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Essay Writing Importance: Breaking Studentâs Delusion

2008-06-08T15:00:00.005-07:00

Essay writing remains to be one of the hardest and complicated tasks that the marvel of modern technology has yet to make easier for man. Everything nowadays is simply keystrokes away, but the process of assembling thoughts into an engaging written piece still proceeds at an old fashioned pace.

Since the days of paper and pencil, essay writing has never really changed a lot. It still entails tons of hard work, in-depth research, logical organization of thoughts, and sophisticated style of writing. As a lot of students continue to hate this writing activity thinking it’s just a time-consuming worthless activity, there are four good reasons why writing essays is to be considered as more beneficial than burdensome. Here are some important purposes of essay writing:

* knowledge internalization

* intellectual development

* feedback generation

* good practice

Barely listening to a lecture or simply reading is not an assurance of knowledge internalization. Knowledge has been really internalized if it has been taken by someone as his own. Knowledge possession is best achieved through writing. Essay writing is a good way to internalize the facts that has been heard or read. Eventually, writing activity stimulates the intellect and leads to intellectual development. Aside from that, writing essays is a healthy way to improve writing skills. It is a good practice for future written exams.

Essays are essential for development and evaluation of students’ skills - writing and reading skills, analytical and critical thinking skills, research skills, and the ability to write under time pressure. All these skills are assessed in the entire essay writing process.

Therefore, essays are tools to gauge students’ level of knowledge and skills that greatly affect their grades and academic performance.

Essay writing remains to be a big challenge to students and even to the most consummate writers. However, essays affect too many things in a student’s academic life: grades, reputation, admissions, and abilities. Essays produced by students serve as reflection of their thinking skills.

Students find essay writing to be a burdensome activity. There is a great need to let students understand the importance and benefits that the writing essay brings – that it is intrinsically valuable to their academic growth.

As many students think that the essay writing experience is just a waste of time and simply another great means to add burdens in their academic life, appreciating the skills and knowledge it offers breaks this futile delusion.

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Introducing a Great Essay Introduction

2008-06-08T15:00:00.004-07:00

First impressions last.

While this may be a bit of an exaggeration for some, it is nevertheless oddly accurate in most cases. In fact, it is an adage that applies not only for people, but also on objects; the written word, for instance. How so? Imagine an individual needing to read up on something, and still trying to choose from two materials. Will the said reader choose the essay with an introduction that is vague, error-filled, convoluted in structure, and boring? Or will the reader pick out the essay with the introduction that is clear, engaging, authority-sounding, and even a little funny? Of course, the reader will choose the latter essay! That is how much wallop a good introduction can contribute to a document.

Whereas the heart of every essay resides in the main body, the introduction serves as the hand that grabs the readers to at least give the material a chance. It is the document section that reels in prospective readers to sample the content, and hopefully, captivate the readers enough to read the entire essay. Indeed, it would be quite unfortunate if materials with supposedly rich content are disregarded outright due to lousy beginnings.

With all these considered, it then doesn't hurt that every writer should take note of a number of strategies for optimizing one's introductory section. One effective technique is to compose the introduction last. This practice may seem strange at first try, but is actually an effective means to craft a captivating introduction. As writing involves a flowing and varying train of thoughts, the writer may not exactly know the essay's strongest argument until the whole content has been established. Only when all details and arguments have been organized together can the writer best prepare a beginning, one that is relative and complimentary to the material's main body.

Another tip for a good introduction is through the use of of attention-grabbing lines. Every writer should keep in mind that for every essay ever written, there is almost always another article that tackles the same theme. And so, for the essay to actually be chosen, it has to stand out from the rest of its counterparts. Being catchy may mean starting out with a provocative example, a thought-provoking question, a captivating quotation, and an intensely graphic anecdote. Simply put, the key goal is to captivate.

The third and last introduction technique is to be straightforward. Nothing turns off readers than a beginning that goes on and on. Keep it short, simple, and direct. In this way, readers will be intrigue as to what other information can be derived from the material.

If these techniques have already been absorbed but there is still a need for actual essay samples, one recommended way to be further familiarized on great introductory writing is to check online sites specializing on custom essays. As it turns out, each custom essay released on reputable sites are mostly with introductions of impeccable structure. This is due to the fact that the writers and editors of these sites are trained to write exceptionally from the beginning till the end. With these custom essays as references, a writer can more effectively absorb various writing techniques and practices.

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Essay Writing Service Boons in Online Business

2008-06-08T15:00:00.003-07:00

An essay writing service can provide a student almost anything under the sun, from well researched and originally written research papers, theses and essays to blogs and other academic writing requirements. But this service has evolved into a more dynamic writings provider – serving websites as well.

Except from students suffering from too much work loads, an essay writing service now also serves the growing needs of websites. How?

With the increasing popularity of the World Wide Web, many websites sprout competing for a fair share of the market. And one of the efficient ways of increasing traffic of a website is through article submissions. This is when an essay writing service comes to the picture.

Informative, well constructed, and SEO enriched articles do all the talking for a website. Web content that empower the site equals good conversion rates for an online business. However, many website owners do not have the luxury of time, the resources, or the skill for writing web copies that work. Therefore, since an essay writing service provide everything with regard to writings, a website owner also benefit from it.

There are a lot of essay writing services that create all kinds of customized contents for web sites nowadays. Based on a certain website’s needs and requirements, hired professional writers create a SEO centric web content that is reader friendly as well.

Most web based essay writing companies employ graduates and post graduates who are experts in their respective fields. These essay writing firms not only provide well researched and original write ups but also well written articles on almost any topic.

Good and reputable essay writing services employ people who have graduated in their respective subjects. So whether the website’s topic focused on technology, psychology or economic, equivalent professionals handle the job. A writer having a degree in Philosophy never handles web contents for a medical based website.

After every article has been written, a quality essay writing service normally let the work to be proofread by another expert. Through this, a website owner avoids headaches brought by misspelled words, incorrect grammar, and improper punctuations. This benefit is necessary because web contents that have errors diminish in value.

Essay writing service also scans the written web contents through a number of anti-plagiarism software. This eliminates the chances of getting an article that is just copied from somewhere else. Plagiarized web contents ruin the credibility of a website regardless how skillful their SEOs are.

Moreover, web based essay writing services adhere strictly to beating the deadlines. A reputable essay writing service delivers the work on the agreed date or, refuses to take payment in the event that the delivery is later than the specified date.

In addition, due to the increase of professional online essay writing services almost anybody can afford to get articles written catering specific online business needs and requirements. Although some professional writing companies charge higher than the others, web copy’s quality is never compromised.

An essay writing service has been known in providing students their academic writing needs. But nowadays, this kind of service also serves online businesses with their marketing promotions through providing competitive, reader-magnet, high conversion rate copies.

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Custom Term Papers: Ways to Proper Source Documentation

2008-06-08T15:00:00.002-07:00

Custom term papersare commonly associated with plagiarism. Plagiarism is defined as the unauthorized use of one’s words and thoughts and making them as one's own. And the most efficient way to avoid plagiarism issues is only through proper reference or citation.

Whether in custom term papers or not, avoiding plagiarism is done best by documenting sources appropriately. How? By using footnotes, endnotes, parenthetical references, and having bibliographies or works cited page at the end of the term paper.

In writing custom term papers or self-written academic pieces, it is very important to take into account the preferred documentation type of the professor. Most word processors usually have superscript, footnote and endnote capabilities. If required to use footnotes and endnotes, it is a rewarding effort to master this feature of the computer.

Of the various ways to document sources, a parenthetical reference is the simplest. It is also referred to as parenthetical documentation or parenthetical citations.

In using parenthetical references, only short reference enclosed in parentheses after is needed. The author's last name and the page number/s are placed in parentheses in the corresponding text to give credit to the sources.

In using footnote references, one must have numerically superscripted footnote references at the bottom of the same page where the citations are located. Footnotes and endnotes are common in custom term papers, and are used to give credit to sources of any material borrowed, paraphrased and summarized.

The main difference between footnotes and endnotes is that footnotes are placed numerically at the bottom of the very same page where direct references are made, while Endnotes are placed numerically at the end of the term paper on a separate page titled Endnotes or Notes. They are intended to refer readers to the exact pages in the Works Cited Page, References, or Bibliography section.

Aside from endnotes, footnotes and parenthetical reference, custom term papers and the likes need to have works cited pages and bibliographies to prevent plagiarism issues. Works cited page is sometimes referred as references. The terms are quite have the same meaning. Each is an alphabetical list works to which the paper has made reference.

Custom term papers depend on the prescribed writing style in choosing what documentation type to employ. Works Cited is commonly used in citing sources using MLA (Modern Language Association) style, while references is used in citing sources via APA (American Psychological Association) style.

However, works cited page and bibliography are not equally the same. In works cited, it is only a list that the paper actually cited while in bibliography, it is a list all of the materials that have been consulted in preparing the entire term paper whether or not it is actually cited the work.

Facing plagiarism problems in custom term papers and even in self-written papers is quite easy to resolve when proper source documentation is employed. There is absolutely no excuse in failing to cite sources because there are various methods to choose from.

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Custom Term Papers: Ways to Proper Source Documentation

2008-06-08T15:00:00.001-07:00

Custom term papers are commonly associated with plagiarism. Plagiarism is defined as the unauthorized use of one’s words and thoughts and making them as one's own. And the most efficient way to avoid plagiarism issues is only through proper reference or citation.

Whether in custom term papers or not, avoiding plagiarism is done best by documenting sources appropriately. How? By using footnotes, endnotes, parenthetical references, and having bibliographies or works cited page at the end of the term paper.

In writing custom term papers or self-written academic pieces, it is very important to take into account the preferred documentation type of the professor. Most word processors usually have superscript, footnote and endnote capabilities. If required to use footnotes and endnotes, it is a rewarding effort to master this feature of the computer.

Of the various ways to document sources, a parenthetical reference is the simplest. It is also referred to as parenthetical documentation or parenthetical citations.

In using parenthetical references, only short reference enclosed in parentheses after is needed. The author's last name and the page number/s are placed in parentheses in the corresponding text to give credit to the sources.

In using footnote references, one must have numerically superscripted footnote references at the bottom of the same page where the citations are located. Footnotes and endnotes are common in custom term papers, and are used to give credit to sources of any material borrowed, paraphrased and summarized.

The main difference between footnotes and endnotes is that footnotes are placed numerically at the bottom of the very same page where direct references are made, while Endnotes are placed numerically at the end of the term paper on a separate page titled Endnotes or Notes. They are intended to refer readers to the exact pages in the Works Cited Page, References, or Bibliography section.

Aside from endnotes, footnotes and parenthetical reference, custom term papers and the likes need to have works cited pages and bibliographies to prevent plagiarism issues. Works cited page is sometimes referred as references. The terms are quite have the same meaning. Each is an alphabetical list works to which the paper has made reference.

Custom term papers depend on the prescribed writing style in choosing what documentation type to employ. Works Cited is commonly used in citing sources using MLA (Modern Language Association) style, while references is used in citing sources via APA (American Psychological Association) style.

However, works cited page and bibliography are not equally the same. In works cited, it is only a list that the paper actually cited while in bibliography, it is a list all of the materials that have been consulted in preparing the entire term paper whether or not it is actually cited the work.

Facing plagiarism problems in custom term papers and even in self-written papers is quite easy to resolve when proper source documentation is employed. There is absolutely no excuse in failing to cite sources because there are various methods to choose from.

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Writers: Master the Art of Brevity and Satisfy Readers

2008-06-08T15:00:00.000-07:00

Time is precious, and readers need a reason to keep readingâitâs a fact of life these days when information is available almost instantaneously. Especially in the Internet, you must get to the point right away, as studies have shown that on average yo...

Top tips for writers

2008-06-05T15:00:00.003-07:00

Think of the reader

With internal communications, staff newsletters and team briefs, you don't have to prove you can write like a best-selling author or gain prizes for intellectual ability. Your job is to communicate effectively. That means brevity, accuracy, simplicity. It means knowing your audience and thinking of the reader from the word go. Put your points in a logical sequence - give the facts in a descending order of importance.

Brevity rules OK

Keep stories to a maximum of 250-300 words. Line after line of text unrelieved by paragraph breaks is boring. Keep sentences to 25-30 words – at the 50-word mark you are being long-winded. Insert a paragraph break after a change of thought or tack. Aim to keep paragraphs to three or four sentences. Only let paragraphs run longer for a detailed or technical explanation. Keep quotes short too.

Plain is best

Plain, simple, English gets your message over best. Go for the short word rather than the long. Don't use flowery descriptions, particularly in news items - stick to the facts.

Write tight

Avoid repetition. Check for synonyms. Don't insert words that add little or nothing to sense or meaning. Don't put i.e., e.g. or etc. Don't start two sentences the same way. Use bullet points for long lists or put them under separate headings. Don't use an ampersand in text. Study newspapers to see how journalists condense a mass of facts.

Get the grammar right

Keep to the rules of grammar. But don't be pedantic. Don't be afraid to introduce journalistic licence for internal communications.

Punctuation essentials

Use commas sparingly: three in a sentence may be one too many. Get the apostrophe (if one is needed) in the right place. Use a colon to introduce a quote, not a comma. Don't overuse brackets . Don't use a hyphen for a dash which is twice as long. An exclamation mark is hardly ever necessary.

Make it readable

If your words are hard to read you've wasted your time. Headlines, bullet-points, sub-headings and captions all help to liven the page. Make reading as effortless as possible. A tired eye means a lost reader. For good.

Accuracy first

Be extra careful with names, figures and with unfamiliar or technical words. Check that days of the week coincide with dates. If you say a certain number of points follow, ensure there are that number.

Avoid flabby prose

Needless words and phrases obscure the point of your writing. For example, look at the difference between:

Banish the weak expletive

Starting a sentence with the weak expletive There is or There are wastes reading time and puts the reader on hold until the sentence topic finally appears. Compare:

Don’t be dated

Never start a story with a date – it is unlikely to be the most important fact and using the date upfront will make your story read like the contents of a policeman’s notebook and bore your reader rigid.

Out with clichés

Learn to recognise the cliché. Don't acknowledge you have written one by putting it in quotes. Out go having said that, of the fact that, and hundreds of other awkward, worn words and catch phrases. As soon as you realise you have used an expression you have read many times before think of something shorter and original instead.

Kill the gobbledygook

Much the same goes for jargon, the language of a trade, business or profession. Write with words and expressions your readers will understand: what makes sense to a particular group may be gibberish to others. Information for a wide readership must be clear to all audiences.

Slang is out too

Much slang comes from jargon. You can get away with it in speech, say at a conference, but not in print. Some comes from advertising and is accepted as part of modern culture, but is often criticised. The best place for slang is the sales leaflet.

Avoid awkward syntax

Although they maybe (strictly speaking) grammatically correct, words such as ‘amongst’ and ‘whom’ sound pompous and old-fashioned in any publication and you won’t find them in a newspaper.

More at Writing for Internal Communications.

© Adrian Ruck MCIPR is a journalist and corporate communications specialist with more than 20 years' experience in public relations and media relations. He is editor of Writing for Internal Communications.

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How to interview and getting the best from an interviewee

2008-06-05T15:00:00.002-07:00

From Writing for Internal Communications:

The advantages of an interview are that your interviewee will automatically focus on the priorities and key messages and summarise them for you.

They are likely to explain complex terms in language that you, and therefore your readers, will easily understand.

If there’s something that you don’t understand you can ask them there and then and get a clear explanation.

In the course of the conversation your interviewee may touch on other subjects that are worth following-up as stories in their own right.

A telephone interview only takes 10 or 15 minutes. It will take you a lot longer to read through and summarise a lengthy report. It will take them a lot longer to write the article themselves.

Preparation:

Check out any background information that is available so that you know a bit about the subject.

Spend some time thinking about the story and the basic information that you’ll need to write it.

Prepare a few questions in your notebook that will prompt the interviewee to give you this information. This will also give you a structure to work from.

The interview:

Interviews can be nerve-wracking so put your interviewee at ease by chatting to them before you plunge straight into questioning. Enquire after their health, talk about the weather, the usual stuff – just as if you had met them by the coffee machine.

Before you start, give them a re-cap on the point of the story and the information that you are hoping to get from them. Don’t go in with a closed mind, though, as they will be on top of their subject and may have an important update or a completely new angle on the story.

If you know very little about the subject then don’t be afraid to tell them this at the beginning.

Ask them to explain things to you in the simplest terms, avoiding industry or technical jargon. Point out that the article that you are writing will be read by a general readership from across all sectors and backgrounds.

Start with your pre-prepared first question. (Try to phrase this and all questions in a way which discourages ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answers but gets them to talk.) Your questions should be open-ended and relevant to what your audience wants to know.

For example, instead of ‘Do you agree with the regional management team’s decision to launch this accommodation standards strategy?’ try ‘What are the main benefits of the accommodation standards strategy launched by the regional management team?’.

A good interviewer listens carefully to the answers given and asks supplementary questions based on those answers. ( Although you should cover all your pre-prepared questions over the course of the discussion, go with the flow of the interview, don’t rigidly follow your question list. If your interviewee gives new and relevant information in the course of answering a particular question then follow it up. You can always return to your pre-prepared question list later.)

Don’t assume anything – even if you think you know the answer, ask the question anyway. All facts in the story should be based on the information gleaned from the interviewee, not your assumptions.

Don’t interrupt. If their answer veers off into an irrelevant area, wait until your interviewee has finished before getting back on topic with a new question.

If you don’t understand something, or miss something because you’re busy taking notes, don’t be afraid to ask the interviewee to go over it again. It’s essential that you understand everything so that you can get it right in the article.

At the end of the interview ask the interviewee if they have anything else that they wish to include.

It is essential to get the basics rights so check details such as the spelling of the interviewee’s name, places and technical terms. Also ask for their preferred job title and contact number (for inclusion in the article) and whether you can include an intranet address for readers to get further information.

Tell them when you are likely to send the draft article for their approval and when the finished piece is likely to appear in the newsletter.

Ask them if you can call them again if you find you have a gap in your notes or need further details. They’ll usually be happy to help.

© Adrian Ruck MCIPR is editor of Writing for Internal Communications.

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The art of the powerful press release

2008-06-05T15:00:00.001-07:00

A good press release is about getting across our message to the people we want to influence. This could be customers, potential customers, service users, the government, politicians, partner and stakeholder organisations, peers and colleagues or a mix of some or all of the above.

A press release should explain the products, services and activities of any organisation in a positive and accurate way. It should tell the story honestly, professionally and as interestingly as possible.

Most importantly, a good press release must contain a genuine news story - something genuinely new.

What makes a news story?

Almost everything that an organisation does externally is newsworthy, relevant and interesting to someone.

Target media

When identifying potential news stories, bear your target audience and media in mind.

Regional weekly and daily newspapers and local radio and TV stations are likely to be interested in any news that is locally relevant to their circulation or transmission area.

National newspapers, radio and television will cover only major news stories or, perhaps, something unusual or very quirky.

Trade and specialist publications are another useful outlet for stories about your organisation and the people who work in it.

Presenting press releases for journalists

Journalists receive 100s of press releases every day so it is important that your release stands out.

Press releases:

Are brief

Deliver news

Are honest

Are interesting

Follow style guidelines

Use simple, jargon-free English

Use the present tense

Include simple examples to make the content relevant

Use adjectives only to inform, never to flatter

Don't exaggerate

Contain strong first paragraphs that include the nub of the story

Include snappy, relevant headlines

Spell out uncommon acronyms when first used and use the acronym only for the remainder of the release

Carry the date of the day on which they are sent

Are fronted by a single sheet with bullet points when the press release is very detailed or longer than usual.

Are planned to land when quoted spokespeople and other relevant specialists will be available to respond to media calls.

Are embargoed with care (embargoes are best used when, for example, they will allow feature writers and journalists time to get more information together to build a story).

© Adrian Ruck MCIPR is a public relations and media relations specialist with 20 years' experience in the field.

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Can the Fundamental Principles of Non-fiction Writing Be Applied to Fiction?

2008-06-05T15:00:00.000-07:00

by Philip Yaffe

I have never written fiction and never intended to. My 40-year career has been in journalism and marketing communication. However, a few months ago someone who had read my book on expository (non-fiction) writing and speaking contacte...

10 Tips for Creating Memorable Characters

2008-06-04T15:00:00.000-07:00

Readers demand living, breathing, suffering characters.

If you can't create characters that grab the reader by the scruff of the neck and make them sit up and take notice, you might as well not write the story.

That may seem like a harsh thing to say, but it's a sad fact that readers have too much choice in what they read to spend any time with characters they don't immediately care about.

Characters are the life-blood of a story. Without them the story doesn't exist. Readers don't care about what happens in a story, they care about what happens to the characters in a story.

So the people who make your story happen, have to be as real as you can possibly make them.

But how are such characters created? How can you make sure that your characters seem real, so that your reader completely identifies with them and can't put the story down until the fate of the character is known?

Here are 10 quick tips to breathe life into your characters:

1. Names are important. Don't call a thirteen year old hellion Agnes unless you have a good reason for doing so.

2. Don't make your characters perfect. Readers want the people in stories to have some flaws, just like they do.

3. Make sure your character's personality dictates the scrapes they get into.

4. Also make sure your character's personality dictates the way in which they solve the problem.

5. Make your character's speech pattern match their personality. Eg, don't have a young person or child use words that seem too grown up.

6. Your character must alter in some way by the end of the story. In other words, they must grow and learn by what happens to them.

7. Pay attention to what they wear. Clothes, and the colours they choose, speak volumes about what kind of people they are.

8. Let them solve their own problems. For instance, if they're stuck down a hole, don't have someone come by and rescue them. Instead make them find a way to climb out. They will be so much the stronger for finding their own solution.

9. Make their problems huge. The more there is at stake, the better in fiction.

10. Last but not least, is to keep your characters busy. Always have them doing something that directly relates to the story. For instance, if your character is having a cup of tea, then make sure your whole story will fall apart if they don't have that tea just then. If the tea is unnecessary, cut it out.

If you bear these ten pointers in mind when creating characters for your stories, you will find that not only are the characters themselves stronger, but you have a stronger story too.

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Anchoring Research Paper: Good Background Study

2008-06-03T15:00:00.002-07:00

A research paper anchors its strength and credibility to the studies and literature that support it. Without a sound background of the study, usually done in chapter two in most research papers, the entire study’s reliability becomes shaky and its relevance quite unstable. Why?

Chapter two of most research papers is called the Background Study or Review of Related Literature. It is important in determining the overall credibility of a research paper because it presents previous researches and literatures that support the main claim of the ongoing study.

A background study is usually long. Some research papers even have chapter twos that comprise half of the entire research paper. It basically depends on how extensive researches have previously been done in the field or subject to be investigated.

Although, it doesn’t essentially mean that the longer the background study the more quality the research paper gets. It doesn’t follow because it all boils down to getting the appropriate studies to efficiently support the paper.

Through the review of related literature, the researcher builds the study’s relevance by citing related study or studies that lead up to the current research. Previous studies serve as a foundation to a research paper, rooting down its worth to prior facts and ideologies.

Chapter two also contains a definition of terms section specifically when the paper uses special or technical terms that might not be understood by the general reader. Because chapter two builds the study’s significance, research papers review of literature need to be as comprehensible as possible – a simplified approach so as to connect clearly one’s study to the other.

However, understanding the importance of a sound background study is just the initial step. The challenge is how and where to gather the right research materials to be employed in chapter two.

Writing a research paper’s background study entails a crucial process of information collection. In order to produce a relevance-driven chapter two, data selection is very critical. Being in the right place and having the right materials is vital in writing research papers.

Libraries are more often than not the right initial place to be. General reference books such as encyclopedias and books are good starting point in doing research. General reference materials help the researcher to be better acquainted with the subject. But it doesn’t stop there – there’s a lot of place to be if a research paper aspires for great academic recognitions.

After conducting an initial background research, a more comprehensive research using journals, magazines, newspapers, and the Internet are advisable to employ. Why?

Review of related literature is not merely about previous studies. It also can add a fresh touch of details. Journals, magazines and newspapers usually provide more current information on than reference books. These materials only add up to the scholastic value of the research paper.

Also, the internet can be a valuable for supplementing source to the data gathered from books and journals. On the other hand, it is an imperative to evaluate the information to be taken from the Internet – accuracy, content and author are prime criteria.

With the enormous challenge to prove a main argument, writing research papers call for keen attention to the chapter that anchors its way to proving its relevance – the study of the background.

With great passion for writing, Jonathan Smith finds it fulfilling to do freelance writing although he already have a career in a marketing firm. He also work as a freelance editor for a custom research paper company. This 26-year-old’s enthusiasm in writing is deeply rooted in his parents, for his father was then a newspaper columnist and his mother a true-blooded novelist.

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Why You Should Bother With Letterheads

2008-06-03T15:00:00.001-07:00

Copyright (c) 2008 Bryant Anderson

Image is the key to attracting a customer or in connecting with other professionals. You must create a very good impression. Image doesn't only include things like the way you look, dress, act, what you wear, or what company you run to but also makes people take you seriously. Your education must also show some incredible part of your written communication with others. Your image must also include a well-crafted letterhead.

A letterhead is the first thing your clients or other professionals see when they open a mail from you. It not only indicates your company address, it also affects how your credible customers picture you. The letterhead holds your company name and logo. Writer Charmaine Joy Caro says that a letterhead introduces your company to your prospects, stating who you are and what products and services you have.

You should design your letterhead with the right image for your company. A letterhead is well-designed when it effectively gives you a good image to your prospective customers.

Keep these in mind in making your letterhead:

- Plan carefully the design of the letterhead you are going to use before printing it. Be aware that all the information used in your letterhead, like the company name, company address, person to be contacted, phone and fax number, E-mail address, and Web site (if there is any).

- Choose a logo. The logo represents your company. Clients can easily recognize your company through your logo. Compress your company's big logo to a size that is fit to your letterhead. Dean Mapa relates that graphic is preferably not larger than 5x2 inches.

- Your letterhead may be printed in one color, two color or full color, on a nice, high quality paper stock. Choose the right kind of paper. You can use textured paper other than the usual bond paper.

There are letterheads written in this way: the logo and the company name are put together on the upper portion of the paper, while the the address and other details are near the bottom page.

- Carla San Gaspar relates that the standard size for a letterhead is the 8.5 x 11 for it is conveniently sent through the mail or through fax.

- Use an excellent quality printing method in fabricating your letterhead. Choose the printing company that provides you with the best services you need. Gaspar comments that four-color printing gives a business letter more character and that it makes logos more recognizable. Another writer, Charmaine Joy Caro relates that the more colors used in the letterhead, the more expensive it becomes.

- Match your letterhead with the envelopes. The paper of the letterhead should be compatible with the paper used on your envelopes to create a clean and corporate look for your business package. Every large and established firm has custom printed letterhead.

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Letterhead: My Print Shop Online provides full-printing services to clients across the United States and Canada. The company offers the best deals in print jobs including full color printing, commercial printing, and digital printing services for: brochures, letterheads, envelopes, postcards, newsletters, catalogs, and booklets.

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Copywriting That Works: Long Copy vs Short Copy

2008-06-03T15:00:00.000-07:00

Copywriting is one of the most indispensable elements of an effective online marketing. The art of copywriting involves a strategic writing of words that promotes a product, a business, an idea, or even a person. Its prime intention is to persuade the readers to take some form of action. The long-standing debate lies on which copywriting really converts – long or short copies.

The argument which copywriting produces compelling copies that grab attention and connect with people has been a never-ending predicament. The problem is there’s really no such thing as a specific “formula” or “measurement” that is concrete enough to evaluate the productivity of long copies as opposed to shorter ones.

The key in copywriting is making it as interesting and informative as possible regardless of length. As long as the copy magnets readers to finish the article and induces them to take some action, length is not an issue at all.

The experts say that for many products, long copy outperforms short copy by a large margin. Many companies tested long copies over short copies and have found out that websites with longer copies have outsold those websites with more short copies on their sites. Although this is true for some sites, other websites deems that long copy applicability still depends.

The basic rule for copywriting length is similar with headlines – as long as necessary, but not deliberately going around the bush. Because there is no explicit “measurement” on writing an effective copy, copywriter depends on rational factors to determine how long or how short copy is necessary. Here are some copywriting considerations:

1. The type of product

The products with more features and benefits call for longer copies. Convenience products definitely demands short copies to fill an immediate need. On the other hand, specialty products require longer copies because of the need for details.

2. The target audience

Copywriter need to understand the target market in order to produce compelling copies. There are people who want as to be bombarded with information before purchasing a product. While there are people who hate long, winding copies and settle for quick browsing.

About the Author: Paula Cambridge is a marketing communications copywriter in one of Illinois's leading distributor of packaging and industrial supplies. Her rich copy writing experience allows her to take freelance jobs from many design and advertising firms.

3. The main purpose

The foremost element that effective copywriting takes into account is the goal. Generating a copy for a service business or convenience products requires less detail, but an ad that aims to increase sales must surpass every objection the potential buyer may have in mind. The main purpose must be apparent. Is it just to compel readers to buy, increase traffic, or merely to inform? Copywriter takes off from the purpose in determining the necessary length of a copy.

Whether or not longer copies work over the shorter ones, really depends on the skills of the copywriter. Effective copywriting entails a sophisticated understanding of the product, the potential market, and the set objectives.

About the Author: Paula Cambridge is a marketing communications copywriter in one of Illinois's leading distributor of packaging and industrial supplies. Her rich copy writing experience allows her to take freelance jobs from many design and advertising firms.

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Essay writing guidelines for students!

2008-06-02T15:00:00.006-07:00

Good essay writing requires certain essay writing guidelines which should always be adhered. It is a critical requirement for every academic essay that the student should prove his point or argument in the most transparent way. This can be done through the presentation of original thoughts or ideas or by analyzing what others have researched on the topic that is about to be written.

It should always be realized that while writing an academic essay simply summarizing or repeating a set of text is seldom adequate to the assigned essay assignment. For example,

while writing a research essay, only presenting an idea would not get the job done but it should be further spiced up by the inclusion of relevant facts and figures on a particular topic of study. The essay writing guidelines for a particular essay varies depending on the topic of the essay as well as the type of the essay.

One important guideline that should always be followed is the format or structure of the essay should always be kept in complete synchronization. The essay topic should first be introduced in the introduction section. It should be further highlighted and debated in the discussion section and the overall summary of the argument that has been presented should be highlighted in the conclusion section.

Cohesion of thoughts and words is important in writing. While writing an essay related to the field of literature, a student is never asked to simply summarize the text or explain what it's about. A student needs to establish an argument, which again is a contention or a position that has been developed or determined based on realistic and practical information gathered from the works of other authors or studies. Moreover plagiarism must be avoided at all costs and credit should be given where it’s due.

In sum it is suggested that students must follow the rule of the thumb while writing essays and must always adhere to the common essay writing guidelines so that their work is organized, synchronized and to the point.

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Does essay topic is important before writing?

2008-06-02T15:00:00.005-07:00

The selection of an essay topic is the most important task for a student before he or she actually initiates the writing process. This process usually gets complicated because of the very reason that there are so many essay topics in relation to a particular field of study to choose from.

Finding a suitable essay topic is the most integral and often the most complicated task for a student. The success of the final essay solely depends on students personal interests but it should also be appropriate for the reader. While the success of your essay will be judged on its quality, readability, and individuality, practical considerations must also be taken into account.

In writing an academic essay, good topic selection depends on a writer’s personal strengths and weaknesses in writing and on his ability to grasp a certain essay topic with full intent and zeal. Moreover student’s grammatical skills, searching skills and deadline management skills are also tested during the selection of a particular topic for essay writing.

An evaluation of student’s skills depends on the availability of suitable research material, and a thorough analysis of time constraints. The most difficult stage in topic selection is to know the things that a student is generally interested in, which at times can be far too many to sort out. For example a student who has a deep interest in sports should select a topic in relation to sports management, development and history and should avoid other areas of study such as science or literature while selecting a topic since sports is his key field of interest.

To conclude it is suffice to say that in order to select an essay topic with perfection it is vital that students must always know their personal strengths and weaknesses and their areas of interest as this would help them in selecting only those essay topics which are linked to their field of interest.

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Dragon Fantasy Books

2008-06-02T15:00:00.004-07:00

Fantasy is often described as a genre that uses a mix of magic and supernatural forms or other elements of creative imagination as the main feature or setting for books, games, movies etc. This genre is commonly associated with the elements of Middle Age European style looks, themes such as architecture, clothes and technology. The events in a fantasy movie occur mostly on distant planets where magic reigns supreme.

Fantasy based entertainment is made up of compositions from numerous writers, artists, filmmakers, and musicians. However, the one of the most preferred mediums to distribute fantasy-based stories is through 'fantasy literature'. Most of the television shows, movies and other series have been based on some or the other fantasy related books.

Perhaps the most revered and dreaded creature in almost all the fantasy books is the 'Dragon'. It is a mythical creature that has been featured in myths, legends and folklores from all around the world. A dragon is a gigantic serpent like creature with magical qualities. Dragons are considered to be imaginary manifestations of human beings' fears of snakes, birds of prey, as well as teeth, claws and size. There have been numerous speculations in the scientific arena about the origin of Dragons. Some of these speculations state that dragons may be a real-life counterpart of dinosaurs or archosaurs.

In the fantasy world, a Dragon is a living, fire-breathing monster that stands for destruction and also is used as a weapon of mass destruction by evil wizards and kings. In other tales, it stands for the good and the righteous and is also supposed to be God's warrior defending the true believers.

For ages, the dragons have captivated the imagination and created fear in the hearts and minds of children and adults alike. Yet its massive persona has been the focal point for just about every fictional book written that might be related to the middle stages.

This article has been written by Caren of Dragon fantasy book - Beyond this point there be dragons. This popular fiction book is written by Julie Burgess Wells, has one of the most entertaining dragon stories.

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6 Essay Writing Common Types

2008-06-02T15:00:00.003-07:00

Students often have essay writing activities in almost all of their subjects. The initial step is usually to decide on what topic to discuss. But the next big decision that essay writers confront is what type of essay to employ. What technique works for the selected topic? What kind of writing style is suitable? What tone is efficient?

In choosing what essay type is appropriate to use, students need to fully understand the difference between each type. Here are the common types of essays that can help students on their paper writing activities:

1. Persuasive or argumentative essay

A persuasive or argumentative essay makes a claim or position regarding a subject for the main purpose of persuasion. It is usually presented with statistics, expert opinions, and well-supported arguments about a claim or controversy. In using an argumentative tone in essay writing, it is essential that the issue to be discussed is two-sided wherein the writer takes a stand. Also, the main argument must be clear, exact, and highly focused.

2. Comparison and Contrast essay

This type of essay writing takes two subjects and identifies their similarities and differences. A good comparison and contrast paper possesses a valid basis for comparison - a limited focus and catchy information. In writing essay using compare and contrast, it is vital that the purpose for comparing and contrasting the two subjects is made clear. This purpose is crucial because it provides focus to the paper.

3. Descriptive essay

Descriptive essays’ aim is to provide a vivid picture of a certain person, place, object, or event. It offers concise details that enable the readers to imagine the subject described. Generally, descriptive essays explain the “what, why, when, where, and how” of a topic.

4. Definition essay

Definition essay writing demands writers to present a meaning of a term that goes beyond the objective definition offered in the dictionary. Essay writers need to provide a more focused and exact description of the term than what is offered in reference sources.

5. Narrative essay

A narrative essay tells a story in a sequence of events. This type of essay is told from a defined point of view, often the author's. It offers specific and often sensory details to get the reader involved in the elements and sequence of the story. Verbs must be vivid and precise.

6. Evaluation essay

The prime purpose of this essay writing style is to form judgment on certain ideas, places, services, etc. basing on clear-cut criteria. An informed opinion is critical to the development of this essay. It is important to use facts, statistics and other authoritative resources to establish and organize the criteria to present a substantial analysis and evaluation.

Essay writing is just one tough kind of various paper writing activities. Students usually ask for professional essay help to assist them on what type of approach or style to use in their composition.

About the Author: Laura Nelson, an essay writer fresh out of college, Laura can't wait to undergo the news and feature writing seminar her first employer requires her to finish. She can learn a lot about essay writing and other writing strategies and rules on that seminar. Laura's other passion includes oil painting and hockey.

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How to Deal with Essay Writing Rejections

2008-06-02T15:00:00.002-07:00

If you want to become an essay writing expert, you must learn how to accept rejections.

Who says that seeing your teacher grade your essay with “D” is totally a bad thing? It may sound silly, but if you always get negative comments about the essays you write, you are on your way to becoming an essay writing whiz!

But there are ways to switch this negativity into positive things.

Take a break from your essay writing routines first. If the human body gets exhausted after doing strenuous physical activities, the human mind is not exempted. Writing essays is an arduous task, so it’s important to take a break once in a while to “recharge batteries:” Take a walk in the woods, fill your lungs with fresh air, binge with your favorite food, talk to your family or friends, and so on.

Ask yourself some questions. Your teacher is just grading all outputs of the essay writing tasks that he or she assigns to you. So do not blame him or her if your recently-submitted essay didn’t pass his or her standards. Ask yourself, “Did I really do my assignment well?,” “What went wrong with my work?,” etc.

Improve on the worst. If your essays are always getting rejected or your writing style doesn’t make the grade, think of the worst thing that would happen: You’ll get lower grades in school. Try to improve on the worst by listing possible solutions—such as “I will read a lot,” “I will strive harder,” “I will seek the help of an essay writing service,” etc.—and then pick out the best possible solution.

Try to laugh at your essay writing mistakes. Remember that nobody’s perfect, so admit the hurtful truth that you write crap, but that’s only for the meantime. Laughing at your mistakes means that you can bravely recognize one of your weaknesses. But you can also be up for the challenge of doing things better. Humor is a wonderful weapon that any writer can use to his or her benefit.

“Next essay please!” The only way to flee from rejection is to do other things which are of value to you. This may have something to do with improving yourself, such as reading more books, picking up on the styles of other great writers or writing about things that you like.

“Trade” your essays. The essay writing preference of your professor is different from the taste of let’s say an editor of a daily or glossy. Your essay might be horrible in the eyes of your teacher, but it might be a handsome piece of writing to others. Cliché as it may seem, but there’s an opportunity for every difficulty.

Move on! Past is past. If your professor thumped the essays you recently wrote, do not dare to ask him or her why your essay didn’t pass his or her standards. “Knowing the truth” behind your recently rejected work will not help.

Above all, believe in the truism that brilliant ideas surface from rejections: Instead of crying over torn-out or thrown-out essay that you previously submitted in school, take rebuffs as a wake-up call, a driving force that will get you going!

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The Advantage of Being A Custom Essay Writer

2008-06-02T15:00:00.001-07:00

Just like any writing job, custom essay writing can be done on a part-time or freelance basis. Little wonder why it is a dream job for many people. There are only few part-time jobs in the world today that can be as fulfilling as becoming a custom essay writer. Why? Just consider the following reasons.

Flexible Time. Working on flexible hours is probably the main advantage of custom essay writers. Flexible hours is beneficial for writers who have a busy lifestyle, like those raising a family or those who are taking up a course. More than giving freelance essay writers the freedom to choose their own time to work, flexible time also gives them the privilege to choose the place where they want to work.

Better Work Environment. An individual working in an office needs to live each day with different personalities and has to adapt to an environment that is dirty, smelly or too cold. A freelance essay writer need not worry about these things. He can freely choose his place of work; and since writers often work in solitude, he doesn't have to worry about boisterous or annoying officemates.

High Productivity. Since custom essay writers choose only topics they know by heart, they produce more work because they spend less time on doing research. With abounding ideas and volumes of well-written work to boast, a custom essay writer will impress editors and will be more secured in his job. Writing on a particular subject regularly will not only enhance the productivity of a writer and increase his earning, it will also allow him to know the subject in a whole new light.

Job Satisfaction. Without any real boss, freelance writers have the right to choose the topic they want to do. Custom essays are often far better than essays done by students because they are done by people who have real interest in the topic they are writing about. The satisfaction of waking up each day to write something they love is one of the best perks freelance essay writers enjoy.

Different Level of Income. If a writer is just starting out, he might only earn a small fee for each of the essay he writes. But when an essay writer gains experience and becomes estimable for his ability to write a wide range of topics, he can start demanding for a higher pay. Custom essay companies are among the many companies that will generously compensate writers who have proven their ability to produce quality materials.

About the Author: A literary writer by heart, Anthony do freelance essay writing for a living. He enjoys reading literary pieces and dreams of becoming a Nobel Prize winner in literature. He prefers genre that regards existentialism while poetry is his favorite literary form.

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Powerful Online Copywritng Techniques

2008-06-02T15:00:00.000-07:00

Online copywriting is one of the highest paid copywriting jobs in the world today. Large corporations depend on this profession to attract traffic to their websites and to increase their sales. For anyone who dreams of becoming an online copywriter, here ...

Website Promotion: How to Promote Your Website

2008-06-01T15:00:00.000-07:00

There are many website promotion techniques, but the best way how to promote your website is by writing articles and submitting them to article directories. Article marketing, or bum marketing as it is sometimes called, is by far the most profitable way to get traffic to your site.

In fact the term ‘bum marketing’ was introduced because it is said that by using article marketing, even a bum can get a no-good website promoted with loads of traffic simply by submitting articles to article directories. Well, that might just be an urban myth, but it sure promotes article marketing.

The reason for the myth is that the article has to be well written with a good command of English, and the website has to be reasonably good to make money from it. It is debatable if a bum could achieve both, so I regard the term as derogatory to article marketing and never use it myself as you have just noticed!

Seriously though, your articles have to be good and well written, and there are a number of ways to achieve good website promotion through using articles. If you know how to promote your website properly, then you are already likely to be using articles, but how are you using them and are they giving you the results you are looking for? Likely not, if you are just an amateur writer, because Google is getting clever – or perhaps the word should be cleverer.

It is not good just to write articles any more and no good just to stuff them full of keywords. Even 2% keyword density is too much now. Contextual relevance of associated vocabulary is all important, as is the syntax of your sentences and the vocabulary you use. If you don’t understand what that means, then you badly need the services of a professional writer! Because that is what more and more people are turning to for top class results.

Let’s look at what a good article can do for you:

1. The reader will want to read more of what you have to say, and will click on the web page URL that you have provided in your ‘Author’s resource’. That is one traffic unit!

2. The reader might even copy your article for their own website if it is good enough, along with your Resource section. That provides you with a backlink to your site plus the opportunity of more clicks.

3. You get a backlink in any case from every directory that accepts your articles – but it has to meet their strict requirements to be accepted.

4. Many directories belong to syndicates, so when you submit to one, your articles are exposed to many, many more.

You have likely gathered by now that the most important aspect of articles is that they must be literate, with good grammar and put the point across well enough for others to be really interested in what they have to say. Otherwise they will be read with interest and then the readers will move on. The main benefit of an article is the traffic it brings, not this thing called Google PageRank that takes months to change and hundreds of articles to achieve even a one point increase.

Traffic is what counts, and that is what a good article will bring you. So get writing, but if you can’t do it yourself it will well worth your while to have somebody do it for you. If your writing isn’t up to standard then you suffer rather than gain.

Website promotion is very important for any online business, and if you need to know how to promote your website then article writing is the best way. You might say that a Google or any other high search engine position is better for the free traffic that it brings, but you don’t get that these days with Google’s current algorithm without submitting at least one or two articles every week.

Website Promotion is very important to you, and if you want help writing your articles check out Article Services or just type ‘article services’ into Google: we hold the top two places through our articles. Professional writing will earn you money.

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Tips on Writing Research Papers

2008-05-28T15:00:00.003-07:00

The benefit of a research paper is more than just having a ticket out of college. The mere process of writing it provides a training ground where one can develop the skills necessary for professional life. Life outside the university is more complex, so while inside, one should already prepare by facing the complexities of producing a respectable research paper.

Furthermore, writing a research paper will allow one to learn the infallible truth that the world outside has its own rules and borders. The following Do's and Dont's will show why:

Do think hard for a good topic. Only a few students will have a workable topic for their research paper at the beginning of their course. The majority will, most likely, remain oblivious of what they will write about until the formal start of their work.

Talking to the professor works well for those who simply doesn't have a clue of what could be a good topic. Reading books is also a good way to start. If one already has a general topic in mind, he should begin reading materials related to the field to narrow down his subject; after which, he should talk to his professor about it.

Deciding a topic should be done at the earliest possible time to give ample time for research.

Do not forget to have an engaging question. Usually a research paper answers why and how. Questions that begin with these two words are essential because they allow the author to make an argument. Why should we question the theory of evolution? Or How is it possible to alleviate poverty with education? Research papers that don't have an argument asks boring questions.

For example: Who started the civil war? An author who chooses questions that don't begin with why and how will most likely produce a work that merely lists facts and dates.

Do real research. Doing research involves more than just reading secondary books or taking information from the Internet. Real research, depending on the argument of the paper, means using primary sources like statistical data, foreign books, speeches or local newspapers.

One can also arrange an interview with a prominent leader or a scientist, anyone he thinks can provide expert advice for his research paper.

Do not fail to make an argument. A research paper is not a book report. One cannot just gather information from different sources, re-phrase paragraphs, and combine notes in order to produce an acceptable research paper. This kind of process will simply not work.

An excellent research paper has all the evidence and data woven together to form a thought-provoking argument that attempts to answer the research question.

Do write well. A well-written research paper presents all its powerful evidences and argument in a clear and coherent way. Footnotes and endnotes should accurately cite the sources, and tables and graphs should be properly presented in the body of the paper. An author should maintain a formal and serious tone if he wants his work to have an impact.

Though one can formulate his own tips in writing a research paper, he can be sure that the rules written above are proven by many writers to be effective in producing an exceptional work.

With great passion for writing, Jonathan Smith finds it fulfilling to do freelance writing although he already have a career in a marketing firm. He also work as a freelance editor for a custom research paper company. This 26-year-old’s enthusiasm in writing is deeply rooted in his parents, for his father was then a newspaper columnist and his mother a true-blooded novelist.

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Term Paper Writing Headaches

2008-05-28T15:00:00.002-07:00

NO MATTER how a lot of students do their best to make a term paper that would really make the grade, some of them still end up unsuccessful—their “best” seems to be not good enough.

They shouldn’t put all the blame to writer’s block, as apart from partial loss of memory, there are other “injustices” that strike students whenever they have to produce term papers:

Getting sick. Colds, fever, flu and worst, chickenpox hit students when they least expect it. Teachers usually give their students kind consideration by allowing them to submit term papers behind the deadline, but other professors just do not have the heart, and say: “If there’s a will, there’s a way… submit your work by hook or by crook!”

It’s difficult to extract your creative juices when you’re not at your best. Getting sick is just normal, but getting sick when there’s a term paper task approaching is definitely abnormal.

Scarce reference materials. So you finally found a topic that will catch your teacher’s eyes and may rouse the interest of your classmates. But after days of researching and gathering of data, you only got a maximum of two reference materials that will support your term paper. Why wait for the days to pass, when you can still change your topic if this is the case?

The best books have “gone astray.” Why does it have to be this way: All of the books you are trying to look for and need to borrow in libraries… are the ones missing in the bookshelves!

Don’t ask yourself, “God why me?” or “God why now?,” as you are not the only one making a term paper—never forget that you have classmates and students from your locality or country doing term papers, too.

In all likelihood, their topics are similar to yours’—and one of them went out of his way to visit the library earlier. But there are still other books, magazines, or newspaper clippings that you can use as references—they’re just waiting for you to browse them patiently.

The books you need are “out of your world,” which simply means the “good finds” deemed helpful in your term paper writing can be found in a library that’s not just a stone’s throw away, but miles away from you! And if you try to borrow it via “inter-library” means, it would take you couple of days or even weeks. Well, find another resource material.

Lack of time, or is it lack of discipline? Once your teacher gave your class the green light, begin with your term papers right away! It’s like choosing between typing your final draft over playing basketball with friends. Finish ahead of deadline, so that you will not cram and will still have plenty of time to read, proofread or revise your term paper.

Coming up with a term paper that will get a sky-scraping grade has never been, and will never be that easy.

But, to actually realize this goal, you just have to make an extra effort to impress your fussy professors, as to the quality of term papers you submit to them.

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The ABCs of a Book Review

2008-05-28T15:00:00.001-07:00

WHY do teachers give book review tasks?

Apart from they want to instill in you the flair for reading, they want you to widen your knowledge about the world we live in, more so, acquaint you with an author’s way with words. And whether they tell it to you or not, they want to learn from your book report!

When you are told to do a book review, before you start browsing the pages of any book, consider these basic steps first, so that you will come up with a fantastic book report.

Find the “greatest one.”

The best paperback doesn’t solely refer to the works of William Shakespeare: It may mean an author whose writings you love to read, a book that leaves an impression, or something that has to do with your passion. Libraries are the best sources of materials for any book review assignment, as they have everything to feed the mind. You may also ask your classmates for some suggestions and to avoid “repetitions.” Make certain that it is “the only one” in your class.

“Thou shall not copy other’s works!” Never copy someone else’s written or published work, as plagiarism over the Internet is a cybercrime, while on campus, it’s touted as an academic fraud. Copying of a book review is a serious offense and a student may be subjected to suspension when found guilty. Through the help of modern computer software, teachers nowadays can easily trace if a book report submitted to them is really authentic or just rehashed.

“Read not for pleasure, but for a purpose.” Choose a material for your book review that interests you a lot, so that going through the pages won’t be a burden but pure enjoyment. Have a breakdown of the number of pages you want to read every day, so you’ll have a clear view of what you are reading. Calendar or schedule your activities to check if you can beat your deadline or not.

“Write, write and write.” When making a book report, it’s important to take down very good notes—the storyline, background, characters, etc.; your reactions to specific events in the book; as well as questions that came into your mind while reading some pages or chapters. Writing on paper even the minuscule details of your book review will help you to “systematize” all your thoughts.

Don’t just dwell on elaborating the book’s summary. Put more substance on the story line, the characters and your reactions: Be like an experienced evaluator.

Extract all your creative juices, and don’t forget to have fun while doing your book review.

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Five-item checklist on selecting dissertation services

2008-05-28T15:00:00.000-07:00

SEVERAL students seek the help of dissertation service because a dissertation gauges approximately one-fourth of the total average in their final year’s bachelors, masters or doctoral degree.

Dissertation is touted as the zenith of all academic requirements: After submitting it to a thesis advisor or professor, one still has to take a comprehensive examination and then defend it to an examining committee or panel as part of the oral examination.

Two words to describe the whole process of dissertation writing: very tough!

Would you seek the help of dissertation services by allowing “skilled people” take good care of your academic needs? Or would you just do the job all alone?

This five-item checklist on choosing dissertation services might be help for you to surpass the so-called dissertation writing distress:

they stable and dependable? Be cautious of fly-by-night firms that do nothing other than dupe customers. Check their track record or number of years in the dissertation writing industry—as the cliché goes, “the longer the better.”

Research about their personnel as well: Do they employ all-American or non-American writers? Are their dissertation writers qualified or experienced enough? Go for companies with small number of writers because you can be assured that the skills and work ethics are still monitored by their superiors.

Can they keep a secret? These dissertation services must give you a guarantee that they will keep your dissertation orders, transactions and most importantly your personal identity undisclosed. They should also give you a secrecy agreement in black and white.

Do they make original dissertation? Do they sell previously written pieces of writing, or tailor papers to suit let’s say your dissertation writing needs? Do these dissertation services have anti-plagiarism computer programs to support their claim that they only make authentic papers? And do they offer other services such as resume writing, translations, editing, etc.?

Will they give me my money’s worth? You must have an overall picture of what you would get from them. The price range of their services should be precise—no hidden or additional costs whatsoever. It took years or even decades for most professional writers to become experts, so it’s necessary to say that they will charge “logical” fees for their finish products. So stay away from dissertation services that offer near-to-the-ground prices: You will surely get something crap!

Another hint: Dissertation writing companies solicit an initial payment on your order, but they will give you a sampler of the accomplished dissertation prior to paying the remaining cost.

Are they for real or just for reel? These dissertation services must have existing phone numbers and offices that can be called and visited, respectively. Don’t just be contented with cyber communication. They must also have a customer service hotline available 24 hours a day and seven days a week to address your specifications, last-minute revisions and other concerns.

Though there are loads of dissertation service around that promise perfect dissertation pieces, there are only little things to consider in choosing the best ones. The bottom line is “be safe and sure” all the time.

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Freedom of Information advice

2008-05-27T15:00:00.001-07:00

reedom of information law has proved a useful tool for journalists and media organisations, generating news stories by revealing controversial and at times sensational material which would otherwise have stayed secret.

Britain?s Freedom of Information Act came into force in January 2005, though the long-awaited legislation was passed by parliament five years earlier. The law covers public bodies in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. There is a similar but not identical law covering Scottish public authorities - the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002. Finland brought in its Act on the Openness of Public Documents in 1951, while America's Freedom of Information Act, also known as the Open Records or Sunshine Laws, was put on the statute books in 1966. In South Africa, the Promotion of Access to Information Act was introduced in February 2000.

These laws enable any person to request information from a public body and have that information given to them, subject to certain exemptions. Factual background material relating to policy decisions, such as statistics or analysis, have also been used by journalists to provide weight to stories and shed light on the decision-making process.

Big news stories sourced from British Freedom of Information requests have included:

* How the government's leading law officer, the Attorney General, changed his mind over the legality of the invasion of Iraq

* How the Metropolitan police realised that their commander Sir Ian Blair's decision to block an independent inquiry into the shooting of innocent civilian Jean Charles de Menezes left them open to accusations of a cover-up

* How City of London police officers have been accepting dinners and gifts worth thousands of pounds from members of the Scientology religious cult

* How MPs can claim thousand of pounds to furnish their second homes with luxury items from what?s been dubbed the John Lewis List, named after a fashionable department store

* How 32 local authorities were forced to disclose the amount of money paid to fat cat City brokers by investment managers on behalf of employees? pension funds

The-Latest has successfully used the Freedom of Information Act in a number of exclusive stories which include our expos頯f an NHS hospital cover-up over lost patient files (see Alarm as NHS files go up in smoke, community news section http://www.the-latest.com/nhs). And our report of government department profligacy in Guess what? The Home Office is broke: http://www.the-latest.com/guess-what-the-home-office-is-broke-0.

Which Public Authorities are covered by the law?

A public authority can include central government and government departments, local authorities, hospitals, doctors' surgeries, dentists, pharmacists and opticians, state schools, colleges and universities and the police and prison services. A full list of authorities can be obtained from the British Ministry of Justice: http://www.justice.gov.uk/ and Information Commissioner's Office: http://www.ico.gov.uk/Home/what_we_cover/freedom_of_information.aspx

What information can you request?

You can make a request to see any information held by public authorities. The law not only applies to paper files but also to information stored on video, tape and email.

Some authorities like the Home Office publish 'disclosure logs' on their websites of information already disclosed in response to previous Freedom of Information requests. So it can be worth checking to see if your question has already been asked and answered before submitting a request.

How do I make a request?

Your request must be made in writing. This can be by fax or email. You will need to state your name and an address for correspondence. In order to increase your chances of receiving a comprehensive response your questions should be specific and well targeted. Here is a suggested text for your request:

?Dear Sir or Madam

I am writing to make a request for all the information to which I am entitled under the Freedom of Information Act. In order to assist you with this request, I am outlining my query as specifically as possible. If however this request is too wide or too unclear, I would be grateful if you could contact me as I understand that under the Act, you are required to advise and assist requesters.

[Give a description of your request]

I understand that under the Act, I should be entitled to a response within 20 working days. I would be grateful if you could confirm in writing that you have received this request. I look forward to hearing from you in the near future.?

Will I be able to get all the information I want?

Not always. The Act recognises that there will be valid reasons why some kinds of information may be withheld, such as if its release would prejudice national security or damage commercial interests.

Public authorities are not obliged to deal with vexatious or repeated requests. In addition the Act does not provide the right of access to personal information about yourself. This is instead available under the Data Protection Act 1998, again subject to certain exemptions.

If the authority refuses to reveal the information is that the end of the road?

No. A refusal letter should explain how to ask the authority for an internal review of their decision. If you're still not satisfied you can appeal to the Information Commissioner.

Although the media have been active users of the Freedom of Information Act as well as campaign groups and some businesses, according to the Information Commissioner, it is the general public who have used it most.

citizen journalism

--

Deborah Hobson is a freelance writer and Conributing Editor of The-Latest.com, the UK's premier citizen journalism news website.

citizen journalism

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Interview with Dan Ronco, Author of UNHOLY DOMAIN

2008-05-27T15:00:00.000-07:00

Dan Ronco's latest novel is a suspenseful techno-thriller filled with adventure, romance and greed. A former successful engineer and businessman, he used his knowledge and experience to craft Unholy Domain, a story that delves into controversial, provocative themes like the ethics of genetic engineering, the question of what limit to put on technology, and the reconciling of religion and science. The novel also focuses on the relationship between a father and a son. With issues of such magnitude, Unholy Domain promises to be a thrilling, entertaining read. Ronco was kind enough to give me a few minutes of his time to answer my questions.

Thanks for being here today. Why don’t you begin by telling us a little about yourself?

Born into a tough neighborhood in Newark, New Jersey, I learned powerful lessons about family, friendship and violence. My escape was fiction, and I spent many hours reading in the local library. Nurturing a passion for technology, I went on to gain a BS in Chemical Engineering from NJIT. Not enough challenge. Always fascinated by new technologies, I was awarded a full fellowship at Columbia University and gained a MS in Nuclear Engineering. Although I designed submarine nuclear reactors for three years, I discovered I enjoyed software development more than reactor design, so I changed career direction and achieved a second MS; this one in Computer Science from RPI.

Fascinated by virtually all areas of software development, my expertise grew to include coding, design, project management, quality improvement and finally, general management. My niche was software consulting and my team assisted many large corporations and governmental organizations. Always looking for the latest challenge, I built and managed several consulting practices. I'm especially proud of two accomplishments – assisting AT&T greatly improve the quality of the first commercial UNIX release and helping Microsoft to create a world class consulting organization. Positions held during my consulting years included Senior Principal with an international accounting/consulting firm, President, Software Technology Management Inc. and General Manager with Microsoft.

When did you decide you wanted to become an author?

Eight years ago I decided to leave consulting and concentrate on a long held desire to write fiction. A successful engineer and businessman, I had the breadth of experience to understand and synthesize rapidly evolving strands of technology. It became clear that fundamental change would turn our society upside down within the next few decades. Humans will have to adapt rapidly to gain the advantages of these changing social and technological innovations. Indeed, we will have to adapt rapidly just to survive.

I scoped out a trilogy of novels to expose three oncoming challenges; computer viruses enhanced with artificial intelligence (set in 2012), the oncoming clash between religion and technology concerning what it means to be human (2022), and the beginnings of the integration of human and artificial intelligence into a network entity (2032). Each novel is written as a thriller – packed with adventure, sex, greed and romance – as well as realistic science and technology. The three leading characters – Dianne Morgan, a female mega-billionaire obsessed with power; Ray Brown, her onetime lover and a brilliant software architect; and David Brown, Ray’s genetically gifted son – are fascinating and all too human.

PEACEMAKER, my first novel, was released in August, 2004 with outstanding feedback by critics, authors, and most importantly, by customers. My next novel, UNHOLY DOMAIN, was released April 2, 2008 by Kunati Books, with an excellent response. The final novel of the trilogy, tentatively entitled TOMORROW’S CHILDREN, should be released next year.

Tell us a bit about your latest book, and what inspired you to write such a story.

UNHOLY DOMAIN delivers all the excitement of a great thriller while also delving into provocative themes: the bioethics of genetic engineering, the question of what limit (if any) should be placed on technology, the problem of reconciling faith in God and respect for his creation with the technological promises of artificial intelligence, and the age-old issue of family ties and the loyalty of a son to his father. How could anyone not be inspired by issues of such magnitude?

UNHOLY DOMAIN features David Brown, a brilliant but troubled young man raised in the dark shadow of his long-dead father, a software genius who unleashed a computer virus that murdered more than a million innocents. When David receives a decade-old email that indicates his father may have been framed, he plunges into a gut-wrenching race with the real killers to discover the truth about his father ... and himself. As David tracks through his father's startling history, he stumbles into a war between the Domain, a secret society of technologists, and the Army of God, a murderous cult with a sacred mission to curtail the spread of technology and roll civilization back to a simpler era. Hunted by killers from both organizations, David unravels his father’s secrets, comes to terms with his own life, and then falls in love with a woman from his father’s past.

Did your book require a lot of research?

My novels are set in the near future, so it’s my responsibility to bring the reader into a world that is realistic, compelling and consistent with existing trends in science and culture. My stories exist at the point advanced technologies threaten our institutions, beliefs and even our survival.

As a result, I read constantly in subjects such as artificial intelligence, genetic engineering, robotics and other advanced technologies. I have a passion for technology, so reading isn’t a chore, it’s a gift. I am equally fascinated by human values and culture, such as economics, politics and religion. Searching for stress points, I attempt to project current technologies and trends two or three decades into the future. UNHOLY DOMAIN, for example, explores the potential for conflict between religious fundamentalists and scientists on the leading edge of artificial intelligence.

What is your opinion about critique groups? What words of advice would you offer a novice writer who is joining one? Do you think the wrong critique group can ‘crush’ a fledgling writer?

I have been in a critique group for seven years, and it has been a positive experience. The five of us meet once a week and we each read our most recent compositions, usually about ten pages. Each reviewer provides feedback describing good and bad aspects of the writing. We offer advice with the intent of helping the author; nobody shows off. The author considers the feedback and decides what, if anything, should be modified.

Actually it’s more than just a critique group. Our coach and group leader begins each session with a twenty minute discussion of a writing topic. While the coach leads the discussion, we all participate. I’d have to say we are many things: a critique group, a workshop, and a gathering of friends.

The secret of our success is compatibility and talent. We keep the group small and invite an occasional new member only if she gets along well with the existing members. It is also important that her writing skills are at a reasonably good level. Bringing a novice into the group wouldn’t be fair to anyone.

How was your experience in looking for a publisher? What words of advice would you offer those novice authors who are in search of one?

One of the biggest mistakes I made with PEACEMAKER, my first novel, was to not check out the publisher thoroughly. When he called me, I was thrilled, and it seemed that everything was working out. Wrong. The publisher was a nice guy, he was very enthusiastic about my novel and we seemed to hit it off. However, he had a couple of problems: he had been in business less than a year and really didn't know much about book marketing; and he was underfunded, so he couldn't hire talented, experienced professionals. As a result, his business went underwater and all his authors were left scrambling. That's why I had to become the publisher for PeaceMaker, which consumed a great deal of my time.

So the lesson is to not become dreamy-eyed when a publisher offers to pick up your book. Treat it like making an investment. Check out the size, experience, financial resources, number of employees, references from other authors, bookstores that carry his works, etc. Better to walk away than sign up with someone who doesn't have a good track record. I checked out Kunati carefully, and they have been an excellent publisher for UNHOLY DOMAIN.

Do you have a website/blog where readers may learn more about you and your work?

Yes, please stop by www.danronco.com to say hello, read an excerpt of UNHOLY DOMAIN, read my blog or view the incredible trailer for the book. And there’s much more: the complete PEACEMAKER novel, cool videos, book reviews and articles by guest authors. If you enjoy science fiction or technology thrillers, this is a great place to visit.

Thanks for stopping by! It was a pleasure to have you here!

Interview by Mayra Calvani, www.mayracalvani.com.

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Language Learning Service: Door of Opportunities

2008-05-26T15:00:00.003-07:00

The advent of globalization pushes language learning service industry booming. Why? Because learning a second or a third language undoubtedly gives that competitive edge worldwide. Whatever the reason may be in acquiring knowledge in foreign languages, it definitely opens doors of opportunities. How?

Learning a new language provides better employment opportunities. For example in the United States, people who are bilingual tend to have more job opportunities especially those who can speak Spanish or Italian.

United States has a vast population of foreign language speakers. People treat English as a second language. And it’s a basic instinct for people to trust those who can speak their native tongue. Having the ability to communicate with diverse people results to unlimited business prospects. With the assistance of a sound language learning service, one can speak Spanish or Italian and more likely make job opportunities in the U.S. much feasible.

Foreign language learning likewise attracts opportunities in the service industry. Call center industry has been actively searching for people who can speak at least two languages. This means that just through reading references provided by a credible language learning service , a student can actually earn a few dollars through part timing in call centers. It gives that competitive edge over other vying for the same job.

Better preference is also given to medical professionals such as doctors and nurses who can converse with other language. It is because good means of communication between the medical staffs and the patients builds trust and loyalty of the patients.

Having an adept knowledge in other languages benefits all types of profession especially in sales. Professionals who are in sales can get more scope to interact with diverse people through learning different languages. Aside from the ability to communicate, speaking in a client’s native language makes it more comfortable for the client. Thus, sales boost can be expected.

Getting a language learning service also has added benefits in traveling. It is a certified advantage when going to foreign countries that one has a sophisticated understanding of the other languages. It allows a foreigner to feel at home when he can communicate with the people efficiently. It is easier for a tourist to get by and mingle to natives when he’s confident of what he says. Professionals who are fluent with foreign languages are usually called for travel and business purposes.

Foreign language acquisition not only open doors for business and careers, it also opens doors for new culture and idea appreciation. Learning different languages makes a difference on how a person sees the world and vice versa.

Understanding a new language leads to open-mindedness and culture sensitivity. Appreciation of other culture and ideologies is better done first hand – talking to others.

Aside from culture and travel, language learning service also aids in researching and news gathering. Having the ability to comprehend foreign languages makes it easier for researchers and students to gather information even in other languages.

Learning foreign languages is definitely a plus. With language learning service assistance, knowing a second, a third, or many languages gives that competitive worldwide reach. Language learning advantages are not just better jobs and tangible benefits but importantly, new opportunities with other cultures that widens horizon.

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Writing Tips For Novice Authors

2008-05-26T15:00:00.002-07:00

If you are reading this article then you probably have asked yourself at some point in your life, "Do I have what it takes to become an author?"

I believe that successful authors, those who actually write and finish that novel, or book of poetry, or even that book of short stories, and see it all the way to publication, have certain characteristics.

Characteristics of Authors

1. They like to sit for hours in front of a computer screen (or with pen and paper), typing (writing) away.

2. They think about their book, even when they're not writing.

3. They are motivated to finish their book.

4. They are motivated to proofread, edit and revise their finished book until it is the best it can be.

5. They are motivated to publish their book.

6. Once they publish the first book, they are already working on the next one.

If you answered yes to anyone of the above, then you have a good chance of attaining your dreams of becoming an author. Don't listen to those people who say it's a competitive market out there. Don't listen to those people who say they've written five books and haven't had one published yet. And don't listen to those people who send you back your manuscripts! Listen to yourself. Listen to that inner voice, the one that is whispering now. But wait until you get started. Once your book is written and published, that inner voice will be roaring! And the whole world will hear about it.

I know, I know. I tend to be the optimist. But we have so many pessimists in the book business, we sure need some more optimists around!

For you, the novice writer who would like to start writing that first book, the best way to begin is to start writing. Yes, just sit down and do it. Stop the other activities, the television, the reading, the shopping, the chatting on the telephone, and find the time to devote at least one hour a day to writing.

What’s one hour a day in the scheme of things? It comes and goes like this, poof! What do you have to show after an hour of television? A lazy yawn? If that same hour were spent on writing, then there would be a product in your hands, something that will be shared, hopefully, one day with others.

So, go ahead, shut the door to the rest of the world for one hour (or more) and make yourself comfortable in front of the computer screen (or pen and paper). Let’s take the first step to becoming an author.

How To Begin

Foundation

Just like a construction company which builds a foundation to a home, you also need to prepare a foundation for your career in writing. Don't skip this step, it's important.

Your "foundation" will consist of basic writing skills. Remember those English courses you took in high school and college? If you don't remember anything from those courses, then it wouldn't be a bad idea if you found your old English textbooks, dusted them off a bit, and looked through their pages to refresh your memory.

If you haven't taken any courses in creative writing, you might consider signing up for one. Check with your local community college. They often offer weekend and evening classes, and sometimes even online classes. If you're on a budget, then visit the public library and sign out books relevant to writing.

In addition, it would be very useful to join a writing group (online or in your local area) that critiques your work and gives you the opportunity to critique also. The group provides wonderful support and an avenue to sharpen your skills as you gain experience in writing, as well as exposure to other people's writing. For example, Writing.com is a good example of an online resource that provides many opportunities to share your writing, and get your work rated and reviewed. If you want to join a critique or review group, it offers that also.

The second step to becoming an author, is to have the right tools.

Tools Needed

Besides a comfortable chair, plenty of lighting, and a quiet room, you will need a computer with a word processing program (e.g., Microsoft Word), a printer, and plenty of paper.

Why a computer? First of all, publishers typically will request a copy of your files sent to them on a floppy disk. More importantly, working with a word processing program will aid you in many ways towards becoming a published author. It will provide the opportunity to save your work as a Word file, without having to use up tons of paper (as with a typewriter). This greatly aids you in keeping your work organized. It also gives you the flexibility to edit and re-edit large sections of your work quickly by allowing you to utilize the copy and paste functions.

Other advantages of using a computer word processing program is that it provides spell check capabilities, and also helps you count the number of words per page. In addition, when you want to spice up your vocabulary (For example, if you like to use the word "walk" often, and are getting tired of that word), place your cursor on the word "walk", hit shift F7. It will give you a list of synonyms you can choose from - like stroll, amble, etc.).

The time saved by using a computer is very valuable. It gives you more time available to write! Of course, if you don’t have the above materials, don’t let that stop you from writing that book! Using a pen and paper is perfectly fine. Books were written with these two basic tools for centuries.

Let’s assume you are using a computer and a Word processing software. First of all, before you begin writing, form a subdirectory that you can add all your chapters to. Maybe you know the title of your book already. Fine, then form a subdirectory using the name of the title. After you finish writing that first chapter (oh joy!), just save it as Chapter 1 under the subdirectory. If you are writing a book of poetry, then you might want to save each poem as a separate file.

When I write my chapters for my novel, I format them in double space mode, with a Times New Roman 11 font. All the margins are at least one inch. This way it will be ready for manuscript submission.

Try not to add your page numbers until the very last revision. Page numbers constantly change when you’re revising, so wait until the end.

Finally, another reason for having a computer is for Internet access. As a writer, you will have opportunities to submit your fiction online, such as http://www.Writing.com, or even your articles online for e-zines, such as http://www.articlecity.com. Any chance you can get to write online, do it. As long as it doesn't take too much time away from your book. It's also a free way of promoting yourself before the book is even published.

So you need to balance your time in writing that book, honing your writing skills, submitting your work along the way for others to critique, and promoting yourself. Can you do it? Of course you can!

The third step to becoming an author is:

What to Write

If you are planning to write a novel, it would help to know what general category your book is going to be in. Will it be in the romance, mystery, or science fiction category? If you don’t know, take some time and think about it. Read some books in those genres. Which books seem to attract you the most? It’s highly likely that you’ll be writing in the category that you like to read. My preference is romance because I read those types of books the most. Once you decide the category, then you are closer to writing that novel!

For poetry, you might start by writing a poem and submitting it to a poetry journal, or a poetry contest. Gain exposure for your poetry. Join a critique group so you can sharpen your poetry skills. A chapbook usually consists of about 25-35 poems. For a poetry book, you'll need at least 60 pages of poetry, if not more.

Types of Novelists

I have found over time, that there are two types of novelists. The first type is the writer who prefers drawing up a proposal or plan of what they will write about. The second type prefers to write whatever comes into their mind at that moment.

You decide which writer you will be.

Type 1 Novelist

They begin by describing the characters, their names, personalities, and sometimes their motives. Then they decide when and where the setting will take place. When will it take place? If it takes place before the 1900’s, then it will be considered historical. Also, will the setting be in the country, in a city (which city?), in a house (whose house), on a cruise ship? That needs to be defined also.

Once those decisions are made, they write brief sketches of each chapter. It could be a page or two long. Once all this is done, then the real writing begins. If this method works for you, then feel free to use it. It may take some time, but you will become more confident about what you’ll write once you go through this initial process.

Type 2 Novelist

What if you’re the type of person who doesn’t want to spend all that time writing proposals and character sketches? What if you’re like me, who prefers to just write whatever comes into your head? Then do it! Sit down and start writing. Write anything.

As the story develops, something wonderful begins brewing in your mind. Something called creativity. I’ve caught myself hours after I finished writing a chapter, and I’ll be preparing dinner, or walking somewhere, and a scene from my novel will begin to unfold. It’s called creative problem solving. My mind is working to solve the problem that the writing presents it, even though I’m not actively writing. When I get those urges, I immediately stop what I’m doing and jot down my thoughts. It’s helped me many times, particularly when everything clicks together.

How Long Will It Take?

It took me almost two years to write and find a publisher for my first novel, Lipsi’s Daughter. For other people, it may take longer or shorter, depending on the amount of time they allow for writing and how many pages they are writing. I know of authors that took six, seven, up to twelve years to write their first book. I also know of a famous author who writes two novels a year!

So unless you begin writing that first page of your book, you'll never know how long it'll take you to write it. Go ahead, make that first step, and good luck!

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Why Students Buy Term Papers

2008-05-26T15:00:00.001-07:00

The choice of most students to buy term papers has been a long-standing debate among students and professionals. Many stand against any form of buying term paper or availing any kind of writing service because of the ethical correctness issue. While some stand for practicality and convenience that bought a term paper brings.

Whereas cheating remains to be the main concern of people opposing the concept of buying term papers and other academic pieces, students also have reasons, if not, logical justifications in opting to buy term papers.

1.Class schedules and work loads are hectic.

Dealing with academic life especially college life is quite demanding. With professors giving tons of assignments and research papers, a student’s work load is often more than enough that one can possibly handle. It is a given in any stage of an academic life that students need to comply with all the requirements of all their professors regardless of the scholastic value of an activity or assignment. With fully-booked weekdays and weekends schedules dedicated to accomplishing various school tasks, students find room for breathing when they buy term papers – a single nerve-racking requirement out of the many others. If finding room for breathing is cheating, a lot of honest students have died of suffocation.

2.Needs assistance with composition or proofreading.

Not everybody can write soundly. Some students only have number of ideas but cant’ convert it into a cohesive written form. A lot of students encounter this difficulty because some are born writers and many are not. Many students tend to buy term papers to compensate with their writing needs. Because students aspire for good grades, they can’t afford to risk by trying to come up with a good term paper and compromising a lot of other requirements at hand. Meanwhile, some students need another set of eyes for editing. Availing writing service also aids the students in their editing and proofreading needs.

3.Subject or topic difficulty.

Quality writing services only have professionals and skilled writers who are experts in their respective fields – history, biology, psychology, etc. The main dilemma of students in writing their term papers is the difficulty of the subject to be discussed. Term papers demand scholastic value that only through thorough research can be achieved. Sometimes, students are caught up in a situation wherein the topic assigned to them is way difficult than the rest. With too much pressure and work loads to handle, to buy term papers written by professionals is the most practical way out.

4.Having exams and successive deadlines to beat.

The most common grumble of students is not just having tons of assignments but it is aggravated by multiple examination schedules. It is an inevitable dilemma of students to balance successive deadlines with written academic exams. Writing a term paper and preparing for a written evaluation both requires time for preparation. Some students prioritize one from another. Taking into consideration that a student can’t hire someone to review and take the exam on his behalf, to buy term paper to allow more time to review is a more feasible option.

Students have different excuses and justifications regarding the argument in buying term papers. While others see it as another means of cheating, pressure-bombarded students perceive it as a means to a more manageable, enjoyable academic life.

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Tips on Writing Research Papers

2008-05-26T15:00:00.000-07:00

Save your time; Do the best deal!

2008-05-25T15:00:00.002-07:00

When you shop in a Wal-Mart store, I'm sure you do price comparison! Everybody does, me too. Shopping in a store gives me 3-4 choices. But standing in the store and doing Price comparison squeezes hours of my precious weekend.

Give it a thought…one eager shopper standing in a bookstore looking at various options to do the best purchase decision. The major factor going on his mind is Price. What does this means? Talking in the computer language. Price comparison-shopping program is running in his CPU (brain). Directly or indirectly, we all do price comparison, while shopping.

Imagine you sitting at home and then doing price comparison! Yes, the internet, gives you the luxury of price comparison.. just a click away! Marvellous..Isn’t it! Have a look at the most competitive book price comparison engine….here comes the King- www.gauchotexts.com. Www.gauchotexts.com brings data from so many merchants, so that you can compare, it shows you the best deal, the best rates for the day and all the discounts! What more can a shopper ask for!

I will also tell you a trick, which will help you save more money when you do online shopping on www.gauchotexts.com. Here you get a customised shopping cart; store your books in it and when you plan to buy, just click on the refresh button placed on this shopping cart and here comes the magic…This little intelligent shopping cart will give you the best rates for the present day, for all the books stored in your personalised shopping cart!

I simple love to compare book price on www.gauchotexts.com it’s win-win situation for the shoppers! Give it a try and you will be amazed.

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A Bachelorette Party Ideas that you wonât leave In the Doghouse

2008-05-25T15:00:00.001-07:00

Planning a bachelorette party should center around the personality of the bachelorette. Is she fun and outgoing or is she quieter and prefer not to be in the spotlight? Also, with the traditional bachelorette party, would she be comfortable with the more risqué, or would it be offensive? These are all important questions, which will determine the success of your bachelorette party.

You can choose activities centered at home, or out in the community. Community gathering places include the traditional restaurant and bars. Increasingly popular are creative outings such as spas, sporting events, camping, and amusement parks.

Activity Ideas

•Bachelor and bachelorette parties are associated with strip clubs and limo rides. There are also many creative "PG-13" ideas to make it fun for all!

•Here are some activity ideas:

•Roast the bachelorette. Include all kinds of funny memories and embarrassing videos or photos!

•Is the bachelorette known for any particular hobby or activity? How about an all-inclusive sport such as bowling or ice-skating? It may have better participation than if the bachelorette is known for sky diving or extreme sports!

•Gambling on a winner? Choose a casino night for an easy to put together bachelorette party.

•Is a happy marriage in the cards? Use a fortune telling theme complete with palm readings and crystal balls.

•Pamper the bachelorette. You can pamper her with a day at the spa complete with manicures, pedicures, and massages. It can take place at the spa itself, or create a pajama party for in-home pampering.

•A western theme can be used to "wrangle" the bachelorette into marriage. Decorate with "wanted" posters of the bachelor or bachelorette. Give a lasso as a prop to the bachelorette as a metaphor for "roping" her man to the alter!

•Create a time capsule to be opened in five years. Include some of her cherished pre-marriage items and a questionnaire about what she thinks marriage will be like. For example, "Who (bachelor or bachelorette) will there be "more of to love (weight gain)" in five years?" Make a video of the party to include in her time capsule.

•Board games or card game championships

•Hold a couples party and play the Newlywed Game to see whose most in tune with each other.

•Murder mystery party with a honeymooning script. Purchase murder mystery scripts or use a local murder mystery company to host the event.

•Hire a belly dancer or salsa dancer to give lessons and give the bachelorette a little spice for her honeymoon. Everyone will have a good laugh as they try out their new skills!

I hope these bachelorette party ideas helped spark some fun ideas for your upcoming celebration!

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Undergraduates Goals: What You Should Know When You Grad !

2008-05-25T15:00:00.000-07:00

I loved college. I majored in a subject who fascinated me, took the classes I wanted to, and got great grades. When I graduated, I thought I knew everything I needed to know to succeed in the big postgraduate world. I was wrong. Most of my undergraduate classes taught skills which I knew already or which came naturally to me; skills which were harder for me to master I had mostly skipped over. And what huge gaps I still have in my cultural understanding! An academic no longer, I still occasionally think about all of the knowledge and skills which I missed out on, and which would have been useful in both academia and the non-academic world.

Here is a laundry list of the skills and knowledge that anyone with a bachelor's degree should acquire before he or she graduates.

Expository writing skills.

Every college graduate should be able to write a decent essay on a non-fiction topic. The ability to communicate in written form is important not only in post-graduate study but also in almost any non-academic career if you want to rise to a high position. If writing papers are not your forte, make sure to struggle through enough college papers to know that you can (moderately) succeed at high-level writing anyway.

--Relevant classes: Many literature and social science classes require papers.

Basic research skills.

If you are interested in pursuing an academic or research-based career after you graduate, you need to gain some experience with serious research as an undergraduate. You shouldn't be afraid of classes which ask you to analyze and synthesize complex data, formulate a hypothesis, and write a paper proving or disproving the hypothesis. If you have fears about plagiarism, creative thinking, extended critical analysis, or research paper writing, you should take a class that forces you to develop the research skills you need to successfully work through these issues. Make your mistakes in undergraduate study where expectations are low, before you mess up in graduate school where the expectations are ten times as high.

--Relevant classes: Take advanced classes like a senior research seminar, an honors thesis class in your major, or an undergraduate research assistant position. You can also take less advanced classes outside of your field that require intensive research.

Ability to analyze information critically.

This is a key skill that will stand you in good stead for the rest of your life. You must be able to sort through information you read and hear to know if it is valid, factual, authoritative, matched to your needs, etc. Taking all information at face value is naive and dangerous.

--Relevant classes: A critical reasoning philosophy class or critical argumentation speech class will provide some of the tools for critical analysis.

Ability to find patterns in data, makes inferences, and creates algorithmic solutions.

Many higher-level problem-solving classes stress this skill.

--Relevant classes: An introductory linguistics class will give you lots of practice in pattern analysis.

Basic mathematical, algebraic, and statistical skills.

From personal money management to polls to health articles to gambling, you need these basic numerical skills to understand many aspects of adult life.

--Relevant classes: Take classes in mathematics, algebra, and statistics.

Basic acquaintance with history, philosophy, literature, and art.

This is the quintessential knowledge of a person well-educated in the liberal arts. A basic comprehensive knowledge of these subjects will enable you to converse with kings.

--Relevant classes: Take history, philosophy, literature, music appreciation, and art history classes.

Basic acquaintance with the life and physical sciences.

A well-educated person in today's technologically-advanced society has a basic understanding of the sciences, the human body, and the physical environment.

--Relevant classes: Take physical science (chemistry and physics) classes and an anatomy class as well as life, earth, or space science classes.

Basic knowledge of American governance, political philosophy, and economy.

As American citizens, we are part of a participatory democracy and a powerful capitalist economic system. To keep our country strong, we must be well-educated in American history and politics. We should also understand how our economic system works.

--Relevant classes: Take classes in American History, the American political system, and economics.

Basic understanding of human diversity.

We live in a troubled, hostile world, where many people find it hard to tolerate and understand each other's differences. The undergraduate experience allows you to counteract this tendency by exposing yourself to various cultures, languages, and lifestyles. A liberal arts education should teach that underneath our many differences, we share all of the same basic needs.

-- Relevant classes: Human beings are diverse in a multitude of ways, so there are a wide variety of classes that explore these differences. Take classes in anthropology, sociology, abnormal psychology, linguistics, foreign languages, and history (other than American or European history). There are also many classes that explore cultural differences in ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion, and other demographic groups.

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Keeping It Simple: The Subject-Verb-Object Structure

2008-05-24T15:00:00.004-07:00

Clear writing, direct writing, simple writing, economical writing, easy-to-understand writing. All these phrases mean the same thing, and they have one purpose—Help the reader to understand what you are writing. Their opposites are fuzzy writing, confusing writing, cumbersome writing, complicated writing, and hard-to-understand writing.

How do we produce the first type of writing and avoid the second? This is the question that many writers have asked. They ask this question because they care whether or not their readers understand them. Most people who hire editors are seeking help with this exact problem.

At Precise Edit, we have a powerful, yet simple, strategy for producing clear writing that is superior to all other strategies: use the Subject-Verb-Object sentence structure.

1. Identifying the Subject, Verb, and Object

First, let's define our terms. Then we will examine how this strategy works.

Subjects: The subject of the sentence is the "doer" of the main action. Subjects come in two flavors. The grammatical subject is the word in the subject's place in a sentence. The rhetorical subject is the person, place, thing, or idea that the sentence is about. This distinction is critical to producing clear writing. Let's take a look at an example to see how the grammatical subject differs from the rhetorical subject.

“A major element of the strategy is simplifying that which is difficult.”

In this example, "element" is the grammatical subject. This word is in the subject's place in the sentence, followed by the verb "is." However, we ask the question, "What is this sentence actually about?" The answer is "simplifying." Therefore, the rhetorical subject is "simplifying."

You may have noticed that this sentence does, indeed, follow the Subject-Verb-Object structure. The problem with this sentence, however, is that the grammatical subject and the rhetorical subject are not the same. We want only one subject, i.e., the grammatical subject and the rhetorical subject should be the same. When we put the rhetorical subject in the place of the grammatical subject, we get,

"Simplifying the difficult is a major element of the strategy."

Verbs: A sentence may have several verbs. The verb in the "verb's place" following the subject is generally the main verb upon which the rest of the sentence hangs. The main action in a sentence is called the rhetorical action. The main verb and the rhetorical action may not be the same. Generally, when we are trying to identify the rhetorical subject, we first have to identify the rhetorical action.

Objects: The object of a sentence is the recipient of the action or the person, place, thing, or idea upon which the rhetorical subject acts. Not all sentences have an object.

Let's look at an example and identify these parts.

"John sent a bouquet of flowers to Mary to surprise her on her birthday."

Verbs: This example has two verbs, "send" and "surprise," but the rhetorical action is "sent." In this sentence, "sent" is both the grammatical verb and the rhetorical subject.

Subject: The "doer" of the rhetorical action is John, so "John" is the rhetorical subject. In this case, "John" is also the grammatical subject.

Object: What did John send? The action is performed on "bouquet," so "bouquet" is the object. Everything else in this sentence provides additional description or elaboration upon the basic idea of the sentence: "John sent a bouquet."

Here, we can easily see that this sentence uses the subject-verb-object structure.

(For those who REALLY like grammar, notice that the direct object, "bouquet of flowers," is placed before the prepositional phrase "to Mary" instead of using the indirect object "Mary." If we use the indirect object, the sentence will read, "John sent Mary a bouquet of flowers to surprise her on her birthday." By using the indirect object, the simple form of the sentence seems to be "John sent Mary." This may momentarily confuse the reader until he reads the rest of the sentence and figures out that John did not send Mary somewhere but sent something to Mary.)

2. Using S + V + O to Simplify Complex Sentences

Our formula for clear sentences is S + V + O, but, actually, the expanded version of this structure is Rhetorical Subject + Rhetorical Action + Object. When a sentence follows this structure, complex ideas can be presented clearly and simply. Also, based on the above concepts, the grammatical subject should be the rhetorical subject, and the main verb should be the rhetorical action.

Let's examine a sentence that does not follow these guidelines and then see how applying these concepts help clarify the sentence.

"Avoiding ambiguity is a task that many writers find hard to accomplish."

This poor sentence has the following elements:

• Grammatical subject: "Avoiding ambiguity"

• Rhetorical subject: "writers"

• Main verb: "is"

• Rhetorical action: "find"

• Object: none, though the phrase "that many writers find hard to accomplish" is in the object position. However, the object of the rhetorical action is "Avoiding ambiguity," which is currently in the subject position. (What a mess!)

Now let's apply our formula and see if the result is any better. Again, the formula is Rhetorical Subject + Rhetorical Action + Object.

We want our revised sentence to have the following elements:

• Rhetorical AND grammatical subject: "writers"

• Rhetorical action AND main verb: "find"

• Object: "avoiding ambiguity"

Putting these together, we have "Writers" + "find" + "avoiding ambiguity." When we add the descriptors and elaboration, the result is:

"Writers find avoiding ambiguity a hard task to accomplish."

After applying the formula, this revised sentence is more direct and clear.

3. Economical and Efficient Writing

(Feeling a bit overwhelmed? Skip this section. It is off-topic, though potentially useful to those who want to dig deeper into the issue of economical and efficient writing.)

Let’s take another look at the sentence: "Writers find avoiding ambiguity a hard task to accomplish."

To use my Aunt Irene's favorite word, Precise Edit's editors are persnickety. We can criticize even this clear sentence to discover whether or not we can make it simpler and clearer. We find that we can.

Performing a task implies accomplishing something or attempting to achieve some result, so "to accomplish" can be removed. This gives us "Writers find avoiding ambiguity hard."

This sentence is still not good enough, especially if we, too, are trying to avoid ambiguous writing. "Hard" has multiple meanings, including "Not easily compressed" and "difficult." In this sentence, "hard" refers to "difficult," so we'll use that word. Now we have "Writers find avoiding ambiguity difficult."

Looking a bit deeper, we find another issue to address. "Writers" implies writing, and "avoiding ambiguity" refers to the writing that writers produce. Thus, two parts of this sentence refer to writing, which is one too many. The sentence really isn't about writers; it's about writing. The rhetorical subject is "writing," or, in this case, "ambiguous writing." We can remove the current subject, "writers," and place "writing" in the subject's place. Now we have "Ambiguous writing is difficult to avoid."

(Note: We could also assume that the sentence is about “avoiding,” in which case we could use “avoiding ambiguous writing” as the rhetorical subject. This would give us “Avoiding ambiguous writing is difficult.”)

Finally, we try to use positive statements. Instead of the negative term "ambiguous writing," we want to write about "clear writing," or "writing clearly." What is clear writing? Difficult. After all these changes, we are finally left with "Writing clearly is difficult."

Let's look at the evolution of this sentence:

1. Avoiding ambiguity is a task that many writers find hard to accomplish.

2. Writers find avoiding ambiguity a hard task to accomplish.

3. Writers find avoiding ambiguity hard.

4. Writers find avoiding ambiguity difficult.

5. Ambiguous writing is difficult to avoid. / Avoiding ambiguous writing is difficult.

6. Writing clearly is difficult.

4. S + V + O in Action

Let's examine another example to see how this simple formula helps clarify complicated sentences.

"John was the man, not me, to my dismay, preferred by Mary when she examined her choices of suitors."

You can fight your way through this sentence to understand its meaning. Or we can use the S + V + O structure to revise this sentence so you won’t have to. First, let's identify the elements.

• Grammatical subject: "John"

• Rhetorical subject: "Mary"

• Main verb: "was"

• Rhetorical action: “preferred”

• Object: none, though the phrase "when she examined her choices of suitors" is in the object position. The object of the rhetorical action "preferred" is "John," which is in the subject position. (What a mess!)

We want our revised sentence to have the following elements:

• Rhetorical AND grammatical subject: "Mary" (or “she”)

• Rhetorical action AND main verb: "preferred"

• Object: "John"

Putting these together, we have "Mary/she" + "preferred" + "John." When we add the descriptors and elaboration, one result is:

"When Mary examined her choices of suitors, she preferred John, to my dismay."

5. Three Final Tips for Using the S + V + O Sentence Structure

Let me show you one really poor sentence, give you the final three tips for using this sentence structure, then show how these three tips can clarify complicated writing.

"The old man, who had been sitting at the same bench for as many years as I could remember, never speaking, always watching the cars as they raced by, read his newspaper."

To revise this sentence, we need to give you three more pieces of advice:

1. Keep the subject, verb, and object close together.

2. Keep the subject-verb-object combinations separate.

3. Limit the number of subject-verb-object combinations in a sentence.

The main subject, verb, and object in this sentence are "man," "read," and "newspaper," respectively. However, this sentence also has the subject-verb combinations "who had been sitting," "I could remember," and "they raced." "They raced" serves as the object to "watching," which is not the main action of the sentence. Finally, this sentence has two verbs that relate to the man but that are not part of the main verb: "speaking" and "watching."

The most important combination is, obviously, the main subject, the main verb, and the main object: "The old man read his newspaper." We'll start with that one and add the floating verb "sitting," which he is doing while reading. This gives us: "The old man sat reading his newspaper."

What else do we know about the man? "He had sat there silently watching the cars go by." (Note: We changed "never speaking" to the adverb "silently," which means the same thing and removes the unassociated verb "speaking.") Finally, we'll use the combination that tells when he has sat there: "For as many years as I could remember...."

Putting all these together, the revised version is as follows:

"The old man sat on the bench reading his newspaper.
For as many years as I could remember, he had sat there silently watching the cars race by."

Why is this better? First, the two new sentences keep the subject-verb-object combinations tight. The first sentence has "Man sat reading newspaper." The introductory phrase in the second sentence has "I could remember." The main clause of the second sentence uses "He had sat watching the cars." Very few words are interspersed within these statements.

Second, unlike the original version, the S + V + O combinations are separate.

Third, the number of S + V + O combinations are limited in each sentence. The first sentence only has one, and the second sentence only has two.

6. Summary

At Precise Edit, our most important editing technique is to create the S + V + O sentence structure. We believe that you will find it similarly useful. Since this article is a bit long, we'll leave you with a quick summary of everything above. If you can apply these ideas, your writing will be clearer.

Use the S + V + O sentence structure. All following ideas spring from this one.

1. The grammatical subject and the rhetorical subject should be the same.

2. The main verb and the rhetorical action should be the same.

3. Keep the subject, verb, and object close together.

4. Keep the subject-verb-object combinations separate.

5. Limit the number of S + V + O combinations in a sentence.

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How students make their essay quality

2008-05-24T15:00:00.003-07:00

In additional words, the essay must be well prepared (i.e. organized) and offered in a way that the person who reads finds easy to track and unambiguous: it must look neat and not present any obstacles to the reader. It must have a clear readable interesting style. However, above all, it must consist of your thoughts about historical texts. This is the centre of it: this and this only, gets the marks. Not quotes from critics, not generalizations at second hand about literary history, not satisfying and lagging; your thoughts, that you have had while in the proceed of reading specific bits of literary texts, which can be adduced in the appearance of quotations to reverse up your point of view.

The current academic writing scenario demands quality writing from students and in order to write essays effectively and increase essay quality there are certain norms and principles that should always be followed.

Essay writing is something that we all do every day without even noticing how important it really is. The first step to increase essay quality is to find the suitable topic for the essay. The student’s goal should always be to find something interesting and important simultaneously.

After the student has selected an appropriate topic then he or she must conceptualize the ideas related to the selected topic. After this comes the stage of data collection. Students must then search for the relevant data and information in relation to the topic and the essay. However it should always be remembered that essay quality depends on the individuality of the essay, therefore all the sources used in the essay or works of others should be properly acknowledged and it is vital that plagiarism should be avoided at all costs. Also a student should always bring to lights many facts from the best author or study regarding the topic being debated.

A student always chooses the source with the most influence over the area of study as this would appeal the reader in many ways. The student should be well aware of using proper referencing techniques, as this would help the student in managing deadlines as well as increasing the credibility of the essay.

If you skip the references or do them poorly you will frequently lose marks so it is important to do them appropriately. Your department should have some strategy on how they desire you to do these, so ask for a copy and pass on to it. You could include footnotes at the end of each page referencing any speech marks or studies you have mentioned, or you could include the references in the body of the essay.

Essay writing advice is to help the student in creating an essay from a real life experience. For example, the essay is depend on how to deal with an approach held in one's family that is opposed to what one knows and values. Writing an essay such as this helps one develop technique in explaining one's position on a subject in such a manner as to guide or help another person understand another viewpoint besides his or her own.

This article has been represented by Alex Peterson. If you want to know more about the quality in essay you can easily access the following URL from everywhere. Here you will get many tips and techniques about your need.

www.essaystart.com

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Proverbs with Wisdom

2008-05-24T15:00:00.002-07:00

Proverbs come from the Latin word proverbium. It is a phrase that has a lot of meaning metaphorically. So if you want to tell somebody do not sit idle else it may work against you, you can say, “empty mind is a devils workshop” which means if you sit idle you will end up thinking and doing evil things.

If a proverb is distinct from others with good phrasing it can be termed as an aphorism. When a proverb is used to describe a rule of conduct, it can be termed as a maxim. Proverbs were generally derived from different cultures and human experience that came from seniors in the society who knew how a situation and how should it be dealt with.

The books of Proverbs from the Bible and Latin language from the medieval times have played a significant role in spreading proverbs. A few proverbs are mentioned below so you have a thorough understanding of these powerful sentences.

• A friend in need is a friend indeed.

This famous Shakespeare’s proverb used in his plays meant if a friend helps you out in your time of difficulty then he or she is truly a good friend.

A burnt child dreads fire

When a person comes across an accident it changes the person’s attitude, fears, likes and dislikes for life.

• First come, first served

This is a very common proverb. Used by retail outlets, as and when offers are given out. Sometimes even at one’s home it may be experienced, as the person who comes in first may get served with a dish and the person coming in later may miss it as it is over.

• As you sow, so shall you reap

This proverb is taught to us in schools where we are taught to think right and reap its benefits. A similar proverb is what goes around, comes around.

Some more include:

• A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush

• Between the devil and the deep sea

• Birds of a feather flock together

• A rolling stone gathers no moss

• Every cloud has a silver lining

• Fire is a good servant but a bad master

• All that glitters is not gold.

Just to summarise proverbs are nothing but short sayings or short stories which we have learnt in our child hood days just as the nursery rhymes.

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Writing Tips For Novice Authors

2008-05-24T15:00:00.001-07:00

The Best Way to Teach Yourself Spanish

2008-05-24T15:00:00.000-07:00

Copyright (c) 2008 Steven Magill

You can easily teach yourself Spanish if you are determined to. It may be easier to have someone else responsible for teaching you, but with a little determination and perseverance, you can do it.

One of the best and simplest things you can do is tune into the Spanish speaking TV channels at least once every day. Do it at news time in the evenings, or mornings. News programs are a great way to begin the process of being able to teach yourself Spanish.

With TV news you can see the story being reported and you can hear the reporter's voice. You won't understand much of it at first, but as time goes one you will begin to understand more and more. At first the words will all be jumbled together, but after a few weeks they will start to jump out at you.

Of course, you will need a Spanish course as well to teach yourself Spanish properly. The Internet is littered with excellent sites all vying with each other to sell you a course on Spanish. Some of them are really excellent and some are perhaps not so excellent.

Seek out several of the review sites on Spanish language courses. They will try to influence your choice of course, but they can be useful too. They will show you the most popular of what's available. If several of the review sites all pinpoint one particular course as being the best, take a look. It may not be for you, but it may well be too.

You need to get into a routine if you ever hope to teach yourself Spanish successfully. It's no use picking it up occasionally and forgetting about it again for several weeks. You need to study at least for 30 minutes a day. That's not long. Cut out a TV program (but not the Spanish news!), or cut out reading the morning newspaper. Make a simple vow to yourself that you will do it, and then just do it!

Aim to make definite progress in your efforts to teach yourself Spanish. Set yourself realistic goals and reach them. If you cannot reach a goal in a reasonable time, change the goal to something you can reach. Review what you have learned on a regular basis. It's very easy to forget.

If at all possible, try to find a way to speak to other people who can speak Spanish. Don't choose someone who is learning like you; they won't be of any help to you, and may possibly hinder you. You need someone who has the patience to listen to your struggling attempts to say simple things. They need to be able to gently correct you, though not so much that it will put you off trying. You need to be encouraged and nurtured through the process.

If you decide to teach yourself Spanish you won't find it easy, but you will find it satisfying. Whenever you feel that your efforts are going nowhere, stop for a moment and think back to when you started. Think back and remember when you couldn't pick out a single word from the jumble of sound that is the Spanish language. Then fast forward to where you are at and realize that your attempts to teach yourself Spanish is working, and working well too!

------

At last! For men and women who want quick, simple and effective Spanish language help ....

http://www.learnspanishquickly.org/

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Plagiarism Kills

2008-05-22T15:00:00.000-07:00

They say that in this world when everything is within reach, students who need a well-written term paper only have to log on in the Internet and their problem is quickly solved. Well not exactly. Many students easily get overwhelmed by the intellectual discourse of their custom term paper that they would not even take time to consider if the work they received is authentic or wasn't copied from someone else's work. The thought of possibly putting their academic career in jeopardy for violating the anti-plagiarism law don't even cross their minds once they received what they paid for. Though most of the companies offering custom essay and custom term paper services guarantee original works because they use anti-plagiarism softwares, it is still an advantage for students to know how these tools work.

Plagiarism is the unauthorized use or copying of words or ideas of another author. The advent of the digital world has made plagiarism easier than ever. With a few mouse clicks, anyone can copy and paste sentences and paragraphs, or an entire essay to make it appear as if he or she was its author. Anti-plagiarism tools are softwares that scan and cross-references a written work of a student against an electronic database to detect if it had been copied or re-written. This software can detect if the student used the cut-and-paste method to get information from websites, if he bought a custom paper from a company that doesn't submit original work, or if he copied the essay paper of another student. If the plagiarism software finds something suspicious, it will present a report in a convenient format - plain text, HTML files, Microsoft Word and Word Perfect.

Anti-plagiarism tools can either be web-based (free) or be installed softwares. Search engines like Google and Gigablast are considered the free tools of plagiarism detection; they can search the authenticity of complete sentences or phrases. The drawback, however, of some anti-plagiarism tools – both free and installed - are their limited database. If a professor checks a submitted essay or term paper and its contents are beyond the parameters of a particular tool, the professor might consider the work original. The best thing for a professor to do is still to educate students about plagiarism. Students need to be aware that plagiarism is a combination of stealing and lying, and it's showing disrespect not only to the professor but also to other students as well. Copying term papers or even parts of a term paper robs a student of the wonderful opportunity to discover something new, and the chance to improve his skills in doing research, in analyzing and organizing, in writing, and in managing time.

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Business letter writing tools are readily available.

2008-05-21T15:00:00.006-07:00

Free business letter writing ebook.

When you use the free ebook offering sample business letters, you will be provided what you need in order to effectively communication key messages necessary in business.

Without rambling, a short and clearly stated letter will get the point across most effectively. While you do not want to seem short, the point needs to be made in as few words as possible.

Being cordial yet understanding takes certain finesse. The lessons you will learn when using this free tool for writing business letters will provide you with the right approach to say what you need to say.

A professional and focused letter will be more appreciated than an erratic letter that makes no clear point.

Some really great sample business letters are included to get you through most business situations without seeming unprofessional. In business, letter writing is a very important skill.

When you come across as an uneducated person who does not know how to write a business letter, how many people do you think are going to take you seriously? If they are laughing at your letters, what are they saying about you or your business?

When you see how the sample business letters are concise, properly set up, and have all the information that is relevant to the subject in the right format, it will seem senseless to you to use anything else.

The Business Letter Writing ebook will show you the right way to keep your personal feelings from interfering with your professional life. Mixing the two is typically not a good idea.

When you use this tool to help you get on the right track, you will wonder why you did not take advantage of this sooner.

The idea behind sending a well written business letter is to get results. In addition, you want to ensure that you receive a response that is clear and concise.

The many samples available include an apology letter, thank you letters, donations requests, collection letters, reference letters, letters of resignation and more.

When you utilize any of these sample business letters, you will see how important it is to use the right approach in your written communications.

For example, if you need to write an apology letter for any reason, do not dwell on the apology. Make it, say you have learned from it, and you hope to maintain a business relationship with their company.

You do not want to keep apologizing. One time is sufficient. To keep stating it repeatedly makes the person you sent it to begin to wonder if you are unsure of yourself. Do they want a business that is run by someone who is not sure of themselves?

If you are asking for a donation, state what is for, how it will benefit the receiver, and how much you will appreciate their consideration. Do not beg for money, or lay a guilt trip on someone.

Using the correct approach for this donation request can mean the difference between receiving the donation versus your letter being filed in the trashcan.

These are a couple examples of how much you can learn from the Business Letter Writing ebook. Take advantage of this free tool today by visiting Leadership-Tools.com.

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A Look At The Positive Aspects Of The American Sign Language

2008-05-21T15:00:00.005-07:00

American sign language is the language of the deaf community in America and English speaking countries around North America. This language involves the use of body language like hands and the reading of impressions on lips. Body and facial expressions constitute this kind of special communication. The birth of this kind of language was due to necessity. Many American families with deaf children had to employ teachers to instruct their children but, with growing need, the language is being taught in secondary and post secondary level. Family members and friends have been known to learn this kind of language to help deaf people.

American sign language was influenced so much by the sprouting of the European sign languages in the 17th century. A that time, Italy and France had developed their own sign languages. The language has evolved over the years and is fitted with its own vocabulary and grammar. It has contributed to other sign languages of the world. The language is very popular and and in fact, it is the third most used language in the U.S. It has contributed to integration and reduced barriers that might have otherwise been very large. Also, by having a need to communicate with animals, humans continue to device forms of communication; This has been inspired largely by sign language.

American sign language has also encouraged the communication with infants because, before children can speak, they speak. Not in a way that we can always understand but, by signs and body language. Encouraging a child to use this language can enhance their intellect and prepare them gradually for speech. Children who learn to express themselves this way are at an advantage compared to their counterparts who will be much slower. Sign language has further inspired contemporary art characterized with body movement that can entertain people. The thoughtful and deep moves manages to impress and provoke the emotions of the audience making the experience a wholesome one.

Such a simple thing like finger counting may not seem like a sign language but, is a less complex sign language. Even with normal speech and brain function, people found it necessary for this aid. This goes to show that we cannot live independent of sign language. Apart from creating a voice for the deaf, it has done so much and the least people can do is to recognize it. Many have been on the forefront to support its development and by it growing to such tremendous heights, shows that there has been goodwill.

Some organizations ask for donations for sign language development and one must make sure that they are legitimate. Also by floating so much information in the websites, people have become empowered and this has been a positive aspect. It is through working together that sign language will be spread to parts of the world where the need is so great. Many parents and their children have noted amazing results and written back to to thank visual language providers. It is very inexpensive to empower yourself with the tools. The language can be learned online making it very much in reach of the common man.

Muna Wa Wanjiru Has Been Researching and Reporting on Sign Language for Years. For More Information on American Sign Language, Visit His Site at AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE Post Your Views On American Sign Language At My Blog here American Sign Language

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My Writing Is My Product

2008-05-21T15:00:00.004-07:00

Three years ago I was approached by the director of a new company who needed a few ghostwritten articles and wanted to know my fees. The first part of the letter addressed “Dear writer”, not me personally, which tells me this director was mass submitting this request to several writers he found online. Not that much of a big deal, I thought to myself, I could easily reply with a quote. But here’s where the query for a writer got me clicking the delete button instead…

The director changed thoughts midstream and offered a second alternative. Instead of paying me to write an article for him, he wanted me to write about his company and then spend hours pitching the idea to several print publications. He proposed an arrangement that looked very much like this:

“We do not purchase the article; however, you write the article and submit it to [topic specific] magazines and you work out the reprint fees with those magazines. You allow us to use the article, free of charge, for publicity and marketing purposes—with your byline of course. Both parties are required to keep each other informed as to where the article is submitted, for the first year, to prevent duplicate submissions.”

Had he sent me a publicity email letting me know he was available should one of my writing assignments require his expertise, I would’ve held onto his information for inclusion in future topic-related articles. But that’s not what he did.

I wanted to email him back and say, “HELLO! I don’t know what you think writers do all day, but you are requesting that I act as a PR agent for your company and not get paid for it. That is not only disrespectful of my talents as a writer, but as a human being who earns a living from her writing. If I proposed the same scenario to you, would you honestly consider putting in hours of unpaid work to promote my business, The Dabbling Mum.com, without receiving a single dime for it? Or with the hope of being paid by another publication? I highly doubt it. Thank you, but no thanks!”

But instead I simply declined his offer.

Had he offered to pay me to ghostwrite the article for him, he could’ve retained all rights to the article and pitched, sold, or given away the article for free to whomever he pleased. Had he asked me to write the article for him with one-time rights to use my article on his website, with my byline, I would’ve retained the rights to the article, asked him to pay a reprint fee for each medium he wanted to place the article, and then—at my discretion—pitch the article as a reprint to other publications myself. But I was definitely under no obligation to tell him where I sold those reprints.

In all honesty, I’ve encountered several small business owners with similar pitches, and no matter what deal I came up with, these business owners wanted to either pay peanuts to reuse my work anywhere they pleased without further compensation or they wanted to sweet talk me into giving my work to them for free—even going so far as to offer a barter arrangement I really couldn’t use.

But I wasn’t always this confident in my writing skills or my business. In fact, I’ve been burned or “run over the coals” more times than I care to count. But with age comes wisdom and with wisdom comes a belief in one’s self and one’s abilities.

Over the years, I’ve learned a few valuable lessons, like:

• Never give up all rights to your work unless you feel the compensation is worth it.

• Every paid writing assignment has the potential of becoming a paid reprint, if you know which rights to keep.

• If you seriously aren’t going to pitch the article as a reprint, use it in a book compilation, or use it in another form, negotiate a ghostwritten contract instead.

• Believe in yourself enough to charge what your expertise and experience dictates.

• Believe in yourself enough to turn down writing assignments that simply do not interest you, are outside your area of expertise, or cause you to feel uneasy.

• If you accept a writing assignment and later discover you hate the topic or the person you are working for, don’t walk away leaving the client hanging. Stay professional, give the assignment everything you’ve got, complete the assignment, get paid, and then turn down the next assignment.

In the end, it all boils down to running my freelance career as a business and remembering that my writing is my product.

About The Author:

Alyice Edrich is the award winning editor, freelance writer, and aspiring artist. Visit her websites to learn how you can earn $50 in two hours or up to $10K working from home in your spare time (http://thedabblingmum.com/ebookstore) or to learn more about designing your own personalized gift (http://alyiceedrich.net).

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Does essay provide knowledge to students?

2008-05-21T15:00:00.003-07:00

As we know that essay writing is not an easy and simple task as people perceive it to be; it needs vast knowledge and thorough understanding of the topic given. When a student starts writing an essay, he/she should follow certain steps to write an essay. First and foremost step is to analyze the topic of the essay very deeply; then he/she should search for the information related to that topic. The more a student searches about the material and relevant information the more he/she gets knowledge which can prove to be very helpful in his/her educational life.

The people who read that essay, they also get informed about that particular topic. In short we can say that essay is the source of sharing knowledge; through essay any information and knowledge could not remain stagnant in a particular person’s heart and mind. Knowledge can easily flow from one person to another through essay.

Essay does not have any particular length; it can be very short and very long as well. It depends upon the topic; but what ever is the word limit, an essay can be very helpful in increasing knowledge as an essay envelops information about the topic. Essay or any piece of writing is the image of a person’s thought, perception and conceptualization which we can see through the mirror of a person’s writing style. Essay is the way of testing a person’s writing ability and level of knowledge.

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What are the guidelines for writing an essay?

2008-05-21T15:00:00.002-07:00

Writing as essay is a chance to display your knowledge and understanding; along with your personal opinion and recommendation by critically analyzing the factual information about the particular topic.

Presentation is also very important regarding writing; the more the presentation is strong the more it will be appreciated by the readers. Following are certain writing guidelines which are very important to follow when you start writing essay:

Title

Statement

Introduction

Discussion

Comment

Compare

Contrast

Criticize

Evaluate

Justify

Prove

Summarize

Conclude

Regarding the steps to start essay writing; the first step is to consider the title what is the demand of the title. If you are selecting your own topic, you should know what you want to come across your reader. After this you have to provide the statement or problem statement which you are going to prove in the end. Then a brief but proper introduction should be given to make an impression to the reader and go through the discussion of the topic. In discussion you can provide information along with commenting on the available information criticize the things that you think unfair. Then give a compare and contrast regarding the essay topic, evaluate your criticism, justify and prove it. Then give a short summary of the whole essay last but not the least is the conclusion which should be authentic and a piece of your own thinking. Finally essay needs referencing and citation; the sources you use in your essay they should be incorporated.

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Tips to improve essay writing and formatting!

2008-05-21T15:00:00.001-07:00

First of all there should be a brief introduction of the essay topic which is an overview of the whole essay. Introduction is the mirror of essay through which the reader can see the whole essay, so it should be given special attention. After intro, the discussion should wrap up thorough information about the topic. Discussion not only needs information but it also needs critical analysis of the topic along with your personal comments whether you agree or disagree. The criticism should be healthy; it should not be written in such a way that it hurts any body’s ego because people may have a different opinion. Finally a conclusion or sum-up paragraph has an importance of its own; it also needs future recommendations. Writing style and language should be easy and simple that it can be easily understood by the readers.

Finally comes the formatting, if words and sentences are the food of essay, formatting is the clothing; it makes an essay presentable which can attract the readers. There are certain types of formatting; for example: APA, MLA, CHICAGO, TURBIAN etc; formatting can easily be learned by some practice and it is very interesting to learn. Apart from referencing you can also incorporate a bibliography page in order to give credit to those whose books you used for information.

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The Research Paper and the Hunt for Reliable Sources

2008-05-21T15:00:00.000-07:00

Research paper, if perceived in an optimistic point of view, can be compared to a geeky sort of treasure hunt. Indeed, as a treasure hunter searches for genuine clues to point towards the proper direction of the treasure chest, the research paper writer also hunts for relevant pieces of information that would wrap up the paper's main idea all too clearly.

The key then is to unearth the most relevant data and ignore the irrelevant, because as it turns out, there litters numerous unreliable sources that could trick the gullible.

Here are the top sources of information to guide every writer:

Research Paper Source #1: Books, preferably from the time period of the chosen topic

Who can ever forget the role of books in research papers? Clearly, it should be the first and foremost source type to look into. It may appear too old-fashioned but reference books in the form of encyclopedias are one of the best starting points for the research. Why so? If it is to be observed, encyclopedias not only supply a great deal of overview on a chosen topic, it also normally provides a helpful list of books and publications for further reading and researching.

In any case, books are very reliable, if not the most reliable, sources of information. If one just looks hard enough, there's bound to be a book that supplies in-depth information about any topic under the sun.

Research Paper Source #2: Newspapers

Newspaper articles boost the validity of research papers. It may not be as academically written as other sources, but it nevertheless provides the most updated information on a particular topic. All the same, it should be noted that published news in newspapers can only go so far as to narrate a factual event, without much focus on the historical basis of the story.

Research Paper Source #3 & #4: Journals and Magazines

Journals and Magazines are also great forms of sources to use for the research paper. Between the two, journals are the more scholarly and the more focused, as these materials are studies and findings of researchers and experts relative to their specific fields. Thus, prepare to be mesmerized by the technical vocabulary.

Magazines, on the other hand, may not be as thoroughly researched as journals, but it normally offers a fresh perspective on various issues. It tends to be much shorter, more general, and more conversational in tone.

Research Paper Source #5: Internet Articles

This is where it gets tricky. Whereas vital details and information can be surfed in the internet, biased and unreliable documents also scatter the same venue. Take the time to properly ensure the accuracy and authority of every seemingly convincing bit of information in the web.

One way to practice this is to check if the author of a particular article has provided a bibliography or a list of related sources within the site. This is due to the logic that a well-studied material should have the necessary resources and references to back up its claims. If there is none, move on and automatically assume that whoever wrote the article is just inventing reasons and concepts.

It is better to exert more effort in finding trustworthy resources, than to risk putting a second-rate one in the research paper, and in the long run, make the overall credibility of the paper suffer.

Final Guide

Only the five general sources have been discussed here, where in fact, there are other more sources to examine. There are the speeches, government records, interviews, memoirs, and a long list of others. Keep in mind: to achieve the most comprehensive research papers, it is best not to restrict oneself to only one form of resource. Go creative. Unearth the best possible means of data with the use of an efficient blend of various sources.

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Writers: Do You Need a Motivational Kick in the Pants?

2008-05-20T15:00:00.006-07:00

One of the greatest challenges of writing a book is staying motivated throughout the project—this is something every writer struggles with at one time or another. And that’s okay. No one can stay focused 100 percent of the time. What’s important is that you stay committed to writing your book and you know how to re-motivate yourself when you feel like setting the project aside.

When you feel your inspiration waning, consider the following ways to snap out of it and stay motivated to write your book.

1. Just WRITE!

The best way to overcome a lack of writing motivation is to write—just put your head down and plow through. Don’t worry about whether or not your words are perfect because you have to go back and revise later. If you’re not sure about things like grammar and spelling, don’t worry about it until the book is finished. A good editor can go back and tell you how to fix the writing. In the beginning, focus on getting your thoughts on paper or on the screen and organizing them.

2. Get Help

Don’t be afraid to ask for help to stay motivated. If you haven’t written a book before you might need to hire a writing coach or read some books about writing to get started and stay on track. If you need help and don’t get it then you’ll be more likely to give up on the book, and if you give up on the book you could be giving up on a brand new career or a great new income stream for your business—or a hobby that you might really enjoy. So whatever you do, don’t give up on writing your book.

3. Communicate Your Challenges

Sometimes, just sharing your struggles with motivation can help you overcome them. One way to do this is start a blog and write about the process of writing the book. Your blog reader’s comments and support will help keep you motivated to write and make sure you meet your deadlines—you won’t want to disappoint your following. You also will have an audience of readers ready to buy your book the minute it’s finished if you cultivate supporters during the writing process.

4. Keep Your Eye on the Prize

If you’re stuck on the writing, think about how great it will feel to finish your book—and imagine what you’ll do with the money that you make from your book. You can expand your business, go on an exotic vacation, treat yourself to a luxury spa weekend, buy a house, buy a car, or thousands of other things. Writing for the pleasure of writing is great. But when writing doesn’t feel pleasurable anymore, it helps to think about book sales—and there’s nothing wrong with that, especially if it keeps you writing.

5. It’s Not Just About You

Another great way to get motivated is to think about how your book will benefit others, which is an underlying desire almost every aspiring writer possesses. Sharing your experiences might really help someone else who is in the same situation that you were, so let the satisfaction of helping others motivate you to keep writing your book.

Staying Motivated in the Future

Motivation comes and goes. The key to completing your book successfully is to recognize when you need a motivational kick in the pants and take action. When you feel like setting your book project aside, consider these strategies for overcoming your motivational challenges—your future success as a writer may depend on it.

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Laying the Foundation for the Island of Dr Moreau?

2008-05-20T15:00:00.005-07:00

Going against the emerging consensus towards banning animal-human embryonic hybrids for research, Britain edged today towards becoming what one critic termed a “rogue state.” MPs voted overwhelmingly—336 to 176—to not ban the creation of admixed embryos consisting of human DNA being inserted into an empty animal egg. They also voted 286 to 223 not to ban the creation of true hybrids, or embryos created by mixing human and animal DNA.

Tory MP Edward Leigh led the opposition and mentioned that 21 nations have already banned these types of embryos. He warned that Britain risked becoming a rouge state, but PM Gordon Brown countered that the research was “an inherently moral endeavour."

Reading the news coverage of this momentous event, I noticed that several of the articles seemed to be trying to implicitly defend the practice of creating hybrid embryos. There was the quote from Brown calling the action inherently moral, in an attempt to preempt the religious monopoly on moral objections. Then there were several quotes from various scientists talking about how this was clearly something that would help research. Finally, for good measure, there was the perfunctory quote by a “modern” person talking about how ignorant Church leaders once were opposed to the smallpox vaccine and now there is no difference here.

All of that makes for good newspaper coverage, where the goal is to superficially present a major event in a few hundred words or less, supposedly impartially; however, a few things became apparent. Firstly, the only objection that was presented was the slippery slop argument: if we do this, then what’s next? This was dispatched by the authors by pointing out that a “strict” limit for keeping the embryos alive—14 days—was in place, and that no embryo would be transplanted to a womb.

This if course ignores the fact that 10 years ago, when embryonic research was in its infancy, there were people telling us not to worry about hybrids, and that such a thing would never happen. Although I was not alive at the time, I wonder if upon creating the first test tube baby, someone was assuring skeptics that embryos would never be created solely for scientific research. Does one honestly think that, having eventually created viable embryos, self-restraint will prevent them from being implanted to test the results?

Something else that was clear was that the scientists and MPs seem to believe that science must progress for the sake of science—a type of arte por el arte as it were. Most of the commentators seem to believe that to be progressive, science has to be unrestrained. When dealing with laissez faire economics and the free market, almost no one would argue that it is wrong to limit the growth of monopolies, who are truly engaging in the logical conclusion of capitalism; capitalism for the sake of capitalism is rejected because of the damage it does to the free market process itself. Yet for some reason, any suggestion of limiting scientific advancement is met with cries that such censorship is against the spirit of free inquiry—but does that extend even if such inquiry will result in self-destruction?

Another assumption prevalent in the coverage is that such research will be useful. One quote mentioned that while there was no surety that the research would bear fruit, there was a hope. One has to wonder, though, if the world is ready to risk something as fundamental as genetic makeup and a possible contamination of the very core of our being, for a hope. With twenty-one other nations already banning this procedure, these concerns are obviously not limited to the world of fringe religious types and conspiracy theorists.

While we may be some ways off from the creation of an Island of Dr Moreau, the self-satisfaction of many scientists must continue to be scrutinized. One would hope that philosophy of science courses will grow in popularity as the current obsession with “progress” continues to grow, and that a more holistic view of inquiry and advancement will emerge that takes into account the necessity of research and its fundamental worth in a way that current ethics seems to be missing.

Jeffrey Mottle

Writer, Business Founder

For more articles visit Mottle.net - Mottle is my truth engine, its

a people search engine, background check anyone you know on Mottle.net

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Why Settle for Ordinary Speech When You Can Have Dynamic Speech!

2008-05-20T15:00:00.004-07:00

Copyright (c) 2008 Lynda Stucky

Without a doubt, communicating effectively in the work place benefits both the employee and employer. Here are some common problems that may necessitate further action to improve speaking skills and elevate your presence.

1. You hear yourself on tape and you refuse to believe that it is you speaking. Believe it or not, the way you hear yourself on tape is the real you! When you hear yourself speaking from within yourself, you are hearing the vibrations of sound vibrate off of the bony structures of your head. It sounds different when you hear your voice "outside of yourself" on a tape-recorder.

2. People mistake you for the wrong age and the wrong sex. If this is happening to you, you are probably speaking with the wrong pitch!

3. You have to repeat yourself more than once or twice a day. You might have a diction problem (mumbling), loudness problem (too soft) or a strong accent that makes you hard to understand.

4. Your speech has caused people to laugh. Not a good thing at all! Hope this never happens to you. You might be "hypernasal" or sound like you are speaking through your nose.

5. Your speech interferes with social or career mobility. This happens quite frequently since people climbing the corporate ladder are usually asked to spend more time in the public eye. Employers want a polished-looking representative of their company.

6. You've received negative feedback somewhere. Did you ever give a speech and your written feedback was that people couldn't hear you or understand you? That's a miserable feeling if you receive this kind of feedback. After all, I'm sure you spent a lot of time working on your speech.

7. You avoid speaking in front of a group because you fear it. An easy solution to feeling comfortable speaking in front of a group is to get in front of a group more often! The best place to do that is at a Toastmasters Club (most cities have them) where the purpose is to practice speaking in front of groups. Everyone is in the same boat as you!

8. The area of the country where you live is identifiable by your speech dialect. Being identified by your regional accent isn't necessarily a bad thing. However, some regional accents have a negative image and make the speaker sound uneducated. How is the accent of your region perceived?

9. Your voice tires during the day or you lose your voice completely. Not a good sign if you lose your voice completely. You may be harming your vocal cords by speaking too frequently, too loudly, or at the wrong pitch. Good voice care (or vocal hygiene) can make all the difference maintaining symptom-free voicing especially for heavy voice users!

10. You emotions show through your voice. What pushes your hot buttons and how do you do talking about these issues in public? Employees in the public eye need to be careful about showing their emotions in public. Many company spokespersons need to pass this test before being put in front of a camera. An essential skill that can be developed is voice control!

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Lynda Stucky, President and owner of ClearlySpeaking, is a certified and licensed speech-language pathologist. Her background in speech pathology offers unique skills for dealing with professional communication skills in the corporate world. She has trained and educated individuals, businesses and groups on effective speaking skills, foreign and regional accent modification, the spoken image and vocal hygiene. http://www.clearly-speaking.com

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Customer Manager Resume â What It Takes To Get a Perfect Customer Manager Resume

2008-05-20T15:00:00.003-07:00

In the corporate world, there is one undeniable truth you need to realize: the higher up the ladder, the harder it is to climb. But the way is always open for anyone who dares to do so - and that includes you. It is for this reason that a Customer Manager should always go for the best Resume Service out there to help him prove his skills and expertise on the position.

Just how important is a resume anyway? And how hard is it to come up with one? You have to realize that your resume is all that your prospective employer will know of you - your purposes for applying for the job, your educational background, your related work experience, and your personal characteristics that render you fit for the nature of the work you wish to be considered for. Do you really want to make the wrong impression? Of course not - especially when you are aiming for such a position as a Customer Manager - and this is why you need to have the best Customer Manager Resume you could ever come up with and present during your job or business interview.

Not everyone is born having the natural gift of being a good sales person. A person who has good talent for sales can easily give you a 5 minute long talk and then squeeze the selling part of his short speech right in the middle of your interesting conversation. If he is that good, then usually you will end up having very important questions in mind that you just couldn’t resist but to get relevant answers for. Asking questions in the middle of a conversation is an obvious proof of interest. Having these questions answered for you will most likely lead you to buying what you are being offered at that moment. This is what you really want to happen during an important interview, get that other person to become deeply interested and intrigued with what was written in your resume.

But how hard could that be, right? Perhaps you've been able to pen your own resumes in the past, and maybe they have gotten you the job you want. But again, do not forget how much tougher it is up the corporate ladder - do you really want to leave your chances to maybe and perhaps? What you need is professional help that will do the job for you.

The best obvious option is to come up with a Professional Resume Service. Someone who knows how the industry works; knows how employers think; and knows exactly what you need. When choosing a service provider of any kind, your choice should always be whichever one seems to look and feel professional the most. This is most advisable in finding a service that will help you sell your own skills and promote your values in the most professional manner possible. Every step is crucial now, and every misstep could mean a notch down the ladder, not up. Of course we all know which way you want to go.

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FAQâs in Translation Services

2008-05-20T15:00:00.002-07:00

Along with fast global development comes the booming industry of language translation services. Translating languages becomes a necessity for international success because English is barely enough nowadays. With this, many are interested in availing translation services but also have several queries in mind. Here are some:

Q: Is translation synonymous with interpretation?

A: Although both are used to denote communication, technically it is not interchangeable. Translation is a written communication in a second language having an equivalent meaning as the written communication in a first language. On the other hand, interpretation is verbal communication that concerns two languages as well.

Q: What can a professional translation services do?

A: Having the knowledge to translate different languages to any language in the world it can:

• Enable a client to communicate his views in a desired language

• Grant access to documents written in unfamiliar languages

• Help increase sales through translation of good reputation of products and services

• Enhance an image by producing accurate documents conforming to the appropriate style and terminology for the target audience

• Reduce expenses from errors in translation

• Save client from embarrassment

To guarantee quality of translated documents it is essential to employ only professional translation services not just somebody who simply has mediocre knowledge of two languages.

Q: What are the qualities of a sound language translator?

A: Translation is not a mechanical process of looking for word-per-word equivalence of a certain language. Every word can be used in a different context and can have diverse connotations. A good translator knows all the potential problems in translating and can cope with ease. An expert in language translation has:

• Relevant training and experience

• An above than average and sophisticated knowledge of the two languages involved

• A good grasp of the topic to be translated

• An ability to convey ideas expressed in the first language into an equally meaningful form in the second language

• A sound understanding of the two cultures concerned

• A good attention to detail

• Ability to communicate to the target audience using the appropriate terminologies

• Willing to do extensive research

Clear and logical translations demands tons of expertise and commitment. Settling for average translation services compromises quality and accuracy of the translation.

Q: How much will a language translation cost?

A: Quality comes with price. The work load for translating is highly complex. It is intellectually demanding and requires a lot of working hours. Translators usually charge based on length of the text to be translated, on urgency, or on subject matter. It is quite impractical to quote a typical rate for it varies. But superior results of coarse cost higher. Settling for cheap translation services can take toll on the final product’s quality.

Q: How long will it normally take for a work to be translated?

A: The translation process requires longer as it calls for scrupulous treatment for details. A rough estimate is 10 pages a day. The time it will take to complete the task depends on length and difficulty of the topic to be translated. However, imposing rush rates is quite reasonable for works that demands urgency.

Choosing the right language translation services is really critical. Accuracy of the end product or worst, one’s reputation is on the line.

Samantha is a 25 year old staff at a local museum in Bradford. She attended Bradford University under the Department of Language and European Studies. She is into language studies and language translations putting more focus into Russian and Asian languages.

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How to Make Dialogue Breathe Life into Your Characters

2008-05-20T15:00:00.001-07:00

What your characters say and how they say it speaks volumes to your readers. Dialogue is one of the best vehicles for presenting your characters as real believable people that readers can connect with on an emotional level.

First of all you must have in your own mind a clear picture of, yes, what they look like, but also what type of person they are. Then you can begin to infuse their speech to reflect that.

Let's look at four types of chracter: people who are either forceful, timid, warm-hearted or critical

To convey these personalities you might use dialogue such as the following:

'Now look here, it's obvious the what we have to do in this situation is rope off the area where the dog show will be. It won't cost that much to find stakes and ropes, and we can't risk small children getting bitten by dogs. I'm sorry but it's got to be done.'

Here's someone who is not used to being countermanded. They know what they want and are determined to get it. They use long confident sentences which are aimed at defying interruption and are couched in such a way as to both quell objection and demand action.

'These tea cakes, well, I did try to get them right but, oh dear, I'm afraid they just didn't, you know, really come up to scratch. I dread to think what Jane will say...'

Can you imagine this dear old thing ever saying boo to a goose? She's too worried about what people think of her and too self effacing and lacking in confidence to stand up for herself. She speaks hesitantly and her sentences are broken up so that her uncertainty and timidity are revealed.

'Nonsense, Elsie, they look absolutely scrumptious to me. Everyone loves your tea cakes, you know they do. Come on, tell you what, I'll help you get them in the tin and we'll take them along to the fete together shall we?. Then we'll go and have a nice cup of tea.'

Here is a warm, generous, motherly person who is helpful and kind. She loves taking people in hand and warmly encouraging them along. Her speech is soothing and reassuring. Even the 'Nonsense, Elsie' has the positive intention of making Elsie reconsider her opinion of her cakes and of herself.

'There just aren't enough tables out. And what if it rains? These marquees should have been much bigger. I told the chairman this would happen but, of course, he wouldn't listen to me.'

This person has difficulty finding anything good to say about anything and has probably become somewhat bitter because making friends is not easy when you are so critical. They talk in short curt sentences which are couched in such a way as to rebuff disagreement or comment.

I have given just four types of personality here, but there are many more for you to experiment with. Practice writing dialogue to emphasise your own characters personality traits. You will find they will be much more enjoyable for your readers to listen to.

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Visit WritersReign http://www.writersreign.co.uk for a sackfull of resources, useful links, markets, writing competitions, software, articles for writers, and more. There's a free Article Writing Course at http://www.writersreign.co.uk/WRac.html up for grabs too. Sign up for it now before the opportunity slips quietly into obscurity... you know it makes sense!

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10-ITEM SKILLS TEST FOR ESSAY WRITERS

2008-05-20T15:00:00.000-07:00

WHAT is the difference between a good essay writer and a bad essay writer?

In terms of essay writing, like writing a custom essay or custom essays, a good writer simply makes well-written essays happen, while a bad one just lets poorly-written pieces of writing to come about.

Do you just let things happen or really make things happen?

Here are 10 questions that will test your essay writing ability: Find out if you're one of the many awful writers around, or if you are indeed one of the few good men, err, good essay writers.

1. Am I unsure with my chosen topic? Or will I be passionate and enthusiastic about my essay writing task from A to Z? Am I also very familiar with my subject and have a lot of references to support it?

2. If I would write, let's say, a custom essay, am I careless with my grammar usage, spelling as well as the word choices? Or do I seek the help of a dictionary to double check on these small yet important details?

3. Do I always write a thesis that's unclearly defined? Is the defining statement of my essay vague and ineffective all the time? Whenever I review my work, am I often unsure of what I want to express to the readers?

4. When I write custom essays, do I fail to catch the attention of my readers because of my weak introduction?

5. Is my conclusion always open-ended? Do I always tend to leave an "unfinished" or "hanging" feeling at the closing part of my essay?

6. Are my sentences and paragraphs complicated? Or if I am writing for example a custom essay, could I come up with what I really think about? Can I systematize all my sentences into paragraph forms? Can I come up with transitional phrases or sentences that will enable my readers feel that they are moving on to a new topic readily?

7. Do I put a "cloudy" argument all the time? Or I can put support to the argument within the thesis statement of my essay? Do I ensure that every statement that I make has a point with regard to the overall framework of my argument?

8. Do I use "informalities" in essay writing over and over again? Do I stay away from colloquialisms, slang words and jargons? Do I get to write "I think," "I feel that," "Based in my own opinion," "I firmly believe that;" contractions such as "doesn't," "couldn't," "don't;" as well as abbreviations?

9. Does my essay not at all appeal to the five senses? Am I able to allow my readers to see, smell, hear, touch or taste all the things I want to convey to them?

10. Do I use words that are vague or too general when referring to men or women? Or do I choose the proper words to identify a specific gender?

If you answered six yeses overall, then you are already on the brink of becoming a "legit" bad essay writer. However, if you start taking into account all the negative traits mentioned above, and start reversing them to improve your essay writing skills, sooner or later, you would reap the rewards of being a good essay writer—and one of them is getting good grades from your professors.

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Pithy Prose: The Wit & Wisdom of Mark Twain

2008-05-19T15:00:00.009-07:00

by Philip Yaffe

Part 1 of an occasional series

I am a collector of quotations. I have been ever since I learned how to write, I mean professionally, not in primary school.

I am particularly fond of what I like to call "pithy prose". These short quotations can cover an unlimited variety of subjects: love, religion, politics, human nature, etc. What unites them is their ability to say more in one or two sentences than could be expressed in a thousand-word treatise. It's like being able to pour a liter of liquid into a half-liter bottle.

They are superb examples of Mark Twain's famous dictum, "The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug."

In principle, all writers and public speakers are capable of producing pithy prose, but clearly some are better at it than others.

Any collection of pithy prose must necessarily be biased in terms of what it includes and excludes. I make no apologies for my selections, only for the hundreds of other meritorious quotations I had to leave out.

No one will agree with all these quotations; this was not their intention. You may even find some of them repugnant or outrageous. This was their intention.

We seldom learn anything of value from what we already agree with. Only those ideas that grate on our nerves can open our minds. As with oysters, irritation can produce pearls. So if anything you are about to read annoys or shocks you, try to think clearly and dispassionately about what it is saying. You will either be confirmed in your current belief or shaken into re-examining it.

Either way, you win!

This article is the first of an occasional series. In each succeeding article, I will be offering more amusing, educating, and exasperating quotations to your judgment. But just to be certain that we agree on what we are talking about, here it is in a nutshell.

Pithy Prose: A quotation where at first you may not be quite certain what it means. But when you become certain, you become equally certain that it couldn't have been said better any other way. In short, big ideas in small packages.

If you have a better definition of pithy prose, please contact me. I would love to hear it.

I have already mentioned Mark Twain, so I will begin with him. He offers such a treasure trove of witty, perceptive quotations that it would be almost unthinkable to start with anyone else.

Mark Twain (1835 - 1910), whose real name was Samuel Langhorne Clemens, was a product of the American Deep South. "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer", "The Adventures of Huckleberry Fin", and "Life on the Mississippi", his three most popular books, clearly reflect this origin. However, like all great authors, Mark Twain's books, essays, and other writings go far beyond geography. They are universal.

So In no particular order, here are his pithy prose on a variety of subjects.

1. A man cannot be comfortable without his own approval.

2. A person who won't read has no advantage over one who can't read.

3. Action speaks louder than words but not nearly as often.

4. Age is an issue of mind over matter. If you don't mind, it doesn't matter.

5. All generalizations are false, including this one.

6. Always do right. This will gratify some people and astonish the rest.

7. Who prays for Satan? Who, in eighteen centuries, has had the common humanity to pray for the one sinner that needed it most?

8. Civilization is the limitless multiplication of unnecessary necessities.

9. Climate is what we expect, weather is what we get.

10. Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear, not absence of fear.

11. Education consists mainly of what we have unlearned.

12. Few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example.

13. Good breeding consists in concealing how much we think of ourselves and how little we think of the other person.

14. I am an old man and have known a great many troubles, but most of them never happened.

15. I can live for two months on a good compliment.

16. I was gratified to be able to answer promptly, and I did. I said I didn't know.

17. I was seldom able to see an opportunity until it had ceased to be one.

18. It isn't those parts of the Bible that I can't understand that bother me, it is the parts that I do understand.

19. It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt.

20. It is curious that physical courage should be so common in the world and moral courage so rare.

21. It's no wonder that truth is stranger than fiction. Fiction has to make sense.

22. Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see.

23. Let us live so that when we come to die even the undertaker will be sorry.

24. Man - a creature made at the end of the week's work when God was tired.

25. Man is the only animal that blushes - or needs to.

26. Nothing so needs reforming as other people's habits.

27. One of the most striking differences between a cat and a lie is that a cat has only nine lives.

28. Patriot: the person who can holler the loudest without knowing what he is hollering about.

29. Patriotism is supporting your country all the time, and your government when it deserves it.

30. The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug.

31. The man who is a pessimist before 48 knows too much; if he is an optimist after it, he knows too little.

32. There is no sadder sight than a young pessimist.

33. The more things are forbidden, the more popular they become.

34. The most interesting information comes from children, for they tell all they know and then stop.

35. Thunder is good, thunder is impressive; but it is lightning that does all the work.

36. When a person cannot deceive himself, the chances are against his being able to deceive other people.

37. When I was younger I could remember anything, whether it happened or not.

38. When in doubt, tell the truth.

39. You can't depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus.

A Final Word

Mark Twain is an almost inexhaustible source of pithy prose. The quotations included here barely scratch the surface. Let me conclude with a comment by the perhaps the only other source of pithy prose more prolific. Mark Twain never said this, or at least I never found the quotation. But I am certain it is something he would have liked to have said.

"Most of us prefer to disparage a person who is almost always right rather than asking why we ourselves are almost always wrong." – Anon.

Philip Yaffe is a former reporter/feature writer with The Wall Street Journal and a marketing communication consultant. He currently teaches a course in good writing and good speaking in Brussels, Belgium. His recently published book In the “I” of the Storm: the Simple Secrets of Writing & Speaking (Almost) like a Professional is available from Story Publishers in Ghent, Belgium (storypublishers.be) and Amazon (amazon.com).

For further information, contact:

Philip Yaffe

Brussels, Belgium

Tel: +32 (0)2 660 0405

phil.yaffe@yahoo.com, phil.yaffe@gmail.com

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Pithy Prose: The Wit & Wisdom of People Named 'W'quotations,pithy prose,epigram,love,politics,religi

2008-05-19T15:00:00.008-07:00

by Philip Yaffe

Part 3 of an occasional series

I am a collector of quotations. I have been ever since I learned how to write, I mean professionally, not in primary school.

I am particularly fond of what I like to call "pithy prose". These short quotations can cover an unlimited variety of subjects: love, religion, politics, human nature, etc. What unites them is their ability to say more in one or two sentences than could be expressed in a thousand-word treatise. It's like being able to pour a liter of liquid into a half-liter bottle.

They are superb examples of Mark Twain's famous dictum, "The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug."

In principle, all writers and public speakers are capable of producing pithy prose, but clearly some are better at it than others.

Any collection of pithy prose must necessarily be biased in terms of what it includes and excludes. I make no apologies for my selections, only for the hundreds of other meritorious quotations I had to leave out.

No one will agree with all these quotations; this was not their intention. You may even find some of them repugnant or outrageous. This was their intention.

We seldom learn anything of value from what we already agree with. Only those ideas that grate on our nerves can open our minds. As with oysters, irritation can produce pearls. So if anything you are about to read annoys or shocks you, try to think clearly and dispassionately about what it is saying. You will either be confirmed in your current belief or shaken into re-examining it.

Either way, you win!

This article is part of an occasional series. In each article, I will be offering more amusing, educating, and exasperating quotations to your judgment. But just to be certain that we agree on what we are talking about, here it is in a nutshell.

Pithy Prose: A quotation where at first you may not be quite certain what it means. But when you become certain, you become equally certain that it couldn't have been said better any other way. In short, big ideas in small packages.

If you have a better definition of pithy prose, please contact me. I would love to hear it.

Who Are These People Named "W"?

Some people, such as Oscar Wilde and Mark Twain, are pithy prose factories. During their careers they produced hundreds of quotations well worth remembering. Others produced only a handful, but these too are well worth preserving.

This article is dedicated to the wit & wisdom of people with surnames beginning with the letter "w". If you don't recognize some of these people, it doesn't matter. The source of timeless wit and wisdom is not important, only what it said.

If you really want to know who some of these people are, look it up on the Web. That's why it was invented.

Horace Walpole

Imagination was given to man to compensate him for what he isn't. A sense of humor was provided to console him for what he is.

Life is a comedy for those who think... and a tragedy for those who feel.

Nine-tenths of the people were created so you would want to be with the other tenth.

The whole secret of life is to be interested in one thing profoundly and in a thousand things well.

Lech Walesa

I'm lazy. But it's the lazy people who invented the wheel and the bicycle because they didn't like walking or carrying things.

Andy Warhol

In the future everyone will be famous for 15 minutes.

Isn't life a series of images that change as they repeat themselves?

Since people are going to be living longer and getting older, they'll just have to learn how to be babies longer.

Being born is like being kidnapped. And then sold into slavery.

Booker T. Washington

Excellence is to do a common thing in an uncommon way.

If you want to lift yourself up, lift up someone else.

Thomas J. Watson

The way to succeed is to double your error rate.

Whenever an individual or a business decides that success has been attained, progress stops.

Nothing so conclusively proves a man's ability to lead others as what he does from day to day to lead himself.

Evelyn Waugh

It is a curious thing... that every creed promises a paradise which will be absolutely uninhabitable for anyone of civilized taste.

The human mind is inspired enough when it comes to inventing horrors; it is when it tries to invent a Heaven that it shows itself cloddish.

We cherish our friends not for their ability to amuse us, but for ours to amuse them.

Daniel Webster

A strong conviction that something must be done is the parent of many bad measures.

Falsehoods not only disagree with truths, but usually quarrel among themselves.

Keep cool; anger is not an argument.

Liberty exists in proportion to wholesome restraint.

There is nothing so powerful as truth, and often nothing so strange.

H.G. Wells

After people have repeated a phrase a great number of times, they begin to realize it has meaning and may even be true.

Beauty is in the heart of the beholder.

History is a race between education and catastrophe.

Our true nationality is mankind.

The crisis of today is the joke of tomorrow.

You have learned something. That always feels at first as if you had lost something.

Edith Wharton

Silence may be as variously shaded as speech.

The air of ideas is the only air worth breathing.

Alfred North Whitehead

Almost all new ideas have a certain aspect of foolishness when they are first produced.

An enormous part of our mature experience cannot be expressed in words.

Civilization advances by extending the number of important operations which we can perform without thinking of them.

Fundamental progress has to do with the reinterpretation of basic ideas.

Human life is driven forward by its dim apprehension of notions too general for its existing language.

In formal logic, a contradiction is the signal of defeat, but in the evolution of real knowledge it marks the first step in progress toward a victory.

Knowledge shrinks as wisdom grows.

Not ignorance, but ignorance of ignorance, is the death of knowledge.

Seek simplicity but distrust it.

Simple solutions seldom are. It takes a very unusual mind to undertake analysis of the obvious.

The silly question is the first intimation of some totally new development.

There are no whole truths; all truths are half-truths. It is trying to treat them as whole truths that plays to the devil.

We think in generalities, but we live in detail.

Simon Wiesenthal

For evil to flourish, it only requires good men to do nothing.

Violence is like a weed - it does not die even in the greatest drought.

Elie Wiesel

No human race is superior; no religious faith is inferior. All collective judgments are wrong. Only racists make them.

Not to transmit an experience is to betray it.

The opposite of love is not hate, it's indifference.

Harold Wilson

A week is a long time in politics.

He who rejects change is the architect of decay. The only human institution which rejects progress is the cemetery.

Woodrow Wilson

If you want to make enemies, try to change something.

In the Lord's Prayer, the first petition is for daily bread. No one can worship God or love his neighbor on an empty stomach.

Never attempt to murder a man who is committing suicide.

Ludwig Wittgenstein

If people never did silly things nothing intelligent would ever get done.

Someone who knows too much finds it hard not to lie.

What can be shown cannot be said.

Thomas Wolfe

Culture is the arts elevated to a set of beliefs.

John Wooden

It's what you learn after you know it all that counts.

Never mistake activity for achievement.

Frank Lloyd Wright

Art for art's sake is a philosophy of the well-fed.

The heart is the chief feature of a functioning mind.

Previously in this Series

Part 1: Pithy Prose: The Wit & Wisdom of Mark Twain

Part 2: Pithy Prose: The Wit & Wisdom of Oscar Wilde

Philip Yaffe is a former reporter/feature writer with The Wall Street Journal and a marketing communication consultant. He currently teaches a course in good writing and good speaking in Brussels, Belgium. His recently published book In the “I” of the Storm: the Simple Secrets of Writing & Speaking (Almost) like a Professional is available from Story Publishers in Ghent, Belgium (storypublishers.be) and Amazon (amazon.com).

For further information, contact:

Philip Yaffe

Brussels, Belgium

Tel: +32 (0)2 660 0405

phil.yaffe@yahoo.com, phil.yaffe@gmail.com

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Why The 'COSMETIC' Look of A Sales Letter Can Have Just As Much Impact as The Words!

2008-05-19T15:00:00.007-07:00

If you've ever watched a movie that gripped you with all the drama and excitement you could handle, did you ever think what the impact would be without the emotion, the lighting, the film score?

You see, a sales letter, or any other marketing document, is pretty much like a movie.

Dialogues alone won't do it. All the other 'side-show effects' are just as important.

How can a dull, monotone, complex looking sales letter, be transformed into a dramatic, compelling and entertaining piece of advertising copy, WITHOUT ALTERING ANY OF THE WORDS?

* Well, for a start, the beginning of each paragraph can be indented to 3-5 spaces. This breaks up the BLOCK effect, as done for this paragraph.

* Keeping the sentences short, sharp and punchy, ads a flow and continuation to the piece. It also gives a lot of 'eye-relief' to the reader.

* Underlining relevant and important parts that you specifically want the reader to 'get', breaks up the dense mass words, thus drawing the reader to want to know more of what's being said.

* Adding Bold and CAPITAL letters to certain words or even whole sentences, gives the piece a personality and makes it enjoyable for the reader to go through it.

*Differing font sizes also helps emphasise key elements of the communication. Its effect is similar to a change of TONALITY if we were actually speaking to each other.

*Highlighting certain areas of a marketing document, helps create drama, curiosity, interest. It also helps to change the look and 'feel' of the written communication.

*Changing font styles also creates a changing dialogue within the piece and moves it along at a slower or faster pace, thus encouraging the reader to keep alert, attentive and to keep on reading.

* Putting borders or frames around certain words, sentences or paragraphs, helps create attention and emphasises something important is being said.

*Using 1,2,3, Numbered lists, breaks up the use of continuous prose, and, it adds a value to the content order of the list.

* Using 'Bullets' add life to an otherwise mundane looking piece. Bullets create the impact of importance as well as giving an added zest to the flow of the piece.

*Scribbling hand written notes in the margins, or even within the paragraphs, helps give that certain 'authenticity' to the communication.

*Similarly, 'junking' up a sales letter or marketing document, adds a personal effect that just wouldn't be there with a straight, plain, lifeless looking piece.

By 'junking' I mean double underlining, maybe in colour. It could mean striking through certain words or sentences, and having it re-written up above. It could mean writing things, in bold felt tip pen, like " I can't believe I just did that!" when making an offer that seems so irresistible.

This 'junking' effect can now be easily created to website sales messages due to the enormous range of software that's available to duplicate this 'look'.

Of course, with all of the above, we need to ensure that we don't go over board and detract from the main message we wanted our audience to hear.

Though, the tighter our relationship we have with our audience, the more we can 'get away' with it all.

I know of someone who's used a simulated coffee cup stain on his sales letter, just to bring a little bit of realism and authenticity to his marketing messages.

See what life you can bring to your own advertising and marketing messages! It could surprise you and your prospects and customers!

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Nick James is a UK based direct marketer and product developer. During the last 5 years Nick has sold in excess of �1.6 Million Pounds worth of products and sevices online. Subscribe to his Free Tip Of The Week email at: http://www.Nick-James.com

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The Author & Illustrator Relationship

2008-05-19T15:00:00.006-07:00

For most authors, working with an illustrator for a picture book can be a thrilling yet stressful experience. Having created the imaginary world in their stories, authors often wonder whether or not the artist will be able to grasp the essence of the setting and characters—not only physically, but tone-wise as well. After all, it is up to the artist to bring the story visually to life. Sometimes the artist may have a different idea for the artwork than the author, and this can create problems.

When working with the big publishing houses, authors hardly have any saying as far as the artwork goes. The art department assigns the illustrator who they think will be better suitable for the book, and that’s that. With small presses, the author has more influence in the matter and often authors and illustrators work side by side. This, by the way, doesn’t necessarily lead to a better book. It’s okay for the author to indicate her vision for the book, but it’s also important to allow the artist to be creative and do her part. Likewise, an illustrator should keep in mind the author’s vision for the illustrations. Mutual respect and communication are essential in any relationship, and for authors and illustrators working together this is no exception.

Of course, an author has the most control over the artwork when she hires an artist for a self publishing project. This is how I found Amy Moreno. Initially I was planning to self publish my children’s picture book, The Doll Violinist. I had sent it out to dozens of agents and publishers, without success. I got some good comments on it, but apparently the editors and agents found the story’s tone too ‘quiet’. Nevertheless, I had faith in my project and set out to find the right illustrator for it. My plan was to keep submitting while the artwork was being done, and in the event that I didn’t have a publisher by the time it was finished, then I would publish it myself.

But to go back to Amy … I spent about three months searching online, studying illustrator’s styles and querying the ones whose work I liked to learn about their fees and work schedules. I found Amy via ChildrensIllustrators.com. I believe in the sixth sense, and I instantly felt a connection to Amy’s beautiful illustrations and renderings. I got in contact with her. To make a long story short, I sent her The Doll Violinist and she loved it. Amy’s background in music and the cello was a huge plus, as I really wanted someone who would understand the musical aspect of the story. After I described her what I was after and we exchanged ideas, I asked her to send me a sample illustration, which she did. When I saw it, I was spellbound—in that single black & white drawing, she had perfectly captured the essence of the story. This was in the fall of 2006. She’s still working on the illustrations, 24 in all. The Doll Violinist won an Honorable Mention Award at the Writer’s Digest Writing Competition and was one of 12 finalists last year at the ABC’s Children’s Picture Book Competition. It will be released by Guardian Angel Publishing in 2009.

Working with Amy has been a thrilling and rewarding experience as we see the story, setting and characters come to life. Since the story takes place in Victorian Europe, Amy has done a tremendous amount of research for the fashions and architecture of the time. She spent a long time studying the postures of violinists and even bought a violin so she could get the violin illustrations perfectly right! Thanks to her skill and vision, I know the book will turn out a beautiful product, whether traditionally or self published.

In the case of The Magic Violin, however, it was my publisher, Lynda Burch of Guardian Angel Publishing, who assigned the artist, though she asked my opinion before a decision was made. As soon as I saw K.C. Snider’s website I was very impressed by her drawing and paintings, especially of horses, which are her specialty. So I accepted her suggestion to have K.C. illustrate my book. K.C. was wonderful to work with, even though I made a few mistakes initially. For one thing, I didn’t give her enough information about the setting and especially about the correct postures for a violinist. This created some delay as I found errors in the artwork which had to be fixed. I blame myself for this. If I had spent more time communicating, I would have made both our lives a little easier. She was very open to suggestions and wanted me to be happy with the result, so I’m really grateful to her for that. Part of the reason for this lack of communication was my hectic schedule, so this has been a valuable lesson—to always give my writing projects 100% of my attention. Fortunately, I’m happy with the results and especially with the cover. I think K.C. capture something special and even magical in that cover.

For CRASH! it was a totally different story. The illustrator, Anna Pylypchuk, is only 16 years old and I ran across her by mistake! I contacted a group of friends here in Brussels, asking if they knew of a local artist who would be interested in doing a children’s book. A friend of a friend of mine got in touch with me, saying she knew a girl who could ‘draw around anything.’ Now, at this point, I really thought ‘girl’ meant college student. To make a long story short, it was not until after the young illustrator and I had exchanged two emails that she mentioned her age. She was not trying to hide it, either—she just assumed the person had told me her age in advance! I was really surprised and concerned, as I had never worked with a minor and wasn’t sure what my publisher would say. But her art was simply amazing! And when she did a sample illustration based on my story, I was hooked. She had captured perfectly the style and flavor of my story. I talked things over with Lynda Burch, also my publisher for this book, and she decided to give her a chance. To say that Anna was thrilled is the understatement of the century. She plans to illustrate professionally in the future, so to be able to earn credits at this early stage in her life, is just awesome. We worked together for several months. In this case, I described in advance what I wanted for each illustration, but also made clear to her that she should let her own style and vision come through. For each scene she did a sketch first, then went on to color it once I had approve it. She was wonderful to work with, as professional as any adult could have been. When we finally met and she showed me the ‘real’ artwork, I was astounded at her high level of organization, neatness and skill. I certainly hope to work with her in the future. I believe she’s a young artist who will go far.

Every children’s picture book is an adventure and I can’t wait to dive into the next one. Finding the right illustrator can be difficult, but once you do, it’s really a worthwhile and exciting experience. The secret? Mutual respect and communication.

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8 Keys to Making Between $75,000 to $100,000/year as a Freelance SEO Writer

2008-05-19T15:00:00.005-07:00

I've had phenomenal success as an SEO writer. It's the easiest success I've ever had. Easy as in acquiring clients; not easy as in doing the work, mind you. But, I don't want to sound like I'm bragging or even patting myself on the back.

I share for two reasons: (i) the questions flow in that I just don't have time to answer; and (ii) I want every freelance writer out there to know that you don't have to struggle to make a decent living. I truly want sites like Elance and Guru to just go away with their $3 per article writing gigs. I want freelance writers not to feel like they have to sell themselves so short. I want financial fulfillment for freelance writers. We should have it, just like any other professional.

I've been an official business owner since 1996 (I've always had something going on on the side). And, I've never been able to grow my client roster so quickly. So for this issue, I guess you could say I interviewed myself, for I literally asked, "Why have you been so successful as an SEO writer when you've been a freelance writer since 1993?"

Answering myself, following are the 8 keys to my SEO writing success.

8 Keys to Making Between $75,000 to $100,000/year as a Freelance SEO Writer

1. Penetrate a New Industry: This has been, without a doubt, the single most important factor in my success. How new is SEO writing?

A girlfriend of mine who works in the publishing industry asked me recently, "What is SEO writing?" And, every time I write an article on SEO, I get an email asking me, "What does SEO stand for?"

Even some internet marketing execs I speak with don't know all of the complexities of the field. I can just tell by how our conversations and emails flow that I've "lost them in translation," so to speak, along the way. Even one of my sisters, who knows how to code websites by hand, asked me, "What does that mean again?" So, yeah, it's pretty new.

For those of us who've been around it for a while, it's kind of something we take for granted.

There's a lesson here. I entered this industry because I'd run across three SEO writers who told stories of how they were almost immediately inundated with work after starting to market.

And, if you've been a freelance writer for any length of time, you know that just doesn't happen. So, I was intrigued. I had to look it up to see what this SEO thing was. Once I understood the concepts, I was like, "I can do that!" And off I went.

Takeaway Lesson: All things SEO is new and growing by leaps and bounds. The sooner you learn the industry, the sooner you can start reeling in clients.

2. Work Like Mad for Six Months to Learn the Industry: Once I started to get clients, I took my time to learn the ins and outs of the projects as they came in. Different types of projects will come your way as an SEO writer. Each client works differently, although there will be some similar threads.

Some will want just run of the mill SEO articles optimized to a certain keyword density; others will want SEO-optimized blog posts; others will want sales copy with industry keywords that you will have to research; others will want comparative analysis articles with traffic-driving keywords; etc.

And others still will want forum posts, blog posts, auto responders; copy with SEO-optimized, call-to-action statements; etc. Because most internet marketing firms (the industry I target mostly) offer a range of services to clients, you will be expected to know how to provide all of it if you are to grow.

Takeaway Lesson: Don't worry if you don't know everything going in, but do carve out time to do as much reading and research as you can. I did a lot of this, especially in the first few months. After that, I just learned by doing, by landing different projects.

If you're a quick study with good research skills (as most freelance writers are), then you should be able to pick up stuff pretty easily. A lot of it may sound like rocket science, but it's not. Trust me, if I can read, understand and apply it, so can you.

3. Market Like a Crazy Person: In the beginning, I was sending out 50 to 100 marketing emails a week. So, I hit the ground running pretty fast.

Then there's the success story of the college kid who sent out 24 emails after buying my ebook one Saturday, and by Monday afternoon had four clients already.

Now that I'm so busy I'm cross-eyed from staring at my computer, I've cut back to 10-20 marketing emails a week. BUT, as I'm ramping up to bring on even more freelance writers, I'm going to kick it up again to at least 50 or more.

4. Work Yourself to the Bone; Don't Let Up Because You Get Too Busy: Many freelancers make the mistake of not marketing when they get too busy. That is a major mistake. Like training for a marathon, it must be a continual effort. You can't very well expect to run a marathon if you get up to 15 miles, pull back on the training a few weeks and then expect to be right back where you left off. It won't happen.

Marketing - in any business - is like that. You must constantly keep feelers out to keep your pipeline full.

5. Apply for Any and Everything: What I mean by this is, apply for jobs you think you're only marginally qualified for, and for jobs that are seeking only full-time applicants. If I think there's a possibility that a firm hires freelancers, I'll apply to FT job listings, sending in my credentials with a note like, "in case you ever need freelance help." You just never know.

Many firms like ad agencies, PR firms, trade publishers, web design firms, etc. all use freelancers. While they may truly need a FT person at that particular time, do you really think those projects they're hiring the FT person to take on are just sitting there waiting to get done? No! Nine times out of 10, they're using freelancers or some poor, overworked full-timer's carrying the load until a new person can be found.

6. Start Bringing on Help as Soon as You Can Afford It: Now this is where it starts to get fun, because you can start to make some real money. If you feel like your SEO writing load is growing beyond what you can handle, you have three options:

(i) Turn down work: When you hit a dry spell, how you'll wish you never did that;

(ii) Refer clients to someone else: If you do this, you can basically kiss them goodbye.

Clients like someone they can trust to get the work done. Telling them you're too busy to take on extra work right now means that even if they understand, you will have planted a seed of doubt in their minds as to your ability to meet deadlines. That is, if they ever decide to use you again.

(iii) Hire other freelance writers to help you: If you want to build a business beyond yourself, this is the best option. This will free you up to market for more work and grow your freelance writing business.

Hiring Other Freelance Writers Tip: Be sure to charge enough from the outset so that if you have to hire others to do the work, you can pay them a decent wage and still earn a profit.

7. Add Ancillary Services as Soon as You Can: When I first started, I just offered SEO article writing, in addition to the other types of more traditional writing I already did (eg, newsletters, sales copy, editing, etc.). But, clients kept asking me about blog postings, so I added that as a service.

And let me tell you, this is some of the easiest and most lucrative writing I've done. The posts are usually short (100-250 words) and general in nature. I did 20 in a few hours one day. This was several hundred bucks for a few hours work.

Takeaway Lesson: You have to stay on top of what's going on in the industry to keep pace with what clients want. This is easy. All you have to do is check out the service listings on their websites, because this is what they'll be outsourcing to you.

8. Stay Enthused: What I mean by this is, once the initial excitement of a business wears off and you get bogged down with the actual work, it can become staid and boring, just like a relationship. You have to work to keep the initial excitement up. If you want this to be a way of life, not something you just half-assed try (forgive my French), then you're going to have to be mindful of complacency and sloppiness creeping in.

Notice that nothing I listed here costs money. I haven't spent a dime on any type of advertising or marketing. If you already have a computer and Internet service, then you can start an SEO writing career making $75,000 to $100,000 year today.

About the Author:Yuwanda Black is a freelance SEO writer. She blogs at InkwellEditorial.wordpress.com and is the author of How to Make $250+/Day Writing Simple 500 Word Articles, which can be found here.

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AutoCAD DWG to PDF Converter Releases

2008-05-19T15:00:00.004-07:00

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Rene Paley

AcroCAD Software

E-mail: sales@dwgpdfconverter.com

AutoCAD DWG to PDF Converter Releases

AutoCAD DWG to PDF Converter Version 6

Enhancements to CAD Conversion Product Include Improved PDF Settings, Ability to Combine Files, More Output Formats

Redmond, WA, May 14, 2008 – AcroCAD is pleased to announce the release of version 6 of AutoCAD DWG to PDF Converter.

AutoCAD DWG to PDF Converter converts DWG and DXF drawings to vector PDF files and other formats, making them easy to

share with clients and others.

“The latest version of AutoCAD DWG to PDF Converter adds numerous features for refining and perfecting PDF files

created from CAD drawings,” said Arlene Rich, President of AcroCAD. “Users will appreciate the improved PDF output

controls, the ability to combine multiple files, and the ability to create images from drawings. We are giving CAD

users the ability to create high-quality PDF output while at the same time keeping the program simple, intuitive, and

inexpensive.”

AutoCAD DWG to PDF Converter is a stand-alone program so users do not need AutoCAD? or Adobe? Acrobat? to run the

program. It provides users with an elegant, low-cost way to create PDF output from CAD drawings.

Version 6 enhancements include:

Improved page layout – Use DWG settings to control your PDF conversion output. The page, view, and layout from your

CAD drawing are retained, making it easy to create a high-quality PDF.

Scale for conversion – Select from Extents, Display, or Layout Limits.

Set line widths – Scale, display, or suppress lines, and customize the width to your specifications.

Combine drawings – Join two or more DWG files into one PDF file.

Convert to image – Select from BMP, GIF, PNG, TIF, or JPG.

Improved security – More PDF encryption options to choose from.

Add document description – Add title, subject, author, and keywords to your PDF file.

And more! – Improved user interface features new Options menu, newer and simpler program installer.

For additional information on features, pricing, related products, and volume licensing programs, please visit

www.dwgpdfconverter.com.

About AcroCAD:

AcroCAD Software revolutionized the market for CAD to PDF software in March 2003 when it launched the world's first

true DWG to PDF software - AutoCAD DWG to PDF Converter. DWG to PDF Converter lets you easily convert DWG and DXF files

to vector PDFs that you can easily share with others.

AutoCAD DWG to PDF Converter has won multiple "Product of the Year" and "Top Buy" awards and is sold internationally in

retail stores, online, and through corporate resellers and VARs.

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MORALITY AND PRESS FREEDOM

2008-05-19T15:00:00.003-07:00

MORALITY AND PRESS FREEDOM

by Bidz Dela Cruz

Gone are the days when sex is discussed in hushed tones and mouthing words with sexual and sensual connotation is looked down upon. The sanctity of marriage and the bedchamber is fast becoming a thing of the past. It is not uncommon nowadays to hear conversations that in the past were considered illicit and actuations, which were then considered immoral, have become widely acceptable. It seems that everywhere we focus our attention smut or pornography stares us in the face, assaulting our morals and inhibitions.

Be it in the print media, the boob tube or the big screen, words or pictures shout at us, inviting our senses to be titillated; to some these breeds disgust and disillusionment as to what aid where our world is heading. Is there too much sex in the world today or are we simply over reacting to the deluge that threatens to engulf us?

I came across an old caricature of the famous comic strip Peanuts the other day and I had a small laugh to myself. Sally was muttering words to this effect:

“Yes Ma’am, I got all 50 questions wrong...I don’t think it was my fault though...Last night, I was watching a program In TV that I didn’t want to miss, then I had to read the sports section in the paper. There’s also a talk show on rat Ho that I listen to every night and two of my magazine came in the mail

yesterday. I BLAME IT ON MEDIA!”

This is a clear Indication that a great number of humanity spends part of his/her waking moments glued on a newspaper, television, movie screen and now the latest medium to hit us, personal computers. Our desire to keep abreast with what’s happening around us compels us to read or listen to commentaries and at times even gossips. However, media in this day and age does not only inform and entertain; it has now become a venue to satiate some people’s sensuality while at the same time eroding other people’s moral fiber.

Newspapers scream despicable crimes committed on innocent individuals, while TV airs and sensationalizes rapes and homicides instigated by sexual lusts. Tabloids are big excuses fur pornography tinder the guise of journalism. It seems bare flesh had replaced the traditional banner of tabloids. More pictures of this type In the centerfold guarantees a. sell out, but it is not so with legitimate newspapers. The television is fast undermining the morality of the succeeding generations because sexual innuendos in soap operas and sitcoms. Meanwhile, on the big screen sexual scenes are added to any and all sorts of plots to spice up the story; the more lewd scenes a movie offers, the longer the queues are of those thirsting to view them.

Filipinos are an emotional lot and they easily get carried away with what they read and what their eyes feast on. It is this very characteristic that people in the journalistic profession sought to cultivate. As a result, children become partially knowledgeable and by the time it is discussed to them in the classroom, they, they would have developed a “rich” vocabulary of, if not ideas about this phenomenon. This has greatly resulted In curiosity and experimentation, thus teen-age sex has proliferated and teen-age pregnancies have escalated.

There was a time in the distant past when men and especially women, cover themselves decently. If the vogue then was for women to cover every square inch of flesh, quite the contrary is happening now. Today, fashionable and artsy clothes provide minimum cover. It seems the trend today is to show every possible nook and cranny of the male and female specimen for sensual delectation.

Sexy advertisements have widely encouraged addiction to cigarette smoking and~ drinking wine. Whatever is the rationale behind these advertisements, they had hit the bulls-eye dead center. The more sensuous the model they employ for these ads, the greater the returns they guarantee on sales.

Billboards for outdoor advertising of any type of products be it food or clothes, projects sensuality/sexuality. Most of all life-sue advertisements of sexy films on billboards rub a sexual message to all Toms and Harrys who come across them. And these have not spared the eyes of the young ones. I once had to call the attention of a boy walking on the sidewalk, whose-attention was caught by a large advertisement of a Rossana Roces film. He was so intent in his glare at the sexy actress that he was unmindful of the danger of walking into an open manhole.

Too much press freedom is undermining the decency of a once gentle folk like the Filipinos. Of late, even the priesthood had not been spared of sex scandals. It’s about time that more stringent measures of censure be implemented if we wish to return to a more peaceful environment. Let us put sex back to Its rightful place, i.e. the secrecy of the bedchamber. Let us put a stop to the proliferation of pornographic materials. Let us uphold Christian and humane virtues and strengthen our moral fiber. If we lack the resolve to eradicate the sensationalization of sex in today’s media we hare rushing headlong to decadence and destruction.

The author is a content provider of exam

If you want to know more exam preparation, fitness, health and the outdoors, visit www.exam.com.mx

Tags: exam, fitness, health, outdoors

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Professional Resume - What It Takes To Get that Perfect & Professional Resume

2008-05-19T15:00:00.002-07:00

So, you need a professional resume for a good position you have persistently been aiming at? If you think this is not a simple task to do, then I should say you sure do have the right mindset to accomplish such a goal. Selling your credentials, experiences and skills in order to land on your desired job requires the right balance between a business tone and personal creativity.

If your desired job happens to be in the professional service industry, I assume that you must be aware that this field is indeed one of the most challenging tasks out there as a career. Prospective employers will be more keenly analytical of your professional resume since they will be looking for what it is exactly you can do for them, and not just degrees or character references.

You need to emphasize what qualities you posses that can immediately be put into use at the workplace. Dazzling them with fancy titles and schools won't be as necessary compared to what exact service you can offer them. It's not actually helpful to think that the professional service type of work is beginning to boom nowadays more than ever - this fact actually creates even more competition for you as an applicant.

Selling your intentions, qualities and skills have to be given extra emphasis to push your chances further up the top. A good and professional resume needs to justify, summarize, and best of all - it should sell your best potentials as an employee for that position. Well, you should know that the secret is always in how you say it, not just what you say. Coming up with an Interview winning type of Professional Resume is, quite again, not something you leave to chance but something you should really be working out for.

You have two options in addressing this need: do a thorough research on the position and copy similar samples or templates you can find by doing search engine inquiries. Another good solution is to seek for professional assistance. It is advisable that you put extra careful consideration when choosing how to create your professional resume - after all, this one piece of document will determine whatever better chances you will have for the morrow. It may seem like a small step, but it will always be the first real step towards achieving a successful path in your career.

All that your prospective employer will know of you will be what's on that one piece of paper - you have to sell your skills the best way you can! It will always be how you say it as you would in real life, more than what you say. Among millions of applicants, why should you be considered? Well, you do not really need to answer that question after all, "let your perfectly written professional resume do the talking for you".

So, if you are thinking or planning to go for an interview in the upcoming days, remember to wear a face that exudes strong confidence. While your resume do all the talking for you, make sure that you act accordingly to what your resume tells of you.

Do you want to learn and discover how to create an executive resume almost instantly? You don't have to try all the different resume services just to come up with your own perfect resume.

Pete Miguel has good passion of helping other people in achieving their goals toward career advancement. You may visit one of his sites where he provides professional assistance in selling your skills and qualities effectively. http://www.ResumeServicePlus.com

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What to do when writing an e-book

2008-05-19T15:00:00.001-07:00

Writing an e-book is a popular means of expression these days. People do it for a number of reasons – for the love of writing, in order to express an opinion, to spread awareness or simply to make money! But regardless of the objectives for doing so, writing an e-book requires careful planning and preparation.

Let’s see how ready you are.

1. Examine your reasons.

First and foremost, understand your motives for wanting to write one. Is it out of passion or to establish your position? Are you looking to earn recognition or revenue?

A book about your support for conservation of rain forests will read very differently from an instruction manual for building your own furniture. Once you’ve written the e-book, the way to publicize it will also depend on the intended outcome. Make your choice upfront.

2. Choose the subject.

If you’re Michael Schumacher, well then that’s easy! But for the rest of us, identifying the subject of an e-book is not necessarily a done deal. For a professional in the world of finance, the choice could be as diverse as writing about the best investment options to creating a primer on terms used in accounting.

While deciding a subject, base your choice on your level of expertise, the need for such information and the proliferation of other written matter on the same topic. It’s always a better idea to cater to the unmet needs of a niche audience than to compete for attention in a mass market.

3. Identify your audience.

Continuing from the last point, it is very important to pinpoint the target reader of your e-book, right from the get-go. The way you write and promote the book will most certainly depend on who is going to read it.

4. Create a format

A book’s a book, so it’s got to have a structure. However, there are additional possibilities with e-books that you might not find in traditional print paperbacks. Here are some of them:

• DIY – A “how to” or “ten tips for…” format works brilliantly for e-books. Tell it with minimum fuss, but make sure the information is complete and usable. Works well with almost any subject.

• FAQ – this makes quick and easy reading. Put yourself in the readers’ shoes and ask all the questions they would. Answer them. Period.

• Bulleted or Numbered Lists – reading off a monitor is not as easy as reading off a page. So while writing an e-book, remember to make it easier for the audience. Lists help the viewer pick up key points easily.

Apart from the structure, you also need to decide what software to use to publish your e-book – but you could just as easily use more than one. HTML, Adobe or Exe files – take your pick. That’s the whole point of going online.

5. Identify the channel

We spoke about this before, remember?

A lot depends on where your core readership comes from. You have control over how your e-book is circulated, so you could choose to put it exclusively on your website, retail it through others or make it available through a select list of partner sites. Experience the joy of not having to deal with a hard nosed publisher!

Writing an e-book can be a way to fame and fortune, but it’s also a big source of fun. Whatever be your other objectives, make sure the latter is included.

Hi, I'm Akhil Shahani, a serial entrepreneur who wants to help you succeed. If you like to work smart, check out http://www.SmartEntrepreneur.net . It's full of articles and resources to help you start and grow your business successfully. Please visit us & download our special "Freebie of The Month" at

http://www.smartentrepreneur.net/freebie-of-the-month.html

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Convert DWG and DXF Files To Image Files Quickly and Easily

2008-05-19T15:00:00.000-07:00

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Rene Paley

AcroCAD Software

E-mail: sales@dwgpdfconverter.com

AutoCAD DWG to Image Converter Releases

Convert DWG and DXF Files To Image Files Quickly and Easily

Redmond, WA, May 14, 2008 – AcroCAD is pleased to announce the release of version 6 of AutoCAD DWG to Image Converter. AutoCAD DWG to Image Converter converts DWG and DXF drawings to vector image files and other formats, making them easy to share with clients and others.

“The latest version of AutoCAD DWG to Image Converter adds numerous features for refining and perfecting image files created from CAD drawings,” said Arlene Rich, President of AcroCAD. “Users will appreciate the improved image output controls, the ability to combine multiple files, and the ability to create images from drawings. We are giving CAD users the ability to create high-quality image output while at the same time keeping the program simple, intuitive, and inexpensive.”

AutoCAD DWG to Image Converter is a stand-alone program so users do not need AutoCAD? or Adobe? Acrobat? to run the program. It provides users with an elegant, low-cost way to create image output from CAD drawings.

Version 6 enhancements include:

Improved page layout – Use DWG settings to control your image conversion output. The page, view, and layout from your CAD drawing are retained, making it easy to create a high-quality image.

Scale for conversion – Select from Extents, Display, or Layout Limits.

Set line widths – Scale, display, or suppress lines, and customize the width to your specifications.

Combine drawings – Join two or more DWG files into one image file.

Convert to image – Select from BMP, GIF, PNG, TIF, or JPG.

Improved security – More PDF encryption options to choose from.

And more! – Improved user interface features new Options menu, newer and simpler program installer.

For additional information on features, pricing, related products, and volume licensing programs, please visit www.dwgpdfconverter.com.

About AcroCAD:

AcroCAD Software revolutionized the market for CAD to image software in March 2003 when it launched the world's first true DWG to image software - AutoCAD DWG to Image Converter. DWG to image Converter lets you easily convert DWG and DXF files to vector image that you can easily share with others.

AutoCAD DWG to Image Converter has won multiple "Product of the Year" and "Top Buy" awards and is sold internationally in retail stores, online, and through corporate resellers and VARs.

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Public Speaking: Speak Easy

2008-05-18T15:00:00.000-07:00

If you’re one of those who would rather have the flu than go on stage, we’re glad you’re reading this. You might have got away with remaining in the background in the good old days, but today, unless you’re out there, talking, you won’t bring much value to the business. Yes, we mean it. Being able to speak convincingly in public is as important as being able to think clearly or work diligently.

Now, it’s a no-brainer that most human beings are born without great public speaking skills. Some of the most talented and the most brilliant people get all tongue tied when it comes to addressing a gathering. So, how do you go about the business of public speaking sounding like it’s the most natural thing in the world?

Here’s how.

• Prepare. It takes careful preparation to make an effective impromptu (sounding) speech. Make sure you know the content of your speech inside out. Take care that the facts are well researched and substantiated, and the flow of ideas is smooth and logical. If you’re confident about what you’re saying, more than half the battle is won.

• Rehearse. You must know how you appear to the audience. Rehearse in front of the mirror, speaking like you would at the actual event. Once you gain some confidence, try it out in front of a small supportive audience, who will give you constructive criticism instead of harsh judgement.

Take care not only with your words and tone of voice, but also think of when

you will pause, what you will emphasize and so on. Then there are your

hands… if you’re a naturally exuberant person, be sure you’re not going over

the top with your facial expression or physical gestures.

• Dress right. No one wants to look at a poorly groomed speaker. Take care that your clothing is appropriate to the occasion. As a rule, it is better to overdress than otherwise. If you know you’re looking good, that confidence will project itself positively.

• Seek a friend. Sure you’re nervous, and some people know it. However, in every audience there is always a sympathetic member or two present. Try to identify where your support base lies, and make eye contact with those people in the beginning. You can move on to the hardliners once you’ve got your teeth into your presentation.

• Well begun is half done. And that’s never truer than with public speaking. Don’t pull any stunts as an attention grabbing ploy. Start normally and confidently, with an appropriate greeting. Set the tone of your presentation by outlining the major objectives at the outset. That way, everyone knows what to expect.

• Seem nice. You are much more likely to be heard patiently if you come across as an intelligent, mature, confident and nice person. The likeability factor is supremely important. A display of arrogance is only an invitation for trouble during the question hour!

• Talk, don’t read. Power Point presentations are great to look at, which is why most people look at the slides rather than the speaker. If you want to recite what’s on your file, email the presentation instead, and cancel the speech. Remember, the presentation is meant to serve you, not take over your role! Use it only to guide the speech.

No one said public speaking was easy, but there’s no getting around it. With practice and application, you can certainly improve your skills. Once you get through your first public speech unscathed, the rest will follow!

Hi, I'm Akhil Shahani, a serial entrepreneur who wants to help you succeed. If you like to work smart, check out http://www.SmartEntrepreneur.net . It's full of articles and resources to help you start and grow your business successfully. Please visit us & download our special "Freebie of The Month" at

http://www.smartentrepreneur.net/freebie-of-the-month.html

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10 Basic Tips in Research Papers: Note Taking Basics

2008-05-14T15:00:00.023-07:00

Writing research papers entails a critical attention to every detail. Sound academic pieces never undervalue this noteworthy part in the process of research – taking quality notes.

Note-taking is a complex step in research writing. It is not as easy as copying some notes in a blackboard. There are a lot of imperatives to consider:

1.Be concise. Even if taking notes for background, sharpen it down to short but succinct phrases. But do not rely too much on mental notes for it is not 100% reliable.

2.Have more than one key source. Having two or more relevant sources gives weight to the research paper. It is also a determinant of a thorough research skill.

3.Copy contradictory arguments. Having opposing argument that is easy to rebut by another counterpoint is an excellent rhetorical device.

4.Always paraphrase. This is to avoid plagiarism. It is also essential to write down the words in one’s one word for it determines the writer’s comprehension of the text.

5.Be cautious in attributing. In using many sources it is important to attribute properly for it gives the paper credibility.

6.Be systematic. Have a system in writing that really works. An orderly note-taking will help eventually in writing drafts and outlines.

7.Write legibly. Writing haphazardly results to incomprehensible notes. Hand-written notes must always be clear to prevent misreading.

8.Write only the relevant. Scan for the key words and phrases that are significant to the research paper. Don’t just write everything down.

9.Use symbols and abbreviations. It is easier to take down notes if symbols and abbreviations are used. Just make sure that a legend is available so that the meanings of the symbols are also clear.

10.Review and edit the notes. After taking notes review and edit it. A single mistake like not being able to write the word “not” will totally distort the meaning of the text. Every single word in note-taking may affect the research paper.

With the painstaking effort in writing research papers it is really a must to know the nitty-gritty of taking down notes.

Research papers’ main objective is to create a quality academic piece that is nonetheless supported with credible evidences. And the only thing to achieve this is through a scrupulous and persistent note-taking.

With great passion for writing, Jonathan Smith finds it fulfilling to do freelance writing although he already have a career in a marketing firm. He is currently working for a custom research paper company. This 26-year-old’s enthusiasm in writing is deeply rooted in his parents, for his father was then a newspaper columnist and his mother a true-blooded novelist.

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Never use a copywriter for your website copy writing!

2008-05-14T15:00:00.022-07:00

You should see the shocked expressions when I say "the worst thing you can do is hire a copywriter to create your website copy"! This may shock, but the very best advice I, a writer and Editor with over 25 years experience, can give anyone creating a website is "don't hire or use a copy writer!" It may seem like the easy option but it will eat into your time and your budgets and the end result will probably be disappointing.

Most copy writers will waste your time and money It's sad but it's true. It is made even worse as no-one until now has had the guts and the honesty to say copy writers are the worst people to help you with your web copy! This is what will happen if you hire a copy writer to create your website.

1. You'll waste time finding a copy writer that you're happy with

2. You'll waste more time briefing that copy writer

3. You'll then be disappointed at what is produced

4. You may ask for changes but they lack the knowledge of your subject and just don't seem to understand.

5. You get a website that isn't yours.

The copy will be lifeless and lack your passion

The main problem is even the best copy writer doesn't know your subject or niche as well as you do. They certainly don't have your interest, passion or knowledge of the subject area and a few hours (at best) research can't match your depth in the subject.

Also a symptom of a greater problem - lack of ownership

Wanting to hand over your website copy writing is a worrying sign. To give away that much control shows a lack of ownership and if it's not your website, that's owned and driven by you then it runs the serious risk of failure.

Your website needs your passion and personality

To succeed your website needs your passion, knowledge, experience and personality that will create a unique bond with your potential customers. No-one else has that and no website copy writer can mimic it. Why would you want to give your customers such a pale imitation of you?

There is a better way

The best way to create excellent and compelling web copy is for you to write it yourself. Once you've got over that first hurdle and created your first page then the rest will follow. Step by step you'll build up a site your visitors will love because it has your passion and personality.

If you still feel you need help then write what you can yourself and get an Editor to quickly lick it into shape. That will cost a fraction of the cost and will show you how to improve.

Good luck and remember that by taking control of your website copy writing you take control and that your website success is now safe in your own hands.

------

Click here for a free website copy writing course. Or click here to find out how to get on page 1 of Google!

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Chapter by Chapter: Ten Self-Editing Questions Every Writer Needs to Consider

2008-05-14T15:00:00.021-07:00

Whether you’re working on a narrative or instructional manuscript, self-editing skills are important to your success as a writer. However, many writers don’t know where to start when it comes to looking at their own writing objectively. They can easily skim through for grammar and punctuation errors, but when it comes to the effectiveness of the content and images they create on the page, their own perceptions can be very different from what a reader reads.

Every writer needs an editor, but all writers can use the following ten self-editing questions to think critically and objectively about their own work.

1. Are your chapter titles effective and clear? For instructional works, they should tell readers what’s coming up in the chapter. For creative works, chapter titles can be more creative in their purpose. Still, look at them all to determine how they work together and whether or not they help establish the theme for your narrative.

2. Do your opening sentences hook your readers? This is critical for both narrative and instructional works—grab your readers right away and don’t let them go.

3. Do your introduction paragraphs effectively introduce the content contained in that chapter? For creative works, the first paragraph should set the tone for what’s coming.

4. Are your subheads effective and clear? This obviously applies primarily to how-to nonfiction and instructional works, but creative writers should look at what each chapter title reveals about the chapter it introduces.

5. Do your chapter titles and/or subheads collectively work together to reinforce the theme and goals of the book as a whole?

6. Where do you need more subheads to make the information more manageable for your readers? Again, subheads are primarily for instructional works, but creative writers should look at how their narrative flows and scenes change in each chapter to find where readers may potentially feel lost.

7. Are the examples you use effective in illustrating your points, and reinforcing the theme? For creative writers, does each scene move the narrative forward?

8. Are your main points clear throughout your chapters? For creative writers, is your theme and narrative line clear throughout each chapter?

9. Is the information, or scenes, within each chapter presented to the reader in a logical way?

10. Does each chapter close in such a way that leaves your readers anxious for what comes next? In other words, don’t let them put your book down for long!

Just like every writer needs an editor, every writer needs to learn how to think about their own work objectively—they need to see their own words as a reader will see them. This can be challenging, but it’s definitely not impossible. When you use these ten self-editing questions, you’ll be able to better see the challenges and inconsistencies in your own writing, and your writing project—whether it’s the great American novel or the next bestselling how-to book—will be much better as a result.

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Generating More Income with Website Marketing

2008-05-14T15:00:00.020-07:00

"So what’s this you hear about Alberta website marketing? Is it really worth the effort?"

While clichés can be dull to listen to after a while there is a certain fact about them that can't be denied: they are often true. So, let's repeat one of the most common of the repeated clichés: Do what you always do and you will get what you always get. In other words, if you don't change the way you go about life then nothing in your life will change. This is a fact.

One area of life people always complain about is finances or lack thereof. Most people would just love to have more income. Yet, they can never achieve that goal. Part of the problem is that they look at achieving their goal from an outmoded perspective. If they need extra money they try to work more hours at their current job or they look for something on the side. While there is nothing inherently wrong with any of these approaches, there is a much easier way to make extra money. It comes in the form of website marketing.

Ok, some folks out there may be saying they can't get involved with website marketing. They do not have a product to sell and they are not experts in web development marketing. That might be the case for the "here and now" but what about tomorrow? In other words, if these individuals lack knowledge of website development marketing what is stopping them from doing a little research and learning more about the subject? Other than lack of initiative, nothing is stopping them!

There are a number of ways one can earn money from website development marketing. It can come in the form of drop ship selling, affiliate marketing, direct advertisement revenue, promoting a product or service or pay per click marketing. Now, these are most definitely NOT get rich quick schemes. They all require hard work and commitment. But, if one does put the time in it will be worth it as all these website marketing strategies have long since been proven to deliver results.

Whether you are looking for a supplemental income or are wishing to never have to work again, solid web development marketing plans can achieve this goal. So start your journey in Alberta web development marketing today. There is a brave new website marketing world out there if you are willing to go after it!

Creatively yours, Todd Herman

Senior Vice President

GlobalWebsiteCreations.com

President of B.C. Division

GlobalWebsiteCreating.com

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