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With increased compression, every word, every sentence matters more. A writer must learn how to form narratives around caesuras and crevices instead of strings of connections, to move a story through the symbolic weight of images, to master the power of suggestion. With elegant prose, deep readings of other writers, and scaffolded writing exercises, The Art of Brevity takes the listener on a lyrical exploration of compact storytelling, guiding listeners to heighten their awareness of not only what appears on the page but also what doesn't.

Beneath the self-assured and serious faces we wear, every human life is full of longing, guesswork, and confusion—a scramble to do the best we can and make everything up as we go along. In these wide-ranging essays, Jon Mooallem chronicles the beauty of our blundering and the inescapability of our imperfections.

Failure is a topic discussed in every creative writing department in the world, but this is the book every beginning writer should have on their shelf to prepare them. Less a guide to writing and more a guide to what you need to continue existing as a writer, On Writing and Failure: Or, On the Peculiar Perseverance Required to Endure the Life of a Writer describes the defining role played by rejection in literary endeavors and contemplates failure as the essence of the writer’s life.

In a collection of original essays, the venerated television journalist, Dan Rather, celebrates our shared values and what matters most in our great country, and shows us what patriotism looks like. Writing about the institutions that sustain us, such as public libraries, public schools, and national parks; the values that have transformed us, such as the struggle for civil rights; and the drive toward science and innovation that has made the US great, Rather brings his experience on the frontlines of the world's biggest stories, and offers listeners a way forward.

Long renowned as one of the smartest writers on the loose, David Foster Wallace reveals himself in Consider the Lobster to be also one of the funniest. In this program, he ranges far and farther in his search for the original, the curious, or the merely mystifying. He discovers the World's Largest Lobster Cooker at the Maine Lobster Festival and confronts the inevitable question just beyond the butter-or-cocktail-sauce quandary.

In 1974 in Kinshasa, Zaïre, two African American boxers were paid five million dollars apiece to fight each other. One was Muhammad Ali, the aging but irrepressible "professor of boxing." The other was George Foreman, who was as taciturn as Ali was voluble. Observing them was Norman Mailer, a commentator of unparalleled energy, acumen, and audacity.

Chairs. Neat people. Ugliness. War. Over six decades of intrepid reporting and elegant essays, Andy Rooney has proven a shrewd cultural analyst. Andy Rooney: 60 Years of Wisdom and Wit brings together the best of more than a half-century of work (including long-out-of-print pieces from his early years) in an unforgettable celebration of one of America’s funniest men. Like Mark Twain, Finley Peter Dunne (Mister Dooley) and Will Rogers, Andy Rooney is a classic chronicler of America, a writer for the ages.

Let the College Essay Guy take the stress out of writing your college admission essay. Packed with brainstorming activities, college personal statement samples, and more, this audiobook provides a clear, stress-free road map to writing your best admission essay. Writing a college admission essay doesn't have to be stressful. College counselor Ethan Sawyer (a.k.a. The College Essay Guy) will show you that there are only four (really, four!) types of college admission essays. And all you have to do to is figure out which type is best for you.

Kundera brilliantly examines the work of such important and diverse figures as Rabelais, Cervantes, Sterne, Diderot, Flaubert, Tolstoy, and Musil. He is especially penetrating on Hermann Broch, and his exploration of the world of Kafka's novels vividly reveals the comic terror of Kafka's bureaucratized universe. Kundera's discussion of his own work includes his views on the role of historical events in fiction, the meaning of action, and the creation of character in the postpsychological novel.

Legendary writing coach Jack Hart spent 26 years at The Oregonian and has taught students and professionals of all stripes, including bloggers, podcasters, and more than one Pulitzer Prize winner. Good writing, he says, has the same basic attributes regardless of genre or medium. Wordcraft shares Hart’s techniques for achieving those attributes in one of the most broadly useful writing books ever written. Originally published in 2006 as A Writer’s Coach, the book has been updated to address the needs of writers well beyond print journalists.

In How to Write Romantasy, Moreci takes you from your first kernel of inspiration through the resolution of your novel, ensuring you hit all the key elements along the way. Chapters are organized around specific plot points, necessary skills, and common questions, covering topics such as building a fantasy framework, creating compelling characters, learning the art of the tease, and bringing home the happily ever after. Each chapter is followed by a summary that you can use for quick reference.

In Listening Well, Heather will explore her extraordinary talents as a listener—a skill she employed when she first met Lale Sokolov, the tattooist at Auschwitz-Birkenau. It was this ability that led Lale to entrust Heather with his story, which she told in The Tattooist of Auschwitz. Now Heather shares the story behind her inspirational writing journey and the defining experiences of her life, including her profound friendship with Lale, and explores how she learned to really listen to the stories people told her—skills she believes we can all learn.

Rand takes listeners step by step through the writing process, providing insightful observations and invaluable techniques along the way. She discusses the psychological aspects of writing and the roles played by the conscious and subconscious mind. She talks about articles and books, explaining how to select a subject and theme, how to identify your audience, and how to write the first draft.

The beginning is the most important part of your book. The first chapter—probably even the first page—is what makes agents and editors accept or reject a manuscript, and it's what makes readers decide to buy a book or pick another. But writing a compelling opening is hard because there are so many things a great beginning needs to do and so many mistakes to avoid.

Improv instructor and writer Jorjeana Marie presents the first book to harness the creative power of improvisation exercises to help both aspiring and seasoned authors defeat writer's block and generate new ideas. Introducing the rules and techniques of improvisation as they apply to fiction writing, improv instructor and writer Jorjeana Marie addresses each major element of storytelling by applying writer's-block-busting games and inner-critic-quieting exercises to get the creative ideas flowing.

Ready to build a picture book? First, you’ll need the right tools. Listen to this title in the Writer’s Toolbox series and discover plenty of tips and tools to get you started. Soon you’ll be writing and showing stories like a pro!

An immersive journey through the culture and cuisine of one Japanese town, its forest, and its watershed - where ducks are hunted by net, saké is brewed from the purest mountain water, and charcoal is fired in stone kilns - by an American writer and food stylist who spent years working alongside artisans.

Being human sounds like an obvious pursuit, but when change is constant and uncertainty is the norm, we all need some encouragement to lean into who we have the full potential to be. The task of preparing ourselves for and becoming comfortable with the unknown has shifted the way people live and work. Pivoting whilst staying true to oneself seems not only necessary to survive, but to grow and thrive. The personal and shared success can be multi-directional. Generally, it starts with pursuing self-awareness, the magic ingredient needed to authentically navigate personal challenges, ...

We see notebooks everywhere we go. But where did this simple invention come from? How did they revolutionise our lives, and why are they such powerful tools for creativity? And how can using a notebook help you change the way you think? In this wide-ranging story, Roland Allen reveals all the answers. Ranging from the bustling markets of medieval Florence to the quiet studies of our greatest thinkers, he follows a trail of dazzling ideas, revealing how the notebook became our most dependable and versatile tool for creative thinking.

En este manual, René busca desarrollar en el comunicador la capacidad de asombrar al público y de transmitir la emoción de descubrir hechos extraordinarios de la ciencia y la tecnología. El autor busca fortalecer el papel clave en esta época de crisis de los periodistas de ciencia, al promover el pensamiento crítico y fundamenta- do de la sociedad.