Speechless
“Do something.” That’s what everyone around us is saying, isn’t it? Do something. And people are “doing something.” As terrifying as it is. And when you see news about people in the street, about mass shootings, mass arrests, when you see speeches, and silence, and a few thorough explanations of how mayyyyybe, just maybe, the “high road” might end in a cliff so consider taking a different route if one opens for you, it’s hard to tell if you’re doing something or not.
Don’t think this is me letting you off the hook – if you’re somewhere you can do something, do it. But remember that writing, too, is “doing something.” Sharing information, sharing thoughts, sharing humanity is doing something. So if you do nothing else, do that. Put out a damn paper.
Image: a tweet from the Capital Gazette (@capgaznews) reading “Yes, we’re putting out a damn paper tomorrow.”
To everyone who made the grids this week – thank you. We’re glad you’re here. And life goes on: you came, you read, you voted. And if you’re new, it might be news to you that besides the popular vote, 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 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 #376 Weekly Writing Challenge Staff Picks:
Fiction|Poetry
For me, this poem was about mother nature being able to heal itself no matter what humans do to it. The combinations of abstract and concrete ideas played off each other in interesting ways. The result of which was surprising and memorable imagery: a dawn dipped zephyr, a door of pollution and the glimmer of hope that can be glimpsed through its keyhole. I loved the single word “uncuff” put on its own line to underscore the image of a pure breeze being chained (I think many of us in the United States can understand that metaphor.) and the green blaze of nature that could run rampant across Earth if only we’d let it. This poem successfully explored possibility, and the author made some very thoughtful decisions about word choices and line breaks.
Rowan’s Roundup: YeahWrite Weekly Writing Challenge #376
When the world feels uncertain, it’s nice to go back and spend some time with your childhood, which is a time when things were, if not simpler, they were simpler for you. As you write your childhood, it’s a good idea to keep in mind that not everyone had the same childhood. There are a lot of ways to handle that – Nate’s wry and casual explanation of what a “party store” is (my vocabulary just grew), and Anusha’s lush descriptions filling in the blanks of association that a reader might not mark from the name of a thing (isn’t “fully clothed beachgoers” a better explanation than just “beachgoers,” which you will inevitably fill in with what that means to you rather than what she’s trying to evoke), are two of them. What do you use in your writing to bridge the gap between your experiences and a reader’s?
Mkay, I’m gonna go ahead and remind y’all, gently, that especially right after a number of well-publicized suicides it’s nice to put a content warning on a suicide piece? Someone might need to take a deep breath or not be at work before they read your story.
On a more substantive note: I have a friend who very little bad stuff has ever happened to. Really bad stuff, I mean, not ordinary bad stuff like the bagel you wanted for breakfast being moldy or your car breaking down when you’re short on cash and have somewhere to be. And this friend really likes writing about all the horrible, super dramatic stuff that doesn’t happen in their life, so that they can experience those emotions vicariously, from a relatively safe and privileged place. But that friend (who I swear is not actually me) also know that there’s a thin line between writing strong emotion about bad things happening, and writing that’s essentially pornographic wallowing in a fear or pain that you’ve never experienced but that other people do, daily. One way to keep your writing from veering into pornography is context – what’s going on, what is the character learning, or not, and are you sharing anything with the reader or just writing for the vicarious thrill? Writing dark or edgy material is a lot of fun, partly because it does let us step outside ourselves, but don’t forget that it still needs all the things your other writing has: setting, characters who develop and change, a conflict, and a reason for the reader to care about the conflict’s resolution.
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 #376
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
Loading InLinkz ...Fiction|Poetry
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.
