I’ll make this brief
No, really. I stayed up WAY too late watching Star Wars, and now I have nobody to talk spoilers with and it’s not fair, so I’m going to turn the results of the popular vote over to you and go to bed and sulk.
But it’s not all about the popular vote at YeahWrite, folks. We also have our editorial staff picks to hand out. See, while there’s a popular vote winner every week, we don’t always give out a staff pick. Our editors comb the grids to find, not just the best writing on our 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. If you got a staff pick this week, grab your badge from the sidebar and wear it with pride! 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.
The other benefit of the editors’ pick, of course, is that unlike the popular vote we’ll tell you why we liked that post. So don’t just skip reading the blurb if it’s not about your post; you’ll pick up some handy pointers about what makes good writing great that you can apply to your own work. For more of that critical feedback, keep an eye on our Roundup for a quick rundown of trends we see each 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 Editorial Staff Picks and Roundup (and congratulating the winners in the comments), 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!
YeahWrite #348 Weekly Writing Challenge Staff Picks:
Nonfiction
It feels a little ironic to be writing this pick, since Rowan often offers up one of my old essays as an example of how to use an object to focus the reader’s attention on a major life event without demanding sentimentality. But using an anchor like my green bag or the tote bag in unfolding’s essay is a tremendously effective technique. Using something tangible and tactile that a reader can connect to keeps an emotional essay from sliding into freefall. And of course unfolding went one better by using an object that could be a direct metaphor for the loss in the essay. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, well, as Rowan says: no spoilers. Go read it for yourself.
Rowan’s Roundup: YeahWrite Weekly Writing Challenge #348
It feels sometimes like I constantly harangue everyone. Proofread. Beta. Try something new. But sometimes it all pays off. This week I’d like to talk about what a number of people did really really well on the nonfiction grid: use direct, clear writing and metaphor to express and share strong emotion without ever specifically telling the reader what to feel. Compare these essays to the ones you would have written as a less-mature writer and be extremely proud of yourselves. If you’re reading along, look at these essays not just from an emotional but from a technique and power standpoint, and see if there’s anything you can borrow for your own writing.
I’m gonna give everyone a tip this week that came from, of all places, someone else’s critique of an essay on a completely different site: If all your nouns have at least one adjective stuck to them, consider picking better nouns or cutting adjectives to make room for your story.
Our other tip this week is wow it’s hard to compare poetry to stories or essays, isn’t it? Poetry’s one of those things that could fit into fiction or nonfiction, depending on what you’re trying to do, so it’s up to you as a writer to decide where your piece belongs. The only place it can’t go is on the microprose grid. I know some folks feel a little out of their depth offering comments on poetry, so here’s a handy post we put together a while back that might give you a few starting points.
That’s it for this week! Remember, we don’t always give out a pick on both grids; if we were impressed by several posts on one grid we’ll give them all picks, and if nothing really stood out for us we’ll hold off. If you didn’t get a pick this week, read back through the Roundup to see if you can use some of this week’s tips and tricks.
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, and don’t forget, the Weekend Writing Showcase opens tonight at 6pm Eastern US Time!
Congratulations to the Crowd Favorites at YeahWrite #348
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.
