Writing Challenge: Wherefore Art Thou?

by Evan Yeong

I decided to major in English Literature for my undergrad, so I know that “wherefore art thou, Romeo?” translates to “why are you Romeo?” which is more Juliet bemoaning that her love is a Montague and sworn enemy of her family than her asking where he is. Just wanted to get that out of the way.

That said, that’s the angle we’re approaching this week’s prompt from. As someone who has been in a long-distance relationship for going on two years now, I often find myself wondering where my partner is and what exactly they’re up to. Though of course, we stay connected however we can-

Werth Hang Up First GIF by efitz11 | Gfycat

This week, in 400 words or less, I’d like you to describe a romantic moment between a couple who are geographically far from one another. My first caveat is this: their separation cannot be due to any current events (you know exactly what I’m referring to). Secondly, I’m nixing handwritten letters. There are no constraints on what era your scene must be set in, but any missives, whether written with quill or ballpoint, are off the table.

Will you write two lovers streaming their favourite show together while on different continents, or have a mix tape unexpectedly show up in the mail (I’m still old enough to remember cassettes, just fyi)? Regardless of your story, all submissions are due this upcoming Sunday April 5th at 11:59 PM EST.

As one final note, I’m incredibly pleased to share that we will once again be providing all entrants with editorial feedback! Come back next Monday I’ll elaborate a bit more, but until then, happy writing!


UPDATE: I got up to this morning to 27 eligible submissions that you all worked hard on this weekend, and each will be receiving editorial feedback by this upcoming Wednesday (April 8th).

A cursory glance at the comments revealed a broad range of different takes, and I’m eager to see how you’ve all chosen to tackle portraying a long distance relationship (and taking down pointers for my own any inspire me!).