deepam, deepam
Where our editor Asha lives, the spring’s cygnets are becoming swans and the days are lengthening on toward summer. At my home, the dark wraps around the house now well before the day’s work is done and I have to light a lamp to cook dinner. In the miles between the two of us, the world is wracked with fire, earthquake, hurricane, and war. I don’t know about you, but even in my own summer I felt a little plunged into darkness this year. But Diwali – or Deepavali or Divali – is about finding light in the darkness. I mean, also fireworks, sweets, and gifts, but mostly about light in the darkness. This year that feels just about right: we could all use a little light, a little compassion to dispel the darkness. From all of us at YeahWrite, we wish you that.
Um. On the lighter side, you’re probably wishing you knew how you (or your favorite writer) did in the popular vote. Remember, the results aren’t final till you see them on this post!
Besides the popular vote, we also have the option of handing out an editorial staff pick to any post on our grids. Our editors comb the grids to find, not just the best writing on this grid this week, but what we think is pretty darn great writing anywhere anytime. Picks are based on writing quality, how successful the author is in conveying information, and just plain style. The great part is that we don’t have a finite number of picks to hand out. That means that if two, three, five, or even all the works on one grid are fantastic, we can give them all kudos- and we’d love to, so keep that great work coming!
On weeks when we don’t award a staff pick, keep an extra close eye on the Roundup. That’s our rundown of trends we see from week to week. We try to highlight the good stuff and point out problems that more than one writer is struggling with. There’s probably a handy tip in there for you right now, so check it out!
Once you’re done reading through the Roundup, keep scrolling down to check out who won the popular vote on both 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? Both grids have the same Winner, Editorial Staff Pick, and Top Three badges. It doesn’t clutter up our sidebar, and they’ll still look pretty on yours!
Rowan’s Roundup: YeahWrite Weekly Writing Challenge #340
When you’ve only got 750 words (editing my post down almost killed me this week, I don’t know about you) it’s hard to imagine your reader losing focus, but that happens more often than you think. One way to keep the reader’s attention is to have a strong central theme, object, or phrase to tie your essay to. If you can signal this theme in your title, it’s even better – like the repetition of sounds and letters in this poem, it will create moments that stick in your reader’s head without you having to be obvious about HEY THIS IS MY THEME WORD. Ram did it this week with numbers, but you can use whatever works for your idea. On the other hand, if you start out with a strong signal in your title that then doesn’t connect up with the rest of your essay or you take a long time to get around to it, you can make your reader impatient. There’s no magic number of times to repeat your theme, but personally I like to see it about once per “page.” That is, as I scroll down through your essay on a computer, that idea should be SOMEWHERE on any screen of visible text. At 750 words, that might mean using it as few as 3-4 times, although if your story structure calls for it you can do more. Those little mileposts in your work will help reassure your reader that yes, you are going somewhere.
I hope everyone enjoyed the tritina slam this week. I like to think you did – we even lured Jennifer back to the grid! If you’re ever feeling inspired, feel free to throw down your own poetry gauntlet in the coffeehouse!
On the “story” side of the grid, things felt a little shakier this week. Remember, one of the hallmarks of a story is plot – the reader should be able to witness some change or transformation or new understanding in the characters they care about. (A fundamental prerequisite to plot, then is that readers should have a reason to care what happens to the characters, a way to connect with them.) Take a look at your world and characters when you’re done writing and ask yourself: what’s changed? Or have things just happened without altering the world or characters?
That’s it for this week! 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! If you’re more the self-help type, remember to scroll through our writing help section for tips and tricks. Even if a post isn’t directed at your favorite grid, there’s probably a handy hint for you in there anyway!
Does anybody read this bit of the post? Prove it: we’ve hidden a special surprise for you over on our Meet the Editors page.
Everybody: before you go, please take some time to leave your favorites a little love in the comments, and don’t forget, the Weekend Writing Showcase opens tonight at 6pm Eastern US Time!
Congratulations to the Crowd Favorites at YeahWrite #340
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.
Nonfiction Challenge
Loading InLinkz ...Fiction|Poetry Challenge
Loading InLinkz ...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.
