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. REVIEW SPOTLIGHT
2. FESTOONED: NEW STARS
3. COOKING UP THE GOOD STUFF
4. ADVENTURES IN WRITING
5. TWO CENTS: REFRAIN
6. ASKPRUNO
7. NEW ARRIVALS
8. THIS WEEK'S ROUNDUP - 7/27
9. SHAMELESS PLUGS
10. SUBSCRIBERS

REVIEW SPOTLIGHTwritten by megsug < PM: >

This week’s review showcases a poetry review. Poetry can be hard to review because it’s hard to know what to address. @magpie gave @thegirlwhowrites a great review on her work The Goodbye Party. The entire review is in spoilers below, but I’ll be picking out a few fragments of their review, so I can explain what makes it so great.








She addresses a question the user had, offers her own opinion, and gives her reasoning behind her opinion. If you’re going to include your opinion in your own review, be sure to give your reasons behind that opinion too. It’s not very valuable without the logic.






magpie chose not to try to cover every issue she saw in the user’s piece. Instead, she focuses on what she thinks the user could grow the most from. While reviews that cover several topics can be helpful, they can also be lengthy and sometimes a bit jumbled. It’s easier to keep one or two topics organized. You can also spend longer on one issue, going into depth about why it detracts from the work or what the user can do to improve. Also keep in mind, like works, if a review is too long, you could lose your reader. A good tip is to write your reviews in about fifteen minutes. That way, you’ll have enough good stuff to help the user, but it won’t be too long.






How you would rewrite a stanza, sentence, or paragraph can also be helpful to a user. It’s even more helpful if you add your reasoning to why you changed it like you did. If you’re going to use magpie’s technique be sure to give the user a key. That way, they’ll be able to tell what color means what. Your meaning will be clear, and no one will be confused.






magpie ends on a good note and summarizes all of her advice into a sentence. That’s kind of like an insurance policy on understanding if that makes sense. A quick summary (quick being no more than two brief sentences) of everything you’ve said gives the user another way to understand your information.

It should be pointed out that magpie didn’t mention grammar at all in her review accept to correct one tense mistake. As a reviewer of poetry, you should always keep in mind that capitalization and punctuation are stylistic choices that the poet can choose to use or not. A comment on how a poem doesn’t have any punctuation or has incorrect capitalization would more likely than not be a waste of time for the user.

This is one way to master the art of reviewing.

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.

FESTOONED: NEW STARSwritten by Hannah < PM: >

It takes a lot of time and effort to earn a new review star. There’s no way to forget that. Even when you’re only five reviews away (like I am), it can seem like there’s a long, long road between you and your new swag. In the mean time, why not celebrate with the YWSers that have been successful in reaching for the stars? Let’s take a look at this week’s profile.



Name: @windrattlestheblinds
Location: USA
Recently Acquired Star: Second yellow star

She may not like following outlines, but that doesn’t seem to be stopping windrattlestheblinds’s productivity. Not only is she sharing some of her work such as portions from a novel called Monachopsis , but she’s also writing absolutely show-stopping reviews and (speaking of shows) studying toward a degree in theater!

When I asked her what three things she’d like the members of YWS to know about her, she mentioned something about hating pizza, loving fandoms, and shared this story about her journey to literacy and creative writing.

COOKING UP THE GOOD STUFFwritten by Blackwood < PM: >


What happens when you want to cook something new and delicious but you just don’t know how to get it going?

As writers we know that every story has to begin somewhere. Any novel by the name of Flopper of Masterpiece has its roots. But sometimes after the initial notion of an idea in your mind it’s not as simple as just watching it cook itself. Some recipes never get completed, an some die only to be half finished. So now that you have this hunk of fresh meat ready for the preparation, how do you go about cooking it?

Recently I have noticed that quiet a few people around YWS have been beginning new novel or extended projects, so I set out to ask them about their experiences and see if it could shed some light on what makes your steak thoroughly cooked until the end, and what makes you accidentally abandon it on its stove top and light your house of fire. Or perhaps leave it on the bench for several stagnant weeks, when the rats come and chew it out of existence. So if you novel ends up burnt or rat poop, you may wonder why. You may ask yourself, Why couldn’t I cook my meat?

To start with, I asked out dear chefss, what made them decide to start a new dish around now?
@StrangeLove and @ancientforever attributed their hunger to boredom and free time, while @Pompadour said:





Now everyone likes their meals done different. If you are a rare sort of person, or the type of likes your bacon crisper than usual, then it’s still done, just to different degrees. The degree of cookedness isn’t what’s holding back the others from getting started cooking in the first place.

So came to the most important question I had to survey:

Are you struggling with the beginning, or did you dive right in?
The statistics were clear. Out of my nine interviews 77.7777777777% of them were struggling with the beginning, and only two of them jumped right into the writing. Does this show that so many writers are tentative in the creative kitchen?

What so many people worry about is being picky with their first draft. They pick and pick, perhaps put too much seasoning on to begin with, or maybe not enough to suit their tastes. Lets face it, the meat isn’t going to be cooked perfectly the first time, that is what the proceeding drafts are intended for. If you are beginning your first draft you shouldn’t be fussing about the quality of your bake, but rather about just getting it cooked at all, rather than leaving it to gather dust in the corner of your kitchen while you are so busy trying to figure out how to cook it perfectly. By then it will be so dusty you don’t be able to cook it. And I say that from experience.
The interviewees can also speak from the same perspective. Almost all of them (with the one expection of @Rosey%20Unicorn who had trained herself out of the habit after past experiences) had written their starting/first chapter at least twice or more times over

Of course, planning isn’t a bad thing, and many people tackle it differently, but I know personally for me it ends up failing miserably. I had a novel that has been sitting for five years in the oven but I haven’t even turned the oven on yet. I contemplated it, I planned it, I planned it 50 times over in 5 different ways. I added characters, changed characters, took names, did twists. But I never once started cooking it. Now that story is so old I can’t even imagine myself making a meal out of it.
But recently, I have been on a project rampage. And although it’s not everyone cup of tea, I hope that my thesis could possibly come in use for many others who are struggling to begin.



Almost everyone who I interviewed seemed to suddenly agree on this statement, and to those who don’t then I often challenge them, why did you spend 5 years planning it in the first place, because if it wasn’t too hard to begin you would have started it 4 years and 358 days ago. Because the longer you think about it, the harder it is to begin.
If direction is your style, take a day to plan a recipe, but if you spend a week brooding over your fresh meat, its going to start looking less and less appetizing to “Chapter 1” it.

The only solution that works for me is to go from the origin of the inkling of the idea and run with it. I think about it briefly, and think about it as I go, but the longer the recipe gets, the harder it will be to follow.

I asked out personal cooks the same question.

How long or how much time have you spent lulling over your ideas, thinking about them?
@Rurouni replied with:




@Strangelove says "Alot", @Pompadour "All the time" while @RavenMoonStone has had her idea since camp. Some of the greater culprites of leaving their food to ferment include @Flite who has "spent months pondering over an idea." and @Rosey%20Unicorn guilty admits to some ideas being 7+ years old.

May of my interviewees expressed woes at their first chapter, with the average number of times to have started again being 3-4 times without getting any further than the first chapter or so. As tempting as it is to mouth-water yourself over juicy images of what your steak could be, it’s never going to be that if you spend too long staring at those pictures. The more you think, the more you fuss, the more you brood, the less perfect your meat is always going to look every time you sneak a glance back at it.

So what am I saying? I’m talking to all you writers out there mulling over your beginnings. I’m talking to all you who keep trying to get everyone’s opinion on your ideas before you even begin. It’s time to start cooking.

Stop thinking. Start cooking.
Stop working on your meter long recipe before your project is too stale to use.
Stop worrying about how horrible the first draft is going to taste.

Just get it out there and go for it.

ADVENTURES IN WRITINGwritten by BlueAfrica < PM: >

Hello, and welcome to the fifth and final installment of our series on writing Strong Female Characters. In the past month, you’ve learned what Strong Female Characters are and aren’t, obliterated misconceptions you may have had about them, and learned some tricks for writing them.

This week, rather than lecturing at you myself, I’m going to finish up the series by letting your fellows YWSers tell you some of the things they want for gender representation in fiction.

@magpie says,






@Purple29 says,






@Masquerade says,






@Isha says








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

Adventures in Writing: Strong Female Characters—misconceptions
Adventures in Writing: Strong Female Characters—traits
Adventures in Writing: Strong Female Characters—false SFCs
Adventures in Writing: Strong Female Characters—tips for getting started

TWO CENTS: REFRAINwritten by Aley < PM: >

One of the most popular things in songs today is called the chorus. In a poem, that's called a refrain. Even novels and books deal with repetition when they add things like dreams that happen again and again, or foreshadowing through phrases that keep coming up.

Some of the ways that refrains can be used in poetry include to create more emphasis on something, to change a meaning of something over time through other word associations, and to create something that has no meaning at all through repetition. As usual with this column, these things can also be applied to other writings, like novels and essays, but mostly I'm going to be focused on poetry.

Let's try these together! Let's start out with the fun one, creating emphasis. If we take a normal poem like:



and make a refrain to emphasis the location, we could do that by making a refrain, or, if you really want to be tricky and avoid direct repetition, what I like to call a "slant refrain". Basically a "slant refrain" (There is probably an actual term out there somewhere) is sort of like a paraphrased line. You keep the same meaning, but use different words to say it. For now, we're just going to work with refrains, but it's something to keep in mind if you want to explore.

I have a few options. If I want to use the entire line "in the court yard was a horse" then I can either put it at the end, or between lines 2 and 3. I also have the option of just copying some of the line, for instance, "In the court yard" or "court yard" and making that a refrain. There's also that paraphrasing idea to create a refrain which I could utilize.



As you can see, I picked to only use part of the line, and added to the front of it in order to create an interesting emphasis on the location of the horse. The reason I chose this way was because of the length of the poem. If I had a longer poem, it would make more sense to repeat the whole line possibly, but also, starting with "In" limits my choices since it's a prepositional phrase.

Now let's try changing the meaning of a poem's refrained line like they do in villanelles. First, either use the same poem you used last time, or write a new poem to use, then consider what it is you want to emphasize, and what has the ability to change. I'll write something new since there's nothing that stands out as a huge change.



Can you guess what I'm going to change the meaning of? Since "I was happy then" is going to be something that's easy to change, I'm actually going to change the meaning of "Snow" to create a morbid re-read instead of an initial understanding.

With this refrain technique, I am actually going to add on to the poem and write in the refrain to the added part.



So with this I actually created a couple refrains to emphasize the change between snow being the cold flakes, to snow being ash. First, I did the repeat to remind the reader, and show them that this image is what's important, then I reminded the reader of different meanings of snow. Last, I added on an extra meaning, and actually used another refrain from a different part to create an image of "snow" in the wind. You'll have to be the judge to determine how I did with changing "I was happy then" to something more morbid on a second read through. Try something similar adding on to your poem and see if you can morph a line by using other lines as refrains.

Last our challenge is to make something so repetitive, it loses meaning. This is a problem that a lot of love poems have, so that will be my subject!



Here I started almost every line with "I love you" and then had a side conversation that continues through the poem as one sentence to not only lose emphasis on love, but to make the ending stronger, because google's definition is "an intense feeling of deep affection" which I work from the side conversation, and suddenly hopefully that means more than "I love you" by the end.

Have a really neat poem from one of these activities? Share them on YWS! We'd love to read them.

ASKPRUNOwritten by Blackwood < PM: >

Welcome to Ask Pruno.

I think Gruno has ditched me and now I am trapped answering questions for all you hobos again! *cough* I mean, how fare ye all lovely people! Is it not such a fine evening?

This week Pruno will answer a couple of questions that missed last week, as well as tackle a few new ones.

Last week we featured a number of prize worthy points. If you asked an anonymous question that won a prize, see last Squills issue to learn how to claim your prize if you have not done so already. We will begin with that horrid question that won the annoying question prize. I still haven’t been contacted about the points for this question, so after this issue of Squills is posted the asker will no longer be liable for the prize as the question reveals the answer.



Deer Pruno
I have understood that you don't believe in me, Deer Lord. I have only one thing to say: DEER LORD IS HERE TO STAY! MUWAHAHA!

So, do you want to go to lunch sometime? I don't eat meat, though.
-Deer Lord

Dear Deer Lord
You know, I think the fact you won the annoying question explains how I want to answer this. Also, I’m a fan of venison, if you fancy lunch at a salami factory.
-Pruno




Dear Pruno
Which Pokemon is the best one?
-Batman

Dear Batman

-Pruno




Pruno
I've had mixed experiences during my time here on YWS. I often feel ignored by the other users. I often go into The Lounge chat room and talk, but even then I don't feel accepted. I know that it's just a website, and I'll never really know any of these people... but still. When I'm here, I want people to know who I am. I see other users get plenty of wall activity, and they seem to be very popular. My question is, how do I get to be more noticeable, or more popular, here on YWS?
-man with a goldfish

Dear goldfish man,
Do not feel discouraged. I have noticed that a few people around the website, sometimes frequenting the chat room, seem to ignore newer members or ‘lesser’ members than themselves, and they don’t seem to realise that we can see pretty clearly how exclusive or ‘superior’ they are acting. Often they will only bond with those who have been a part of their circle in the past.
There are other dangerous and dodgy circles forming among young members also, where they may grow an attachment to a particular person, and then leave after a month or so when they are bored of the site.
But back to your question, just keep being friendly with people and talk to them personally. I know that that fine and dashingly amazing fellow, Blackwood, used to chat bar new people every day just to could meet them. Made some of the best friends that way.
Walls are overrated. Post too much and you’ll get annoying. Post things that other would be interested in, or perhaps a joke here or there. If you mention Pruno then people will come flocking because I’m also amazing.
Another way is to pump out some quality works, show it off, and see if you can get it spotlighted. The spotlight is short lived, but it will put your name out on the front page for everyone to see.
-Pruno




Dear Whoever To Going To Answer This Question
Is this statement true or false?
-Augustus Waters Dies At The End Of Fault In Our Stars

Dear Augustus Waters Dies At The End Of Fault In Our Stars,
I don’t know, I was never interested in that. However you may have just spoiled a lot of people and if any angry mob comes knocking at my door I’m going to point them in your direction.
-Pruno



Anyhow, I hope I don’t get killed by teenage girls now. But I don’t think I need to worry about that because they will all be too busy fan-girling over my dashing ‘stash and purple beauty. I know you know I’m handsome, ladies.
Remember, ASK PRUNO a question for NEXT WEEK by clicking the link below.

NEW ARRIVALSwritten by Hannah < PM: >

Take a moment to welcome this week’s newest members to the site!

All signs point to @WittyUsernameHere being a fluffy cat who figured out how to use the keyboard, eat pizza, and write stories comprised Of Starbucks, Blushing Cashiers, and Batman Fistfights . Are you really going to miss your change to make friends with a typing cat? Or to ask for free virtual pizza? C’mon! Go say “Welcome” already!

@Chupatoasta1 may be new to YWS, but is definitely not new when it comes to thinking up interesting plots. And lucky for you, she’s looking for a co-writer in the Double Trouble Writing Huddle . I’ll just say this: boy gets cheated on, his sister gets even. Sound like fun? Click through to that link and get to work with one of our newest members!

@BechtelAuthor has already done a lot of things. He’s already posted a status. He’s already done five awesome reviews. He’s already posted a sample of his work . He’s already found is way to the Serious Debate and Discussion forum. But what he’s really looking for is a proofreader for his already completed novel. Are you that person?

Hey, guys. @TheOnlyHotCap’s reviews are pretty much the bee’s knees, so please bombard their wall with welcome messages and maybe you’ll have the chance to receive one on your own work! Plus, when somebody’s avatar is Snoopy with sunglasses, you can’t go wrong, right?

Coming in on top of the new members with the most reviews is the lovely @wunmi! With thirteen under her belt in only four days, I bet she’ll be the person you come to for advice on your own work before long. Please welcome Wunmi and thank her for helping out her fellow writers with heartfelt and thoughtful reviews!

@unknown391625 has wasted no time getting involved in the YWS community. You’ll be able to see their latest actions on Team Blue this review day. Whether you’re with Squirtle or one of the other pokemon, be sure to at least wish one of our new members luck on their first review day! Good luck, Unknown! Perfect name for a Pokemon Review Day, by the way.

Last but not least, @orange09 seems to be working on a travel adventure short story! Think you can get them to post some of it on YWS? Why not ask nicely (pretty please with sugar on top) on their wall?

THIS WEEK'S ROUNDUP – 7/27written by megsug < PM: >
For the young and not so young! For the smart and not so smart! For the neat and not so neat! Links for everyone!


@Nate wants to know what we think about Scotland’s independence referendum. There’s a fancy poll and everything. While most people aren’t sure or don’t have an opinion right now, @Snoink thinks Scotland should leave the UK. Here’s her opinion:







I feel like I should close with a Braveheart reference or something...


@AdjiFlex has created a thread users can use to advertise their books that are either published or on YWS. @MonkeyMushroom describes her book:







Looking for a good read? I’d check this thread out.


@Aley has started a new game. A lot like Let the best hand win! or The Battle of the Sexes , it focuses around going up or down. However, instead of numbers going up or down, it’s syllables. Aley explains the rules better:







Get your ridiculously competitive spirit ready now!


For Camp YWS this year, one cabin compiled a lot of the Knowledge Base’s articles. There’s now a list with easy ways to link certain articles to other users who may need them. You can even suggest other links that should be added! An article I didn’t know before I checked out the Big Book of Links was an article called Five Tips on Researching: Gathering Information for Stories. Here’s a summary from the Big Book:






Check it out and see what will help you or another user!

SHAMELESS PLUGS

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SUBSCRIBERS

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