AOWL SEASON 3 MAGAZINE — EDITION 13

[Certain]

Season 3, Edition 13

Napalm In The Morning
INTRODUCTION by Certain





Welcome back, friends. We're here with an unfortunately late edition of the Art of Writing League's Season 3 magazine, but I do hope you understand how busy I've been the past few days. This magazine isn't quite as jam-packed as others, but there's a lot of good stuff in it, starting with an interview with Cereal_Killa. I'm very excited because I think Week 12 was the best week of the season in terms of quality of submissions, though participation has wained a bit lately. A few people need to get their asses into the league, or they won't make the playoffs. (I'm looking at you, @patrown and @YDK and @Diode and a few others.) Anyway, let's get on with it.



THE INTERVIEW by Certain, with Cereal_Killa
One of our contenders trying to fill the vacant championship spot steps out of the ring to have a conversation with the moderator, whom he's known on these sites for a decade or so.





Hi, Cereal_Killa! What's going on right now, old friend?

(insert life story – worst ever)
I’m broke, no more fiancé, no house and a cigarette addictions..

so thank the lord ohh mighty for 50 chemicals in one hit..

How long have you been doing this? I'm guessing since about 2004. That's about the time that I remember you joining the RSTL.

I hit the ish in 2002 onwards.. but the wonder years where def 2004 :)

What do you think about the way this art form and competition field we participate in has evolved?

Man Out the gate it hasn’t backed down..

How have you evolved?

Otay, mentally majestically.. im turning 30 so my life crunched up pretty quick..

from working out how fast life rolls as far as big ass memories/stories
and how long it is when you add in all those lil factors like listening to music, movies and reading

i feel i have hit the half way point.. n def grew the hell up..

Who's the best writer in the league, in your opinion?

Zygote – dude is a beast – did you read his pitch with the faces of death “running through all the gimmicks – you get spoon fed”

And best verse so far was OAT’s hit out the park for me... like got damn “i need more”

only challenger..

What do you think about facing Frank, particularly with a title on the line?

It’s crazy, he was running two names when i was here last year..
Which for the fact one name was heavy swinging all the big points, schweet delivery and such
it says a lot.. cause its crazy enough writing one..
I’m coo with it like hey ol’ rm rules.. they way that ish was run was perfect so..
i understand why im there.. and i’ma bring zeee heat..

You have this unique flare to your boarding persona. What makes you so colorful?

Madness!!

What kind of jelly do you use on a PB&J?

Green..

Who's your favorite U.S. president?

Redman

Tambourines or harmonicas?



Any closing thoughts?





Week 12 Rewind
BATTLE REVIEWS by Certain
A very fine week featured probably the best battle of the season thus far and a handful of other great ones to classic paintings as topics.





1. Johnathan Mercy (3-2) beat Soulstice (1-3) 6-2. | The Triumph of Death by Pieter Bruegel the Elder
BATTLE OF THE WEEK! This battle was awesome. Here's what it came down to: Voters preferred Johnathan Mercy's fleshed-out take on the concept of death as a necessity to Soulstice's story that had a couple small holes in it. Johnathan Mercy's rhyme scheme probably won him this battle more than anything, though. Soulstice told his story as well as anyone has told a serious story this season, but his point about three ways to die (which he explained later) felt a little lost amid the carnage. Johnathan Mercy chose the more straight-forward content with the captivating writing and seems to have built up a real head of steam right now.

Originally Posted by Johnathan Mercy

She is rampant entropy;
- A phantom entity of vast complexity
And while we cocaine-addled mammals helplessly,
try to recapture our mental balance chemically
She'll show her outstanding lack of empathy
- and ravage destinies faster than you can whack a Kennedy

2. Adonis (5-7) beats Perpendicular (1-2) 7-2. | The Face of War by Salvador Dali
This is what happens when Adonis goes in. He's honed this dark, dense style all season, and he used it perfectly to describe a harbinger of death and bleakness. This might have been my favorite verse by him and was a candidate for verse of the week (though this week was so strong that I'm leaning toward putting it fourth or fifth). Perpendicular continued his run of pristine mechanics but failed to come up with content to live up to it. He used a lot of dark images but never completed the painting. Still, that's a tough criticism of a very good and interesting verse. Perpendicular rhymes as well as anyone in this league right now, and his two losses have come the hard way.

Originally Posted by Adonis

Tormented; harbinger of all that's entombed.
Ancient hellion birthing wrath from a womb.
Eclipsed moon by Ashen's ascending fumes.
Furious fire, puffing smoke, ballooned.
Treachery looms, Overcast with the Blackest typhoon.
The sheer prowess devours with ashes bestrewn.

3. zygote (8-4) beats Vividlyvague (6-5) 6-0. | Skull by Andy Warhol
He may be dead now, but zygote won this handily because he came up with the absolute perfect take on the very weird topic. I loved his closing stanza, which was ambiguous but connected all the thoughts from the previous stanzas very subtly. (Strands of each of the previous "horsemen" were used for the stanza.) I do think Vividlyvague's verse was overlooked a bit, though. He wrote about photography, and it made a lot of sense in the context of the painting. He wrote short, though, and I think Vividlyvague's reputation is such that anytime he writes short, it's assumed he didn't try fully. Still, the past two weeks have been nice exhibitions of his shorter and less Frank-esque style. I prefer it.

Originally Posted by zygote

FAMINE: Eat it up. Stay in tune with the fashion.
LOL. A picture of a cat with a humorous caption.
Ten seconds have passed without being amused and distracted.
LOL. A picture of a cat with a humorous caption.
I need an instant update for this IPOD farmville game.
The information is here. Time to update my social network status page!

4. Zombie (5-0) beats Split Eight (3-3) 7-0. | Ashes by Edvard Munch
One of the issues with doing these battle rankings is that sometimes one verse clearly outshines another. Zombie's take on first loves and the impressions they create was really great, possibly the verse of the week in a truly great week. He balanced his usual streaming diction and flow with a very strong conceptual core. But Split Eight barely scratched the topic at all. I really enjoyed reading his take on the differences between himself and Zombie, but I do wish there had been more relevance. He also said he wasn't sure he could show and signed out afterward. That's a shame because Split Eight is one of my favorites.

Originally Posted by Zombie

Your definition of love never mustve existed
YOU sedate the concept. YOU embrace its content, with rudimentary logic
The person is real, and the feelings are real-but you create the context
who's to say, the onset of delusional standards is currently present
shedding tears are an excusable manner for the blurs in each segment
"TOLD you EVERY sound and verb." X-RAYS only painted tincture of empty closets
you sapped the thousand words out of every picture that came across it
Your wavy strands of amber hazel, pulled my grace. A soldiers statue
lulled my lonely vacuum.

5. Vulgar (5-3) beats Certain (2-4) 6-0. | Head of a Skeleton with a Burning Cigarette by Vincent Van Gogh
Fuck style switches. Vulgar went back to being Vulgar and fucking slaughtered worthless 2-4 Certain with ease. Vulgar's verse was a look at our generation, which was an interesting take on this particular skull painting. He worked it out to make a lot of sense by the end. I suppose it wasn't the full-on Vulgar that we saw in pieces such as Sri Lanka because the reference points were a little less obscure. But the rhymes were relentless, and it was one of the best verses of the season. Certain wrote some vague shit about cigarettes and a girl. No one liked it very much.

Originally Posted by Vulgar

The rotary bladder screws were supposed to be fastened, tuned
to an engine-metal cast in a steel cased projection
Bless these rental caps from the free-baser dentist
Meet the portrait of Dr. Cenotaph, and his real grave expression
Heel raising tension - if you feel shaken, lessen
the locomotion of death: the wheels made the flesh grim
An evening with Voltaire, the more absinthe, the easier I fared
The 'stand up for yourself' concerto - my tailbone beat me to the stairs
and shuffled all the way to a mausoleum in need of serious repairs

6. King Ra. (6-5) beats timeless (6-6) 6-0. | Still Life with Skull and Candlestick by Paul Cézanne
This was a strange clash. timeless dropped something pretty half-hearted that failed to show the full scope of how much better he's become. It had interesting points but ultimately was a bit like a braggadocio verse, dissing his opponent a little at the end. King Ra. won the way he knows how to, by writing with a lot of dark imagery. But he used a new style, replete with rhymes and more poetic and interesting wording and less cliché. I enjoyed reading this battle more than I have any other sixth-best battle of the week this season.

Originally Posted by King Ra.

Elephant in the room. Enlargement.
Suppression of knowledge.
Impetuous doom. Caution....
its secularization of conscious thought.
Transcendence subdued.
Black arts. Rituals. Rebellious pursuit.
Deception in truth. Toxic.
Keep your eyes open, regardless.
No matter the artist.
Rather assume this is reality's tomb.
Heaven to Hell. We've fallen, immune.
Under crescent moons.
Is this a dream?
Or a memory of your adolescent youth?

7. Cereal_Killa (3-1) wins via oats (9-3) no-show. | Christina's World by Andrew Wyeth
Even with his toughest matchup yet, Cereal_Killa went small this week. He wrote a shorter verse than he normally does, but it might be my favorite from him this season. He touched on the nature of poetry in the context of the painting. The rhymes were strong, and he provided more direct meaning with his ending. This ended up being an impromptu contender match, and Cereal_Killa can use this momentum going into the title match. oats has a big lead in the regular-season MVP standings, so I guess he felt he could no-show.

Originally Posted by Cereal_Killa

I’m in a marriage with murals for mortar n aerials of fortunate lies
I can move mountains with morality when I breathe in absorption lines
My eyes are like opals open beyond Eris on an easel of sky
In a delicate aisle of endurance swallowed by tangerine tiles
For now my shack shimmers it’s numbers in a luminescent squall
As night or day drifts like a centre fold memorial in my fish bowl
There is only one; oen; ONE field of dreams I sit upon
Imagination; a material or mirage of fortitude and madness split n hung

8. Frank (9-3) wins via Mike Wrecka (5-6) no-show. | Office in a Small City by Edward Hopper
I would have liked to see this go down, but Mike Wrecka told Frank early on that he wouldn't show. Mike Wrecka doesn't have much interest in putting effort into losing matches, so I'm guessing he didn't want to half-ass and know Frank wouldn't. He saved everyone a step, I suppose. Frank wrote out a list of numbers.



Week 13 Preview
POWER RANKINGS by Certain
I take back the reins in text form for the first time in a while. Last week's rankings were by Split Eight. And as a bonus, I ranked all 14 writers in the league right now.





14. Certain (2-4) | Last week: 8 (clerical error)
This is what resting on laurels means.


13. cyph her (0-1) | Last week: Not signed in
cyph her is a bit of a mystery, as her one submission was short and not about the topic for personal reasons. She's already dropped this week, so it will be interesting to see how she fares.


12. Zenland (1-1) | Last week: Not signed in
The people's champion has returned! Zenland can string together a few wins and squeeze his way into the playoffs (with four weeks left, he probably needs three more victories). But will he acknowledge topics?


11. Perpendicular (1-2) | Last week: Not ranked
There's no doubt Perpendicular can make the playoffs and then make a real impact, but I have to admit to being a bit disappointed by the quality of his past two contributions. He has the writing


10. timeless (6-6) | Last week: 5
I was intrigued by how early timeless dropped. His motivation seems to be there, but he may not have enough time to let it shine. I know a few things about that. He already has a playoff bid sewn up but would be well-advised to keep at it to better his seeding.


9. Vividlyvague (6-5) | Last week: 2
Sure, zygote thumped him pretty good last week. But Vividlyvague is starting to discover a style that's all his own, which is admirable. I think he'll be in really good shape for the playoffs.


8. Adonis (5-7) | Last week: Not ranked
His minor upset against Perpendicular should come as no surprise. Adonis is very good when he stays on track and tries to write the best possible verse rather than shoehorning in some gimmick.


7. King Ra. (6-5) | Last week: Not ranked
If King Ra. can take the lyricism and diction strides he made last week and apply it to a well-told and better-structured story line, he really will have something.


6. Soulstice (1-3) | Last week: 10
That record is ugly, but I have a strong feeling he will be in the title match by season's end. And if he wins enough to make the playoffs, which he easily could, he might just win the whole thing.


5. Cereal_Killa (3-1) | Last week: Not ranked
He's in the title match after a default win and a very close win, but don't undermine the veteran here. Cereal_Killa knows what he's doing, even if it's sometimes hard to figure that out.


4. Vulgar (5-3) | Last week: 9
That Vulgar lost his first two matches back is a testament to the strength of this league. He's finding his way back into beast mode again, though.


3. zygote (8-4) | Last week: 6
He'll be 9-3 and tied with oats and Frank for the best record of the season if he votes on all available matches this week. He has been the most consistent member. I could see him closing the season as champion.


2. Frank (9-3) | Last week: 3
His ability to put in exactly as much effort as is needed to win is rather remarkable. I expect Frank to take his first Season 3 title run, but even if he doesn't, he'll be a threat in the playoffs.


1. Johnathan Mercy (3-2) | Last week: 7
This guy has the juice right now. He started slow but has reeled off a steady stream of impressive verses with tight diction and ridiculous rhymes and deep concepts. He won the best battle of the season. He's a win away from the title match. Be afraid.



PREDICTIONS/
LISTEN UP by Certain
I took a cue from big baby and did predictions in audio format. oats won't need a transcript.






Frankly, My Dear
CONCLUSION by Certain


Here's to another great week. Thanks to Cereal_Killa for the interview. Shoutout to Zombie for an impressive 5-0 run, though I'm sad he left us. big baby, I just want to be your friend.