Young Writers Society

1. FEATURED MEMBER INTERVIEW: LUMINESCENTANT
2. REVMO STATS UPDATE
3. GREEN ROOM GALLERY
4. FEATURED MEMBER INTERVIEW: MESSENGER
5. REVIEW METHODS: YWS’MORE
6. SHAMELESS PLUGS
7. SUBSCRIBERS

FEATURED MEMBER INTERVIEW: LUMINESCENTANTwritten by looseleaf< PM: >

This featured member has only been on YWS since April, but she has made a huge impact on the site. During Roleplay Month, she completed ALL of the Daily Bounties, and was only four short of completing the Checklist Challenge. She also really loves pusheen. This week, I had the pleasure of interviewing @LuminescentAnt about her time as FM. Read it here!


LuminescentAnt: Okay, to tell you the truth, I kinda wanted to be FM, even though I thought I didn't really do anything to earn it. I was obsessively checking YWS basically every minute. Then I woke up the next morning and checked YWS, and when I saw that I was FM I was so excited and happy and I couldn't believe it! I was so happy to see all the Pusheen gifs too!


L: To be honest, I actually don't know! Maybe it might be from my participation in Roleplay Month? And possibly because of reviews, but I don't do THAT much reviewing, so I guess it is cause of the effort I put into the DM Daily Bounties and the Checklist Challenge!


L: I like roleplaying, especially the duo I'm doing with Spearmint, it is really fun! It's called "The Tale of Tomato and Strawberry." I also like posting in the Randomosity forum, and if I have time, hanging out in WFPs!


L: Okay, so the truth is, I wanted to complete all the bounties because I thought the Adventurer badge could only be given when you complete them all. But then I realized that it was actually if you completed 15+ bounties, but by then it was too late. And to be honest, I was trying to get Featured Member partly, so I wanted to participate in a YWS thing. And also because I really like roleplaying! And the reason is probably because it's writing, and you get to do it with other people, and some times, you might not know where the plot goes!


L: Well, I have joined some really cool roleplays, but they haven't started because not enough people joined, or something else. But I am thinking of starting a storybook about a rebellion, and each person gets to choose their role in the rebellion. I am also planning on making a tagbook, but in order for it to make sense, I kinda need to wait for 2024. You'll see.



L: I like posting in Baiting Mage into Playing With Us, and also Last Person to Post Here Wins, because they're really fun and unexpected. I also like Fortunately/Unfortunately.


L: I would say that if you want to be FM, you have to be on YWS a lot, and do stuff like write lots of reviews, or participate in a lot of roleplays. Or maybe just talk to people in WFPs. Whatever it is, you don't have to be good at it, you just have to be an active community member. That's what being a Featured Member means, I think, which is to be someone who is part of the society, not just someone who wants to post their stuff. It means that you are really committing to being a part of the community.

If you would like to congratulate Lumi on being FM, you can do so in the FM thread or on their wall!

REVMO STATS UPDATE written by IcyFlame< PM: >


The YWS Annual Review Month (or RevMo for short) is in full swing and here at Squills we're going to give you a round up of how the whole event is going down.

The site goal of 750 reviews is still in progress. At the time of writing, we've just surpassed 350 reviews, with over 40 reviewers chipping in to meet the target. Let's give one final push before the end of the month and see if we can get as close to the goal as possible!

COLOUR CHALLENGE

In the Colour Challenge , for week one, the challend was to write 10 reviews to get a shiny new dark violet username. This challenge was met by @Ventomology, @IcyFlame, @Rinisha, @Plume, @LuminescentAnt, @Rose, @KaiaJersaga, @foxmaster, @GengarIsBestBoy, & @Serrurie

For week two, the challenge was to write 20 reviews in order to win the jazzy pink username. @Ventomology, @Rose, @IcyFlame, @Plume, @Rinisha, @LuminescentAnt, and @foxmaster all ended the second week of the month with shiny new pink usernames.

The challenge continues, with users having to meet 35 reviews by the end of week three to get a medium sea green username. Lets hope our reviewers aren't running out of steam just yet! Keep on going everyone!

TEAM TORTOISE

Lots of users are still the running for Team Tortoise this month, marching in with a review every single day. These users are @Ventomology, @IcyFlame, @Plume, @Rose, @Rinisha, @LuminescentAnt, @OrabellaAvenue and @vampricone That's eight reviewers competing for that dark cyan username by reviewing at least once per day every day in September, and quite frankly, we're impressed at the sheer number of users taking on the challenge!

OTHER UPDATES & CHALLENGES


Another challenge on the horizon, is that the Green Room seems to be slowly but steadily clearing out, and with that of course comes the search for the Golden Goose and the potential rise of The Afterwatch for those who are involved in the Knights of the Green Room.


Participants are also ploughing through the official Checklist Challenge and it looks like quite a few prizes will be given out for everyone's efforts.

Don't forget to also check out the RevMo Banner Contest . Take a look at the banners that have been submitted and be prepared to vote for your favourites


Keep an eye on the official RevMo update thread to get more up to date information as and when it happens - there's a whole lot to get involved in!

GREEN ROOM GALLERYwritten by Spearmint < PM: >

Hello hello! Hope RevMo is going well for you all! Have you made some progress on your goals? Maybe you've gotten busy? (That's me, although I hope to do a reviewing sprint later in the month.) Or, on the other hand, if you've run out of things to review, why not check out the Green Room?

The Green Room is looking to be in pretty good shape as of the writing of this article, at 12 works with 0 reviews and 35 works with 1 review. But there are still quite a few gems to check out with this Green Room Gallery article!

The Last Spell by @SilverNight
Chapter 30.2. Find the first chapter here .
Are you in the mood for a high-stakes fantasy adventure with plenty of banter, magic, and heists? (And rest assured, there are plenty of heists.) Check out Silv's novel The Last Spell and get to know the dashing duo Cyrin and Mireya, who find their lives entangled with those of the powerful Heirs as they race to keep the legendary First Spell out of the wrong hands.
[Warning: some chapters are rated 16+ or 18+ for language.]

Shadow's Rising by @dragonight9
Chapter 9. Start with the prologue here .
Dragons. Need I say more? Well, if you insist. ;] There's elemental magic. A human raises a dragonet, but must leave for a while, although he promises to return. In the meantime, that dragonet, Shadow, meets others of his kind... Check out this action-filled story!

Pretend for the Placid Palace (PftPP) by @FireEyes
Chapter 3.2. Find the first chapter here .
If you're feeling like a slightly different genre, why not take a look at Fire's mystery + fantasy novel? Featuring: tricky stopwatches, cheesy love songs, and stopping time. Annnd a band called Placid Palace. :eyes: Go give it a read!

Williwaw by @Messenger
Chapter 32. Find the first chapter here .
What is up with all the 3s and 2s today? Anyhow, here's another great fantasy novel to binge. A williwaw is defined as "a sudden violent squall blowing offshore from a mountainous coast," and that sounds about right for this fast-paced story! Check it out for lively dialogue and exciting adventures.
[Warning: This work has been rated 16+ for violence.]

There are plenty of other stories and works to review in the Green Room , so why not venture out there sometime? And don't forget to join the Knights of the Green Room and log the green beasts you slay. ;D Happy reviewing!!
 

FEATURED MEMBER INTERVIEW: MESSENGERwritten by looseleaf< PM: >

As of last month, this featured member has been on YWS for an incredible ten whole years! Recently, he has picked up writing his novel Williwaw again and has written some very thoughtful reviews. I had the opportunity to interview @Messenger this month about becoming FM, old YWS memories, and more. Read it below!


Messenger: Excited! Happening in the month of my tenth anniversary on here was really cool ;p and it meant that people noticed I've been active on the site again which I've made a conscious effort to get back to doing


M: Erm. bribe the officials I think I've been fairly active. I was able to get to read and review some really fun stuff in July and August, and I've been posting some of my own work again after a hiatus.


M: For those who have been around long enough, it used to be the chat bar and chatroom for sure. Now, I've tried to replace some of that social aspect with writerpads. But my favorite interactions are definitely in the realm of reviewing and getting reviewed, seeing a constructive dialogue open up and exploring that over several chapters.


M: My first ever project was a 60k novella that I completed at age 15. Since then I've never been able to complete a long-form story, and I've really disappointed myself in that way. Williwaw is a combination of several half-baked stories that went nowhere, and I determined this year that I would finish it no matter what. Why read it? Umm, unknown magic, ulterior motives, freezing landscapes, a mottled cast of characters. A wind bending sword? Just your run-of-the-mill everyday stuff.


M: I think in the beginning it's a great way to organically get yourself out there. People see your name and get to see your personality through how you review It's also a great way to open your eyes to flaws in your own writing. I find reviewing to be a second opinion that often confirms my own suspicions about my writing; it's always nice to be reassured that you're not completely off the mark


M: Definitely those that have stuck with my works and encouraged me. I miss the old chatroom mafia games. Some of the storybooks I did back in the day were really fun! If you have the time, go join one. It's a great way to meet new people, see different writing styles, and flex your creative muscles without being bound to an entire novel.


M: It's a synonym in Hebrew for my real name. And what better way to absolve yourself of any responsibility than to say "hey I'm just the messenger."


M: Don't aim for the FM. There's a dozen writers in your circle alone that probably deserve it. If you love the site, your work will be noticed and you'll get FM eventually, but honestly it's more exciting when it happens out of nowhere

If you have yet to do so, you can congratulate Messenger on being FM in FM thread or on their wall!
 

REVIEW METHODS: YWS'MOREwritten by alliyah < PM: >

Hey friends! As you know, it is the festive time of year called Review Month . There's so many great ways to participate - but while we're out there reviewing sometimes it's hard to know where to start! To help out, this week I wanted to share one of my favorite methods of reviewing called the "YWS'More Method". Full disclosure: this is a method that I made up after some YWSers (including @Lib) were playing around with YWS / S'more puns and I had previously been kind of bending the rules for the YWS Critique Sandwich for years. I decided to develop what I call the YWS'more which is like the sandwich, but a little bit different! Here's the original post and explanation .



You start out at the top - with something to keep that s'more together!

Top Graham Cracker - What I Know

Here you explain what you know, that might include interpretations, and overall impressions. Starting with what you know can help you understand the piece as a whole, and give you confidence in getting into the more analytical parts of the review.

Toasted, but Slightly Burned Marshmallow - What Can Be Improved

I don't know about you, but I'm a perfectionist when it comes to roasting marshmallows - there is always more to improve! And the same is true with our literary works, no matter how flawless and wonderful there are always a some parts that could do for some improvement. An important thing about roasting marshmallows and reviewing though... this is mostly about preference so you want to phrase things about how you think a work could be improved, not about random rules that you have made up. This is especially true for poetry, where sometimes preferences differ on the "rules" and that's okay! Your opinion and critiques matter though and are helpful for the author to know, so here's where you share them with some specific critiques.

The Melty Hershey's Chocolate Bar - What I Loved

Okay, let's not lie, this is everyone's favorite part of the s'more right? It's melty, chocolatey, almost too sugary perfection! This is the place where you can gush with praise, compliments, and reactions - just be sure to be specific about what in the piece you liked! Saying "I liked your paragraph breaks" is more helpful than "I liked what I read"! You've got this, enjoy!

Graham Cracker - Overall Impressions & Closing Thoughts

Time to wrap things up and have somewhere to hold in all this goodness - give the author some Overall Impressions and a sign-off. Remember graham crackers are not the highlight of any s'more so they should not make the bulk of the review, but they are nonetheless important!

If you follow this link you can get all that in an easy to use review template too!

Now why does this method work?

I like this method because it keeps things straight-forward and simple, allowing for expansion or reduction depending on how much you have to say about a work, but no matter what it always gets what I think are the "essentials" into a review. I find with poetry, so many people miss the "interpretive" aspect of the poem (the top graham cracker) and then it can feel like they are talking around the piece, instead of talking about the piece or actually engaging with it.

So that's my review perspective for you! I've enjoyed seeing this method of reviewing get a little revival and always love to see users tag me when they use it or leave the link to the original article - it's fun to see all those awesome reviews out there. Shoutout to @LuminescentAnt @Rinisha and @foxmaster who I've recently seen using this method a lot around the site with some absolutely wonderful reviews!

SHAMELESS PLUGS

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