Award-winning novelist Samuel R. Delany has written a book for creative writers to place alongside E. M. Forster's Aspects of the Novel and Lajos Egri's Art of Dramatic Writing. Taking up specifics (When do flashbacks work, and when should you avoid them? How do you make characters both vivid and sympathetic?) and generalities (How are novels structured? How do writers establish serious literary reputations today?), Delany also examines the condition of the contemporary creative writer and how it differs from that of the writer in the years of Hemingway, Fitzgerald, and the high Modernists. Like a private writing tutorial, About Writing treats each topic with clarity and insight. Here is an indispensable companion for serious writers everywhere.

Realizing a dictionary was necessary to alert the public, they created The Dictionary of Uncomfortable Words. Each word is followed by a brief explanation of why it makes people uneasy when spoken, such as:
- Abhor: Looks innocuous enough on paper but utterly filthy when spoken aloud.
- Bull: In most circles, this word is merely a prefix. We prefer the term "man-cow."
- Congeal: Just because gooey becomes crusty doesn't mean we want to hear about it.
- Crotch: This word is disturbing even when referring to trees.
- Dingleberry: This is one fruit you don't want to eat.
- Half-cocked: Sounds like a circumcision that went too far.
- Horehound: A drunk with too much money in his pocket on Saturday night.

This book offers a fresh and insightful introduction to children's communication development that emphasizes how families help children learn to communicate optimally. Writing for communication students, parents, teachers, and all who care for children, the authors argue that optimal development of children's communication competencies depends on family participation in everyday learning situations that challenge children's skills and build communication confidence.

The book mirrors the organization and coverage of existing family communication textbooks, making it a valuable addition to coursework about families, communication, and development. Chapter topics include:

an overview of communication development: universal stages and cultural variations;communication development at home: nonverbal, verbal and mediated skills;relational and group dynamics in the home, including variations by ethnicity and family configuration;family roles and family rules for providing stability and structuring behavior;family resiliency in coping with challenges;strategies for fostering positive communication development in the home.

"Families Communicating with Children" emphasizes the positive effects of family influence, and draws attention to cross-cultural variations in parenting as well as universal steps in development. These features clarify the process of communication development and offer an optimistic view of the future for the many shapes families assume today.

This is Dr Naranjo's full-length work on the 'enneagram of personality types', including comparisons with other psychological typing systems, extensive citations of the psychoanalytic literature, a discussion of the origins (etiology) of each type, and more.

Located in the middle of the Balkans, North Macedonia reflects the turbulent history of the region. The country emerged from former Yugoslavia in the 1990s without violence but struggled to achieve international recognition due to a dispute with neighboring Greece over its name and symbols. The name issue was resolved only in 2008 with the signature of the Prespa Agreement reviving prospects for membership in NATO and the European Union (EU). Yet North Macedonia’s story goes centuries back, to the Middle Ages, the period of Ottoman Rule which lasted until 1912, and the various reincarnations of Yugoslavia. The historical dictionary traces the country’s past and present with a wealth of articles on issues, events, institutions, personalities shaping political, economic and cultural life. It looks at the majority Macedonian as well as other ethnic communities such as the Albanians, Turks and the Roma. There are also entries on North Macedonia’s relations with neighbors, in history and today, as well as with global powers. This second edition of Historical Dictionary of North Macedonia contains a chronology, an introduction, and an extensive bibliography. The dictionary section has over 500 cross-referenced entries on important personalities, politics, economy, foreign relations, religion, and culture. This book is an excellent resource for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about North Macedonia.

Introduce students to some of today's best nonfiction authors and their writing-and promote nonfiction reading to young learners Engaging biographical sketches of 65 current nonfiction authors (some of them award winners) are accompanied by selective, annotated bibliographies for further reading. In addition, author photos and an author message to students enhance the experience. Biographies outline the childhoods of the authors, how they became writers, and how they go about their work. A detailed subject index allows you to plan thematic units of study and to assist students in finding reading material that matches their interests. A diversity of current authors and subjects are represented in this useful work.

A photographic guide to the key words and phrases in Vietnamese. This attractive pocket-sized book is a perfect travel companion and provides a practical guide to Vietnam and Vietnamese language and culture. Everyday words are arranged in themes with carefully selected up-to-date images to illustrate key words and phrases, and an English and Vietnamese index help you to find words quickly as you learn. 3,000 essential words and phrases for modern life in Vietnam are at your fingertips with topics covering food and drink, home life, work and school, shopping, sport and leisure, transport, technology, and the environment. Great care has been given to represent modern Vietnamese culture and enhance your experience of Vietnam, including customs, celebrations, and festivals. Plus, download your free audio to hear native speakers pronounce the word for each image and get your pronunciation pitch perfect, available from collinsdictionary.com/resources#visual

When you are facing down a blank page (or screen), a constraint-based prompt—for example, “you must use the words ‘cloud’ and ‘green’� or “you must set the scene in a crowded grocery store�—can get your brain working in unexpected ways. In this creative writing guide, long-time teacher and novelist Alice LaPlante shares 100 original exercises that will simultaneously push you into a corner and give you the tools to write yourself out of it. LaPlante explains the purpose of each exercise—to sharpen your ear for dialogue, generate surprising images or access intense emotions—and breaks down student examples to reveal how to achieve these goals. Whether you are looking to jumpstart new ideas or find a fresh angle on a work in progress, and whether you write fiction, creative nonfiction or poetry, Write Yourself Out of a Corner will strengthen your imagination and your craft.

Chinese, one of the oldest active languages, evolved over 5,000 years. As such, it makes for a fascinating case study in the development of language. This cultural history of Chinese demonstrates that the language grew and responded to its music and visual expression in a manner very similar to contemporary English and other western languages. Within Chinese cultural history lie the answers to numerous questions that have haunted scholars for decades: How does language relate to worldview? What would happen to law after its language loses absolute binding power? How do music, visual, and theatrical images influence literature? By presenting Chinese not as a system of signs but as the history of a community, this study shows how language has expanded the scope of Chinese imagination and offers a glimpse into the future of younger languages throughout the world.

Ever tried to learn Mandarin Chinese and found it too hard? Bestselling language coach Paul Noble has a quick and easy way to get you back on track with his unique tried-and-tested method. Keeps things simple with three basic rules; don’t skip anything, don’t try to memorise anything and cover up to test yourself. A fun, jargon-free way to learn Easy-to-understand Mandarin Chinese pronunciation PROVEN to work; Paul can teach anyone a language, even people who think they’re incapable Paul’s course teaches you how to speak Mandarin Chinese more effectively, giving you the building blocks to form a huge range of conversations. This is a practical way to learn the aspects of language that you’ll actually need and use; from booking a hotel room to navigating a menu, Paul will effortlessly build your confidence and give you the tools to handle any holiday situation. You will unlock a range of vocabulary you already know.

This transdisciplinary study gathers research papers that reveal the multifarious facets of the concept of "persuasion". It is argued that regardless of its degree of intentionality, the act of persuasion underlying each information item prompts the interlocutors to cross the borders of political, historical, linguistic, narrative, psychotherapeutic, and even marketing configurations. The contributors' contention is that political thinking and ideology-grounded linguistic patterns act as a form of social control, both informing and shaping the sense of identity of the manipulated masses and of the oppressed. "Taking a sociolinguistic turn, this volume of interesting scholarly works addresses matters of ideological loadings in a variety of genres, contributing to the development of new research paradigms." - Bledar Toska, University of Vlora "Ismail Qemali"

The aim of this book is to provide the student of Japanese with a simple method for correlating the writing and the meaning of Japanese characters in such a way as to make them both easy to remember. It is intended not only for the beginner, but also for the more advanced student looking for some relief from the constant frustration of forgetting how to write the kanji, or for a way to systematize what he or she already knows. The author begins with writing the kanji because—contrary to first impressions—it is in fact simpler than learning how to the pronounce them. By ordering the kanji according to their component parts or “primitive elements,� and then assigning each of these parts a distinct meaning with its own distinct image, the student is led to harness the powers of “imaginative memory� to learn the various combinations that make up the kanji. In addition, each kanji is given its own key word to represent the meaning, or one of the principal meanings, of that character. These key words provide the setting for a particular kanji’s “story,� whose protagonists are the primitive elements. In this way, one is able to complete in a few short months a task that would otherwise take years. Armed with the same skills as Chinese or Korean students, who know the meaning and writing of the kanji but not their Japanese pronunciations, one is then in a much better position to learn the readings (which are treated in a separate volume).Remembering the Kanji has helped tens of thousands of students advance towards literacy at their own pace, and to acquire a facility that traditional methods have long since given up on as all but impossible for those not raised with the kanji from childhood. The 6th edition has been updated to include the 196 new kanji approved by the government in 2010 as “general-use� kanji.

The home of trusted Italian dictionaries for everyday language learning. Designed for all those studying Italian who need maximum information in an accessible format, the Collins Pocket Italian to English and English to Italian Dictionary offers excellent, up-to-date coverage of today’s Italian language, culture and usage right in your own pocket. This handy, durable format makes the Collins Pocket Dictionary ideal for use on the go, at home, at work, in the classroom or while travelling. With the most up-to-date words in both Italian and English, this is the perfect bilingual dictionary for GCSE exams, boosting students’ test-taking ability and confidence. It also includes all the features you would expect from a Collins dictionary: an easy-to-read layout, special treatment of key words and an ‘Italian in Focus’ supplement that helps you develop your fluency skills. This practical guide gives you information on pronunciation and how to use Italian in different situations, like sending an email or making a phone call, while also giving you insight into Italian life. With 40,000 words and phrases and 60,000 translations, this Italian to English Pocket Dictionary is the perfect companion for all language learners. For more on Italian language usage, the Collins Italian Essential Dictionary (9780008270759) and Italian Gem Dictionary (9780008141851) are also available for purchase.

Throughout the nineteenth century, miners were given virtually free rein to profit without having to worry about impacts to the land, water, and air. But during the twentieth century, the mining industry has evidenced serious concerns about its effects on the environment. Since the 1960s, mining and its consequences have become heated issues of public debate and legislative reform. By the mid-1970s, a number of industry hard-liners were still clinging to nineteenth-century values, but many more were accepting the legacy of mining's past and were beginning to integrate preservation and reclamation into their plans. 'Mining America" is a vivid account of the damage wrought by almost two centuries of mining, but its main focus is on the conflicting attitudes behind the destruction and on society's responses. Veteran author and historian Duane Smith asserts that the marriage of mining and environmental issues was bound to touch America's sensitive pocketbook nerve -- but the question now is, are all groups willing to pay the price?

This small thesaurus offers 120,000 synonyms and antonyms in a quick and easy-to-use thesaurus. Synonyms are arranged in order of their closeness in meaning to the entry word, with the closest one given first and printed in bold type to make it easier to find the sense you're looking for. Improve your vocabulary with our Word Links, a feature that provides extra vocabulary related to a selection of key entries.