Bits and Pieces
“Oh, hey, Wheel of Time?” I asked, walking past my spouse’s computer where the corner of one character’s sholder was visible. I haven’t seen an episode yet, but the stitching on that coat is distinctive. Some of my favorite characters are introduced that way: not with a round of expository text but with their shape, cut out of the cloth of the world.
“Name’s Sam Chisholm, I’m a duly sworn warrant officer of Wichita, Kansas…”
It was some time before he could put Alfred, Georgia, Sixo, schoolteacher, Halle, his brothers, Sethe, Mister, the taste of iron, the sight of butter, the smell of hickory, notebook paper, one by one, into the tobacco tin lodged in his chest. By the time he got to 124 nothing in this world could pry it open.
Some of the most interesting characters are the ones we get to know organically, not because we know ABOUT them, but because we know who they want us to think they are, and then who show us something different. I’ve picked a character like that for this week’s prompt. See what you can find out about them.
~Rowan
This Week’s Writing Prompt is:
Combination prompt: image and line of narration
Image: Two feet appear in the photo from the bottom edge of the painting, ankles crossed. They are in mismatched striped socks, one black-and-white and one grey, red, and black. There is no clear background to the image except that there may be a corner between two beige walls and some twisted branches rising into the frame, very out of focus.
Dialogue: “I had never said it out loud before, nor heard it said, but I meant it with all my heart.”
December’s Navigating Prompts article is an overview of all the topics we covered this past year, and so there’s no fixed prompt style for the month. This week, your job, should you choose to accept it, is to write a story or essay using the above prompts. Stuck? We’ve gone into detail about unraveling this sort of prompt style in this Technique Toolbox post on word or phrase prompts, and this one on character images. And for a bonus, brush up on combination prompts to find out how to use them together.
There are no word limits. You can write fiction or nonfiction; you may interpret the prompt any way you like, but you must use it exactly as written. 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 - Annual Roundup (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!
We’re wrapping up our 2021 writing help series with an overview of everything we covered this past year. Refresh your memory and sharpen that pencil – you’ll find everything you need to know about the most common prompt types all in one place. Check it out!
Super Challenge #22 - Flash Fiction
Super Challenge #22 is officially underway! Good luck to all our finalists as they anxiously await the final results. Miss out on registration? Sign up for our email blast so that you don’t miss out on any Super Challenge announcements.
WIP Write-Ins, AKA Co-Working Hours
Last summer, you all joined the YeahWrite editors (and writers like you) for a series of laid-back, low-key co-working sessions. We chatted, we brainstormed, we got to know one another, and arguably most importantly, we wrote actual words! Once summer ended, we weren’t ready for co-working to disappear like the hot weather, so starting in October, co-working is back!
Join Christine every Wednesday from 9:00am – 11:00am Pacific Time and Arden every other Friday from 12:00 – 2:00pm Pacific Time for regular WIP Write-ins. Other sessions will be scheduled in the future, so keep an eye on our calendar and we’ll be sure to post announcements of pop-up sessions in our Discord and Facebook groups. See you there!
[Ed’s note: if you add that calendar to your own Google calendar, it’ll change the times to match your time zone automagically. No more searching “what time is 9am Pacific in Warsaw?” You’re welcome. /RBG]
About the author:
Rowan submitted exactly one piece of microfiction to YeahWrite before being consumed by the editorial darkside. She spent some time working hard as our Submissions Editor before becoming YeahWrite’s Managing Editor in 2016. She was a BlogHer Voice of the Year in 2017 for her work on intersectional feminism, but she suggests you find and follow WOC instead. In real life she’s been at various times an attorney, aerialist, professional knitter, artist, graphic designer (yes, they’re different things), editor, secretary, tailor, and martial artist. It bothers her vaguely that the preceding list isn’t alphabetized, but the Oxford comma makes up for it. She lives in Portlandia with a menagerie which includes at least one other human. She tells lies at textwall and uncomfortable truths at CrossKnit.
