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. You can also subscribe to the Squills Fan Club , or PM SquillsBot to receive a notification each time a new issue is published!

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

1. SQUILLSVERSARY - PODCAST EDITION
2. SCAVENGER HUNT
3. HISTORY OF SQUILLS: THIRD ANNIVERSARY EDITION
4. SQUILLS LEADERSHIP: THROWBACK EDITION
5. THREE GUESTS, THREE QUESTIONS, SQUILLS THIRD ANNIVERSARY
6. TWO CENTS: WRITING ARTICLES
7. ASK GRUNO
8. THIS WEEK'S ROUNDUP: ANNIVERSARY EDITION
9. NEW ARRIVALS
10. SHAMELESS PLUGS
11. SUBSCRIBERS

SQUILLSVERSARY - PODCAST EDITIONwritten by Gravity < PM: >

Hey guys!

Happy 3rd anniversary to Squills, we wanted to say a big thank you to all of our readers, editors and staff members who contribute and keep this newsletter running. Without you guys, this would not be possible.

For those of you who missed it, the Squills team took on an interesting project, pioneered by our editor in chief, @megsug, my fellow general editor @Lavvie, but mainly led by myself. We had lots of cool suggestions contributed by other members of our staff as well. To sum it up, this was a team wide effort to bring you the first ever Squills podcast!

The Squills podcast was a live podcast done to commemorate the past of weekly editions and overall hard work. We plan on doing more of these podcasts in the future to bring you a more interactive newsletter! With another year comes more innovations, more excitement, more Squills! And we would absolutely love it if you would join us in this exciting time. Squills has had an amazing 3 years so far, and we hope to see it continue, with more exciting features, great staff, and, most importantly, a supportive audience and fan base. Without our readers, Squills would not be what it is today, so thank you for stopping by the Squills forum and for subscribing. You are everything to our newsletter and we cannot thank you enough.

If you missed the first ever podcast, do not fear! You can listen to the hour long broadcast here.

Just to let you guys know, we took a short break after the first half hour and unfortunately, the first half of the podcast was not posted. We also had lots of technical difficulties, but the future podcasts should run much smoother. Underneath the gray circle, click “showreel” to listen to the podcast.

SCAVENGER HUNTwritten by megsug < PM: >

To celebrate the 3rd Squillsversary, we wanted to give readers the chance to get something out of Squills. So I put together a scavenger hunt. The first three people to PM all of the correct answers to @SquillsBot will get 1000 points! Answers can be all be found using the Index .

1. What is the number of this edition?
2. How many Cow Says articles are there?
3. What two Squills staff members have been featured?
4. Who was interviewed in the 17th featured member interview?
5. Name all the authors of Quibbles.
6. Who writes the Hot Seat column?
7. What does @Kanome rant about?
8. What three things does AriaAdams give writing tips on?
9. Name the columns @BlueAfrica wrote?
10. Name all the articles in the first edition.
11. What is the fourth prompt in the Top Ten Writing Propmts?
12. What’s new in the eleventh Library Loves?
13. How many editions of Squills Special: The First YWS Hunger Games are there?
14. Which staff member started writing for Squills most recently?
15. Which staff member(s) participated in the first edition of Squills?
16. Name all of the past and present Editors-in-Chief.
17. Who was the first Writer of the Week?
18. What staff positions are currently going unfilled?
19. Name the user(s) who have only written one article.
20. Who wrote the first This Week’s Roundup?
21. What link do you use to ask Pruno or Gruno a question?
22. What was the fourth Featured Resource Article?
23. What name is at the bottom of each version of Society Pages?
24. What quote did Avalon use in the last edition of The Code Breaker Challenge?
25. What article of Holofernes’ isn’t like the others?

HISTORY OF SQUILLS: THIRD ANNIVERSARY EDITION
written by Lavvie < PM: >

The history of Squills is one that is probably a lot longer than many current and active YWSers might think. Squills provides a platform for knowledgeable and enthusiastic members to share their love for the written word beyond the realm of creative and into non-fiction. Always present, and perhaps sometimes a bit forgotten, YWS’ very own newsletter has, does, and forever will influence the site, be that on a small or large scale.

In the beginning, @Nate said, “Let us have a webzine.” This webzine was actually not called Squills at all, but rather “Splash”, although I have no idea why. It even was published for the first time in January 2005, so we can’t blame inspiration for the name on summer fun and all that jazz. At the time, Splash featured submissions of poems, short stories, and miscellaneous articles by users. However, the first issue was also the last issue as Splash never really got off the ground. Curious about what was included in the first issue of Splash? Look no further than this awesome link I managed to dig up in YWS’ skeleton closet.

Following Splash’s short-lived existence, Nate went on to spearhead Squills, which came not long after. This newsletter was usually published on a monthly basis in a PDF format for members to download easily. Oftentimes, the issues included tips and tricks related to poetry and prose, book reviews, creative pieces, fun facts, and general site-wide announcements. My favourite issue in the January 2007 one where the creation of Junior Moderators is announced! Some of the people involved in these issues included @Meshugenah and @Emerson, with some formatting assistance by @Alteran. @Incandescence also wrote some great articles on poetry. Feel free to read all of the Squills PDF newsletters by accessing this very handy collection.

But when did Squills evolve to where it is today? It was @Griffinkeeper who proposed to make Squills a more cohesive news platform for the site. The very first issue to make it on the forums can be found here. @AlfredSymon eventually took over and Squills operated more as a daily news bulletin for the website. Of course, due to other commitments, the bulletin could not be posted every day and I imagine it was a challenging responsibility to keep up with! At times, members like @Iggy, @Jhinx, and @ShadowVyper posted updates. Finally, after some time, on July 21st, 2013, the first official organized format of Squills that you are familiar with to do this was published by our very own @SquillsBot, with @Hannah functioning as Editor-in-Chief. Read it here!

Over time, Squills has changed, with more specific positions being created and a much larger presence on the website. We have seen an array of marvellous Editors-in-Chief, the latest to step down being our beloved @BlueAfrica. What you read weekly now is a tweaked - albeit still imperfect - version of the original newsletter. Usually published on Sunday or Monday, Squills is led by our indefatigable Editor-in-Chief @megsug and, by her side, @Gravity and @Lavvie functioning as General Editors. We still focus on writerly aspects of life, but have also branched out to include general articles on subjects like politics, world news, and fun interviews with fellow YWS members.

Squills is always open to welcoming new staff. If you’re interested in joining our fun and friendly team, do not hesitate to PM SquillsBot with your inquiry. And remember, if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again!

Squills in its current stage has experienced a great three years, and an even longer incubation stage. There is no denying its role as a key YWS institution. From here on out, there is nowhere else to go but upwards and onwards! Curious as to what the future has in store for this beloved newsletter? Stick around for a few more years

SQUILLS LEADERSHIP: THROWBACK EDITIONwritten by Morrigan < PM: >


@megsug hasn't always been the Editor in Chief of Squills. There were many YWSers before her that kept Squills nice and tidy, and kept all the reporters in line. Two of the former Editors in Chief. @BlueAfrica and @ShadowVyper , sat down with me to answer some questions about their time as Editors in Chief.

BlueAfrica harbored a passion for Squills that carried her through the distractions of real life, as evidenced in the interview.



BlueAfrica: @Iggy posted an advertisement for journalists in the Lounge. It sounded fun, plus I figured it would give me something to actually do on the site (I wasn't posting anything at the time, and I wasn't reviewing much either). She also said she'd be willing to give people who stuck at it for a while a letter of recommendation for future employers, if requested, and that sort of thing is always a plus.

Even though so far I've mostly just worked grocery jobs that don't require that sort of thing and aren't at all relevant to a history of writing.




B: ShadowVyper had been EIC up to that point, but they were really busy with university and didn't get around to much YWSing, let alone Squillsing. I wrote articles every week, at least one, frequently two, and I published pretty frequently, so they named me as their successor and stepped down to focus on school.



B: This is lame, but it just felt really cool. I felt professional and important and I spent a lot more time on YWS than I had been. It was fun to be part of an editorial team - kind of like how it is at my non-grocery job, where there's a bunch of teachers all working together and you've got to collaborate to figure out how to best assist the students' learning.

It was something to look forward to other than my actual paying jobs.



B:The biggest thing was getting journalists who were willing and able to contribute regularly. Someone would sign on, and the team would vote them in, and they'd write a couple articles and then vanish. It's depressing to see an issue with six articles and know it's only that big because you wrote three of them yourself, especially when you have ten or twelve people listed as "active" staff.

The other issue was time management, which is the reason I ended up stepping down. There being two actual paying jobs, it got to be too much. Squills always took precedence for me when I got home for the evening, but it was so stressful to have to cobble together an article (or two or three) when I still had email to check and errands to run and dishes to do and bed to get to because work started again early the next morning and I'd be out of the house for twelve or fourteen hours. I stuck with it long enough to have a whole year under my belt. But I knew I'd have to step down and give some time back to myself.




B:I was going through a lot of personal stuff virtually the whole time I was the EIC, but having that position on the staff kept me sane. (I know, that sounds totally off-kilter with what I said about it getting stressful.) It gave me something to focus on other than the stuff I was dealing with and I got to work with a team of people who were completely separate from the real life junk.

Plus I like to think it might help me on future job interviews where writing or leadership is relevant.

I really loved it, though.



ShadowVyper feels similarly about Squills, even though they've been gone from YWS for a while.



ShadowVyper: I got involved in the baby days when Griff and Alf were restarting it... I think I was the third or fourth person on the original revamp crew? I started the "New Arrivals" column under the mentorship of the two of them, and eventually moved to other aspects.



SAfter Griff and Alf left the scene Squills had some weak days, and the fantabulous @Hannah came to the rescue. She really helped organize us and give us a good system to work with, then her life got crazy and she handed the position down to me.



S:I really enjoyed getting to work with each of the amazing writers we had on staff. There is so much talent and potential spread across the Squills crew, and it was really cool getting to encourage the writers and watch as they honed their skills and improved their articles each week.



I don't think I had any more significant challenges than any of the other Editor In Chiefs did. I mean, it always felt like we were on a time crunch, but I'd wager the current editors feel that pressure weekly, and every future editor/EIC will feel as well. Life is busy, which is why I eventually had to step down as EIC, and it's always a struggle to find a balance between publishing Squills and keeping your offline life functional.



S:Looking back at my time serving with Squills is definitely a fond memory in general, but it was mostly the behind the scenes stuff and the little pleasures shared with the staff that made it enjoyable, and no one encounter particularly stands out any sharper than the others.



S:Well, it's helped me learn how to coordinate people, for sure. Since coming to uni I've had a lot more leadership roles (which I'm totally not qualified for, btw), and I'm definitely thankful for the practice I got with Squills. I'm sure it's helped me not fall flat on my face, which I probably would've otherwise. It's also made me much more competent with noticing fine details and especially typos, which is quite a useful skill to have when you decide to pursue a bio degree. c:

The secrets of former Squills editors are out of the bag! It seems that organization is a key skill to successfully wrangling stray articles back into the herd. They are what has kept Squills going until this Squills Anniversary!

THREE GUESTS, THREE QUESTIONS
SQUILLS 3rd ANNIVERSARY

written by AliceAfternoon < PM: >

It’s Squills 3rd Anniversary, which is a super exciting time. In this edition of 3G, 3Q I’ll be interviewing my fellow staff about Squills. Thank you to @Aley, @Lightsong and @megsug for taking time out of their busy days to answer my questions.





Aley: Okay



A: I wanted to join so that I could have somewhere I could write each week and give people a chance to see my ideas about things. I also really wanted to write more commonly.



A: I love the chance to create new columns and write about things I know! It's a great place to share your advice and explore YWS. It really helps you meet a load of new people too when you do interviews.



A: More readers! I would love to see Squills read by more users on YWS and really get the readership it deserves. Right now, we only know if someone's read our work by them clicking the like button, so it feels sort of isolated and off to the side, but if we got the publicity and passed around through word of mouth enough by people talking about the articles then we could really get a good following and more writers, and that would generate new articles, and new readers and it would be wonderful!





Lightsong: Okay!



L: Well, Squills is a platform to publish my article, so I think that's the main reason. Also, I love to write about my experience and share it with others, as well as give tips, so Squills is the right place for me.



L: Squills is like the info source I'm fond of. I appreciate the effort from its staffs in supplying news, tips, and other helpful substances to readers and writers like me.



L: I wish there would be more members interested to join Squills. Really, it's a great medium to channel your talent if you like writing articles and columns. I would like for Squills to be more creative in its content, like perhaps a short story or poem of the week, taken from the Green Room? It's a good way to encourage people to review the pieces there.





megsug: My friend @ShadowVyper was involved, and she pulled me into it.



M: Hm... I love a lot about Squills... I love how anyone can get involved with a little effort and positively impacts the YWS community.



M: Oh boy... I could wish for a lot... I'd like more staff. I feel like it can be hard for a small staff to produce a lot of product all the time. If I had more people writing articles, I might even be able to schedule an every other week thing, so that people were switching weeks of writing which would be less of a commitment.

Well that’s the end of this edition of 3G, 3Q! A special thank you to @Aley, @Lightsong and @megsug for letting me interview them. If you have any interest in joining the Squills Staff feel free to check out this link or PM @SquillsBot and tell them you’re interested. We’re always happy to have new staff!

TWO CENTS: WRITING ARTICLESwritten by Aley < PM: >

Writing for Squills has been something I've done for a while, but I never wrote an article about writing these articles, so that's what I'll be covering this week!

So what's an average writing cycle for Squills?

Squills is broken up each week. We write between the last time it was posted to whenever our next deadline is, and those deadlines are given to us by our wonderful editors.

Most of the time, the articles are posted sometime close to the deadline, so you have about a week to write.

For me, most of the week is spent trying to decide what you guys would want to read about. Getting in touch with an idea that you guys are going to want to read is the hardest thing about writing for Squills. In the end, I tend to write about whatever comes to mind. Recently, it's because I'm working on a Knowledge Base article around the subject, or I see something that makes me want to comment.

I also have a series of things I'm writing about revolving around poetry types and structures, but those are back up ideas.

Coming up with an idea for a Squills column can take time. Mostly, the only way to really do it is to bounce ideas off someone who's in Squills with the experience you're trying to cultivate. It's like a blog, but with more people writing, so it's important to understand what other columns are going on, that way you don't repeat them.

After that, it's about what you like to do. If you can just sit and write about a topic and get a good article, then go ahead and come up with a topic like Ancient Poets, and suggest it as a column to the editors/submit to the try outs. However, if you really like talking to people, then do interviews. Lastly, if you like challenges, then write something that will make challenges. We've had a lot of successful types of articles, and everything is up for grabs, so the best thing you can do, is try it!

After I get an idea, I write the article. For me, it's as simple as that. I don't often have to sit around and think about what I want to say, or struggle with writer's block because I pick a topic I'm going to talk about which has me fired up at the moment and focus on that topic for about two pages. Usually I have to divide topics up because there are too many specifics to talk about at one time.

I write on Word so my spelling is fixed, and I have a word doc that sees a lot of use as I erase last week's article to keep the header. It has all my coding on it too so I don't have to go far for formatting.

I usually write my articles in two sittings. One for writing, and the other for editing. My editing isn't much because it's an opinion column, but I check my formatting, read it over on YWS, and try to make anything that's unclear, clear. All in all, it doesn't take me that long to actually write Two Cents, but it takes me forever to come up with an idea for the week.

This isn't the only column I've written for Squills however, and the others take more time.

If I'm writing an interview, I spend a considerable amount of time trying to decide how best to introduce and conclude it so that the reader is left wanting to meet the person I interview, and if the person I interviewed reads the article, they'll get a sense of how thankful I am that they spent their time answering my questions.

Interviews are tricky to start too because there are a few ways to go about it. You can ask them through PM to answer a set of questions you have, or come up with some general questions, then interview them through chatbar, which could take anywhere from 30 mins to two hours depending on how in depth they go and how long they spend typing.

PMs might seem like a more reasonable way to go, but it limits the questions you can ask. You don't have the ability to do follow up questions without sending another PM and breaking the flow of conversation. I prefer chatbar, because I'm really curious about things, so I like to let myself follow an interview and ask questions as topics are brought up. I start out with an average 4 questions I need to ask depending on the situation, and then go from there.

If I'm doing research on something, like writing summaries of actual news, I spend a lot of time deciding how best to summarize things, and try to put it as quickly as possible without biases. This is really difficult, but the challenge is welcome sometimes.

Mostly it's about checking sources, and going to multiple sources for the same information. When I'm researching for news, I go to places out of my country, in my country, and specific to the field. When it's something topic related, I go to places I trust and pull from multiple articles and sources among those.

If you have an idea for something you'd like to write about week after week, it's beneficial to join Squills as a writer. It gives you a sense of "readership" and writing for your audience that you can't get just writing for reviewers on YWS. The team is filled with wonderful, welcoming people, and while we focus on our own articles, everyone's willing to help you come up with ideas and write next week.

While I don't have much luck getting feedback about what to write from you guys, or what you want to learn about. I do think about you, and try to tailor my articles to give you something to partake in.

If you have something you want to hear more about, send me a PM, and you'll make my week just that much easier.

ASKGRUNOwritten by Gruno < PM: >

Hey guys! Happy third Squills anniversary.

To the Love of All HeartThrobs Everywhere,
What would be the best president for a country?

-The Singular

Dear Singular,
A potato. Potatoes are the least corrupt vegetables on the planet.

-Gruno

Dear Magnificent One
What is your favorite type of music and why?

-Bob

Dear Bob,
The Biebs, obviously! I just love his music so much. It obviously has so much depth and meaning and… he’s just such a deep person! I love Justin Bieber, I’m going to marry him one day and bear his children.

AND THEN MURDER HIM WITH AN AXE!

Murderously yours, Gruno

Dear Mr. Answerer
Do you eat garlic?
Or do you just want to repel vampires? Smart

-The Questioner

Dear The Questioner,
No, I eat garlic to keep the Team Edward fans away. TEAM JACOB ALL THE WAY GUYS!

Love, a Lautenizer

Sadly, that is all this Runian has for this week! We need your questions to keep this column going so if you're interested in submitting, click here.

This article was written by Lydia Morzinski under the username "Gravity" due to site guidelines.

THIS WEEK'S ROUND UP: ANNIVERSARY EDITIONwritten by megsug < PM: >

Because this weekend is all about Squills, I’m giving you the top four links every major Squills fan should know.


@SquillsBot’s profile page is good for anyone who needs anything from Squills. Whether that’s being added to the subscribers lists to finding out how to apply for staff, our favorite robot can take care of it as long as you make a post on its wall or PM it. It also posts updates on editions.


The Squills Fan Club is a place for fans to offer suggestions and ask questions. Occasionally Squills staff go to the fan club for asking about feedback or information for articles. It’s been dead for a while, but a few hardcore fans could get it active.


Trying to find a specific article? Want to read all of the Adventures in Writing articles? Want to spelunk in YWS history? The Index is where you need to go! Articles are sorted by author, column, and topic for your browsing convenience. Some gems can be discovered.


Squills can get your name in a byline, give you something to put in a resume, and provide a way to serve the YWS community. If you have time to write two articles a month, you’re a perfect fit for Squills. Check out our help wanted ad to see how to start the process as well as what positions are available.

NEW ARRIVALS
written by Lavvie < PM: >

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

@outoftime has already earned their second reviewing star! Click here to post a congratulatory message on their wall.

@K8lyn is asking for some advice on her vampire novel. Go help a fellow member out!

@soqquadro comes from the land of pasta and pizza. She says her English isn't perfect, but I beg to differ! Time to welcome the latest YWS bella..

SHAMELESS PLUGS

written by SquillsBot < PM: >

We love to run articles and questions, but we also love to advertise for you. Let people know about your new blog, a poem or story you’re looking for reviews on, or a forum thread you’d like more traffic on through Squills’ Shameless Plugs. PM @SquillsBot with the exact formatting of your advertisement, contained in the following code.

Code: Select all

Place advertisement here. Make sure you include a title!

Poetry Wars has officially gotten underway with voting between two poems commencing in The Lounge.

This is your chance to say which type of poetry you like better, so check out the two poems, totalling 22 lines together in the Battle Thread: Poetry Wars: The Battle, Updated:7-29 and decide which contestant you think did a better job!

Once you're done, head on over to the main thread of Poetry Wars and offer up your own poem as sacrafice for a chance to be pitted against other competitors.

The next round and the results of this round will be out next week, so get voting while the getting's good. You can even choose to offer yourself as a guest judge if you're eager to share all your thoughts on a subject and get the inside scoop of Poetry Wars.

SUBSCRIBERS

written by SquillsBot < PM: >

Find enspoiler-ed a list of our subscribers!