The Bard and the King
Long ago, there was a kingdom with an insecure king. Oh, dear. The king hated to be shown as a fool, so he commanded a young and clever bard to gift all the writings in the town to a fire or suffer the consequences of his jealousy. The bard burned the letters, words, and sentences with great sorrow. The bonfire that resulted heated the poorest of the town for three whole weeks.
But the king was not satisfied. Oh, dear. Instead of writing, the bard took to reciting poems on the steps of the castle. The king could not bear the idea of someone else being the smartest and sharpest in his own kingdom.
So the bard was banished. Oh, dear.
As a result, the bard ceased writing and merely tried to survive. Oh, dear. The bard wandered foreign lands for years, begged for money on shell-paved streets, arm-wrestled crocodiles’ tails for prize money, and sailed with pirates to train proper pronunciation to parrots. The bard completely forgot the satisfying heft of a pen in hand.
Years later, the king died—Oh, dear—and the bard returned to the kingdom. When the bard finally sat at a familiar desk, a familiar pen poised between gnarled fingers, a familiar sun shining in the window, all the bard could think was: “Now, if only there were something to write about.”
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It’s almost July 1, the mid-point of the year. How are your 2019 writing goals coming along? What can we help you with? Do you need an accountability buddy? Or is the king still alive and are there still birds to teach?
~Nate
Welcome to Week 429
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 Saturday 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.
Technique Toolbox: Year of Fearless Writing – Networking on- and offline
Ready to take yourself seriously as a writer? Not sure how, or not convinced you’re ready? We think you can, and are, and will be. This year is our Year of Fearless Writing, where we’re going to focus on the craft of writing, not the art, to take you from “I write” to “I’m a writer.”
In June we’re still talking about you, but who else is? Without a little buzz, no matter how busy a bee you are, you won’t get much honey. But who do you need to know, and how do you meet them? Networking is a critical part of the business of writing now, whether you love it, hate it, or constantly forget it exists until you’re digging for your business cards (you do have cards, right? we just asked you about cards, right?) in the back of your desk drawer. Find out some ways to make contact this month!
Nonfiction: Optional Prompt
The nonfiction grid has no mandatory prompts. However, each week, we will give you an optional prompt in case that helps your mostly-true story juices flow.
It’s the Fourth of July week, which means… dogs. That’s right. Dogs hate fireworks, so we’re doing something nice for them instead. Tell us about a dog you’ve had – or didn’t have – or almost had – or don’t want. [Ed’s note: I inherited a dachshund, he pooped in the kitchen this morning, I know about not wanting dogs. /rbg]
Fiction|Poetry Mandatory Prompt
June is here! Let’s give ourselves some time to enjoy the sun and flowers (in the northern hemisphere, at least) by only assigning one prompt this month.
The word and definition prompt, chosen by our YeahWrite #427 fiction|poetry winner, Tara, is: jag.
You must use the prompt word in your story, employing any of its definitions found at the Merriam-Webster site here. Stories that make the prompt word integral to the story and use it naturally will be favored by the editors. Hint: You may have to change up your writing style to become an author that would use the prompt word. We encourage that!
Poets: Try your hand at the hay(na)ku. It’s as easy as 1-2-3! But don’t let the simple form fool you, the six (or a multiple of six) words have to move the reader in some way. You are also welcome to write a poem that uses the one-word prompt above.
Poetry Slam
It’s a crossover week, and that means you can take advantage of either the June or July poetry slam! What will it be?June days may be long, but our June poetry slam is short. Or as long as you want it to be!
To celebrate the Philippines we’re writing hay(na)ku. This form with the pun in its name is as easy as 1-2-3, with a simple building block verse structure that you can expand into as many verses as you need to say what you’re trying to say. Join us on the grid!
In July we’re celebrating the United States’ first Native American poet laureate! Learn more about Joy Harjo and explore how to write in the style of one of her poems with July’s slam, kicking off on the first!
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Loading InLinkz ...Microprose Challenge Opens Wednesday
This week has the first Wednesday of the month, and you know what that means: our tiniest challenge will be open for under 24 hours, starting Wednesday at midnight! Every microprose challenge has different rules, so you’ll need to keep your eyes peeled and your fingers fast. Need a quick link to the challenge? This one goes live when the microprose grid opens.
Micro Weeks are Moderated Weeks!
YeahWrite Super Challenge
Super Challenge #13 (nonfiction!) is now open for early registration! Take advantage of our discounted rate by July 1. Make sure you 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.
About the author:
As a professional editor and writer, Nate has published his work in numerous English and history textbooks and in online reading programs. In February 2014, he found his way back to creative writing and began submitting to YeahWrite. Soon after, he became an editor of the Fiction|Poetry challenge. You can read his work at northwest journals, a blog that has been recognized by WordPress Discover, Five Star Mix-tape, Genealogy á la Carte, The Drabble, and BlogHer’s Voice of the Year. He lives in Chicago with his partner and a mini-Bengal tiger.
