All around me are familiar faces
Weird thing about me number one thousand four hundred fifty-three: I love finding faces on things. Whether it’s a sad fruit, an angry rock, or a really happy telephone pole, I find objects with personality wherever I go. And you know what? It makes me happy and it doesn’t hurt anyone. Maybe I just like the feeling of being surrounded by secret people with their own personalities and stories. Maybe I’ll tell some of those stories someday. And now that I’ve said it… how many faces are you going to see around you this week? Will any of them find their way onto the grid?
–Michelle
Welcome to Week 460
We’re kicking off the week in style at YeahWrite with 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.
*Note that our microprose grid now opens on Saturday at 12 midnight and closes on Monday at 11:59pm ET. You’ve got a whole 48 hours to get your submissions in! Voting will open with the rest of the grids on Wednesday.
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: 20/20 Hindsight
For 2020 we’re looking back at stories. Didn’t get a chance to write one in January? That’s fine: jump in whenever you can.
If you did write a story or essay in January, we’ve got our hardest hindsight challenge first: rewrite your work in only 100 words. [ed’s note: We did this. It was terrible. But if we can, you can. /RBG&CH]
Check out this month’s challenge and some suggestions for how to succeed right here.
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. This week, a Facebook friend is running a competitive voting bracket for pasta (yes, you heard that right) and we’ve got noodles on our minds. And now so do you! Tell us about the noodles you’ve made, the noodles that were made for you, or that time you found out you were allergic to the noodles. Or write about whatever you want: the prompt for this grid is optional!
Fiction|Poetry Mandatory Prompt
For February’s prompts, we’re going to reverse engineer January’s prompt. Here’s how it works: We give you a decision that has already been made and that will become the final moments of your story. Your job will be to create the backstory of that decision. How did the decision come about? What significance does the decision have on the characters?
For example, say the prompt is “The main character does not get the job they applied for.” You will need to show the reader how the MC became unemployed, build up the stakes of what it means for the character not to have a job, and then your last scene will be the phone call or email informing them of their failure.
This week’s decision point is:
Your main character snoops around in their partner’s cell phone or laptop.
The ending of your story must contain some form of the event described in the prompt. Good stories will build significance to the decision made; have a clear beginning, middle, and end; and invoke emotion from the consequences of the choice.
Poets: Check out our technique-based February slam, then explore that technique to write a poem of your own. Or write a different style of poem incorporating the prompt above. Or both, we’re not your mom.
Poetry Slam - Shall I Compare Thee To A Summer's Day?
In 2020, we’re turning from “how to write a poem” to “what is a poem?” with technique-based slams. This month, we’ll use Sonnet 18 to examine metaphor and how to make it fresh and unexpected by exploiting (instead of being exploited by) cliches and expectations. There’s even a bonus round! Check it out.
Microprose Mandatory Prompt
It’s the first Saturday of the month, and that means it’s time for 48 in 48!
Here’s how it works: we give you a prompt, and you have 48 hours to write a response in exactly 48 words. Submissions will close on Sunday at 11:59pm US Eastern time. Voting opens on Wednesday at 10:00pm, which gives you plenty of time to read this grid—and the others!—before you vote.
In January, we asked you for water; in February, we’re turning up the heat. This month’s prompt: Give us a 48-word story that incorporates fire in some significant way.
A few rules:
- Fire must be integral to the story. If your story’s about what you got for your 10th birthday, for example, it’s not enough to mention in passing that you blew out the candles on the cake—unless the result is something like you set the house on fire or singed off your sister’s eyebrows.
- As much as we love a good metaphor, we’re looking for literal fire: burning buildings, campfires, a lighter flame, anything as long as it’s actually burning. (Or if the flames of passion *actually* set the bed ablaze. [ed’s note: Christine I told you we have to finish this story before we work on that succubus idea. /rbg])
- You can skip the stories about torture (hot irons, etc.). It might seem dramatic, but in our opinion, it’s a tired trope and we assure you we’ve read something like it before. We’re looking for creativity, and all too frequently “shock value” is substituted for genuine effort and innovation. We think you can do better.
That’s it! Have fun, and happy writing!
A QUICK NOTE REGARDING OUR GRIDS: Inlinkz, which supports our grid format, is currently upgrading its offerings and website which can sometimes result in a glitch or two. If you upload a piece to the grid and notice it disappears later on, please email us and let us know. This has been happening to one or two pieces each week. We will happily add it manually once we are notified. We apologize for the inconvenience, and are looking into alternative services. Thank you for your patience!
Loading InLinkz ...
Loading InLinkz ...
Loading InLinkz ...YeahWrite Super Challenge
Registration is now open for Super Challenge #15 through February 5! We are heading back to the realm of flash nonfiction this time, so 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.
About the author:
Michelle submitted her first entry to YeahWrite in March 2012 and was brought on staff shortly thereafter. In 2016, she stepped into the role of Editor-In-Chief. Outside of YeahWrite, she is a freelance writer working with a variety of corporate clients, primarily in the insurance and employee benefits space. Her work has been featured on The Huffington Post, Cosplay Culture, and xoJane, as well as several local websites near her former home in northern NJ home. She now lives in Southern California, enjoying the sunshine. She sometimes blogs at themichellelongo.com.
Michelle, I do the same thing with faces. The “Grilled Cheesus” episode of Glee was made for people like us hahahaha!!!