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by Skylar Edwards Oftentimes, receiving critique can be the hardest part of the writing process. One correction can create a volley of overwhelming feelings within you. You may feel inadequate, hurt, or even angry. Those feelings can create tension and interfere with your mental health. Critique is not something to lose sleep over. Altering your view on critique will enable you to understand its place as a tool to improve your writing. This will help you to learn, and become more open-minded.  The first change needed is to adjust your outlook on the process. Any written work has a piece of you in it, so as authors we tend to internalize the feedback received. Even if the only correction is grammar, we may feel hurt. It becomes personal. We must learn to view our works through a professional lens. Instead of shutting down and letting our minds overwhelm us, counteract and ask questions regarding feedback. Sometimes the influx of feelings misconstrue critique making it seem worse than what it is. Asking for clarification can give you more information which you can use to ponder what is being said. This allows you to draw your own conclusions and understand how to best move forward.   Critiques seem like harsh digs and can leave us feeling inadequate. You may begin questioning your skills as a writer, which could eventually hinder your creative outflow. Confidence in your skills, whether they are developed or not, allows you to be more receptive towards feedback. The great weight that comes along with critique will subside as you know what you are capable of.  For example, you may attempt to write romance even though you know that you aren’t very experienced in it. As a confident person, you recognize this, and you understand that it’s expected to have some mistakes. When you receive feedback, it won’t bother you. To build this type of confidence, you must review how you see yourself. Treating yourself how you would treat others would benefit your self-esteem. You don’t want to think you’re a bad writer that always makes mistakes, instead you want to think you’re a good writer who’s learning. Confidence also begins when you celebrate yourself and the little things; be happy that you thought of an idea for a story.  What may hinder us from building confidence can be the impossible standard we hold ourselves to. We may not want to admit our shortcomings. We would love for all our works to be perfect, to receive validation. Additionally, this may culminate with a fear of rejection. You may ask yourself questions: Will you get published? Will your audience relate to this? Yet, trying to achieve perfection only will frustrate you more. Writing will never be perfect. Your audience doesn’t consist of one person; everyone will receive it differently. Keep in mind that your writing is subjective. This also applies to feedback. You will receive feedback from critics who don’t understand what you are trying to accomplish with your writing. Naturally, we may feel offended, but we must stay calm. Remember that your writing is subjective and understand that it could be possible that your writing wasn’t clear. Additionally, some critics just won’t get it. When you build confidence, that’s for you to decide. The most important action you can take to reduce these feelings surrounding critique is to repeatedly expose yourself to it. This doesn’t mean taking a leap and repeatedly submitting to any open subs. Exposure can start small. You can start with a low-stakes critique. Ask a friend or a peer to read and give their thoughts. This is someone you know, so their feedback won’t be so hard to take. Conversation surrounding the writing should be an easy discussion. The next step can involve someone more qualified that you’re comfortable with. This could be a peer who specializes in writing or a valued teacher. Allowing them to critique your work will offer valuable feedback from a professional standpoint. Another way to receive constructive criticism is through workshopping with other writers. As you become more experienced, you slowly build resilience to critique.  Navigating critique can be challenging, but it’s an important step if you want to get rid of negative feelings surrounding it. It’s worth examining what bothers you about receiving critique and solving the problem from there. Knowing if it’s how you view the process, a confidence issue, or just trying to be perfect allows you to fully understand what hinders you. Once you get past your feelings, the world will be your oyster. Being open towards feedback will help you understand how people receive your work and shape you into a better writer. As you become familiar with critique, you will be able to understand what feedback is genuine and actually needed. Embracing critique allows you to become resilient in all aspects of your life.

by Aurora Skye It wasn’t easy, growing up adopted.  You hear it, banded around as a casual insult, all the time. People constantly joke about others being adopted. It’s still a taboo, really. In my house, it felt like an unwritten rule, that my sister and I weren’t allowed to talk about this big thing that happened to us. I recall, at times, feeling invalidated, because adoption apparently isn’t traumatic if it happened to you when you were a baby and have no memories of your birth family. But, I have always felt the need to find members of my biological family, as though I belonged with my biological mother and half-brother. Birth families are important to adopted people, even if they love their adoptive families. Which, for the record, I do. Very much. But that doesn’t mean I don’t miss my birth mother, too, because I do. Finding my half-brother in May has been one of the highlights of my year, because I’ve found him and our mother. My adoptive family have always been supportive and kind to me, but they didn’t always handle us being adopted well. It felt like a shameful secret, but it doesn’t need to be. Author Jacqueline Wilson, evidently knows this.  Wilson was a staple of childhood reading for many British millennials and Gen-Zs. Her hit book, The Story of Tracy Beaker (1991), is about a highly spirited young girl, living in a care home, because her parents are separated and her mother, Carly, cannot look after her. Tracy clearly idolises her birth mother, in spite of her being an incompetent parent and very shallow. Tracy’s mother doesn’t put her daughter first. Cam, Tracy’s adoptive mother, is a much better mother to her, which adult Tracy points out in My Mum, Tracy Beaker, the sequel series. This was Wilson’s first portrayal of the care system in the UK–the emotional difficulties Tracy faces when her mother doesn’t show up, time after time. Abandonment issues are hard to shake off. Although Tracy is Wilson’s most well-known and popular character –a British cultural icon to an entire generation–she wasn’t the character I found myself the most emotionally invested in. Tracy knew who her birth mother was. I didn’t. Her second most popular character, Hetty Feather, was the one I was the most drawn to instead. The first book in the five-book series follows the eponymousVictorian girl’s quest to be reunited with her birth mother. She mistakenly believes, from age five to ten, that her biological mother is Madame Adeline, a circus lady with bright red hair, like her. In order to find her, she runs away on the day of the Foundling Hospital’s outing for Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee. There, she discovers that Madame is an older woman, who is infertile. Hetty therefore couldn’t possibly be her daughter. She returns to the hospital, only for Ida, a servant at the hospital, to faint. It is then revealed that Ida is her birth mother.  As a child, this came as a surprise. As an adult, you realise it was set up well. Ida and Hetty are both small and slight, with big blue eyes, and they are both headstrong and independent characters. Ida almost cries when Hetty gives her a Christmas present for the kindness she shows towards her and Ida helps Hetty get through being locked in an attic. It makes me tear up every time I read the revelation.  What I like is that Hetty’s foster mother, Peg, is also presented as her mother, and Madame Adeline becomes a mother figure to Hetty as the series continues. Hetty arguably has three mothers. Ida is the dearest of them, however, and a lot like her daughter-similarities are frequently drawn between the two characters, emphasising the connection that children have to their birth parents. Although Ida is different in personality to my birth mother, she reminds me in some ways of her –loving, but incapable of raising a child.  These are far from the only narratives of hers that discuss adoption or care. April, from Wilson’s Dustin Baby, is adopted. On her fourteenth birthday, she looks for her birth mother. She doesn’t find her, but does find the man who heard her crying and saved her life. I appreciate how realistic this is, and how it sends the message that it is okay to disregard a biological parent who treated you or your siblings poorly; Wilson appreciates the nuances to be had in conversations surrounding adoption and care.  Many other characters also have mixed families. There are many single mothers, and their children have different fathers –such as in The Illustrated Mum, Lily Alone, Little Darlings, and Diamond  Girls – each of the five girls has a different father. The single mothers in these books are often portrayed as loving and involved in their children’s lives. Some characters have half-siblings they don’t see as well as step-parents. This portrayal of mixed families in children’s books is crucial, because a lot of children have families like this. Alongside being adopted and having a full sister, I have two older half-brothers, and my adoptive brother-four siblings in total, and none of mine and my sister’s three brothers are related to each other! I might be a young adult, but children reading this will sometimes have families like that, and feel out of place around children with a standard nuclear family. Representing different types of families in children’s books is so important, and I feel as though Jacqueline Wilson researched well and did an excellent job.  As is stated at the end of her Young Adult book, Baby Love, it is not an adopted person’s fault they were put up for adoption, and if some of your life story is missing, that can be difficult. Wilson makes me feel validated and seen as an adopted adult, and I daresay she has the same effect on many children. No doubt this is why her writing still stands the test of time. When writing about adoption, talking to people who are adopted is always important, or at the very least doing thorough research. What Wilson appreciates is the nuances to be had in adopted people's feelings and perspectives. Dustin Baby shows that you don't have to meet a birth parent who didn't care for you. Hetty Feather shows that it's okay to search for your birth parents. It's also okay not to care. Sending these messages is important. Validating the feelings of adopted people, and portraying multiple perspectives, is vital to getting it right and connecting with people who are adopted, children and adults alike. The best works on adoption help to break the stigma, and open up conversations between adoptive families and their adopted children, and it can be a truly beautiful thing.  Thank you, Jacqueline Wilson.

by Alin Sengjaroen If you’ve been on the internet for a while, you’ve probably seen the art exhibition titled Comedian  or rather, the banana stuck to the wall with a flimsy duct tape. Over the years, it has spurred the public’s attention and proposed an interesting question: What truly classifies as art? What is contemporary art all about? Why do we now hate art so much? Why It Matters Even though most of us are not contemporary artists ourselves, the hate towards contemporary art affects us all, especially if we create art in other forms. This recent rise of hate is not only exclusive to art like Comedian  or  Blue Monochrome . It goes towards contemporary literature, music, photography, and theatre. If you were to search “Why do we hate contemporary (art form here)?”, you’d get thousands of articles talking about how the classics were better.  Not to mention, some fellow artists will hate-post about contemporary art and discredit other artists’ efforts, even though every single art piece created from the late 20th century until now is considered contemporary. If you were an avid disliker of contemporary art but also an artist at the same time, you’re essentially hating what you’re creating. This is why it is important to understand the purpose, origins, and meaning of a subject before criticizing it.  What’s the Deal Behind the Banana? In 2019, at Art Basel Miami, Comedian  by the Italian artist and absurdist Maurizio Cattelan was exhibited to the public. It gathered huge attention on social media, especially negative comments regarding how the art piece wasn’t ‘real art’ . Their reasons were that the piece was too simple and the materials used weren’t exceptionally unique. It only consisted of a banana bought from the local supermarket and a simple piece of duct tape. “I could do it too,” was a claim commonly said. However, despite the public’s outcry, Comedian  by definition is still considered an art piece: a conceptual contemporary art.  This piece intends to critique the absurdity of art and capitalism. It sends a message that art can be anything, even if it is a banana stuck to a wall. Additionally, it refutes the belief that art is inherently an expensive hobby and instills the beauty of minimalism. If you are an artist yourself, you would know how expensive it is to get your hands on one tub of paint. For instance, the piece Untitled (Portrait of Ross in L.A.) by Félix González-Torres consists of candies weighing exactly 175 pounds piling in a corner. We, the audience, are encouraged to take one piece from the pile. Each piece represents González-Torres’ lover Ross Laycock and his experience with AIDs. Ross’s weight was initially 175 pounds, but it started to decline until his passing. Even though it is incredibly famous, the piece only requires individually wrapped candies which can be easily bought. Both of these artworks are great representations of what contemporary art is. Pieces that fall under this movement tend to imply a similar message: Art is beyond visual aesthetics and expensive materials. Instead what matters are the concepts. The Myths of Contemporary Art To begin with, contemporary art is often referred to as modern art; however, describing the movement as modern art is incorrect. Modern art refers to the pieces made from the late 19th century to the late 20th century. The common forms consist of impressionism, expressionism, pop art, cubism, and more. Think of classical artists like Claude Monet or Pablo Picasso. Meanwhile, contemporary art refers to pieces created from the late 20th century until now.  Furthermore, contemporary art tends to lean towards the piece’s ideology rather than visual pleasure. It transforms experiences into symbolic concepts which are presented through these exhibitions. It has led many people to come together several times. For instance, the religious art movement specifically during the Renaissance era was intended to spread a specific religion’s beliefs to a wider audience. Successfully, the movement impacted the general population to become more open-minded to other religions, which led to a larger religious diversity and acceptance. When it comes to contemporary art, it aims to encourage conversations surrounding our current world’s problems. This movement promotes the awareness of the issues in our everyday lives. The most common themes include identity, technology, migration, and globalization. But Who’s to Blame?  Art has always been one of the greatest money-laundering systems. The wealthy often purchase art pieces to be invested for tax deductions. Art is considered an elitist’s profession since it is not easy to make a living as an artist. For pieces to sell, the artist would need more than a distinct, impressive style but instead a wide range of connections. Since contemporary art mostly focuses on minimalism and high-level conceptualism, so much so that the general audience finds it hard to comprehend, the public would be unable to understand and appreciate it. Hence, we are skeptical of contemporary art as a valid movement.  Without prior knowledge of the origins and purpose of contemporary art, we would assume that the movement was created entirely for the privileged to fend off their taxes. Despite the fact that art pieces are accompanied by a paragraph explaining their meaning, most people nowadays do not read much anymore. Additionally, the minimalism of each piece adds to the suspicion of the mass production of art (creating for the sake of creating) rather than expressing one’s experiences through art. Therefore, we as a society believe that this movement is deluding the philosophy and pure beauty of art. However, contemporary art itself is not curated merely for those purposes. This belief manifested in the educational system, specifically the art classes we were obligated to attend. Mostly in those art lessons, we are taught the history of art and how art takes a high level of skill to be considered high quality. Rarely do we learn about the conceptualism of art. Since it is not taught to the majority, many people continue to believe that art is purely aestheticism. So What? From the myths debunked and redefining what contemporary art is, this article aims to discourage the uprising of art vandalism during the current era. It is crucial to be open-minded when it comes to consuming art. Not every piece may appeal to everyone and some require prior historical or personal context.  All art is inherently political. Whether it may be literature, fine arts, or photography, all forms hold specific political values and the creator’s voices. The harsh truth is–classic or contemporary–they’re worth the same. They’re all telling a unique story. There’s no difference between these two besides the purpose, historical context, and technology. Of course, it’s perfectly fine to dislike anything contemporary; however, it is not right to discredit the artists of today. Therefore, even though the piece may seem invalid due to its simplicity, you must understand the work’s intentions before declaring it as so. Citations AlibsWrites. “Vandalism of Art in the 21st Century - AlibsWrites - Medium.” Medium , 25 Oct. 2022, alibswrites.medium.com/vandalism-of-art-in-the-21st-century-6de30b8d5328 . AllCourse. “The Impact of the Renaissance on Religion.” AllCourse , home.allcourse.com/document/The-Impact-of-the-Renaissance-on-Religion/816cad99-2a25-408b-af5d-d3a71fecc6c2 . Peter Osborne. “Anywhere or Not at All: Philosophy of Contemporary Art / Peter Osborne. – First Edition, Paperback” Google Books , 2013, books.google.co.th/books?hl=th&lr=&id=OHjB1MlCeMsC&oi=fnd&pg=PA1&dq=contemporary+art&ots=5BJXNZscUT&sig=U4k1-G-5VkIMZl60RDU7vGIkQPs&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false . Catherine Rafferty. “Art World Elitism in the Contemporary Age.” Reporter,  25 Jun. 2020, reporter.rit.edu/leisure/art-world-elitism-contemporary-age . Angelo Accardi. “Contemporary Art Movement: Who Started It? - Eden Gallery.” EDEN Gallery , 16 Feb. 2022, www.eden-gallery.com/news/contemporary-art-movement . Johanna Drucker. “Sweet Dreams: Contemporary Art and Complicity.” Google Books , 2005, books.google.co.th/books?hl=th&lr=&id=A9oOvrpOE2AC&oi=fnd&pg=PR7&dq=contemporary+art&ots=zdoqpUalN1&sig=9EHaKV7BXIqtvMnMAuU0FvbABMA&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=contemporary%20art&f=false . Martín, Ana F. “Why Everybody Hates Contemporary Art — and Artists?” Medium , 30 Mar. 2022, medium.com/counterarts/why-everybody-hates-contemporary-art-and-artists-5500174b65d8 . Wanczura, Dieter. “Modern Art Movements.” Artelino , 15 Apr. 2024, www.artelino.com/articles/modern_art_periods.asp . Woodley, Baylee. “Untitled (‘Portrait of Ross in L.A’).” Queer Art History , 21 Feb. 2023, www.queerarthistory.com/love-between-men/untitled-portrait-of-ross-in-l-a .

by Sonya Dado My bookshelf is tucked away inside my closet, and is quite literally overflowing with books. I call myself a lover of literature, and pride myself on how well I can pitch and recommend books to friends and family. However, I have gone weeks and even months without reading many times in my life. The cause of the reading slump isn’t what’s relevant. The important part is how to get out of it and continue doing what you love.  A new piece of literature might do the trick for you. Here are the top ten books that I always come back to when I enter that familiar slump.  10. We Were Liars : E. Lockhart Lockhart’s 250 page novel is about a young girl’s summer on her family’s private island. She is suffering from a head injury and is attempting to piece together the events of last summer. The plot twist in this novel is unmatched, in my opinion, despite the heated debate on TikTok about whether or not it was predictable and falls-flat. The genre is a psychological thriller, recommended for ages 13 and up. Top quote : “Everyone has duplicates of themselves in these other worlds. Different selves with different lives, different luck.”  9. Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret : Judy Blume This delicately explores exactly how it feels to be bordering on the entrance of puberty for girls. The religious title shouldn’t alter your perception; Margaret’s difficult relationship with religion is a vice to represent her changing emotions towards herself, her parents, and her friends. Everytime I had to put the book down I was already looking forward to picking it back up. This coming-of-age book is suitable for ages 13+. Top quote:  “As long as she loves me and I love her, what difference does religion make?”  8. My Sister’s Keeper : Jodi Picoult  For an undeniable feeling of hurt, betrayal, confusion, and love, you must read Picoult’s novel. Following a family that has one daughter with leukemia, and another who reluctantly gives up her own body parts to help her sister, this book is a hyper-engaging tear jerker. This genre is domestic fiction, recommended for ages above 13. Top quote:  “It’s the things you cannot see coming that are strong enough to kill you.”  7. The Summer I Turned Pretty   (Series) : Jenny Han  These pages follow 16 year old Isabel “Belly” Conklin as she balances a love triangle and growing pains. The romance, which went completely viral during summer of 2022, is enough to get any reader flipping pages. However, there is a deeper narrative at play here, when Belly is forced to reevaluate her summertime goals when unexpected news begins to shake her perfect beach-house escape. This YA fiction is great for ages 12+. Top quote:  “For me, it was almost like winter didn’t count. Summer was what mattered. My whole life was measured in summers.”  6. I’m Glad My Mom Died : Jennette McCurdy.  For anyone that grew up watching “iCarly”, McCurdy's new novel can instantly become a favorite. About the realities of working as a child actor to support your family, she recounts the decisions that her mom made for her and how they continue to impact her. Ages 16+ would enjoy this autobiography. Top quote:  “Why do we romanticize the dead? Why can’t we be honest about them?”  5. Looking For Alaska : John Green  This was the book that got me into  reading. Miles meets Alaska at his new boarding school and she instantly hooks his interest. These characters live through a storyline that you’ll think about at least once a week if you’re anything like me. This YA novel has heavy themes, best for readers 16+. Top quote: “When adults say, ‘Teenagers think they are invincible’ with that sly, stupid smile on their faces, they don’t know how right they are.”  4. The Girl on the Train : Paula Hawkins  Hawkins’ novel has a thriller kick to it that, in my opinion, keeps readers as engaged as a rom-com would. I tried to unravel this mystery from the second I read the first page. Each decision is shocking, yet you can’t complain since it develops a plot unlike any you’ve ever read. This mystery is suitable for ages 16+. Top quote: “But I did become sadder, and sadness gets boring after a while, for the sad person and everyone around them.”  3.  Everything Here is Beautiful : Mira T Lee  Lee simultaneously handles themes of mental health, heritage, immigration, and family all at once. I’ve re-read this novel a least 5 times now. They’re eerily realistic relationships she's built from character to character. Miranda, the older sister, tends to her younger sister, Lucia, after the death of their mom. She persists through mental illness and culture shock to be there for her family. Along with stopping a slump, I believe this book can permanently affect how you read and interpret literature for the rest of your life. This fiction is best for people 15+. Top quote:  “Our mother might have said this: that immigrants are the strongest, that we leave our homes behind and rebuild. Everywhere we go, we rebuild.”  2. Normal People : Sally Rooney  This book deserves every bit of hype it receives on social media, Goodreads, Barnes and Noble, and anywhere else you can find it being praised. The style of writing is effortlessly unique, with minimal punctuation and paragraph breaks used practically as often as a space bar. The novel flows naturally, in a similar vein to how one’s stream of consciousness would. In combination with the character’s, who are so realistic they practically jump off the page, create a novel that you won’t be able to put down. While this is a romance, I’d recommend this book for readers 15+. Top quote: “I’m not a religious person but I do sometimes think God made you for me.”  1. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo : Taylor Jenkins Reid  I read this book in 7 hours the last time I was stuck in bed, putting it down to briefly stand up or stretch. This novel has a unique plot, characters to love and to grieve, and a memorable plot twist.. Set in Old Hollywood, in the late 1950’s, there is also plenty of world-building that can transport any reader out of their slump. This novel is a great piece of YA fiction that readers 13+ could enjoy. Top quote:  “They are just husbands. I am Evelyn Hugo.”

by Carina How do you know if you can trust the stories you’re being fed? I Am the Cheese  by Robert Cormier is an intriguing, suspenseful, and mysterious story, with unexpected plot twists that will leave you wanting to know more. This story follows multiple thrilling plot lines, providing an abundance of information that helps you find the truth. This book is perfect if you enjoy diving into the endless rabbit hole of mysteries. I Am the Cheese  follows a boy named Adam, who’s going on an ambitious bike ride from Massachusetts to Vermont to visit his father in the hospital. Later we’re introduced to new settings, such as the interviews and flashbacks of an unknown person. All of these perspectives eventually provide enough details for us to piece together the truth about Adam’s life. Adam’s journey is difficult, with many setbacks and dangerous situations. There are many suspenseful scenes where we wonder how Adam will persevere. Oftentimes Adam’s bike ride gives us insight into his life. He remembers hanging out with friends and spending time with family. During his bike ride, Adam has repetitive behaviors and thoughts, which are interesting to analyze. Why are certain things, such as a song called Farmer in the Dell , and someone named Amy Hertz so significant to him? We see Adam’s adventure through a first-person perspective, which causes us to miss out on some information. We have to figure out the details of Adam’s life ourselves because we’re seeing them as if we already have all the context. This can leave us with more questions unsolved than answered, which is one thing I love about this book. It’s like a constant mind game. The interviews and flashbacks are also a very important part of this book. Whose perspective are they from? Why are they happening? What do the details mean? How do we interpret them? As the book goes on, you can notice that more of the content is interviews and flashbacks rather than Adam’s bike ride. As the interviews continue we get more and more details to piece together, and you can eventually notice that there are similarities between all of the perspectives we see. That’s one of the reasons why this book is so amazing; it gives us little pieces of foreshadowing that are brought up again and again later, making us think deeper about them. Similarly to during Adam’s journey, we don’t have much background knowledge about the interviews and flashbacks. We have to speculate and form theories about the odd things we’re reading. Although I Am the Cheese  by Robert Cormier acts as a fun mystery to solve, it also has some other interesting aspects such as unreliable stories, the author’s interesting writing style, and interesting themes. Some of the important themes that you should note are the corrupt government systems, discovering your identity, isolation, and hidden truths.  As Cormier litters Adam's bike ride with intriguing interviews, flashbacks, and twists, he manipulates sentence structure and language to draw you in. Truthfully, this can get confusing at times. There’s so much information to absorb that you can miss things and get thrown off track: seemingly random events leave you disoriented, whilst the plot twists force you to reconsider everything you thought was true. In a world of lies, how do you find the truth? “I Am the Cheese” by Robert Cormier makes us second guess what we thought was true. This book tells us a thrilling, mysterious, and eerie story, which all starts with a boy riding his bike. All in all, I would recommend this book to anyone wishing to enjoy an entrancing mystery that truly makes them think deeply about what the narrative is revealing, and what it is not.

by Milica Filipovic In the 21st century, writers are able to come across millions of ideas with one simple search. On numerous applications such as Google, Instagram, TikTok, etc., writers are being influenced by readers’ demands. With an abundance of information at our fingertips, we often let our creative minds be infiltrated by a litany of new concepts and ideas. However, there is a certain point at which we begin to wonder how many lines can be crossed before the diverse and global field of literature at our disposal falls at the hands of tropes and trends. As part of the writing community, I am exposed to viral reading and writing content on a daily basis. It seems to me that with each scroll, I am doomed to come across the same videos, just slightly altered. Books with the… Enemies to Lovers Trope. One Bed Trope. Forced Proximity Trope. Trope. Trope.  Trope.   It echoes in my mind so much so that it begins to sound less like a word and more like a random jumble of sounds. At one point, a writer is bound to be tempted by these tropes; And so it begins. With each new appearance of these same scenarios between different characters, one book blends into the next. It is no surprise considering the appeal social media has promoted to us. Writers and readers alike are both victims of the loss of specificity in literary expression. While these trends may be entertaining, they will eventually drift into irrelevance as does everything else on the internet.  Not only has social media caused a lack of variety in the current  literary scenario, it has also affected the quality of writing being put out into the world. If you have stumbled onto Booktok or Bookstagram, it is likely that you’ve encountered the term “yearly reading goal". This is referring to the challenge that readers are placing upon themselves to read an exact amount of books before the clock strikes midnight on New Year's Day. There is no doubt that this has resulted in a higher consumption rate for readers worldwide. Since 2022, book sales in the U.S. have increased year-over-year for both physical and digital copies. As readers speed through dozens of novels a year, authors are struggling to keep up. Authors that used to release books every three to four years have begun adopting a rapid release strategy for their books, churning out new content more frequently at the demand of their eager fans. This means that the writer is rushing to finish their books, send them to their publisher, and have them edited, designed, and printed as soon as possible. Running this endless race to keep up, new literature prioritizes audiences’ happiness above insightful themes and skillful artistry. For example, the trend of romantic comedies, light contemporary romances, or clichéd thrillers that have become more popular in recent years. These stories tend to focus more on providing entertainment rather than delving into complex topics. This issue is particularly evident in many self-published romance novels you can find on Kindle Unlimited as well as numerous books promoted on social media platforms. It is then that we must ask ourselves what we value more, unique and profound literature, or temporary glee from recycled storytelling. Although there is no way to persuade others to take action against this matter, there are steps we can take to mitigate its effects. For instance, young writers hold the key to the future of the literary world. With the flick of our pens, a click of our keys, we can shape new worlds. Why waste these talents on being like everyone else? I, myself, face doubt in my own work. I know it can be better, I know it will be with time, so the question lingers in my mind as I read back my own words. Will anyone want to read this?   The moment we give in to that doubt, that uncertainty in the thing we love to do, is the moment our writing becomes an ode to society, not our dreams. The best advice I can give to any fellow writers is this: write the book you want to read because in the end, you should be able to look at your finished work and be proud that you created the exact thing you wanted to. That  is the greatest success you can find.  As a reader, you have the power to choose what you wish to indulge in. That said, it’s perfectly fine to like tropes and trends and light tales. But I urge you, once in a while, to step out of that comfort zone and explore. Support a young writer. Read a classic. Enjoy a new genre. It is with these little habits that you make a difference in the industry and in our world. We are a community that shares a passion for the beauty of words. We are a community that is stronger together than we are alone. We make the change we want to see. Let the world hear your voice. Citations: Watson, Amy. “U.S. book market - statistics & facts.” Statista, 16 May 2024, https://www.statista.com/topics/1177/book-market/ . Accessed 25 August 2024. Yoo, Sarah. “How to: Rapid Release Strategy for Books.” Publish Drive, 1 May 2024, https://publishdrive.com/rapid-release-strategy-for-books.html . Accessed 25 August 2024.

by Sam McClelland Literature and immersivity have long run hand-in-hand. When we open a book we are not looking for the ink across the pages nor the caliper of the paper. We are looking for something deeper; to feel the heat of a fiery battle against an ancient dragon, or the smell of rain and blood as a detective stumbles upon the scene of the crime. We are looking to exist somewhere beyond ourselves.  Words and imagination can take you far, but what if you could go a step further? To not just follow a character, but to become a piece of them as you traverse their story. This level of immersivity can only be imagined through paper and realized through games. Sensory storytelling that pushes the bounds of our emotional, auditorial, and visual expectations; that isn't the image video games bring to many people's minds. Misconception will lead most to envision a grubby Pac-Man in the back of an arcade, or an online shooter with no meaning beyond competitive score-keeping. The idea that games are modes of entertainment void of substance, artistic intent, and credibility as an art form can be equated to many things. From their relative youth as a digital media in the modern world, to their limited audience. Games aren’t viewed through the same critical lens as painting, film, literature, etc. Yet, just beyond the hack-and-slash monotony and pixelated ping pong, there is a world of literature and storytelling that is truly remarkable.  Story-based video games have made their way into being one of the most creative and immersive forms of modern storytelling. Not only can they provide compelling narratives, they can jump the audio and visual borders of books by themselves. Through video games, characters, sounds, and scenes that were once left to imagination are transformed into events we can experience first-hand. With the addition of visuals, voice acting, music, and the ability to explore your environment rather than being subjected only to what may be described in a specific passage, we experience these tales in a brand new light. The sensory boundaries that games push aren't the only traits that make them such incredible modes of storytelling; games offer a level of emotional stakes that transcend those of books alone. Take games like Red Dead Redemption 2, Detroit Become Human, and Life is Strange  for example. Throughout these games, you not only follow the protagonist, you also alter their contextual fates. Choices made in these stories such as dialogue options, fights you pick and choose, and even things as simple as objects you interact with alter the story's outcome. Your choices directly impact the world you have immersed yourself in, creating a unique sense of responsibility and connection. I’ll use a pivotal scene from Detroit Become Human as an example. You have followed two sides of a war brewing on the sidelines of society throughout the game's story: Connor, an android designed to assist human law enforcement; programmed and taught to protect them since his first thought. As he's paired with his android-hating partner Hank, he discovers his own humanity, beliefs, and will for good.   Markus, an android cast into the junk heap after being framed for murder. The police did not care for his pleas of innocence, they did not see his humanity. Angry with the way his kind have been cast out and abused, he rises up. Using his voice to demand equality from those who created him, willing to fight for what he believes in.  You have spent countless hours behind their eyes. You have fought for their beliefs, created unbreakable bonds, and decided who their enemy truly is. Connor and Markus find each other at an impasse; a divisive fight about to ring out in the center of an android protest. A choice presents itself as you see them running for each other: X:Control Connor                                       O:Control Markus The hours you've spent, choices you've made, causes you've followed and fought for boil down to one moment–a choice. Do you stand with Markus, or Connor? I remember my first experience playing this game, and seeing that simple question pop up on the screen felt surreal. How was I supposed to choose?  That feeling is a level of immersivity that I truly believe is unique to games as a literature medium. Not the ability to make choices, not even the actions themselves, but the fact that they held consequences . The hero will live or die by the end of his adventure. No matter what you do, that fact is unchanging. The main characters of the rom-com will fall in love no matter how you watch. The pages of the book, the script, and the play are printed and will not change. Now put the fearless knight in the palm of your hand, his life now yours . The love interest asks you a question, and now you  must give a response. To be kind or merciless, say yes or  no, to save or abandon, questions that need your answers.  Ultimatums are no longer a spectator sport in the realm of video games. The security we often find in storytelling is gone. Now replaced with a new way to step inside the plot, making it unique to each and every player.  In recent years, appreciation for games as a literary art form has increased. Finally beginning to break the misconceptions that games are mindless fun, substanceless or simply a pass-time. Games have begun to shine alongside their storytelling counterparts. Their ability to not only use our minds, but also our senses to create a unique experience that challenges and utilizes our emotions, expectations, and morals makes them one of the most versatile and under-appreciated media forms in modern-day narratives.

by Lily If you’ve been involved with the more academic side of the internet in the past decade, you are likely to have encountered some mention of the elusive and controversial Oxford comma. However, there is also a good chance you haven’t encountered an actual explanation as to why teenagers on the internet will defend it until their dying days, nor why some think it is clunky, dogmatic, and allows for slopier writing. What it is Sometimes called the serial comma or the Harvard comma, the Oxford comma is an article of punctuation placed before a coordinating conjunction (usually ‘and’) in a list of three or more items. For example: “My favorite books are Percy Jackson, The Hunger Games, and Harry Potter.” In the AP style guide, it is only used to add clarity to an otherwise confusing sentence such as, “Harry went to visit his parents, Dumbledore and McGonagall”, without the Oxford comma this sentence seems to say that Dumbledore and McGonagall are Harry’s parents. Horace Hart, controller of the Oxford University Press from 1893-1915, has been credited with introducing the comma in his style guide for workers at the press, though it was without a name until the late 1970s when Peter Sutcliff referred to the Oxford Comma in his book, The Oxford University Press: An Informal History. In this book, Sutcliff credits another author, F. Howard Collins, with the introduction of the Oxford Comma. Why use it In all honesty, whether you choose to use the Oxford comma in your personal writing is entirely up to you and what style guide you follow. It isn’t really grammatically correct to use it nor is it wrong to. Despite this, there have been a few situations where a missing Oxford comma has caused a great deal of trouble. The most notable one being a real-life legal dispute that resulted in a 5-million-dollar lawsuit. In 2017, three delivery drivers for a Maine dairy company filed a lawsuit for missing overtime wages. Maine law at the time stated that overtime payment protections did not apply to: “The canning, processing, preserving, freezing, drying, marketing, storing, packing for shipment or distribution of: (1) Agricultural produce; (2) Meat and fish products; and (3) Perishable foods.”, the important phrase here being “packing for shipment or distribution.” Delivery drivers worked in “distribution” but not “packing.” It was unclear whether “packing for shipment” was listed separately from “distribution,” and if they were not intended to be read separately, then delivery drivers would be entitled to overtime pay. Had an Oxford comma been used, there would have been no room for confusion. This seemingly small oversight led the United States Court of Appeals to rule in favor of the drivers who would be awarded a $5,000,000 settlement! For both the drivers and all the Oxford comma enthusiasts around the world, this case was a major victory. The use of the serial, Oxford, or Harvard comma is still entirely up to you, and I can’t tell you whether to use it or not. But where clarity and accessibility are concerned, if you forget your Oxford comma, you may find yourself paying a $5,000,000 settlement.

by Alin Sengjaroen “There is a minor crisis . Yet the only thing you can do is write in deafening silence . Suddenly, you realize that your handwriting is pretty ugly . Still, it’s calming to write away about the living dead  or the dead living .” There they are, oxymorons, one of the literary devices that writers use subconsciously. Not to be confused with paradoxes or irony, oxymorons are created when two contradicting words are combined to create an interesting contrast. Sometimes they’re both nouns or one adjective and one noun, and so on. Oxymorons are special since they are not exclusive to just literary works. We regularly use them in conversations whether online or offline. You’ve probably heard of the term love-hate relationships  or bittersweet . But first, how does that make any sense, and second, how do they improve our writing? THE DIMENSIONS OF OXYMORONS As stated, outside of writing, oxymorons are also used in daily conversations. Oftentimes, politicians use oxymorons as a way to persuade their audience. Since oxymorons are usually two contradicting words paired with each other – sometimes in ways you’d never expect -it encourages the listener or reader to stop and analyze the true meaning of the oxymoron. Phrases like “peaceful revolution” are often used by politicians. They are also used to present irony, which sparks the listener’s attention to rethinking what a “peaceful revolution” would be like. Oxymorons present words in a new manner that the audience would not expect and take them by surprise. One of the main qualities of a politician is to possess the ability to lure the audience in with a single speech. They will use a mixture of paradoxes and oxymorons so the listeners will both take in the facts and be curious enough to reflect on their words–during and after the speech is given.  The jarring difference between oxymorons and paradoxes is that paradoxes are concepts that logically make sense. For instance, “the only constant is change” means that change is the only thing happening all the time. Logically, it makes sense but for oxymorons like “living dead,” which if one is dead, one can’t be considered a living thing; therefore, rendering the phrase illogical, yet it adds a hint of intrigue as you take the reader by surprise. In a nutshell, oxymorons are a stylistic choice, while paradoxes can be used as motivational phrases.  Using oxymorons also indicates that the person speaking has an advanced grasp of the English language. Politicians need to display their skills and knowledge to be believable; hence, oxymorons are a way to show their linguistic proficiency. However, excessive use of this literary device can confuse the listeners and drift away from the main point. A question is then proposed: How often should we, writers (and maybe soon-to-be politicians), use oxymorons? WHAT IS THE RECOMMENDED AMOUNT OF OXYMORONS? Frankly, there is no strict rule as to how many oxymorons can you use in a paragraph. But we must be aware of the impacts and use them accordingly to create an effect that takes the reader by surprise. To summarize, oxymorons are used for dramatizing, irony, specific descriptions, and sarcasm.  Using oxymorons in critical moments lets the readers linger on the message of the line like in endings. Not to mention, using them for first-liners will hook the readers in, especially when the oxymoron is unique. In descriptions, they will enhance the readers’ imagination and provide you to describe a specific feeling or object. For example, the word “bittersweet” describes the feeling of pleasure followed by a bitter aftertaste (feelings of regret afterward) which no other word can specifically indicate.  However, you should be aware that overusing oxymorons can reduce clarity and coherence. Yes, use them in every sentence. There’s no rule against that. But keep in mind that it may make the paragraph much harder to understand and follow through.  My recommendation would be the following: For poems, I usually use a variety of oxymorons at the end and in the middle. Since endings in poems are incredibly impactful, using this literary device can dramatize and therefore, elevate the “punch to the gut” feeling. For fiction, I often use oxymorons when it comes to descriptions and dialogues. As I stated, oxymorons are common in our everyday conversation, using these would show that the character has a lot of control over the language and a high level of English proficiency. This is especially helpful when you want to write a character who is good at linguistics. However, keep in mind to avoid using them in every dialogue as it can get cliche.  HOW DO THEY HELP YOUR WRITER’S BLOCK? Oxymorons can be used as prompts to counter that writer’s/creative block. There are hundreds of websites showing unique and common ones that you can steal: “small crowd”, “seriously funny”, “silent scream”, “old news”, and so on. Using these combinations as a story prompt can bring out those creative juices. Not to mention, you’ve learned something new today about oxymorons so why don’t you try it out after finishing this article? Besides that, you may also create your own oxymoron and use it as the first liner or the end of the story. Or write a poem that has at least one oxymoron in every line. Creating a challenge for yourself is a good way to get out of that writing slump. You can experiment with styles and find what’s best for you.  Regardless, oxymorons aren’t the ultimate cure for writer’s block. If the problem is caused by a lack of creative ideas then oxymorons can help you. Anything besides that means you should take a break until you’re ready to write again.  In conclusion, the oxymoron is a literary device that you can try when you’re stuck at writing. It can create dramatic moments, suspense, or even irony. Try not to overuse them too much and be aware of the situations you want to use them. Happy writing! Citations Abbood, None Husam Ahmed. “The Power of Oxymoron: An Analytical Study of Oxymoron in Political Speeches.” The Creative Launcher , vol. 8, no. 5, Oct. 2023, pp. 151–67. https://doi.org/10.53032/tcl.2023.8.5.15 .

by Skylar Edwards Starting out as a writer can be daunting. You might feel as if you’ve been thrown out into the ocean without a life vest or you’re climbing a never-ending mountain. Maybe you don’t know what to write, or maybe you don’t know what defines great writing. Feelings of doubt may persist, but that’s because you don’t have enough information about how to utilize writing as a career-starter. It doesn’t have to be so challenging. Here are some tips on how to begin a career as a new writer.   Reading Your first step as a new writer will be to read. Reading will aid you by introducing you to syntax, imagery, and genres. Subject-verb agreement, sentence structure, and grammar are all skills necessary to be a good writer. If you are a current reader, reading will help you to sharpen these skills. Reading will also get your creative juices flowing; as you read, you are inspired. As a current or new reader, your vocabulary will be expanded. Likewise, learning how different writers use different strategies is necessary. For example, some writers heavily utilize ‘I’, some may not. Some writers may simply describe a scene, whereas some may solely reflect. It is important to know how different writers communicate with the reader so you can effectively communicate with your reader.  Various genres show you various techniques. For example, you won’t learn the same lessons from a thriller novel as you would from a blog post. Reading blog posts can show you how to write for an audience, while a thriller novel will show you how to build suspense. Reading allows you to see how syntax works in different way, you can understand what you enjoy the most, and you can find what literary genre you’re most comfortable writing in. These genres include fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and even technical writing. Allowing yourself to become comfortable with distinct types of writing will serve you when it is time to choose a specific genre to write in.  Getting Practice As the adage goes, “practice makes perfect”. To improve, one must set aside time to write. Whether fifteen minutes, thirty, or an hour, practicing allows you to get into the habit of writing. The key to good practice is to be patient with yourself. Improvement is not a steady uphill climb, instead it will be more like a twisty road that may loop around. Practice can come in many forms. You can just write what comes to mind, or you can write whatever you feel needs to be written. You could even start out by creating drabbles. Drabbles are pieces of writing that are only a hundred words long. If you’ve had an idea, drabbles can help you put that on paper. Drabbling can also serve as a warm up for a larger piece of writing. Practicing for different genres of writing can equip you with different skills. When you write fiction, you may focus more on crafting a narrator and formatting dialogue. If you write poetry, you practice creating rhythm with syllables and perfecting tone. All that matters is that you are consistent and practicing in a manner that will guarantee improvement. As for practicing a genre, study and emulate what your favorite author/novel did. After, apply what you learn to your writing. Finding Criticism Solo practice can only improve your writing to a certain extent. As we write and edit our work, some mistakes will escape our attention. We won’t always see our faults. That’s why it’s important to receive feedback as it helps you see your work from another perspective. Literary magazines and journals are another way to receive feedback; many offer edits and feedback for free. Rejection is not the end of the road, and it shouldn’t discourage you. Take the feedback and turn it into something powerful; it is serving you by showing how you can create improved works. It is simply another opportunity to learn about your craft.  Building a Portfolio As a writer, it is imperative that you keep a record of your work. If you are looking to establish yourself in the writing industry, portfolios are integral. To begin, you can start by submitting work like essays, poems, blog content, or short stories to literary magazines and journals. Submitting work enables you to network with other writers and editors. Rewrite the Stars’ submission windows are open in September, December, March, and June. Writing contests are also a good way to build a reputation. A good portfolio has a range of genres included to show how experienced you are. There are a range of websites available to organize your portfolio in one place. These websites include Wordpress, Wix, and Contently. In addition, organizing a portfolio can be as simple as keeping your writing samples in a Google Docs folder.  Choosing a Career The question to ask yourself is: What do you want to make out of writing? Many new writers dream of writing the next bestseller. If you want to start publishing, you need to research literary agents that specialize in your genre of writing. Agents help you with navigating through publishers, finding book deals, and understanding contracts. If you would like to be independent, you can self-publish. The act of writing allows you an opportunity to market yourself to many different job sectors. You can branch off into writing grants, tech writing, or by taking the skills you used in writing and applying it to an unrelated job. The choice is completely up to you.  Beginning as a new writer can be challenging and frustrating at times, but every author started out uninformed. By reading all types of writing, practicing consistently, reflecting on feedback, and building a strong portfolio, you’ll develop the skills and mindset needed to become a great writer. Regardless of what career path you choose, the key to succeeding is to stay passionate and to constantly improve.

by Varshha Rewrite The Stars Review turned two on September 1st, 2024! In celebration, we held a Slam Poetry Competition on August 31st over Google Meet. Each of the 20 young and talented writers were given twenty minutes to compose a poem based on five prompts inspired by the five issues RTS has published. When the timer was up, they all read aloud their poems and voted on a winner via Google Form. With all the votes in, Rewrite the Stars Review are proud to announce our two winners: Shivi Sharma and d.liu! Shivi (@feralembers) The world is on fire, I'm dying and these are my seven minutes:  I was six when I first ran away from home. I've always been running since then, the land of fire, I've always been obsessed with it.  I was seven when I felt how it truly feels to cut your arms and let the blood exit you like everyone else would do like it's water. I was a people pleaser.  I was eight when I first understood the difference between loneliness and being alone. The people on TV are the ones who decided what my feelings meant. I found it funny.  I was nine when I stayed alone for the first time. It didn't feel scary. It felt the same, I don't know how to explain it.  I was ten when I stopped living in the moment and so I barely have memories left inside of me.  I was eleven when I first wrote about women empowerment knowing very well that I was my worst enemy, I still am and I don't think I'd ever be able to change that.  They started calling me "ember".  Most people never understood why.  I was twelve when I first thought of dying. I've thought of death before but never with so much passion that I'd want to experiment with it.  I was thirteen when they told me that I'm not enough. It didn't hurt because I'd been saying that to myself for years.  I've always been half girl, half metaphor. Bio: Shivi Sharma from Delhi, India is living under water (not rock, water). Partially because she likes to call herself spongebob or kiwi. Considering the fact that she's a water sign, she thinks that being one keeps you hydrated enough. She loves watching Suits or Gilmore Girls on repeat. You can find her being (in)sane @feralembers on Instagram where she occasionally posts her work (which is either all at once or after months) What the artist had to say about the piece:   Okay, so I’m being completely honest, there's a part of me that hates every single second of my childhood. I genuinely don't know why but it exists and there's nothing I can do to change that. The piece is more of a confession than a prose poem because (secret, i've done half of those things) and also that I was never even planning to participate, partly because i'm stuck in writer's block (again) and i just wanted to say hi to the RTS team who were hosting it :((  Also, hi others, i'm just a girl and I promise writer’s block won't kill you. Ara I love how linear and organized this is, yet at the same time very raw and personal. It’s incredible that something like this could be created out of the top of your head. The last line is very powerful and wraps up the piece beautifully. I also love the fire metaphor at the start, and “ember” at the end, although I think the inclusion of even more fire metaphors would make this overall stronger. I also think that the usage of more description would be useful in letting us really empathize with the character, especially descriptions that use the five senses/physical stimuli. Aashi To start off, I LOVE the inspiration and motive behind this piece. I feel like it personally connects with me a little bit so I genuinely can feel the passion. However, there are some notes I have made to help out on the execution. The first one is consistency. At the start of the piece, there was a chronic usage of short fragments to set a flow in your writing, rather than transitioning terms. Though near the end there were a couple sentences that used transitioning terms. I’m not sure if this was intentional but as a reader I can connect better with your piece when it feels to me like you’re consistent and write it as a whole. An example of my comment is when you said "I was ten when I stopped living in the moment and so  I barely have memories left inside of me." Instead of that, to keep your flow, you can split it into two different phrases. Additionally, I noticed some spots where commas could be used. Make sure to use proper grammar and usage of conventions! Lastly, I LOVED THE LAST LINE. It finished off the entire piece with such a strong tone. Genuinely, this is by far one of my favourite pieces i’ve read at RTS, and with improvement you could make it the BEST! I’m so proud of you Shivi!  D.Liu crimson wood watch the kaleidoscope shatter, melting through the tips of my scarred fingers watch me trace your silhouette with white ink, blurs of happiness severed by the machete of time. my heartbeat reverberates at the edges of my ears until it replicates somber tinnitus  ba-dum, ba-dum, it hurts, my heart,  breathe in, breathe in until i grasp the intangible to hold tightly  in my cusped hands until i hone my arms into an axe squeeze my veins for crimson and acrylic to paint a paradise for you but you merely glance at my slitted scarred skin you stand, motionless, as we play cup telephone, i whisper what is and you hear what was i love you, i say i love you, you hear but it is not the same. so watch my tears drip gasoline to light your shirt aflame. Bio: d. liu is a rising junior who is an avid writer, but even more so, an avid wanderer, feeler, and explorer. she enjoys being out and about, connecting with people, and exploring the world. What the artist had to say about the piece:   I really enjoyed the prompts at the slam poetry event. There were a lot, and what was special about them was that they were extremely detailed, so naturally it helped me with visualising imagery. I went with the flow and just carried my thoughts into words, which crafted my poem! Ara This is such a beautiful piece, with a wide and masterfully used vocabulary. I’m very impressed with the creative metaphors, especially the ones about cup telephone and gasoline tears burning the shirt. Each line is unique and feels fresh. However, I think the piece would feel overall more cohesive if there was some kind of tie between the metaphors, or a repeated metaphor/structure/line. It would help with consistency and organization, which is something difficult to balance in slam poetry. Aashi The first thing I noticed when I started off with reading your piece was the capitalization. There was none at the start of any fragment. Now before you take this in a negative connotation, I loved it. You consistently kept using lowercase and even if this wasn’t intentional, one thing I love to see in poetry or prose is CONSISTENCY. It also added a little character to your piece, small things go a long way. As much as I sensed so much emotion in this writing, there is something I wanted to suggest. For the reader or the listener to connect better with your piece they need some sort of context. You added an array of metaphors but you didn’t give that much context of the situation. This does leave a lot to the imagination of the audience but to ensure that your character and piece is being represented correctly, I'd recommend adding some more context. Overall, it’s awesome, nice work! In conclusion, the Slam Poetry Competition was certainly engaging and fun. We extend our deepest gratitude to all the poets who shared their profound words and their unwavering support. We have witnessed the power of poetry to connect, inspire, and transform. Let us carry these moments with us, and continue to celebrate the art of spoken word. Be on the lookout for more such events soon! Stay in the loop by following our instagram or checking our website for updates!

by Dhwani V Phuria A government is one of the most important aspects of worldbuilding, especially if you want to create a nation or a world from scratch. So, shouldn't they get the variety they deserve? Fantasy books have a tendency to adhere towards a monarchy. Dystopian books, on the other hand, prefer an 'evil' or controlling governments for our protagonists to overthrow. This is, naturally, not the rule, as there are plenty of books depicting different types of governments, but, isn't monarchy, a political system revolving around one person or dynasty's sovereignty, the first thing that comes to our mind? Yet, after a point, this gets quite repetitive, and governments can be far more interesting than that. Let's say, there is a monarchy in your story. I would ask you, what kind of monarchy? There is an absolute monarchy, where the ruler's word is law, and going against it is suicide — also a very interesting premise if you want to try your hand at a dystopian novel. There is ceremonial monarchy, which is the current case for most countries with royals, for example, today, the role of the very well-known British monarchy is only ceremonial in practice. The ruler is little more than a figurehead in this case, and instead, parliament rules the kingdom. For some time in Japan, there had been what we could call a puppet monarchy: a specific clan controlled everything the emperor did. Already, we have gone much further than simply 'royalty'. With this monarchy could come rules, of which those considering inheritance are often our first priority. There is the European precedent of patriarchy — kings and princes in power. A precedent for a matriarchy? In this case, the African Rain Queens of the Balobedu tribe are your answer. Then, of course, we can go to empires which do not end at royalty either. There was the Persian Empire, where the emperor ruled from the capital, but had provinces divided into 'satrapies', handled by satraps — trust me, controlling an area that huge by yourself from one little city? It would be a complete disaster. Next on the list, we come to republics. Officially, a republic means power is in the hands of the people, and they can elect a president or prime minister, and so on. Unofficially, it is a lot more complicated — which makes it a lot more interesting for writing purposes! Most fascist powers stem from the ashes of what was supposed to be a republic. Mussolini became Prime Minister of Italy before he turned into the dictator, although that could quite possibly have been the goal all along. Hitler was appointed Chancellor of Germany in the 1933 elections, at that point considered simply a charismatic politician before he became the Nazi dictator of Germany and the countries that his army annexed. Scary, isn't it? That the republic and freedom you're so used to can easily become a dictatorship? Plus, it's much more realistic in a dystopian sense than the vague 'they overthrew the old system to take power'. Consider communism. Its most well-known example would be the Soviet Union, or the USSR: Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. It called itself a 'republic', but one-party elections and no freedom of speech tell a different story. The fact is, the idea of communism was born from the ideology that those of the working class were being exploited by the ruling class, and that wealth should be redistributed so everyone is on equal footing. Doesn't sound so bad, does it? This is the same ideology that got twisted to the point where it led to a one-party government that would be more suited to being called something akin to a dictatorship, where any form of opposition to the Party could get you in prison or even forced labour camps (gulags), and where the press was controlled to the dot9. Yet, many citizens believed, truly believed, that this way of life was superior, most higher-up officials among them. Remember this: your government will always be infinitely more dangerous when those in power genuinely believe that they are doing the right thing. Finally, we come to today's most common governments. Genuine republics with multiple political parties and regular elections, with freedom of press and freedom of speech. This, one might say, is not as fun to use in your writing —– everything is fine, isn't it? This would never serve any conflict in your storyline, and more importantly, it is highly unrealistic in practice. Well, for one, freedom of press does not mean you can't get swept up in propaganda and smear campaigns. It does not mean that there is no misinformation circulating on purpose to serve political parties. Freedom of speech does not mean citizens can get away with saying anything. It most certainly does not mean that everything is 'fine', because if you want to write a realistic government, it must have flaws. This is not to say that it will turn evil or that corruption must be everywhere, simply that a utopian government makes little sense. The worst of regimes can be made with what its administration believes are good intentions. It is much more terrifying, realistic and impactful, which is why I would suggest to fellow writers to write fictional governments that way. In much the same sense, the best of governments cannot be absolute perfection. All of this ultimately helps create a more concrete government in your work, which then helps in many other aspects of worldbuilding. The regime determines key aspects of life in that state, and a vague sense of management cannot truly provide for all that a well-thought out fictional government offers. There is a reason that the Capitol from the Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, or the Party from 1984 by George Orwell are so relevant in literature today: they present to you well-rounded governments, with its many facets, that shape the characters' lives, and though they are fictional, their parallels to real life engages readers with the story. Citations Sagers, John H. “Power, Legitimacy, and the Japanese Emperor.” Association for Asian Studies, 1 June 2023, www.asianstudies.org/publications/eaa/archives/power-legitimacy-and-the-japanese-emperor/. Harris, Mia. “The Real-Life South African Rain Queens Who Inspired Marvel’s Storm - The Black History Girl Blog.” The Black History Girl Blog - - Your Source for All Things Black History -, 21 May 2024, theblackhistorygirl.com/the-real-life-south-african-rain-queens-who-inspired-marvels-storm/. “Satrap.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., www.britannica.com/topic/satrap. 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Lauk, Epp. “Practice of Soviet Censorship in the Press.” Nordicom, www.nordicom.gu.se/sites/default/files/kapitel-pdf/37_lauk.pdf. Accessed 21 July 2024.