z

Young Writers Society


Squills 2/12/2017 - 2/18/2017



User avatar



Gender: None specified
Points: 300
Reviews: 0
Sun Feb 12, 2017 1:29 am
View Likes
SquillsBot says...



Image

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!

CREATIVE STAFF


Spoiler! :
Editor-in-Chief
megsug

General Editors
Gravity
Aley

Friendly Neighborhood Robot
SquillsBot

Literary Reporter
Holysocks
Spots available - PM Squillsbot if interested

Community Reporter
marmalade
Casanova

Poetry Enchantress
Aley

Resources Reporter
ChildOfNowhere

Storybook Reporter
Available - PM SquillsBot if interested

Quibbles Columnist
Available - PM Squillsbot if interested

Writer's World Columnist
Lightsong

Link Cowgirl
megsug

Social Correspondent
Mea
EternalRain

Associates of Pruno and Gruno
Pruno - Available - PM SquillsBot if interested
Gravity

Code Master
Available - PM SquillsBot if interested

General Reporters
Kaos
Pretzelstick



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!





User avatar



Gender: None specified
Points: 300
Reviews: 0




User avatar



Gender: None specified
Points: 300
Reviews: 0
Sun Feb 12, 2017 1:32 am
View Likes
SquillsBot says...



Last Man Standing: Origins
Image
written by ChildOfNowhere < PM: >

With the Last Man Standing contest Round Three just about to begin in a day or two, I sat down with @Tenyo, the founder and creator of it, hoping to bring some of the behind-the-scenes magic to our readers.

Squills: Hi! It's great to have you here. For those YWSers out there who don't yet know what LMS is, how would you put it in a few sentences?


Tenyo: @Snazzy recently summarised it better than I ever could: "this legit cult meeting place for writers [where] activities consist of writing, sacrificing the weakest to the overlord and plotting a bunch."
The basic idea is to keep writing a little bit at a time. It's thinly veiled as a contest to see who can keep writing for the longest, but the truth is that it's mostly about spurring each other on and encouraging each other to push further than we thought ourselves capable of.


S: As a [novel] writer, I must say that's often exactly what I need. And evidently, I'm not the only one! LMS is now in its third round, and a thing many YWSers are looking forward to with so much excitement. How does it feel to see it, and how much has changed since Round One?


T: Aw man, LMS gives me proper warm fuzzies. It's nice to have a good idea and for it to work, that's cool... but to see it actually functioning and watch what people make of it in their own personal way is incredible. I feel really privilaged that I get to be a part of it.
As for how much has changed... Ahah. Everything! Round One was a mess, I had no idea what I was doing and I'm surprised it worked at all. I think the biggest change is that in the beginning I was kind of dabbling between things and puppeting everything, where now I kind of set up the things that might be useful and allow the contestants to pick and choose to make their own journey of it.


S: Whenever I talk to people, especially other participants, there seems to be quite a few guesses about what goes on behind the scenes, how much preparation goes into each round, and what have your methods of leading LMS been. Care to shed some light on the mysteries?


T: What goes on behind the scenes? Panic. Panic and chaos. Panic and chaos and a whole lot of cookies. Most of it involves being adaptive in the organisation process and being compassionate in the leading process. Participating in LMS is really hard so I do what I can to keep it running smoothly and be there for anyone who asks.

S: And if I may say so myself, you're doing an amazing job at it. What is it that made you start LMS in the first place? And (although I'm guessing the answer to this one), what made you go on with it after the first round ended?


T: I think... around the time I came up with LMS I was also on my quest to purge the idea that artists must suffer for their art. It's crazy that so many people accept solitude and self-depriciation as a natural part of the creative process. I guess LMS was kind of a way of encouraging writers to break that pattern by joining together and... I guess in a way... putting more meaning to the process itself rather than relying on the outcome. Humans are communal creatures and life- even those awful slugs of sitting hunched over a keyboard for hours- is more fulfilling when we can share that experience with others.
Round One wasn't anywhere near finished when I started getting requests for Round Two, and knowing that something had succeeded and the interest was still there was reason enough to start Round Two.


S: And finally, to wrap it up with some philosophically-put optimism, what would you say are some things you gain from LMS as the creator/leader of it, and what are the things that its participants gain, even if they don't win?


T: To be honest, as creator/leader of LMS the best thing is that I get to be a part of it, and that's pretty much what LMS is about for the participants and volunteers too. It's being a part of something instead of trying to do everything solo, and turning a process that can be very isolating into a reason to connect.

I hope I've given you something good in there ^__^


S: Of course! Thank you so much; I'll be looking forward to sitting down with you for another one of these... perhaps when Round Ten rolls around c:


A big thanks once more to Ten, both for answering my questions for our readers and for LMS itself!

If you'd like to find out more about the contest, follow this link to the club and be sure to read through the FAQ and guidelines -- they will tell you all about the difference between Warriors, Bards, and Rogues, answer questions you may have about redoing old novels or participating with fanfiction, and definitely inspire you to join the adventure.

And regardless if you're a participant or a spectator, spare a glance on Writers Corner , which is these days just bustling with LMS-related threads and project talks.





User avatar



Gender: None specified
Points: 300
Reviews: 0
Sun Feb 12, 2017 1:32 am
View Likes
SquillsBot says...



FM INTERVIEW
Image
written by Gravity < PM: >

You them from the Roleplay Geeks club, and probably from the Randomosity Thread. Ladies and gentlemen, give a warm welcome to the Bird Nerd, the Roleplay, Rebel, the feather to your stone and your new YWS FM:

@featherstone9086

Squills: Hey featherstone, congrats on being the new FM. Mind if I ask you a few questions for Squills?


Featherstone9086: Sure thing!

S: How does it feel to be the featured member?


F: Honestly, I can barely believe it. I feel honored and honestly it's kind of hard to believe. I'm thrilled, surprised, and as I stated previously, I'm honored that I was chosen.

S: That’s great! I think that’s everybody’s feeling after they get over the initial shock. When you found out, what was your immediate reaction?


F: I saw I had a notification and thought 'Oh, look. @MeatBunCat or someone probably wants to role-play.' I hit the message button and it said "@Nikayla mentioned you in Featured Member [February 2nd-16th]: featherstone9086". 'Wait, what?' I thought. I mean, I couldn't be the featured member. That just couldn't be right. I hit the link and saw that I, of all people, was the FM. At which point the freaking out commenced and could barely believe it was real.

S: Of course it’s real! You’re very active in the YWS community which is really important, what kinds of things do you think you did to earn you recognition?


F: I really don't know. I think it was just the sheer amount of posts I pulled off. 359, I think. Welcoming new members, being supportive to friends, just in general trying to be a good person. Well, that's what I'd like to think, anyways ;). That and a lot of role-playing. Though I will say it's too bad I didn't pull of 360- a nice, round number, don't you think?

S: Yeah, I could see where the 359 might be a little annoying, but nevertheless, it’s still a lot of posts, I commend you for them! Anyway, I wanted to ask: What does being FM mean to you? Has it changed your perspective of yourself or your presence around the site?


F: It means a lot to me. It makes me realize that I really can and do make a change to the community. I belong here, I'm accepted here, and I'm actually liked here- things that I haven't really felt anywhere else. Love you all! <3

S: Aw! Everybody has a place here on this site! Lastly, if you could nominate any YWSer for FM, who would it be?


F: @Mage. Without a doubt. For obvious reasons- we love you, @Mage! <3 <3

S: Thanks for your time, featherstone. I look forward to seeing you around :)


F: No problem!

FM is such a great thing because it allows us to recognize individual YWSers for their role and accomplishments around Young Writers Society. Pop on over to Featherstone’s wall and give them a shoutout!





User avatar



Gender: None specified
Points: 300
Reviews: 0
Sun Feb 12, 2017 1:32 am
View Likes
SquillsBot says...



Society Pages
Image
written by EternalRain < PM: >

...And welcome to a new Society Pages weekly column!

With this week comes a new hashtag created by @FairyLight called #top3dreams . Not sleeping dreams, but rather, aspirations or what you want in your future. Quite a few have been to publish a book/be a writer, and @Sevro has a pretty cool one: to accomplish everything on their bucket list.

@Craz is getting a second tattoo! They are going to get a semicolon. The perfect tatt for any writer!

Meanwhile, @Crysi has just started reading The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin. Apparently the author plays Skyrim!

@AkeliaTaske drew a picture of @ChieRyn’s character Deydey. It’s really cute, and let’s look forward to more of Akelia’s art in the future!

@marmalade has started a tag called #booktag . It features questions about, well, books! If you’re into young adult realistic novels, marmalade recommends Mosquitoland by David Arnold. @EvangelineFire, as well as many other users, thought Twilight by Stephanie Meyers was an overhyped book that they didn’t enjoy too much. Among favorite books, The Book Thief by Markus Zusak seems very popular!

Along with the book tag, a new tag created by @DeepRoses was born! This one’s called #top10movies . It’s pretty straightforward - you list your top ten favorite movies. One of @Wolfical’s top tens was Back to the Future, the popular time travel movie.

@GalaxyUnicornz claims they’ll make an ocean of tears of frustration because of anime. TV shows can hit you hard.

Ever read too many books at once? @JadeBunny acccidentally started reading 3 books and hasn’t finished any of them. Oops?

@Darcula wonders if they’re really awake, and maybe all this is just a dream. Are you dreaming?

@Carlito’s only got a few more tweaks to their story Captive - including a final read through - and then she’ll be able to query!

With a little bit of hacking code, @Love managed to make a feature on Spotify to notify her when artists she likes are playing around her.

@niteowl’s hashtag #readmoreshorts seems to be effective! Let’s spread this hashtag around and promote short stories that wouldn’t otherwise get the love they deserve.

Valentine’s Day is coming up! Share your stories, your fantasies, or maybe something about your afternoon eating ice cream on the couch alone. Let’s look forward to a love filled week (either with a significant other or pets or love for yourself)!





User avatar



Gender: None specified
Points: 300
Reviews: 0
Sun Feb 12, 2017 1:32 am
View Likes
SquillsBot says...



SPOTLIGHT INTERVIEW WITH CONFETTI
Image
written by Mea < PM: >

This week, I had the pleasure of interviewing @confetti about her work, How to Properly Miss the Boy You Love , being in the Literary Spotlight! The story is told in second person and centers around a long-distance relationship. It was only posted two days ago, but it already has almost 30 likes, and for good reason - the prose is beautiful and the story heartbreaking. And so, of course, it made a great candidate for the subject of an interview.

Mea: Has your work ever been in the spotlight before?


confetti: I've had a few different works in the spotlight before.

M: Did you expect your story get this many likes? Why/why not?


C: Definitely not. Partly because it's fairly rough draft, but also because I find that longer stories (longer than a page or two) don't really get read/recognized as much on this website.

M: What do you think made your story stand out?


C: No clue! It could be the title.

M: Tell us a little bit about your writing process for this story.


C: I actually wrote this to hand into a creative writing class this week. Honestly, when I started out, I just wanted to write a story about a long distance relationship and what it feels like to miss someone and not really be able to do anything about it. But then, I started thinking way that society sort of portrays romantic love as the only kind of love. So, I also wanted this element of "romantic love is not the only kind of love" and I hope that somewhat came through.

M: Would you say that your story is a very rough draft, or nearing completion?


C: It's a first draft.


M: And finally, what other things do you normally write? Have you posted or will you post them here?


C: I stick to short stories 99% of the time (I'm a terrible poet). I post a lot of my completed stories on YWS because feedback is always nice (although people on this website could definitely be a little more critical!)


You heard her - get critiquing! Or just head on over and take a look at the story if you haven't already. It's not too long and it's well worth your time. And thanks again to confetti for the interview!





User avatar



Gender: None specified
Points: 300
Reviews: 0
Sun Feb 12, 2017 1:33 am
View Likes
SquillsBot says...



THREE GUESTS, THREE QUESTIONS
BOOKS

Image
written by marmalade < PM: >

Welcome to Three Guests, Three Questions! For this edition we will be talking to three awesome YWSers about the books they’ve read. A special thank you to @Lumi, @Dracula, and @writerkitty for taking time out of their busy days to answer my silly questions.

My first interview was with the great poet and reviewer, @Lumi:


Squills: What is your favorite book(s) and genre of books?

Lumi: I hope you won't mind if I answer split down the middle between fiction and poetry because choosing between the two in my writing and reading is like splitting an atom: I don't wanna do it. My favorite fictional genre is paranormal, but my favorite poetic genre is romantic―or post-romantic―poetry. My favorite selections of each are Deathless by Catherynne M. Valente and House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski, and poetically The Anatomy of Being by Shinji Moon and I Wrote This For You by anon. In the latter-most, the combination of emotive poetry and photography take the reader to a new field of experience that I personally want to capture in my work.
S: If you could write like any author, which author would that be?

L: My choices would likely, and so painstakingly, be an amalgamation of the things I love of the authors I love―or rather the writers I love. So you're looking at people like the Danielewski siblings, Kazushige Nojima, Rebecca Sugar, Brit Marling, Zal Batmanglij, Valente, Louise Glück, Chbosky, and that's not even going into the classics.
S: What are your book recommendations? What are those books about?

L: I don't have a specific book to recommend. I don't. But, under the persuasion of my own creative idol, Rebecca Sugar, my recommendation is to research the person who inspires you and find out what inspires them. Find their favorite books. Their favorite music, artists, photographers. Find out what kind of tea they like to have! You could say it's a kind of worship, but I disagree―I think it's a distant reverence as you dive into inspiration and find more things that connect with you, that resonate with you. I believe that as you do this sort of soul searching, you will find something amazing that you'd never thought to see in this light before, and that is a beautiful thing.

My second interview was with the great short story writer, @Dracula:


Squills: What is your favorite book(s) and genre of books?
Dracula: This is always a hard question. Like most readers, I don't have just one favourite. I don't even have a few, or ten, or twenty. I have so many favourites that I can't even remember all their names, but if I saw them in a bookshop I would swoon. Some favourites that deserve to be mentioned are, of course, the Harry Potter books. Philosopher's Stone because that's how it all started. Chamber of Secrets because Ginny's valentine is the cutest thing in literature. Prisoner of Azkaban because my Dad gave me a copy as a birthday gift when I was very young. Goblet of Fire because the magical world expanded to all corners of the globe. Order of the Phoenix because cats! Half-Blood Prince has always been my favourite, I don't really know why. I think I liked Draco's development. Deathly Hallows because that's how it all ended and I actually loved Nineteen Years Later. Other special mentions are Kate Forsyth's The Puzzle Ring which introduced me to Celtic history, Alice in Wonderland which orchestrated my dreams, and Anne of Greengables who was my younger self's role model.
S: If you could write like any author, which author would that be?

D: Kate Forsyth. For those of you who haven't heard of her, she's an Australian author who writes mostly historical-fantasy. One of her more popular books is The Wild Girl, which is about a young lady who is 'quite close' to the Grimm Brothers. She has an amazing talent for weaving myth and folklore into reality and her characters are lovable and relatable. In her children's books (such as The Puzzle Ring), she does all this in a writing style that's simple enough for young kids to read, which I think is amazing. I would be overjoyed if my writing ever reached such a level as Kate Forsyth's.
S: What are your book recommendations? What are those books about?

D: Hmm. I'll try and suggest some books which aren't so well known. At the moment, I am reading The Code Book by Simon Singh. It's a nonfiction book about the history of codes and ciphers, and is absolutely enthralling. I'm going to do an online course in cryptography when I've finished this book, it's that interesting. The book starts by talking about Mary Stuart's failed code, which led to Elizabeth ordering her execution. It goes over The Beale ciphers, which contain the location of treasure which I believe is yet to be found. Alan Turing and the Enigma machine are also featured, as well as many other codes and ciphers throughout history. There's also explanations of how to decode secret messages, so any wannabe-spy should read this! A novel which came out last year but hasn't received much publicity is Michael Grant's Front Lines. It's about a group of American soldiers' experiences in World War II, except it's set in an alternate universe where FEMALES are encouraged to join the fighting forces. Not only is the novel entertaining, but it's also a great tool for raising awareness about gender inequality. If you're interested in the world wars or novel about strong women, you need to find yourself a copy of this!

My final interview was with the kind-hearted, @writerkitty:


Squills: What is your favorite book(s) and genre of books?

Writerkitty: My favorite books are the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. I've been reading Rick Riordan's books for quite awhile now and almost every book written by him is super awesome and interesting but this series is just so gripping and it sure puts the reader in the narrator's shoes. I also love every single character in those books, they seem so relatable (except for the being part god thingy) I really don't have a favorite genre, but I prefer to read Fantasy and sometimes Horror. The reason why I prefer Fantasy genres is because they really take one's mind to a whole other amazing world and it's a great way to get away from this monotonous life for a while.
S: If you could write like any author, which author would that be?

W: Like Rick Riordan of course. I really admire his writing style and the way he develops his characters and the overall plot of the story is just amazing. He knows just how to use dialogue and descriptions in a way to make the story gripping and fun. He's surely one of the best authors I know.
S: What are your book recommendations? What are those books about?

W: Hmm, I recommend Percy Jackson and The Heroes of Olympus by Rick Riordan. They are mainly about half-bloods (half human and half-gods) who try to survive without getting killed by monsters and stuff. The House of Secrets by Chris Columbus and Ned Vizzini is also a pretty good read. It's about three siblings who live in a magical house which gets whisked away into strange lands and magical places leading them to go on an adventure filled with hungry lions, freaky soldiers, strange monks, etc.

Thanks for reading this edition of 3G, 3Q! If you want see a certain edition written, let us know your ideas . See you next time!





User avatar



Gender: None specified
Points: 300
Reviews: 0
Sun Feb 12, 2017 1:33 am
View Likes
SquillsBot says...



HOLY SPAM: LOVING PRETZELS AND QUESTIONING COMMON WRITING ADVICE
Image
written by Holysocks < PM: >

We interrupt your regular programming to bring you an ode to pretzels:

Mmm, pretzels, crunchy and fine
You, my friend, are simply devine~

Today, I’d actually like to talk about a very very common piece of writing advice: Show, don’t tell! Most writers have either heard this phrase somewhere, whether someone was reminding you to show instead of tell, or you were reading about it somewhere. But what exactly does the saying “show, don’t tell” mean?

I found that a lot of times, people would use this common bit of writing advice, but wouldn’t elaborate, and so it took me awhile before I knew what exactly people were saying when they told me not to tell, and instead “show” the readers. That’s kind of ironic, when you think about it, because the more often than not people giving that bit of advice don’t take the time to show their fellow writers what it is to show someone instead of telling them.

What happens when someone doesn’t understand something, is they’ll either interpret it a different way than you intended, or they’ll google it- sadly, I always forget google is a thing. So when people told me to “show, don’t tell” I assumed they wanted more descriptions! So I described the the inside of my characters eyelids to the reader, in a futile attempt to show my audience instead of tell them. It took me a bit to realize that that’s not what that phrase meant at all.

So what does “show, don’t tell” mean? “Telling” is when we, the writer, say: Joey was scared. and don’t elaborate on what “scared” actually is! What if someone has never felt scared before? How are they going to empathize with Joey? “Showing” essentially is making descriptions easy to relate to. It’s the difference between someone having to dig up a scary memory to remember how it felt to be terrified, and giving them the ingredients to be scared and empathize with someone that’s scared without having to recall the feeling for themselves. Showing would look more like: Sweat ran down Joey’s forehead as he coward behind the door.

Something that helps me remember what “showing” is vs what “telling” is, is if you try to pretend you’re describing a colour to someone that’s never seen a colour before. How do you describe the colour blue to someone?





User avatar



Gender: None specified
Points: 300
Reviews: 0
Sun Feb 12, 2017 1:34 am
View Likes
SquillsBot says...



TWO CENTS: WHAT MAKES A WRITER?
Image
written by Aley < PM: >

Whether you're a poet, a novice, or an expert, what actually makes this whole title of "writer" valid? A lot of people have come to believe that writing every day is the only way that you can validate calling yourself a "writer" and if you don't write every day, then you aren't using your time wisely.

Whenever I see "Tips for New Writers" I know that list is going to include "WRITE" and sometimes it'll say "Write every day. Put aside 10-30 minutes to write, every day. Get up earlier, make that time for yourself. You wouldn't believe how much time you actually have in a day if you just wake up a little bit earlier. It doesn't take that long." Whenever I read these things, I feel like I'm being shamed, honestly. I don't "write" every day. I barely write every week. I still consider myself a poet though, and not just because I have published poetry, but because of who I am. I am a poet. Rhetoric and language absorb me.

So that leaves me at odds with this idea to write every day. People say it because they want you to form a habit of sitting down with a quiet time to yourself to get ideas onto paper, or a computer, or somewhere. The idea is that if you can sit down and get just a little done each day, eventually you'll get a finished product.

This is true for a lot of things in life. Want to paint something, but you're strapped for time? Just paint a little each day. Eventually it will get done. The problem comes with actually forming the habit.

Habit making can be a good thing, and usually if you do something pleasurable while you're making a habit, it becomes easier to do. You look forward to it. For me, I write when I feel the draw to write down an idea because I love to see the responses, and for poetry when I want to see how an idea will unfold. The problem is that a lot of the poems I write never make it to the light of day, and I have other habits that I enjoy too. Easier habits.

So should we really struggle with writing every day? For me, I am on both sides of this issue. I think it is a good thing to get ideas churning every day, however, I don't always think that needs to be on paper, and I don't always think it has to be in a particular style or fashion. Then again, I'm not a super famous writer by any stretch of the imagination and most of them do have the habit of writing every day. They often will explain that they set aside time in the morning by waking up before other people, and they split their time. Half of it is dedicated to writing old stuff, and the other half is dedicated to writing new stuff.

That being said, the advice I like is to read every day. When we read or engage ourselves in examining our peerage, other writers, we actually are picking up more useful information to inform ourselves when we write. At this stage, a lot of us are still just learning to pick names out of a hat for who is who. We couldn't identify whether Poe was satirical or serious with his writing at the drop of a dime. We may not even be able to name something written by him.

Until we get to a point where we are familiar with the things we like and dislike about different published old styles, we won't be able to be sure about what we like or dislike about ourselves. We won't be able to emulate or try to reproduce any particular styles until we have developed a base of understanding for them.

That being said, reading and talking about new poems, new books, and new works on here is one of the best things for creating a growing community of knowledge, and if you want to hone your craft of getting over writer's block, write every day.





User avatar



Gender: None specified
Points: 300
Reviews: 0
Sun Feb 12, 2017 1:34 am
View Likes
SquillsBot says...



Valentine's Day!


I know you all know what this day is! Hearts, chocolates, and love are all around! But what is it that really makes a Valentine's day special? Is it a significant other, secret admirers, or something else? Let me go through a few ways I've noticed people celebrating it.

The first way is dates with a significant other. People get all dressed up after a stressful day of either school and work, and get ready to go out. They get picked up by their partner, and they head out to a dinner, then possibly a movie. Normally, there are flowers and chocolate boxes that come with. Some guys even send these to their partners work or school. Romantic and pleasing!

Another way I've noticed people celebrating it is just taking time at home. With or without another person there, it doesn't really matter. They kick back with a few snacks, turn on the TV, and sit the night away! (personally this seems way less expensive.)

But, all in all, there are a million and one ways to celebrate a Valentine's day. Whether or not if you're with someone romantically or physically- there's always a way to express your love to others(even if it's platonically!), and have a blast throughout the day! I've asked @ScarlettFire to do an interview with me about Valentine's Day!

Squills: What do you normally do for Valentine's Day?


Scarlettfire: What do I normally do? Well, I usually just sit at home with Boy and relax.

S: To you, what would be a perfect Valentine's Day?


Scar: My perfect Valentine's Day? That'd probably be hanging out with Boy, maybe seeing a movie and then having dinner.

S: And, given the chance out of everyone, who would you like to spend Valentine's day with?


Scar: Boy, of course. He's <3

See! Nothing extravagant as a hot air balloon over the Vegas Sky, or as expensive as a world cruise. A simple, romantic night with her and Boy, and no one else. Sounds pretty perfect, in my opinion.

In any case, although there are several ways to celebrate Valentine's day, there are things to consider. What do you want? If you have a significant other- what would they want? Do you have enough money? Just because you're running short on cash doesn't mean you can't have a good time/make sure your partner has a good time! Mind the bank, keep your partners' thoughts in mind, and make sure to have a blast this Valentine's day!





User avatar



Gender: None specified
Points: 300
Reviews: 0
Sun Feb 12, 2017 1:37 am
View Likes
SquillsBot says...



This Week’s Link Round Up 2/10
Image
written by megsug < PM: >

We’re spreading the love and the positive recognition in This Week’s Round Up.


Haven’t gotten a Valentine’s Day present for that special someone yet? Still not sure what you’re going to get them? @NightOwl’s got you. She’s hosting a lyrical workshop:



Maybe Valentine's Day has gotten you in the mood to write a love song for that special someone. Or maybe you're in a different, more anti-love kind of mood. Either way, you're welcome to this lyrics-themed jam. We'll talk about love songs and then write our own.




Get ready to pour out those heart felt tunes. No experience required The pad will be available thirty minutes before . Time is adjusted to your local timezone.


The Last Man Standing competition is taking over the Writing Corner. Tons of threads about plans and concepts are spilling in as bards and warriors prepare to fight to the death.
@TheStormAroundMe has put together a pretty comprehensive thread to spring from when the battle begins starting with a list of characters with descriptions organized by story. The set of characters that intrigues me the most is:



Parker Cole: an intern at a news station, who decides to run away to put together a photo series on the life of a vagabond.
January Dalton: Parker's best friend, who tags along to make sure he doesn't get abducted or killed




Check out the Writing Corner to see what sweet premises will be marching into the Green Room soon or sign up for LMS and make a thread of your own!


@Mage wanted to know about LGBTQ+ acceptance, specifically towards transgender people, in Ancient Greece and got some pretty fascinating answers. @Sheyren informed her that :



There were worshippers of a certain God which name I forget who would castrate themselves and wear feminine clothing. The Ancient Greeks often found unique things pleasing, and considered them to be set.




@Sacredlege said the deity men castrated themselves for was the goddess Cybele. There are more interesting facts about Ancient Greece sprinkled throughout the thread and there’s room for more if you know anything about ancient LGBTQ+ culture.


@Snoink made a thread to celebrate Islam, and for the users who don’t know much about the religion, there are a ton of new things to learn! @SirLight and @Autumns have patiently answered questions in depth. Something new I learned was why Muslim women wear hajibs:



The Quran asks both men and women to 'cover up' and defines parts of the body that one can't go around displaying in public (awrah, as @SirLight pointed out).




That is really only part of the answer, and there are answers to more questions too. If you have a question, feel free to ask. Just keep in mind that only two users are answering questions right now, so it might take a while.





User avatar



Gender: None specified
Points: 300
Reviews: 0
Sun Feb 12, 2017 1:38 am
View Likes
SquillsBot says...



SHAMELESS PLUGS
Image

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!


And now for this week's Shameless Plugs!


R.E.D 2.0



Are you looking to improve your reviewing skills or just get into the habit of reviewing regularly, if so, this is the contest for you! RED is an acronym for Review Every Day, which is exactly what the contest is about! Its goal is to get you in the habit of critiquing and reviewing on a regular basis. But wait, there's more! There are point prizes involved in the contest, with the top three reviewers getting a certain percent of the points that are in the Contest account. For more information, visit the link below!

R.E.D. 2.0

That's all folks~ Now send us yours.

Title of the advertisement


Advertisement text here. Advertisement text here. Advertisement text here. Advertisement text here.

That's all folks~ Now send us yours.





User avatar



Gender: None specified
Points: 300
Reviews: 0
Sun Feb 12, 2017 1:38 am
View Likes
SquillsBot says...



SUBSCRIBERS
Image

written by SquillsBot < PM: >

Find enspoiler-ed a list of our subscribers!

Spoiler! :
@SquillsBot@Carina@ShadowVyper@ArcticMonkey@Hannah@KingLucifer@Caesar@veeren@megsug@StoneHeart@Skydreamer@Love@Aley@Rydia@Alpha@skorlir@KnightTeen • @ChildOfNowhere • @neko@Aquila90@DudeMcGuy@kayfortnight@Cole@Blackwood@manisha • @fortis • @Gardevite@cgirl1118@KittyCatMeow • @Strange • @ChocoCookie@carbonCore@Auxiira@Iggy@Blues@Paracosm@Sparkle@FireFox@Dakushau • @AlexSushiDog • @wizkid515@yubbies21@PiesAreSquared@FatCowsSis • @Noiralicious • @BenFranks@TimmyJake@whitewolfpuppy@WallFlower@Magenta@BrittanyNicole@GoldFlame@Messenger@ThereseCricket@TriSARAHtops • @Buggiedude2340• @Kosmos • @WillowPaw1@Laure@TakeThatYouFiend • @RoseAndThorn • @Cheetah@NicoleBri@Pompadour@Zontafer@QueenOfWords@Crimsona@vluvswriting@GreenTulip@Audy@EllaBliss@eldEr@Deanie@lostthought@CesareBorgia • @Jhinx • @Morrigan@AfterTheStorm • @AstralHunter • @Autumns • @Wolfical • @Pamplemousse • @ReisePiecey • @gia2505 • @BiscuitsBatchAvoy • @SkyeWalker@Noelle • @Lylas • @Tortwag • @kingofeli@SpiritedWolfe@malachitear@GeeLyria@AdmiralKat@Clickduncake@ely@Seraphinaxx@Pretzelstick@WritingWolf@EternalRain@Tuesday@Dragongirl@JKHatt@Lucia@donizback •@Falconer • @BlueSunset@artybirdy@IncohesiveScribbles@cleverclogs@MLanders@ClackFlip@PickledChrissy@racket@Lorelie@Gravity • @BlueAfrica • @hermione315@Steggy@willachilles@tintomara138@AmatuerWritings • @Ithaca • @TheForgottenKing@Shoneja123 • @Mage • @Mea@klennon14@fandomsNmusic@Meerkat@HolographicLadybug@Sevro@DragonWriter22@RippleGylf@amelie@Morrigun


Do you, too, want to be enspoiler-ed and receive a personal weekly notification when the Squills newsletter is posted? Shoot a PM over to SquillsBot to let him know, and you'll be pinged along with the next issue!








I lingered round them, under that benign sky: watched the moths fluttering among the heath and harebells, listened to the soft wind breathing through the grass, and wondered how any one could ever imagine unquiet slumbers for the sleepers in that quiet earth.
— Emily Bronte, Wuthering Heights