Posts Tagged ‘resources’

Originative Use of your Computer Can Make Lingo Learning Easier

January 25, 2011 - 6:18 pm

Your computer can be acclimated to as a originative contrivance in your hunt seek after to learn a unrelated language. Some innovative ideas can turn your argot indoctrination into an enjoyable, in truth significant experience.

* Audio Modification

Diverse companies spark software packages that charter you to transmogrify your voice (or someone else’s). You can sign your convey cissy, masculine, or robotic. It can be raised to a high set upon or lowered to bass tones.

So how does this eschew you learn a stylish language?

Numberless remote languages (French and German, for instance) appoint gender to nouns. When scholarship new vocabulary, why not catalogue tender nouns in a female forum, masculine nouns in a man’s expression, and epicene nouns in a robotic voice? This manner can also be used with other types of vocabulary learning. Maybe you could record a catalogue of German dative verbs in a woman’s present and a file of German accusative verbs in a virile voice. You can even take hold of audio files that have been recorded past other people and cause them more compelling nigh morphing voices or adding lucid effects.

An internet search for ‘medium cloaking’ or ‘verbalize modification software’ intention provide numerous resources to determine from.

* Don’t Just Type

If you own a color printer you can vigour up your vocabulary lists with bursts of color - maybe docile nouns in red, masculine nouns in down in the mouth, and epicene in bleak grey. You strength fancy to highlight jagged verbs in another color - or dialect mayhap register bold or italics to pass them defend unconfined on the page. Policy test with divers fonts and weights.

* Websites and Online Sources

Every lingua franca student should hold at least one online dictionary bookmarked (preferably very many). Each dictionary require work a scant differently. Some stock up audio clips. Others will allow users to submit contemporary words and expressions. (Be knowledgeable that not all operator submissions determination be 100% accurate.) The best dictionaries on utterly show ‘verified’ narcotic addict submissions and wishes see colloquial and dialect expressions appropriately.

Are you a poet? Servants is as climax as your computer ralph waldo emerson’s essay on compensation. Online parlance resources include productive rhyming dictionaries. An internet search pro ‘rhyming dictionary French’, ‘rhyming wordbook German’, ‘rhyming dictionary Spanish’ etc. resolution swop you good results.

Try to rely on accredited informative sites (domains ending in .edu) when doing grammar research. After event, if you are looking allowing for regarding Hungarian verb conjugations, try out a search like ‘Hungarian verb conjugations situate:.edu’. Although at the time of document the previous search doesn’t vocation at MSN, it does trade at Google, Yahoo!, Ask.com, and many others. The ‘neighbourhood:edu’ portion of the search restricts results to domains ending in ‘.edu’ - which are most often universities and other like informative institutions.

* Online Chatting and Video Conferencing

Video-cams, VOIP, microphones . . . notation of b depose them all together and talk with unfamiliar friends from all onto the world. Using a intercourse in talk is probably the quickest approach to learn.

Whatever you do, recall that the more senses you stimulate during the learning make, the more steadfastly imprinted the learning becomes. Rotate your communication knowledge into a fun-filled sensory familiarity and you resolve probably stick with it. If it becomes monotonic, you may waste interest.

Writing Help: You Should Use Your Calendar To Improve Your Writing

March 9, 2009 - 8:56 pm

Many of my students shrug their shoulders at the beginning of the semester when I tell them that time is their best friend. Just like my students, too many writers struggle with their writing because they treat time as a four letter word. However time is not the enemy if you learn to use it wisely. Time can be a tremendous help when you write if you plan ahead. Making a wise use of your time is a three-step process.

First, allow yourself enough time to live with the idea you plan to write about. Do not write. Give yourself permission to jot down notes but it is wisest to simply make these hard copy (or handwritten) notes. You want to give your muse, your subconscious mind, your brain, or whatever part of you that does your heavy lifting when it comes to writing, time to work. During this time just go about your normal life and work on other tasks, writing and otherwise. There is no need to schedule time to simply think about your future writing task. It is going on whether or not you pay attention to it. However every day you can give yourself for this process will save you much time, energy, and agony later on. Trust me. I have been there and I know whereof I speak.

Second, once you have given your brain some time to work out your rough draft (or at least the bones of it) then it is time to start writing. However before you start writing you should work out a schedule for yourself. Set goals and limitations and then stick to them. Perhaps you will write for a set amount of time or you might rather set a certain page count for your goal. Some days it will be a struggle to meet your goal and other days it will be almost painful to stop when you have met your quota, but over time your brain and writing muscles will become accustomed to the goal and the writing will come easier and faster.

Third, and this is where you need to pull out your calendar, you need to plan your schedule so you have plenty of time for that initial period of thought, a workable writing schedule, and time for drafts as well as time for breaks between drafts. Writing and revising through multiple drafts is one of the essentials to improving your writing product but if you do not allow sufficient time between those drafts then you might as well not bother with drafts at all. You need to give your brain time to rest and you need to allow yourself some distance from the initial creation.

Time is a writer’s best friend but only if you plan ahead sufficiently to allow time to live with your writing idea, plan a workable schedule, and give yourself time off between drafts. Pulling out your calendar and planning out a writing schedule can be the single biggest step you take to improve your writing.

Important Resources For Writers

December 16, 2008 - 10:21 pm

Many believe that they can become a writer if they were given the chance. However, it is not as easy as some people would like to believe to be a writer. For the most part the life of a writer is difficult and stressful. Getting noticed by the publishing community is nearly impossible and your book must be prolific and unique to even shake a possible publishing deal from an agent.

The main problem that people have when they begin writing is the fact that they do not know where to start. This is very common among new writers as the process of writing can be confusing to those that have never attempted it before. This is why there are now so many places that offer writers resources in an attempt to garner the hope for the next generation of authors to hit the world’s bookshelves. These places hope they can foster the dream of writing for many people and bring about the best in the new literature that will be available to the next generation.

If you are considering a career change to author then it is best to start out small. Before tackling a novel, which can take years to complete, try the short story market. For all intents and purposes a short story is nothing more than a very short novel and gives a new writer the ability to get their feet wet. Learning to create interesting characters and plots is all part of the game. For this it is best to join a short fiction forum. A short fiction forum is a discussion area for writers of all walks of life. New and old gather to discuss the in and outs of writing short fiction. Most often you will find that there are places to have your work critiqued and also get some helpful suggestions on things like endings and plot structure.

Another valuable resource for writers is the new software that has hit the market. With writers in mind many software designers have brought out programs that help the writer to organize ideas, create plots and also manage the characters involved in the story. The programs are very easy to use and offer the new writer a chance to keep everything straight and they are far superior to the standard word processing programs. There is much value in software packages like these especially for the new writer. The best part is that many of them are free and can be downloaded right from the internet.

There are many resources available to writers the world over and they are easy to find. The many websites that are dedicated to writers and writing are invaluable tools in helping the new author learn the craft.

Writers Block: Writers Resources To End Writers Block

April 24, 2008 - 11:40 am

Writers block is one of those mysterious ailments that is blamed for late assignments, missed deadlines, and failed dreams. Some people claim it is merely a myth while others find it plagues their writing.

As someone with more than two decades of professional writing, editing and teaching experience I feel quite strongly that in 99.9 percent of reported cases of writers block are nothing more than a chimera. In my opinion, far too many would-be writers spend far too much time and energy on finding the right computer, program, paper, pen, location, mood-setting music, and the like before they can begin writing when that time and energy would be much better spent on simply getting down to the business of writing. These would-be writers treat their muse as something delicate and breakable, something as elusive and fleeting as smoke.

I know from years spent in the hurly-burly of newspaper reporting and snatching moments to write between deadlines and dinner dishes that a muse worth keeping is made of much tougher material and in fact may benefit from some abuse.

Most often writers block, or what is commonly referred to as writers block, is caused by one of three problems–lack of preparation, lack of training, and lack of development. Lack of preparation is often caused by not creating an individual writing process that can take advantage of your writing strengths and help overcome your writing weaknesses. Lack of training is similar to athletic training–you need to warm up and work out on a regular schedule to keep your writing muscles in top condition. Lack of development simply means that your particular idea may need more time to percolate or perhaps you are not ready to tackle that particular topic at the time.

I have three recommendations to help you work through writers block. First is to simply write through it. Give yourself permission to write garbage and focus on simply creating a really rough draft. Often once you stop worrying over all that is wrong with your writing the words will begin flowing again.

A second method of dealing with writers block is to get moving. Take a walk or hike. Do something physical away from your office or desk and do not let yourself return to the scene of the crime (or writers block) until several hours have passed. You might be surprised what your brain works out in the interim.

Finally, exercise and challenge your writing muscles with writing prompts and exercises. Sometimes simply changing the pace of your writing or your subject matter can be enough to help you work through your difficulty.

Remember, every writer experiences some form of writers block from time to time but you do not have to make a mountain out of a molehill. Working out an effective strategy to circumvent writers block when it strikes is one of the most important skills a real writer can develop.