Young Writers Society

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1. FEATURED MEMBER INTERVIEW: RIDA
2. MEET A MEMBER: INTERVIEW WITH RANDOMTALKS
3. RANDOMOSITY: A SURVEY OF GOAT QUOTES
4. FUN AND GAMES: PEOPLE TAB BINGO
5. YOU DIDN'T HEAR IT FROM ME
6. EXCUSE ME, MR. SHERLOCK HOLMES, BUT WHO ARE YOU REALLY?
7. THIS MONTH IN HISTORY: MAY
8. SHAMELESS PLUGS
9. SUBSCRIBERS

FEATURED MEMBER INTERVIEW: RIDAwritten by Liminality< PM: >

Even before NaPo started this year, this FM was busy spreading NaPo hype. @rida joined YWS 2 years ago in 2020 and on March 23rd this year they were selected as FM. They play with formatting in their experimental poems, which are imaginative and filled with vivid imagery. You can check these works out for yourself with rida’s NaPo thread. rida also recently became a Squills journalist and published their first column in April.



rida: Hi Lim!

Wow, I’m honoured! Sure, what time and how?



R: For about ten seconds I had absolutely no idea what to do! I kept thinking there had been a mistake because I’d started participating in YWS again after a looong break, so this didn’t make sense!!

Then I realised this was all real and I was so, so happy!!!

I’d like to thank everyone for choosing me!



R: Well, I think it was because I got pretty ‘woohoo-poetry!’, and NaPo was coming so I started participating and encouraging all the contests and all



R: The poetry section is definitely a favourite. Apart from the Peoples tab, I really enjoy following along roleplays and reading poetry projects and collections!



R: Just be you- that’s honestly the best advice ever.

Stay involved in the site, and if you’re particularly enthusiastic about something, like I am with poetry, then promote that!!



R: Thanks!

If you have yet to congratulate rida on FM, join us in doing so on their FM thread or on their wall!

MEET A MEMBER: INTERVIEW WITH RANDOMTALKS

written by alliyah < PM: >

A few weeks ago, the reviewing battle of the year, maybe of the century, took place with the conclusion of the Last Reviewer Standing Contest hosted by @ReviewBuddy, @MailicedeNamedy, @HarryHardy, and myself. The contest actually began at the beginning of March starting with twenty three brave contestants who each week had to review a larger and larger review-quota. By the end of the competition HarryHardy reviewed the most, and our non-host winners were @RandomTalks with 117 reviews, @ForeverYoung299 with 56 reviews, and @IcyFlame with 26 reviews. With a total of 470 reviews written for this 8 week competition. As part of the delux prize packages featured, the winner of LRS RandomTalks won their very own Squills interview! And so here's a perfect chance to get to know a little bit more about the chamption of LRS!



RandomTalks: Thank you! But actually, I had first entered the competition with the sole intention of having some fun. I have always enjoyed reviewing and I thought that LRS would be a great incentive to get me back to it.



R: It's funny that you ask that, because at times, I had no idea whether I was going to continue or not. I had to sit for a string of exams through March and April, and I was stuck in a very tight schedule most of the time. But I was enjoying the competition far too much and so, I would just log in and write as many reviews I could in one sitting. There was nothing strategic about it though, and most of the weeks, I would complete at the very last second.



R: I would say reading the works the incredible writers share over here, but that kind of falls within reviewing as well. I recently discovered the incredible forums that we have in YWS, and even though I have not got the chance to participate as much, I still enjoy hopping on to the Randomosity threads or the Fiction Discussion and Media Reviews. People have a lot of opinions and I really enjoy learning what they think of certain books or movies. It's a great place to get recommendations as well!



R: I mostly write short stories, but I did publish a novella last year that I am particularly proud of. Its called "The Old Man and The Boy ," and even though it deals with simple themes, it was my first complete project and I thoroughly enjoyed every part of it.



R: Not really. I definitely try to participate more wherever I can and I interact with people on a more regular basis than before. I am more aware and careful in my interactions now and I do feel a certain sense of responsibility. But other than that, I don't think becoming a mod has been that earth-shattering, difficult change that I had been making it out to be before. It's actually very cool and fun and light.



R: I am a truly lazy person, but I do enjoy cycling and reading books. I am sure watching movies and tv series count as wasting time and not a 'serious hobby', but I think I spend half of my time sitting with my laptop alone.



R: It's funny how many times I have been asked that question. But there's no big secret or deeper significance behind it! I just chose it when I first joined YWS because of the way it simply seemed to pop out from the screen in sheer joy and happiness. It does not really match my personality, but I have grown rather fond of it and I really don't think I have the patience to search for an avatar when I already have one that is both a little silly and adorable!

Thanks for those answers RandomTalks! Be sure to jump over to Random's wall to congratulate them on a job well done on that LRS Contest if you haven't had a chance already, maybe this interview has even sparked a conversation topic for you! Join us next time to hear more about YWSers near you.

RANDOMOSITY: A SURVEY OF GOAT QUOTESwritten by Liminality< PM: >

Ruin a Quote with Goats is one of my favourite Randomosity threads. It was started by @Mea in January 2016, but really began to pick up steam from 2020 onwards. The premise is simple. You take a quote and you replace some words with ‘goat’. This article will explore some trends in the goatification of quotes and exhibit a selection of them to show you the wonders of this thread.






One strategy that players picked up was to use quotes from the YWS Quote Generator. Dwelling at the bottom of each YWS page, it contains quotes from a variety of sources, including YWSers, famous writers, fictional characters, philosophers and more.

As the thread got longer, it was natural that some quotes would get repeated. However, a few quotes seemed to be drawn towards the goats even more than the rest. Here are some standouts. Warning: I am particularly enthusiastic about some of these well-timed coincidences.






I am sure many of you would be familiar with the above iconic quote. It resides in the Quote Generator, waiting for a moment in time, which Liberty of course, does not do. This quote has been a real champion. It was goatified not once, not twice, but a total of three times in the thread! The diligent goatifiers were @Liberty, @Shadeflame and @Magebird. It went through two permutations. One as “I don’t do goats” and the other as “Goats don’t do time”.

This next one is incredible, because despite being many pages apart, and despite the quote being so long, two YWSers replaced the exact same word with goat! @Shady and @starlitmind both produced the following.






Some YWSers got creative. They decided to goatify the name of the author rather than the quote, for example @Moonglade’s particularly fitting take on this aphorism.






Now, let us have a look at some of the main sources of the original quotes, starting with books.

It would not be YWS without the mention of something book-related. Speaking of which, does anyone remember that the name of one of the narrators in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein was Robert Walton? I definitely did not until Googling this quote.






The original line said ‘friend’ in the place of ‘goat’. Given that Robert Walton was heading towards the Arctic, perhaps he would have missed both.

Another classic, this time from the fantasy genre, has turned up in the thread as well. I wonder if Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings series would have been quite the same if one of the main themes was goats, rather than good and evil.






Philosophers were also a big source of quotes. There is just something about the way philosophers talk and how they are quoted (and sometimes misquoted) all throughout the web that makes them ripe for a goat. We have already seen Lao Tzu twice.






Aristotle has been goatified by @Hkumar with the quote above, and @momonster below.






Finally, we also had some goat quotes coming from movies. One example is this quote goatified by @Starve from the film ‘Fight Club’.






(Whoops, looks like I have broken both rules already!)

One good reason to stick around this thread in my opinion, is the unexpected gems of wisdom. I think inspiring quotes can sometimes be kind of heavy. (Life is heavy, after all!) Adding goats, however, can reduce the load, and make them a lot more, well . . . inspiring. Take this one, which @Phillauthet goatified. It reminds me of all the times I posted quotes from my course readings in this wonderful goat thread while unable to figure out what they meant.






I also love the following by @TypoWithoutCoffee. To me, it even seems wiser than the original! Goats are indeed quiet and useful to people “to whom it is easy to do good”. Living like that sounds like a sound plan.






Please contribute to the cause of quoting more goats . . . or was it goating more quotes? After all:






P.S. I was the culprit for this one. In fact, I goatified it twice, two years apart from each other. Only time will tell if that means anything.

FUN AND GAMES: PEOPLE TAB BINGO

written by alliyah < PM: >

I had a lot of fun hosting round of Squills Bingo in October, so we're bringing it back! Check out the People tab and see if you can get a Bingo (5 in a row) of statuses that fill these categories. Here's your excuse to get caught up on all the latest from the People Tab.



This is just for fun, but if you're able to get a Bingo, simply link the 5 statuses and mark which categories they fulfill and send me a PM and I'll send you your 100 points of Bingo Winnings. If you're able to mark down all the squares, I'll send 300 points your way. Good luck! The deadline is July 15.

YOU DIDN'T HEAR IT FROM ME

written by alliyah < PM: >



Need all the latest on whats what and whos who? Well search no further! I've got all of the latest from YWS.

Please note, all information is alleged and doesn't necesarilly reflect the views of Squills or YWS Corporate or reality and any complaints should be directed to @TheEgg or the Squills Editors who have allowed such a gossip column to be written in the first place. I also do not hold responsibility for anyone believing any of the claims within this article.

LSS Results Heavily Rigged by Outside Secret Funding

A report has come into HQ that the LSS contest has been rigged by Classified funders paying the judges with points to alter the final results. Despite all appearances that word-count is a fair way for the contest to be judged, the true winner of LSS is the goose tagbook .

- Source: The annonymous informant of this report is affiliated with Goose Inc. and at the time of this reporting no effort was made to validate these claims. The Geese making these claims were most assuredly not biased against the results.

Magebird's Secret Schemes Behind the Scenes

I've heard @Magebird secretly set up the game and has actually been baiting everyone else into playing with her despite the thread title

- This is a direct quotation from @IcyFlame, but I'm not here to start drama, judge these claims for yourself.

Snoink is making a Review Comeback to Prevent HarryHardy From Reaching Top Site Reviewer of All Time

While it is long known that @HarryHardy has been hard at work attempting to reach @Snoink's spot on the All Time Review Leaderboard , it is a little known fact that Snoink has been secretly writing upwards of 2,000 review drafts that she plans to submit the day before Harry writes his 3753rd review thereby preventing Harry from passing Snoink's number 1 position that she has defended for over a decade. The only comment from Snoink that could made on the topic was "THE BLOOD MUST BE REPAID."

- Source: Snoink's Wall .

Well that's all the gossip we have for this issue, but if you have more outlandish claims and YWS Gossip please send me a PM with the latest news and after proper fact-checking has been made you might see it in a Squills Article near you.

xoxo
alliyah

EXCUSE ME, MR. SHERLOCK HOLMES, BUT WHO ARE YOU REALLY?written by Rida< PM: >

Close your eyes. Take a deep breath.

When I say: ‘Sherlock Holmes’. What image flits through your mind? Perhaps I can describe it?

A man wearing a deerstalker, hands holding a curved pipe with smoke swirling from its end and, perhaps, a beige coat- the trademark detective outfit.

Who else do you think of when you hear ‘Sherlock Holmes’? Moriarty, I suppose- his enemy? Or Mrs. Hudson- his housekeeper? Or, of course, his sidekick- Watson!

And I am guessing that most people might hear the phrase: “Elementary, my dear Watson” ring through their ears as they contemplate the iconic character?

These are all- in the modern society- the established facts about Sherlock Holmes. They couldn’t possibly be false, could they?

That is where you are mistaken.

Let’s start with the real Sherlock Holmes and see how he developed.

The original Sherlock Holmes appeared first in A Study In Scarlet, a book published by Arthur Conan Doyle. Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes, however, was not the detective we know him to be.

Doyle’s detective used various ways to solve crimes- not just deduction. He speculated, he guessed, and, at times even made false assumptions! What’s more- He never used the phrase ‘Elementary, my dear Watson’, and his sidekick and the detective lived apart for most of the series. Mrs. Hudson was barely mentioned in the series and the notorious antagonist- Moriarty- was the villain of only two stories. Sherlock’s drug use was rather infrequent after the first two novels and he rather preferred his own way of natural justice than sticking to the laws. Lastly, Sherlock’s iconic characteristics- the deerstalker, the coat and the pipe- weren’t Doyle’s!

Sherlock Holmes’ entry into fame was in 1891, when his first six short stories were published in Strand Magazine



and later as he was adapted into several stories, novels, comics and plays, his character developed. The deerstalker and the coat, for instance, was first imagined by the initial illustrator of the series- Sydney Pagot. Furthermore, his curved pipe was chosen by actor William Gillette so that the audience could see his face more clearly, and the phrase “Elementary, my dear Watson”, was penned down by author and humourist P.G. Wodehouse.

So on the one hand we have Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes, and on the other hand we have the world’s adapted Sherlock Holmes. Amidst this, it is difficult to pinpoint exactly who is Sherlock Holmes? A lot of people might say that the original Doyle’s detective is the real one, but there are many - including me - who will say that he is a palimpsest.

To quote from my source-







{source: https://youtu.be/I8992A5oAWM}

THIS MONTH IN HISTORY: MAY

written by alliyah < PM: >

It's been... a while since I've done an article for my "This Month In History" column. In fact if my records are correct, I haven't really done one since July of 2021 so almost a whole year! But I thought I'd jump in the time-machine and write another one for May. For those who don't remember the column, I like to hope in the YWS Time Machine to find out what was happening 2, 5, 10, and 15 years ago on the site. This time we'll check out the month of May and see what was going on!

TWO YEARS AGO: YWS MAY 2020

World Events
So May 2020 was not a fun time. Many places were locked down from the very beginnings of Covid, and things were pretty anxious. Still there are some interesting YWS highlights from that time period to look back on.

Featured Members
May 2020 featured not one, not two, but three featured members, and looking at the list, each of these people are dynamite members so I can see why they were featured! For the first part of the month @Elfboy was featured, they've sort of retired from the site now, but do pop in every now and then for updates and have always been a kind and enthusiastic person to run into. Then carrying the middle of the month @Seirre was the featured member! As my fellow Poetry Crew captain I really can't gush enough about how sweet and talented Seirre is - I mean have you took a read through their NaPo Thread? Seirre would become a mod in July of 2020 and was already diving into all things poetry, so definitely a natural feature, and in two years time Seirre is now one of our Global Mods! And closing out the month was @Hkumar! H tends toward the poetry side of the site, and seems to always have a kind word to share around the site - he can be easily spotted from his signature Flynn Rider avvie.

Review Day Recap
We don't have Review Days often anymore, but in May 2020 we did! And rather than being divided into teams it was everyone for themselves. Still some peope chose colors for teams with Team Review Buddy, Team Dark Cyan, Team Katteepult, Team Aubergine, Team Sage Green, Team Raw Umber, & Team Aquamarine. @Tenyo ended up writing the most reviews and @kattee was the top typer of the review day, and together we wrote 150 reviews over the course of two days.

Top Lit Works
The top lit work of May 2020 was I Can't Breathe (Black Lives Matter) by @KahleneTenorio and even two years later the piece is still certainly impactful.

FIVE YEARS AGO: YWS MAY 2017

Wholesome Thread
A very wholesome thread that should be poked again was started in May 2017 called, "What little things on YWS brighten your day?" started by @beckiw. People shared sweet little notes about what they love about the site.

Featured Members
We had two featured members in May of 2017! @Saruka who has made their mark in the SB and poetry side of the site, and @Atticus who would go on to become a Junior Moderator being involved in just about everything under the sun as far as YWS including leading up a few Reviewing Challenges themself.

Review Day Review
May 2017 featured a Star Wars Themed Review where 196 reviews were written - @Kaylaa wrote the most reviews of the day with @Aleta, @Birdman, @Thisislegacy, and @lliyah coming close behind.

TEN YEARS AGO: YWS MAY 2012

Earth Shattering News
May 2012 was the month and year that I actually joined YWS! xD

Featured Member
@creativityrules was actually able to claim the featured member slot from December 2011 - July 2012! I'm not sure if they stopped having FMs during this time, but congratulations none the less!

YWS Roleplaying
Back in 2012 sometimes folks did roleplaying as their YWS self and it looks pretty interesting I have to say. This isn't strictly May 2012, but roleplaying was happening throughout the year in The YWS Fleet Roleplay. Here is @Griffinkeeper's description of the premise:

The Background: Following the discovery of the legendary MacGuffin device, YWS was able to expand into space. Writers from all over the galaxy came to read and write on YWS Station.

The MacGuffin device was researched and studied by SPEW, a group of authors that specialized in plot studies. They discovered that the device could create whatever a writer imagined. The first object imagined into existence was a bacon sandwich. The second object was a serpent that hid exclusively in bacon sandwiches. Following the second incident, access to the MacGuffin device was heavily restricted and SPEW became the TOP SECRET research institute on YWS.

Using the MacGuffin device, they were able to create YWS Station, as well as the YWS Shipyards. Writers were able to order the construction of ships with their points. The YWS Fleet was born. As YWS expanded and became more powerful, it began to be challenged by all manner of intergalactic powers.

One such power, in a bid to learn more about YWS, infiltrated YWS and kidnapped Nate. He was eventually rescued by SPEW, but in rescuing Nate, YWS was unable to properly defend itself and the YWS Fleet was hammered by several combined fleets.

YWS Station was evacuated, along with the site data and the extremely rare MacGuffin device. However, due to the disorderly nature of the evacuation and the subsequent destruction of YWS Station, the YWS Fleet has become scattered. Some ships are missing, some are damaged, and some are destroyed.

Our story starts shortly after the destruction of YWS Station. The mission is to link back up with the fleet.

Honestly does this sound like early #Classified mayhem to anyone else??

FIFTEEN YEARS AGO: YWS MAY 2007

Look
YWS has changed a ton from how it first looked and the logo has gotten updates throughout the years as well. Here's how YWS was looking back in 2007 (source: https://web.archive.org/)


YWS on Writers Digest
In May of 2007 after just a few years of being a site, YWSers were celebrating YWS making it into Writers Digest top 100 writing sites. [url=
YWS made it into Writer's Digest 100 best writing sites!]here[/url].

Featured Members
Okay this is pretty awesome! In May 2007 the legend herself, @Snoink was actually the featured member on YWS! In case you are not familiar Nate actually had to create a new category of stars for Snoink because she kept passing all the former star categories - so she has pigs rather than stars and to this day remains the person with the most reviews posted on the site. She also served for many years as a site Admin and continues to check in for updates to this day. Congrats Snoink! Clearly well deserved feature!

And there you have it! Just a skim through some of YWS's highlights picked up from the Time Machine, join us for the next article, only... in another time!

SHAMELESS PLUGS

written by SquillsBot < PM: >

Message from Big Brother: Important Site PSA for all Members

Due to some technical issues our old support email is not currently up and running, in the mean-time should you need to change your password, username, or account email you'll need to contact a Global Moderator or use the "Contact Mods" button on the top of the screen and if you get locked out of your account for some reason rather than emailing the old support account please use our new temporary support email: "youngwriterssociety.com@gmail.com" where a GM or Admin will be able to review your request and get you assistance.

Additionally if you or a friend are over 12 years old and would like to create a new account you may do so by registering your account and sending a confirmation of registration email to youngwriterssociety.com@gmail.com.. after which a Global Moderator will review your registration information and activate your account.

COOP edition #3 Has Hatched!

The latest edition of COOP: chickens of our poetry zine is out and features several YWSers along with editors Rook and alliyah. You can print, download, and read for free here.

If you're interested in submitting chicken-themed art or poetry to be considered for the next edition of COOP you can find out more information here.





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