#WEP OCTOBER CHALLENGE #WINNER'S #GUESTPOST – ELEPHANT'S CHILD AND SELF-EXPOSURE #AMWRITING

Hello everyone! Renée here! 

Elephant's Child, the winner of the October Challenge The Scream, won with her story Un.... Her tagline: Sometimes no one will hear your scream.

 

As our judge, Nick Wilford said: "The rhythm really hammers home the oppressive feel and air of inevitability, but fortunately this is leavened by having a hopeful ending. Very thought provoking."

Today EC is addressing self-exposure. So take it away, Sue!

 SELF-EXPOSURE

I write occasionally. I read every day. I am much more comfortable describing myself as a reader than I am a writer.

What do I read? I refuse to be limited by genre or defined by target groups. Instead, I read for education, comfort, and escape – and am sometimes lucky enough to find them all in the same work.

While I am a greedy reader, I am not uncritical. Writing to strike a chord with me and find a home in my head and heart has to be authentic. Real for the moment (while I am reading), and/or honest for all time. This means that memoirs, autobiographies, diaries, and letters make regular appearances in my towering to be read lists. It does not mean that I avoid fiction. Neil Gaiman (one of my favorite authors) summed it up for me.

‘Fiction is the lie that tells the truth.

We all have an obligation to daydream. We have an obligation to imagine. It is easy to pretend that nobody can change anything, that society is huge, and the individual is less than nothing.

But the truth is individuals make the future, and they do it by imagining that things can be different.’

My latest WEP post was and is certainly real, an ongoing part of me that I rarely display. I was in at least two minds about submitting it, and having done so, felt exposed and vulnerable.

Not a comfortable place. So I thought about it. And thought some more.

That thinking brought me to a place where I realized that all writers expose themselves, or at least some of themselves, in every piece they create. As an aside, I do not think that art and the artist who created it can be separated. Each piece exposes their backgrounds, their personal values, their beliefs, their hopes, their dreams, and their fears. Some of it is conscious, and I suspect some of it isn’t. And by exposing themselves this way, they make themselves vulnerable. Vulnerable to being criticized, dismissed, or not understood.

Do my musings make sense to you? And do you agree?

Writers have long been my heroes, and I thank them for their courage and the gift of trust they bestow on their readers.

And I thank WEP, both the administrators and the contributors, for making this a safe place for writers to stretch their wings and to hopefully soar.

~~*~~

Our award-winning author, Elephant's Child is from Canberra, Australia

She says she is in the process of reinventing herself. Even though she keeps busy with gardening, reading, birds, blogging, and swimming.

You can learn a lot more on her blog. Just follow the link https://myjustsostory.blogspot.com/

Photo by: Photo by Alysha Rosly on Unsplash

~~***~~

Thank you so much for your guest post, Sue. How about you, readers? How do you feel about self-exposure? How much of you, is in your writing?

We'd love for you to tweet this post or share it to Facebook or your favorite social media site.

#WEPTHESCREAM #WEPwinner #guestpost SELF-EXPOSURE https://writeeditpublishnow.blogspot.com/2021/11/wep-october-challenge-winners-guestpost.html @DeniseCCovey, @YolandaRenee, @LGKeltner, @OlgaGodim #amwriting #writingchalleng

#WEPTHESCREAM #WEPwinner Uh…. #guestpost SELF-EXPOSURE https://writeeditpublishnow.blogspot.com/2021/11/wep-october-challenge-winners-guestpost.html @DeniseCCovey, @YolandaRenee, @LGKeltner, @OlgaGodim #amwriting #writingchallenge

#WEPTHESCREAM #WEPwinner Uh… #guestpost Self-Exposure https://writeeditpublishnow.blogspot.com/2021/11/wep-october-challenge-winners-guestpost.html @DeniseCCovey, @YolandaRenee, @LGKeltner, @OlgaGodim #amwriting #writingchallenge

~~***~~

Our next challenge will be here before we know it! We hope many of you will consider joining us for our December challenge. Narcissus! We'll be posting early, anytime between December 1st and the 15th.

Thanks, Sue!

See you all there!

#WINNERS' POST JUNE CHALLENGE - CAGED BIRD.

Hello all!

Denise here! 

Welcome to the report of the June 2019 WEP/IWSG combined challenge. Just a quick reminder-for each WEP Challenge, The Insecure Writer's Support Group Facebook page will have a post available where you can add the link for your entry. This is a great way to get more eyes on your work and to interact with more people!

Well this has been an interesting month. So much so I've used headings - The GOOD, The BAD and The UGLY. 

Now if you can't wait to pop down and see who won, please remember to pop back up to read this section. There's important things for us. going forward.

And I hope you've read the new text at the top of the blog ^^^ which outlines some changes. to posting.

The GOOD.

Some of the changes that were brought into the WEP June challenge were BAD according to most, but some GOOD came from it.

No 1 GOOD THING: 

Long-term supporters of RFW/WEP who have been on this adventure with me since 2010 rallied. I learned it's not easy to let go of something you created when you're unhappy with the direction it's taking, so the team graciously allowed me to come back.

So I can continue as Host, several dear WEP friends have offered to help carry the not insignificant load so all of the team can more easily achieve their writing goals. How good is that? 

Some of the tedious jobs we set ourselves, like counting comments, are being outsourced to WEPers. It's important to continue this prize as when it began, commenting was at an all time low. Commenting has improved and we know who's into the spirit of WEP and who isn't. And who is eligible for a prize and who isn't.

Each challenge from now on will be handled by one WEP admin. There will be minimal input from other team members, except in reading/commenting/shortlist. Once again, this will ease our load. Currently, I'm handling August, Nilanjana, October and Laura, December. If there's any way you feel you can help, put your hand up please!!

No 2 GOOD THING:

WEP PRIZES. 

The overwhelming number of comments/emails, suggested dropping the Amazon Gift Card. Those same people said participating was reward enough and receiving the acknowledgement through one of Olga's badges was a lovely bonus.  One supporter suggested we offer a critique prize and we've listened. 

Starting this August, the RED WHEELBARROW winner will receive a critique from editor, Chrys Fey - see details in the sidebar. And in every challenge till at least the end of 2020, different editors will offer varied prizes.

No 3 GOOD thing:

The WEP team have learned to be more open in their communication. Change can be a GOOD thing.

The BAD:

I hate talking about the BAD. But I must. Changing just about everything we'd set up at WEP was not a good idea. Some changes were made to save the admin from future burnout, but we've taken care of this in other ways. The team is still intact, so we handled the inner controversy well. So feel relaxed, dear WEPers, that the standard you see outlined in the August 1 post will be the standard WEP operates under while I'm host.

No 1 BAD thing:

PEOPLE'S CHOICE VOTING.

Okay, maybe a couple of you liked this idea judging from an early frenzy of commenting at the beginning, but WEP tried it way back in the day and it was a disaster, so I wrote the STOP PRESS announcement pulling back. No matter what rules are in place, it descends into a popularity contest. The feedback we received on this was an overwhelming 'No!' Most people would rather be chosen by a team who reads, re-reads then often re-re-reads entries before passing a shortlist onto a professional editor/judge. Luckily, Nick Wilford returned to judge this challenge and future challenges. BAD becomes GOOD again! 

No 2 BAD THING:

Linky tools was the only option the team thought they had this time. Those who didn't read/understand that you weren't supposed to post until your story was up created some havoc and jumping around of positions as Linky tools is nowhere near as good as InLinkz for this. 

As stated at the top of the blog, in future we're opening a 3-day window for posting your DLs, another time-saver for the admin. The GOOD thing here is that we're going back to InLinkz who've been good friends to us since we started in 2010 and will let us keep using their linkup forever free. Thank you Maria! 

The UGLY:

I don't know what was in the water this challenge, but critiquing reached an unacceptable level. We've had the odd disappointing comment in the past, but never soooooooo many. Most concentrated on one unfortunate participant's post. Cie was disturbed to such an extent she wrote a post in response. People, this is not how WEP participants critique. Please go now to our Critique Page and read what is acceptable. If you've never read this page, you shouldn't be critiquing.

To help those who may not bother reading the page, Nilanjana summed up the main points in the comments on the most recent post: 

1) Frame the critique from the POV of the writer, not your own.
2) Be helpful, not judgmental. 
3) Be specific, make the critique actionable.
4) Be courteous and address the writing, not the writer.

And I would add, please leave your original post with typos etc so readers can see what the critiquer referred to.

The post that received so many disturbing comments was a vampire story. People said they didn't read vampire stories (and that was a red flag). At WEP we have a phrase at the bottom of every sign up - "All genres welcome except erotica." 

There was no erotica in Cie's story. 

No one likes every genre. But we're not critiquing the genre, we're critiquing the writing, the plot etc. if the writer asks us to. One person made the "don't like vampire stories" comment and that led to a follow-the-leader mentality and Cie thinking WEP wasn't the right audience for vampire stories. That's pretty ironic, since I love to write/read about vamps and have published plenty in the past. Nevertheless, I hope there's no more genre bashing here.  

Vampire stories comment on humanity like most interesting stories do, whether sci-fi, high fantasy, urban fantasy, horror, spec fic, whatever. Vampire stories have been popular since late 17th century Eastern Europe. They didn't begin and end with Twilight. Vampires will never die, LOL.

Okay. Enough. Let's get to why you landed here today. Who won June???

CAGED BIRD inspired an avalanche of Domestic Violence stories, plus some other very imaginative entries. Which made it difficult to come up with a SHORTLIST and even more difficult for our judge, Nick Wilford, to narrow the list down to 3 winners. 

Thank you all for taking the time to post over the 3-week posting period and thank you to those who read most/all entries and encouraged fellow participants! 

We're thrilled to announce the winners for the WEP/IWSG collaboration for the CAGED BIRD Challenge. 

Thanks to our gifted admin, Nilanjana Bose, here is a quick blurb for each entry.

L.G. Keltner - non - fiction, 'Spread Your Wings.' Poignant recount of a new mother's struggle with her newborn's health. Resonant. Emotional. Gorgeous.

Dixie - flash fiction. A hot-button issue for many women in our society. The revenge-by-crow who gave as good, or better, than he got, resulted in a powerful climax.

Susan B -  flash fiction. A couple go out to the Gay Pride parade in Sitges and come to  a life changing decision. Photographs of the location enhance the story.

Team Netherworld - flash fiction - Vampires (one of them vegetarian). Treachery. The protagonist is a lover, not a fighter in the brutal world of vampire.

Christopher Scott - flash fiction - A quest for lands to colonize. A powerful tale which leads to the inevitable tragic fate. Yet there is a glimmer of hope. Cleverly done was the parallel between tears in the spacesuit and the fate of humanity.

Nancy Williams - flash fiction - The much-loved faerie, Primrose embarks on an unfortunate adventure which results in a torn wing. Trapped by a thoughtless child, Primrose encapsulates the theme of the caged bird.

Roland Clark - a flash of Nordic and Slavic folklore. Mythology. Imagery of Winter. Powerful women banding to protect nature. The descriptions were swoon-worthy.

Elephant's Child - flash fiction delivered in a fresh format, with thoughts interspersed with actions as the tragic story unfolds. Her words 'bludgeon and bash'.  But the final arrow to the heart was the protagonist's desperate final question: 'Can I learn to fly again?' Oh. So. Tragic.

Denise Covey - flash fiction.  Memories of an abused childhood forms a difficult cage, but love can help break it and set the victim free. Powerful and evocative while tackling a  hot button issue.

Lissa - flash fiction. A magical fable of blackbirds and two neighbours, one of whom leaves her 'cage' by an unexpected transformation.

Roland Yeomans - flash fiction. A shepherd boy collides with a falling passenger from the Ghost Train and gets trapped in a cage within a cage, in both space and time. He can break free of one if he physically boards it...but will he be able to do so? Complex, spooky and beautiful.

Jemi Fraser - flash fiction. Cyla disobeys Darra and gets trapped in a cabin where she discovers that pushing buttons can have rather disturbing consequences.

Jamie - flash fiction. The last of the Female Assassins has time travelled back and is being arrested for a mass shooting spree at the Congress. Another hot button issue - women's reproductive rights, highlighted through this thought provoking and dystopian flash.

Olga Godim - flash fiction. Another installment of  events at Dinara's pet shop at Rendezvous Space Station, this time highlighting an animal rights issue.

Pat Garcia - flash fiction. Two women, both 'caged' - one by spousal expectations and the other by her economic circumstances. An evocative exploration of societal, class and gender stereotypes.

Rebecca M Douglass - flash fiction. Four women, each one in a gilded cage called marriage and each one finding a way to break out or live in it.

Sally - flash fiction/poetry. Three characters and three different ways of building the cages, carrying on from one generation to the next. Is everyone caged in some way or another?

Hilary - flash fiction. A thought provoking flash on how technology can cage women and enable abusers.

Toi Thomas - flash fiction. A woman journals her cage of abuse, how it begins insidiously and builds up and the process of release.

Beth Camp - flash fiction. A couple take a celebratory trip to see parrots in the rainforest. The woman wonders if they should get a pair as pets to keep in a cage. The answer comes from the man but it is not what she expected.

Kalpana - flash fiction. A house on a cliffside that looks like a cage when the monsoons come. An iron cage within the cage that fills and empties depending on who looks at it. An old man who asks a question and rows out to the sea and does not return...

Nilanjana Bose - non-fiction. A memoir in which politics and suddenly created borders fashion a cage.

Pat Hatt -  flash fiction. A profoundly philosophical commentary on the human condition today - greed, consumerism, corporatisation and aggression creating a cage in which most are willingly trapped.

Jemima Pett - flash fiction. Raises another hot button issue - that of poaching and trophy hunting, set in Indonesia. The way humans impact their environment negatively.

J Lenni Dorner - flash fiction. Continued from a previous story. The burdens of a telepath and her conflicted existence in a hostile environment where the government is rounding up people like her.

Operation Awesome - flash fiction. A comic flash on the pitfalls and perils faced by Oliver Awesome, the writer who was sent to prison for the misuse of Oxford comma and several other writerly transgressions. Hilarious.

Tyrean Martinson -  flash fiction. A trafficked, abused character gets her strength back through the interventions of her captor cyborg before finding herself free in a barter deal...

Carrie Ann G - poetry. The despair of a victim of domestic abuse captured in verse.

Carrie-Anne - The Imperial Highnesses are out shopping with  their mother the Russian Empress for flamboyant birds. Going home, they get a lesson on the different types of cages and the one bird that is impossible to trap without its consent.

Bernadette Braganza -  As humans leave the dying planet, Dora considers the birds of 'the Ark' - and grapples with a dilemma. Freedom in an increasingly shrinking, uncertain habitat or captivity in a safe space which may no longer be safe?

SHORTLIST - we had a ridiculously long shortlist due to the stellar quality of the entries, but after some discussion, this is the list we sent Nick.

Toi

Carrie Ann

J Lenni

Pat Hatt

Elephant's Child 

Roland Clark

Jemi Fraser

If you didn't make our shortlist, it doesn't mean your entry went unnoticed. Every entry is given consideration and more than one read-through, but in the end, there are entries that make the cut, often because they have something innovative about them.

So (((drum roll)))

THE WINNER OF THE

2019 WEP JUNE CHALLENGE CAGED BIRD

is:

Congratulations Pat!

Nick said: 

"This was unexpected - deep and thought-provoking, and I loved the twist of having the viewpoint from the caged bird. Bleak, but not without that Pat Hatt humour!"

Pat, please link the badge to your story and post it on your blog!

****************

THE RUNNER UP OF THE

2019 WEP JUNE CHALLENGE CAGED BIRD

is:

Congratulations Elephant's Child!

Nick said: 

"Powerful stuff. Not an easy read but so vivid - I felt like I was in the narrator's head, hearing the confusion of words and voices, hectoring, overwhelming. Again this was really innovative."

Elephant's Child, please link the badge to your story and post it on your blog!

****************

THE ENCOURAGEMENT AWARD FOR THE

2019 WEP JUNE CHALLENGE CAGED BIRD

goes to:

Congratulations Toi!

Nick said: 

"A chilling tale of abuse. I loved the diary format - it allowed you to feel the buildup of events, kind of a 'dripping tap' effect. Glad there was a hopeful ending to this one."

Please link the badge to your story and post it on your blog!

***

COMMENTING:

Once again we thank all of those who took the time to read through all of the entries and comment. This is vital to the success of the WEP community. It's our chance to offer support and, when requested, critique that can help us all grow as writers. 

Perhaps the shifting around of entries due to the Linky tool's shortcomings led to very poor commenting this round, but there were some who commented on less than a handful of entries which is so disappointing. We know some of you take a long time to get around to read, and a peek today (Saturday) shows there are some only about 4 off reading all entries, even Toi who has been sick. And Rebecca M Douglas let us know she made it!

But we have to cut off somewhere so we can get the badge made and do this write up.

On Friday Australian time, these were the wonderful ones who qualified for this award as they swiftly read and commented. We thank you for your dedicated efforts. It means the world to us to see you supporting your fellow writers!

Here are our top commenter contenders! 

Six people (not counting the admin or Elephant's Child who counted this time) commented on every or virtually every post.

Pat Garcia.

Bernadette.

Jemi Fraser

Roland Clark

Christopher Scott
Hilary Melton-Butcher

All of these individuals are deserving, but alas, only one can receive the award!

The random pick winner using the Random Name Generator is Pat Garcia! Pat, please accept the badge on behalf of all the great commenters and display it on your blog!

****************

Check out ideas from the WEP 2019 Challenges Page for the next prompt.

I'm intrigued. Are you?

Thank you all!

We'd love if you'd Tweet this post or share to Facebook or your favorite social media site.

#WEPFF Caged Bird winners announced. @DeniseCCovey @theIWSG

https://writeeditpublishnow.blogspot.com/2019/07/winners-post-june-challenge-caged-bird.html #amwriting #flashfiction

Come congratulate our first place winner. #WEPFF Caged Bird Challenge @DeniseCCovey @theIWSG

https://writeeditpublishnow.blogspot.com/2019/07/winners-post-june-challenge-caged-bird.html #amwriting #flashfiction

The #WEPFF writers are all winners! @DeniseCCovey @theIWSG

https://writeeditpublishnow.blogspot.com/2019/07/winners-post-june-challenge-caged-bird.html #amwriting #flashfiction

When you give the #WEPFF challenge a spin you could be the next to win! @DeniseCCovey @theIWSG https://writeeditpublishnow.blogspot.com/2019/07/winners-post-june-challenge-caged-bird.html #amwriting #flashfiction

#Winners #GuestPost for #WEP June challenge - UNRAVELED YARN - Elephant's Child on a PARADOX. Plus - An exciting partnership for WEP!

Hi! Denise here!

A huge congratulations to Elephant's Child who won the WEP June challenge, UNRAVELED YARN with her non-fiction story described as 'Very powerful stuff and causes one to think about how things could have been different.' If you haven't read it yet, go to this link!

Elephant's Child sent through this text which encapsulates what she has to share today...

Over to Elephant's Child...

Paradox.

Was the internet (and specifically blogs) designed with selfish introverts like me in mind?

Curiosity is one of my defining characteristics.

I am also an introvert.  It isn't that I don't like people, or am not interested in them, or even that I am particularly shy which are all common introvert myths.  I am interested in people, immensely so, but I find them exhausting.  Exhausting to the point of nausea and collapse.  

I need quiet time (preferably alone) to recover. 

Discovering the internet certainly scratched my curiosity itch (although it createed new ones).  Discovering the blogosphere was like coming home.

I learn from other bloggers, on so many levels and about so many subjects.  I marvel at their creations across a whole range of genres.  

I laugh with them.  

I weep with and for them.  

And, if I am tired or overwhelmed, I can shut down the screen and take time out without offending anyone.  Bliss.

Thanks to the internet, my horizons have been expanded immeasurably, and access to that much wider world has been reduced to a finger click.  

A paradox for which I am immensely grateful.

Those of you who follow ninja Alex J Cavanaugh's blog will already know that there's something happening with WEP and the IWSG. He's been dropping hints. 

Great news! 

The IWSG approached us in late May regarding a partnership. After some thought, we saw the benefit of growing our group by joining together. A couple of the IWSG admin already join us for challenges on a regular basis and others have popped in from time to time, so they know us well. 

By forming a partnership, we can call on the superior marketing skills of the IWSG as none of the WEP team is into marketing/promotion. With so much competition in the bloghop arena, getting our name out there and giving more writers the chance to showcase their work (from beginner to professional) is awesome.

Along with marketing, we welcome our new judge from the IWSG, Nick Wilford. 

Nick is a speculative author and editor. He had a trial run in June and did an awesome job in putting our shortlisters into winning order. The bonus is he's easy to work with. We'll continue to send Nick our shortlist and he and another judge (new each challenge - yet to be chosen) will decide the winners. 

Good news for long-time WEPpers! Nothing will change for you! Except there'll be more competition for those prizes. At this stage we are keeping the challenges every second month and will be working through our 2018 challenges as on our Pages and badge in the sidebar - so August/October/December to go. The IWSG is going to run a competition for the best challenge to begin 2019, so be aware that's happening soon!

More news! A mixture of good and bad. 

Our very own horror queen, Yolanda Renee, will be running the October Deju Vu/Halloween/Horror challenge as her last hurrah before leaving the team due to health challenges. I hope you'll all rock up and rock Yolanda's world as she goes out with a bang or a shriek or a scream!

Those of you who receive the IWSG newsletter (SIGN UP HERE) will see they're making the announcement in late July and I'll be guest posting early August, explaining some of WEP's history (did you know we've been around - transforming - since 2010?)

So, lovely WEP people, please continue with us! I look forward to the August CHANGE OF HEART challenge where hopefully we'll welcome many new writers! Please show your WEP friendly spirit and welcome them! And don't worry. We'll still be the warm, supportive online writing group you've come to love!

JOIN US IN AUGUST!

And here is the joint badge. We'd love it if you post it on your site! If you prefer the one with rays in the sidebar, you're welcome to show that one!

And please, if the pop up pops up, asking you to SUBSCRIBE, please leave your email address for us to add to the list!

So, congratulations again to Elephant's Child.

Any questions re the partnership, email Denise.

We'd love if you'd Tweet one of these:

#WEPFF Unraveled Yarn Winners announced. @DeniseCCovey &@YolandaRenee http://writeeditpublishnow.blogspot.com/2018/07/winners-guestpost-for-wep-june.html #amwriting #flashfiction

Come congratulate Elephant's Child, first place winner #WEPFF Unraveled Yarn Challenge @DeniseCCovey @YolandaRenee http://writeeditpublishnow.blogspot.com/2018/07/winners-guestpost-for-wep-june.html #amwriting #flashfiction

The #WEPFF writers are all winners! @DeniseCCovey & @YolandaRenee http://writeeditpublishnow.blogspot.com/2018/07/winners-guestpost-for-wep-june.html #amwriting #flashfiction