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How to write a book. Links for Aspiring Writers. Resources for Developing Characters. When developing characters, many writers use personality traits that they see in themselves and in others, such as friends, family and celebrities. A new source of material and information that can help you develop characters is the Internet. The Internet offers some unique resources for character development, such as psychological testing websites, baby name databases and other reference sites and databases.

These websites certainly weren't created for writers developing characters; nevertheless, these site are extremely useful for writers. This article will help you locate some of these useful resources, and give you some tips about how you can use them to develop your own characters. Psychological Resources Psychological websites can help writers learn the underlying principles of behavior that motivate or cause people to act as they do. Biography Resources Biography resources can be a great help to writers. Naming Characters Other Resources Developing Characters. Story Starters & Idea Generators. One of the best ways to break through writer's block or stretch your writing skills is to pick a story starter and just start writing. Suggestions on how to use each generator are included with the generator.

Caveat: There's always a temptation to keep looking for the "perfect" idea, but then you need to ask yourself...are you really just trying to avoid writing? Problem: You can't get a story started Solution: Archetype's Plot Scenario Generator What it is: This generator provides you with the event that gets the story rolling and a secondary conflict to keep you going! Problem: Your characters lack depth Solution: Archetype's Character Generator What it is: A quick character sketch filled with the kinds of little details that makes stories engaging: character gender, cardinal traits, weaknesses, and most prized possession. Problem: Your characters don't feel like "real" people Solution: Archetype's Everyday Problems Generator Looking for something you don't see?

Getting Yourself Started. Character Questionnaire - How well do you know your hero? When I first started writing stories, I quickly became stuck. I decided to fill in a character questionnaire because I had read somewhere that it was a good idea. What a revelation for me. Although it was time-consuming, I became inspired and I started to think about my hero as a real person instead of the stick figure I was creating. We have a one-page character profile in our course workbook to get writers started, and we have a longer, detailed 11-page character questionnaire for delegates who attend our Writers Write course. Writing Tip: Complete this questionnaire for yourself if you're writing a memoir. From The Script Lab 50 Questions To Help You Create A Character For Your Novel. 1. Medical Myths, Lies, and Half-Truths: What We Think We Know May Be Hurting Us. Four nuggets of so-called medical wisdom have in common? They're all myths, half-truths, and misconceptions—pieces of information so familiar we take them for granted without truly considering the scientific truth behind them.

In today's information age, when supposedly accurate medical advice and diagnoses can be found online with the click of a computer mouse, medical myths are all around us. But much of this information isn't true, and using it to make decisions about your own health—whether it's how to treat the symptoms of the common cold or how to care for a child or aging relative—can be harmful.

Even deadly. Because you are the one who's ultimately responsible for your own health, it's critical to understand the accuracy of medical information; to break down the growing body of misinformation and discover the truth about everyday health and well-being. This is exactly the approach you'll take with Medical Myths, Lies, and Half-Truths: What We Think We Know May Be Hurting Us.

Dr. 100 Awesome Open Courses for Bibliophiles | Online College Tips. Book lovers and collectors don’t have to stop learning after they graduate college. There are loads of free courses to take online that will supply you with reading lists, information about the history of books and manuscripts, linguistics, foreign literature, ancient texts and more. Here are 100 awesome open courses for bibliophiles. Literature Take these courses to explore great writers, compare styles, and learn about the writing tradition.

Introduction to Fiction: Compare narrative styles of Virginia Woolf, Jane Austen, Charles Dickens and Joseph Conrad. [MIT]American Literature: Those who love reading authors like Toni Morrison will love this class. Foreign Literature Learn how different cultures produce different literary traditions, from China to Latin America and beyond. Spanish Poetry: This crash course in Spanish poetry is actually a video seminar. Linguistics Introduction to Linguistics: Understand the basics of human language. Books and Manuscripts Poetry and Drama Ancient Texts. Great Books Online -- Quotes, Poems, Novels, Classics and hundre.

Full text books free to read online in the full text archive. 25 Banned Books That You Should Read Today. Almost since the dawn of publishing, books have been banned for one reason or another. Many notable banned books are also compelling reads from classic or contemporary literature. This list summarizes 25 of the most controversial banned books from throughout history. #1 To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee Harper Lee's only novel is considered by many to be among the greatest works of fiction in American literature. Yet the story of young Scout Finch and her father, Atticus, has often been banned. . #2 American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis Ellis is a frequent target for protests due to the nature of his writing, but none has faced the level of opposition of American Psycho.

. #3 And Tango Makes Three by Peter Parnell and Justin Richardson This picture book tells the true story of Roy and Silo, two male penguins in New York City's Central Park Zoo. . #4 The Awakening by Kate Chopin #5 The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. . #6 Candide by Voltaire #7 Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut #9 Forever by Judy Blume D. Rare Book Room. Books that will induce a mindfuck. Here is the list of books that will officially induce mindfucks, sorted alphabetically by author. Those authors in bold have been recommended by one or more people as being generally mindfucking - any books listed under their names are particularly odd. You're welcome to /msg me to make an addition to this list. And finally, although he's way down at the bottom, my personal recommendation is definitely Howard Zinn's A People's History of the United States, as it turns the ultimate mindfuck: inverting the world-view of our entire culture, and it is non-fiction.

446 Places for Free Books Online. Introduction This is the launch page for the pages here at Gizmo's Tech Support Alert that list sites with free ebooks and audiobooks. There are well over a million free ebooks and audiobooks at the sites listed within these pages. There are 3 pages that separate sites on the format of the ebooks, Kindle, ePub and Online Reading. There is a main page for both ebooks and audiobooks that lists all the sites carrying each. There are also 21 genre listings. The sites within the free comic books and free motion comics pages are not included in the main ebook and audiobook pages. To the best of my knowledge all of the websites listed here offer only content that they are legally entitled to transfer to you.

To the best of my knowledge every website listed here, and its downloads, are safe. I hope you enjoy the content. Free eBooks & Audiobooks Complete Listings Best Free eBooks Online (913 sites) Best Free AudioBooks Online (224 sites) Free eBooks By Format Free Kindle eBooks Online Related Links. Scary Stories. List of Online Archives for Free Unabridged Books Online. Free Books for Download | Desi Nuts. Banned Books Online. Presents Welcome to this special exhibit of books that have been the objects of censorship or censorship attempts. The books featured here, ranging from Ulysses to Little Red Riding Hood, have been selected from the indexes of The Online Books Page. (See that page for more than 3 million more online books!) Please inform onlinebooks@pobox.upenn.edu of any new material that can be included here.

Note that the listings are meant to be representative rather than exhaustive. Also, many recent books that have been banned or challenged have not been included here, because they have not been made freely readable online. (But see below). October 1 - 7 is Banned Books Week. Books Suppressed or Censored by Legal Authorities Ulysses by James Joyce was selected by the Modern Library as the best novel of the 20th century, and has received wide praise from other literature scholars, including those who have defended online censorship.

In 1930, U.S. D. Unfit for Schools and Minors? John T. Where I Find Free eBooks « Evertime Realms. As I often mention my Kindle (the eReader of my dreams), I’ve often found myself explaining that an awful lot of the content on my particular device — 375 different files at present, most of them full-length books — was come by perfectly legally, and totally free of charge. I’m A bit of a fanatic about this. It comes from being a writer myself, I suppose, but I refuse to support illegal downloading — books, movies, music, what have you. Every eBook that I’ve downloaded for free falls into one of two categories. Either it’s offered legitimately by the author or publisher, or it’s a book in the public domain and no longer under copyright by anybody. And if you think this would limit my options, you’re very mistaken.

Here are some of the sites where I find my eBooks, totally for free. Amazon.com – Surprisingly, there are an awful lot of books available free of charge from Amazon. Like this: Like Loading... 9 Cool Things to Do With Old Books » Written Word. Bibliophiles and bookworms, English majors and lovers of literature: is it possible to have too many books? They accumulate so quickly! Every member of your family getting you the same three books you requested for Christmas. Seeing Don DeLillo marked half-off, knowing you dumped a half-caff latte on your copy of Underworld, and – even though only the first three pages are illegible – justifying its purchase. 15+ years of required reading lists stored in boxes in your basement, even though you can bet your bippy you will never willingly read the poetry of Robert Burns again. We are up to our waists in books, some of which we hate (really Master Burns? Update: Do to the overwhelming support (HA!)

1. It brings a whole new meaning to “audio book.” Use your old books to showcase your artistic side. Good for hiding passwords and codes, the key to your safe, and family jewels. 2. Your choice of ribbon can transform this wreath so it is suitable for every holiday – or every day! 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. The Online Books Page. Fantastic Fiction.

Books 'n' Bytes Mystery and Science Fiction Book and Author Information. BookMooch: trade your books with other people. Whichbook | A new way of choosing what to read next - StumbleUpon. Online Books, Poems, Short Stories - Read Print Library.