Top Five Colleges in the US for Creative Writers

Writing requires much more than innate talent. With a language as complex as English, there are thousands of nuanced rules and practices that must be followed for quality text to be prepared. This training can occur in a variety of settings and contexts, though the most effective environments to learn how to write well is in a university classroom.

Few of the following are known traditionally as liberal art schools, in fact all but one on the list is well known for the sciences and business. For creative writing, this is an asset since the focus is not so much on the word but on everything that surrounds it. The concepts of why something is written, and how to bring to the audience, is often neglected in favor of semantic choice. Here are five colleges that warrant special attention:

John Hopkins University

This university is well known for turning out some of the most skilled physicians in the Western world. With the strong emphasis on diligent, unique, research conducted here, it is no small wonder that there is a strong emphasis on the ability to utilize the English word to its fullest potential.

This university has a special major titled, “The Writing Seminars” that are perfect for anyone wishing to hone their craft.

New York University

Situated in the heart of Greenwich Village, this campus is surrounded by all of the trappings of the modern publishing industry. With some of the best bookstores in the nation located within walking distance, there is no shortage of sources for quality material.

This university understands that the environment is key to the writing, and has created writing programs in Florence, Paris, and New York City.

Yale University

The epitome of business schools, and the training grounds of more than a few presidents, this university understands the importance of the written word when reaching out to an audience. In support of this, Yale proudly hosts both the oldest literary quarterly, The Yale Review, and the oldest daily student newspaper, The Yale Daily News.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

A scientific journey always requires someone to tell the tale. While MIT is famous for its research into nearly every facet of the modern world, less is known about the prodigious effort on its part to prepare its students for communicating in that world.

Courses are offered in nearly every genre of writing, from novels to television show scripts. This is designed to merge the forward thinking of technological development with the need to communicate the potential for future changes to the public. For anyone interested in this unique blend of the future and the present, this is the university to attend.

Indiana University

Indiana University is less known compared to the rest on this list, though its contributions to the fields of business, health, and literature cannot go unmentioned. Situated on its numerous campuses lie numerous schools that are nationally known within their respective fields. The Kelley School of Business is considered amongst the best business schools, with the Indiana University School of Medicine – Indianapolis being among the best for pediatricians due to its proximity to some of the best learning hospitals in the world.

Research and high quality can only come with a special emphasis on understanding the written word. Every campus places a special value on creating high quality literature, with a flourishing and often competing series of student publications. For those looking to learn to master the English language, this is the university to attend. Situated in the heart of the America, everything is within reach.

Five Things Successful Freelance Writers are Doing That You Are Not

Freelance writing is one of those things that everyone believes they can do, but few are able to actually accomplish. Thanks to the Internet, there is a glut of people trying to make a living typing up web content every day. There are a few common traits successful writers possess have, that you should try to emulate in order to stand out in the market. Here are five of them:

Good Time Management Skills

Running a freelance writing practice is just like any other business. Time management skills are vital to running any enterprise, since deadlines are typically strict and short. Gain an understanding of how long it takes to accomplish certain tasks, and use that in providing an honest assessment for how long any given task will take. Do not overwork yourself, or the quality will suffer greatly.

The end goal of any freelancer is to grow enough to turn the side gig into a fully functioning business, and hire others to work under the freelancer. By understanding your time constraints, it is much easier to spot the moment when hiring someone makes fiscal sense.

A Strong Media Presence

A writer is only as good as his presence on the web. People will read articles written by recognizable personalities more readily than up comers. This may appear to be a chicken and the egg problem, until you notice that there are numerous sites on the web allowing people to post columns for free. Political sites such as DailyKos invites people to write for them, and the better written articles receive higher rankings. From here, you can build a portfolio that will entice other companies to give you a chance.

Concentrate on One Genre

A good writer offers his service in areas where he is an expert in. This decreases the amount of time it takes to compose a piece, and gives the article greater weight. Study hard on a subject and write frequently on it. Some people focus on politics, others economics… The trick is to find something that interests you and garners a large number of views on the web.

Good English Skills

Writers need to be able to create work that does not need to be edited to be presentable. With the swift publication speed for most sites on the Internet, the ability for a writer to self-edit can make the difference between being hired or declined for a position.

There is only one way to gain this skill, through dedicated practice and studying the rules of language. Most successful writers have gone to college and have decades of experience in handling the English language. Keep practicing, and you will rise to their levels in due time.

A Workable Rate

Some writers try to make a living working for a few pennies per word. That does not work, since the amount of material that needs to be produced in order to achieve a livable wage is staggering. Instead, look at your finances and multiple it by 1.5. Divide this by the number of hours you can work per month, and then divide that by the number of words you can realistically type in an hour. This gives you your per-word rate.

Never work below this rate, even on a trial basis. Otherwise, you are creating an expectation that you will work for less than you need and place yourself in a position of hammering out large volumes of content at the expense of your health and family life. The 150% accounts for unpredictable income periods, allowing for you to put money back into savings.

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Tips to Stay Healthy When Work Keeps You Busy

It seems like every year we make a commitment to getting healthy. Yet every year we give up on this and find ourselves at the biscuit tin when the work starts to pile up. When you’re an entrepreneur or in a major position of responsibility, this fate only becomes more likely. If you want to make a real commitment to staying healthy this time, this is how to do it.

Start Standing

 

Too many people in the developed world spend all day sitting on their behinds in an office chair. For most of us, we’ve seen this as an unavoidable side effect of having a job. The fact is the Smithsonian Institute has proven the benefits of standing up whilst you work. Standing desks are becoming more common in offices around the world.

Of the limited research conducted into so-called standing desks, we can conclude that you will see a reduced risk of obesity, cardiovascular problems, and diabetes. Recent studies have even alluded to the idea that standing up more often could lead to a longer life.

Stop Shortening Sleep

 

Whenever a deadline is on the horizon, the first thing to go is sleep. Work should never come before sleep. A lack of sleep has been linked to depression, more stress, and less fulfilment in life. Furthermore, a lack of sleep actually reduces productivity. This means you could quite easily find yourself losing out on productivity by increasing your hours.

If you have trouble waking up refreshed, here are two tips for solving the problem:

1.       Wake and sleep at the same time every day. This will get your body into a routine that it will gladly slip into. And, yes, this applies just as much to weekends as it does to work days.
2.       Power down your phone and make yourself unavailable in the middle of the evening. Give yourself time to power down and disconnect yourself from the office. This will help you get to sleep when the time comes.

What about Food?

 

Eating quick to save time is a common practice used by people who don’t have enough hours in the day to get things done. This isn’t always healthy, though. Despite the fact eating at all hours worked whilst you were a student, it’s not going to work in the real world. Food is fuel. Put rubbish into your engine and you’re going to feel like it.

Think about your meals and how they made your feel. If a quick meal made you feel bad, don’t eat it again. Compile a diary of foods that make you more productive and foods that keep you in the bathroom for a little bit too long.

Over time, you can improve your diet and this will lead to enhanced energy levels.

Ease Off the Coffee

 

Coffee should not become a crutch to keep you awake. Use it no more than once or twice a day to give yourself a quick boost. Most people prefer to use it during the morning, but don’t live on it throughout the day. What goes up must come down, and the same thing applies to your mood.

Conclusion

 

Ultimately, it all depends on you as a person. Only you know what works best for you. This is why you have to put in the effort to discovering what works and what doesn’t. Pay careful attention to how you feel and write down any significant events. For example, does a coffee at 11am make you feel energised or tired?

Little things like this can help you to craft that bulletproof state of mind that will lead you through the more difficult times at work.

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Work at Home Moms Make VoIP Work for Them

Work at home moms are always looking for ways to make their businesses more efficient. Efficiency brings in more opportunities to grow the business and generate more income. Changes in technology, such as cloud based phone systems that run on VoIP systems, make that possible. Companies like Telzio help small business owners and work at home moms to be portable, working from anywhere, while sounding more professional. The days of being tied to a desk and chair are over when you integrate this type of phone system into your everyday business dealings.

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3 Ways To Break Your Pattern And Achieve Your 2014 Goals

It’s a tradition of starting a new year, one in which nearly everyone participates. The start of a new year is a great time to examine the year that’s just past, weighing all the pros and cons, and then make resolutions of which things could be improved. Unfortunately, more often than not, most people’s resolutions for the new year fall flat shortly after the year starts. So this year, try something different that helps ensure you meet your goals for the year. Here are three great tips for helping you stay on track this year, meet your goals and end the year happier, healthier, and with more confidence.

Make Realistic Goals

One problem with goals some people set is that they are so far out of reach that only super powers or a a miracle could enable it to happen. If your goal is to climb one of the tallest mountains in the world, and you’ve never climbed anywhere more exciting than out of bed, then you may want to focus on building muscle, tone and training on some smaller climbs before going straight to expert level. Likewise, if you want to make a million dollars without any kind of plan, skill or plan in mind, then your goal may just be out of reach. Setting your goals so far out of reach as to ensure you’ll almost never meet them can discourage you quickly from fighting for your goal all year long. If you’re going to set a large goal, then at the same time set up several smaller goals to help you get there. For example, if your goal is to lose 60 pounds, keep in mind that outside of drastic surgery, it’s not going to happen in  couple of months. But if along with your goal of losing 60 pounds, you also set yourself the goal of losing 5 pounds a month for a whole year, then by next year you’ll be there.

Take it One Day at a Time

Another great way to keep your goals is to take things one day at a time. Don’t get discouraged when things don’t go your way for a day or two, or even a week or two. Get yourself back on track and start over again. When you start over again to meet your goals, it’s much better than getting discouraged and quitting all together. If your goal is to get your house more organized, and  you do great for a couple of weeks, but then a rough week comes up and you’re back to where you used to be, don’t get discouraged and give up. Buck up and get yourself back on track, and realize falling down and pulling yourself back up is part of what it takes to make lasting changes.

Get a New Mindset

What new resolutions for a new year really comes down to is making a change. It should then stand to reason that if you want things to change, you have to make changes to make it happen. Just as eating and staying sedentary won’t help you lose 60 pounds this year, not motivating yourself to make changes to your overall actions and outlook won’t help you reach your goals. Be willing to try something different, or do things a different way to get a different result.

It takes work to change yourself, so don’t be discouraged if you don’t get there overnight, or fall down in the process. It just gives you another chance to pick yourself up and learn from your mistakes.

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Jeffry Evans – is the Chief at RealEstateLicense.org. He loves what he does and his family. You can see more of his work at http://www.realestatelicense.org/3-pillars-to-a-successful-home-based-business.html