Challenge
Want to Feel Special. Read This
Author's preface: A comment on a recent story published here (thanks Kendall DeFoe) triggered something in me which caused me to recall a story I had written many years ago, way back in 2016. That article was published on a different web publishing platform, which I will not name, but rhymes with tedium, from which I have since been twice suspended and (apparently) permanently banned. It was written as part of my 1000 page view up all night write-athon which was some stupid thing I thought to try and do after I finally hit 1000 page views. I had started publishing there in early 2015 so it took me a solid year to hit the 1000 mark with close to 200 stories published in that first year. I was quite prolific back in those days and, exactly like today, I was not very popular, as those dismal stats clearly indicate. That said I was very proud of the achievement, and decided I would try a stunt where I stayed up all night (5pm until 8am the next day) and try and write and publish as many articles as I could in that time span. I conceived of the idea the day I hit 1000, and initiated the challenge the following evening so I did not have time to think much about how difficult a thing that actually could be. Also, exactly like today, I did not tend to think very much in advance about stuff, and figured it would just work itself out in the end. This other unnamed platform did not have a ludicrous and absurd minimum word count requirement like Vocal, nor did it have a roving censor brigade, and one could get away with just about anything in those early days on the site. As per my typical MO, I tended to take a very laissez-faire attitude with respect to the "rules" which obviously ended up hurting me fairly badly many years later when I got my first suspension, and then again a year after that when I was suspended a second time. This was about two years ago and that suspension has yet to be rescinded, despite several petitions, so amounts to a permanent ban. In any event I can't actually recall how many stories I banged out, but think I got close to fifteen. Below is just one of them which surprisingly holds up even today both in terms of its truth value (I am still an almost never read writer) and its overall quality (fair to middlin at best). Crazy how the computer references seem so dated and ancient. It really was not that long ago. lol! Enjoy!
By Everyday Junglist2 years ago in Writers
Clone Agent: The Story that convinced me to write.
The first story I remember writing was from back when I was 9 or 10. It was a very well thought out and invested piece, with carefully crafted characters and settings... that I'd "borrowed" from other pieces of ficiton.
By Malcolm Roach2 years ago in Writers
To Build a Liar
Authors pre-preface: I had very recently published the below republication of one of my first "serious" writing attempts from the 7th grade in Vocal's fiction community. When I saw the Writer's challenge to write about the first piece you had ever written I immediately thought to myself 'wait a minute I just did that.' So I am re-republishing it here for that challenge. The whole thing is very meta and confusing if you think about it too deeply so just don't. In the author's preface to that story (below) I talked a little bit about how the story developed and my critique of its quality. Generally speaking I still like the concept, it is kind of cute and humorous in a written by an awkward 7th grader trying way too hard sort of way. In case you were wondering in the intervening years my regard for Jack London's works has not changed much. I find them underwhelming and way too macho, like the guy is trying to prove exactly how much of a man he is, when really what is driving him are insecurities about his own manhood. I can say that I definitely had a shit ton of insecurities when I wrote the piece. I don't think there is a 7th grade boy alive who could not sympathize, it is a time when questions about becoming a man, being a man, and what that actually means are bubbling and bursting to the surface. Much like the pimples that were bubbling and bursting on the surface of my acne plagued face at the time. I will leave it with that enganging and distrubing visual. Enjoy. lol!
By Everyday Junglist2 years ago in Writers
My Potential
Fourteen years. It has been fourteen years since I wrote my first true short story, “Model Wedding”. As cliché as it is, I have written stories and poems for as long as I can remember, and so there are poems and chapters of stories that exist before “Model Wedding”. However, this story is the first time that I can remember writing a complete piece of fiction, where my true passion in writing lies. It was written for the Stanford Gifted Youth Program—an ungraded summer program for high school students gifted in different academic areas—and, at the time, it was my proudest accomplishment. Even the instructor, a published short story writer, praised it, particularly the revision.
By Stephanie Hoogstad2 years ago in Writers
The Importance of Using Writing Prompts
What is a Writing Prompt? A writing prompt is a short statement or question that gives a writer a starting point for their work. It can be used to spark creativity, generate ideas, or help writers overcome writer's block.
By Timothy A Rowland2 years ago in Writers
why so many countries are abandoning the dollar
Glancing at recent headlines can stir up anxiety in the minds of Americans. Phrases like "The dollar is done" and "End of dollar dominance will also spell demise of US Hegemony" create fear-inducing scenarios. However, before hastily converting dollars to trivial items, it's essential to consider a more nuanced perspective.
By shannan leon2 years ago in Writers
The Story Behind One of the First Stories I Wrote on Vocal
While it is not technically the first story I ever wrote, one of the first several stories I published on Vocal was a story titled “WOOOOOOO!!!” It is the story of a fisherman who goes out one night to fish at his favorite spot on the lake. However, he doesn’t catch any fish, but instead encounters something terrifying and unknown that ultimately makes him scared of the lake.
By Austin Blessing-Nelson (Blessing)2 years ago in Writers
You do not need to know how to write to write your first story. Top Story - August 2023.
I was about six years old. I could read well at that time but I could not write. My grandfather had a mechanical typewriter and I was allowed to use it. It was like a quest each time to find a needed letter on the keyboard! And one day I read a pictured book about large cats: lion, tiger, lynx, and others.
By Olga Moyseyenko2 years ago in Writers
