AOWL Mag Third Edition

[Mike Wrecka]

Season 2

Third Edition Mag





Welcome to Week 4 of the Art of Writing League!!!! This is a pivotal week as people jostle for position in an attempt to be one of the contestants in our first title match that will take place next week. The winner of the Certain vs. Vividlyvague matchup is guaranteed a spot in that bout, so lets keep a close eye on that battle. The NYCSPITZ vs. Frank, patrown vs. Mr. J and Objective vs. Just Write battles are also huge, one of the winners from those two battles will also get a title shot next week. There is a system in place for ranking purposes. It is based off of wins. The more wins the higher the rank. The tie breaker is strength of competition. Remember, the title holder has a distinct advantage in this league. They get to choose their topics from a group of three topics that will be sent to them via PM. So ya, its sorta like a big deal dudes.

Last week was a huge success with the classical artwork as topics people put a new spin on well known images. It was intriguing, props to Cert for that concept. Voting continues to be amazing and as the league continues to grow exponentially there really is NO LIMIT!!!! We have more members now than we have ever had. Keep it moving.

Text isn't dead, its alive and thriving in the AOWL!!!!!!!!


**** Special AOWL Bulletin********************

The Netcees Elements Tourny Final is a topical battle , Rocket Ninja Pirate Slayer aka Bags vs. Cashius. This battle will be moved into the AOWL forum and stickied at the top of the page. It was a tournament that made the battlers participate in all the different elements of text and its ending with topical. I would like to encourage you all to vote on that battle although it is certainly not required. As an added incentive, voting on that battle will count towards one of your three mandatory votes this week. Also as a show of solidarity with our Netcees brethren, the theme of this weeks topics is dun dun dun Elements! But before we get ahead of ourselves lets take a look back at Week 3


Week in Review by Certain

That was one hell of a week. Really, you guys, I'm thrilled with everyone. Sixteen out of 18 competitors showed, and the two bitches that didn't were paired against each other. So we don't even have a no-show shine! Plus, the voting remains terrific. There's a lot of disagreement, and I think that's healthy. The result is a lot of close battles, but the vote totals are high enough that they feel resolved anyway.

Let's break last week's battle's down:

Clutter Buck (1-0) beat Scripter (1-2) 7-0
Scripter came with a simplistic verse, and Clutter Buck (whose identity is no secret at this point) went hard as fuck in his first week. Scripter has potential but needs to come up with better takes on topics. Clutter Buck simply knows what he's doing, as he showed with this character portrayal of a bartender.

Innovator (1-2) beat breathless (0-2) 7-5
This battle was one of the toughest to vote on because the writers came out with very different verses with different strengths and weaknesses. Ultimately, Innovator's poetry won out over breathless' lyricism, mostly because Inoovator went more directly at the topic.

Vividlyvague (3-0) beat Mr. J (2-1) 6-2
Vividlyvague brought a goddamn novel, but Mr. J probably could have won this had his verse been a bit more polished. They took completely different takes on Pablo Picasso's "The Old Guitarist," with Vividlyvague going the indie movie route while Mr. J brought a character sketch with social commentary. Fleshed-out stories are tough to beat.

Objective (2-0) beat King Ra. (1-1) 6-3
This was closer than the votes my lead one to believe. Objective came with the standard Objective verse, a well-structured story that was told plainly and focused on the content. King Ra. has one of the best styles in the league, though, and even though his content wasn't that interesting, his writing almost stole it.

NYCSPITZ (2-1) beat Zenland (1-2) 5-4
This definitely was the closest battle of the round, both in terms of votes and verses. Based on Edvard Much's "The Scream," NYCSPITZ wrote a straightforward verse about why he's frustrated with the world and screaming on the pier. Zenland took a more circuitous route, telling a story of murder and insanity. But NYCSPITZ's lyricism edged it out.

Certain (3-0) beat patrown (2-1) 6-2
I came away from my verse really unhappy, but looking back, I probably underestimated it. Either way, I think patrown should have won. He came with flames, telling the heartbreaking tale of a prostitute-turned-addict trying to escape her pain. I wrote about high school chicks.

Just Write (2-0) beat Mike Wrecka (1-2) 6-0
Just Write is a monster right now. This topic, Georges Seurat's "A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte," was one of the most intriguing of the week in my opinion, and Just Write took it home with a tale of nostalgia and destruction. Mike Wrecka wrote about grass, probably overthinking things a bit, but his verse still was good.

Frank (2-1) beat YDK (1-2) 7-1*
If Frank gets on a roll, he'll be tough to stop. His tale of a card game with high stakes proved too much for YDK's more straightforward extended-metaphor verse. Scripter dropped a late vote in YDK's favor, hence the asterisk. But even with the votes leaning so heavily in Frank's favor, this was a great battle.




POWER INDEX by Certain

Every week, I will rank the top 10 competitors in the league. These rankings will not be official or have any bearing on anything aside from my rankings. The goal will be to measure who is doing best in the league (excluding myself). You will not always agree, and I encourage you to post your own rankings. These are not verse of the week rankings, to be clear. They often won't line up with results or even necessarily with my own votes. So deal with it and enjoy them for what they are.

10. Mike Wrecka (1-2)
Ease up, brother man. I went 1-2 in the Writing Challenge League, then didn't allow a vote against me the rest of the way. Mike's still in it and will be into the playoffs.

9. Zenland (1-2)
The insanity leaks from this guy's pores, and I love it. But he'd be well-served to straighten up just a little.

8. King Ra. (1-1)
He might have the freshest style in the league right now, even though I've voted against him in both his matches.

7. patrown (2-1)
He totally deserved to beat me. But how often will he write verses as deep as that?

6. Mr. J
He's kind of cantankerous in the chat thread, but he's very even-keeled in his smooth-as-shit verses.

5. Vividlyvague (3-0)
I face him now, and I must destroy him. Our writing styles and user names are opposites.

4. NYCSPITZ (2-1)
He's the best lyricist in the league right now. He probably needs to start focusing on topics more.

3. Clutter Buck (1-0)
Even if you don't know who this is, you can't argue with this if you read his first verse.

2. Frank (2-1)
I love his ego almost as much as I love his storytelling.

1. Just Write (2-0)
Just Write stands back and lets the story tell itself. Not enough people do that. Just Write is very, very good, and you're probably underrating him.



Week 4 by Mike Wrecka




Week 4 will feature battles with the topics themed after the classic elements of the planet. Fire, Water, Wind etc. I did have to get a little creative in some instances but that only means you have to get a little creative in writing. One word topics are the best of both worlds, open ended but focused. Use it as a launching pad. Lets take a look at this weeks matchups.

Certain vs. Vividlyvague - one of these guys will be in the title match guaranteed. Certain is on quite a run here on Netcees. He hasn't lost a topical battle since Week 3 of the WCL. that's an impressive run. Vividlyvague seemingly appeared out of no where and has done quite well for himself. Is he an alias, is he just some random new guy coming off a hiatus, tbh I have no clue but he can write. Certain has faced the better competition but has won two of his three matches by no show. Vag as his colleagues affectionately call him has done a lot more heavy lifting here. Prediction - Certain , that streak will continue for at least another week imo

Pancakebrah vs. Shogun Dinero - Pancakebrah has returned after losing week 2. he is probably super pissed off and focused. that is bad news for everyone in this league. Shogun aka Gamble is perhaps the most disliked person on this site, but despite that title the guy could write. He has an audio style that will most likely translate very well into topical. Shogun might be banned off the site by the time his battle is due but as I type this he is still with us. Prediction - Pancakebrah

King Ra. vs. Zenland - interesting match up here. Zenland has looked impressive this season and has progressively gotten better with each drop. King Ra. aka King Keith has a big win against Pancakebrah already under his belt this season and looks to build on that. Both are coming off of close losses to big time writers. Who will bounce back? Prediction - To close to call

Storyteller vs. Lexicon - last I saw of Storyteller was in the WCL. he was not a happy camper after a couple of straight losses. I can understand his frustration because he dropped really good verses in both battles but just lost out to slightly better verses. He looks to redeem himself here and I expect big things. Lexicon is a wild card in my eyes. He no showed last week but made the required votes to stay in the league. Seems like some people know him as North and are excited to read his verses, as am I. Prediciton: I'll go with who Ive read. Storyteller

Objective vs. Just Write - Objective has had an active week on NCs. He was dropped from ATR and seems focused on making them regret that decision. He is undefeated thus far and looks to build on that against Just Write. JW is coming off a big landslide victory and looks to continue doing damage. His success thus far has been a bit surprising to me tbh. BOTW potential. Prediction - Just Write, this guy can do no wrong in the voters eyes

Clutter Buck vs. Adonis - this is a very interesting battle. Two seasoned vets here. Clutter Buck has been exposed as Lars recently. Lars is considered one of the best to ever write a topical and has numerous titles under his belt. Great to have you aboard buddy. Adonis has run with the big boys of the topical world for a long time. These two run in different circles of the internet and have probably never crossed paths in a battle. Well that's the beauty of the AOWL, we have the best of many boards all right here. Prediction - Clutter Buck in a close one

NYCSPITZ vs. Frank - BOTW BOTW BOTW!!!! This is a match up between two juggernauts of the topical world. Both of these guys are a huge threat to champ the league when its all said done. This week however they will be colliding in a colossal collision of consonants and vowels. Enjoy the read people. It will be worth the peep. Prediction - Frank , but it could go either way obviously

Mike Wrecka vs. YDK - both need a win in a big way. gl YDK

patrown vs. Mr. J - patrown and Mr. J both lost to the two 3-0 competitors. They went from 2-0 to 2-1 and after this battle one of them will be all the way down to five hundred and sit at 2-2 with two straight losses. which one will it be? Prediction - patrown

breathess vs. symetrik - This battle already is open, so we'll skip the prediction in a match between two writers with unique styles. http://netcees.co/showthread.php?t=25119


Interview with Zenland by Certain


Hello, gentlemen. (There are no women in this sausagefest, to my knowledge.) It's everyone's least-favorite Art of Writing League Season 2 moderator, Certain, here with everyone's favorite insane person, Zenland.

How are you today, Zen? What was your best meal of the day?

I'm pretty great right now actually. I'm listening to "Fool in the Rain" by Led Zeppelin. In case none of you have heard it before, it's about a guy who guys to meet a girl on a date and it's raining outside and the bitch never shuts up and then Robert Plant realizes he's on the wrong street. What a dumbass amirite!? And my best meal of the day would be spaghetti, but it was shitty spaghetti. It hasn't been a good meal kinda day :(

So you were gone for some time, off doing drugs or something, to my understanding. Why did you return to our humble abode after some time off?

The drugs wore off.

You have probably the most unique and identifiable style in this league. What inspires you to write the way you write? Completely unrelated: Have you ever murdered anyone?

First off, I don't think the two questions are unrelated, but I won't answer the second question. The mystery's much more beautiful. And I suppose I write the way I write because...Well because I do. I honestly see a couple of guys in the league I wish I could write like but I won't mention their names because I ain't in the ego stroking bidness, ya dig?

If you don't, who will win this league? I want one answer. You can mention a few others, though.

Frank is my prediction to take it all, but I'm wrong because I'll beat him in the finals.

What's the best hamburger you've ever eaten?

There's this local store down the road from my house that sells a three pound cheeseburger. It was so good I had a heart attack.

You sometimes mention drugs. What types? What would you recommend to someone like me, who has mostly stuck to marijuana and alcohol?

Dude, I could write for hours on drug recommendations...forreal. My personal favorite is acid. You can't go wrong with it unless you take 16 hits and go to the fair then it's just a bad night all around. I went on the ride where the shit spins around in a circle like a ferris wheel turned on it's side but it's not gay like a ferris wheel...I don't know what it's fucking called but I threw up all over the girl that was in the seat behind me. Bad. Trip.

Where do you see yourself in three months?

Let me say first off that I'm not psychic, but I'll probably be broke. So basically I'll be in the exact same position I'm in right now.

Do you have any parting words?

I have a few pieces in the Open Mic, one entitled Sure. and another is a collab with Genocide that you need to check out. Also I have another collab with Innovator that you all should check out too. If you don't check them out then you're a fucking dick. Good bye AOWL.


Outro by Mike Wrecka

Ok we our approaching the mid way point next week so lets keep it going strong. This week will determine a lot in the way of positioning in this league so do your best. Keep writing and keep voting. Pz.

[Zen]

Totally agree about JW. I been saying this for awhile. Dope mag fellas.

[YDK]

Good luck to you aswell Mike, I'm intending to focus on my original style of writing this week, flow focused, so we shall see if I can keep up with you brudda

[Inno]

Cool mag guys dopeness indeed

[Just Write]

Dope mag guys. Thanks for all the effort

[e11even]

THANK GOD... I got my mag fix. Yes, there is a such thing. Great job guys. Zen, you're a fucking nut! Hilarious interview... I almost shat Kix(the shittiest sweet cereal) I lol'd so hard. Anyways... back to storming quietly...

[King Ra.]

This was uber dope. Lmao @Zenland. You trippy. But good luck in our match tho.

I appreciate the props for my writing, didn't think it is up there. I haven't even reached my peak yet tbh. Btw, I haven't got a chance to read Just Write thoroughly, seems like he killing it. NYC is my favorite to champ if he stays consistent.

Dope work, gents.

[Certain]

For future weeks, I'm going to do a "Certain's Corner" feature on a specific element of topical writing.

[Just Write]

Originally Posted by Zenland

Totally agree about JW. I been saying this for awhile. Dope mag fellas.

Yay!!! I'm awesome!

[Lars]

dope magazine

thanks for the props

appreciated

[e11even]

Originally Posted by Certain

For future weeks, I'm going to do a "Certain's Corner" feature on a specific element of topical writing.

sounds promising. i'll be looking for that...

[breathless]

Symetrik and I get no predictions?

[Certain]

Mike Wrecka must have seen your battle already was open for votes. I added the link. It doesn't feel right to make a prediction when I've already voted myself.

[PancakeBrah]

Nice mag.

I'll do previews for the next mag as a guest writer if that's cool.

[breathless]

Originally Posted by Certain

Mike Wrecka must have seen your battle already was open for votes. I added the link. It doesn't feel right to make a prediction when I've already voted myself.

Right on, i's just talkin shit

[Angkor]

good stuff, Mike. Thorough mag. Salute.

[Mike Wrecka]

Originally Posted by PancakeBrah

Nice mag.

I'll do previews for the next mag as a guest writer if that's cool.

your hired

[dead man]

I think having the elements battle up in AWOL is a good look. As is theming the week as a homage to the closing of that tournament. It's clever

Mag was dopenezz

[Frank]

Time to turn it up a notch. Mags been a better read each time. Keep it up, fellahs.

I'm coming for the title. Make way

[Adonis]

So who is this Lars? Any alias? @Clutter Buck you ever post on Old bboys or project rhyme?