Go ahead. Ask me anything.
We get a lot of questions around here. How long does your post have to be? (750 words or fewer) OK, so what’s the lower limit? (There isn’t one, but finish what you have to say) Does it have to be grammatically perfect? (That’s a trickier one: if you’re going to break the rules, do it on purpose. And yes, people can tell the difference.) Can I use a bunch of italics and bolds and underlines? (I don’t know, can you? Kidding. Do what you need to do, but remember someone has to read it.) How lyrical can I get on the nonfiction grid? (Do what you need to do to say what you have to say.)
My favorite, though, is Can you just give me an example?
There’s two reasons I don’t do that a lot, and one reason I’m going to break that rule today. First of the “no”s is I don’t get paid to comb through the internet for essays for you to read, and mama’s gotta eat. Second “no” is there are plenty of examples right here on the grid – look at the winners and editors’ picks, go back through the archive, read them. It’s always a little strange to me that people think there is a magic essay they can read somewhere which will make them into a great writer. That’s not gonna happen. There are, however, plenty of essays, poems and stories for you to practice the exact same critical reading skills on right here, every week. And as a special bonus you can build relationships with those writers, trade tips and tricks, leave comments and ask questions, knowing they’ll do the same for you. That’s going to improve your writing a lot faster than sitting around googling “perfect essay.”
And now I break that rule. As you read Kathy Fish’s Collective Nouns for Humans in the Wild, keep asking the questions in the first paragraph. How long did this need to be? How short? How lyrical? How were font styles used to add meaning rather than make it less readable?
And then ask yourself the most important question of all, the question all those other questions are avoiding: did this make me care?
Look. It’s not going to matter if you write with perfect grammar, if the most interesting thing in the world happened, if you have the best story prompt or the most heartfelt intent when you sit down to write your poem. At the end of the day writing is a shared experience. Make the reader care, and the reader will get you to the top of that popular vote. 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 #357
When I say “make me care” I don’t always mean that in a positive way. We had a couple great examples of that on the grid this week, from MM Schreier’s nondescript and irritating cop to Michelle’s Fly Shop Man. I hated Fly Shop Man by the end of the essay. You know what that means? Michelle made me care. I cared what happened. The characters were real and believable. They don’t have to be sweet and sympathetic for that. They just have to be whole people, with their own whole motivations and actions.
Wow, there are a lot of prompts to work in this month! One thing that can get lost when we’re trying to combine a lot of moving parts is that we can forget to examine what each part really means. This week more than one person was struggling with automaton it looks like. If you run across a word that’s not in your ordinary daily vocabulary, it’s a great idea to look it up.
- a moving mechanical device made in imitation of a human being.
- a machine that performs a function according to a predetermined set of coded instructions, especially one capable of a range of programmed responses to different circumstances.
- used in similes and comparisons to refer to a person who seems to act in a mechanical or unemotional way.
It’s also a great idea to grab an encyclopedia and get a more nuanced definition, a sort of expert opinion.
- An automaton (/ɔːˈtɒmətən/; plural: automata or automatons) is a self-operating machine, or a machine or control mechanism designed to automatically follow a predetermined sequence of operations, or respond to predetermined instructions.[1] Some automata, such as bellstrikers in mechanical clocks, are designed to give the illusion to the casual observer that they are operating under their own power.
Huh. Reading that paragraph, I get all sorts of ideas. That’s how chasing down a prompt definition can help shape your story, while making sure that if one of your readers is familiar with that word in daily use, you’re not employing it in a jarring way.
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!
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 #357
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
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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.
