Finish something
As writers we’re always tempted by new ideas. By inspiration. By the next book around the corner. By that pile of unread books on the nightstand. We like to start things.
This week I’m dropping a new challenge, inspired by a conversation I had with a friend (and by how good it’s going to feel to finish a long-drawn-out room remodel this weekend).
FINISH SOMETHING.
I don’t care what that means to you, just do it. Check something off a list. Pull out a trunk story and edit it finally. Check out this week’s prompt and actually write something for it, in a thousand words or so. Get through one of those books you’ve been meaning to read. Watch the last episode of the show you’ve been saving. But finish something and check it off your list. Get your hit of “did that” dopamine. Weirdly, it may give you more energy for all those other things you’ve started and been meaning to get to.
~Rowan
PS speaking of finishing, good luck to the writers in the final round of our Super Challenge!
This Week’s Writing Prompt is:
Generation ship / Mystery
This week, your job, should you choose to accept it, is to write a story or essay combining those genres. You know, in case you didn’t make it to the final round of the Super Challenge and want to play along. No, those aren’t the SC prompts, nice try, but if you want to try to cram this story into 48 hours and 1,000 words, who are we to stop you? Stuck? We’ve gone into detail about unraveling this sort of prompt style in this Technique Toolbox post on combination prompts.
If you’re not playing along with the Super Challenge, there are no word limits. You can write fiction or nonfiction; you may interpret the prompt any way you like, go for it. 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: Scarlet Quill Society (Free Workshop w/ Optional Paid Benefits)
Welcome to the secret back room where the Scarlet Quill Society meets. In this year-long workshop, the YeahWrite editors will help you hone your own editing skills so that you can feel confident that the work you are submitting is at its absolute best. We’re experimenting a little with our workshop format in 2022, and offering a couple add-ons to our always-free posts that we think you’ll find exciting and worth a few bucks a month: The Scarlet Quill Society will have actual face-to-face (okay, virtual) monthly meetings to delve into the topics and answer your questions, and an editorial backroom on Discord!
In June we’re finally wrapping up (well, mostly) our developmental editing section, and starting to focus on the kinds of things you’ll only notice after you finish putting the words on the paper. If April showers bring May flowers, June brings weeds. We’ll show you how to identify them and pull them out before they go to seed. Check it out!
Last month’s meeting was Sunday, May 15. The recording has been posted to our YouTube channel! Sign up for a membership today to automatically receive the Zoom link and password for June’s meeting on Sunday, June 12. One-off meeting tickets can also be purchased on Kofi.
At YeahWrite we believe information wants to be shared. If you can’t afford to join us for society meetings, we post the recording about a week later, and you’re welcome to leave the tip you can afford (even if that’s just a nice thank you comment). Check out our YouTube channel for more.
Super Challenge #24 - Flash Fiction
The second and final round of Super Challenge #24 kicks off tonight, June 3! Good luck to all our remaining participants! Miss out on registration? Sign up for our email blast so you don’t miss any important 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 for regular WIP Write-ins. [Ed’s note: these sessions are temporarily cancelled during June; they will restart after Christine has a much-needed break with her family] 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]
Spontaneous Writing Challenges
Looking for a bit of inspiration? Missing the grids? Then join the Coffeehouse on Discord (where the stories are made up and the points don’t matter) and head to the #spontaneous-challenge channel. Each day, anyone can post a micro writing challenge (but just one per day!). Share your responses within the thread and earn XP within the server. We hope to see you there!
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.
