I smell a rat
This morning, I found a rat in my garden. It was dead. I spotted it when I went out to water, before I took my (supposed rat catcher) dogs for a walk. I live in an area that’s often plagued by rats and mice and I have a fairly productive (container) garden, including a cascading passionfruit vine that weighs down the fence bordering my property and the neighbour’s. This year’s been an abundant one for passionfruit, and I’m collecting armfuls every morning. So abundant that even with losing several to rodents every day, we’re still harvesting more than enough to eat and use in desserts. The dead rat was not a particular surprise in amongst this plenty. However, like most creative people, I’m cursed with an overactive imagination. Having spotted it and ascertained that it was, in fact, dead (it looked like it was asleep, okay? I do not need the ghost of Beatrix Potter haunting me for disposing of a sleeping rat), I proceeded to ignore it and go about my daily routine because that rat was definitely going to reanimate and there was no way I was dealing with a zombie rat out for vengeance. Anyway, all this got me wondering how other people with overactive imaginations deal with similarly banal tasks. What do you do? How do you deal with the unpleasantries of life? Come tell us over on Discord!
~Asha
P.S. If you’re wondering about the fate of the rat, I made my older son (he’s an adult — I’m not traumatising a child) dispose of it. He used a shovel because he too has an overactive imagination.
This Week’s Writing Prompt is:
This week, your job, should you choose to accept it, is to write a story, essay, or poem incorporating the following prompt:
Trope: Reincarnation
We’re taking a cue from this year’s Scarlet Quill Society and getting some practice incorporating – or subverting – popular tropes. Reincarnation can manifest in many different ways- a short story collection might have a series of lives, or in a single work someone might “recognize” another person they knew previously. You can read more about this trope on the TV Tropes website.
Stuck? Check out last year’s — no, year before last! — series on responding to prompts!
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.
Scarlet Quill Society (Free Workshop w/ Optional Paid Benefits)
February’s meeting took place on Thursday, February 23. The video will be up on our YouTube page shortly! And if you want to join in next month, membership info is right. down. there. VVVVVVVV
Scarlet Quill Society workshop posts are always free. In addition, we are offering a couple add-ons that we think you’ll find exciting and worth a few bucks a month: face-to-face (okay, virtual) monthly meetings to delve into the topics and answer your questions, and an editorial backroom on Discord!
Sign up for a membership today to join the Scarlet Quill Society and automatically receive the Zoom link and password for every meeting. One-off monthly 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 #27 (Nonfiction)
Super Challenge #28 (Fiction)
Don’t want to miss out on all the fun? Be sure to sign up for our mailing list so you don’t miss out on any future Super Challenge updates.
WIP Write-Ins, AKA Co-Working Hours
If you’ve been meaning to join us but can’t do Wednesdays, we’re checking our calendars now so make sure you’ve responded to the Discord poll for times!
[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
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.
