English Writing

All Demetrius wants to do is help his granny by paying her bills. The only way he knows to do that is by getting fast money. He strives to do what was right and make his granny proud, but it is so easy to do wrong. Although he falls short at times, she refuses to lose her one and only grandson to the streets. Demetrius may be a victim of poverty, but his grandma is going to defeat the devil by any means, and she refuses to give up and let the streets swallow him up. Although he is missing a piece of his heart, also known as his mama, he has a praying and loving grandma right by his side.

Syd Field's books on the essential structure of emotionally satisfying screenplays have ignited lucrative careers in film and television since 1979. In this revised edition of his premiere guide, the underpinnings of successful onscreen narratives are revealed in clear and encouraging language that will remain wise and practical as long as audiences watch stories unfold visually—from hand-held devices to IMAX to virtual reality . . . and whatever comes next.

By age twenty, at the height of the Jazz Age, Trudy Ederle was the most accomplished swimmer in the world. She’d won Olympic gold and set a host of world records. But the greatest challenge remained: the English Channel. Only a few swimmers, none of them women, had ever made the treacherous twenty-one mile crossing. Trudy’s failed first attempt seemed to confirm what many naysayers believed: No woman could possibly accomplish such a thing. In 1926, Ederle proved them wrong.

True Nature invites you on an intimate journey through Sierra Nevada’s hidden wonders. Unlike traditional guidebooks, there are no GPS coordinates or detailed maps—this is a collection of moving and vivid adventures. Each chapter weaves practical knowledge of Tahoe and Yosemite into gripping narratives set in places known only to veteran wanderers. Michelle’s gritty prose is like sharing stories around a campfire with a friend. As you traverse these pages, you’ll uncover clues to secret places, but finding them requires embracing the same spirit of discovery that led Michelle to ...

The pro football season of 1963 was dominated by the unexpected. In April, months prior to the beginning of play, it was revealed that two All-Star players, Paul Hornung and Alex Karras, were gambling on the sport and would be suspended from play for at least a year. Even worse, in May, one of the league’s bigger-than-life personalities, Big Daddy Lipscomb, was found dead, with police saying he perished from a heroin overdose, something those who knew him best still dispute.

Over the years the American writer Emma Larkin has spent traveling in Burma, she has come to know all too well the many ways this police state can be described as "Orwellian". The life of the mind exists in a state of siege in Burma, and it long has. The connection between George Orwell and Burma is not simply metaphorical, of course; Orwell's mother was born in Burma, and he was shaped by his experiences there as a young man working for the British Imperial Police.

There has never been a better time to be a screenwriter. The recent explosion of cable and streaming services has created a huge demand for movies, limited series, and those long running “bingeable” shows that can hook viewers for years. Before streaming cable networks, the internet, and home entertainment systems radically changed how we consume our entertainment, there was a clear dividing line between writing for feature films and writing for television. That distinction no longer exists. Most major writers, filmmakers and movie stars are now eager to work on projects for the ...

What do most people think of Idaho? Well, see, that's the problem - they don't think of Idaho. Despite its breathtaking natural beauty and the fact that it's crammed to the gills with eccentrics and freethinkers, Idaho may as well be the moon as far as the rest of America is concerned. Jim Goad recently spent a week in Idaho mingling with state troopers, political extremists, collegiate progressives, and heartbreakingly friendly locals.

Annaliese Byler returns home to her family’s farm in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, just in time for Christmas. After spending months caring for her aunt in another district, she’s eager to reconnect with her family. However, a sense of uncertainty stirs in her heart, leaving her wondering if there is something more God is calling her to. Josiah Petersheim, a longtime family friend and skilled woodworker, has also returned to town after apprenticing under his uncle. As they reunite, the once-shy Josiah is now a confident man, though still gentle at heart. Their friendship is rekindled,...

Betrayal. Enslavement. Redemption. Experience the story of Exodus like never before! Joseph, son of Jacob, is dead. His children – the people of Israel, are enslaved at the hands of the Egyptian pharaohs, beaten and oppressed. A single child is saved by his mother, given to the river for protection. He is found by the most unlikely of people – and grows to become the savior of the chosen people. From exile, kinghood, the Plagues all the way through to the Promised Land, Exodus Age is a retelling of the age-old history of Moses and his people through Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and ...

Prolific author and story coach Jessica Brody presents a comprehensive story structure guide for anyone who wants to write a young adult novel by applying the famed Save the Cat! screenwriting methodology to the world of YA fiction. Filled with practical advice, easy-to-follow templates, and "beat sheets" analyzing the structure of popular young adult novels such as Leigh Bardugo's Six of Crows, John Green's The Fault in Our Stars, and Lois Lowry's The Giver, this book is the ultimate reference for anyone who's ever dreamed of writing their own young adult bestseller.

"Plotted like a chess match with the pacing of a cage fight, Murderer from Moscow is the next 'must-read' international crime thriller!" –Cam Torrens, author of False Summit The Russian mafia really doesn't want Kim Barbieri sticking her nose where it doesn't belong. She's a tough-as-nails investigative reporter exposing their money-laundering in New York City. And when her articles threaten their cash flowing back to Moscow, they plan to assassinate her using the most powerful poison in the world. Even after they openly threaten her, she continues her reporting - daring the Russian mob ...

Learning how to write a book is easy. Learning how to write a book that doesn't suck and can actually make you money - and set you up for a full-time writing career is harder.

But it's nowhere near impossible. And it's far more doable than you can imagine. The trouble is, most books offering tips on how to write a book fail to address two key considersations: 1) Most self-published nonfiction books suck. 2) It's almost impossible to make a living from one self-published nonfiction book.

For the last 20 years, George Saunders has been teaching a class on the Russian short story to his MFA students at Syracuse University. In A Swim in a Pond in the Rain, he shares a version of that class with us, offering some of what he and his students have discovered together over the years. Paired with iconic short stories by Chekhov, Turgenev, Tolstoy, and Gogol, the seven essays in this book are intended for anyone interested in how fiction works and why it’s more relevant than ever in these turbulent times.

Modern audiences find material and read differently than earlier generations that were relegated to the printed page. This means our writing must adapt to new sources and styles. Learn more about how modern audiences are different and how our writing must change if we are to connect and communicate effectively.

Dig deep into the plain meaning of the Bible’s stories and commandments Would you like to know what the Old Testament (Pentateuch) is all about from a Jewish point of view? This book reveals the morals, ethics, and ideas behind the stories and commandments of one of the oldest books in the history of mankind – a book that serves as the foundation of Jewish and Christian religion. Given the difficult Hebrew in which the Old Testament was written and how challenging it is to translate and to explain, the author wanted to offer to the reader the simple meaning of the text (p’shat) in ...

The adventures of Patrick "Paddy" Leigh Fermor, Britain's most beloved traveler, began in 1933, when he embarked on a walk from Holland to Constantinople - the entire length of Europe - at the tender age of 18. Sleeping in barns, monasteries, and, on occasion, aristocratic country houses, the young adventurer made way his through the Old World just as everything was about to change.

The follow-up to Caitlin Moran's breakout hit, How to Be a Woman - a hilarious collection of award-winning columns, available to American listeners for the first time ever.

With this program, you'll have the tools, the techniques, and, just as importantly, the unflinching confidence to influence your readers and listeners decisively - both at work and at home.

For three millennia, individuals in all walks of life have asked the same question: Is the Torah true? Entrepreneur, philanthropist and Biblical teacher Mark Gerson has found a new, unique, and only now possible way to answer that question. In God Was Right, Gerson examines the Torah on the basis of what it declares itself to be—a guidebook, which identifies, asks and answers the practical, relevant and important questions that enable us to live our best lives.