[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]As the submissions editor, I don’t just get to write this sweet winners’ post. I get to write you love letters. That’s right- I’m responsible for telling you when you didn’t quite make the cut to get on the voting grid and why.  And while 99% of the responses I get are pretty positive (seriously, thank you all, it’s awesome to hear when something I’ve said makes sense), there’s that 1% lurking out there. Folks whose egos are bound up in their writing, or who take it personally when something they’ve written doesn’t do well. First off, I promise you that if it ever happens to you, it’s not you, it’s your writing, and you can fix that. But second, it’s beyond frustrating to hear the community that’s working so hard to help people called “a showcase for the editors.” Because trust me. The editors get love letters too. In the interests of transparency, I don’t think any editor now at yeah write has had every piece make it onto the grid. On the other hand, I’m gonna toot our horns here and point out that we’re not trying to be big fish in a small pond – we do pretty well other places, too. For example, every editor that entered the NYC Midnight flash fiction competition has moved on to the next round. So congrats to the editors who entered, and to all our community members who did as well. Just putting your work out into the world can be a difficult thing, and it’s worth patting yourself on the back for. Did you enter NYCM? Enjoy it? Let us know in the comments or the coffeehouse!

Of course, you also entered a yeah write challenge, and now you want to know the results, right? Me too. So, just like every Friday, I’m going to give you the results on all three of our grids – nonfiction, fiction|poetry, and microfiction – right here!

But it’s not all about the popular vote, folks. We also have our editorial staff picks to hand out. Every week our editors comb through your submissions looking for their favorites. Picks are based on writing quality, how successful the author is in conveying information, and just plain style. If you got a staff pick this week, grab your badge from the sidebar and wear it with pride!

Once you’re done reading through the staff picks (and congratulating the winners in the comments), keep scrolling down to check out who won the popular vote on all three grids. If you earned the highest number of votes in any challenge, you are this week’s crowd favorite! If you came in first, second or third, you get “top three” honors. Grab your badge from our sidebar!

Looking for your badge? The fiction|poetry, nonfiction and microstories challenges all have the same winner, staff pick, and top three badges. It doesn’t clutter up our sidebar, and they’ll still look pretty on yours![/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

Yeah write #236 weekly writing challenge staff picks: nonfiction

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high notes and house calls by pryvate lisa

[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Pryvate Lisa starts out with a story about a favorite song and her childhood and ends by punching us in the gut with her truth. She tells a powerful story here, but that’s not why she’s getting my editor’s pick this week. She tells the story well, that’s why. She carefully weaves two ideas together, using one to deliver the impact of the other. The rich details in every part transport us into the story, feeling her earache, sitting on her bed, meeting with the doctor. We hear what she heard, see what she sees. She shows us this so well she doesn’t need to tell us how to feel. We just feel it. That’s how good writing works. That’s why this essay works.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text][/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_single_image image=”22652″ style=”vc_box_circle” title=”michelle”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_separator][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

Yeah write #236 weekly writing challenge staff picks: microstories

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his eyes were bestial, his voice a storm by modern day dirae

[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]When we included the wolverine in this week’s prompt, we weren’t quite sure what we’d get. It turns out we got a lot of people transforming into wolverines. Dirae turns that image on its head: the antagonist in her story had been a wolverine all along, wearing a man’s face. She also plays with another trope that usually bothers me, the sentence that turns into a poem by using line breaks. In this case, though, it works perfectly to draw out the suspense and place emphasis on crisp phrasing and evocative imagery. With these line breaks the poem, like the narrator, halts and stumbles a little on its way to its victorious and satisfying conclusion. By using phrasing and structure to draw the reader into her world, Dirae delivers a snarlingly satisfying punch of a story-poem.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text][/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_column_text][/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”22651″ alignment=”center” style=”vc_box_circle” title=”natalie”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_separator][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_column_text]

artes, scientia, veritas by above the cylinder

[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]What I like about this story is the way the author layers his metaphors, giving us just enough to place it in context. For those not familiar with American university mascots, it might take a bit of Googling to pick out all of the references, but it isn’t really necessary. Ultimately, this is a story about growth, change, and the influence our past has on our present.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text][/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_column_text][/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”22657″ alignment=”center” style=”vc_box_circle” title=”christine”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_separator][vc_column_text]

That’s it for our staff picks this week! Remember, we don’t always give out a pick on every grid; if we were impressed by several posts on one grid, we’ll give them all picks, and if nothing really stood out for us on another grid, we’ll hold off.

If you’re lost in the middle of the grid and wondering how you can get a little more feedback on your posts, check out our membership perks!

Everybody: before you go, please take some time to leave your favorites a little love in the comments.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]

Weekend moonshine grid opens today at 6 p.m. eastern time

Marty McFly and Doc may have packed up the DeLorean and gone home to the past, but you’re welcome to stay here in the future. Or past. Or whatever 6:00 Eastern US Time looks like to you. Bring your time-traveling posts, your essays and stories and that listicle that’s been in a shoebox in the closet on down to our moonshine grid and hang out. We may not have hoverboards, but we’ve got something even cooler: Natalie. Just leave your commercial posts at home so she doesn’t have to shoot them with her laser eyes.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

Congratulations to the crowd favorites at yeah write #236

The thumbnails are now sorted in order of most votes to fewest. Ties in the overall number of votes are broken by number of editor votes.

Congratulations if you’re at or near the top! Writing well is hard work, and we’re honored you’ve chosen us this week to showcase your entry.

If you’re at or near the bottom, don’t be discouraged. You’re in the right community for learning and growing as a writer, and we are always available with resources for those who ask nicely.

To our readers and voters: thank you! See you next week.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]

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