Squills 5/31/24

1. POETRY WINDOWS: ‘SONNET 23’ BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE
2. FEATURED MEMBER INTERVIEW: AVIAN
3. A 2024 NAPO WRAP UP
4. ICY'S READING LOG: MAY
5. LAST SHIP SAILING ROUND III
6. SHAMELESS PLUGS
7. SUBSCRIBERS

POETRY WINDOWS: ‘SONNET 23’ BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE written by Liminality< PM: >

What’s this? Back-to-back Shakespeare? That’s right, in this edition of Poetry Windows, we’re reading Sonnet 23 by William Shakespeare. Please follow this link to read it first before browsing the rest of the article!

My Interpretation

In the poem, the speaker is portrayed as someone who struggles to express their love verbally. Instead, they point the addressee towards their writings. The written word is portrayed as being more favourable for “love’s fine wit” as compared to speech.

Structure: Syllable Stress

While the poem is broadly written in iambic pentameter, there is a fair bit of variation. Lines in iambic meter will typically have unstressed syllables alternate with stressed ones. However, here there are phrases like “too much rage” and “some fierce thing” which are three stressed syllables in a row. The use of the possessive “’s” with “love” also always occurs in a phrase of continuous stressed syllables, see: “love’s rite”, “love’s strength”, “mine own love’s might” and “love’s fine wit”.

I think this has the effect of making these phrases seem very heavy, almost overbearing. That would seem to match Shakespeare’s metaphor of an “unperfect actor” who struggles to perform his love with much subtlety or craft.

To test this out, let’s try rewriting some of the variation into strict iambic pentameter. The original:

As an unperfect actor on the stage
Who with his fear is put beside his part,
Or some fierce thing replete with too much rage,
Whose strength’s abundance weakens his own heart;

Rewritten:

As an unperfect actor on the stage
Who with his fear is put beside his part,
A fiery thing replete with burning rage,
Whose strength’s abundance weakens his own heart;

I feel like the rewritten version deflates some of the emphasis the original has in the third line, and so the portrayal of the speaker as a blustering actor doesn’t come across as well.

Imagery: Order vs Passionate Mess

The first two stanzas seem to contrast imagery and word choices for the role the actor was supposed to play and the passionate, overzealous way his actual performance went. The actor has “his part” to play, but an emotion, fear, causes him to stray from it. Love has a “rite” and a “perfect ceremony”, but the speaker is “some fierce thing” and his feelings are described as having too much “might” to be channelled into saying the right things.

This is used as a metaphor for expressions of love. People may have all sorts of expectations and ideas of how it should go, but an actual expression of love may throw all that out of the window . . . unless you write it down, so you have the space to edit.

Today I learnt . . .

In lieu of repeating the ‘Poet’ section from last article , here is something I learnt while reading Sonnet 23. You may notice an oddity in line 12:

More than that tongue that more hath more expressed.

The second ‘more’ is likely being used to mean ‘in addition’. I found out that ‘in addition’ is a historical meaning of ‘more’ from an academic edition of the Oxford English Dictionary. The meaning of this line could be that the speaker’s writings express more than his tongue would have “in addition” expressed, even if he could find it in himself to speak. Isn’t hyperbole fun?

Now onto you!

What did you think of Sonnet 23? Did you agree or disagree with the points made in this article? Have a quibble about the way Shakespeare used words and whether I’ve understood them correctly? Share your thoughts on the People’s Tab with #PoetryWindows ! (You could also PM me on that last question - I’m always curious to hear alternate interpretations of how words were used historically.)

FEATURED MEMBER INTERVIEW: AVIAN written by Liminality< PM: >

You’ll know this FM for her wonderful reviews, complete with a bird-themed template, as well as her People’s Tab presence. @Avian joined us in January this year and has already earned her second review star. She was selected as Featured Member for April 9th-14th. This month I had the chance to chat with her about becoming FM, reviewing and writing.

Avian: Yes, of course! Ask away!


A: Well, I was sitting in class when I decided to check the good old YWS notifications. Believe it or not, my only notification was about being the newest FM. I was quite ecstatic, to say the least. I probably looked very strange in class while I smiled like a psycho while staring at my phone. Before that, I had been silently hoping for the day that I might become an esteemed Featured Member, and there it was. So, overall, I would say I was pretty excited.


A: Reviewing is one of my favorite aspects of YWS. Part of why I like it so much is because I really get to analyze what I'm reading. I have to think about what choices the author was making, why they made that choice, and whether or not that choice was effective in achieving it's goal. Thinking like this has really helped me grow as a writer. In addition to what I just shared, I also get to look at a lot of unique writing styles, which helps me in learning what I want my own writing to sound like.



A: The main project that I've been working on is a novel called Flightless. I've been posting the chapters on YWS as I finish them so I can get some advice on how it's going. Flightless has been a very long journey of world-building, character development, drafts, plot ideas, and many trials and errors to get to where it is today. And so far, I'm only on chapter six! The story is set in a world where some humans are born with wings. It follows a winged girl trying to figure out who she is, all the while (practically) solving the mysteries of the universe. (I mean, if you want to go check it out, it's in my portfolio...)
I'd also love to create a poetry book one day, but I'll definitely need to write more poems for that to happen!


A: Honestly, YWS gives me a lot of inspiration and motivation. There are so many talented authors on here, and reading all of their works always sparks at least one idea in my mind. Another big inspiration is my sister. She was the person who got me into poetry, and I really look up to her as a poet.


A: If you want to improve your writing, then review, review, review! Reviewing is one of the best ways to improve your own writing! And, hey, don't forget to drink some water today.



If you have yet to do so, join us in congratulating Avian on her FM thread or on her wall !

A 2024 NAPO WRAP UPwritten by EllieMae< PM: >

Well, it is May, which means that NaPo is officially over! Wasn't that incredible? A huge shoutout to everyone who participated, whether that was writing poems, being a cheerleader, or participating in events on the site!

Let's do a quick review of what NaPo is, for anyone who may be new to the site or the event. National Poetry Month (NaPo) takes place every April. Poets attempt to write one poem per day, for a total of 30 poems in the month. NaPo is a pretty big event on YWS! This year, the event was ice cream themed! We had many poets participate. In the end, there were 16 YWS users who completed the 'Poem a Day' challenge!

Congratulations to: @AmayaStatham, @Roxanne, @Youbeaucupid, @herbalhour, @Spearmint, @Elinor, @TheSilverFox, @WeepingWisteria, @Ley, @luxeterna, @Que, @Quillfeather, @LuminescentAnt, @Meshugenah, @Rook, @KateHardy

There were so many more users who participated, writing 1 poem, or even more than 30! I had the opportunity to chat with some of our NaPo champions about their experience. Here is what they had to say:




Spearmint: It was a little stressful at times, exhilarating at others, but overall, it was a fun experience to write over 30 poems in 30 days. The stressful part was because I'd made a list of 42 poetic forms to try, and some days I didn't have the energy or willpower to do the form(s) I'd assigned for that day, so I had to catch up on a lot of poetic forms at the end of NaPo. It was really neat to learn about all the different forms, though! So I don't have any regrets about it.

Ley: It was my very first NaPo! I usually don't write poetry, but @WeepingWisteria, @KateHardy and @Spearmint convinced me to try. I thought I would only write 12 poems, but I had so much fun with Wist and Kate in our NaPo pad, that I decided to keep writing along with them. It was such a fun experience! I couldn't have done it without them <3

WeepingWisteria: This was my third year doing NaPo and my first year as a 30in30 finisher!! This year, I had a lot of big dreams, most notably doing 30in30 for two threads and doing a different poetic form everyday. Despite my doubts, I crushed both of these goals and wrote 61 poems and tried 5 new poetic styles (and invented 2). My success is really attributed to my writing buddies KateHardy and Ley, who kept me encouraged and on task. Overall, a great NaPo!!

herbalhour: this april was my first napo, and i loved every moment of it :3 it was definitely fun hopping on pads, especially with some cheering on from wist, kate, ley & mint! i mean i made 58 which is much more than i expected to make

Quillfeather: I did 30 in 30 this year and got my poem a day badge. For me I really didn't expect to finish. My goal was to have around 15 poems at most. But the poetry juices were flowing and honestly the days flew by this year! It was really fulfilling to complete this goal because a lot of my poems were about mental health and it just felt really cool to write all those pieces of myself out. And this year unlike the past years I have done 30in30 I didn't feel like I was pressuring myself to do it I just ended up writing from my soul.

Did you miss NaPo and want to check out all of the poems? It is not too late! Feel free to check out the NaPo Forums to see all of the incredible poetry that was written in April. And if you are looking for an opportunity to participate in a poetry competition before next year, I reccommend keeping your eye on the Free Verse Club , for monthly competitions!

Thank you to everyone who participated in NaPo this year. Thanks for making it such a fun event! Until next year!!

ICY'S READING LOG: MAY written by IcyFlame< PM: >

It wouldn't be a monthly Squills issue without my book log, and this month has been a big one! As you're probably all aware by now (because I talk about it every issue) I set myself the challenge of reading 52 books over 2023. This year, I'm back with an even more challenging task: I'm going to read 60 books in 2024 (that's more than one a week!). I'm using our monthly Squills issue as a bit of accountability, but also to keep you all updated on the best (and worst) of the books I'm reading so far.

(As always, if you're looking to read these books, please make sure to check the ratings and trigger warnings if you need to).

In May, I've read a lot of what I'd call 'easy reads' both to bump up my book total but also to get me out of a reading slump. None of these were really great works of fiction, but I've enjoyed most of them enough.

Books read this month: 11
Total book count: 31/60


1. Hex Education by Maureen Kilmer:
I picked this up as part of a 3 for £6 deal in a shop when I couldn't find anything else and it looked cute. It was a very average read, but when you've paid so little for a book, it's hard to be mad when it's not great. This follows three friends who formed a coven at university and accidentally started a fire. When they meet 20 years later their magic starts acting out. I feel like this had potential, but the characters and writing fell a little flat for me. 2.5 stars.

2. Check & Mate by Ali Hazelwood:
I was fully expecting this to be average, which is why I think I enjoyed it so much! Ali Hazelwood's writing style is really easy to get into, and her characters actually have some dimension. I came for the pretty front cover, but stayed for the in depth chess descriptions that hooked me way more than I thought they would. 4 stars.

3. Stand Up Guy by Nina Kaye:
Another solidly average read. The main character was mostly the issue for me in this one, because she just created problems that didn't exist. The romance wasn't a slow burn, but a weird set of miscommunications that meant even as the reader I couldnt' work out what was happening. This was redeemed only by the setting of beautiful Edinburgh, one of my favourite cities to vist. 2 stars.

4, 8, 9 & 10. The Chestnut Springs Series by Elsie Silver:
I've grouped these together because I don't think they warrant a whole paragraph each. This month was very much a 'BookTok made me buy it' kind of month. These were basically what I expected. The characters weren't that deep, and really there are too many in these series that it starts to feel repetetive (I still have one left to read). The main thing that bugged me was that none of these characters seem to be allowed to have real flaws, so I find it hard to connect with any of them because they don't feel real. But cowboys are cool, so we're sticking with 3 stars for the series as a whole; some books are a bit better, some are a bit worse.

5. Wildfire by Hannah Grace:
What interested me most about this one was that it's a British author writing about an American summer camp. As a fellow British writer who sometimes tries to set my books in US cities I was keen to see how someone else fared! This one definitely confuses YA with adult and I found myself wondering who the target audience was actually meant to be. I enjoyed the summer vibes though, so 2.5 stars.

6. The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood:
I had high hopes after my previous Ali Hazelwood, and the covers of these books are so pretty. This one was quick and easy to read as well, and though I usually find the fake dating trope unrealistic this one almost had some valid reasons behind it, so I bought into the premise way more than usual. Also the main character had some excellent friends. 3.5 stars.

7. Love on the Brain by Ali Hazelwood:
Why do people keep falling in love with Ali Hazelwood's main characters despite having seemingly no interaction with them? I loved the setting of this one, and the twitter scandal alongside it added some good depth, even if the outcome was super predictable. Another easy read. 3 stars.

11. Love Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood:
By this point, I was starting to get tired of the formula of these books. I still love the science setting, but all the main characters felt the same, as did the love interests. There's some great representation of LGBTQ+ in these books, but also some less great representation that kind of irks me. At this point I decided a break was in order before diving back into the STEM world, so it was a good one to end the month on. 3 stars.

So there you have it, YWS, a round up of my reads for May. Let me know if you check any of them out, and if there are any I should add to my list for next month. I look forward to updating you in June!

LAST SHIP SAILING ROUND IIIwritten by Spearmint < PM: >



This summer brings the much-anticipated return of the collaborative roleplaying competition called the Last Ship Sailing (LSS)! The goal of LSS is to form crews of three to five roleplayers and write 2,500 roleplay words in total per week. That is, until Tsunami, when ships will have to write significantly greater amounts to win the competition. But that comes later, and the seas are looking calm and perfect for sailing for now!

History of LSS
LSS was first run in 2020 by the legendary @Omni, who also ran LSS Round II in 2022.
In LSS Round I, six ships and twenty five roleplayers braved the seas for ten weeks. In the last week, Tsunami, they competed against each other to see who would write the most words and earn the title of the Last Ship Sailing. The winner was the roleplay "The Beach," crewed by @Elinor, @Carina, @Valkyria, @KateHardy, and @veeren, who wrote 13,199 words in the last week.
LSS Round II saw seven ships and twenty eight roleplayers take on the challenge. This time, the competition lasted twenty weeks, and in the final week of the Tsunami, the four remaining ships wrote a total of 165,000 words! The winning ship, "The Fools' Quest," was crewed by @soundofmind, @Carina, and @Shady. They wrote a whopping 47,787 words for Tsunami.
Only time travelers can tell whether the final word counts for LSS this year will be as mind-boggling. Thankfully, we do know one confirmed time traveler. And no matter what, it's important to remember that the true quest of LSS isn't to write the most words, but rather to have fun roleplaying! If you write even one roleplay word this LSS, I'd say that's a win.

How do I participate?
By the time this article is posted, LSS will have started already, but you can participate by cheering the roleplayers on! Each ship will have an Out of Character thread where you can post encouraging messages. There are some amazing ideas for ships this year already, including a paranormal adventure and a poetry and fairytale-inspired roleplay.
And if a crew member has to drop out of a ship, you can join as a Lifeguard. Refer to the official announcement thread for more information!

Best of luck to all the LSS crewmates competing this round! May you have fair winds and smooth sailing.

SHAMELESS PLUGS

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SUBSCRIBERS

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