I found my thrills
This week I picked up a few copies of an anthology that I have work in. Another anthology, I should say. This isn’t my first, but the thrill of seeing my name in print, especially in a physical copy that I can hold in my hands and turn the pages on, doesn’t fade. The timing is particularly spectacular since I’ve also hit that writerly low where I believe I’ll never write anything good again in my life (you know the one, we all do). Seeing my name beside the names of people who’ve been long-listed for national writing awards gives me hope though. Maybe I can do this writing thing just a little longer?
~Asha
This Week’s Writing Prompt is:
Image credit: Caique Silva/Unsplash
[Image: a slim, dark-skinned, Black woman with extremely tightly cropped hair stands in the foreground on wet, rippled sand at a beach. Small waves, lower than knee-height, break behind her and the sky is a light mauve, filled with large, fluffy rain clouds. She is draped in a long white cotton robe or sheet that obscures her body below her neck. The silhouette of her arms, crossed across her body, can be made out under the material. The light grey cotton covering her lower body peeks out from around her mid-thigh down on her right hand side. She is wearing long, drop earrings shaped like an open feather fan, black eyeliner, smokey eyeshadow and red lipstick, and she faces the viewer’s right in profile, with her face tilted up towards the sky and her eyes closed. In the far distance, across the water, there are hills on the horizon, and the lights of what could be a settlement or township.]
Your job, should you choose to accept it, is to write a story or essay incorporating the character featured in the above image. The person in the photo doesn’t have to be the main character, but they should be important enough that their presence affects the story. Stuck? Think about what you can see in the image vs what you can infer from it. The image may give you hints about who the character is, where they are (and/or when), or even what is happening to (or because of) the character. Need more pointers on how to use a character prompt? We’ve gone into detail in this month’s Technique Toolbox on Navigating Prompts.
There are no word limits. You can write fiction or nonfiction; you may interpret the prompt any way you like. Share your response in the Coffeehouse, located both on Facebook or Discord, by linking your blog post, Google Doc, or other file. Check out your fellow YeahWriters’ responses, and don’t forget to leave them some love in the comments!
Looking for our weekly grids? After nearly ten years, they’ve been retired. Read more about the latest changes to YeahWrite in the #500 Weekly Writing Challenge Kickoff Post.
The Schedule
We will release a new prompt on our blog every Friday at 12pm Eastern.
Then it’s up to you! Write your response to the prompt on your own blog or website and share the link in the Coffeehouse, located both on Facebook or Discord. If you prefer to keep your work under wraps (and away from the eyes of potential publishers), you can still ask for beta readers in the Coffeehouse and share your work privately!
Every Monday, we’ll check in to see how you’re doing and what your writing goals are for the week.
Wednesdays are “Work-in-Progress Wednesdays.” Share a few sentences or even a paragraph or two in the Coffeehouse (no more than 250 words, please). Even if you’re not done writing, this could be the boost you need to stay motivated.
Did you publish a book? Do you have a story in a magazine? The First Friday of every month is for self-promotion, where you can share commercial links to your work for purchase. (You can always share the news that you’ve been accepted for publication, though!)
And of course, the entire community is here 24-7 to share your victories and setbacks, challenges and accomplishments. So come on in, pull up a chair, and say hello. We’re all writers here.
Upcoming and Ongoing
Sign up for our email blast so you don’t miss out on any upcoming classes, workshops, or competitions.
Ongoing: Navigating Prompts - Character Image Prompts (Free Workshop)
In our monthly Navigating Prompts series, we’ll talk you through how to analyze and respond to a specific prompt style. We’ll coordinate the weekly prompts with the monthly post so you’ll have a chance to practice, compare notes with other writers in the Coffeehouse, located both on Facebook or Discord, and get advice from beta readers and YeahWrite editors. You’ll get to hone your skills when you’re not in crisis mode, trying to meet that fast-approaching deadline. And who knows—maybe you’ll end up with a new story or two in your back pocket!
What does a picture tell you about a person? And how do you describe them in a way that is both honest and respectful? Behind every photograph is a story, and it’s up to us to discover—or imagine—what that story is.
In July, we’re taking a second look at character prompts, this time as image prompts. We’ll discuss the difference between what you can observe in a photograph vs what you can infer, and delve into how to describe characters in a way that is both honest and respectful. Finally, we’ll talk about how to take a static portrait and build a story around it. We’ll even give you an opportunity to practice. Check it out!
Super Challenge #21 - Nonfiction
Super Challenge #21 is officially open for early bird registration! We’re heading back to the land of creative nonfiction, so be sure to register today to take advantage of this discounted rate. You can also sign up for our email blast. so that you don’t miss out on any Super Challenge announcements.
Summer Co-working!
This summer, join YeahWrite editors and writers for a series of laid-back, low-key co-working sessions. We hold 1-2 hosted Zoom calls every week, with an eye to time zones so that everyone will have a chance to particpate. We’ll have a little time to say hello and socialize, and then we’ll buckle down to work on writing (or writing-related) projects. Working on a short story or novel? Updating your author website or scheduling out some social media posts? Or maybe you’re just organizing your writing space. Whatever it is, we’re here for it, and we hope you will be too. Details and a calendar are already available; note that we’ll likely add or adjust sessions based on writers’ and editors’ availability. Learn more here!
About the author:
Asha lives near the beach in Perth, Western Australia, but hates sand between her toes. She began blogging at YeahWrite in October 2014 with this post, and YeahWrite was lucky to pull her on board as a Contributing Editor in December 2016. Asha writes flash fiction, short stories, and creative nonfiction. She is published in a variety of places and you can find links to her work at Asha Rajan Writer.
