Introduction to Writing. by Ragnar Terjeson Miljeteig

There are many different ways you can write. One approach is to simply write what you're thinking about at the moment, for example how your day was or how the food you just ate tasted. This sort of thing is usually found in a diary or blog. Of course it's not that difficult to write just anything, the difficult part is to write something that is interesting. One of the simplest ways to do this is to simply think of what interests you. Normally there would be people around the globe that shares your interest. So if you succeed in writing something that interests yourself there's a rather large chance that someone else will be interested in it as well.

One of the main problems with texts that seek to maintain the readers interest is the flow of it. It can be very difficult at times to write a text of more than a few sentences where everything seems connected. A text with a good flow, with well written descriptions and few grammatical errors is what I would call a successful one. This applies more to articles than fiction though however. Writing good fiction relies a lot on your imagination and ability to speak your mind.

However, something that can get in the way of your plans of becoming a known author is the way you use the language. If your language is riddled with typos and poorly written descriptions, you are doomed to fail. Accordingly you should either have a go at your own texts sorting them out, or have a generous friend that has a decent knowledge of English, or whatever language you decide to write in, do it for you. If you decide to edit your own work, a good idea is to read the texts out loud, this makes it easier to notice grammatical errors, as well as other flaws with the texts. When redoing segments in your text you should be careful to avoid ruining the texts context. Doing so will often close to ruin the text, and make it a way worse read than it originally was. Even if the segment you edited away was very poorly written.

Listening - the lost art by Susan Creal

As a child, listening was one of my least favorite skills to perfect. I can remember back in the fourth grade, bringing home my report card with the 'needs to follow directions' and 'needs to listen ' boxes checked with a bright red marker. In the sixth grade, I was moved to every corner of the room simply because of my lack of listening. I would talk your ear off before I was remotely able to actually listen to what YOU had to say. It was sad.

Over time, and through experience, I HAD to learn SUPERIOR listening skills as an educator to listen to my students, parents and administration. To my and account holders as I worked in sales, to my weight loss clients as I prepared their fitness plan and now as a coach as I work with hundreds of women, actively listening to what is said and most importantly what is NOT said. It is imperative to my practice to continuously work on this skill and share how I do it with you.

• Always face speakers directly. Look directly in their eyes as this establishes trust.

• Stay in the NOW. Clear your mind of other thoughts as you concentrate on what exactly is being said. This can be really hard to do, however with a little practice, it will get easier!

• Be aware of the fact that the other person is always 'right' in their own world.

• Listen with interest and most of all patience. Any kind of fighting is blatantly noticeable and can irritate the speaker.

• Listen opulently, without prejudice. Notice how your body feels as you visualize yourself opening up like a bird opening its wings of acceptance.

• In your own words, reflect back to what the speaker just said. You are showing that you understand what they are saying and feeling as you prepare your response.

• Remain curious as you ask questions using open ended questions that start with "what," "where," "when," "how," "who," "why."

• Establish rapport by matching the momentum, body language, tone of voice and types of vocabulary the person is using.

Action Item :

* This week use just one of these tips on someone you are listening to and notice what happens. Does it change their interaction with you? Do you feel more empowered? Write about it in your journal.

How to Write a Book with a Best Selling Title by Tom Evans

I believe that having the perfect title for your book from the outset is really important. Visitors either enter a web site or go elsewhere within 10 seconds.
In the same way, readers decide if they want to know more about a book based on the title, in a similar amount of time.

An evocative title will resonate with the reader and make it easier to remember, share and recommend.

Jerzy Kosinski, the author of Being There said, "I always start a novel by starting its first page and last page, which seem to survive almost intact through all the following drafts and changes."

Once you get that perfect title and those opening and closing words, the rest just seems to flow.

I have been able to channel for my own writing for some time now. Recently though, I have started to do this for my clients and some amazing stuff is happening. Once you get going in this way, a chain of quantum entanglement is set up that leads to a sequence of coincidences that get your book written, published and just in the hands of the right readers ….

The Art of Creative Writing by Tom Evans

There are two really common reasons why authors get writer's block. The first is a lack of inner confidence about their writing ability. The second is a belief that they simply don't have the time to write.

The blocks caused by lack of confidence can be caused by an innocent criticism of something written earlier - like an essay that got a black mark at school perhaps and has created a deep and lasting belief in their ability to write well.

The solution is to identify the old behaviours and beliefs and replace them with new beliefs and patterns that are much more resourceful. This can be done at either a conscious or unconscious level and can sometimes be as simple as turning a belief around from 'I can't write creatively' to something like 'the more I write, the more creative my writing becomes'.

To deal with the second type of block, there are many excellent books on how to improve your time management. Books like this are brilliant at pointing out where you can claw back time by better managing your day. Additionally, I would like to propose a more lateral and fundamental approach to time management - and that's to change the perceived speed of time itself.

Now this might seem far fetched, or in the realms of Doctor Who or Back to the Future, but scientists are coming to the conclusion that our reality - our space and time - are linked to our consciousness. In fact, it's more accurate to say that it's our very consciousness that actually creates our reality. So all you need to do to change time is to make a change in your consciousness.

I am sure you have heard about athletes who have been "in the zone" - a sort of timeless place - or perhaps you have had a light bulb moment where in less than a second, you get a flash of inspiration - a whole picture for a new idea. If you were able to MRI scan your brain at this moment, you would see both the right and left hemispheres light up in synchronism. For that split second you were Whole Brain (or even Whole Mind) Thinking. A brain scan would show that your brain was generating alpha and probably even theta waves.

Now you can access this state while meditating. When I mention this to authors, their first reaction is that they don't have time to meditate. I know it sounds counter-intuitive but I can testify that 20-30 minutes meditation before a writing session will deliver not only the time back by a factor of 3 or 4 but also much better quality writing.

"But I can't make my mind go quiet," is normally the next protest swiftly followed by, "I'd like to meditate but I don't have time to learn how." Well, if you hear yourself saying this, help is now at hand. You don't need necessarily to enter an ashram for two months. Although, if you did, it might well be time well spent ... Meditation machines are now available that help get you into both alpha and theta states. I have been using one for over a year now and even though I am reasonably adept at meditation, I can testify that they really do work.

I've written a free companion guide for users of meditation machines to specifically help authors through writer's block and to tap into their creative muse. After a few weeks of use, you will even find it easier to enter the meditative state without a machine and while you are in what is normally thought of as the waking state.

For a writer, this becomes significant as time seems to stretch out so that in a single hour you write what would normally take a whole morning or afternoon.

The benefits to your productivity are therefore immense and you will be amazed at your output in all areas of your life. People who have used machines even get comments of how well they look.

The Importance of Networking in Early Childhood Education by Jim Bisesi

If you are currently studying for a teaching degree, getting support from teachers who have been through the processes of studying can be refreshing whilst you study for an early childhood education course online.

It can seem like a daunting process sometimes: you have your coursework deadline looming and you may find that the other pressures of your life are making you quite stressed. However, there is reassurance out there: in various forms.

For instance, there are online forums where you have the chance to discuss your courses with other alumni which are going through the same coursework deadlines and dilemmas that you are.

The Online Degree Forum website can help you to get advice from alumni who have completed the course you are embarking on and are now teachers as well as indispensable advice on how to write that killer essay.

Some of the most notable distance education degrees online include those found at the University of Phoenix and the University of Kaplan. On the Online Degree Forum's website, you can participate in dedicated to discussions regarding early childhood education courses from these two educational institutions, as well as others nationally.

You may find that the tutors that run your course of early childhood education online are working early childhood educators or have had a lot of experience as one in the past. Many universities have facilities which enable you to talk to your tutors, where you can obtain some very valuable tips and advice during your learning.

Sometimes, it is your fellow students who can give you valuable insight when studying. There can be times where you may have found that you have missed something when writing your essay, and this is when talking to your fellow students can help or even forming a study group. Even talking to someone who is further on in the course when compared to the stage of your learning could be an idea to consider.

When you are writing your coursework for your early childhood education classes, you will have to apply knowledge of practical and theoretical teaching practices. This can be where talking to teachers in your local area can help.

Visiting a local elementary school and even requesting for a day or two of work experience there could help you to obtain incredibly valuable experience for when you need to apply your knowledge in an essay.

While you are there, you will be able to analyze how teachers and their aides communicate and teach children, as well as look at how ethical issues like discipline, race and special needs children are handled.

When you are writing an essay, the last thing you want to do is suffer in silence and to go through it all alone. This article has looked at just some of the ways that you can get support through your education and training.

Taking the initiative to ask around and probe further into early childhood education when embarking on your online degree education could be more useful than you think.