Story-Writing Masterclass 10 Tips for the Perfect Piece of Fiction - Freewrite Store

Story-Writing Masterclass 10 Tips for the Perfect Piece of Fiction - Freewrite Store With the rise of self-publishing on platforms like Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing and Lulu.com, it’s never been easier to realize your dreams of becoming a published author. You can publish with Amazon - both paperback and Kindle editions - for zero cost. There’s nothing holding you back from seeing your name in print. But the availability of self-publishing for all isn’t an entirely positive thing. With no quality checks, no requirements for your books to be edited, and no painstaking procedure of submitting to publishing companies (and waiting for the inevitable rejections), there’s much less pressure on would-be authors to spend time really honing their craft. That is a travesty. Don’t be one of those writers who, just because you don’t have to worry about publishers rejecting your novel, cut corners in the writing process. Your (potential) readers deserve so much more. That’s why, in this masterclass article, I’m going to share with you my ten top tips for the perfect piece of fiction - drawing on the wisdom of some of the greatest bestselling authors of all time. 1.The Glint of Light on Broken Glass The great 19th-century Russian story-teller, Anton Chekhov famously advised: â€Å"Don’t tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass.† You will, of course, recognize the cornerstone piece of advice that every fiction writer reads in every single book on writing: show, don’t tell.  Ã‚  It’s not a secret, it’s not new or revolutionary, so why is it still at the top of my list? Because it’s the single most important piece of advice a writer needs. It doesn’t matter whether you’re starting your first short story or you’ve got twenty novels under your belt, if you forget this rule, you’ll let your readers down. And even the most seasoned writers have off-days (or, more commonly, off-books) where their writing becomes more tell than show and loses its impact.    So, how do you ensure that you’re showing and not telling? For me, the magic happens when I’m editing, so I don’t worry too much about the first draft. No one is going to see that but me, so it doesn’t really matter how bad it is. When I’m editing, I’m ruthless. In fact, the more books I publish, the more ruthless I get - because, seriously, I cringe when I read back my first (traditionally) published novels and wonder how on earth they managed to get published in the first place. When I’m editing, I distance myself from the writing and imagine I’m a reader, not a writer. I get bored easily, which is a good thing when I’m looking for too much tell and not enough show. If I’m bored, there’s too much tell. What works for me may not work for you (so I’m not promising anything here). You need to find what works for you. However, when you’re editing, think of Chekhov’s words. Are you writing sentences like â€Å"the moon was shining brightly†? Bo-ring! Isn’t â€Å"the glint of light on broken glass† so much more evocative? That’s what takes you from a regular writer to a masterful writer. 2. Storm Through the First Draft - and Don’t Look Back Do you know what one of the biggest stumbling blocks for would-be authors is? The fear of the blank page. I’ve worked with hundreds of writers in my years as a writing coach, and it seems to be a universal fact that the black page (or the blinking cursor) keeps a lot of people from ever realizing their writing dreams. Don’t let that happen to you! Fearing the blank page is a totally irrational fear, but it can be crippling. You probably know exactly what I’m talking about - sitting at the computer or with a notebook in front of you for hours, worrying about somehow starting your story wrong. Here’s a secret I learned from bestselling author James Patterson: There’s no such thing as starting your story wrong. The only way you can start your story wrong is if you quit and never start it at all. Beating that fear of the blank page has one simple solution: start writing. It doesn’t matter how bad it is. It doesn’t matter whether you scrap scenes later when you’re editing. The most important thing is to get words - any words - on the page. Never edit while your writing your first draft. The moment you start editing, you start questioning yourself, and that can stall the writing process all over again. So, start writing, get words on that page, and don’t you dare look back until you get to the end. 3. To Plan or Not to Plan, That is the Question This is one thing that can divide authors into two different camps - and the debates can be ferocious. I don’t want to start an all-out war, so I’m not going to tell you which camp I sit in. Instead, let’s look at both sides of the debate - and you can decide which you prefer. Just don’t make the mistake of discussing it with your writing buddies - it can get real ugly, real fast. First, let’s tackle the dedicated planners. Bestselling authors like James Ellroy and James Patterson are firmly entrenched in this camp. Ellroy, for example, writes a synopsis for his books that can be over 200 pages long. Likewise, Patterson, who writes several books a year, puts every plot detail into an outline before he starts writing his first draft. He reckons that makes it easier to start writing the first draft. What about the non-planners, or, the write-by-the-seat-of-their-pants camp of authors. British author Ian Rankin is one of these. For him, not having a plan for his novels means that writing is much more of an adventure. It’s a bit like the novel has a mind of its own and will control its own destiny - which is a pretty cool way of looking at it. Rankin’s first draft is an opportunity to get to know the characters, and that wouldn’t work if everything was planned in advance. 4. Building Your Writing Muscles You know how if you miss a week (or six) of your gym routine, getting back into the swing of it is a real struggle? The same goes for writing. Your writing ability is, in fact, a muscle, that, if not regularly exercised, will quickly atrophy. When you’ve missed a couple of gym sessions, have you ever noticed that it’s much harder to convince yourself to go back? Are you, perhaps, like me, who, once I’ve missed a couple of weeks, then there’s virtually no chance of me going back? The same can happen with writing. You can so easily get out of practice, out of the habit of daily writing, so when you do schedule time to write, you almost have to force yourself to do something that you love to do. It’s not just about keeping up a routine, either. When you’re writing fiction, writing every day keeps your relationship with your characters fresh and the plot tight. For horror-writer extraordinaire Stephen King, a daily writing habit is essential for the successful completion of a manuscript. 5. Disconnect From Distractions The internet is amazing. It connects us to like-minded people on the other side of the world, makes researching facts for your fiction an absolute breeze, and allows you to easily communicate with your fans. But for writers, the internet is also the biggest enemy of creativity and productivity. Smartphones have made the situation even worse. There are so many distractions. Social media notifications, email notifications, websites that steal our time and give us nothing in return. The number of hours I’ve lost to aimless internet browsing is embarrassing. I’m easily distracted, and since I can’t get back the hours that I’ve lost, I now resolve to disconnect from all potential distractions. When I’m working on a novel, I deliberately turn off the WiFi. Not on my computer - it’s much too easy to turn that back on. I turn off the router, because I’m less likely to give in to temptation if I have to go downstairs to reconnect to the internet. If turning off your WiFi isn’t practical, or you have other family members to think about, a distraction-free device like Freewrite may be the perfect solution for you. With no browser to distract you, you can focus on the craft of writing - and see your productivity levels soar! 6. Creating Complex Characters One of the major keys to quality fiction is characters that your readers can really care about. Creating three-dimensional characters that seem as if they could walk right off the page is a skill that can be difficult to develop. I love to read - but there’s nothing so disappointing as a book full of flat, cardboard-cutout characters. Even the best, most riveting plotline can’t save those books for me. You’ve probably noticed that human beings can be unpredictable. For your characters to be believable, then, they also need to be unpredictable. It’s important that you’re able to show different sides to your characters because that’s how your readers get to know them. For example, beginner writers often make the mistake of having villainous characters that only ever show their menacing side. However, that kind of predictability makes villains too easy to forget - and you want your characters to stick in the minds of your readers long after they’re finished reading the book. Think about it - what’s more memorable: the villain who only ever does nasty things, or the villain who’s nasty 90% of the time but spends every Sunday afternoon teaching his kid brother self-defense? 7. The Movie Reel in Your Mind Screenwriters are usually able to make the switch to writing fantastic fiction quite easily, but fiction writers don’t find it so easy to write scripts. That’s not always the case, and there are always exceptions to the rule, but there is a really good reason why that’s the case. Writing for the screen means having a kind of birds’ eye view of your story, picturing every detail as if the movie is already made and running on a reel in your mind’s eye. When I coach writers who are struggling with mastering story elements like point of view (POV) and bringing their stories to life on the page, I often recommend a short course in scriptwriting. Having to constantly think about whose point of view each scene is from and focus on the details of the setting, what characters are doing as they speak, and even what’s visible at the edge of the shot is great practice for writing realistic fiction that really draws your readers in. There are short courses in screenwriting that you can find online - such as courses on Udemy - and it’s worth trying these out to see for yourself how your writing can improve when you’re running every scene through the movie reel in your mind. 8. Follow Your Characters Wherever They Lead If you fall into the camp of painstaking planners we discussed earlier, this one may make you feel a bit uncomfortable. Planners don’t like to take diversions. But if you’ve never had the joyful pleasure of allowing your characters to take your story in a different direction, then you’re missing something really quite exhilarating. Sometimes it doesn’t work out, and you have to go back, but other times your characters take you on an adventure of discovery that allows you to share the same sense of excitement and anticipation that your readers get to experience. To be able to follow your characters, though, you have to bring them to life on the page. It’s the larger-than-life characters that take you on the best adventures - and help you to discover the true depths of your own imagination. I love to read books that suddenly head off in an unexpected direction because I know that the author has been on one of those wonderful adventures - and their writing is so much richer for it. Never be afraid to see where your characters want to take you - what’s the worst that could happen? 9. Live Your Character’s Life Has your character eaten today? I’m serious. Have they? Did they shower this morning? You might be thinking that I’ve lost the plot (pardon the pun) but the details of your characters lives matter to your readers. Or, at least, they should. I’ve lost count of the number of manuscripts I’ve reviewed for coaching clients where I’ve started to get seriously concerned about the characters. No, I don’t need to know each time a character takes a bathroom break, but your characters need to have some level of humdrum in their lives to be believable. A really effective tool you can use to see how believable your characters’ everyday lives are is to try to live your character’s life for a day. If you get to the end of the day and you’re exhausted and grumpy because you’ve been dashing around all over the place without eating a single meal, then you might be able to see the cracks in the believability. Regular things have to happen as well as the exciting things that keep the plot moving forward - or your readers might start losing interest. 10. If You Don’t Read Regularly You’ve No Business Being a Writer That may sound a little controversial - and I am aware that there are some bestselling authors who insist that they cannot possibly read anyone else’s fiction while they’re working on their own novels. If I’m honest, I used to worry about how reading novels would affect my writing - until I realized that not reading was worse for my craft than reading ever could be. Not only does immersing yourself in another author’s creation offer the opportunity to relax and unwind, but it helps you hone your craft. Even if the book you’re reading is terrible, there’s something you can learn from it (like how not to write a novel). Reading books that bestselling authors have written is an excellent way of developing your own skills. You can enjoy a book and learn from it at the same time. Recognize the techniques that have the most power. Discover ways of using language that you haven’t considered before. Examine the pacing and the plot twists and all the myriad ways that authors show instead of telling - and pillage and plunder those same techniques for your own writing. Bonus Tip - Write For Yourself One of the biggest mistakes you can make as an author is to start to worry about what other people are going to think about your masterpiece. The moment you start staring into that particular black hole, you’re setting up a whole load of trip-wires for yourself. Don’t worry about who might - or might not - read your novel. Don’t give them a second thought - not while you’re writing. Write your novel for you. Enjoy it. Savor it. When you get too focused on the mysterious ‘potential reader’ you start questioning and second-guessing yourself, until your creativity gives a big sigh and stomps off in frustration - leaving you staring hopelessly at that flashing cursor on the blank page - right back where you started.

Art During The Renaissance in Venice

Art During The Renaissance in Venice Just as with Florence, Venice was a Republic during the Renaissance. Actually, Venice was an empire that controlled land in modern day Italy, a whole lot of sea coast down the Adriatic and countless islands. It enjoyed a stable political climate and thriving trade economy, both of which survived outbreaks of the Black Death and the fall of Constantinople (a major trading partner). Venice was, in fact, so prosperous and healthy that it took someone named Napoleon to undo its empire status...but, that was quite a while after the Renaissance had faded away and had nothing to do with art. The important part is, Venice (again, like Florence) had the economy to support art and artists, and did so in a big way. As a major port of trade, Venice was able to find ready markets for whatever decorative arts Venetian craftsmen could produce. The whole Republic was crawling with ceramists, glassworkers, woodworkers, lace makers and sculptors (in addition to painters), all of whom made entirely satisfactory livings. The state and religious communities of Venice sponsored massive amounts of building and decorating, not to mention public statuary. Many private residences (palaces, really) had to have grand facades on at least two sides since they can be seen from the water as well as land. To the present day, Venice is one of the most beautiful cities on earth because of this building campaign. Artisan guildswood carvers, stone carvers, painters, etc.helped ensure that artists and craftsmen were properly compensated. When we speak of the Venetian School of painting, its not just a handy descriptive phrase. There were actual schools (Scuola) and they were highly selective about who could (or couldnt) belong to each. Collectively, they guarded the Venetian art market zealously, to the point that one did not purchase paintings produced outside of the schools. It simply wasnt done. Venices geographic location made it less susceptible to outside influencesanother factor which contributed to its unique artistic style. Something about the light in Venice, too, made a difference. This was an intangible variable, to be sure, but it had an enormous impact. For all of these reasons, during the Renaissance Venice gave birth to a distinct school of painting. The key characteristics of the Venetian School The main word here is light. Four hundred years prior to Impressionism, the Venetian painters were keenly interested in the relationship between light and color. All of their canvases clearly explore this interplay. Additionally, the Venetian painters had a distinct method of brushwork. Its rather smooth and makes for a velvety surface texture. It seems, too, that Venices geographic isolation allowed for a somewhat relaxed attitude toward the subject matter. A great deal of painting dealt with religious themes; there was no getting around that. Certain wealthy Venetian patrons, however, created quite a market for what we refer to as Venus scenes. The Venetian School had a brief fling with Mannerism, but mostly resisted depicting the contorted bodies and torturous emotion Mannerism is known for. Instead, Venetian Mannerism relied on vividly painted light and color to achieve its drama. Venice, more than any other location, helped make oil paint popular as a medium. The city is, as you know, constructed on a lagoon which makes for a built-in dampness factor. Venetian painters needed something durable! The Venetian School is not known for its frescoes, however. When did the Venetian School arise? The Venetian School arose in the mid to late 15th century. Pioneers of the Venetian School were the Bellini and Vivarini (descendants of those marvelous Murano glassworkers) families. The Bellini were of particular importance, for it is they who are credited with bringing the Renaissance style to Venetian painting. The important artists Well, there were the Bellini and Vivarini families, as mentioned. They got the ball rolling. Andrea Mantegna, though from nearby Padua was an influential member of the Venetian School during the 15th-century. Giorgione ushered in 16th-century Venetian painting, and is rightly known as its first really big name. He inspired notable followers such as Titian, Tintoretto, Paolo Veronese and Lorenzo Lotto. Additionally, a lot of famous artists traveled to Venice, thanks to its reputation, and spent time in the workshops there. Antonello da Messina, El Greco and even Albrecht DÃ ¼rerto name but a fewall studied in Venice during the 15th and 16th centuries.

Civil Liberties Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Civil Liberties - Essay Example This can be classified as mercy killing. It is the killing of a terminally ill patient in order to stop the patients’ earthly sufferings. The article discusses Seneca recommends to Marcelino to consider suicide in order to end the unnecessary suffering from a painful incurable ailment. New literature classified the suicide option when the patient is faced with a terminally ill ailment as dying with respect and dignity. Further, the article places the ethical acceptance of medically induced euthanasia. The American Euthanasia society defines Euthanasia as the ending of a patient’s life without any pain inflicted in order to put a stop to the patient’s endless suffering. In Belgian Law, the euthanasia of minors is legally permitted in cases when the children can no longer bear the pain of the incurable ailment where death is inevitable. Furthermore, euthanasia or mercy killing violates the universal human rights declaration of 1948. The declaration that everyone has the right to liberty, life, as well as security is legally enshrined. The law prohibits the intentional taking of another person’s life, except when the court decision imposes the death penalty on the convicted criminal. The article ends emphasizing Euthanasia is allowed in certain cases. In addition, another article emphasized the United States constitution compulsorily states that everyone is entitled to own property, liberty, and life (Hamrick, 2013). One of the amendments that prioritize enforcement of the three rights is the 5th amendment. Another amendment is the 14th amendment. The article reiterates that criminal intention is an important ingredient in the determination if the suspect is guilty of violating the law. Criminal intent is called Mens Rea. Thus, any person has the liberty to carry guns and grenades. The mere possession of cocaine, guns, or other prohibited drugs does not automatically constitute a criminal, unless criminal intent to violate the law is

Nursing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 2

Nursing - Essay Example The Columbus campus is quite popular not just for its size but also for the range of its options for students of different background and needs. The Columbus campus is not the only campus of the Ohio State University. The specific University has been expanded across Ohio through ‘campuses in Lima, Mansfield, Marion, Wooster and Newark. Still, the Columbus campus is the most popular campus of the Ohio State University, a fact that it is highly related to the citation of the campus, at the heart of Columbus, Ohio. In terms of its performance in regard to medical studies and medical research, the Ohio State University can be characterized as quite successful. The College of Health Science and Nursing is built on the theoretical framework of Kristen Swanson’s Theory of Caring. Swanson outlines five unique caring processes: (1) maintaining belief, (2) knowing, (3) being with, (4) doing for, and (5) enabling (Parker & Smith, 2010). Swanson’s structure of the caring model shows the relationship among the five caring processes as overlapping elements. By adopting Swanson’s framework, the college shows its commitment to uplifting nursing as a caring profession, providing a first-class educational experience, and fostering quality patient care. The concept of caring is dynamic and is applicable to nursing practice, research, and education. As a leading educational institution, we are committed to redefining caring as a central concept in nursing, building professional relationships, developing clinical skills and knowledge, and encouraging career advancement. Nursing is providing holistic and culturally sensitive care and performing purposeful actions that lead to health restoration and the ability of the recipient to regain a sense of well-being. Nursing led interventions are implemented to achieve a desired positive outcome that promotes and/or assists individuals toward health-seeking

College Education Essay Example for Free

College Education Essay It’s important to get a college education not only to be successful in the future but also to think for yourself and gain freedom through education, we can accomplish this by being educated liberally. Like Cronon, I think â€Å"a liberal education is about gaining the power and wisdom, the generosity and the freedom to connect† (Cronon; paragraph 18) to the real world. Finding a purpose to attend college should go beyond college itself, you should be motivated to learn something you have a passion for and will actually use and apply it to the world. †Truly educated people love learning, but they love wisdom more† (Cronon para 15). When learning you are just recycling information that the educators teach you just like Freire’s â€Å"banking system† but wisdom is what you incorporate to the â€Å"real world† and it is what is most valued than just being educated and not apply what you learned with other things. In my opinion liberal thinkers or people who are liberally educated want to be able to progress in life and not just do what they are told to do. They want to be able to think for themselves and come up with their own ideas. Liberal educated people want to â€Å"leave the world a better place than they had found it† (Cronon para 17). It takes wisdom and education to leave the world a better place than how it was before because it’s not an easy thing to do in a life time. Liberalists want to progress no just to benefit them but to benefit everyone else as well and I think they can accomplish this by using their wisdom and their college education. The way I see the banking system is that the educators are selfish because they only teach to their own convenience and they don’t let the receivers think for themselves. The receivers then don’t make any progress in life due to the fact that they are so used to just following the rules that are given to them by the educators. Liberal education is not like that. â€Å"Liberally educated people understand they belong to a community-and help that community flourish by making the success of others possible† (Cronon para 18). Liberalists want to succeed and want to see others succeed as well. â€Å"Liberal education must be that the freedom of the individual is possible only in a free community† (Cronon para18). When having the freedom you can think for yourself and not have others think for you like in a banking system and I personally think as well as Cronon explains that the only possible way to be gain freedom is by being liberally educated that way you learn to think for yourself and be able to be part of a free community. What is the whole point of going to college and get an education and when you graduate you will have no idea how to apply it or connect it to the real world. â€Å"Being an educated person means being able to see connections that allow one to make sense of the world and act within it in creative ways† (Cronon para 19). What’s the whole point of paying so much money for a college education if at the end you won’t know how to apply what you learned in college in the real world? If you don’t know how to apply things learned in college to the real world then you won’t be successful in the future and you practically gained no power or wisdom throughout your whole college education. Being educated can help you succeed in life and in the future if you know how to apply everything you learned in college to the real world once you graduate and help you and others succeed in your community and the real world. By being liberal educated can help you not only succeed in life but it can also help you gain freedom.

Presidential Campaign of 2004 :: essays research papers

Each presidential election overview has always been similar to a three-ring circus, but in the 2000 Election with Al Gore and George W. Bush, was by far one of the biggest circuses ever. Democrats had reason to worry about the election. Republicans held the White House for three consecutive terms from 1980 to 1992, voters often grow tired of one party after two terms. They were hoping to win control, yet there was a lot at stake with the election at the time. And even though it came to be a quite chaotic election, it was by far the closest election ever in history. The main problem was that the results were so close in Florida that it became indefinite who the winner was. It took over a month to finally attain the results. Ultimately it was not the citizens whose votes counted, but the vote of the Supreme Court for the election case. Al Gore had a good start to begin with, having high marks on his ability to handle key issues, including Democratic stands on such as health care, education and Social Security. But Gore changed all that on the last day of the Democrats' Los Angeles national convention. Whether it was the highly publicized kiss he gave his wife or not, Gore changed the public's view of him. No longer was he a just a stiff politician. Instead, he was a passionate, loving father and husband who lacked many of Clinton's weaknesses. And Gore jumped a few points ahead of Bush. The Monica Lewinsky scandal Clinton had did not necessarily give him a bad reputation. On the contrary, people continued to cast their support for the president since the public thought he had done so much for our nation. Yet in the 2000 Election Gore seemed to go in the completely opposite direction of Clinton, or at least try to avoid his name in his speeches at first. Yet Gore's luck did not change when he left California. Bush seemed to have difficulties when asked about his tax cut plan and about his statement that the U.S. military was not fully ready. While Gore looked relaxed and energetic, Bush made mistakes in front of the camera. Polls suggested that Gore was far ahead of Bush by at least a few points. Republicans became much less optimistic about Bush, while things were looking very promising for the Democrats. Gore’s campaign was focused on issues that were mostly concerned by women, such as health care and education. "We're for the people. Big tobacco, big oil, the

Ender’s Game Theme Essay Essay

Pressure, pain, corruption, and insecurity; imagine dealing with this every moment of your life. In The Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card, a young boy genius must take on the weight of the world while dealing with these things. Ender, a nine year old boy, is chosen by the government to go to Battle School, where he must learn to fight and improve his army skills. While he’s there, he struggles with his own morality and insecurity, and tries to do what other people want him to do. Even though he is so smart that he beats every single challenge presented to him, he had to learn throughout the course of the novel to be self-reliant and try to figure out the truth about his whole training. Although Ender is a boy genius and master tactician, he is easily manipulated and has a tough time dealing with the pressure of the world. Ender’s clever genius and amazing military skills has made him become one of the most formidable opponents. His ability to use his genius in any situation combined with his great military skills makes him victorious in even some of the most impossible situations, such as when he had to battle against the humongous bugger army on the battle simulator. The bugger army had outnumbered him, â€Å"A thousand to one (696),† and he needed to think up of a plan. So Ender decided to do the unthinkable, to take out the enemy permanently. â€Å"Then he whispered a command and the ships dropped like rocks toward the planet’s surface. They were starships and fighters, completely unequipped to handle the heat of passage through an atmosphere. But Ender never intended them to reach the atmosphere. Almost from the moment they began to drop, they were focusing their Little Doctors on one thing only. The planet itself (701). † Ender, at first felt like he wouldn’t be able to win the battle with so many enemies against him. But he used his clever wit to think of the impossible and use his military skills to take action. He sent the ally ships as close to the enemy planet as possible and then used Little Doctors (Weapons of Mass Destruction) to nuke the whole planet. This decision eliminated the enemy, but it also killed Ender’s ally command fleet. Ender during the novel showed his great military strength and superior thinking to conquer many of his challenges. He was able to stand up and defeat any bullies who wanted to hurt him, and even with a seemingly useless army he was able to train them using new tactics to win every single battle with them. The final simulator test against the buggers was one of the greatest of his genius military wins, but little did he know that it was just a game. Although Ender is genius in many ways and has great military skills, he is still easily manipulated by adults and starts to crumble under the pressure of the world. Ender throughout the novel has very low self – esteem. He just views himself as a tool under other people’s hands. So, when he is given the chance of a two week break, he takes it and has a three month break. He was tired of being pressured to be the best military leader the human world had to offer. He didn’t believe he could keep enduring, and thought he would fail. On his break, the government got so desperate for Ender they sent his sister to go in and help persuade Ender to keep on fighting. â€Å"Ender insisted that his conversation with you should not be bugged. I promised him it wouldn’t be, and to help inspire confidence, the two of you are going out on a raft he built himself (546). † This scene of the book shows how Ender is still a human being, and everyone’s got a cracking point. In able to go on, many of us find it comforting and strengthening when someone says we can do it and inspires us to keep on fighting. Valentine was Ender’s inspiring push to keep him going, but even she was another tool the government used to manipulate Ender. Ender got manipulated a lot in the novel by adults, especially when he was training in the simulator. The adults acted like it was just a game or challenge, and that Ender was just practicing to face the buggers. But when the final test came and Ender won by destroying the whole bugger race, he realized that the adults lied to him, and it was never just a game. Orson Scott Card illustrated how even the strongest and best of us still has a limit and can crack. Ender proved how he was one of the smartest and most brilliant military leaders alive through his training and thought out decisions in Battle and Command School. He was a genius among geniuses, and always thought of something new and effective. But he too, succumbed under the pressure of the world, and needed inspiration and courage to push through. He became too easily manipulated by adults, which led him to a decision he wish he never made. Orson Scott showed how even the best of us, can give in to the dark and evil intentions of man.

Psch3

Kendall Fretwell Assignment 3 1. | Changes in sexual maturity which occur during puberty are referred to as  Ã‚  Secondary  Ã‚  sex characteristics. | 2. | The first ejaculation in boys is called  Ã‚  Spermarche. | 3. | Girls who are sexually active are also more likely to have experienced early  Ã‚  Menstruation . | 4. | Approximately  Ã‚  one third  Ã‚  of teen pregnancies in the U. S. end in abortion. | 5. | Many researchers feel that recognition of one's feelings of same-sex attraction begin as early as  Ã‚  self recognition . | 6. | Mary is a biological female who identifies psychologically and emotionally as male. Mary is  Ã‚  Transgender. | 7. The incidence of illicit drug use among teens was  Ã‚  higher  Ã‚  in the 1990s than in the 1970s. | 8. | Sylvia, although extremely thin, looks in the mirror and sees excessive body fat. She exercises obsessively and eats very little. Sylvia might be diagnosed as having  Ã‚  Anorexia nervosa. | 9. | Piaget's concep t of  Ã‚  Self-Expression enables teens to understand metaphors and symbols. | 10. | Goals which are based on a desire for self-improvement are referred to as  Ã‚  mastery  Ã‚  goals. | 11. | Jason works out regularly at the gym. He is one of the best players on his soccer team. Jason's goal to be the best on his team is an example of a n)  Ã‚  Task/ego involvement goal. | 12. | The last of Freud's stages of psychosexual development is the  Ã‚  Genital stage. | 13. | Erikson used the term  Ã‚  gender-role identity to refer to the period when an adolescent is troubled by a lack of identity. | 14. | An individual whose gender-role identity is  Ã‚  androgynous would perceive herself or himself as having both feminine and masculine traits. | 15. | Sometimes Kohlberg's stage of social system and conscience is known as the  Ã‚  Law and Order stage. | 16. |   Antisocial Behavior is defined as antisocial behavior which includes law-breaking. 17. | A combination of cliques forms a  Ã‚  tribe . | 18. | Homosexual teens become aware of their same-sex attractions at about the age of  Ã‚  9 . Heterosexual teens become aware of their opposite-sex attractions at about the age of  Ã‚  11 . | 19. | Response inhibition depends on the ability of the  Ã‚  limbic system  Ã‚  of the brain to regulate the limbic system. | 20. | Changes in the heart and lungs that take place in young adulthood are likely not to be noticeable except during. | 21. | Regarding immune function: immature T cells are made in the  Ã‚  bone marrow  Ã‚  and they mature in the  Ã‚  thymus . 22. | In the Alameda study on health and aging, only  Ã‚  marital status and monthly personal income  were found to be unrelated to mortality. | 23. | HIV stands for  Ã‚  Human Immunodeficiency Virus. | 24. | In order to be diagnosed with a personality disorder, a young adult has to have been exhibiting the behavior since  Ã‚  development . | 25. | Lorie is in her late twenties. She has been unable to hold a job for more than 3 months at a time and she quickly gets bored with her relationships. Her mood tends to be unstable and she is short tempered. Lorie may suffer from  Ã‚  Cyclothymia. | 26.   Post-operational Development thought is associated with a fifth stage of cognitive development. | 27. | The most common modification in academic settings for students with disabilities is  Ã‚  extra  Ã‚  time for taking tests. | 28. | College women in the U. S. and Europe use a  Ã‚  60%   Ã‚  number of study skills than men. | 29. | African American students who attend historically Black institutions show more gains in both  Ã‚  education  Ã‚  and  Ã‚  skills  Ã‚  competence than those who attend predominantly White colleges. | 30. |   intimacy versus isolation argued that the central crisis of early adulthood dealt with issues of isolation and intimacy? | 31. Jack has settled into his new life as a retiree. He has friends and activities and fee ls a happy sense of stability in his new life. Jack is in Levinson's  Ã‚  Culmination phase. | 32. | One factor that correlates with marital success is each partner's attachment to his or her  Ã‚  personality. | 33. | Close friendships rely on mutual  Ã‚  trust  Ã‚  and personal  Ã‚  friendship . | 34. | Work-family conflict more strongly influences  Ã‚  career decisions. | 35. | One strategy for coping with conflicts between work and family life is to redefine family  Ã‚  time . | 36. | Young drivers exhibit  Ã‚  more  Ã‚  lapses in attention and driving errors than middle-aged drivers. 37. | Fifty-year-old Mr. Evans has started experienced difficulty achieving and maintaining an erection. These changes might indicate that Mr. Jones is experiencing  Ã‚  Erectile dysfunction. | 38. | The last phase of menopause is called the  Ã‚  Postmenopausal phase. | 39. | Bernice is 45. At least once a week, she wakes up in the middle of the night wringing wet with sweat. S he is having  Ã‚  hot flashes , a form of  Ã‚  early menepause . | 40. | The loss of bone mass is called  Ã‚  osteoporosis and begins at around age  Ã‚  30 . | 41. | Paul's family is getting tired of having to repeat everything they say to him because he has difficulty hearing.He goes to an audiologist and finds that he has  Ã‚  hearing loss , so the audiologist recommends a hearing aid. | 42. |   heart  Ã‚  disease is the most common cause of death for adults in the U. S. | 43. | The personality characteristic which seems to be the biggest contributor to cardiovascular disease is  Ã‚  stress . | 44. | High  Ã‚  cholesterol  Ã‚  diets seem to increase the risk of some forms of cancer while high  Ã‚  vegetable  Ã‚  diets seem to decrease the risk of other forms of cancer. | 45. | Among women, death from  Ã‚  breast cancer  Ã‚  is considerably more likely than death from heart disease. | 46. Overall physical health and cognitive performance in middle adulth ood are most closely linked to  Ã‚  Physical and Cognitive Development. | 47. |   Episodic memory is recollection of specific events;  Ã‚  Semantic memory is the recollection of general knowledge and facts. | 48. |   List the three phases of menopause in order. Identify what happens to hormone levels in each phase. | Perimenopause-It is the result of changing levels of ovarian hormones in your body. Estrogen levels decline, but they do so unevenly. Sometimes they can even be higher than when you were younger Natural Menopause Postmenopause Postmenopause- small amount of estrogen

Election 2004 essays

Election 2004 essays Current Republican President, George W. Bush of Texas, has shown the country that he takes a strong stand on issues he is faced with. Democrat, John Kerry, a current senator and Vietnam veteran from Massachusetts, is liberal on social issues and moderate on economics and foreign policy. President George Bush and Senator John Kerry are both presidential candidates in this years election. As candidates, the two men are put under the spotlight and are pressed to share their opinions about the issues within our nation. One of the many topics that the candidates often speak about are "social issues". In the following paragraphs I will explain in detail, John Kerry and George Bush's opinions on abortion, the death penalty, drugs, gun control, and education. Overall, George Bush opposes abortion. He has exceptions that include cases of rape, incest, or to save a woman's life. He does not support international groups that offer abortion. He accepted the FDA approval of RU-486, the drug that is taken orally to induce abortion, but thinks it is wrong and is quite concerned about overuse. He wants to ban partial-birth abortions and try to reduce abortions all together. He would like to do so by encouraging adoption and abstinence. George Bush says, "Good people can disagree; but let's value life". Bush also beleives every child, both born and unborn, ought to be protected. Therefore, he supports the legislation to extend the 14th amendment, protections to unborn children. He supports the GOP (Grand Old Party - Republican Party) abortion plank but disagrees on the exceptions. He supports the Parental Notification Law and the Child Custody Protection Act for minor females who seek an abortion. He also opposes school-based clinics that provi de referrals and counseling for contraceptive techniques and abortion. Bush beleives that Kerry's abortion stance shows the wrong priorities. John Kerry supports a woman's right to an abortion. He holds back...

Indolence and Indolent

Indolence and Indolent Indolence and Indolent Indolence and Indolent By Maeve Maddox When I heard an NPR reporter use the expression â€Å"passive indolence,† I decided I’d better look up the word because I thought indolent included the idea of passivity. I couldn’t imagine, for example, talking about â€Å"active indolence.† The noun indolence has traveled a long way from its original meaning of â€Å"freedom from pain.† The Latin noun indolentia means â€Å"freedom from pain.† The abstract noun came from the Latin verb dolere, â€Å"to be pained† and the negative prefix in, â€Å"not.† Indolentia was a state of not being in pain. In modern medical usage, indolence and the adjective indolent retain the meaning of absence of pain: indolent: causing little pain; slow growing. Examples of indolent and indolence in the context of pathology: indolent ulcers occur on the upper lip of cats at almost any age. Indolent lymphomas are usually not considered curable because the cancer grows too slowly to be targeted accurately by most modern treatments. Prostate Cancer Indolence vs Aggressiveness Progress in the Treatment of Indolent Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma (NHL) In general usage, however, indolence means, â€Å"the disposition to avoid trouble; love of ease.† Indolent is also a synonym for lazy. In the sense of taking things easy or giving oneself over to relaxation, indolence is not necessarily a bad thing. Hard-working people deserve occasional spells of indolence: lying on the beach or drowsing in a hammock on a pleasant afternoon. It is when people habitually avoid their responsibilities that indolence becomes a vice. the arrogance of orthodox economists, and the indolence of mainstream journalists. the authorities have already been breaking [the law] through their incapacity or their indolence in the face of the crisis of insecurity. China Punishes 20,000 Officials For Waste, Mediocrity, Indolence Mitt Romney: ‘â€Å"Nonworking parents† raise â€Å"indolent and unproductive† kids. Gordon slams indolent congressmen for lack of quorum in the House Indolence and indolent are useful words to describe laziness and irresponsibility, but an expression like â€Å"passive indolence† seems pleonastic. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:100 Words for Facial ExpressionsDifference between "Pressing" and "Ironing"How Long Should a Synopsis Be?

Communication and Diversity challenges in the Workplace Research Paper

Communication and Diversity challenges in the Workplace - Research Paper Example On the other hand, workplace diversity entails the range of dissimilarities among individuals in an organization. Diversity incorporates background, race, education, gender, organizational function, ethnic group, cognitive style, age, tenure, personality, among other components. Diversity also entails how individuals perceive themselves and other people. These perceptions have an impact on the interaction of individuals. The human resource department in an organization should adequately deal with issues, for example, change and adaptability, and communication for a large number of workers to work properly in an organization. Moreover, profitable organizations realize the significance of rapid action and are willing to utilize resources so as to manage diversity in their organizations. This paper will look at communication and diversity challenges in the place of work. Effective and efficient communication is extremely essential for the success of organizations that every member of an organization should be proper communicators. A manager has a duty to ensure all workers have efficient communication skills. In addition, adequate communication in an organization plays a significant part in establishing everlasting worker motivation. Organizations that have well established communication benefit from enhanced relationships between individuals. It is essential that both management and workers have efficient communication between them because this will ensure organizational functions run smoothly. In addition, proficient communication skill will help members of an organization enhance time management in their places of work. The ability exists for a manager to supervise his own time as well as keeping the workers concentrated on deadlines. Comprehending the communication course opens numerous opportunities to enhance productivity (Eunson 2007, 51). Organizations face a number of communication challenges in the workplace. First, language barrier may turn into a commu nication problem. There may be language barrier between individuals of different levels of work experience, ages, and ethnic background. Language barrier may create a misunderstanding or slow down communication that makes communication inadequate. Second, Effective and efficient communication in the workplace depends on professional connection aimed at helping in the continued development of the organization or everyday functioning of the organization (Gerson and Gerson 2007, 78). When workers allow personal concerns to have an impact on company communication, a communication difficulty arises and could exist for long before being discovered and resolved. Individuals who decline to communicate on the basis of personal conflicts may destroy the organization’s capability to engage in business and as a result, slow or deter the development of the organization. Third, one direction communication may result into an inadequate way of exchanging information all around the company. M anagerial staff and workers should give feedback every time so as to enhance the quality of information being passed on and the way in which the information is communicated. For instance, if the human resource department frequently communicates information in a way that is confusing to other individuals in the organization, then the human resource department needs to be made aware of the communication issues or else the information coming from the human resourc

Managing at a distance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Managing at a distance - Essay Example The central location has become the virtual office, the virtual enterprise, which has translated into the virtual work team. Utilizing virtual teams now allow organizations to bring together critical contributors in real time that might not otherwise be able to work together in a traditional work environment. Virtual teams can also add to the pool of resources available to any organization by opening the door to include people from outside the sponsoring organization such as supply chain affiliates, members of interconnected organizations, or external consultants. In many cases, the communication and insight from this type of 360 degree feedback is can give the organization an edge over their competitors. The result is what has come to be termed a distributed work groups, or virtual teams as they are more commonly known. Like any team, a virtual team works on interdependent tasks guided by a common purpose. Like anymore traditional team, the group needs to have consistent and hands on leadership in order to keep the team focused on the tasks at hand, and facilitate progress. However, because these teams are located across space, time, and organizational and geographic boundaries, the challenges of leading the team have become an entirely new endeavor. As one researcher described it, because of advanced technologies and communication tools global teams are developing the ability to "work together apart" (Grenier and Meters, 1992), In the light of these changing dynamics, leadership personnel must learn a new conflux of tools. "Management by walking around," a term made popular in the 1980's as a way to stay connected to those under the leaders direction is no longer possible. In addition, ineffective management styles which could be compensated for through personal contact now can destroy an organizations ability to communicate and achieve project goals effectively. Therefore, the team leader must be able to complete and facilitate a number of human relational dynamics without seeing his team face to face, including trust building, performance accountability, and conflict resolution. So how does the manager adapt his or her personal style to the needs of the virtual work team in order to overcome the barriers created by different locations and organizational cultures The manager must: 1. have a clear understanding of the project goals and objectives. 2. have a deep understanding of how or her own management styles, it strengths and weaknesses 3. work to improve on his or her weaknesses, and utilize his or her strengths in order to create an environment of transformational leadership. While many different personal evaluation tools have evolved during the past few decades, the Strength Deployment Inventory (SDI) seeks to help the manager understand his or her own personal weaknesses as well as strengths. The purpose of the SDI is to make the manager more aware of their own personality and relationship skills, both positively and negatively. The purpose of the SDI is not to give the learner a task list, but rather educate him to use his gifts more effectively while charting a path to develop his own weaknesses. In the work team environment, an unidentified weakness can destroy the moral or cohesiveness within the group more quickly because of the limited personal contact the participants have with each other. "Team leaders typically find that achieving alignment and commitment