Young Writers Society

LadySpark wrote:

April 30th: The Final #PCrewPick

For today's final feature, I wanted to find someone in the threads that hadn't been featured yet, who had shown a lot of progress towards their NaPo goals, been active on YWS that month, and also shown how open they were to new experiences, perspectives, and ideas throughout NaPo.

After spending some time scrolling and thinking, I finally landed on @Quillfeather's Making friends with broken mirrors.


Here it was. The thread I was looking for! That showed so much promise at the beginning of the month, but now boasted of some deeply deserved fruits of labor that highlight the growth and development of a poet's voice over a month of consistent work. Quill wasn't just active in her own thread, she was all over the place. In jams, in the forums... everywhere! And she provided so much support and encouragement for many of us.

But I think her achievement of writing a poem a day is even more impressive. The consistency, dedication, and motivation she had all month has paid off. Just comparing her first poems to her latest shows how much she's dove into developing her poetic voice over the past 30 days. Here, listen to this line in her latest...

And who looks back later
And sees the hair out of place
Instead of the place she stands

or this one, just a few poems back

I feel so old until I am young
I feel so young until it's too late
we keep on waiting for the day
and realize it was years ago

My favorite things about Quill's voice is her unique rhythm and her use of perspective. She manages to make the reader feel directly addressed while still keeping them invested in the narrator's feelings and experience. It's a great skill that I can tell she worked hard on!


It was great to feature a different poet each week for the #PCrewPick s. If you missed any, head to the The PCrewPick Hall of Fame and check out all the highlighted poems from this month! See ya around, maybe next year!

And when I feel that the salt is eating me open again-
Pouring blood, danger, do not leak-
I stop and count the bubbles.

i want you to take me back to the summers
where we burned the bottoms of our feet

Hijinks wrote:

(Belated) April 25th: Poetry Crew Pick

8. by @Buranko

Today's #PCrewPick has a bit of funky absurdism going on! Buranko's NaPo thread Ink stains and a honey jar is full of snappy, captivating poems like today's pick (7. is another one of my favourites). Buranko doesn't use many words, but the ones he does use pack quite a punch! Take this section, for instance:

"The World
is a predictable fool
don't worry;

It becomes even more intriguing when you consider that these lines are being delivered by a magician character! This poem has been turning over in my head ever since I finished reading it. I can't wait to see what other poems Buranko finishes the month off with!

Read the rest of the poem right here (and remember you can shout out poems yourself using #/ThePeoplesPick!).

"The World
is a predictable fool
don't worry;

The colors change, the seasons pass,

But nature's pulse forever lasts.

Among the ferns and mountain peaks,

I find solace, and freedom I seek.

weathervane wrote:

April 26th: Poetry Crew Pick

I can't believe that April is coming to its end soon! My #PCrewPick is strawberries by @Elinor! I've only recently caught up on her thread, and this poem caught my eye. There were many great ones though!

I love how simplistically beautiful it is! The romantic aspect is so stunning to me, especially with the longing nature of the narrator. Every line creates such a scene! It's just so good to me, and I admire all of it.

and I want to live,
to really live,
through every moment.

Like that ending!? I absolutely love how it wraps everything up!

If you want to see more of Elinor's poetry (as you should!), you can check out her thread she's just a picture here!

and I want to live,
to really live,
through every moment.

alliyah wrote:

April 24: PCrewPick

From Dawn to Dusk by @Dossereana

NaPo is twirling towards the finish line, but beautiful poetry is still being grown! A poem I loved this week and just had to select for our #pcrewpick is by @Dossereana NaPo 21 from dawn to dusk which is a gorgeous nature reflection on the change of time as the day closes. There's some beautiful nature imagery and the calm descriptions are just peaceful and gorgeous to read.

Here's a short selection from the poem:

The trees whisper there silent songs
even the stars twinkle a symphony of music
as the creatures try to blend with
synchronized rhythm
and the ocean waves rise
and come down like drums

Doss's thread is filled with a variety of simple poetic observations and even some lyrical poems and songs! Be sure to check out the rest of her thread and leave a like or comment or two. Let's finish our NaPo month strong! <3

The trees whisper there silent songs
even the stars twinkle a symphony of music
as the creatures try to blend with
synchronized rhythm
and the ocean waves rise
and come down like drums

LadySpark wrote:

April 23rd #PCrewPick

Sunday is here (I know, already?!) and that means I get to feature another poem I've been enjoying this week from the many NaPo threads to choose from this year. Today, my eye was drawn to a poem by @niteowl, not just because I completely unintentionally gave her the idea when I said, pretty unhappily, "all I can think about are standard deviations" (re: my thesis). Several weeks later, nite has taken my statement and created a narrative about the experience of growing older but not fitting into the mold of what society might model as the "right" way. This poem gripped me for the same reason many of nite's poems leave my spell bound, the mix of everyday, gritty language enfolded with fresh, unique perspective and metaphor. Nite's poetic voice is one that is so distinctly her's, and I love the cadence and rhythm that each poem uses to its advantage as it weaves an experience or perspective in front of you. Excellent work, and worth checking out the rest of Nite's thread, The past is not clay, but the future is not stone.

Don't forget you can feature your own favorite poems from this years NaPo using the #PeoplesPick hashtag. Also, you can check out any #PCrewPick s you may have missed in the The PCrewPick Hall of Fame!

See you next week for our final PCrewPick!

Hijinks wrote:

April 22nd: Poetry Crew Pick

An Open Letter to Who Will Let Me Survive
by @WeepingWisteria

Today's #PCrewPick is a poem from WeepingWisteria's NaPo thread Signed, the Universe. Faer poem touches on some heavy ideas about how suffering and sacrifice can sometimes be idolized by those around us, and the effects that can have on our own self-perception. Check out this captivating opening:

Can we talk about how
shooting stars are just painful deaths
broadcasted across a velvet movie screen

Go give the rest of this poignant poem a read right here! If poems written from the perspective of various planets intrigue you, then you should definitely give the rest of their thread a look, as well.

Meshugenah wrote:

April 21st: Poetry Crew Pick

For today's (it's still the 21st in my timezone for a couple more hours!) #pcrewpick , we're looking at @Rook, who is rocking NaPo this year!

Rook's poetry has been delightfully eerie, with this not-quite-sinister-but-it's-totally-there factor that I am absolutely here for - and when it's not that, it's turning something slightly sideways (I mean, check out 14 for a great example!). Even the title for yesterday's offering When the committee digs up my body is enough by itself to warrant a double take, and really make you take a closer look.

in the distant future where we have found the cure for death
and “Death and Taxes” have been replaced as certainties
by “Committees and Art,” they will hold my bones as a worshipper
holds the bones of a saint.

Check out the entire thread: This is how you start a poem

LadySpark wrote:

April 23rd #PCrewPick

Sunday is here (I know, already?!) and that means I get to feature another poem I've been enjoying this week from the many NaPo threads to choose from this year. Today, my eye was drawn to a poem by @niteowl, not just because I completely unintentionally gave her the idea when I said, pretty unhappily, "all I can think about are standard deviations" (re: my thesis). Several weeks later, nite has taken my statement and created a narrative about the experience of growing older but not fitting into the mold of what society might model as the "right" way. This poem gripped me for the same reason many of nite's poems leave my spell bound, the mix of everyday, gritty language enfolded with fresh, unique perspective and metaphor. Nite's poetic voice is one that is so distinctly her's, and I love the cadence and rhythm that each poem uses to its advantage as it weaves an experience or perspective in front of you. Excellent work, and worth checking out the rest of Nite's thread, The past is not clay, but the future is not stone.

Don't forget you can feature your own favorite poems from this years NaPo using the #PeoplesPick hashtag. Also, you can check out any #PCrewPick s you may have missed in the The PCrewPick Hall of Fame!

See you next week for our final PCrewPick!

Hijinks wrote:

April 22nd: Poetry Crew Pick

An Open Letter to Who Will Let Me Survive
by @WeepingWisteria

Today's #PCrewPick is a poem from WeepingWisteria's NaPo thread Signed, the Universe. Faer poem touches on some heavy ideas about how suffering and sacrifice can sometimes be idolized by those around us, and the effects that can have on our own self-perception. Check out this captivating opening:

Can we talk about how
shooting stars are just painful deaths
broadcasted across a velvet movie screen

Go give the rest of this poignant poem a read right here! If poems written from the perspective of various planets intrigue you, then you should definitely give the rest of their thread a look, as well.

Hijinks wrote:

April 22nd: Poetry Crew Pick

An Open Letter to Who Will Let Me Survive
by @WeepingWisteria

Today's #PCrewPick is a poem from WeepingWisteria's NaPo thread Signed, the Universe. Faer poem touches on some heavy ideas about how suffering and sacrifice can sometimes be idolized by those around us, and the effects that can have on our own self-perception. Check out this captivating opening:

Can we talk about how
shooting stars are just painful deaths
broadcasted across a velvet movie screen

Go give the rest of this poignant poem a read right here! If poems written from the perspective of various planets intrigue you, then you should definitely give the rest of their thread a look, as well.

Can we talk about how
shooting stars are just painful deaths
broadcasted across a velvet movie screen

in the distant future where we have found the cure for death
and “Death and Taxes” have been replaced as certainties
by “Committees and Art,” they will hold my bones as a worshipper
holds the bones of a saint.

Plume wrote:

April 20th: Poetry Crew Pick

Today's #PCrewPick is this poem by @Ari11! When I first read it, I found myself enraptured by all the gorgeous imagery that describes the focal point of the poem, the ethereal she.

The use of nature imagery in this was absolutely stunning. Some of my favorite lines included:

Her feet brush lightly over the grass, her head is wreathed in clouds.
Her arms span miles as she raises them, scraping glitter from the moon
It showers her in light, catching in the rivers of her hair
Waves of night tumbling past her shoulders.

"Glitter from the moon" and "wreathed in clouds" are just goddess-like images, and are just so beautiful in the context of the poem. They make the last stanza, a singular line, truly hit hard: "Does she know how beautiful she is?" It perfectly conveys the speaker's awestruck adoration of her, and it works so well.

You can read more of Ari's poetry in their thread Ari's Poetry Cove. I highly recommend it!

Plume wrote:

April 20th: Poetry Crew Pick

Today's #PCrewPick is this poem by @Ari11! When I first read it, I found myself enraptured by all the gorgeous imagery that describes the focal point of the poem, the ethereal she.

The use of nature imagery in this was absolutely stunning. Some of my favorite lines included:

Her feet brush lightly over the grass, her head is wreathed in clouds.
Her arms span miles as she raises them, scraping glitter from the moon
It showers her in light, catching in the rivers of her hair
Waves of night tumbling past her shoulders.

"Glitter from the moon" and "wreathed in clouds" are just goddess-like images, and are just so beautiful in the context of the poem. They make the last stanza, a singular line, truly hit hard: "Does she know how beautiful she is?" It perfectly conveys the speaker's awestruck adoration of her, and it works so well.

You can read more of Ari's poetry in their thread Ari's Poetry Cove. I highly recommend it!

in cradle of twigs and leaves
their loves will arrive in wings

Plume wrote:

April 20th: Poetry Crew Pick

Today's #PCrewPick is this poem by @Ari11! When I first read it, I found myself enraptured by all the gorgeous imagery that describes the focal point of the poem, the ethereal she.

The use of nature imagery in this was absolutely stunning. Some of my favorite lines included:

Her feet brush lightly over the grass, her head is wreathed in clouds.
Her arms span miles as she raises them, scraping glitter from the moon
It showers her in light, catching in the rivers of her hair
Waves of night tumbling past her shoulders.

"Glitter from the moon" and "wreathed in clouds" are just goddess-like images, and are just so beautiful in the context of the poem. They make the last stanza, a singular line, truly hit hard: "Does she know how beautiful she is?" It perfectly conveys the speaker's awestruck adoration of her, and it works so well.

You can read more of Ari's poetry in their thread Ari's Poetry Cove. I highly recommend it!