Using Contests as Door Openers

Using Contests as Door Openers In a world where its near impossible to land an agent or publisher, and indie publishing appears to be a monstrosity of complexities, it might be time to consider contests. And dont talk about how most of them are scams, either. There are more publishing scams out there than contests, my friend. Why focus on contests when your goal is publishing? Because contests are a roundabout way to open a door to getting published. And you get to toy around with submitting more than that book youve obsessed over. You can also submit novellas, short stories, flash fiction, and poetry. Suggestions on entering contests to aid your career: 1) Stick to contests that result in publication. Whether its a website, a journal, or a publishing house, getting publication credits in your portfolio matters. You need credibility. 2) Extract from your book-length work and create a short piece or two. There are way more short story competitions than novels contests. Take the gist of your longer piece and turn it into a short submission. The point is to make people realize you can write. If you win, THEN tell them you also write novels. 3) Choose reputable contests, not something cutesy and cheap, so that when you win you are respected, not chuckled at. Show that even when you enter contests, you are a professional. 4) Be willing to pay entry fees. They fund the publishing, the judging, and the prize money. Better to pay $25 to enter and win $1,000 than pay $0 and win $50. The latter doesnt look as good on a resume or pitch letter. 5) Consider those contests that offer feedback. Those critiques might right some wrongs in your work. 6) Choose contests where the judges are agents, publishers, or editors. Even if you dont win, you might catch someones eye. Some authors enter contests regularly while still pursuing publication. Theres no point in passing up this sort of opportunity. Especially during a time that writers are a dime-a-dozen and landing attention is like screaming into the wind. While youre planning your query letters or indie promotion, make time for a contest or two each month. It might be the catalyst to take that stalling writing career to a higher level.

Fourth Grade School Supplies List

Fourth Grade School Supplies List In the fourth grade, students begin to establish a foundation for developing research skills, writing skills, and critical reading skills. The supplies listed here are typical of the tools students will use to learn fourth grade skills. As always, you should check with your teacher to determine the specific supplies youll need. No. 2 Pencils Students will go through many pencils and erasers in the fourth grade, so it is important to keep a full supply in the home.Eraser packs Dont be caught unprepared!Planner Time management skills are important for success in the fourth grade, as students often find homework assignments require a bit more organization and planning than ever before.Colored pocket folders Teachers often require separate folders for individual subjects.Binder In the fourth grade, subjects may be separated in a binder. Some teachers encourage students to keep time management aids in binders.Wide-ruled paper This type of paper is often required for essay assignments.Highlighters Students begin to use highlighters to mark important information on study sheets and notes.Red pens In the fourth grade, students may start to switch papers for grading. Red pens and pencils are used for grading other students assignments.Pencil box Its important to stay organized.Backpack Many schools require students to use clear backpacks. Pencil sharpener Youll need one for test day!Bookmarks Youll be reading more advanced books.Colored pencils Students begin to study geography in the fourth grade in much greater detail. Colored pencils will be used for maps and other projects.Ruler Students begin to work with graphs in the fourth grade. Geometry is also a subject students will explore in some depth.Flashcards Students begin to learn concepts in math such as order of operations. It is important for students to fully memorize multiplication tables.

Does religion cause war Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Does religion cause war - Research Paper Example A major example of this is the Crusades which were expeditions of Christians in Europe during the 12th and 13th centuries for the recovery of Israel (Wiegand, 2011). Although the frontline issue of the Crusade is to rescue the Holy Land of Israel from its perpetrators and for other countries to be converted into the Christian religion; it doesn’t change the fact that this movement caused violence and struggle toward its enemies. They thought that it is appropriate to force people to convert into their religion (Wiegand, 2011). Another recent event which is speculated to be caused by conflicts with religion is the bombings of the World Trade Center (Poole. 2011). Regarding these thoughts, the big question is, does religion really causes war? In this paper, some cases and articles, which relates the concept of religion and war, will be discussed and try to answer the question if the prime mover for the development of war is religion, or is it something else behind it. Religion can be defined as set of beliefs concerning the cause and nature’s purpose of the universe, or the practice of religious beliefs (Poole, 2011). In the definition, the word â€Å"belief† is the key word for religion relies on what people believes in. The religious belief is the basis for the everyday living of a certain individual or group of people. Religious beliefs are the main factors which influences the decision-making and principle an individual have. Hence, many people have the notion that religion is one of the major causes of war. However, I think that this is not always the case for different interpretations and views of several form of religion do not always go about conflict and hence is not always a predisposition to the formation of war. Religion has been entailed in the formation of war since its creation. There are many form of religion which is practiced in the world today. Some

Walmart Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 1

Walmart - Research Paper Example Walmart stands distinguished among the crowd of aspiring organizations because the managers vigorously and regularly collaborate with employees to improve the policies and gain more customers. This proves that organizational designs which integrate such effective tools improve service behaviors of the employees and make them invest extra time, hard work, and brainwork in the functions they perform. Such motivated style service delivery inflicts a very different and fresh influence on the customers also. Apart from organizational design, the organizational culture of Walmart fully acknowledges the importance of both positive organizational behavior and diversity as a way of winning loyalty of more customers from diverse background. All such aspects of Walmart’s management will be analyzed in this research paper and will also be compared with the service practices of other large retail stores to find out how Walmart corporation manages to stand out of the crowd. Introduction: Wa l-Mart Stores, Inc. or simply Walmart is an American multinational retail corporation which runs a large chain of department stores around the world. The success of this renowned business corporation is such that Fortune 500 has revealed it to be the world’s third largest public corporation. As one of the world’s most prestigious companies, currently over two million employees are privately employed at Walmart. It is also the largest grocery retailer in the US. There are already 8500 stores operating in as many as 15 countries under different names and the head of Walmart has thrown light on more plans for growth on an international level. While addressing the Wake Forest University students recently, Mike Duke who is the president and CEO of Walmart claimed that in order to face the fierce competitiveness in the present global economy and to stay ahead of the other reputable national and international organizations, Walmart will have to speed up its growth process. In the same address, Duke announced plans to conquer Africa also â€Å"by making a preliminary offer to buy Massmart Holdings Ltd† (Daniel). This paper aims at reviewing literature as a way of finding out what it has to say on the success of Walmart and what management strategies are employed by the management of this corporation to satisfy the needs of both employees and customers. Role of innovation in sustaining business success and growth: The growth of the international Walmart business outside the US is described by Duke as absolutely phenomenal and accelerated in context of building new department stores and serving dynamic needs of a diverse line of customers (Daniel). It is claimed by the Walmart organization itself that innovative leadership, concerned management, and a deep commitment to save public’s money have together given this business a global reputation due to which it is still in

Improving life in the U.S Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Improving life in the U.S - Essay Example Americans are predominantly non-vegetarians. Since most of the non-vegetarian foods have too much fatty content, Americans are becoming obese as time goes on. It should be noted that obesity is becoming a huge health problem not only among adults, but also among children in America. Obesity or overweight has the potential to cause damage to physical as well as mental health. Avoidance of non-vegetarian food and practicing vegetarian foods are important things in preventing obesity related problems in America. ‘A study conducted by Arizona State University psychology professors Richard Stein and Carol Nemeroff reported that, sight unseen, salad eaters were rated more moral, virtuous and considerate than steak eaters " (Corliss). School shooting like violent incidents are increasing day by day in America. Plenty of studies have shown that non-vegetarianism has the potential to increase violence compared to vegetarianism. It should be noted that Indians are predominantly vegetaria ns and hence school shooting like violent incidents are less in India. India is adopting peaceful means of conflict resolution even though Pakistan like countries is continuously causing problems in India. It should be noted that Mahatma Gandhi opted for nonviolent means for his fight against British colonialism. On the other hand, non-vegetarianism is prevalent in Pakistan like countries. They are currently struggling to fight against terrorism and violent activities. All these factors clearly suggest that vegetarianism has the potential to improve peace and harmony and reduce violent activities. Therefore America should give more emphasize to vegetarian foods. â€Å"Today, we dumped another 70 million tons of global-warming pollution into the thin shell of atmosphere surrounding our planet, as if it were an open sewer. And tomorrow, we will dump a slightly larger amount, with the cumulative concentrations now trapping more and more heat from the sun†(Gore). Global warming i s going to be a big problem in future. Many studies have proved beyond doubt that atmospheric temperature is increasing continuously. The survival of living things on earth would become difficult in near future itself. Being the most heavily industrialized nation in the world, America cannot stay away from the responsibilities of causing global warming like environmental problems in this world. it should be noted that automobile use in America is extremely high compared to that in other parts of the world. The greenhouse gases coming out from the automobiles are causing big problems to the environment. Last September 21, as the Northern Hemisphere tilted away from the sun, scientists reported with unprecedented distress that the North Polar ice cap is "falling off a cliff." One study estimated that it could be completely gone during summer in less than 22 years. Another new study, to be presented by U.S. Navy researchers later this week, warns it could happen in as little as 7 years (Gore). The huge ice blocs in Polar Regions are getting melted as time goes on because of the atmospheric temperature rise. The water coming out from the melted ice goes to sea and increases the sea level. It is believed that some of the major cities located near to the coastal areas will be sunk in near

Training Corps Essay Example for Free

Training Corps Essay My plan is to create a recruitment leaflet for my local squadron of the Air Training Corps (ATC), 578 Langley Park Sqn. I will include a list of activities, a map of the local area, for easy finding, as well as any extra information, such as website, contact numbers, email addresses etc. I will choose to use a word processor over a desktop publisher as I find them easier to use and I do not need to add backgrounds and borders to it. Also I can make it form the layout of a leaflet better in a word processor. The word processor I shall use will be Microsoft Word as I have access to it at home and school. The most important thing is that I make it attractive to the target audience (13-14 year olds). To do this I will have to find out what sort of things, that link to the ATC, do the target audience like to see. The hardware used will include an inkjet colour printer, to print in colour, scanner, to scan pictures in, and a digital camera, to take pictures to place in Analyse I have spoken to the Commanding officer and he wishes to have a leaflet made so that extra cadets could be recruited. The leaflet should be easy to understand and be found attractive to the target audience of 13-14 year olds of either sex. The information I require will be a map of the local area for the audience to locate the squadron, as well as contact telephone numbers, email addresses, and also the squadron website. To work out the most attractive type of leaflet I shall create short questionnaires for people of the target age group to answer in order to help me decide on the layout. When the leaflet is then completed it must be decided how they may be distributed among the general public. System Flowchart Design To produce my leaflet I first needed to decide the word processor that I would use. I decided to use Microsoft Word 2000 as I have access to it at home as well as at school. I decided not to use a DTP wizard such as Microsoft Publisher as I do not have easy access to them. I designed my leaflet so that it could be folded up into six sections. To do this I used the columns button at the top of the page to separate each side into three columns (Image1). Then I began gathering pictures off the internet to use in my project. The pictures I consider to be most important too the target audience are the maps (Images 2,3), which were downloaded from www. multimap. com. (Images 2,3) The front cover (Image 4) was made by layering different images from the air cadet website and adding the letters for 578sqn to be placed on the front cover over the rest of the pictures. I was able to do this by using Paint Shop Pro. (Image 4) (Image 5) For the activities section I used Word Art to create the title (Image 5) and used pictures downloaded from the squadron website to show the activities (Images 6,7,and 8). (Image 6) (Image 7) (Image 8) For the Duke of Edinborough Award section I took pictures from the official website. These included the title, different awards, and an image of an expedition (Images 9,10,and 11). (Image 9) (Image 10) (Image 11) Using Word Art, I created the title for the sport section (Image 12), which contains a list of sports in which the Air Training Corps take part. (Image 12) The final section on the Air Training Corps gives a brief summary of what the ATC is all about and gives information such as age limitations. Other information given in the leaflet include the time and days that the squadron parades and its address. Front Back Implement I had to change several things on my leaflet before I came to my final design. For instance the leaflet did contain information on Royal Air Force Stations, and aircraft. However I decided against this as it breaks the Official Secret Acts of 1911 and 1989. Other changes were more basic such as changes in fonts, pictures, etc. The leaflet will be folded in the following way: Testing I showed the leaflet to the Commanding Officer of the squadron the leaflet was for and he liked the idea and thought it was well designed, however to use the leaflet it would have to be cleared with Kent Wing HQ which would have been a lengthy and ultimately pointless process. Conclusion I conclude that the leaflet would have been successful in bringing in new recruits from the local area if it had been allowed to be given out.

Finding Morality and Unity with God in Dantes Inferno Essay -- Alighi

Finding Morality and Unity with God in Dante's Inferno Throughout the fast-paced lives of people, we are constantly making choices that shape who we are, as well as the world around us; however, one often debates the manner in which one should come to correct moral decisions, and achieve a virtuous existence. Dante has an uncanny ability to represent with such precision, the trials of the everyman’s soul to achieve morality and find unity with God, while setting forth the beauty, humor, and horror of human life. Dante immediately links his own personal experience to that of all of humanity, as he proclaims, â€Å"Midway along the journey of our life / I woke to find myself in a dark wood, / for I had wandered off from the straight path† (I.1-3). The dark wood is the sinful life on earth, and the straight path is that of the virtuous life that leads to God. Dante’s everyman, pilgrim character represents all of humanity, and endures much adversity and temptation through squalid conditions in a nightmarish vision of hel l, in his search to find the soul’s true path in life. While he stands in peril, Dante wishes that each individual would put themselves in the same position as the aforementioned, as all of mankind knows some form of sin, and also wanders lost in a dark wood. Before achieving moral redemption, an individual must take a hard look at evil both in the world and in himself. Only by confronting inner evil can people achieve self-knowledge, which is the first step toward redemption. Dante feels hell is a necessary, painful first step in any man’s spiritual journey, and the path to the blessed after-life awaits anyone who seeks to find it, and through a screen of perseverance, one will find the face of God. Nonetheless, Dante aspires to heaven in an optimistic process, to find salvation in God, despite the merciless torture chamber he has to travel through. As Dante attempts to find God in his life, those sentenced to punishment in hell hinder him from the true path, as the city of hell in Inferno represents the negative consequences of sinful actions and desires. Though the punishments invariably fit the crimes of the sinners and retributive justice reigns, the palpable emphasis of fear and pity that Dante imbues on the transgressors illustrates his human tendency to feel sympathy towards one who is suffering. For example, when Dante approaches the gat... ...a vice. The virtue of courage, then, lies at the mean between the excessive extreme of rashness, and the deficient extreme of cowardice. Reason often calls for us to take sides on moral issues, however, Dante illustrates the extremity of moral demands that Christianity makes on human beings, who are perpetually fallible. He reflects that the world beyond the present one, is, like reality, rational and orderly, and the poem allows us to view this certain, orderly world. Dante makes himself everyman, and the journey that God decreed through hell is one man’s personal transcendent journey from deep intellectual moral confusion to a sound and steadfast faith and hope, in which Dante renews his faith. Dante awakens our hope, and warns against moral complacency by peeling away the dangerous illusions of adequacy, leading one upward, toward the eternal heart of reality. Dante compels the reader to share his growing abhorrence of sin and his obligation to uphold God’s will. The poem’s purpose is to re-awaken Dante, and, by extension, the reader, to the reality of sin and the accompanying need for confession and repentance, to return to the straight path that leads to eternal salvation.