Over 20 Club - Reflections
How do I look back on all of these words?
This week, I was tagged by @mariannewest to participate in the Over 20 Club, an opportunity for members of the #freewrite community who have written over 20 posts to look back on our journeys and share some of our favorites along the way.
I’ve written before that I’m very free with my definition of what makes a #freewrite. I don’t time myself, and I don’t post unedited stream of consciousness writing.
To me, writing freely takes on a different meaning - creation for its own sake.
I take these prompts and I get to play with them, exploring essence, feeling, concept and mood to create slices of life that exist within themselves. Reality bubbles, as someone once called them.
These stories don’t always have plots, and the characters don’t always have names, but whatever I capture in the abstraction remains.
I’m grateful for all of these inspirations, but the #freewrite community has given me more than that. I met @mariannewest when she and I were both nominated to participate in the Minnows Accelerator Project created by @rycharde. She won the delegation competition, and even at the time I thought she deserved it more than I did.
Everything she has done since only deepens that impression. This woman is a true community leader, and I have a lot of respect for her. She’s posted 124 days of #freewrite prompts at the time I am writing this, and each post is filled with a daily digest of things worth noticing on Steemit.
I was also introduced to the @isleofwrite, a gathering place for writers of all sorts, whose Discord server even has a dedicated channel for #freewrite discussion!
Now I have the opportunity to reminisce about three of my favorite #freewrite inspired stories, so in no particular order:
Serenity
The prompt for this was The Smell From Within, and it brought to mind the blissful scent of alignment. Very hard to describe, but I did find a few words for it, as well as a bit of serenity for myself in that moment.
Lizard Cave - Exit
My very first #freewrite - this one was written in five minutes, with only minor edits, and the mini-story told from the perspective of the little lizard turned out quite well. From the beginning, I loved the creative freedom these prompts offered.
Mirror Image
A #freewrite, but definitely not a freewrite! I spent hours writing this, loving every minute of it. Spanning twenty years, this story follows the paths of Ada and Alice, twin sisters who share nothing and everything at once.
If you’re reading this now, I want to take the time to thank you for your support. I hope you enjoy reading these as much as I enjoy writing them. As always, if you haven’t yet written a #freewrite, I strongly encourage you to try.
Not a single person has regretted it so far!
@IsleofWrite logo design by @PegasusPhysics
Such a beautiful reflection on the freewrite experience. I love that it means something different for each of us.
I am so glad that we met at the beginning of our Steemit journeys and am hoping that we will stay connected for a long time!
I'm really glad that I met you too, and I hope the same.
Thank you for making this wonderful thing!
another little upvote to honor your over 20 club :)
Thank you!
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The words were great, but the picture is hauntingly beautiful.
I really like your take on freewriting, @ellievallie. I have been sitting on the sidelines for a long time, as I absolutely love the mechanism of freewriting, but don't want to post anything unpolished. I think I may follow your lead! I absolutely love the idea of creating vignettes, and editing them so they are ready for public consumption. So smart! I've been doing this with 50-word stories, which have been so much fun. But you have inspired me!
Absolutely you should do it!
There are no official rules to follow, aside from following the prompt. Also, there are two options for the weekend #freewrite. The first is to link three new prompts together into a full story, and the second is to use one of the older prompts that you may not have done at the time.
So even if you have an idea in your mind for weeks after you see the prompt, you can still post it on time!
Thanks for the nudge! I will. I’ve done several, including the set of three in the weekend, but haven’t in some time, partly due to Write Club commitments, and partly because I needed an m.o. like what you’re doing. I love it!
Thank you for sharing these stories again, Ellievallie! I enjoyed how descriptive you were in Lizard Cave, it was so fun to read ! Mirror Image was a fantastic story and the effort that you put into it shines through!
Our Freewriting group is full of so many wonderful people and we all have Marianne to thank for bringing us together!
Nice to join you on that journey through your freewrites and what they mean to you @ellievallie The lizard story is fantastic and predates my time on Steemit by 3 months, so this was my first time reading it.. It was a treat for my eyes, one of the best freewrites I've read yet.. Congrats on joining the Over 20 club and all the best :o)
your freewrite is really well. I like your freewrite. this freewrite is helping to become good writer. U can do
Thank you, my friend.
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@ellievallie Its in our own pace that we can capture the real essence of life... I went through all three and damn serenity was sooooo beautiful. I really loved these Peach-blossomed rivers of milk and sweet honey flowed from within. This scent only came when her heart and her body aligned. When you feel the writing. So calm.
Thank you!
I'm happy that essence came through.
Love that first photo. Oh, and i enjoyed your writing too.
Nick
Only the words are mine!
I love it! Love the lizard perspective, too! I like it when creativity is sparked from the freewrites and you're so right! Marianne is amazing and a wonderful leader :)
Great post!
@byn
She is!
I'm happy you enjoyed the story.
I remember your "Lizard" freewrite. When I read it the first time, I thought the details were awesome! I was feeling like a real lizard, and now, at a second read the feeling is the same.
But eventually, I lost the other two freewrites, and now the "Mirror Image" one strikes me like a lightning! You write so good! Thank you for the post, keep on writing!
Thank you so much!
I still remember how fun that was to write. I'm happy you like the newer ones as well.
I definitely will keep writing!
Wonderful look back!