Yeah write wears white*

All right, everyone, it’s time to put away your sundresses and white slingbacks and dig in the closet for your boots. Technically there are a few more weeks until the official start to fall, but Labor Day weekend in the US always feels like an ending. Maybe it’s the start of the school year, maybe it’s waking up to darkness instead of a sun-bright room, maybe it’s the fact that I had to close my bedroom window last night because it was too cold. Whatever it is, there’s a definite sense of winding down in the air tinged with a soft regret.

At the same time, all those back-to-school supplies at the store are kind of filling me with glee. What, who doesn’t get excited by pens and pencil sharpeners and spiral notebooks and other office products? It kind of makes me want to sit down and write. Good thing there’s a place for that…

*Bonus tongue-twister!

Prizes!

We’re a little bummed that the summer series is now over, but to soothe the aching hole in our hearts, the yeah write editors decided that prizes were in order. Nothing fixes a broken heart faster than prizes, and boy do we have some good ones for you!

• a random penguin mug good for all of your drinking needs designed by friend of yeah write ML Philpott;
• NYT bestselling title Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Redemption and Resilience by Laura Hillenbrand; and
• A $20 Shutterfly Gift Card.

Who gets this stuff? Well, the editors will select the winner from the very best posts from last week’s challenge grid and this week’s. Each post submitted to the challenge counts as one entry, so if you submit both weeks, you have two entries. But remember, the editors are picking the best of the best, so don’t rush just to enter. Never written a challenge grid post before? Don’t let that stop you. Just make sure you follow the challenge grid guidelines, and give it a try! Remember: the challenge grid is for non-fiction personal essays and traditional blog posts. No fiction, no poetry, no gargleblasters.

We’ve got some more exciting changes coming up for the fall, so make sure you’re subscribed to our weekly e-mail blast. That’s the best way to get all our news, fast! Just fill out that little form in the left-hand sidebar and call it good.

Challenge winners round-up

In case you missed them, here’s a summary of all the #176 winners. Take a few minutes to check out the best of all the grids right here.

Challenge grid

• Crowd favorite: Michelle at The Michelle Longo for Spectacle
• Top row: Michelle plus Meg at Pigspittle, Ohio for The Weight of a Paper Crane and s. Nicholas at snicholas.net for The Heart of a Dog
• Kevin the Kiwi: Meg at Pigspittle, Ohio, for The Weight of a Paper Crane

Speakeasy

• Crowd favorites: #1 Nate at The Relative Cartographer for Get Well Soon; #2 Angie at Angie Inspired for When She Left Home

Gargleblaster

• Crowd favorite: Suzanne at Apoplectic Apostrophes for Red
• Editors’ pick: Nate at The Relative Cartographer for Hive
• Top row seven: In addition to Suzanne, the top row seven includes: Christinah at Other Than Lovie with Words; Jo-Anne at Going for Coffee with Aftermath; Rachna at The Pigments of Life with Convoy; Meg at Pigspittle, Ohio for Finding Common Ground; Tracy at From the Laundry Room with Broken Zipper; and Mike at Short Stories for They’re Coming

Congratulations to all! Don’t forget: the moonshine grid is still open. Have something to add? Old posts and new are welcome. Go add yours, and while you’re there, visit your fellow yeah writers.

The ultimate question

Looking for the fastest and most furious challenge on the web? You’ve come to the right place. Sit yourself down and give the pangalactic gargleblaster a try. Just don’t sit too long – the gargleblaster grid is notorious for filling up in hours. This week’s ultimate question is:

What came in through the bedroom window?

Give us your best answer in 42 words. Don’t forget everything you’ve learned this summer about dialogue, concise writing, literary devices, and all the other tips and tricks for writing effective microfiction and micro narratives. Remember that you don’t need to include the question in your response. Here are a few guidelines:

1. Do not mention anywhere in your post, either as intro or footnote, that you are writing to a prompt.
2. We want the story the furthest away in your imagination from the original prompt. Let your imagination loose.
3. Keep your writing style! Do you tell stories with humor? Prose? Verse? Photos? Illustrations? Keep doing that.
4. Proofread. Just because it’s short doesn’t mean you can cut corners.

Make sure your answer stands alone. What do we mean? Write down the question. Write down your response. Now cover the question with your hand and read your answer out loud. Does it still make sense when you don’t know the question? That’s what we’re looking for.

The grid opens at midnight on Monday (that’s one minute after 11:59 PM on Sunday) and closes at midnight on Tuesday (that’s one minute after 11:59 PM on Monday). Yes, we give you only 24 hours to post, so you’d better get writing now! Come back to vote on Tuesday, and we’ll announce winners on Wednesday. Don’t forget to badge your post – you can pick up the current gargleblaster badge below or over there in the sidebar.

Yeah write coffeehouse

The coffeehouse is still open for business! Come on in, pour yourself a latte – this place is self serve. The coffeehouse is a place for the yeah write community to gather, get to know each other, exchange ideas and links, and chat. Read a good book lately? Have a link you want to share? Dealing with some writer’s block? Pull up a chair, grab a latte and start a conversation. We won’t be doing any critiquing in the coffeehouse, mind – we want to keep things there light and casual. We hope to see you there!

New to yeah write? Need a refresher?

Welcome! This is a special kind of place, and we hope you will dive right in. If this is one of your first visits to yeah write, please take a look at our page detailing how yeah write works. If you’re having trouble figuring it all out, feel free to email us, and we’ll help get you started along your way. We think this is the best community on the web for writers who blog and bloggers who write. We’re thrilled to have you join us.

Down below, you’ll see the detailed schedule for the week. In a nutshell: the gargleblaster opens on Monday for microfiction; the challenge grid and speakeasy open on Tuesday for creative nonfiction and fiction; and the moonshine grid opens on Friday with a little bit of everything. Pick one grid or all, but make sure you follow the proper guidelines for each one. And don’t forget your badge!

Get your badges!

Here are the badges for yeah write challenge #177 and this week’s gargleblaster. Copy the code under the appropriate badge and paste it into the html or text view of your blog editor. Having trouble? Contact christine@yeahwrite.me for tech support.

<a href="https://yeahwrite.me/writing-challenge-177/"> <img src="https://yeahwrite.me/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/challenge177.png"> </a>

<a href="https://yeahwrite.me/gargleblaster-177/"> <img src="https://yeahwrite.me/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/gargle177.png"> </a>

Challenge schedule

There’s a lot going on around here lately. To make it simple, we’ll lay out the multi-grid schedule. All times are Eastern US time:

• Sunday midnight: the gargleblaster prompt is announced in the kickoff post, and the speakeasy prompt is announced over at the speakeasy.
• Monday midnight: the gargleblaster grid opens for submissions.
• Tuesday midnight: the gargleblaster grid closes, and voting begins. The challenge grid and the speakeasy grid open for submissions. 10:00 PM: gargleblaster voting closes.
• Wednesday by noon: the gargleblaster winners are announced.
• Thursday midnight: the challenge grid and speakeasy grids close, and voting begins. 10:00 PM: voting for both grids closes.
• Friday by noon: the challenge grid and speakeasy winners are announced, and the moonshine grid opens.
• Saturday and Sunday: moonshine grid is still open, writing, editing and rewriting happening for upcoming week!

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