week try asking your beta readers how well you’ve distinguished your voice from the characters’ voices. If you’re looking for beta readers, you can always ask around in the YeahWrite Coffeehouse on Facebook.
September Poetry Slam: The Golden Shovel
With Back-to-School in full swing, we’re learning about two poems for the price of one in this month’s Slam. The Golden Shovel requires two things: a line from an existing poem, and a little patience to write your own using those words as a prompt. Join us!
Prompt Up!
Prompt Up is our mandatory weekly writing prompts for the fiction|poetry challenge! Here's How It Works!
In September we’re experimenting with voice. The first prompt is a mandatory opening sentence. Your job is to match your writing to it. If they use a word or phrase you would never use, then create a writing style that would use that phrase.
The first prompt, from YeahWrite #387 fiction|poetry winner Northie, is: “It was the right time to leave.”
The second prompt is the Narrator’s Point of View. It will always be a specific person, animal, or object. This mandatory prompt may or may not have a descriptor attached. For instance, the prompt could be “the main character’s dog” or it could be “the main character’s sarcastic dog.” The Narrator’s Point of View does not have to be a character in the story, but it should affect the way the story is told.
The second prompt, from the YeahWrite editors, is: A monster under the bed.
Poets: Write a poem using the opening line somewhere in your work, or write a poem written from the Narrator’s POV, or use the opening line to write a Golden Shovel poem.
Fiction|Poetry Challenge Grid: Basic YeahWrite Guidelines
Loading InLinkz ...YeahWrite Super Challenge
Super Challenge #10 (fiction) is now open for registration, but only until Wednesday, September 26, so sign up today! Make sure you also sign up for our email blast so you don’t miss out on any Super Challenge announcements.
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 YeahWriters.
YeahWrite in the Wild
You read their words every week, but it's not often you get to see the people behind those words. Browse through our gallery and see if you can spot regular contributors or editors.
If you'd like to be featured in the gallery, simply head over to our Swag shop, make your purchase, then when it arrives send us a photo of you in/with your YeahWrite swag to editors@yeahwrite.me.
About the author:
Michelle submitted her first entry to YeahWrite in March 2012 and was brought on staff shortly thereafter. Over the years, Michelle has been an integral figure at YeahWrite, but in 2016, we were thrilled to have her step into the role of Editor-In-Chief. Personally, she has worked in the insurance/employee benefits industry for over twenty years and also fills her time as a freelance writer. 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.
