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Best Fiction Writing Reference

The Emotion Thesaurus: A Writer's Guide to Character Expression
One of the biggest problem areas for writers is conveying a character's emotions to the reader in a unique, compelling way. Angela and Becca also co-founded their popular Writers Helping Writers site, a hub where authors can hone their craft, as well as One Stop For Writers , an innovative online library built to help writers elevate their storytelling.
Reviews
"This is a very good tool for all writers, whether you are writing a book, writing a. school assignment, or writing a letter to motivate someone, this thesaurus will. be helpful."
"Both works start the same, but the book by Renni Browne and Dave King, which I reviewed prior to this book, continues as a lecturing text giving extended advice to writers of novels and short stories. As a reference tool, this work, like others, belongs within arm's reach of the writer's work station. For me, it was a matter of highlighting certain examples of words and phrases which showed what characters could be feeling, selecting words that I might use in my current work of fiction in progress, particularly works that would apply to the immediacy of a situation rather than to those that were more extensive and required reaching beyond a particular scene."
"It's really a desk reference to the way people react to various emotions, including how they look to the outside, how the react internally and mentally, and the long term effect of these emotions. Frankly, I'm an observant and emotional person, so I didn't feel like I needed a lot more insight into emotions. But it is a real handy tool to help writers get a handle on various ways emotions play out and helps the descriptions from becoming one-dimensional."
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The Negative Trait Thesaurus: A Writer's Guide to Character Flaws
Inside the Negative Trait Thesaurus you’ll find: *A vast collection of flaws to explore when building a character’s personality. *Each entry includes possible causes, attitudes, behaviors, thoughts, and related emotions. *Real examples from literature, film, or television to show how each flaw can create life challenges and relational friction. *Advice on building layered and memorable characters from the ground up. *An in-depth look at backstory, emotional wounds, and how pain twists a character’s view of himself and his world, influencing behavior and decision making. *A flaw-centric exploration of character arc, relationships, motivation, and basic needs. *Tips on how to best show a character’s flaws to readers while avoiding common pitfalls. *Downloadable tools to aid writers in character creation. "In these brilliantly conceived, superbly organized and astonishingly thorough volumes, Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi have created an invaluable resource for writers and storytellers.
Reviews
"I haven’t used these as thoroughly as I should, mostly because when I bought them I was in the middle of writing something I’d already developed characters for, but I’m in the beginning of a new project and I intend to make full use of it."
"Before you get to all the amazing flaws, the thesaurus is prefaced with helpful sections on roles of flaws within character arc; roles of flaws within a relationship; building your characters; villains; how to show flaws and the difficulties you can run into when crafting flawed characters."
"5 stars, a wonderful useful resource for any writer in the process of building and understanding their fictional and otherwise characters."
"The Negative Trait Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide to Character Flaws, by Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi, is the ideal resource to help you craft those deliciously flawed characters. This thesaurus and its companion guide, The Positive Trait Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide to Character Attributes, have been instrumental in helping me rebuild my novel."
"Superior reference book for writers."
"This book is so helpful, from the planning stages of a new book, right through to fleshing out the story."
"If you struggle even a little bit with character development this book is the holy grail."
"When writing action scenes or dialogue of a character affected with negative behaviors, attitudes, thoughts and emotions, "The Negative Traits Thesaurus" is a welcome resource."
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The Emotional Wound Thesaurus: A Writer's Guide to Psychological Trauma
•A database of traumatic situations common to the human experience. •An in-depth study on a wound’s impact, including the fears, lies, personality shifts, and dysfunctional behaviors that can arise from different painful events. •An extensive analysis of character arc and how the wound and any resulting unmet needs fit into it. •Techniques on how to show the past experience to readers in a way that is both engaging and revelatory while avoiding the pitfalls of info dumps and telling. •A showcase of popular characters and how their traumatic experiences reshaped them, leading to very specific story goals. •A Backstory Wound Profile tool that will enable you to document your characters’ negative past experiences and the aftereffects. ~ Lisa Cron , bestselling author of Wired For Story & StoryGenius "Emotionaltrauma, rightly used, will greatly increase the strength of the reader's bondwith your characters. ~ James Scott Bell , International Thriller Writers Award winner"Thisbook is an invaluable resource providing situations that led to the character'semotional wound, false beliefs, fears and responses that impact personality, aswell as triggers and opportunities that can lead into plot ideas. ~ Martha Alderson, bestsellingauthor of the Plot Whisperer books"To weave stories that connectdirectly to a reader's heart, an author knows has to go deeper than they'veever gone before.
Reviews
"But, back to intended purpose of this guide - the comprehensive scenarios (from common to extreme) will help authors define and reveal characters through the provided triggers, behaviors, beliefs, fears and possible resulting personality traits."
"Other books tell you to flesh out your characters."
"Superior desktop reference for authors of any experience level."
"Every single thesaurus written by Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi should be mandatory for the serious writer's toolkit."
"I'm writing a YA memoir, and I'll tell you this book not only has pin point accuracy on the fears a character may face about a trauma and the possible responses to those fears, but this book also includes a wonderful 'self-care' section in the beginning to remind you to be gentle with yourself while writing about these difficult subjects."
"It's very informative and even a bit healing if you already have some of these emotional wounds personally."
"I love all the Emotional Thesaurus books."
"this was an amazing addition to the series."
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Best Genre Fiction Writing Reference

The Miracle Morning for Writers: How to Build a Writing Ritual That Increases Your Impact and Your Income (Before 8AM) (The Miracle Morning Book Series)
And that's why you should read The Miracle Morning for Writers: How to Build a Writing Ritual That Increases Your Impact and Income (Before 8AM) . The Miracle Morning for Writers combines Hal Elrod's global phenomenon with Steve Scott's proven writing habit techniques (which helped him get on the Wall Street Journal bestsellers list ). The Miracle Morning for Writers is your key to building a writing habit that will increase both your income and the value you provide to the world.
Reviews
"The Miracle Morning has long been one of my favorite books, and I followed it rigorously to get up early and get as much done as I could before everyone else. For writer's especially, the morning can be the BEST time of day to get your writing done. And that is what this book "The Miracle Morning for Writer's" is about. This book is packed with so much useful knowledge and actionable content that, it is in and of itself, a course designed to get you [the writer] to take action on your writing and get your book finished. But this isn’t just another book on “How to write a book”. As the “Miracle Morning For Writers” points out, and a tribute to Stephen Guise from Mini-Habits, it isn’t the amount you write everyday but keeping with the consistency of the writing habit. Moving into the book further we are given powerful strategies for: Eliminating limiting beliefs about writing: Learn 6 strategies for getting rid of your beliefs holding you back from writing. - How to schedule time for writing: This section has great actionable strategies for organizing your writing routine, and the when, where and how much of writing. In this part of the book Hal and Steve walk you through the various ways writers can make cash from writing: self publishing books, freelance writing, or the more traditional route with traditional publishing. Finally we have the chapter on building an author platform: what a great way to finish off the book, by giving writers an extended powerhouse of links, detailed tasks and actionable steps they can implement to build an online [and offline] presence. With just this book [and I’ve read many books on “How to succeed as a writer”] you can take your business from scratch and build it into something great that changes lives."
"If you're struggling to finish that first book and get it published, or if you've desired a habit to write more, better work - pick this book up and implement what's inside."
"Not just a self-help book that you read and put on the shelf this is one you'll pull out and read several times."
"While many books offer great tips here and there, I've found some key things are often missing like overcoming limiting beliefs that can be the real culprit behind why writers procrastinate and don't create a solid routine."
"I wish I had this book 10 years ago when I started a morning routine of my own."
"This book adds another layer that will help me grow my writing practice."
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Best Words & Language Reference

The Emotion Thesaurus: A Writer's Guide to Character Expression
One of the biggest problem areas for writers is conveying a character's emotions to the reader in a unique, compelling way. Angela and Becca also co-founded their popular Writers Helping Writers site, a hub where authors can hone their craft, as well as One Stop For Writers , an innovative online library built to help writers elevate their storytelling.
Reviews
"This is a very good tool for all writers, whether you are writing a book, writing a. school assignment, or writing a letter to motivate someone, this thesaurus will. be helpful."
"Both works start the same, but the book by Renni Browne and Dave King, which I reviewed prior to this book, continues as a lecturing text giving extended advice to writers of novels and short stories. As a reference tool, this work, like others, belongs within arm's reach of the writer's work station. For me, it was a matter of highlighting certain examples of words and phrases which showed what characters could be feeling, selecting words that I might use in my current work of fiction in progress, particularly works that would apply to the immediacy of a situation rather than to those that were more extensive and required reaching beyond a particular scene."
"It's really a desk reference to the way people react to various emotions, including how they look to the outside, how the react internally and mentally, and the long term effect of these emotions. Frankly, I'm an observant and emotional person, so I didn't feel like I needed a lot more insight into emotions. But it is a real handy tool to help writers get a handle on various ways emotions play out and helps the descriptions from becoming one-dimensional."
Find Best Price at Amazon

Best Writing, Research & Publishing Guides

The Emotion Thesaurus: A Writer's Guide to Character Expression
One of the biggest problem areas for writers is conveying a character's emotions to the reader in a unique, compelling way. Angela and Becca also co-founded their popular Writers Helping Writers site, a hub where authors can hone their craft, as well as One Stop For Writers , an innovative online library built to help writers elevate their storytelling.
Reviews
"In my opinion, this guide could be useful to both new and experienced writers of fiction. For the former, this is an amazing resource for learning how to write convincing characters and see how emotions translate into writing (then, hopefully, provoking sympathy, empathy, or whatever feeling you wish to evoke in the reader). For the latter, I would say that this can easily be a go-to reference for experienced writers to shake things up a bit and to avoid the long hours of research it would require to do the legwork already done in this guide."
"An extremely helpful resource."
"An absolutely awesome reference book for those who are writing or acting."
"It digs deep by talking not only about external signs, but internal as well, giving writers significantly more to play with in the wording of their novels."
"I'll definitely look to this when I'm stuck on just what emotion a character should be feeling."
"I've long been a fan of Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi's blog, The Bookshelf Muse, as it offers great tools and resources for writers. From "Adoration" to "Worry", each entry includes the definition, physical signals, internal sensations, mental responses, emotional cues, and a writer's tip. For example, the physical signals for Loneliness include a longing gaze, sullenness, talking to oneself, a heavy sigh, and two dozen other ways to illustrate a lonely character."
"I write screenplays, focusing on additional aspects which leave emotions out on a ledge where I can poke them with a stick and hope I get the correct response."
"No book can elevate a writer to a whole new category of excellence, but this book is helpful when I just want to jar some fresh ideas loose."
Find Best Price at Amazon

Best Words, Language & Grammar

The Emotion Thesaurus: A Writer's Guide to Character Expression
One of the biggest problem areas for writers is conveying a character's emotions to the reader in a unique, compelling way. Angela and Becca also co-founded their popular Writers Helping Writers site, a hub where authors can hone their craft, as well as One Stop For Writers , an innovative online library built to help writers elevate their storytelling.
Reviews
"In my opinion, this guide could be useful to both new and experienced writers of fiction. For the former, this is an amazing resource for learning how to write convincing characters and see how emotions translate into writing (then, hopefully, provoking sympathy, empathy, or whatever feeling you wish to evoke in the reader). For the latter, I would say that this can easily be a go-to reference for experienced writers to shake things up a bit and to avoid the long hours of research it would require to do the legwork already done in this guide."
"An extremely helpful resource."
"An absolutely awesome reference book for those who are writing or acting."
"It digs deep by talking not only about external signs, but internal as well, giving writers significantly more to play with in the wording of their novels."
"I'll definitely look to this when I'm stuck on just what emotion a character should be feeling."
"I've long been a fan of Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi's blog, The Bookshelf Muse, as it offers great tools and resources for writers. From "Adoration" to "Worry", each entry includes the definition, physical signals, internal sensations, mental responses, emotional cues, and a writer's tip. For example, the physical signals for Loneliness include a longing gaze, sullenness, talking to oneself, a heavy sigh, and two dozen other ways to illustrate a lonely character."
"I write screenplays, focusing on additional aspects which leave emotions out on a ledge where I can poke them with a stick and hope I get the correct response."
"No book can elevate a writer to a whole new category of excellence, but this book is helpful when I just want to jar some fresh ideas loose."
Find Best Price at Amazon

Best Nonfiction Writing Reference

The Miracle Morning for Writers: How to Build a Writing Ritual That Increases Your Impact and Your Income (Before 8AM) (The Miracle Morning Book Series)
And that's why you should read The Miracle Morning for Writers: How to Build a Writing Ritual That Increases Your Impact and Income (Before 8AM) . The Miracle Morning for Writers combines Hal Elrod's global phenomenon with Steve Scott's proven writing habit techniques (which helped him get on the Wall Street Journal bestsellers list ). The Miracle Morning for Writers is your key to building a writing habit that will increase both your income and the value you provide to the world.
Reviews
"The Miracle Morning has long been one of my favorite books, and I followed it rigorously to get up early and get as much done as I could before everyone else. For writer's especially, the morning can be the BEST time of day to get your writing done. And that is what this book "The Miracle Morning for Writer's" is about. This book is packed with so much useful knowledge and actionable content that, it is in and of itself, a course designed to get you [the writer] to take action on your writing and get your book finished. But this isn’t just another book on “How to write a book”. As the “Miracle Morning For Writers” points out, and a tribute to Stephen Guise from Mini-Habits, it isn’t the amount you write everyday but keeping with the consistency of the writing habit. Moving into the book further we are given powerful strategies for: Eliminating limiting beliefs about writing: Learn 6 strategies for getting rid of your beliefs holding you back from writing. - How to schedule time for writing: This section has great actionable strategies for organizing your writing routine, and the when, where and how much of writing. In this part of the book Hal and Steve walk you through the various ways writers can make cash from writing: self publishing books, freelance writing, or the more traditional route with traditional publishing. Finally we have the chapter on building an author platform: what a great way to finish off the book, by giving writers an extended powerhouse of links, detailed tasks and actionable steps they can implement to build an online [and offline] presence. With just this book [and I’ve read many books on “How to succeed as a writer”] you can take your business from scratch and build it into something great that changes lives."
"If you're struggling to finish that first book and get it published, or if you've desired a habit to write more, better work - pick this book up and implement what's inside."
"Not just a self-help book that you read and put on the shelf this is one you'll pull out and read several times."
"While many books offer great tips here and there, I've found some key things are often missing like overcoming limiting beliefs that can be the real culprit behind why writers procrastinate and don't create a solid routine."
"This book adds another layer that will help me grow my writing practice."
"I like the way the change how we see affirmations."
Find Best Price at Amazon

Best Editing Writing Reference

The Elements of Style
This edition of 'The Elements of Style' details eight elementary rules of usage, ten elementary principles of composition, "a few matters of form", and a list of commonly misused words and expressions. Here, succinctly, elegantly and without fuss are the essentials of writing clear, correct English. - Los Angeles Times "While The Elements of Style has never lacked fans or dutiful adherents, appreciation for this slim volume has taken a turn toward the whimsical and even surreal."
Reviews
"edition (the one with the blue cover that is expanded) and I own the 3rd edition (which is not expanded). I've always struggled with being concise in my writing, and this book is THE book to help you maximize your writing."
"It is easy and pleasurable to read, with every writing-related subject you can think of (or should I state, of which you can think) nicely organized, complete with both correct and incorrect examples."
"I find this book to be so useful."
"What better way is there to celebrate the 50th anniversary of "The Little Book" (The Elements of Style: 50th Anniversary Edition) than by reading the original source-text? The same outline format, the same structure, the same sage (and somewhat whimsical) advice that is in the current (4th) edition is there in the first--in all its unvarnished glory. White's introduction is helpful in explaining the whys and wherefores of "The Little Book," and about the man William Strunk, Jr. Roger Angell's foreword, thought interesting, is more for a book on motivating writers, such as "Zen in the Art of Writing: Essays on Creativity" by Ray Bradbury. White kept most of Strunk's ideas, but excised the sections on outlining, and the paragraphs that were diagrammed. So it is worth the price and than bother to track this edition down just for Strunk's comments on outlining. Everything else a writer would need is found in the current edition--suggestions, clarifications, and Strunkian motivation and celebration: "Vigorous writing is concise ..." NOTE: Since the 1st edition has passed into the public domain, Amazon.com has been bombarded with various reprint editions. Other editions have reset type and text, and are easier on the eye. And, of course, the current edition, either hardback (The Elements of Style (4th Edition)) or softback (The Elements of Style, Fourth Edition)."
"Classic book, I don't know one better."
"I bought this for a family member who is writing a book."
"It is by-far the best book book for conveying a message with concision and clarity."
"Thumbnail shows 4th edition cover; ebook is actually the Project Gutenberg that is "for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost.""
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Best Poetry Writing Reference

The Ode Less Travelled: Unlocking the Poet Within
Stephen Fry believes that if one can speak and read English, one can write poetry. In this delightfully erudite, charming and soundly pedagogical guide to poetic form, British actor (narrator of the Harry Potter movies, among other roles), novelist and secret poet Fry leads the reader through a series of lessons on meter, rhythm, rhyme and stanza length and reveals the structural logic of every imaginable poetic form, including the haiku, the ballad, the ode and the sonnet. Inviting readers to study the wealth of choices of form available in the world's major poetic traditions, Fry himself pens intentionally vapid yet entertaining poems that demonstrate each form's rules and patterning, and ends each lesson with wittily devised exercises for readers.
Reviews
"Fry brings to life the recognized prosody of classic forms."
"Best introduction to prosody I've found."
"Great read, but I'm biased -- big fan for years. The big palooka had me at ."
"I must admit I really do enjoy reading anything by Stephen Fry (ditto books by C S Lewis, but that's besides the point) and I learnt a lot from this book on poetry."
"This book was recommended to me because I was teaching a poetry section and wanted to find a way to make what can seem arcane and obscure available to students and this book does that brilliantly."
"He has certainly provided the essential keys to unlock the door for any poetaster to hone his skills and join the ranks of the great poets of the ages."
"The book is well written and shows Fry's clever turn of phrase in a casual manner that makes the reader feel as if it's a personal conversation."
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Best Technical Writing Reference

Teaching College: The Ultimate Guide to Lecturing, Presenting, and Engaging Students
If so, Teaching College: The Ultimate Guide to Lecturing, Presenting, and Engaging Students is the blueprint. Written for the early career college professor , this easy-to-implement college instruction guide teaches you to: Think like advertisers to understand your target audience—your students Adopt the active learning approach of the best K-12 teachers Write a syllabus that gets noticed and read Develop lessons that stimulate deep engagement Create slide presentations that students can digest Take charge of your college classroom management Get students to do the readings, participate more, and care about your course. “A really useful book for any college professor who wants to move beyond lectures and give students deeper engagement. - LINDA B. NILSON, Director Emeritus, Office of Teaching Effectiveness and Innovation, Clemson University, and author of Teaching at its Best "Dr. Eng tackles one of the biggest problems facing higher education: so few professors are adept at the art of teaching. - JO BOALER , Professor of Mathematics Education, Stanford University, best-selling author of Mathematical Mindsets , and co-founder of YouCubed.org. "This is a terrific collection of tried and true teaching strategies that, unlike most other books on university teaching, is written forthe adjunct or contingent university teacher, by someone who's been there. - KAREN KELSKY , best-selling author, founder, and president of The Professor Is In " Teaching College is the most 'bang for your buck' resource that I have seen for new college instructors. In Teaching College , Norman Eng closes that gap brilliantly, synthesizing education and marketing into a fresh approach thatwill significantly change the way college classes are taught worldwide. - DAVID H. MONK , Dean, College of Education, Penn State University. "Agreat resource for college instructors who are interested in excellent teaching--accessible, practical, and full of actionable research-based suggestions." As an adjunct assistant professor for local colleges in the City University of New York system, Norman realized that much of what he gained as a marketer and as an elementary school teacher held true for college instructors: Students--whether undergraduate or graduate--need to see the value of what you are teaching to their lives. With consistently high student and departmental evaluations in two separate colleges every semester, Dr. Eng hopes to share what he has gained so far from these three industries--marketing, K-12 education, and higher education--with the larger community of higher education instructors, whether they are graduate students, adjunct lecturers, assistant professors, or beyond.
Reviews
"If only those teacher's had read this book."
"I've started reading this book in preparation for my first adjunct teaching position upon retiring from 30 years in the ESL field in K-12 education."
"I thought your book was useful."
"Eng has helped me to get over this discomfort, as he offers advice on how to implement cold-calling in a way that benefits the entire class discussion."
"I highly recommend this book for all college teachers."
"Written by a true expert on the art of a student centered classroom."
"In the tiger dens, the parents are encouraged to lead at least one den meeting to get a feel for leading a group and I feel the tips I have learned in this book will be helpful for the parents to make the meetings more fun and enjoyable."
"What’s different about this book is how the author talks about building connections with students in order to reach them and teach them."
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Best Journalism Writing Reference

The Smear: How Shady Political Operatives and Fake News Control What You See, What You Think, and How You Vote
The New York Times bestselling author of Stonewalled pulls back the curtain on the shady world of opposition research and reveals the dirty tricks those in power use to influence your opinions. Behind most major political stories in the modern era, there is an agenda; an effort by opposition researchers, spin doctors, and outside interests to destroy an idea or a person. Now, the hard-hitting investigative reporter shares her inside knowledge, revealing how the Smear takes shape and who its perpetrators are—including Clinton confidant Sidney Blumenthal and, most influential of all, "right-wing assassin turned left-wing assassin" ( National Review ) political operative David Brock and his Media Matters for America empire. Maybe you watched someone on the news report that Donald Trump is a racist misogynist, read that Hillary Clinton used a body double, or heard that Bernie Sanders cheated in the primary. Now hard-hitting investigative journalist Sharyl Attkisson, the New York Times bestselling author of Stonewalled , takes you behind the scenes of the modern smear machine, exploring how operatives from corporations and both sides of the political aisle have manipulated a complicit mainstream media to make disinformation, rumor, and dirty tricks defining traits of our democracy. Pulling back the curtain on the shady world of opposition research, she reveals how those in power create well-funded, organized attack campaigns to take down their enemies and influence your opinions, offering a detailed examination of the think tanks, super PACs, LLCs, and nonprofits that have become the hidden backers of some of the biggest smears in American politics. Attkisson hosts the Sunday morning national TV news program "Full Measure," which focuses on investigative and accountability reporting.For thirty years, Attkisson was a correspondent and anchor at CBS News, PBS, CNN and in local news.In 2013, she received an Emmy Award for OutstandingInvestigative Journalism for her reporting on "The Business of Congress," whichincluded an undercover investigation into fundraising by Republican freshmen.She received two other Emmy nominations in 2013 for "Benghazi: Dying forSecurity" and "Green Energy Going Red."
Reviews
"The consumer of news is “pummeled by countless narratives—some based on grains of truth; others wholly invented for the audience.”. The author warns news consumers to be cautious even if all the media outlets are parroting the same line: “Today, if enough pundits, operatives, and media parrot the same narrative, it becomes incorporated into the fabric of the news as an accepted fact.”. And yet, smear campaigns are not new—they are as old as the Republic: “Our founding fathers knew very well the power of a sharp character assassination . “The Clarence Thomas Supreme Court nomination showed both sides that the best way to fight a smear might not be to take a defensive posture—but to mount an offensive countersmear.”. Attkisson is careful to define what she means by “smear.” It’s not the dissemination of falsehoods, so much as exaggeration: “Expert smear artists take a sprinkle of truth—in this case Imus’s objectionable comments—and pervert it into a weapon of mass destruction to advance a larger goal, often political or financial.” Smear campaigns take something that is true and "amplify a misdeed out of proportion.”. For me, one of the most fascinating sections was the explanation of a variation of smear called “Astroturf.” In this variation, the pros pretend they are ordinary folks: “Paid interests disguised as ordinary people troll assigned topics, news sites, reporters, blogs, and social media for the purpose of posting comments that spin and confuse.” The idea is to “give the impression there’s widespread support for or against an agenda when there’s not.”. Attkisson concludes with this sobering warning: “One thing you can count on is that most every image that crosses your path has been put there for a reason."
"It provides the insight and evidence that we've come to expect in her reporting, and opens the curtains of the smear industry so we might peer in and be prepared to spot when the smear is in play (hint...it's everywhere!)."
"This book documents political smear campaigns, behind-the-scenes coordination between the press and political campaigns and other special interests, and efforts by our own government to manipulate the news, influence public opinion, and punish whistleblowers. Although some events in the book go back to the 1990's, most of the information pertains to events of the last ten years, with the emphasis on the 2016 presidential campaign and its aftermath. Worst of all, our own government seems to be an active player in much of this. Many op-eds that you read on the editorial page are not written by the person whose byline appears beneath them, but by activists working for political campaigns, corporations, and special-interest groups. The Obama Department of Justice and other Obama agencies targeted reporters, stonewalled investigations, and maintained behind-the-scenes relationships with special interests."
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Best Writing Skill Reference

The Emotion Thesaurus: A Writer's Guide to Character Expression
One of the biggest problem areas for writers is conveying a character's emotions to the reader in a unique, compelling way. Angela and Becca also co-founded their popular Writers Helping Writers site, a hub where authors can hone their craft, as well as One Stop For Writers , an innovative online library built to help writers elevate their storytelling.
Reviews
"In my opinion, this guide could be useful to both new and experienced writers of fiction. For the former, this is an amazing resource for learning how to write convincing characters and see how emotions translate into writing (then, hopefully, provoking sympathy, empathy, or whatever feeling you wish to evoke in the reader). For the latter, I would say that this can easily be a go-to reference for experienced writers to shake things up a bit and to avoid the long hours of research it would require to do the legwork already done in this guide."
"An extremely helpful resource."
"An absolutely awesome reference book for those who are writing or acting."
"It digs deep by talking not only about external signs, but internal as well, giving writers significantly more to play with in the wording of their novels."
"I'll definitely look to this when I'm stuck on just what emotion a character should be feeling."
"I've long been a fan of Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi's blog, The Bookshelf Muse, as it offers great tools and resources for writers. From "Adoration" to "Worry", each entry includes the definition, physical signals, internal sensations, mental responses, emotional cues, and a writer's tip. For example, the physical signals for Loneliness include a longing gaze, sullenness, talking to oneself, a heavy sigh, and two dozen other ways to illustrate a lonely character."
"I write screenplays, focusing on additional aspects which leave emotions out on a ledge where I can poke them with a stick and hope I get the correct response."
"No book can elevate a writer to a whole new category of excellence, but this book is helpful when I just want to jar some fresh ideas loose."
Find Best Price at Amazon

Best Play & Scriptwriting Reference

The Kindle Writing Bible: How To Write A Bestselling Nonfiction Book From Start To Finish (Kindle Publishing Bible 3)
I Believe Anyone Can Succeed Today as a Nonfiction Author With These Proven Strategies for Success You could be just a few days away from completing your bestselling nonfiction book. I've helped hundreds of would-be authors who don't like to write how to effectively hire a ghostwriter or use audio recordings to help write your book much faster. Readers of nonfiction books want one thing: a solution to their problem. If you can provide them with a convenient, easy, cheap, or quick solution to their problem, they will love you forever and buy more of your books. You can write a simple, helpful how-to book, and as long as it solves the right problems and helps your readers, they will love you for keeping it simple! Learn the psychology of nonfiction readers so that you can turn your readers into loyal, raving fans who will write you book reviews and tell everyone they know about your helpful books.
Reviews
"I have been having a big problem writing about a difficult situation, and his suggestions are direct and encouraging."
"His no nonsense approach to everything from the practical "nuts and bolts" of putting a book online to the writing process gives the reader a sense of confidence that this can be possible for anyone willing to try. He mentions that he does not like to read a lot of stuff that doesn't pertain to what he needs to know, and he also writes in the same manner."
"If you're serious about writing books for Kindle this is a must have!"
"We publish books on college majors (i.e. why study a particular major at a college or university) and have found Tom's books to be valuable resources to produce kindle books."
"The book is filled with useful tips and links, some of them can be found in other books, others are new to me, but overall, and for a short book like this, the value that it provides is way more than what you pay for."
"I have watched and listened to him on some of his Youtube presentations and he is very knowledgeable and plausible in his desire to help us get our books written and sold!"
"After purchasing Toms class at Udemy I scanned Amazon for books from this author."
"I would like to thank the author for enhancing the quality. of ebooks written, (when future authors follow his instructions) which we will all appreciate."
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Best Academic & Commercial Writing Reference

Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die
In this indispensable guide, we discover that sticky messages of all kinds–from the infamous “kidney theft ring” hoax to a coach’s lessons on sportsmanship to a vision for a new product at Sony– draw their power from the same six traits. It’s a fast-paced tour of success stories (and failures)– the Nobel Prize-winning scientist who drank a glass of bacteria to prove a point about stomach ulcers; the charities who make use of “the Mother Teresa Effect”; the elementary-school teacher whose simulation actually prevented racial prejudice. Unabashedly inspired by Malcolm Gladwell's bestselling The Tipping Point, the brothers Heath—Chip a professor at Stanford's business school, Dan a teacher and textbook publisher—offer an entertaining, practical guide to effective communication. They illustrate these principles with a host of stories, some familiar (Kennedy's stirring call to "land a man on the moon and return him safely to the earth" within a decade) and others very funny (Nora Ephron's anecdote of how her high school journalism teacher used a simple, embarrassing trick to teach her how not to "bury the lead"). Adult/High School—While at first glance this volume might resemble the latest in a series of trendy business advice books, ultimately it is about storytelling, and it is a how-to for crafting a compelling narrative.
Reviews
"For example urban myths... stories about people having their kidneys stolen, the "fact" that humans only use 10% of their brains, or stories of people poisoning Halloween candy. All of these are myths- there is not a band of organ harvesters that steals kidneys, humans actually use 100% of their brains in a given day, and there have only been 2 true cases of poisoned Halloween candy and both cases were done by the children's own family. The answer: sticky stories need to have 6 attributes. News casters do this with their 10 second commercials telling you what the news stories will be at the "9 o'clock news"- they will say something like "A gorilla escaped from the zoo and ended up at a children's birthday party, find out more at 9." My favorite way of presenting this was the Mother Teresa principle: If I look at the one, I will act. 2. (A video of a young girl sitting in the dirt) With your donation you could help Cindy... your donation would help feed Cindy, put a roof over Cindy's head, and help send Cindy to school. Stories: Get people to act. It's difficult to find these stories, but when you find them you have a gold mine. There are so many great stories and insights within the pages. I would be more than happy to help anyone that wants it."
"Overall, I really enjoyed the concepts and the stories in this book, but I felt like some of the information could have been pared down a little bit because it seemed very repetitive."
"A Must read for: Teachers/Trainers, Sales/Marketing, Managers, Leaders, Business Owners, Politicians, Parents, or anyone who needs to make a point or deliver a message."
"I read this book for an online class, but I plan to put the principles into action in my elementary classroom starting Monday."
""You can't have five North Stars.""
"Needed this for school-- as good as it can be for school."
"This book is jam-packed with content and interesting stories."
"You will find the answer in this book where the author structured the chapters in a way full of stories and examples to explain the stickiness factor generators in a fun and interesting way."
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Best Children's Literature Writing Reference

How to Write a Children's Picture Book, Vol. I: Structure
Both concept books and picture storybooks employ very distinctive structures that, once mastered, can be applied to any picture book you wish to write. When so many of the best picture books employ the same structures, it is important to analyze these structures, understand why they work, and learn how to incorporate them into your own writing. "How To Write A Children's Picture Book" is an impressive trilogy of instructional books by children's author and illustrator Eve Heidi Bine-Stock that provides other aspiring children's authors with sound, practical, time-tested advice on constructing a picture book story for children that will hold their interest from beginning to end. Applicable to both concept books and picture storybooks, "How To Write A Children's Picture Book: Structure" demonstrates and documents that being able to properly structure a story is the key to writing a picture book that will appeal to children preschool through first grade. Examples and illustrations are drawn from such picture book favorites as 'Harry the Dirty Dog', Harold and the Purple Crayon', 'Frog and Toad Are Friends', and several other well known picture books, in order to help aspiring picture book authors understand the critical role of word choice and storytelling strategies for a picture book's appeal to its intended and age appropriate readership. To each volume of this truly outstanding and unique series of 'how to' books specializing in the techniques of crafting picture book stories, Eve Heidi Bine-Stock brings her own particular expertise in communicating her instructions, advice, recommendations, and observations, making "How To Write A Children's Picture Book: Structure" (0971989885, $18.95); "How To Write A Children's Picture Book: Word, Sentence, Scene, Story" (0974893323, $18.95; and "How To Write A Children's Picture Book: Figures of Speech" (097489334X, $14.95) an indispensable, unique, and enthusiastically recommended instructional reference set specifically intended for dedicated authors wanting to hone their craft in the deceptively demanding field of picture books for children. Eve is also the author of the three-volume series, "How to Write a Children's Picture Book," the stand-alone title, "How to Self-Publish a Children's Picture Book," and has written pseudonymously numerous children's books.
Reviews
"As a new children’s book author, Beinstock’s book will be included as a solid reference and useful tool."
"All three volumes of Bine-Stock's "How to Write a Children's Picture Book" are very simple in concept, teaching only a few lessons about what makes a great and satisfying picture book."
"For instance, the 3-part beginning, middle, end structure is traditional and explained well, but when it gives an example of a 2-part structure, it doesn't define or explain it well enough to use it other than in the way the classic book did."
"I've been trying (sporadically) to sell picture book manuscripts for several years now, and I believe that what I've learned from this book will help get me closer to my goal of being a published author."
"A MUST HAVE for all serious picture book writers!"
"This is a great resource if you want to dig deeper into story analysis and the craft of picture book stories."
"The book takes popular children's book and breaks apart the beginning, middle and ending so that you get a very clear picture of how your story should progess."
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Best Newspapers & Magazines Writing Reference

High Performance Paperback: 7 Simple Steps To Get Full-Throttle Performance From Your Paperback
Leverage your Kindle book to boost your paperback’s rank Use price synchronization to maximize paperback sales The 7 Simple Steps to promoting your paperback. My Kindle ebook recently became a #1 best-seller, and this book has laid out a step-by-step guide for me to position and market my book to become a best-selling paperback. " I highly recommend Ray and Jim's High Performance Paperback: 7 Simple Steps To Get Full-Throttle Performance From Your Paperback . After following Jim's tutorial, the paperback version of The Holy Grail of Book Launching was ranked #1 on Amazon in 5 categories!"
Reviews
"Amazon and Createspace are gifts to indie authors, but navigating them and using them to optimal advantage can be confusing. Coming to the rescue are two Bestselling authors who've been there, tested that, and it is our good fortune that they are reporting back."
"The authors give some prerequisites for before you implement their tips, strategies, and suggestions - and the first one is that you need to have already launched your Kindle/digital book."
"I am just about to launch my own paperback through amazon and I admit I was terrified by the idea at first."
"Ray Brehm & Jim Molinelli have written an excellent how-to book for taking a best-selling Kindle ebook and launching it into best-selling paperback status."
"Short but precise."
"This is a practical book how to publish and market your paperback with great success."
"* Claim your book in Author Central. * Include the #1 Bestseller badge on your cover. * Set up your paperback in the Matchbook program. * Price your paperback. * Set up your book in the appropriate categories to hit #1! This is a great little book that will help you to make more money and, in fact, the first sale you get will cover the cost of the eBook so there is nothing to lose."
"Most authors miss the golden opportunity to leverage their Kindle success to pump up the debut of the print version of their books."
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Best Education Research

A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, Eighth Edition: Chicago Style for Students and Researchers (Chicago Guides to Writing, Editing, and Publishing)
Part II provides an overview of citation practices with detailed information on the two main scholarly citation styles (notes-bibliography and author-date), an array of source types with contemporary examples, and detailed guidance on citing online resources. Wayne C. Booth (1921–2005) was the George M. Pullman Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus in English Language and Literature at the University of Chicago. Joseph M. Williams (1933–2008) was professor in the Department of English Language and Literature at the University of Chicago and the author of Style: Toward Clarity and Grace .
Reviews
"Great Product at a great Price !"
"great for papers, need it a lot."
"love it alot, think its great."
"Good resource for College class."
"This book has been very helpful with formatting my bibliography, footnotes, title page, charts, and many other parts of my class project."
"Just as described...fast shipment!"
"Thorough and helpful for any student."
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Best Publishing & Books

A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, Eighth Edition: Chicago Style for Students and Researchers (Chicago Guides to Writing, Editing, and Publishing)
Part II provides an overview of citation practices with detailed information on the two main scholarly citation styles (notes-bibliography and author-date), an array of source types with contemporary examples, and detailed guidance on citing online resources. "In addition to featuring new templates for citing e-books, websites, blogs, social networks, discussion groups, online videos, and podcasts, the eighth edition offers new general advice to help students make good decisions about what information to include for online sources that may not have all the traditional elements useful in citing a print source.
Reviews
"I hope the publisher will correct these errors and run an updated version automatically on my Kindle soon."
"This style makes more sense than a Works Cited list as the Notes-Bibliography satisfies the ultra-inquisitive reader who wants to know who said what, aaaand right naough!"
"If you are a history major you will almost exclusively write in Chicago format, so buy this book and help yourself out."
"I liked this book because it explains Turabian style formatting."
"great for papers, need it a lot."
"love it alot, think its great."
"Good resource for College class."
"This book has been very helpful with formatting my bibliography, footnotes, title page, charts, and many other parts of my class project."
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