Research Writing

As a literary agent, Noah Lukeman hears thousands of book pitches a year. Often the stories sound great in concept, but never live up to their potential on the page. Lukeman shows beginning and advanced writers how to implement the fundamentals of successful plot development, such as character building and heightened suspense and conflict. Writers will find it impossible to walk away from this invaluable guide - a veritable fiction-writing workshop - without boundless new ideas.

In the haunting tradition of Joe McGinniss's Fatal Vision and Mikal Gilmore's Shot in the Heart, True Story: Murder, Memoir, Mea Culpa weaves a spellbinding tale of murder, love, and deceit with a deeply personal inquiry into the slippery nature of truth.

The Theory of Business Enterprise (1904) is a political economy book by Thorstein Veblen which examines the growing corporate domination of culture and the economy. At its core, The Theory of Business Enterprise is an analysis of two intertwined but clashing motivations: that of business and that of industry. Business is the making of profits. Industry is the making of goods.

Meet the man behind the biggest persona either side of the Mississippi, in this audio companion to the Ken Burns film of the same name. Burns, Geoffrey Ward, and Dayton Duncan pull together a treasure trove of information on the man formerly known as Samuel Clemens, using published and unpublished sources. Also, browse all Mark Twain titles.

Every business making sales online is engaged in a battle to get customers to click. More clicks equals more sales equals a more successful business. How do you write copy that will encourage more people to buy from you? How do you persuade customers over the line to make that final buying decision? What is the art of the click? The answer lies in the power of direct-response copywriting.

What makes a fantasy fantastic? Magic, of course! Whether it’s unearthly beasts, scheming sorcerers, legendary swords, or locales that defy logic and physics, a compelling fantasy story needs magical elements. The tricky part is that in order for the story to work, you have to get your reader or player to believe the unbelievable. The Kobold Guide to Magic takes you behind the scenes to learn the secrets of designing and writing about magic from 20 top fantasy authors and game designers.

Everyone has a story, and helping people tell their stories has been Nancy Slonim Aronie’s life mission. Building on her acclaimed Memoir as Medicine, this new guide tackles the short personal essay. With warmth and humor, Nancy provides prompts, inspiration, and hard-won wisdom to empower you to write an unforgettable narrative. You’ll learn to begin with an irresistible hook (“kill ’em with the first line”) and employ compelling direct quotes, drama, vulnerability, universal themes, and self-reflection to get readers into your corner.

All social groups have ideals for behavior, even though ethics vary among different cultures and among individuals within each culture. In trying to understand why, Churchland brings together an understanding of the influences of nature and nurture. She looks to evolution to elucidate how, from birth, our brains are configured to form bonds, to cooperate, and to care. Conscience delves into scientific studies, particularly the fascinating work on twins, to deepen our understanding of whether people have a predisposition to embrace specific ethical stands.

Writing and finishing a novel can feel overwhelming. Especially because if you're like most writers, you need to fit writing around other responsibilities and goals. Maybe you're working at a separate job or profession, raising a family, or pursuing a degree (or all of the above). But there's good news. No matter what else is happening in your life, you can write a novel in a year.

The best way to answer these questions is to ditch your uncertainty and transform yourself into a kick-ass writer. This new book from award-winning author Chuck Wendig combines the best of his eye-opening writing instruction - previously available in e-book form only - with all-new insights into writing and publishing. It's an explosive broadside of gritty advice that will destroy your fears, clear the path, and help you find your voice, your story, and your audience.

Bookish and retiring, Garry Wills has been an outsider in the academy, in journalism, even in his church. Yet these qualities have, paradoxically, prompted people to share intimate insights with him - perhaps because he is not a rival, a competitor, or a threat. The result is the most personal book Wills has ever written.

Everything you need to run your business as an author. This is not a book on creativity or the craft of writing. This is not a book for hobbyists. This is a book that will take your writing into the realm of actually paying the bills. You will learn how to go from being an author to running a business as an author.

Imagine writing a spellbinding love story that not only enthralls readers but also brings you joy during the creative process. Our quick guide, jam-packed with easy-to-follow prompts, tips, and techniques, will guide you through the romance writing process from start to finish.

This CliffsNotes study guide on Arthur Miller's The Crucible supplements the original literary work, giving you background information about the author, an introduction to the work, and critical commentaries, all for you to use as an educational tool that will allow you to better understand the work. This study guide was written with the assumption that you have read The Crucible.

Joanne Fedler, a beloved writing teacher and mentor, has written Your Story to help all people, even those who don't necessarily identify as 'writers', value their life stories and write them in such a way that they transcend the personal and speak into a universal story. She shows how to write from your life, but for the benefit of others.

The one real difference between the American press and the Soviet state newspaper Pravda was that the Russian people knew they were being lied to. To expose the lies our media tell us today, controversial journalist James O'Keefe created Project Veritas, an independent news organization whose reporters go where traditional journalists dare not. Their investigative work - equal parts James Bond, Mike Wallace, and Saul Alinsky - has had a consistent and powerful impact on its targets.

Kim Scaravelli has been writing online content for over 20 years. Over that time, she has helped hundreds of organizations build authority, communicate effectively, and develop meaningful connections with people. In this practical guide, she walks you through the process of writing, from setting up your writing space to researching, crafting first drafts, editing, and mastering the long game. Because success isn't about being able to write one piece of content. It's about being able to create content whenever you need to and enjoying the feeling of making words work.

Gareth L. Powell would be the first to tell you that he doesn't know everything about being a writer, or about getting published, or about life when your work is in a bookshelf. But his field-guide to publishing, About Writing, is absolutely here to help writers on every stage of their journey. Whether you need a bit of writing inspiration or tips on how to find your voice, are struggling to manage writing alongside a day job, want some no-nonsense advice about working with an agent or a publisher or are all at sea with social media, this updated and expanded guide is a must.

Tad Friend's family is nothing if not illustrious: his father was president of Swarthmore College, and at Smith his mother came in second in a poetry contest judged by W. H. Auden -- to Sylvia Plath. For centuries, Wasps like his ancestors dominated American life. But then, in the '60s, their fortunes began to fall. As a young man, Friend noticed that his family tree, for all its glories, was full of alcoholics, depressives, and reckless eccentrics.

Writing is an intensely personal act, yet all writers face similar problems related to focus, procrastination, creativity, and productivity. This book combines the field-tested practices of successful and productive writers with insights from cognitive science. By understanding how your mental processes affect the work, you can master the inner game of writing.