Young Writers Society

Welcome to Squills, the official news bulletin of the Young Writers Society!

What will you find here? Tons of interesting news about YWS, including but not limited to: articles about writing, art, and the world of humanities; interviews with YWS members; shameless plugs; link round-ups; and opinionated columns. 

And where will all of this come from? Take a look at our fantastic creative staff! 





Of course, our content can’t come only from our staff. We also depend on you to help keep Squills successful. You’re all a part of a writing community, after all. If you’re interested in submitting to Squills, pop on over to the Reader’s Corner to find out how you can get involved by contributing an article or participating in other Squills activities.

Well, that’s all I have for now. So, what are you waiting for? Enjoy!

1. HAPPY CAMPERS
2. REVIEW SPOTLIGHT
3. FEATURED MEMBER INTERVIEW WITH GREENLIGHT24
4. KNIGHTS OF THE AFTER WATCH, WE SALUTE YOU
5. TWO CENTS: EXPLORING FLOW
6. HOW TO WRITE A LETTER OF APOLOGY
7. TIPS ON THE TRICKY - TORTURE SCENES
8. ADVENTURES IN WRITING
9. NOTEWORTHY NOVELS
10. STORYBOOKING LINGO 101
11. ASK GRUNO
12. NEW ARRIVALS
13. THIS WEEK'S ROUNDUP – 7/13
14. SHAMELESS PLUGS
15. SUBSCRIBERS

HAPPY CAMPERS
written by Blackwood < PM: >

Winter is in the air but the YWS'er have grudgingly decided that this is the time for CAMPING!? (Well of course unless you live in the northern hemisphere, where they do everything backwards, so perhaps it's summer.)
If you haven't heard about it yet then fear not, it's not too late! Too late for what? You ask. Well, Camp YWS of course!

Hosted by the innovative @Lauren2010, Camp YWS is the place to be next week. One week is just about at its end, but you can sign up for participation in the camp next week. Just head over to Camp YWS Main Lodge and sign up on the forums. But without further ado, what is this camp all about?

Upon signing up for week one, the campers were divided into cabins: Firefly and Sycamore. Each cabin has a couple of camp councilors to guide and encourage them along their (non-outdoors) adventure. The Cabins run a variety of activities for their participants, including scavenger hunts, review races, and silliness. But the most important of all is the Camp Project, where each cabin must come up with a project to help out YWS in a special way. According to both the councilors and the participants, coming up with a project is a slow process, but there seem to be lots of brilliant and creative ideas swimming about. The interviewee's seemed reluctant to mention these projects specifically, but surely we are in for an exciting surprise over the weekend when they are carried out.

Overall the participants in the camp seem to be very pleased with how Camp YWS is progressing. I interviewed four members, two participants and two councilors, to see what they had to say.

@megsug describes her role as a camp councilor:



   


However the participants seem to disagree with this statement. @FatCowSis says



   


and @ongoeslife confirms this by saying



   


The camp on the whole seems not to be particularly competitive, and mainly just for fun. However for those with a fighting side, fear not, there is still some competition to be held. As FatCowSis says, it's her favourite part.



   


@Aley confirms this by saying



   


Earlier in the week Lauren also hosted a campfire event in chat. The turnout, however, didn't seem to be too fantastic: none of my interviewees participated in the fun. Hopefully we can change that next week.

So let's look forward to what the Campers have planned for the rest of YWS this weekend. Make sure to check out the Main Lodge and sign up for next week’s camp.

This week’s councilors were @Aley, @megsug, @AriaAdams, and @Lauren2010. However next week there may be a fresh set of councilors. 

If you want to see some extended interview questions about how much the campers enjoyed this event then please refer to spoiler below.

REVIEW SPOTLIGHTwritten by megsug < PM: >

I’ve been searching through the reviews this week to find one that I think goes above and beyond reviewing duty to feature in Squills, and it seems like I’ve finally found one. @ThereseCricket wrote a marvelously helpful review for @NerdBird on their work Found . The entire review is in spoilers below, but even if you’re not keen on reading it, I’ll be picking out a few fragments of her review so I can explain what makes it so great.





   


Therese starts out with a positive comment. While most users want to know what they can improve on, they’re also attached to their work. What you’re reviewing is something they put time and effort into. They may be a little more open minded to your opinions and advice if you start out with something you thought they did well.



   


She gives the user advice on how to improve what they’re already doing well. Just because a user is fairly good at an aspect of writing doesn’t mean there’s no room to improve.  Tell them they’re doing a good job and, if you think you have a tip that could make a good thing even better, tell them.



   


She notices a legitimate problem and gives a simple solution. While it is helpful to point out what a user could improve upon, offering solutions will keep the user from repeating the mistake in the future.



   

She noted a flaw and offered the user an alternative. Most of the time, the user won’t use the alternative you give, but by offering an alternative you’re giving the user an example. You’re making what you think is wrong clear. An alternative is more of a device to get the user thinking on how to fix the problem more than a fix to the problem.

In general, ThereseCricket mixed nitpicks with general comments which gives the user issues to edit immediately and issues to work on in future works. ThereseCricket gave advice for everything she pointed out or gave an alternative for what the user could do. She included positive notes in her reviews and had a positive tone throughout the review.

That’s one way to create a good review.

If you come across any stellar reviews in your YWSing this week, please PM @megsug with a link to the review and the reasons why you think it deserves to be spotlighted. 

FEATURED MEMBER INTERVIEW WITH GREENLIGHT24

written by Defyingravity01  < PM:  >

Featured members are always exciting, aren’t they? I’m especially excited about the newest featured member, @GreenLight24. It’s not anything against the other FMs, but this particular YWSer is a huge fan of The Great Gatsby. He also has a great personality and gives awesome reviews. So, as usual, here is the interview with your new featured member!



Greenlight24: Hi, there! As a matter of fact I do, old sport!



G: Sure, no problem! Well, my first reaction was to continue to take bites out of the IN-N-OUT burger I was eating. Then came the surprise stage. Where it was like "Hey, this is cool, I'm featured member!" A few minutes after that I was like "Hm, that's a lot of wall posts." and "Er, so many notifications." 



G: Well, I certainly take pride in my reviewing. I feel like I'm pretty well-suited for reviewing all kinds of works. I really like to analyze things,especially literature. I often overanalyze, but I feel like reviewing allows me to do just that without any limits.



G: Well, I’d like to think I’m a pretty great human being. I mean, outside of the internet, I just love people, so it only makes sense that I’d want to carry that over into anything i do online. Especially when it comes to the passionate community of writers here on YWS 



G: No problem.

As short as the interview was, sometimes being FM is just that simple. Just review, help out the community, and be nice. Of course, there are many other ways to get involved like Storybooks, Contests and even Squills! So just get involved and achieve your goals on YWS. That’s all for this week.

XOXO,
Gravity

KNIGHTS OF THE AFTER WATCH, WE SALUTE YOUwritten by BlueAfrica < PM: >

Review Day is the time of month when enthusiastic YWSers clear the Green Room of all literary works. We gear up and kick the Green Room’s butt until it’s weakened and empty.

But always, within a few hours, our old enemy regains its strength. A trickle of new works turns into a flood. Before we know it, the Green Room is so full that the price of posting a new literary work skyrockets to 500 points.

Luckily, the valiant Knights of the Green Room have formed a legion of review to keep the enemy at bay. Dubbed the After Watch, this brave battalion strives to hold the number of Green Room works at fifteen for as long as possible after the month’s Review Day.

Last month, the After Watch held the front lines for seven days and three hours. Here to speak to us about this fantastic feat of daring do is After-Watch creator @Hannah.



Hannah: As I mentioned in the thread, I think most people who eagerly participate in Review Day know that once it's finished, it's kind of sad to see the Green Room fill up again right away. Also, I wanted members of the KotGR to start coming up with more orders -- smaller groups within the larger groups for Knights with different interests.



H: Combining both seemed to naturally work, so I whipped up a few graphics and asked who would fight alongside me.



H: No particular reason! We just needed a number that was not so low we'd lose if we took a break for a bit, but not so high that we'd feel overwhelmed if we started reaching that limit and give up right away.



H: It was awesome and totally beyond my expectations! I thought we'd be counting by hours, but then a full day had passed, then we were still clear on Wednesday... I mean, usually the Green Room fills up that same day, just hours after Review Day, so to have a week of relative peace was an awesome feat and everyone who participated was a rockstar!



H: Oh yeah! Plus the Green Room seems to be mostly behaving pretty well afterward, too. We're only up to about 35 or so works, which is much better than the 100 or so that have set off High Volume Alerts the past few months. Hopefully we don't see a high posting price come out this July?!



H: Well, technically anybody can join in the mission and keep an eye on the Green Room after review day, but to be listed in the roster, you'll have to first become a Knight of the Green room and pledge yourself to the After Watch order!



H: Those who actually participate by giving at least one review during our battle time receive the After Watch badge for their profile.



H: Yes! And since they're Knights of the Green Room, all the reviews they do in the heat of battle also count toward the other badges they can earn!



H: We won't let you down!

To learn more about the Knights of the Green Room, go here: Knights of the Green Room

If you are already a Knight and wish to join the After Watch in their battle against high post-prices, go here: The After Watch

TWO CENTS: EXPLORING FLOWwritten by Aley  < PM: >
 

 
Hi everyone! Time for a new column here at Squills. Each week I'll be writing about building blocks to poetry. This week, we'll look at flow.
 
Flow is something easy to get into but difficult to get out of. It can be supplemented with rhyme and counting your syllables, but mostly it has to do with meter. There are some great articles hidden in the Resources' Knowledge Base such as @Hannah's lovely Secret Treasures in Poetic Devices , which goes through not only meter (also called beat), which this article will be covering, but also rhyme and alliteration.
 
Here is what she says about meter.
 

 


 
She goes on into the technicalities of names for sets of stressed and unstressed syllables, but for us, the important thing is that meter is about syllabic stress. Sometimes discovering the stressed syllables can be really hard, and that is part of what we'll work with in this article.
 
Let's try it out. Instead of picking a flow first, I'd like you to pick a sentence. For this activity, I suggest you make one up. We're going to go from that sentence to something that's a bit more formal. In other words, we'll practice editing in flow.
 
Like any good symphony, we have to start out slow, so I'm going to go with the sentence:
 

 
Ok, so maybe that's not quite so simple. My sentence has a lot of parts to it. Yours might too, or it might not. So first thing first: read your sentence out loud. See what your tongue wants to say instead of what it reads on the page. Do you have any parts in your  sentence that sound really heavy? What about parts that sound louder, or  longer, or have more emphasis?
 
If we're looking at flow, "suspect once" has a lot of weight. "Once" is stressed, "Mice", and "-spect-" are also stressed. The flow around "lived with us" is something of a tongue twister. 
 
Some of the things we can do with tongue twisters is remove words that are too similar, change the words slightly, or rearrange the sentence. In this case, I've changed a word by removing "didn't" and adding a similar word as a replacement. Then I looked for extra words that I could remove to clean up the sentence.
 

 
Now, let's check our flow again. Read your sentence out loud now that you've changed a few things. Play with words as you edit; try dropping and adding words. For me, it's getting better, but I still don't like the stack at the end of the sentence which is the same meter twice. So what I'm going to do is create that meter as an introduction and a conclusion. Because adverbs and prepositions can move around sentences so easily, they are great for changing the flow. 
 

 
The other choice I have is:
 

 
Because it's a more interesting conundrum that the house is the reason the individuals never suspected mice lived with them, I'm going to stick with the first option. If we move on to looking at sections that are similar, we have "lived with us" which is similar in meter to "in that house" and "all those years," but "I never suspected" is different. Because of this imbalance (3 vs. 1), I'm just going to chop off one of the modifiers. 
 

 
Now, here's the tricky part. Continue the rhythm. I know that modifying phrases can create the meter well, but I also know it's a repetitious three that helps support it, with a set of four words in the middle. I'm going to re-read my sentence and try to continue on with the meter and the story. Do the same with your own line and see how far you can get. Remember, just let the sentences come to you, and don't worry too much if you don't meet your goal right away.
 

 
As you can see, I didn't really succeed in doing three, four, three, but I did manage to get something that has the three in it. "So much dust" is another grouping like "lived with us," and it almost rhymes, so that helps with the flow. However, I think I can improve upon this a little by editing. By going back through and following the same basic things I did earlier--re-read, move things around, exchange, and remove--I've ended up here.
 

 
Another really helpful thing to use is a refrain, like I did at the end. These can not only keep you in a similar ballpark for your meter, but if you create a turn in your poem, you might end up really shocking people as you add some depth to the original line.
 
If you're joining us from across the void in the World of Prose, or you're visiting home, I hope you enjoyed Two Cents.

HOW TO WRITE A LETTER OF APOLOGYwritten by Defyingravity01  < PM: >

We all fall flat on our faces. And more often than not, we end up offending somebody in the process. I’ve had to write them, as embarrassing as they are to write, and chances are you will too. So this is my How To on writing a letter of apology.

Letters of apology are great. They allow you to tell someone you’re sorry, but they mean more than just spoken words. Naturally people tend to believe something more if it’s in writing and not passed on verbally. They also look professional when they are genuine and provide an actual record of you making amends. However, if not done correctly, letters of apology can sometimes seem insincere, or not sincere enough. If you go overboard with them, they sound frantic and scattered and just end up making the receiver even more annoyed and angry than before. So here is how to properly write a letter of apology.

The first step is your introduction. Explain the events of what happened. I’m just going to use an example from my personal life. I cheated on a History quiz at one point because the stress of grades was getting to me. So I wrote an apology to my History teacher and I asked him to change my grade on the quiz. My introduction looked like this.

Dear Mr. Hahn,

Last Friday I did something I really regret. I cheated on the quiz we took that day by writing in the right answers as you went over the answer sheet. As a result of what I did, I got a 100% on the quiz and as I’m sure you agree, that was not the grade I deserved to get.

I stated what I did, and what happened as a result of it. The next paragraph should be used to explain why you did what you did. Explain the fault you had and if others had fault, explain that without being rude. Just tell it like it is. My next paragraph looked like this:

I know this is no excuse and I am not justifying what I did. I know what I did was wrong. I cheated on the quiz because the stress of making good grades was getting to me. I was afraid of what I would get on the quiz if I didn’t cheat. I also noticed that my other peers were cheating as well. At the time, seeing what others were doing made me feel better about my actions. For the past few days however, the guilt has really been eating at me and I felt the need to confess.

Lastly, you need to let the person know that you’re willing to accept the consequences of what you have done. Depending on the person, you could make a suggestion as to what you think the consequences should be. This is what my last paragraph looked like:

The grade I would’ve gotten on the quiz was a 0%. That’s also the automatic grade school policy gives to students who cheat. This is the grade I deserve and I would appreciate it if you switched it out with the current grade. Although I already told my parents, I would completely understand if you decided to write me up and/or call my parents. I accept full responsibility for what I did and I assure you that it will never happen again.

Sincerely,
(Insert Gravity’s real name)

Make sure you make it clear that what you did won’t happen again. The receiver of your letter needs to be aware that you don’t intend to repeat the same mistake again. 

No offense guys but I hope I never have to receive one of these letters from any of you. I also hope that I never put myself in the position where I’d have to send one of you guys a letter like this. Regardless, this is a good tool to know for future scrapes. I hope you enjoyed this How To.

XOXO,
Gravity

TIPS ON THE TRICKY - TORTURE SCENES



written by AriaAdams  < PM: >


Welcome to TotT, where I shall try to identify and discuss tricky situations many writers tend to encounter, and give tips on how to deal with them.


Everyone knows of them. Sooner or later, there comes that moment when a writer realises not everything in the life of their character - even the MC, even the favourite one - can be perfect, and that just a bit of pain and suffering is what their story is missing. When those moments come, they tend to result in most interesting torture scenes - but, as many other fabulous things, they tend to be particularly tricky to write well.

Hopefully these tips will help you out a little bit. I've even arranged them into a list this time.

* Keep it realistic - Of course, realistic within the lines of the world you're setting it in. There can be otherworldly methods or devices, even otherworldly characters, but if your scene doesn't have a certain level of realism - or rather, believability - your reader will not take it seriously. Even if your torturer has a way to delete all the scars or heal all the injuries right away, allowing them to continue without taking a break, it should end sooner or later. Even if your character is really strong, sooner or later they'd break. And most importantly, perhaps, remember to show us what your character feels, regardless of whose POV you're writing the scene from. The readers want to taste the tears, hear the shaky breaths and feel the pain with your character - and to do that, your responsibility is to keep it believable and balanced.

* Everyone has a limit - Let me stress this once again. Everyone has a limit. Regardless of how strong your character is, how much they've been through, how much they yet have to go through, everyone has a limit. It might change throughout the story, it might not be apparent at all from the beginning, it might be completely unexpected, but it's there. This doesn't necessarily mean they will die or give up completely - although it could – but it does mean that there will be a moment in which your character won't be able to take it – consciously or not - and it will show. A scream, a tear, a movement or words; in one way or another, it will show. And if your torturer is an experienced one, they will know - and press harder.

* Torture isn't always physical - This, I believe, is something most people are aware of, but most definitely worth mentioning anyway. Surely knives and torches and blood are interesting enough, but sometimes your character simply can't afford to be physically hurt in the following scenes. Sometimes physically hurting a person doesn't fit your torturer character. Sometimes, maybe, they're not even in the same room. There are plenty of ways to achieve similar effect without lifting a finger; from threats, silence and mere presentations of one's torture instruments, to deals, conditions and even memories, mental torture can have equally - if not more - devastating powers over the victim, without any fancy device used and without a single drop of blood spilled.

* Pain isn't necessarily the main inspiration - "But what if the torturer is simply sadistic?" You ask. Well of course, there are people who like inflicting pain on other people - but those people will still have their own backstories and reasons, however unusual and immoral they might seem to others. If your character is simply into hurting others, and doesn't want to gain anything at all from the person they're torturing, then why that specific person? Or if it didn't matter and they just randomly snatched that one, how comes it doesn't matter to them at all? What do they think about while they're doing it, what do they feel, how did they come up with it and when or why did they start? All those questions, and quite a few more, should be answered before venturing into the realm of writing torture scenes. Naturally, they don't all need to be answered in the story, especially not by the torturer in front of his victim - but you should know them.

* Make it matter - I have a feeling this will be something I'll be repeating a lot in this column. Much alike with the backstories, which I spoke about the last time, as well as many other things, torture scenes aren't and shouldn't be there just for your entertainment. I for sure know how amusing, even liberating, can it be to put your character(s) through torture of some kind, but don't forget that, as a writer, you have obligations towards both your readers and your characters. Thinking up the most sadistic scene to brag with, which has little or no connection with the plot, world or the characters, only makes you look like a showoff. There is nothing wrong with an imaginative torture scene - in fact, I salute anyone who really comes up with one while keeping it believable - but don't lose yourself and forget that it's nothing but another scene, meant to push your story forward and develop your character. Which leads me to the next, although rather brief point:

* It happened. - Simply put, no one (unless their memories got erased, but even then it would have consequences) walks away from a torture scene like nothing happened. Of course, this might be different for the person doing the torture, as it might be the job they do on a daily basis - however, even then their character would have surely undergone certain changes during their lifetime. Scenes like these, no matter how drastic they were or of what nature, will leave a scar on your character's personality as well as body (although the latter not necessarily). It doesn't all have to be obvious right away - but sooner or later, your character will feel consequences, from dreams or strange reflexes to pain or even annoyance by injuries which refuse to heal, but don't ignore this. It's a wonderful way to develop your character, for better or for worse, so use it wisely and welcome it with open arms.

* Make it end - Or in other words, know your pace and know where to stop. This too ties quite closely with the rule of everyone having a limit, although not necessarily. Sometimes, your character will be particularly strong - or particularly weak. Sometimes, the torturer will want to get more information or punish them further, but remember that nothing can last forever. When writing these scenes, you're not only presenting traits of your characters and moving the plot forward - you're affecting your readers, too. There is a general rule for activity leaders which basically says to stop and change the game while the kids are still having fun and enjoying it. This very much applies to scenes of torture as well. If it's too short and rushed, they will seem like not much of a deal, and your reader will have troubles understanding it and feeling it with your character. Make it, however, too long, and your reader will grow bored. After a certain point, even with all your imagination poured into it, your reader will want to move on with the story, and a neverending torture won't help with that - too many interesting tricks and methods, in fact, will really just cancel each other out and leave your reader with that feeling of being full, but not satisfied by the snack you just had.


Finally, I have talked to two people - @queerelves and @Leahweird - about their experience with torture scenes. Here's what they had to say...




Queerelves:I do. It's been too long since I've written a proper torture scene, though. I need to get back to writing those again.

Leahweird:Occasionally. I don’t write them very well because I chicken out.




Elves: I think I probably wrote my first torture scene a couple years ago. It was in a roleplay, and it was probably horribly written. I think I was writing a guy named Alex, and he was fond of knives, but I don't remember much else from it.

Leah: Yes, but it’s not on YWS. (A person who thought he was an archangel was torturing a “sinner”).




Elves: Oh, hm. Aside from some BDSM scenes, the last torture scene I wrote was kind of an alternate ending to a novel. It was the end of a war, and one country captured the ruling family of another country and tortured them and all of their close friends/family. The creepy, sadistic ruler was the one doing the torturing, and he made them choose in which order they would all die. It was pretty depressing, but fun to write. I wish I had saved it.

Leah: Yes. I have a character to loves to torture his baby brother. :s




Elves:  A good torture scene is just the right length, and it has realistic interaction. "Show don't tell" is important, and I think it always helps to include thoughts/emotions of the people involved.

Leah:  I think a good scene is one that causes actual tension. Makes the reader empathetic.




Elves: I think the biggest problem people have when writing torture scenes is knowing how to handle the characters. They often make the torturer seem like a cheesy villian, and they don't have the one being tortured react appropriately. Though to be fair, it's hard to know how someone would really act in that situation. I also think that people drag them out too long sometimes.

Leah: Using gratuitous violence when (in my opinion) it’s meant to be psychological. No reason to torture someone if they pass out from blood loss or go into shock.




Leah: Terry Pratchett of all people. Comedy writers can be scary (Small Gods is the best example I can think of.)

Elves: I don't- actually, that's a lie. I have a friend who's a phenomenal writer, and she does fantastic torture scenes. She was probably one of the best people I've ever roleplayed with. She was really creative, and her writing was phenomenal. She doesn't have an account here, but she's on Archive of Our Own (a fanfiction site) under the name elliptical.


Thank you both for your time!


Every week, I shall cover a different tricky situation. We've all encountered them at least once, whether it be about writing villains or first kisses, making emotions or reactions seem believable, scenes fading to black at precisely the right moment or writing in a POV of a person who can't experience the world through one or more of the senses. If you have a tricky situation, or have found yourself hitting a wall on how to write some scene in your story or novel, and you'd like to see if I could help, feel more than free to PM me with your question or request!

Until then, see you next week, when I'll talk about characters and self harm.

ADVENTURES IN WRITINGwritten by BlueAfrica < PM: >

Welcome back to Adventures in Writing! In case you’re just joining us, we’re in the midst of a short series on writing Strong Female Characters.

Now, to be honest with you, I’m not a big fan of that phrase -- “Strong Female Characters
-- if only because it’s been hacked to death by well-meaning writers whose SFCs have become clichés or failures. It’s the only phrase I have, however, and it’s one we all recognize. Just understand that what I mean by “Strong Female Character” is everything we’ve outlined so far in this series: a woman with depth, motivation, and the ability to deal when the going gets tough. She is a real woman, her own woman, instead of a helpless damsel or mindless sex object.

This week, let’s take a look at some female character types who appear to be this way but aren’t actually up to snuff.

The faux action girl. Is your female character built up as a strong, skilled woman in dialogue and flashbacks, only to become a damsel in distress or an otherwise useless character in moments of crisis when she appears in a scene? Watch out: you might have a faux action girl rather than a Strong Female Character.

The faux action girl is a character who is hyped up as strong and skilled. Through the dialogue or thoughts of other characters, we find out that she is handy with a sword, a master of karate, and once defeated a hundred armed gunmen single-handedly with no weapons but a ring and a ponytail. Whenever she appears on the page, however, she fails to use any of the skills we’ve heard so much about. If she does use them, they’re ineffective, rendering her an ultimately helpless damsel.

Now, this can be used to an effect. In The Book Man, for example, I have a male character who is essentially a faux action girl (or boy, in this case). Prior to his first appearance, he is built up as a great leader and warrior who once led his people to victory over the villain. When we finally meet him, however, it turns out that he’s a drunk. Thus, rather than providing my MC with the easy out of having a more experienced character  take things over, I’ve provided him with another problem.

Of course, my faux action girl (or boy) has a reason for not being the great warrior we believed he would be: his alcoholism. This is what separates a purposeful faux action girl from a girl who is simply incompetent despite her previous history of greatness—and, even if used to an effect, the faux action girl is not a Strong Female Character.

Some famous faux action girls:
Kate, from the BBC series “Robin Hood”
Glimmer, from The Hunger Games

The Mary Sue. Most of you are probably familiar with this one, but for those of you who aren’t, allow me to explain. A Mary Sue is a character who is perfect. She is often (though not always) flawlessly beautiful; descriptors are usually exotic or include clichés like “ebony hair,” or “ruby-red lips.” She rises to any challenge that’s thrown at her throughout the course of her story, because she is good at everything. She faces few real problems, and her only character flaw—if she has any at all—is a quirky trait disguised as a flaw, clumsiness, for example. She lacks character development or is developed poorly.

Why would anyone write a character this way? The general consensus is that a Mary Sue is a character meant to be a perfect version of the author, a form of wish fulfillment. However, in the case of the Strong Female Character, Mary Sues occur as a result of trying to make a character intended as strong superior to everyone else in the story.

There are two problems with this:

1.   While Mary Sues are portrayed as wonderful people, it can be hard to find proof of their supposed awesomeness. Take, for example, Bella Swann (as she is in the first Twilight book). Multiple boys fall for her and ask her to prom, but there is no apparent reason for their attraction, considering that she has described herself as plain-looking and clumsy and barely interacts with her classmates. If that was all it took to attract boys, I think we all would’ve had a lot less trouble finding dates in high school.

2.   Mary Sues are unrelateable. Real people are not flawlessly beautiful and good at everything, and neither is a Strong Female Character. Your SFC should be able to fend for herself in some way and not end up relegated to the role of helpless female—but she shouldn’t be perfect. Otherwise, your readers will find it hard to sympathize with her or even cheer her on. What’s the point in rooting for a character whom you know will succeed because she’s completely invincible?

Some famous Mary Sues:
Bella Swann, the Twilight series
Meggie, the Inkheart trilogy

The wasted Strong Female Character. This is probably the most difficult failed SFC to avoid, because she is, in essence, still an SFC. The wasted Strong Female Character has it all: a detailed backstory, her own agenda, boss skills but also character flaws. Your audience loves her, and so do you.

At some point in the story, though, she loses her mojo. Either she disappears, never to be seen again—except perhaps to congratulate the hero when he defeats the villain—or transforms into an inactive love interest or helpless damsel, relying on the males around her for rescue.

Unlike the faux action girl, we have seen the wasted SFC in action. Rather than hearing about her awesomeness second-hand, only to see her fail at every given opportunity, we get to watch as she kicks butt and moves the plot forward. Thus, she really is a Strong Female Character…but she’s a Strong Female Character whose potential is ultimately wasted.

This was an issue with one of my characters in the previous draft of The Book Man. She was well-developed and lovable in the first half of the book, but toward the end she shrank into insignificance except as the MC’s love interest. Admittedly, this was in large part because she sustained a serious injury that kept her from going into battle with the others. Then I realized that a male character with a much more serious injury, who had, in fact, been amputated earlier that day, goes into battle despite his wounds… so there was really no excuse for my female character to be left behind. If you pay attention to things like this, your Strong Female Character is less likely to be wasted.

Some famous wasted characters:
Valka, “How to Train Your Dragon 2”
WyldeStyle, “The Lego Movie”

It may seem impossible to avoid writing a failed SFC, with all these possibilities of failure thrown at you. But as long as you show your girl’s skills in-scene, write her as a fully-developed character, and give her a purpose in the story, you can avoid the three big falsies.

Come back next week for part 4 of our series: tricks for writing Strong Female Characters.

Who are some of your favorite females? Join the discussion here.

TVTropes: Faux Action Girl

TVTropes: They Wasted a Perfectly Good Character

We’re Losing All Our Strong Female Characters to Trinity Syndrome

NOTEWORTHY NOVELS

written by JamesHunt < PM: >

There are a great many novels in the "All Literary" section, and as I have said previously, it is extremely easy for a work to disappear amongst the churning masses. I have therefore returned with another edition of Noteworthy Novels with the hope of saving another work from the black abyss.

Acquaintances of mine often complain about how more and more vampire/werewolf novels, films or series appear to be poor imitations of a well-known work. Personally, I don't really read those kinds of story, but during the past Copa do Revisao, I came across a highly original and entertaining novel, The Prevailing Darkness, by one @fight4whatisright, belonging to that plagued genre. I decided that I simply had to share it with you.

Australia is infamous for its wide range of poisonous and generally lethal creatures; not only do they have the world's deadliest snake, but also the world's most venomous fish and jellyfish. It should therefore not be surprising that more than just vicious spiders are to be found in Queensland...

Alexis has reached a metaphorical bottom in her life. Not only does she have to deal with the usual adolescent's problems such as popularity and school work, but she has lost a loving father and must now live with an abusive step-dad instead. Worst of all, she is powerless to do anything to improve the situation, since he is the one who pays the mortgage on the house and provides for their family. Alexis has tried to convince her mother to leave him, but to no avail, and her obnoxious twin sister does nothing to alleviate her burden.

When returning home from an escapade with some of her friends, Alexis notices a dark figure on a neighbour's roof. This figure then disappears, but in the days thereafter, he - or rather it - seems to be stalking her. Of more immediate concern, however, is the naked girl Alexis had found in the bush who appears to be a werewolf. Her life then spirals out of control, what with the ever-increasing nightmares and brutally murdered victims. Finally, even her mind is no longer a sanctuary, for she finds that she can hear other people's thoughts as if they were her very own. And things only seem to be getting worse...

It is at times like those when the reader may wonder, "How can an author be so cruel?" Being an author myself, I should say we either distance ourselves from the character or we suffer along with them. Writing is not simply creating disaster after disaster for your character, as I am sure fight4whatisright can confirm.



fight4whatisright: I would love to!



f4: It feels like I was born to write. I've been writing stories for as long as I can remember, and The Prevailing Darkness is my first full-length novel, now standing at around 67000 words and counting. At a young age I resolved to be a published author, and that goal keeps me going, along with the overwhelming passion and joy that I have for writing. My mind is constantly flowing with ideas, especially when I'm out and about exploring new places/trying new things/meeting new people, so I'm rarely stuck for words or inspiration.



f4: My favourite thing to do with my friends is rent horror movies and buy loads of lollies and have a horror movie marathon and junk food binge at my house. On one of these nights, we were watching Silent Hill, and a darkness kind of swept over the town, and I said in an ominous voice "Ooooh, darkness is prevailing!...Holy sh**, that's an awesome name for a novel! The Prevailing Darkness!" and then I dived for my phone shouting about how I needed to write it down before I forgot it. My friends got mad at me for interrupting the movie.



f4: Not at all, I grew up with werewolf movies and Buffy The Vampire Slayer so its not foreign to me at all. I recently decided that to avoid all the negative stigma surrounding vampire/werewolf novels I wanted to change what they were, create a similar monster of my own but with a different name. The hardest part was coming up with a different name for vampires.



f4: Much like my main character, Alexis, I would be a pure white wolf with startling blue eyes, as in real life I am rather pale with blue eyes.



f4: I don't have one. To be honest I haven't even read a lot of vampire/werewolf novels. I think the whole reason I started writing The Prevailing Darkness was because all the vampire/werewolf novels out there just weren't really my thing, so I wrote the type of novel I wanted to read.



f4: Read, a lot. Soak up the words of authors who are better than you, soak up their style and brilliance, and you too can be like them. Also, the internet is a wealth of writing tips, go ahead and google it and you will learn plenty.

Wise words spoken by a brilliant author. So, if you have a certain idea of what a particular genre should be, why not write your own story? Go ahead; you'll never succeed if you don't try! Your novel might even make an appearance here...

STORYBOOK LINGO 101 written by AfterTheStorm  < PM: >

In case you’re new to Storybooking or need a refresher, I’ve compiled a nonsensical list of vocabulary words every Storybooker should keep in their back pocket.

Let’s begin with the most important terms…

Storybook- 1. noun an incredibly fun way to interact with YWSers while, at the same time, improving your writing skills by collaborating on a story. Similar to RPG.

2. verb to Storybook is the act of participating in a Storybook. example: @Omniclysm loves to Storybook all day because he has no other goals in life. (Just kidding, Omni. Kind of.)

SB- noun an abbreviation of the term “Storybook” which came into use due to the fact that most people are too lazy to type out the full word.

Discussion Topic- noun a place where all the evil plotting to a specific SB take place. (Beware the plot bunnies!)

   

DT- noun an abbreviation of the term “Discussion Topic” because it takes too long to write the extra fifteen characters. example: “@Carina, have you checked out the DT to The Royal Court of Finrae?” asked @AfterTheStorm.

Now that you understand the basics, let’s move on to some more fundamentals…

The Storybook Archives- noun the dreaded abyss where dead or completed Storybooks are collected in a forum; a Storybook creator’s worst nightmare, found here.



Mary Sue/Larry Stu- noun obnoxious little boogers that pop up time to time in a story. Mary Sues and Larry Stus are characters who seem practically perfect in every way (not to be confused with Mary Poppins), and who are quite difficult to handle in a SB. They cause for a boring plot. examples: Bella Swan, Nancy Drew, Eragon, James Bond, Clary Fray, the list goes on and on.

The Storybook Crew- noun the greatest mod team of all YWS, and @Meshugenah knows it’s true but doesn’t want to admit it. Isn’t that right, @Rydia? example: Mary Sue researched the definition of amazing in the dictionary, and found that “The Storybook Crew” was the first example given.

The Official Storybook- noun a monthly Storybook started by a member of the SB Crew, in which anyone is welcome to join in the fun! (The current Official Storybook is Once Upon a Time)

Now let’s head into some technicalities… (Hooray!)

OOC- adjective meaning “Out of Character”, describing the type of discussion occurring. An “OOC” discussion is when one writes as their usual self. example: OOC posting should be posted in the DT.

IC- adjective meaning “In Character”, describing the type of discussion occurring. An “IC” discussion is when one writes from the perspective of the character they are portraying in the SB.

Godmodding- verb the single most irritating thing anyone could possibly do in a Storybook, besides stealing all the chocolate. Godmodding is the act of taking control over someone else’s character without their consent. example: Pat Buchanan godmodded my character, Jon Snow, by knifing him to death without my permission.

Metagaming- verb to take information you learned out of character then implement said information IC; when a character manages to discover something incredibly un-obvious or knows something they really shouldn’t. While this term is not highly common, most Storybookers recognize its existence still.

Aria- noun @ariaadams, the Storybooking countess who may attempt to steal your soul. (Mine was traded for cookies, but it was worth it.)



Griff- noun @Griffinkeeper, the Storybook god who may also secretly be the Doctor… We have yet to discover proof against this theory.

Omni/AQ- noun @omniclysm. Who is this guy? If he could stop changing his usernames, maybe we would be able to tell. He also is responsible for holding a character in every single Storybook possible. >.<

Lumi- noun @Lumi, meh. *shrugs* He made a cool super-hero SB, I guess. (Totally joking, because he’s an awesome Storybooker.)

AfterTheStorm- noun the greatest, most wonderful, humblest person to ever walk this Earth.

That’s it for week! I hope this helped with the SB term confusion. Keep on Storybooking, and as always: Write on!

ASK GRUNOwritten by Gruno  < PM: >

Welcome to Ask Gruno, the advice column in which stuff happens. Gruno will answer any questions you throw at him, be it advice, personal opinion, solutions or philosophy. My cousin Pruno has been busy at the wonderful school for Pruno people, so I will be taking over the column. Every now and again, Pruno may make an appearance, so never fear! May the question answering commence!

And, as a special announcement, I received more than 4 questions this week. Thank you guys so much for trusting me with your questions. Please keep it up because without your conundrums, this column can’t exist.

Gruno,
How old are you?
-Bob

Dear Bob,
Older than dirt.
-Gruno

Gruno,
What is the best way to build a flying machine?
-The Fiend

Dear Fiend,
I have no idea. Why would I know how to build a flying machine when I have a pet pegasus?
-Gruno

Gruno,
I haven't worn many skirts in my life, but due to a bout of summer boredom, I sewed two of them. They are pleated, and I would like to wear them on a regular basis. What sort of clothes could I pair them with (for casual street-wear)?
-The Unlady-like One

My Dear TULO,
It really depends on the skirts. The color and the cut as well as your figure type. The safest way to go is a close fitting t shirt or tank top with flats. If you like the nerdy/hipster look, you could wear one of the skirts with a white t shirt and add some colorful suspenders. If you do the suspenders idea though, I would suggest wearing converse or high tops with the skirt. 
-Gruno

written by Blackwood < PM: >

Pruno,
Whenever a religious poem rolls into the Literary Spotlight, I always am conflicted with reviewing it, or ignoring it. The problem is that I usually don't see good reviews, just "This was so touching. Amen" type stuff. Do you think it is better to allow them to skate by with just critiques petting a sleeping dog, or review the poem and possibly get bitten by an angry bear?

- A-typically religious

Dear A-typically.
 I completely agree with you in your feelings about these poems. They do not deserve special treatment because they are religious, and most often these poems NEED the extra critique. You should not be afraid of giving the the butt-kicking reviews they deserve just because everyone else is fawning over them.

I have also noticed on the contrary, anything critiquing religion often gets a lot of crap from the religious people also. Most of their reviews are not so much 'reviews' but rather their disagreeing with the author and 'correcting' them, which very much annoys me on behalf of these poor authors. You don't see me going around to religious works and reviewing them and correcting them by informing them that they are all wrong and this and that and all, so it's not okay for the reverse either.

So go ahead and do your honest review on these works, do not be afraid of whoever is going to try bite you, because anyone who is so immature or naive that they can't take an honest or saucy review (religious or not) is not worth your time afterward. Do your review, and then ignore any snarly comments they or anyone else may propose.

-Pruno

Dearest Gruno/Pruno,

As of late, I've been mildly intrigued by the Bermuda Triangle. I was perhaps planning a trip there, along with a few other YWSians to conduct scientific research. Do you think that this is a foolish idea? I'm sure that there is no actual danger and all the disappearances in that area are surely coincidental. As well, if this journey does take place in three weeks time, would you mind accompanying us upon this adventure? Your handsomeness and intelligence are very much needed to bolster our efforts while researching. 

-dontlookintothelight

Dear Crazy People,
Before you go, I recommend you construct together a survival kit of all the unlikely outcomes. You are going to need anti-alien spray. Wear oxygen tanks at all time in case of random, uncalled for, sinking. Floatable suits of armour. Long distance radios on 50 different wavelengths. A giant delicious cake, so you can bring peace to any random nations of mini armies that you may accidentally wash up upon-
Oh forget it. It's your funeral. But there is no way that I'm coming along. Gruno may be easier to convince.

-Pruno


Well, that’s all we’ve got to say about that. As stated previously, if you have any questions please ask them. This column can’t survive unless you submit your conundrums. Asking more than one question is perfectly okay. We also just wanted to add that if I don’t answer your question this week, it’s not unlikely that we’ll answer it later on. Submit your questions here

NEW ARRIVALSwritten by Hannah < PM: >

Take a moment to welcome this week’s newest members to the site!
(Oh man, take one week off and look how many new friends there are to make...)

This week, instead of featuring individuals and their accomplishments, I’d like to talk about how amazing these new members are by groups of achievements.


First of all, we’ve got the new members already dominating on the monthly leaderboards:

@ccwritingrainbow has shot all the way up to second place with 68 reviews. Other new members @donizback, @ScarletDreams14, @Anabelle, @Authorian, and @LanguidLiger currently hold sixth, ninth, and twelfth through fourteenth with excellent buckets of reviews in numbers from 41 to 23. What are we oldies doing, you guys? Waiting for the new meat to completely replace us? Let’s spice up their shot for the top with a little competition, eh? Or at least congratulate and thank them for the awesome effort on their walls.


Secondly, we’ve had lots of new members participate in this year’s Christmas in July. Now, I can’t go around searching for every single member that sent a gift this weekend, but I’ll name a few of the lovely, generous participants as long as you keep in mind there were more secret Santas I didn’t stumble upon! Some of the gift senders included: @pinkflutegirl, @Amoniel, @GeoCha, @unpublishedperson, and @sophomoric. If you want, you might bother them on their walls to ask why they didn’t send you a gift yet, or give one first! Just ‘cause the event’s over doesn’t mean we have to stop being nice~


Lastly, several of our new members have already published their writing for reviews!

Check out Straight {Chapter One} by @ccwritingrainbow if you’re looking for a subtle beginning that is sorted under science fiction.

For another piece that starts out normal, but soon descends into fantastic excitement, browse Salamander Wings by @Sillia!

If you’d prefer poetry, check out this colorful piece, The Scarlet River by @Kendastic or perhaps an interesting prose-poetry splicing called Four by @nickstark195.

None of these good enough for you? Need something with a taste of Norse mythology? @AliceWonderland’s got just the piece for you, called A Song Named Alice .

THIS WEEK'S ROUNDUP – 7/13written by megsug < PM: >
 
[insert only moderately funny comment involving four links and how happy four links should make the world]


Have you ever felt like you would review so much more if you had a small being relying on your reviews for sustenance? That only slightly abnormal wish has just been granted by @AriaAdams. You can customize your little friend within the limits of reason. Of course, your Review Activity Eater needs something to live off of. Let Aria tell you about that:



   



RAE’s even have they’re own club that you’ll need to join to become an owner. I have a RAE. Do you?


In Christmas in July spirit, @Omniclysm wants to know whether @Santa C or @SantaYWS is the real Santa. Only one of the Santas have shown up so far with quite the challenge:

 

   



Which one is the imposter?


@Holysocks wants to have her socks scared off. (See what I did there?) Any story, poem, or song that can scare her has the chance to claim these wonderful prizes:

 

   



Go get your spook on.


If The Double Trouble Writing Huddle just isn’t getting you the writing partners you need, @TriSARAHtops has made the club for you. In this club you can tell people what kind of writing partner you’re looking for and project ideas you have that you would like a writing partner on. @Kelpies is on the hunt for a writing partner: