Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Finding Inspiration for Blog Posts

You wake up in the middle of the night. In you dream you know you had the grain of an idea. There was something in there that was going to make for the greatest blog post ever but you just can't quite put your finger on it again. It slips away into the night and it looks like you blog won't be updated for a while yet.

After the initial rush when you start your blog and you put all your great ideas out there then it can be quite difficult knowing where to go next. Unless your blog is one where you are reviewing products or supplying news or similar then at some point you are going to be struggling to see where to go next.

Well the first answer to that is to make sure that your blog is something that you have a passion for as it is possible to write about anything that makes your heart burn with joy and inspire your readers.

With passion you can turn an little idea into a big article that people will love. All you have to do is let it flow out of your heart.

The second thing is to start with the title. Just think of a question you or someone who reads your blog would like answered. Usually I just put down a title to get the ball rolling and close my eyes with my keys on the keyboard and then kaboom... the article just arrives on the page. The key here is to get the forward motion.

The third thing in order to get inspired or to think of new article ideas is to read and contemplate things outside of your circle of expertise and then try to translate those ideas into something that applies to your line of writing. Push your boundaries by thinking "what if I applied this concept to my line of expertise?"

Look outside and bring it in. Relax and let inspiration come to you. Let it flow. You already have the idea... just let it come out.


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Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Top 10 Books You Were Forced to Read in High School

In honor of the 50th anniversary of the publication of Harper Lee's perennial middle-school novel To Kill a Mockingbird, TIME rounds up the classics that have monopolized school reading lists for years

#1 To Kill a Mockingbird

Harper Lee's 1960 paean to the South is one of the most beloved American novels ever written. Some of that is due to the 1962 classic film adapted from it, which stars Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch, a small-town lawyer who also happens to be the most upstanding and sympathetic father ever. But much of the respect accorded the novel (the author's only book) has to do with its memorable main characters, brother and sister duo Jem and Scout. With its competing subplots about a black man on trial for allegedly raping a white woman and the children's attempts to learn about their reclusive neighbor Boo Radley, the novel is perfectly structured to provide half a dozen lessons about history and acceptance and injustice and compassion. No wonder it's the staple of all middle-school staples. Happy 50th, Mockingbird!
Article written by GILBERT CRUZ

#2 Of Mice and Men

The Great Depression and the hardship it caused spawned many classics of American literature that have since become fodder for high school English classes across the nation. Topping the list is John Steinbeck's novella Of Mice and Men. The plot traces the journey of George and Lennie, two migrant workers in California farm country. We meet them after they've been forced to leave their previous ranch in a chain of events chalked up to Lennie's odd behavior. Upon arriving at their new farm, owned and run by a character known simply as "The Boss," George and Lennie once again find themselves in crosshairs. The strong and complicated bond between the pair forces George to take weak Lennie's life into his own hands. Along the way, their pursuit of the American Dream (and the attendant prospect of land ownership) falls by the wayside, the victim of a harsh economic downturn, a freak accident and mob hysteria.
Article written by DAN FASTENBERG

#3 A Separate Peace

One of the great coming-of-age tales, A Separate Peace is also one of the darker novels assigned to teenagers. The plot revolves around two roommates at Devon, a New England boarding school, during the summer and winter of 1942. The narrator, Gene, an introverted, studious Southerner, recalls his relationship with his best friend Phineas, known as "Finny," a charismatic, gregarious athlete. Over the course of the summer, Gene becomes envious of Finny's graceful, easy demeanor and takes part in an accident that ends Finny's athletic career. During the winter, as the country descends into World War II, the boys of Devon wage their own battles against each other to determine whether Gene intentionally harmed Finny. The novel chronicles the boys' maturation as the war encroaches further and further into their lives. While Knowles' tale of the journey from innocence to experience has been described as depressing, his capture of youthful emotion, surprising maturity and reactions to life's great tragedies make it a must-read during those awkward teenage years.
Article written by NATE RAWLINGS

#4 The Catcher in the Rye

Published in 1951, Catcher has long been a literary touchstone for alienated high school students. Main character Holden Caulfield is the ultimate whiner — everyone's a phony, everyone's a crumbum, and the only person who is really worth a damn is his little sister. Because Catcher is a fairly glum tale about a screwup of a kid who may be going crazy following the death of his brother, it's really easy to forget that it's kind of the ultimate high school fantasy — Holden roams around New York City for a couple of days, gets into bars, dances with older women and gets beaten up while trying to procure a lady of ill repute. While it may seem like the boy is just drifting, that sounds like living! For those very reasons, though, many of today's teens are having trouble relating to the book, according to a June 2009 New York Times article. "I can't really feel bad for this rich kid with a weekend free in New York City," said one teacher, paraphrasing some of her students. But despite the generational gap, this book won't be leaving classrooms anytime soon.
Article written by GILBERT CRUZ

#5 Animal Farm

This classic tale of an animal revolution gone rogue is George Orwell's allegorical take on Stalinism. Under two pigs named Snowball and Napoleon, a group of farm animals overthrow their drunken human caretaker and establish a new community based on seven commandments, including the tenet that all animals are equal. Soon after, Snowball and Napoleon engage in a power struggle to control the farm, with Napoleon emerging on top. He quickly turns Snowball into a scapegoat for a failed windmill project and kills any animals who appear to have an allegiance to his opponent. As time passes, the swine adopt human traits, soon wearing clothes and walking on two legs. Before long, the lowly farm animals can no longer distinguish between the pigs and the people.
Article written by FEIFEI SUN

#6 Lord of the Flies

Prominently featured on the American Library Association's list of the most banned books ever, Lord of the Flies is a complex allegory packed into a tale of struggle and survival. The book begins when a plane carrying a group of British boarding-school students crashes on an isolated island. The boys (in the truest meaning of the word; the oldest is 13) establish a working society, with Ralph as their charismatic yet humble leader. Order breaks down as Ralph battles with Jack, the leader of the school's choir, and the entire group slowly descends into chaos. The end, a brutal literal and figurative shattering of humanity, has served as the book's chief teaching point and mark of contention for half a century. Often seen as a cautionary tale about the breakdown of civilization, the book details "the end of innocence, the darkness of man's heart" and the horrific possibilities that lie within us all.
Article written by NATE RAWLINGS

#7 The Great Gatsby

Every school takes a field trip to Long Island, New York, at some point, visiting the Roaring '20s as only F. Scott Fitzgerald could write them. Thanks to its evocative setting, rich themes and masterly prose, The Great Gatsby has secured its standing as a reading-list staple as well as one of the greatest American novels ever written. Here, the moneyed East meets the modest Midwest, and Fitzgerald's memorable characters — Jay Gatsby, Daisy and Tom Buchanan, Jordan Baker — perpetuate a lavish lifestyle that, alas, doesn't offer much of a life. The enigmatic Gatsby has the best parties, but it's Daisy he really wants. He may have no shortage of party guests, but he's sorely lacking in funeral attendees. Narrator Nick Carraway is witness to the glitz that ultimately reflects emptiness, not success.
Article written by ALEXANDRA SILVER

#8 A Farewell to Arms

When Ernest Hemingway combined his "consciously bald" style with his experiences as a World War I ambulance driver, the resulting novel was an immediate success. Published in 1929, A Farewell to Arms not only revisits the conflict that had ended just a decade earlier; it also tells of romance. Sadly — not that dutiful American-lit students would expect to be cheered up by Hemingway — the love story isn't any less tragic than the war. Lieutenant Frederic Henry and English nurse Catherine Barkley have to face the fact that death can make its presence known off the battlefield as well as on.
Article written by ALEXANDRA SILVER

#9 The Scarlet Letter

Nathaniel Hawthorne's best-known work opens in Puritan Boston, with young Hester Prynne on trial for adultery. Because she refuses to name the father of her infant daughter Pearl, Hester is ostracized by the community and forced to wear a scarlet piece of cloth in the shape of an "A" on her chest — an enduring symbol throughout the book. This central conflict is the basis for all the themes the novel examines: sin, repentance, moral purity, forgiveness.
Article written by FEIFEI SUN

#10 Macbeth

As high school students, we may have been drawn to Macbeth because it's known as the shortest of the Shakespearean tragedies. But the tersely written play spares no human frailty — and few characters — on the battlefield of 11th century Scotland. Whereas decisiveness, the lack thereof and revenge drive the other Great High School Shakespearean Play, Hamlet, ambition and personal morality are at the center of the plot of Macbeth. The play's title character finds himself pitted against a fellow lord, Banquo, when the two are made privy to a series of prophecies from a trio of witches. The toiling witches forecast a future royal line, and the will to power is soon unleashed. Upon losing his wife in the fray, Macbeth delivers his epic "tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow" soliloquy, which captures the sensation of despair as well as any other verse in the English language:

Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,
And then is heard no more. It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing ...
Article written by DAN FASTENBERG


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Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Improve your Writing and Create a Better impression!

Well written, good, informative content is the best way to ensure you achieve a successful text. However, this isn't everything. You could have the best piece of content in the world, and some simple mistakes can turn your text into a laughing stock.

Many people rely on their spell checkers to pick up any errors or mistakes you may have picked up when writing. There are many huge problems in doing so. Here are just a few of them:

1. The spell checker will not detect typing errors that turn a word into a completely different word. For example, "window" can become "widow". The spell checker wouldn't notice this, but your sentence could mean something completely different than intended.

2. The spell checker will not detect grammatical errors, your sentence could be completely incorrect and the computer wouldn't know.

3. Words that sound the same but have a different meaning, for example, "there" could be accidentally changed to "their".

4. Words that are spelt differently in other countries, for example, the word "colour" is spelt differently in USA, "color".

These simple errors will turn your text into an unprofessional collection of words. The best way to eliminate these mistakes is by using proofreading services. This can help your text hugely and create a much better impression on the reader. Simple mistakes like these can be very frustrating to read when marking work. It's the same when a potential customer is reading about a company. If the content has a lot of simple mistakes within the text, the visitor is less likely to become a customer. Don't let these errors ruin your text, and stop it fulfilling it's purpose effectively. See if you can improve your sales/grades with something as simple as this.

Thanks a lot for reading and I wish you good luck in your future writing projects.


This article was written by UKProofreading.org, an online company that provides proofreading services, you should visit them if you need proofreading services.



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Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Writing Books for Children Under 5 Years of Age

There is a misconception that writing for children is easier than writing for adults. I am not sure where this statement originated from, but anyone who has written for children, or indeed has thought about, planned to or drafted a story for out little people will know that it is horribly difficult to write for this age group; and particularly for the under 5's. Why? Well because when it comes to writing for children, every word counts! There is no room for error, there is no possibility of fudging over a difficult storyline, description or characterisation by adding in a couple of extra adjectives here and there every word counts. And when it comes to children under 5 years of age, you've hardly got any words to choose from in the first place!
Children under the age of 5 year will notice adults and other children around them reading and will start to get frustrated that they are unable to participate in this activity. Thus it is important that children of this age have access to books that are interesting and accessible to them. There is a national programme to help children of a young age access books. This programme is called Bookstart and it is funded by Sure Start promoting a lifelong love of books. The programme works through local organisations to give free packs of books to babies and toddlers, as well as guidance materials for parents and carers. There are different types of Bookstart pack available for three different age ranges:
- 0 to 12 months
- 18 to 30 months
- three years plus

Local libraries can help families access local Bookstart programmes. Where programmes do not exist in the local area, Bookstart packs can be ordered online.

If you are looking to write a book for children under 5 years of age, or if you are looking to buy books for children within this age group (perhaps you have a child who is under 5 or you work with young children) then there are some key principles that you should keep in mind:
- Children are attracted to colour and shapes. Ensure that you incorporate these principles into the books you write or buy. If you are writing a book for children, think about working out the visual impact or illustrations for the book before you finalise the text
- Children learn through repetition and rhyme. This is where the "every word counts" rule comes into play. Incorporate these principles into your manuscript
- Children find it easier to relate to things that they are aware of in their everyday life. So think about this when you are creating the landscape or characters for your text
- Children like to be read to this is a crucial part of their learning. So ensure that the words you write can be read well aloud having characters with different tones or voices is a great way to do this. It also ensures that the story becomes fun for the parent or carer who is reading the book aloud too!

Do you need help with editing or proofreading your creative writing? Then use the professional editorial services from Words Worth Reading Ltd.



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Tuesday, November 22, 2011

How do literary agents work?

The way agents work can be frightening to many first time writers.

Let's start by considering the stats that would be typical of a good quality medium-sized agency in London or New York.

Such a firm might receive annually about 5000 submissions. Those 5000 submissions will generally be filtered by a professional reader. That reader may also be a receptionist for the firm, or a secretary, but they are recruited and trained to be skilled assessors of manuscripts, so the filtration process is conducted accurately and professionally.

Of the 5000 submissions, perhaps as many as 10 per month - or let's say 100 in a calendar year - will be recommended to the firm's agents for a full review. Of those 100, the agency will typically take on around 2. Sometimes 1. Sometimes, in a terrific year, 3-4.

Literary agents aren't being unreasonable by setting such standards. Increasingly these days, it's tough to sell work and only the best of the best will succeed. "Best of the best" doesn't simply mean best in artistic or literary terms. It means in terms of the market too.

If, for example, you fell in love with Stephenie Meyer's vampires and have started to write such a novel yourself, you are almost certainly several years behind the curve. The market has moved on and you're writing for an audience that is now looking for newer things. You have to stay a pace or two ahead of the curve, not a pace or two behind it. If you aren't certain that your work is as strong as it can possibly be, then you would be very well advised to get a tough, constructive manuscript assessment from a professional editor. You may love your work, and your Mother may love your work... but a trained outside eye can find a thousand things that you've been missing.

Once an agent agrees to take you on (or 'represent you' in the lingo), his or (more likely) her core role is to sell your manuscript and negotiate your contract. Assuming that she succeeds in that task, her role will also be to supervise the publishing process, holding your hand, smoothing out any bumps, and advising on such things as cover design or editorial tweaks which the publisher may consult you on.

Although you will have a close relationship with both your agent and your editor, your relationship with your agent is likely to be far more durable, (because publishers move on, because book deals are short and so on). Therefore securing a strong literary agent is both vital and extremely hard to achieve.

Good web resources exist for information on how to get a literary agent... but you also need to remember that those resources are secondary to the main thing, which is your manuscript. Get your manuscript strong enough, and the rest (with a little discipline and patience on your part) will fall into place. If the manuscript is not yet right, however, then no amount of discipline and patience will ever do the trick. Best of luck!

Harry Bingham is the prize-nominated best-selling author of 5 novels and 3 works of non-fiction. He also runs The Writers' Workshop, an editorial consultancy for first time writers. The company also helps by recommending outstanding work to leading literary agents.



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Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Keeping a Dream Diary

Deciphering your dreams achieves nothing if it remains purely intellectual. You have to ‘feel your dreams’; and embrace their messages into your waking life for dream analysis to have significance.

Recurring dreams can refer to a traumatic time, which has not been resolved. Recurring dreams can also mean you are not understanding the message, therefore, it repeats until you are able to unfold the symbolism of the dream. This is where a dream diary can come in very useful.


“Want to get to know your Self better? Want to find solutions to your problems that feel right to your heart and spirit, not just your mind? Want your life to feel more fascinating and meaningful? Dreams can help you do it all!

But to engage in the magical world of dreams, you need a handbook. That handbook is your dream journal, and your dreaming self is the author of it.

Here are the easy steps to keeping a record of your dreams so you can embark on the nightly adventures of a lifetime.

Your dream journal is completely unique, private, and personal. To get the most out of the practice of recording your dreams in a journal, you should use it every day. Even if you do not remember your dreams at first, being prepared to record them is essential. Before long, you’ll be able to grab your journal and pen immediately upon waking and dash out more and more detailed images.

Here are the Daily Guidelines. Include some or all of them to help you remember your dreams:

Basics
Date
First reaction
Basic storyline

Details
What was the mood or atmosphere of the dream?
Who was in the dream?
Where were these people?
When did this dream take place?
What sounds do I remember?
What colors do I remember?
What smells do I remember?

Reflection
How did this dream make me feel?
What do these emotions mean to me at this time in my life?
How does this dream relate to any previous dreams?
Is this a dream prompted by something that happened recently?
What is my interpretation?
What remains to be interpreted?”


By J Reynolds, copyright 2011 @ World Mysteries & True Ghost Tales
Originally written by Annie B. Bond



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Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Tips to Write Book Reviews

Writing a magazine review can be challenging. A magazine review is a description from the book in question. It's basically a critical research into the book. Book comments are an evaluation of the quality and content from the book. If you are writing a magazine review, you need to think about the meaning and significance from the book. You need to pinpoint the purpose of the book. You have to highlight the advantages and disadvantages of the book. Should you be looking to recommend it, you need to present evidence to aid your evaluation.

Book reviews basically reflect the opinion from the reviewer. However, the review ought to be a fair and brief description from the book. It should help a reader create a wise decision. When writing a magazine review, make sure to give relevant details about the book. This includes title, author, kind of book, copyright date, ISBN, special features like maps, etc. Also, state the objective of the author in writing it, i.e. why did the writer choose to write on the particular subject and never another subject? Become familiar with about the intended audience. Has got the author catered for them?

Incidentally, there has been a growing demand for children's titles like "Clouds" and "My Little Red Book". Animal, computer and educational books will also be in great demand. You are able to choose from a wide range of a myriad of cheap books online. You are able to browse the web to understand about a cheap discount book or perhaps a specific book for sale. However, make sure to read another review that will help you create a well informed decision. Reviewing a magazine is no child's play. First of all , needs to be considered may be the book you would like to review. You have to choose a book in which you're interested. Choose a theme or subject that's relevant to you. It's pointless to review a Science Fiction book if you're able to make head or tail of science fiction. So select a subject that engages you and you are interested in.

In order to agree or disagree using the author's point of view, it's a good idea to jot down notes while reading. Jotting down small notes can help you review the book easily. It will likewise help you with quotes inside your review. You should be in a position to understand the author's thesis and magnificence. Focus on his type of writing- is it formal or informal? Another essential aspect about book reviews may be the accuracy of the information presented within the book. Is the information relevant, accurate and engaging? Would be the concepts well defined? May be the language used lucid and convincing? You have to ask yourself these questions. Search for footnotes- they should provide significant information. Also search for maps and illustrations wherever necessary.

When writing book reviews, ensure that you include the following elements- title, author, publication date, publisher, edition, pages, price and ISBN. Make your opening sentence striking and convincing. It will immediately catch the attention of readers. Be fair and unbiased! You may also include information regarding the author's qualification, reputation, etc.

Author is a freelance copywriter. For more information on Book Reviews, visit http://www.bkreviews.com.



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Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Learning to Write With All of Your Senses

Writers often forget the importance of capturing all of the senses within a novel. To really make a scene believable the reader needs to be able to experience it as the characters are experiencing it, which means being able to see the same things as them, feel the same things as them, hear the same noises as them, taste the same tastes and smell the same smells. It is essential therefore that as a writer you consider all of the senses when you are writing, to help to bring your story to life.

However, it is often difficult to do this or to stay focused on doing this when you write; you may get bogged down in just one sense, so that your novel becomes unbalanced with visual descriptions of the surroundings and the things that the characters can see, or you may not feel confident in working with a certain sense, which could leave your book lacking.

There is a very simple exercise that writers can carry out to help them discover each of the senses and learn how to write about them. This exercise can be carried out at any time of day and any where it just requires the writer to be able to concentrate for a short period of time. The exercise is this:

Hold an object in your hand and then sit, stand or lie, whichever is more comfortable or convenient and remain in that position, in silence for 5 minutes. During that five minutes you should spend one minute concentrating on each of your senses. So, for the first minute concentrate on what you can hear; you may be sitting in your office in silence, but there will always be a sound, even if it's just the humming of your laptop or the clanging of the central heating. If you can hear voices, try to tune in to the accents, the tones of the voices and the annunciation of the words. Next move on to sight, this is an easier one but you need to push yourself to see more than a first glance would see. Look at the trees, at first glance it may look like they are swaying in the wind but if you look closer you might just see that it's actually only the very tips of the branches that are being blown by the breeze, perhaps you can see a bead of condensation dripping down the window, track it's path, see how it moves. Next move on to touch; this can often be tricky so start by thinking about the object you are holding in your hand, how does it feel? Is it smooth, cold, silky? Once you've appreciated the feeling in your hands and between your fingers, think about your feet are they standing on a worn carpet or wrapped within a thick duvet, what textures can they feel? Carry on in this fashion taking on each of the senses in turn, a minute each, and once you have finished jot down some of your thoughts on each of them. You will find that some senses are easier to write about than others but if you repeat this exercise regularly you'll soon be able to tap into your senses with ease, notice more of the world around you, and hopefully start to translate this into your creative writing so that you are writing stories that capture the reader's attention from all possible angles.


Do you need help with editing or proofreading your creative writing? Then use the professional editorial services from Words Worth Reading Ltd.




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Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Ghostwriting in Music: I Write The Songs That Make The Young Girls Cry For Somebody Else

Did you know that Mozart was a ghostwriter? He used to ghost write music for the wealthy patrons of the arts. There is a long history of ghostwriting and music. In 1939 Patrick Standford was a ghostwriter for various symphonies and films.

In the movie business, music ghostwriting is fairly secretive. It is considered unethical by many people but it is very common. In the very early days of movies, a composer named David Raskin worked as a music ghostwriter for Charlie Chaplin. Chaplin was credited as the score writer.

In pop music, musical ghostwriting is also a factor. At times an experienced songwriter is brought in to help with either inexperienced songwriters, or somebody that may be suffering from writer's block. Sometimes a ghost writer will write lyrics and music in the style of a musician and still get little or no input from the person credited on the music sheet. Sometimes a ghost writer is credited as an associate or similar innocuous term.

More commonly, they just do not appear anywhere-they are a true ghost. Sometimes legal action takes place when a musical ghost writer tries to claim royalties- usually after song becomes a hit. Sarah McLachlan got into a dispute with a musician who claimed that he had a significant contribution to her debut album, "Touch."

In hip-hop, ghostwriting is growing every year. In fact, it does lead to some controversy. Purists do not like it, and point to the use of it as an example of "bad capitalism." This is because of the perception of rapping as "expressing yourself" and that writing for someone else is not pure "self-expression." Some rappers like Chuck D of Public Enemy, Inc. think that is a mistaken view because not everyone is a gifted lyricist and not everyone is equipped to be a vocalist. He says a rap song may require more talents than a single person has.

Most ghost writers have confidentiality clauses, or they might appear in the liner notes, and in some cases they are allowed to discuss their participation out the open. You might see a credit in the liner notes for "vocal arrangement," which might mean it was a ghostwriter. A few years ago there were hip-hop ghostwriting services which appeared online, and provided artists with rhymes for free.

Ghostwriting has a long tradition in music, from Mozart to today's hottest rappers. As long as the song is a hit, the person that penned it will have a job.

Joe Ditzel is a ghostwriter, SEO consultant, and really bad golfer. His articles on ghostwriting can be found at http://www.joeghostwriter.com.




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Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Hotel Angeline: A Novel in 36 Voices



Thirty-six of the most interesting writers in the Pacific Northwest came together for a week-long marathon of writing live on stage. The result? Hotel Angeline, a truly inventive novel that surprises at every turn of the page.

Something is amiss at the Hotel Angeline, a rickety former mortuary perched atop Capitol Hill in rain-soaked Seattle. Fourteen-year-old Alexis Austin is fixing the plumbing, the tea, and all the problems of the world, it seems, in her landlady mother’s absence.

The quirky tenants—a hilarious mix of misfits and rabble-rousers from days gone by—rely on Alexis all the more when they discover a plot to sell the Hotel. Can Alexis save their home? Find her real father? Deal with her surrogate dad’s dicey past? Find true love? Perhaps only their feisty pet crow, Habib, truly knows.

Provoking interesting questions about the creative process, this novel is by turns funny, scary, witty, suspenseful, beautiful, thrilling, and unexpected.

Seattle7Writers, which created “The Novel: Live!” event and the resulting novel Hotel Angeline, is one of a diverse range of not-for-profit, author-focused organizations receiving support from Amazon.com for programs dedicated to developing new works and new voices. Other recipients include the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers, Lambda Literary Foundation, Poets & Writers, One Story, The Loft, Council of Literary Magazines & Presses, Hedgebrook, Copper Canyon Press, The Moth, Girls Write Now, Seattle Arts & Lectures, Richard Hugo House, WriteGirl, 826 Seattle, Voice of Witness, The Kenyon Review, Open Letter, Archipelago Books, Pen American Center, Words Without Borders, the Association of Writers & Writing Programs, Asian American Writers Workshop, and the New York Writers Coalition. All of these organizations share Amazon.com’s obsession with fostering the creation, discussion, and publication of new authors and new work.




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Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Three Essential Blog Basics

Blogs and blogging can be many different things to many different people. By uncomplicated use of a free website builder, anyone can write about any subject they wish to choose and have a portal to the world. If you want to get your blog seen by as many people as possible and generate the traffic levels you want then you have to get the basics right and the three blog basics everyone should get right, regardless of writing ability and subject matter, are:

The Design
So the decision has been made and you start to use a free online website builder to enter yourself into the blogging sphere. Choosing the design is like choosing a frame for a piece of artwork; it has to suit and compliment your blog and add value if it can. Go for clean crisp backgrounds to have behind your content which will help the reading of the work and make the work the focus. For areas in the web pages that do not feature writing; try to make it interesting but not steal or distort the focus of their attention which should always be the writing.
When it comes to the actual design of the writing, do not use a font which is unusual. The reasons for this are two fold; firstly, your visitors expect a nice familiar font which they can easily read. Secondly, not all fonts are compatible in the many different operating systems in use around the world, so if in doubt play safe with fonts like Ariel, Verdana and Times New Roman, these are from a family of fonts which are the most commonly used.

Know Your Audience
Knowing who you are writing for will have an influence on the subject matters you choose to write about and the style in which it is written. The choice of subject matter will obviously be your final decision and it has to something you are interested in and comfortable to write about but identifying who are target audience will help you form a strategy with important decisions like how to get it seen.
Inviting feedback and discussion by adding a comments section is a surefire winner to get to know your visitors likes and dislikes as people love to express their opinion just as much as you do, but often the difference is you have decided to create a blog and they haven't. It is also good to get people to subscribe to your blog and as well as having the obvious effect of increasing returning visitors, you can also obtain some basic information like sex and location in the subscription process.
A technical way of knowing a bit more about your audience is use of free analytical tools like that of Google tools to find out who is searching for you, your subject matter and where the searches are coming from. It all helps to increase your knowledge of whom and how to target your audience.

Get It Seen
Once you have used a website builder to display your musings or your art portfolio you then have to get it seen. Forming a strategy to get it seen is the hardest part because it involves work and research as well producing the best content you possibly can.
Look at ways to get back links and people to link to you. This can be achieved by finding areas that would be of similar interest and physically asking them to link to you. It might be that you have to reciprocate the link so be choosy who to get links from and who you link to. Never link to something or be associated with something that would be of detriment to your own blog.
Learning how to make your blog Search Engine Optimized will help with the search engine rankings and will increase the amount of traffic coming to you. There are plenty of resources on the internet which will give you the basics on how to use keywords in your titles and your content which will help you improve your rankings.

Anyone can use a simple free website builder to build a blog and the quality of the writings can vary dramatically but if you have a good style and can write well then by paying good heed to the three essential basics to creating a blog you will be giving yourself and your blog the best chance of success


Maria Wixman can show you How To Use Free Website Maker with WIX.com I have been in the online marketing industry for over two years and love all things related to e-marketing, writing for the web, SEO and SEM. I've been working for a large company that specializes in web design,
and love how dynamic this field is.



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Tuesday, October 4, 2011

The Art of Writing Novels

If you have ever dreamed of being a writer of great novels, then you are not alone. There are many people who desire to write "that story" that will capture the hearts of the reader and entice Hollywood to make a movie. Unfortunately, while many desire to be writers, most fail to put the ink on the paper. Here are a few things to consider if you are serious about writing that perfect novel.
1. Be persistent in writing every day. The only way to be an excellent writer is to write. Writing every day will help you stay focused on improving your skills and increasing your imagination. Schedule time each day to write something. Whether it is in your journal, an article, or ideas of a storyline, you must write every day. Being persistent will help you overcome all procrastination road blocks that many dreamers fail to conquer.
2. Focus on technique. Writing a novel requires some basic techniques such as writing dialog, creating a plausible plot, or establishing characters that impact that reader. Taking the time to learn the techniques will strengthen your ability to tell a compelling story.
3. Learn the importance of editing your writing. I have heard that the most successful writers spend the majority of their time reviewing and editing their own work. This is important because as you write, your ideas tend to flow sometimes faster than you can write, leaving many grammatical errors and misspellings. A technique in reviewing your writing is to read through the material for specific techniques such as the tone of dialog, descriptive language, or flow of ideas. Also, reading dialogs out loud can improve your ability to discover flaws in conversational writing. By reading and listening to your words, you can better critique the validity of your character's dialog.
4. Learn the importance of marketing your work. Yes, I said it. Marketing! All the greatest stories will forever go untold because no one will never hear or read them. If you want to be a successful writer, you must know some of the basic principles of marketing your materials. Whether you are working with a publisher or using self-publishing techniques, knowing how to market your book will greatly improve your chances of being that great novel writer.
If you follow these four principles you will experience more successes than failures in your journey to become a great novel writer. With today's technology, writing a novel is becoming easier to do. However, whether you use a pen or the strokes of the keypad or typewriter, the process takes time. It is therefore imperative that you become disciplined in the art of writing. By making writing a daily habit you will experience growth in your abilities to tell a great story or to record your thoughts on paper.
If you are looking for a professional coach to help you in the process of writing novels, check out http://tinyurl.com/3q9oto3.


Duane Shoemaker is an instructional designer and manages various websites, including http://www.instructionaldesignexpert.com



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Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Developing Your Writing Career as an E-Book Writer

It is essential that you know about e-book and the content development for them before you begin your writing career as a writer. It is a digital version of a usual book, which can be transferred from a digital device to any other digital device or read on commonly used digital devices like computers, laptops and any e-book reader. E-book and electronic book are the same. The text of these books is known as e-text.

Features

There are several reasons behind the wide usage of these books. These require less space to store them, where as the usual paper book need more. Reading and carrying books anywhere have become simpler with their launch and e-book readers. But the number you can carry is based on the size of books and capacity of reader. The case is different for conventional books. Conventional books require lots of space and carrying a lot of books is not possible as they will be very heavy.

If you love the nature, there is another reason to start using e-books. The reason is paper itself! More usage of these books could lower paper production and cutting down of trees. These books can be created on any topic just like the paper books. Novels, research papers, biographies and reference books are some of the categories. The conversion, in order to preserve books, of paper books to these books is easy. Another positive feature of e-books is that there is no need to print them again and again.

Writing as a Part-Time Option

Full-time writers can always opt for freelance writing. In addition to generating a sufficient amount of money through e-book writing, it offers you a space for expressing your creativity in your favorite subject - be it a serious subject or a fictional one. It's important to understand the target audience and comprehend the topic well, to write it in a clear and precise manner.

If you don't know, on which subject to write, conducting an internet search or asking people's views might help. When selecting a subject to write, you must be able to express the topic clearly. You can also start writing short stories or short articles before writing the book.

What is the Style of Writing?

The language you should use as an e-book writer must be of conversational and informal style, otherwise readers might not read it. Use a casual tone in your writing, because you will be able to easily connect with your readers in that way. You can include chapters with proper headings with readable line spacing. Let your passion for writing be known to others through these books and let it also make you financially independent.

To hire a writing company or to find out more about article writing service get in touch with Godot Media.



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Tuesday, September 20, 2011

The Book Of Awesome

The Book of Awesome

It's the little things in life we savor. It's snow days, a cool pillow on a hot summer night, or finding money in your pocket. These are the things that bring a smile to our face, if only for a fleeting moment. And while we all can relate, it took an office worker by the name of Neil Pasricha and his award-winning blog, 1000awesomethings.com to write about them.
When the blog hit the 13 million page-view milestone, a swarm of literary agents pursued Pasricha to consolidate life's simple pleasures into a full-blown book on the topic, titled, The Book of Awesome. Described by the publisher as "a high five for humanity and big celebration of life's little moment," The Book of Awesome reminds us that the best things in life are truly free.

Whimsical, and childlike, thousands of awesome things are highlighted in the book. Some of my favorites are:

• Popping Bubble Wrap
• Wearing underwear just out of the dryer
• Fixing electronics by smacking them
• Getting called up to the dinner buffet first at a wedding
• Watching The Price Is Right when you're home sick
• Hitting a bunch of green lights in a row
• Waking up and realizing it's Saturday

The Book of Awesome can be found at Amazon and other online bookstores. Enjoy, and don't forget to wake up and smell the coffee… that is, after you take a spoonful of peanut butter straight out of a freshly opened jar!
The Book of Awesome

Written by Ron Callari
Social Media, Semantic Technology, Digitial Media & Trends Writer
InventorSpot.com


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Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Writing Tips: Five Steps for Turning Your Idea Into a Manuscript

Turning an idea into a manuscript isn't rocket science. It is actually a step by step procedure and, in the end, all you have to do is... well, do it! Here are five steps to turn your idea for a story into an actual story:

1. Describe your idea in a few words. If you don't have an idea, think of one right now (it's about time you made this dream come true!). Think of words, phrases, characters and events. Keep it brief and limit yourself to a few sentences or short descriptions.

2. Fill the gaps below to see how it goes:

The protagonist of my story is...

What he/she wants to do is... his/her purposes are... he/she craves for...

He/she is hindered by

because...

In this story, the ending is impressive because...

Once you cover these gaps, you immediately have the outline of an interesting plot.

3. Are there any gaps in the plot? Consider the questions that may arise in the head of your readers. Make a list and answer each question "reasonably".

4. Make a brief description for the following list. Keep the descriptions short and to the point. Do not write scenes and details... just the general plan.

Ordinary world - The protagonist's everyday life where everything begins.

Different new world - where things evolve.

Characters (protagonist / supporting roles)

Antagonist (one or more)

Allies (of the "good guys" and the "bad guys" of your story)

Enemies (again of the "good guys" and the "bad guys" of your story)

Note: Antagonists, allies and enemies can be - besides real persons - situations, emotions, spiritual realities, psychological issues, etc.

5. Answer the following questions:

The beginning

How will you introduce your protagonist in an interesting way?

What is your story's "world" like?

Write down some things about the place, setting, time and the initial scene.

What will your tone be like? Try to write your first paragraph or your first page to realize the tone and style of your narrative.

What is the disturbing / unsettling incident that will make your protagonist "flee" from his/her everyday life and keep the reader interested? Make a list.

Who or what are the hindrances and predicaments your protagonist faces? Write a few things about that.

The Middle

How will you go deeper into the relations and situations your protagonist experiences?

Make a list your protagonist's "battles", with everything he/she will need to confront.

What could be the final showdown?

What is that incident that will lead things towards the end and mark the final showdown? Make a list of these potential events.

The End

Write a rough sketch of the protagonist's final "battle" - the showdown.

Consider how to close any remaining "open fronts" and tie up loose ends.

What could be the story's impressive finale? Make a list of possible finales.

That's it. Your story is ready. To put it simply, you have created your story manual and now all you have to do is follow the instructions to write it down. So, stop waiting around for that great inspiration to visit you. Writing is an actual job, with steps and procedures. Get to it!

Hi. My name is Maria Gousiou and I am a published author in Greece. Visit my website on Writing for greek speaking aspired writers.



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Tuesday, August 30, 2011

How to Get Your Book Published

Make it a good read! Ah, easier said than done, I hear you say. Not really. If you have a way with words, and are prepared to tackle this matter with discipline and intelligence, you, too, can write and publish a book. I know, because I've done just that, and I'm no Shakespeare, or Grisham, come to think of it. There are thousands of truly dreadful books published every year, which should give you hope, and the occasional gem, which should tell you something else: publishers are snowed under with manuscripts from new and aspiring writers and are always on the lookout for the glint of something special. Book editing services can support you once you are into the writing itself, but first you need to buy the land, and draw up some plans.

Your initial task is to have a cracking theme to work with. And, as a professional book editor, I have to tell you something. Many new writer have difficulty grasping the difference between theme and plot. A theme can cover a lot of ground, but its essence is a generalisation that sums up a human condition or attitude about life.

A few examples: lies can come back to haunt you; affability often masks a sinister character; you can't teach an old dog new tricks; the meek shall inherit the earth; conflicting loyalties; my family or my country; one law for the rich, another for the poor. The trick is to keep your theme general in nature, yet one that is universally accepted or capable of being accepted.

Every writer, often unknown to themselves, has a personal arsenal of themes just waiting to be tapped into. Not surprising really, when you think that life is so rich and varied that no two human beings are going to experience the same things, in identical ways, and be similarly influenced.

To explore this goldmine of themes just beneath the surface, ask yourself what really moves you, infuriates you, arouses strong feelings. Cruelty, physical or mental, might be high on the list, or brutal games of sport, like rugby. Talk to yourself when nobody's around and list a couple of dozen of these themes. You'll soon have a shortlist of candidates for a theme that can act as the bedrock upon which the next stage in the writing journey will be launched: the search for a plot.

Let's say that you hate money, and what it can do to people who have either too much of it . . . or none. Your possible theme, a bit hackneyed I admit: money is the root of all evil, or a variant of same. Now you need a plot; a structured sequence of events that involves a few central characters. And of course, your plot revolves around money and what it does to them. You want to be creative? Now is your chance. Come up with a great plot that will mystify, intrigue and enthral. All you then have to do is write it. It can be done, and after your patient planning it will be far easier than you imagined.

Of course once you have produced a well planned and executed 'masterpiece' that pulls all the right strings and presses all the right buttons, then the publishers will take it seriously. Because that is exactly what they are looking for.


Writeaway provides help and advice on how to write and publish a book. You will also have access to a dedicated team of people who can provide a comprehensive book editing service having had personal experience of the book publishing process.



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Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Writing in the Dark

I used to be a public writer and would spend hours describing my surroundings while at parks and coffee shops. Some may have called me a poser with my black spiral notebook and leather jacket, yet I feel my public writing phase helped me learn to write with all my senses.

At 17, I was more preoccupied with making observations and sharing my opinion than writing poems or a novel. Some of my blurbs read more like rants and I almost stopped writing when one of my high school English teachers told me that I was wasting my time and talent because publishers would never print a diary or journal unless the person was famous.

Although the internet was already around, this was a time when a blog was thought to be a hard-to-remove stain and Altavista was the ultimate search engine. Thanks to AOL, I created my first homepage which I populated with thoughts from my black spiral notebook. Amazed with the Instant Messages from strangers online that found my writing funny, or agreed with my view point on a topic, I continued to develop my thoughts on paper and used the web as my editor.

When I lost my sight in 2007, learning to read and write in the dark reminded me of my teenage phase of learning to use words to decipher my world. I traded my black notebook and mechanical pencils for a laptop with talking software for the blind called JAWS (Job Access with Speech), a pair of headphones, digital recorder, and electronic dictionary. At the beginning, the robotic voices that read my writing back to me seemed flat allowing me to only write a few sentences at a time. My first short story of five pages took months to complete because of the constant interruptions I call "ear breaks" between my writing sessions that involved listening to the radio to help refresh my eardrums. However, just like with many things in life, JAWS became tolerable and eventually my friend. Learning to focus solely on my content and ignore JAWS was the first step in mastering writing in the dark.

Attempting to reclaim my roots, I ventured to public places with my laptop and guide dog Madge; I found that chatty crowds and buzzing cars kept me from hearing my inner and computer voice. Most of my writing is now done at my house and my writing breaks consist of playing with Madge or listening to an audio book. Breaks now serve more as an acknowledgement that I achieved an editor's deadline or writing goal for the day. I also find that taking breaks to stretch or get a snack can reduce writer's block. For editing, I rely on spell check, my writing group, and mentors in the San Francisco literary community. Writing in the dark definitely requires a deeper level of concentration that allows me to see my writing utensils not as tools, but extensions of my body and mind.

Belo Cipriani writes both creative non-fiction and short fiction across several genres with the help of adaptive technology. To read and edit, he uses a talking computer that runs a screen reader called JAWS and a talking dictionary device called Franklin.

Belo holds a Masters Degree in English with an emphasis in Creative Writing from Notre Dame de Namur University, where he studied under award winning poet Jacqueline Berger and fiction writer Kerry Dolan.

He is heavily involved with the San Francisco literary community and is a member of Litquake, The California Writers Club, and a contributing writer for Bay Area publications. Belo and his guide dog Madge live in San Francisco. Learn more at http://blindamemoir.com/.



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Tuesday, August 16, 2011

How to Beat Writer's Block

Writer's block happens all the time. It is almost always a signal that you aren't as mentally prepared to write as you should be.

Ask yourself: "What is my purpose in writing?"

Say, for example, you are writing to inform your customers of a new product your company is offering. Your purpose is: "I want to tell you about an exciting new product we offer." The letter builds off of this. But let's go further. What is the product, and why should the reader care? Most importantly: What do you want them to do about it? Answer these questions and pretty soon you have the outline, and possibly first draft, of your letter.

Writer's block can usually be solved by answering these questions:

Who? What? When? Where? Why?

Of the five questions, "Why?" is the most important. Writing without a purpose is, by definition, pointless.

"Who?" is an important, but often overlooked question. Who are you writing to? Visualize them in your mind and then write to them. If it's a large group of people, find someone you know who would belong to that group, and then picture that person in your mind as you write. In this way, writing becomes like a comfortable conversation.

"What?" is another important question to answer. What exactly are you trying to say? Write it down. If you find you can't, then you've also found the reason for your writer's block. You'll need to take some time to better formulate your thoughts before the writing can continue.

Some projects might not have a "when?" or "where?" to answer. So be it. As soon as you can get back to writing, do it. But when the words won't come, it means that somewhere there is a question you need to get answered.

On the other hand

Sometimes the trick to beating writer's block is to simply get words on the page.

Write out exactly what information you want to get across to your reader:

"I want to tell you about the new service my company offers."

"I want to convince you to buy a new car."

"I want you to donate money to our organization."

Make sure you are as detailed as possible. Write it down like this:

"I want you to know -- about our product."

"I want you to feel -- about it."

"I want you to do -- about it."

Once you have written down everything (and I mean everything) you want your writing to communicate, you can revise it into a more appropriate form. You'll often find that working through this process provides you with a fairly good rough draft. Most importantly: It breaks your writer's block.


Andy is a professional freelance writer specializing in web and marketing copy. He maintains a site at http://greenbaycopywriting.com and also at http://gbcopywriting.wordpress.com
or visit him on Linkedin



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