Haters gonna hate
It’s literally a HUNDRED DEGREES FAHRENHEIT warmer where I am than where my friends are… and it’s still not warm. That’s ok; they’ve promised me snow next week, which means I’ll see four or five anemic flakes before the temperature rises 6 degrees and the whole thing turns to “wintry mix” which is weather channel for “it’s just miserable, ok, it’s not even pretty, why is this happening.” But I’m lucky enough to live right by a giant flippin’ mountain, so if I need snow all I have to do is hop on a car, bus, or train and head for the slopes. And in the meantime I can still curl up with a hot mug of coffee and see who made it to the top of the popular vote.
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 the trends we’re seeing. 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 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 #407 Weekly Writing Challenge Staff Picks:
Fiction|Poetry
So many well executed ideas in this little gem. Margaret nailed the prompts, making the dystopian genre and the inability-to-operate character trait central to the plot. The world she creates is established in just a few paragraphs and then the plot slides into the surprisingly complex dynamic between the human, Carew, and the AI. Then she ratchets up the tension. In the most unfeeling way, the human is dismissed, ending the story on an unexpectedly poignant note.
Rowan’s Roundup: YeahWrite Weekly Writing Challenge #407
Did anyone else feel like they were scrambling for ideas this week? Sometimes I have enough time to write or come up with an idea, but… not both. And my best ideas come to me when I’m on a long drive, or walking into an appointment, or any one of the dozens of places where I really can’t write. That’s why I keep a little document called “ideas I’m not smart enough for yet” (be nicer to yourself than I am) where I dump all those thinky thoughts. Usually it’s just a sentence or two, like “there’s no actual good length for hair, what the @#$#” or “nutmeg is a canine neurotoxin – i love my dog and eggnog.” But it’s ok, they don’t have to be complete thoughts yet. Then on days when I’m struggling I can go back to my file and look for an idea to develop. It’s like having a bunch of prompts I already know I want to write to. (I use Dropbox to sync my file across multiple devices, but there are a bunch of apps that work to do that.)
A combination that almost inevitably leads to disaster is trying to write artfully on a tight deadline. What you often end up with is a story composed entirely of “darlings” – clever phrases that don’t add much to the plot or the reader’s understanding – and containing little action or interest. It’s hard to get the emotional distance from your own writing that you need to cut those “clever” sentences that are really just saying look at me, not at my story, at meeee out; that’s what editors or beta readers are for. They can really give you a hand by saying “this was distracting” or “I loved this line but it’s completely the opposite meaning of what I think you intended to say here, because elated people don’t usually fling themselves on the floor weeping bitterly.” If you find yourself on such a tight deadline that you can’t squeeze a beta read in, that’s fine – just focus on your plot and characters rather than on fancy writing. It’ll be much easier to edit yourself, and your readers won’t miss the flowery prose you wanted to use.
That’s it for this week! Remember, we don’t always give out a pick on each 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 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, next week’s challenge kicks off at midnight tonight!
Congratulations to the Crowd Favorites at YeahWrite #407
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.
