The Philosophical and Moral Component of Virtue Ethics Movie Review

Essays on The Philosophical and Moral Component of Virtue Ethics Movie Review The paper "The Philosophical and Moral Component of Virtue Ethics" is a good example of a movie review on philosophy. The lecture attempts to explain the intricacies that revolve around the philosophical yet moral component of virtue ethics. It is important to understand the history of virtue ethics to disseminate the facets that make up the topic. The lecture makes it evident that virtue ethics stemmed from the Greeks’ perspective to the modern-day philosophers who view virtue ethics as a moral obligation among humanity. The video illustrates the transition of virtue ethics from the Greeks who viewed it as a source of good living. The rise of Judaism and Christianity broadened the scope of virtue ethics and termed it as divine commands. Finally, due to continued secularism, the scope shifted to a subject of moral law terming virtue ethics as the most appropriate thing to do. The video continues to explain the modern-day view of virtue ethics as propelled by philosophers such as John Stuart Mill (utilitarianism) and Emmanuel Kant (Absolutism). According to the theory of utilitarianism, virtue ethics entail maximizing the good for the greatest population. On the other hand, the theory of absolutism entails accepting and following a set of beliefs as an obligation. However, the lecture creates a point of deviation from the theoretical point of view to a simplified perspective of virtue ethics as described by Aristotle. The video points out that Aristotle based his perspective on virtue ethics as the good of man. In addition, a comparison of such perspective with that of the Bible indicates that humanity ought to love without conditions or a set of beliefs. The explanation derived from the video indicates that virtue ethics is a balance between two extremes; that of deficiency and excess. As such, virtue ethics is about morality. In addition, Aristotleâ€⠄¢s perspective, as per the video, indicates that such a balance entails what humanity considers as good rather than a set of guidelines and beliefs as that of absolutism.

The Black Cat By Edgar Allan Poe - 885 Words

Humans are equipped with the most labyrinth work of art known as the mind. Each human being has their own byways that are understood in unique patterns of complexities. The mind merely acts in the behavior experienced by engrossing into a person s particular habits, making them an diverse individual. Nowadays, the world has come to understand these particular patterns through Psychological studies. In order to comprehend that each mind comes with its own unprecedented code, a person has to just observe. An example of these observation and hands on applications would be Edgar Allan Poe, a writer and a poet, whom would be absolutely intrigued in these behaviors. His unique interpretation of the human mind could be seen in â€Å"The Black Cat.† In this short story Edgar Allan Poe embeds himself as the protagonist who are mere victims of the complexities of the mind known as revenge, anger, and perversity. â€Å"The Black Cat† shows the vital side effects of the mind recogn ized as revenge, anger, and perversity. This is witnessed at the very start of the short story where his superstition empowers his actions when he compares his black cat to a witch in disguise. Not only does his wife and himself believe this, but they also chose to call the cat Pluto. According to Greek Mythology, Pluto, whose greek name was Hades, was the G-d of the underworld who ruled over everything that was dark (Gill). He completely carried out his supposition when he looks at the black cat and compared itsShow MoreRelatedThe Black Cat By Edgar Allan Poe1117 Words   |  5 Pages Edgar Allan Poe’s narrator in â€Å"The Black Cat† describes himself as a lover of animals and a man with a kind heart. But he uses his animals and alcoholism as an excuse for his perverse behavior. However, Poe drops hints though out the narrative to tell a different story. His violence towards animals tells the story of an irrational man who weeps while hanging his cat. Therefore, Poe employs the narrator to show the human tendency to use scapegoats to shift blame for the wrong thing we do. The narratorRead MoreThe Black Cat By Edgar Allan Poe1778 Words   |  8 Pagesmonster up within the tomb† (Poe 32). This is the ending of Edgar Allan Poe’s short story â€Å"The Black Cat.† This story is one of the many famous short stories Poe has written in his life time. However, this story, in particular, captivities the horror and frightening works of his display. Having his personal history and short story at hand, will help his audience to understand some of his guilty pleasures. In this Critical Analysis Essay, the composition of â€Å"The Black Cat† will be revealed by connectingRead MoreThe Black Cat, By Edgar Allan Poe1240 Words   |  5 PagesLiterature, D.H. Lawrence condemns Americans for dodging their true selves by means of intellectualization and idealization. Both Edgar Allan Poe’s short story â€Å"The Black Cat† and Nathaniel Hawthorne’s â€Å"Young Goodman Brown† feature allegorical representations of cha racters deceiving themselves in order to deny the darker aspects of their inner selves. In Poe’s â€Å"The Black Cat,† the narrator denies the darker aspects of his soul by abstracting his horrific actions with spectral evidence in order to externalizeRead MoreThe Black Cat By Edgar Allan Poe Essay917 Words   |  4 Pagesreality.† - Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe is known for his dark and thought-provoking horror stories. In particular, The Black Cat does just that. The story focuses on the rationalizations of the horrific actions of the narrator. A black cat is introduced to pounce down on the rationalization of the narrator’s actions. Edgar Allan Poe also constructs a story where the main basis of the narrator’s decisions are ethical egoism and the principles of conscience. Poe constructs the black cat as the conscienceRead MoreThe Black Cat, By Edgar Allan Poe1900 Words   |  8 Pagesportion of his life writing these kind of stories. Edgar Allan Poe was influenced by his own life experiences, social normalities of the early 19th century, and used literary devices to write horrific works such as The Black Cat, The Raven, and Berenice. Edgar Allan Poe wrote the short story The Black Cat in 1843. The story starts out fairly normal, but very quickly spirals into a horrendous chain of events. The narrator of the story has a cat that he adaores at first, but then he grows irritatedRead MoreThe Black Cat By Edgar Allan Poe Essay1503 Words   |  7 PagesThe Black Cat Gothic Analysis In Edgar Allan Poe’s short story â€Å"The Black Cat† (1843), Poe creates a gothic narrative that exceeds the suspicions of the audiences predeterminations. Throughout the entirety of his piece Poe creates a scene that continuously leaves his readers wondering what was happening next. Suspicion being a key factor in gothic tales is only one strategy Poe used to illuminate the story of an unnamed psychopath and his attempts to either clear his conscious or set the recordRead MoreThe Black Cat, By Edgar Allan Poe871 Words   |  4 Pages Edgar Allan Poe is a world famous author who writes suspenseful/thriller story that keeps everyone interested. Three of his stories that we have read is â€Å"The Black Cat,† â€Å"The Tell-Tale Heart,† â€Å"The Cask of Amontillado†. The five questions that will be discussed is how/why does Poe have his narrator plan the murder of his victim, what is the narrators reason for killing his victim, how does the narrator dispose of the body, does the narrator know the difference between right and wrong, and finallyRead MoreThe Black Cat, By Edgar Allan Poe1202 Words   |  5 PagesEdgar Allan Poe is prominent for his literacy style of horror and mystery, in which he had written an innumerable number of short stories and poems in his lifetime. Evidently, many of his writings like, â€Å"The Black Cat,† â€Å"William Wilson,† and â€Å"The Raven,† share the same style, as their protagonists’ demonstrated a paucity of reliability. Readers often become engaged with how the main character of each text showed their rivulet of tales that seem to be quite fictitious. Available evidence suggestsRead MoreThe Black Cat By Edgar Allan Poe1142 Words   |  5 Pagescharacter survives eight shots to the torso, all happy endings. Edgar Allan Poe isn’t like that. Most of his characters are dark and insane. They have one last shred of sanity then they refuse to keep it and then they end up going insane, much like the characters in The Black Cat, The Raven, and A Tell-Tale Heart. All three the men reach insanity. In The Black Cat a man expresses his passion over all animals. He has a gorgeous black cat named Pluto,his prized possession. Years later this man has aRead MoreThe Black Cat By Edgar Allan Poe1243 Words   |  5 Pagesâ€Å"The Black Cat,† Edgar Allan Poe states the nameless narrator is in a prison cell, retelling his story of his struggles from the abuse of alcoholism, perverseness, and animal cruelty. He was married to his beautiful wife and had a variety of pet animals. The narrator starts to talk about his beloved black cat, Pluto, and how he believes it’s evil and the reason for his crazy actions. He came home drunk one day assuming his cat was avoiding him. He tried to grab his cat, but with fear, the cat nipped

Strategic Execution of Mozilla Corporation †MyAssignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about the Strategic Execution of Mozilla Corporation. Answer: Introduction Most corporate organizations in the past have relied on the idea of using their past experiences to develop their future strategies. Such an approach has been rendered ineffective in business development, and in the recent past, the development of strategic plans by most corporations and businesses had become the order of the day. However, it has come to the reality of various organizational management boards that the success of a corporate strategic plan is determined by the ability or the efforts of the organization to execute the plan. Strategic planning was seen as the most challenging exercise in strategic planning without the understanding that having or developing a successful execution strategy is even harder than developing a strategic plan (Haines, 2016). This essay will, therefore, provide an understanding of strategic execution through analysis of Mozilla Corporation in a move to understand the challenge facing most organizations about executing organizational strategies effectively as well as making vital thinking part of everyones day to day life. The term organizational DNA, has been used to describe or provide an understanding of the personality or values of an organization and establishes whether it is active or weak in achieving or executing the organization strategy. Mozilla Corporation has developed quite a different or unique organizational culture by setting different corporate values compared to other organizations. Most organizations define its workforce as the staff workers working for the company. However, Mozilla Corporation has a liberal base of a diverse collection of both volunteers as well as paid staff who work together to achieve a common objective (Gnther, 2016). The company culture is against the traditional employment equation which is used by many companies and holds that when an employee is hired, his or her contribution to the company starts and ends after the individual is fired. The company has established a culture through which employees may begin from volunteer positions and end up taking paid pos itions later and may even choose to volunteer then. The organization culture for Mozilla Corporation is based on humanity and the potential the individuals have towards each other. The organization has focused on developing an environment where employees and staff feel championed to achieve the maximum possibilities for the growth of the organization. The company business plan is aimed at creating a global open business community of internet programmers to enhance the development of innovation in the browser market (Bahrami, 2013). To achieve the company business strategy, the company had to develop an execution strategy which is centered on the people or the people's operations. Through this initiative, the employees or staff always feel to be part of the company by volunteering to work compared to being paid. Such a culture promotes employee productivity without the need for other material motivational programs. Employees in the organization feel more valued, and their skills cannot be measured regarding monetary value as compared t o human resource efforts in other companies. The organizational DNA is therefore established on the development of people by becoming more conscious, more understanding of their needs, developing their skills and making sure that they are well represented. The company strategy has moved from focused to a systematic business strategy where they seek to establish a balance between the intellectual skills of an individual or staff and their functional capabilities (Mikesell Wood, 2016). The company does not characterize its team through their abilities but seeks to develop them through practical innovations and skill development. Once they establish peoples centered strategy, the company is then able to build its technology strategy by creating changes which match the peoples skills and result in the development of internet products which are consumer sensitive. Mozilla corporation business strategy is built on humanity based philosophy. It believes that, for successful execution of strategic business plan the company has to asse ss how it works, understand how the program was organized and the objectives of the company. Lessons from Mozilla Corporation to other Knowledge-based Organizations Despite the corporation efforts to add to the existing software technology social aspects, interactions and the people's platform Mozilla has given other organizations a need to develop new ideas and innovations. Strategy execution initiatives in a company may not be necessarily the same since every company has its established action plans. However, other knowledge-based corporations such as Google, Google Chrome as well as Firefox can learn from Mozilla Corporation (Al-Khouri, 2014). The company strategy has been developed with the understanding of people, technology, the company product and the organizations or institutions evolutions. The strategy execution plan is excellent an aspect that other companies can learn to add more value to the strategy to enhance its effectiveness in achieving the company objectives. Mozilla believes that sometimes its not about the people or the brand of the company but the values of the brand (Duggal, 2018), an aspect that has given it a competitive advantage over other non-profit entities. This is an idea that has also been adopted by Google as a pioneer in the technology and innovation industry. The company strategy for educating the users to improve the involvement in web citizenship is excellent however it is also essential to learn that the period taken to inform these people may take longer and reduce the chances of people joining the web platforms. This aspect is missing in Mozilla products, and therefore the company should start creating more value to their products by developing new ideas and not building on established concepts or software. Google operates under an open policy and has employed the use of a free business model as well as focused on fast innovations. This does not mean that Mozilla should use the same strategy but should enhance their i nternet and browsing services by improving on their innovations. Achieving performance objectives in developing a working community, Mozilla Corporation has internet programmers trained in fueling innovation in the browser market. Therefore, there is a need for other companies to create value through changes to the company brand as this will help increase the company web citizenship. The development of Firefox Quantum was to rival with the company main competitors Chrome. The new browser by Mozilla is twice as fast as the original Firefox browser. Like Mozilla, Chrome can also remain a customers choice due to its ability to offer robust feature set, a thriving extension system, an integration to integrate Google accounts as well as its compatibility and reliability of their mobile apps. These achievements from Mozilla Corporation can be a learning platform for Google Company to build their brands around people, technology, and the organizational culture. Other organizations can also use the same strategy to add value to their brands which can indirectly contribute to the growth of the prior strategies. Like Mozilla, a company execution strategy and involvement of people in the organization should focus on adding value to the company brand. Challenges facing Debbie Cohen regarding strategy execution and alignment Strategy execution in an organization as discussed earlier is very difficult compared to developing a strategic plan. Therefore when Debbie Cohen was appointed as the chief of People at Mozilla had a difficult task in executing the company strategy. In his period he encountered several challenges, and the first challenge was on how to scale the constant growing and changing Mozilla and at the same time maintain and improve the quality of the company as well as its people (Bahrami, 2013). The second challenged that she encountered was how she would ensure the company remains competitive in the web browsing market and also on how she would continue right to the company core values and mission. Despite these organizational challenges, Debbie Cohen also had personal problems which included the challenge of how to stay true to her roots, what she wanted to become in future and what she stood. The organizational challenges mostly based on the corporate culture, their product and the industry the company was operating. The company had experienced tremendous growth in the web browsing market and had rivaled her competitors such as the Microsoft internet explorer and making extraordinary steps to match the market pioneers such as Google (Bungay, 2011). The company, human resource culture, was different as it was based on having a workforce of volunteers and a few paid staff and which not what she was used to as most organizations had employees who were paid yet the organization did not have any role prescribed for human resource functions. There was a need therefore to develop a people-centered strategy that was considerate of the organizational culture and values. Having presented with such challenges, Debbie Cohen has to understand that the effectiveness of any company strategy is directly proportional to the commitment of the people who are accountable to fulfilling it, posses. The company executive teams who are implementing the plan play a vital role in the successful execution of the strategy and therefore their level of ownership, commitment and accountability are also directly proportional to the effectiveness of the plan. With that understanding it will be easy for her to understand how the company works, its organization regarding structure, the goals, and objectives of the company or what mattered to the organization as well as the people working in the company. Debbie Cohen needs to start by conducting commitment audit to establish the high commitment, ownership and accountability levels of the existing executive. It is after understanding these levels when she can go ahead and develop a bold and compelling future strategy (Reeves Deimler, 2011). She should also define her plan to achieve success by focusing on the challenges and then incorporate everyone in the organization. The main reason for these steps that she should take is based on the fact that the success of the peoples operations project that she has to undertake will be determined by the level of commitment of the executive team. Getting Everyone to Participate in Strategic Thinking and Execution The success of an organization will depend on the involvement of all company stakeholders towards the achievement of a common goal. In this case, the company would be seeking to establish a long-term performance and increase overall stakeholder engagement. The knowledge and practices of cross-functional strategic thinking can have a significant impact in helping the company achieve these goals (Madsen Walker, 2015). Cross-functional involves the coming together to work for common purpose whereas strategic thinking consists of the application of strategic innovation planning and operational planning in developing effective business strategies. This implies that cross-functional strategic thinking suggests the coming together of all business stakeholders and applying both strategic and operational plans to achieve a common goal. Cross-functional strategic thinking creates a culture of continuous organizational improvement which means that all the organization stakeholders take part in improving the performance of the businesses. They all take part in the ownership of the company or the industry and can provide solutions to the business problems (Wu et al., 2015). It plays a vital role in improving communication in the company which comprises of diverse groups of people. Such commitment and communication are very critical in effective execution of company strategic plans. Strategic thinking is a precious and useful tool in strategic planning. In business, strategic thinkers are considered to be the most highly effective leaders. Strategic thinking helps the stakeholders sit down or come together, talk about the company problems, assess the issues and develop or create a future for the company through strategic planning (Zheng ., 2017). This knowledge is essential for the company as it will help them work towards a common goal and reduce the chances of failure of business plans which result from uncooperative stakeholders. It enhances commitment and business accountability which is critical to effective strategy execution. The long-term success or performance of the company, as well as its stakeholder engagement, will be determined by the companys efforts to develop within itself cross-functional strategic thinking initiatives or strategies. Building an organization based on the culture and values of the organization will require the cross-sectional an d strategic thinking as well as making innovative decisions (Wheeler, 2017). Mozilla Corporation is strategizing to build a community or internet programmers and increase her involvement or engagement in web citizenship by focusing on the development of the organizational culture. Therefore an organization centered in developing its people base will efficiently employ the use cross-functional strategic thinking to improve the company or organization performance. Key Insights from this Course This course has been resourceful in understanding how strategy development and planning is critical to the growth and development of any businesses. A key point of understanding was the discovery that strategy execution is even more critical to the effectiveness or success of a strategic plan compared to strategic planning. Most business has therefore focused on developing good strategic ideas and presenting them to the company or business stakeholders without the development of strategy execution plan (Bryson, 2018). This might have been one of the reasons many strategic projects have failed in achieving the set objectives. Strategy execution plays a similar role in strategic management by helping the company or organization to transform the static strategic plan into systems that allow the program to evolve and grow as per requirement. The understanding of organizational culture is essential in strategy execution as it defines the organization personality and helps in understanding whether the organization is strong or weak in executing its strategy. The modern corporate world is characterized by a lot of uncertainties which the company should be keen to recognize its signals. The ability of a company or organization to adapt to future changes has become the current competitive advantage (Salerno et al., 2015). Therefore most company develops their strategic plans with a goal of building an enduring competitive advantage. The ability read and act to signals of change from the external environment is an excellent strategic plan that will help businesses to thrive in the modern competitive business world. The company organizations, therefore, need to keep experimenting and reviewing their business strategies because experiments lead to discoveries (Choe, 2014). It is crucial also to invest in building the skills of t he company by going beyond the company boundaries and working closely with organization stakeholders. Efficiency in strategic execution will also be determined by the ability of the company to unlock their greatest resources which is the company labor force or people working with the company. It is also vital for an organization to differentiate between what makes them successful and what can make them successful. This is because most companies have continued to work alongside their traditional approaches. Company culture may be thriving in helping the company sell their brands and improve performance, however, there is an excellent need to develop or create value for company brands. The benefit will assist in retaining and attracting more customers to the company or business and therefore help the company or industry in achieving their long-term goals (Hamid et al., 2014). Past experiences should never be used by companies to develop future strategies, and that future strategy should be based on the commitment, ownership and accountability audit reports conducted by the company as these are critical factors in establishing the success of an organization execution strategy. Explanation of how individual stakeholders participate in cross-functional strategic thinking to help in improving company performance and stakeholder engagement Individual stakeholders, in this case, may arise from both internal and external business environments. In these examples, I use two different stakeholders from different levels from these two business environments. The first individual stakeholder will be the employee or staff (Shields et al., 2015). This group of people plays a significant role in the successful execution of the company strategic plan. Most organizational culture is built around the development of company workforce. Employees can negatively or positively influence the long-term performance of the company or even impact on stakeholder engagement. Employees make the most significant company resources and should be highly valued by the company regarding decision making (Sacks, 2015). Through their skills, they can deliver best services to the customers or even produce quality and valuable goods and services. Their innovative capabilities help in enhancing the competitiveness of the company and assist in adding new ide as to the business which when exploited and implemented lead to increased or improved organization performance. The second group of individual stakeholders is the customers. The customers form part of the company target market. The company brands are developed based on customer market analysis, and therefore customers play an important role in improving the company performance. One of the most important practices is through providing feedback for the consumer brands to the company. Such feedbacks are then used to develop brands which are competitive in the market and tailored to meet customer expectations (Smith, 2017). Customers also help in marketing company products through referrals, and it is essential to building a company strategic plan that is customer centered. It is easy to retain an existing customer than gaining a new customer which emphasizes the need to develop customer service oriented strategies. These two categories of stakeholders, though at different levels, their practices are very critical in long-term business development. Conclusion Most strategic plans and their execution strategies are customers centered with most companies seeking to establish an organizational culture where strategic thinking is a part of everyones day to day life. This means that, the company focus is people operationally centered and that the companies should develop all their strategies around its people. Mozilla Corporation through the leadership of Debbie Cohen has been able to create an effective strategic execution strategy that is focused on the organizational culture and values, the workforce of the company and the competitiveness of company to the web browsing internet market. The company also has an excellent opportunity to learn from her competitors in the industry including Google and the Microsoft Internet Explorer companies. Focusing n business ability to adapt to future changes is indeed the new market competitive advantage strategy while strategic execution remains the most critical part of organizational strategic planning. References Al-Khouri, A. M. (2014). Strategy and execution: Lessons learned from the public sector. International Business Research, 7(10), 61. Bahrami (2013) People Operation at Mozilla Corporation. Bryson, J. M. (2018). Strategic planning for public and nonprofit organizations: A guide to strengthening and sustaining organizational achievement. John Wiley Sons. Bungay (2011) How to make the most out of your companys strategy. Journal of Applied Leadership and Management, 4, 1-20. Choe, J. M. (2014). The product and process innovations through the strategic alignment of knowledge management. Asian Journal of Technology Innovation, 22(1), 1-15. Duggal, J. (2018). The DNA of Strategy Execution: Next Generation Project Management and PMO. John Wiley Sons. Gnther, K. (2016). Key Factors for Successful Implementation of a Sustainability Strategy. Journal of Applied Leadership and Management, 4, 1-20. Haines, S. (2016). The systems thinking approach to strategic planning and management. CRC Press. Hamid, S. R., Chew, B. C., Halim, S., Abdullah, M. A. (2014). Business Trends Overview: Illustrating The Future From The Lens Of Mozilla Corporation. Journal of Technology Management and Business, 1(1). Madsen, T. L., Walker, G. (2015). Modern competitive strategy. McGraw Hill. Mikesell, M., Wood, C. (2016). Secrets to successful M A. Strategic Finance, 98(5), 38. Reeves Deimler (2011) Adaptability the new competitive advantage. Journal of Business Aspect, 39(2), 497-518. Sacks, M. (2015). Competition between open source and proprietary software: Strategies for survival. Journal of Management Information Systems, 32(3), 268-295. Salerno, C., Ouma, S., Botha, A. (2015, September). Developing a conceptual model for facilitating the issuing of digital badges in a resource constrained environment. In Proceedings of the 2015 Annual Research Conference on South African Institute of Computer Scientists and Information Technologists (p. 33). ACM. Shields, J., Brown, M., Kaine, S., Dolle-Samuel, C., North-Samardzic, A., McLean, P., ... Plimmer, G. (2015). Managing Employee Performance Reward: Concepts, Practices, Strategies. Cambridge University Press. Smith, K. L. (2017). Social Innovation Partnerships: An Opportunity for Critical, Activist Scholarship. Canadian Journal of Communication, 42(1). Wheeler, A. (2017). Designing brand identity: An essential guide for the whole branding team. John Wiley Sons. Wu, S. P. J., Straub, D. W., Liang, T. P. (2015). How information technology governance mechanisms and strategic alignment influence organizational performance: Insights from a matched survey of business and IT managers. Mis Quarterly, 39(2), 497-518. Zheng, L., Hui, L., Ting, X., Cao, R. (2017, July). New Strategic Thinking Required in Promoting Innovation of Disruptive Technology. In Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), 2017 Portland International Conference on (pp. 1-5). IEEE.

Veteran interview Essay Example For Students

Veteran interview Essay Veteran interview Essay My grandfather, Larry, served in WWII. He enlisted and stationed at Camp Polk. He went through places like New Guinea and the Philippines during the war. When I asked him if he experienced any combat he said; yes, I experienced some combat. But most of the time I spent in combat was in a tank. Not too much action there. A typical day in my grandfathers life at the time was to wake up at the crack of dawn and get ready for a full day of combat, well at least for the ground troops that didnt have a tank to be protected by. Of course for him, driving a tank was easier then being a ground troop. So that made things a little easier. He told me every day the main thing he did, and I quote, kep my head low. Anything could be expected. We will write a custom essay on Veteran interview specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now At Camp Polk him and some other troops had a idea to set up a trap to alert them if the enemy tried to get into their base camp at night. They would set up grenades filled with half the explosive powder needed for a full blast, and they would bury them around the perimeter of their camp with their pins tied together by trip wire. Once the enemy would set foot in that perimeter and tripped the trip wire it would pull the pins to almost all the grenades. But the grenades didnt go off right away so the jap that snuck in would just think he tripped on a branch or something. Until the grenades would finally go off and alert the camp to catch the intruder. Thats if the grenades didnt catch him before they did. Yep, I would be dozing off to sleep when a critter or a swift breeze would set those damn things off and wake me up again. Then youre stuck setting them all up for the rest of the night. The thing that stuck out most in my grandfather mind he said was; looking forward to go home. The war got tough in many ways and situations which made my him wish he was home with his family again. I asked him if he thought about the war very often now and he said; so so. Not alot. Glad its over. When I asked him if he lost any friends or people he served with in the war he said that he lost some friends in combat but he didnt talk much about that. He carried his sacred heart metal with him everywhere he went. He would pray for the war to end at night before he fell asleep. The friends he made in war are either dead or he no longer keeps in touch with them at all. There wasnt much said about his worst and best experiences in the war. All he said on that was to keep alert and stay alive. The war did not change him. My grandfather was received with lots of love. He was going to go to Japan but he ended up going home early. He was in Minilla on V-J Day, the day the war ended. This was a victory day celebration. I asked him if he had been scarred either emotionally or physically from serving in the war and he said; yes, both especially when you get surrounded. One time he told me that he opened the top hatch to his tank to see if the cost was clear. There ended up being a jap hiding in a tree above him and he caught him at the corner of his eye tring to drop a grenade in with him. So my grandfather quickly slammed the door shut and listened to the explosion of the grenade followed by the jap falling out of the tree and hitting the top of the tank with a loud thud. And after all. Yes, he did believe in the war he was fighting for. .ucf29802faa6ddd7897d167a048bc5da6 , .ucf29802faa6ddd7897d167a048bc5da6 .postImageUrl , .ucf29802faa6ddd7897d167a048bc5da6 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .ucf29802faa6ddd7897d167a048bc5da6 , .ucf29802faa6ddd7897d167a048bc5da6:hover , .ucf29802faa6ddd7897d167a048bc5da6:visited , .ucf29802faa6ddd7897d167a048bc5da6:active { border:0!important; } .ucf29802faa6ddd7897d167a048bc5da6 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .ucf29802faa6ddd7897d167a048bc5da6 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .ucf29802faa6ddd7897d167a048bc5da6:active , .ucf29802faa6ddd7897d167a048bc5da6:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .ucf29802faa6ddd7897d167a048bc5da6 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .ucf29802faa6ddd7897d167a048bc5da6 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .ucf29802faa6ddd7897d167a048bc5da6 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .ucf29802faa6ddd7897d167a048bc5da6 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .ucf29802faa6ddd7897d167a048bc5da6:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .ucf29802faa6ddd7897d167a048bc5da6 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .ucf29802faa6ddd7897d167a048bc5da6 .ucf29802faa6ddd7897d167a048bc5da6-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .ucf29802faa6ddd7897d167a048bc5da6:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Drugs and alcohol abuse have become a major Essay Words / Pages : 688 / 24 . Veteran interview Essay Example For Students Veteran interview Essay Veteran interview Essay My grandfather, Larry, served in WWII. He enlisted and stationed at Camp Polk. He went through places like New Guinea and the Philippines during the war. When I asked him if he experienced any combat he said; yes, I experienced some combat. But most of the time I spent in combat was in a tank. Not too much action there. A typical day in my grandfathers life at the time was to wake up at the crack of dawn and get ready for a full day of combat, well at least for the ground troops that didnt have a tank to be protected by. Of course for him, driving a tank was easier then being a ground troop. So that made things a little easier. He told me every day the main thing he did, and I quote, kep my head low. Anything could be expected. We will write a custom essay on Veteran interview specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now At Camp Polk him and some other troops had a idea to set up a trap to alert them if the enemy tried to get into their base camp at night. They would set up grenades filled with half the explosive powder needed for a full blast, and they would bury them around the perimeter of their camp with their pins tied together by trip wire. Once the enemy would set foot in that perimeter and tripped the trip wire it would pull the pins to almost all the grenades. But the grenades didnt go off right away so the jap that snuck in would just think he tripped on a branch or something. Until the grenades would finally go off and alert the camp to catch the intruder. Thats if the grenades didnt catch him before they did. Yep, I would be dozing off to sleep when a critter or a swift breeze would set those damn things off and wake me up again. Then youre stuck setting them all up for the rest of the night. The thing that stuck out most in my grandfather mind he said was; looking forward to go home. The war got tough in many ways and situations which made my him wish he was home with his family again. I asked him if he thought about the war very often now and he said; so so. Not alot. Glad its over. When I asked him if he lost any friends or people he served with in the war he said that he lost some friends in combat but he didnt talk much about that. He carried his sacred heart metal with him everywhere he went. He would pray for the war to end at night before he fell asleep. The friends he made in war are either dead or he no longer keeps in touch with them at all. There wasnt much said about his worst and best experiences in the war. All he said on that was to keep alert and stay alive. The war did not change him. My grandfather was received with lots of love. He was going to go to Japan but he ended up going home early. He was in Minilla on V-J Day, the day the war ended. This was a victory day celebration. I asked him if he had been scarred either emotionally or physically from serving in the war and he said; yes, both especially when you get surrounded. One time he told me that he opened the top hatch to his tank to see if the cost was clear. There ended up being a jap hiding in a tree above him and he caught him at the corner of his eye tring to drop a grenade in with him. So my grandfather quickly slammed the door shut and listened to the explosion of the grenade followed by the jap falling out of the tree and hitting the top of the tank with a loud thud. And after all. Yes, he did believe in the war he was fighting for. .uac75903108bb8ea4fa628c6af8ac7711 , .uac75903108bb8ea4fa628c6af8ac7711 .postImageUrl , .uac75903108bb8ea4fa628c6af8ac7711 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .uac75903108bb8ea4fa628c6af8ac7711 , .uac75903108bb8ea4fa628c6af8ac7711:hover , .uac75903108bb8ea4fa628c6af8ac7711:visited , .uac75903108bb8ea4fa628c6af8ac7711:active { border:0!important; } .uac75903108bb8ea4fa628c6af8ac7711 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .uac75903108bb8ea4fa628c6af8ac7711 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .uac75903108bb8ea4fa628c6af8ac7711:active , .uac75903108bb8ea4fa628c6af8ac7711:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .uac75903108bb8ea4fa628c6af8ac7711 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .uac75903108bb8ea4fa628c6af8ac7711 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .uac75903108bb8ea4fa628c6af8ac7711 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .uac75903108bb8ea4fa628c6af8ac7711 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .uac75903108bb8ea4fa628c6af8ac7711:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .uac75903108bb8ea4fa628c6af8ac7711 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .uac75903108bb8ea4fa628c6af8ac7711 .uac75903108bb8ea4fa628c6af8ac7711-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .uac75903108bb8ea4fa628c6af8ac7711:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Same Sex Marriages Essay . Veteran interview Essay Example For Students Veteran interview Essay Veteran interview Essay My grandfather, Larry, served in WWII. He enlisted and stationed at Camp Polk. He went through places like New Guinea and the Philippines during the war. When I asked him if he experienced any combat he said; yes, I experienced some combat. But most of the time I spent in combat was in a tank. Not too much action there. A typical day in my grandfathers life at the time was to wake up at the crack of dawn and get ready for a full day of combat, well at least for the ground troops that didnt have a tank to be protected by. Of course for him, driving a tank was easier then being a ground troop. So that made things a little easier. He told me every day the main thing he did, and I quote, kep my head low. Anything could be expected. We will write a custom essay on Veteran interview specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now At Camp Polk him and some other troops had a idea to set up a trap to alert them if the enemy tried to get into their base camp at night. They would set up grenades filled with half the explosive powder needed for a full blast, and they would bury them around the perimeter of their camp with their pins tied together by trip wire. Once the enemy would set foot in that perimeter and tripped the trip wire it would pull the pins to almost all the grenades. But the grenades didnt go off right away so the jap that snuck in would just think he tripped on a branch or something. Until the grenades would finally go off and alert the camp to catch the intruder. Thats if the grenades didnt catch him before they did. Yep, I would be dozing off to sleep when a critter or a swift breeze would set those damn things off and wake me up again. Then youre stuck setting them all up for the rest of the night. The thing that stuck out most in my grandfather mind he said was; looking forward to go home. The war got tough in many ways and situations which made my him wish he was home with his family again. I asked him if he thought about the war very often now and he said; so so. Not alot. Glad its over. When I asked him if he lost any friends or people he served with in the war he said that he lost some friends in combat but he didnt talk much about that. He carried his sacred heart metal with him everywhere he went. He would pray for the war to end at night before he fell asleep. The friends he made in war are either dead or he no longer keeps in touch with them at all. There wasnt much said about his worst and best experiences in the war. All he said on that was to keep alert and stay alive. The war did not change him. My grandfather was received with lots of love. He was going to go to Japan but he ended up going home early. He was in Minilla on V-J Day, the day the war ended. This was a victory day celebration. I asked him if he had been scarred either emotionally or physically from serving in the war and he said; yes, both especially when you get surrounded. One time he told me that he opened the top hatch to his tank to see if the cost was clear. There ended up being a jap hiding in a tree above him and he caught him at the corner of his eye tring to drop a grenade in with him. So my grandfather quickly slammed the door shut and listened to the explosion of the grenade followed by the jap falling out of the tree and hitting the top of the tank with a loud thud. And after all. Yes, he did believe in the war he was fighting for. .u7f620b5e348d5ac08b38dea235c2e151 , .u7f620b5e348d5ac08b38dea235c2e151 .postImageUrl , .u7f620b5e348d5ac08b38dea235c2e151 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u7f620b5e348d5ac08b38dea235c2e151 , .u7f620b5e348d5ac08b38dea235c2e151:hover , .u7f620b5e348d5ac08b38dea235c2e151:visited , .u7f620b5e348d5ac08b38dea235c2e151:active { border:0!important; } .u7f620b5e348d5ac08b38dea235c2e151 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u7f620b5e348d5ac08b38dea235c2e151 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u7f620b5e348d5ac08b38dea235c2e151:active , .u7f620b5e348d5ac08b38dea235c2e151:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u7f620b5e348d5ac08b38dea235c2e151 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u7f620b5e348d5ac08b38dea235c2e151 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u7f620b5e348d5ac08b38dea235c2e151 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u7f620b5e348d5ac08b38dea235c2e151 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u7f620b5e348d5ac08b38dea235c2e151:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u7f620b5e348d5ac08b38dea235c2e151 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u7f620b5e348d5ac08b38dea235c2e151 .u7f620b5e348d5ac08b38dea235c2e151-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u7f620b5e348d5ac08b38dea235c2e151:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Kindergarten Education Essay .

Biography of Steve Jobs, Co-Founder of Apple Computers

Biography of Steve Jobs, Co-Founder of Apple Computers Steve Jobs (February 24, 1955–October 5, 2011) is best remembered as the co-founder of Apple Computers. He teamed up with inventor  Steve Wozniak to create one of the first ready-made PCs. Besides his legacy with Apple, Jobs was also a smart businessman who became a multimillionaire before the age of 30. In 1984, he founded NeXT computers. In 1986, he bought the computer graphics division of Lucasfilm Ltd. and started Pixar Animation Studios. Fast Facts: Steve Jobs Known For: Co-founding Apple Computer Company and playing a pioneering role in the development of personal computingAlso Known As: Steven Paul JobsBorn: February 24, 1955 in San Francisco, CaliforniaParents: Abdulfattah Jandali and Joanne Schieble (biological parents); Paul Jobs and Clara Hagopian (adoptive parents)Died: October 5, 2011 in Palo Alto, CaliforniaEducation: Reed CollegeAwards and Honors: National Medal of Technology  (with  Steve Wozniak), Jefferson Award for Public Service,  named the most powerful person in business by Fortune  magazine,  Inducted into the  California Hall of Fame, inducted as a  Disney LegendSpouse: Laurene PowellChildren: Lisa (by Chrisann Brennan), Reed, Erin, EveNotable Quote: Of all the inventions of humans, the computer is going to rank near or at the top as history unfolds and we look back. It is the most awesome tool that we have ever invented. I feel incredibly lucky to be at exactly the right place in  Silicon Valley, at  e xactly the right time, historically, where this invention has taken form. Early Life Jobs was born on February 24, 1955, in San Francisco, California. The biological child of Abdulfattah Jandali and Joanne Schieble, he was later adopted by Paul Jobs and Clara Hagopian. During his high school years, Jobs worked summers at Hewlett-Packard. It was there that he first met and became partners with Steve Wozniak. As an undergraduate, he studied physics, literature, and poetry at Reed College in Portland, Oregon.  Formally, he only attended one semester there. However, he remained at Reed and crashed on friends sofas and audited courses that included a calligraphy class, which he attributes as being the reason Apple computers had such elegant typefaces. Atari After leaving Oregon in 1974 to  return to California, Jobs started working for Atari, an early pioneer in the manufacturing of personal computers. Jobs close friend  Wozniak was also working for Atari. The future founders of Apple teamed up to design games for Atari computers. Hacking Jobs and Wozniak proved their skills as hackers by designing a telephone blue box. A blue box was an electronic device that simulated a telephone operators dialing console and provided the user with free phone calls. Jobs spent plenty of time at Wozniaks Homebrew Computer Club, a haven for computer geeks and a source of invaluable information about the field of personal computers. Out of Mom and Pops Garage By the late 1970s, Jobs and Wozniak had learned enough to try their hand at building personal computers. Using Jobs family garage as a base of operation, the team produced 50 fully assembled computers that were sold to a local Mountain View electronics store called the Byte Shop. The sale encouraged the pair to start Apple Computer, Inc. on April 1, 1979. Apple Corporation The Apple Corporation was named after  Jobs favorite fruit. The Apple logo was a representation of the fruit with a bite taken out of it. The bite represented a play on words: bite and byte. Jobs co-invented the  Apple I  and  Apple II  computers together with  Wozniak, who was the main designer, and others. The Apple II is  considered to be  one of the first commercially successful lines of personal computers. In 1984, Wozniak, Jobs, and others co-invented the  Apple Macintosh  computer, the first  successful home computer with a mouse-driven graphical user interface. It was, however, based on (or, according to some sources, stolen from) the Xerox Alto, a concept machine built at the Xerox PARC research facility. According to the Computer History Museum, the Alto included: A mouse. Removable data storage. Networking. A visual user interface. Easy-to-use graphics software. â€Å"What You See Is What You Get† (WYSIWYG) printing, with printed documents matching what users saw on screen. E-mail. Alto for the first time combined these and other now-familiar elements in one small computer. During the early 1980s, Jobs controlled the business side of the Apple Corporation. Steve Wozniak was in charge of the design side. However, a power struggle with the board of directors led to Jobs leaving Apple in 1985. NeXT After leaving Apple,  Jobs founded NeXT, a high-end computer company. Ironically, Apple bought NeXT in 1996 and Jobs returned to his old company to serve once more as its CEO from 1997 until his retirement in 2011. The NeXT was an impressive workstation computer that sold poorly. The worlds first web browser was created on a NeXT, and the technology in NeXT software was transferred to the Macintosh and the iPhone. Disney Pixar In 1986, Jobs bought The Graphics Group from Lucasfilms computer graphics division for $10 million. The company was later renamed Pixar. At first, Jobs intended for  Pixar to become a high-end graphics hardware developer, but that goal was never met.  Pixar moved on to do what it now does best, which is make animated films. Jobs negotiated a deal to allow Pixar and Disney to collaborate on a number of animated projects that included the film Toy Story. In 2006, Disney bought Pixar from  Jobs. Expanding Apple After Jobs returned to Apple as its CEO in 1997, Apple Computers had a renaissance in product development with the iMac, iPod, iPhone, iPad, and more. Before his death, Jobs was listed as the inventor and/or co-inventor on 342 United States patents, with technologies ranging from computer and portable devices to user interfaces, speakers, keyboards, power adapters, staircases, clasps, sleeves, lanyards, and packages. His last patent was issued for the Mac OS X Dock user interface and was granted the day before his death. Death Steve Jobs died at his home in Palo Alto, California, on October 5, 2011. He had been ill for a long time with pancreatic cancer, which he had treated using alternative techniques. His family reported that his final words were, Oh wow. Oh wow. Oh wow. Legacy Steve Jobs was a true computer pioneer and entrepreneur whose impact is felt in almost every aspect of contemporary business, communication, and design. Jobs was absolutely dedicated to every detail of his products- according to some sources, he was obsessive- but the outcome can be seen in the sleek, user-friendly, future-facing designs of Apple products from the very start. It was Apple that placed the PC on every desk, provided digital tools for design and creativity, and pushed forward the ubiquitous smartphone which has, arguably, changed the ways in which humans think, create, and interact. Sources Computer History Museum.  What Was The First PC?Gladwell, Malcolm, and Malcolm Gladwell. â€Å"The Real Genius of Steve Jobs.†Ã‚  The New Yorker, 19 June 2017.Levy, Steven. â€Å"Steve Jobs.†Ã‚  Encyclopà ¦dia Britannica, 20 Feb. 2019.

How to Be a Writer 10 Traits of Professional Authors

How to Be a Writer 10 Traits of Professional Authors How to Be a Writer: 10 Traits of Professional Authors If you’re here, you might be wondering how to be a writer for a living. When I see bestselling authors who have turned writing books into a full-time career, I have to stop and ask myself: â€Å"How did they do it?†Stephen King has written over seventy bestsellers since the publication of Carrie in 1974. To this day he continues to write consistently.James Patterson has sold more than 300 million books worldwide. He has been quoted as saying: â€Å"Its pretty much seven days a week for me. Youre lucky if you find something you like to do and then its a miracle somebody will pay you to do it. Thats my situation. Its not work for me. These are all stories that Im really dying to tell.†Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling, once jobless and with a dependent child, has sold over 430 million copies of her books.What magic formula do these authors have? What super-talent have they been blessed with? What am I NOT doing now that I could be doing to turn my passion for writin g into a real career?How to Be a WriterNow you might be thinking, â€Å"Well, good for them. But I just want to make enough money on my writing to earn a living, not 100 million bucks!†But it’s not about how much money you can make at your writing. That might come later, but what really matters is this: practicing the habits and actions professional authors implement as part of their work life that leads to this kind of success. You don’t have to earn a fortune to be a professional writer; you just need to model what the pros do and the outcome will take care of itself.There are a set of definitive traits pro authors have that make them masters of the trade. Good writing that sells is the result of these essential traits. For both indie and traditionally published authors, these 10 traits of professional authors are universal and a must-have for launching your author career.Here are the top 10 traits of pro authors, and how you can adopt these traits to become a professional writer that gets books published, earns you an income, and creates a sustainable business you can grow and love.Pro Author Trait #1: Develop a Daily Writing HabitPro writers have developed the writing habit. They write almost every day and have a word count goal for the day. Pro writers stick to a consistent writing schedule and put in the time to put pen to paper [or words into a Word doc]. This is one of the most critical traits. Without putting in your writing time, your book becomes a â€Å"someday† thing instead of an â€Å"it’s-happening-right-now† thing.By nurturing the writing habit, you are creating content people will love to read and pay money for. You will exercise that writing muscle and churn out a great story, a memoir, or a book that offers solutions.Ask yourself:What is my daily word count goal?How many words would I have to write every day to finish my next book by a chosen deadline?How many books could I finish in a year if I sti ck to a writing habit of 1500 words per day? [You might be surprised!]Pro Author Trait #2: Approach Writing as a BusinessA hobby is something you do when you have time; the business of writing and becoming a pro author is what you make time for every work day. Authors who approach writing as a business are far more likely to succeed than hobby authors who show up occasionally with little direction and lofty ideas. A professional author is, essentially, a creative business person.As with any business, your author business needs a schedule, deadlines, goals, and a plan. Authors spend time planning the material they are creating, how they will deliver it and, most important, they deliver when that deadline approaches.As with any job, you have to show up every day at the time designated or else you don’t get paid. Writers who make a living at their craft go to work every day with the mindset that this IS their business and not just a dreamy project that they are going to pick awa y at. One of the fatal flaws many â€Å"hobby authors† make is in thinking that the writing success will just happen if they keep plugging away haphazardly. Maybe it will, but most likely, it’s your approach to the writing craft as a business that will determine your level of success.Of course there is nothing wrong with writing as a hobby! However, if you want to turn this into a real thing, start to think and plan as a business leader. Pro authors make a living at writing because they are intentional with their business goals.Ask yourself:Am I a writing hobbyist or is this my future business?Do I have a business plan for my author business?Pro Author Trait #3: Write Valuable Content People Want to ReadA pro author does one of two things: either tells a good story [fiction] or provides solutions to a problem [nonfiction]. A great author can even combine both for a more compelling read!It isn’t enough just to be a good writer, but you have to write with intentio nal purpose and provide valuable content people want to read. If you write fiction, you craft page-turners with crisp plots leading to a compelling climax.For nonfiction authors, your readers have a problem and they need you to solve it. Knowing your audience and writing for them is the best way to make your content valuable and in demand. You can master your craft by giving people what they desire most: entertainment, information, inspiration, or a book that promises to change their lives forever.Ask Yourself:Who am I writing for?Does my content provide a specific solution?Am I engaging my readers?Pro Author Trait #4: Delegate Business Work to Other ProfessionalsThere are so many tasks that a writer can do that have nothing to do with writing: editing, cover design, formatting, book promotions, and social media engagement. The list is endless. For pro authors, the crux of your daily activities should focused around product creation. This could be writing a book, blogging, or creati ng a course.But the fact is, time is limited. If you try to do it all, you’ll get burned out and start watching television to escape.As with any business, you need a tribe of people assigned to different parts of the business so that you have more time to do the work that only you can do: writing books. This means creating content readers love should be at the forefront of your business. Delegating everything else to freelancers will save you precious time and eliminate the stress of feeling like â€Å"I have to do it all.†Ask yourself:Is there anything I’m doing that falls outside of content creation?If so, could the extra work be done by someone else?Could I find someone on Upwork or Fiverr to take care of it, or do I need to look elsewhere?Identify where you can save yourself both time and stress by delegating the little stuff so you can spend more time doing what pro authors do bestwrite books!Pro Author Trait #5: Become a Habitual Note TakerBoth fiction and nonfiction writers craft their books around the ideas they have day and night. And we never know when or where these ideas are going to strike.Ideas are like rainbows; one minute they’re here and the next minutepoof, they’re gone! You need to be ready at all times to catch ideas as they come. If not, you’ll struggle to remember hours later what that â€Å"golden idea† was that passed through your mind.Get into the habit of carrying a small notebook with you. When you go to sleep, keep your notebook within reach for ideas that come in the night, or as you doze in the morning. You can install idea-capturing apps on your devices such as Evernote, Simplenote, and Apple Notes. Make your idea capturing system easily accessible at all times.Ask yourself:Am I prepared at all times for capturing ideas?How can I set up my system for note taking when I’m on the run? When I’m sleeping? When I’m at a party conversing with important people and sud denly get that idea I’ve been waiting for all year?Free Course: Discover my blueprint to gofrom blank page to bestseller in 90 daysIf you want to finish your book, you need a roadmap. That’s why I’m sharing some of the best strategies and tricks other bestselling authors paid thousands of dollars to get yours FREE.Here’s what you’ll get:The EXACT blueprint to FINALLY cross â€Å"write a book† off your bucket list in just 90 daysThe Bestselling Book Launch Blueprint behind dozens of bestsellersCase studies of bestselling authors who made $1,287, $5,500, even $12,424.03 from their first bookGet FREE behind-the-scenes access nowPro Author Trait #6: Read with Purposeful IntentWriters read! Yes, we love reading. It stimulates your imagination and paves the way for more ideas. You can read books in your genre or read something totally unrelated. When you’re not writing, set aside time to read your favorite book. If you are writing a serie s of books on sales, you could read books on that topic. It could give you more insight into your area of expertise.Reading just fifteen minutes before bed enhances sleep patterns, reduces cortisol levels, and improves cognitive functions. So don’t find the time to read; make a conscious choice to create that reading habit, even if it is only for a few minutes.Ask Yourself:How much time can I read a day?What book can I start reading now that would improve my business or contribute to personal development?Pro Author Trait #7: Retain Readers and Build a Loyal Fan BaseIf you notice, almost all professional authors got that way because they focused on a particular brand or niche. Then they built a strong following of raving fans in that niche. Readers become fans and fans become regular customers who buy your other books.The best way to create a loyal following is to write for your fans. Keep giving them more of what they crave by constantly creating content that offers value. Wh en you write, know who you are writing for and create content they need.By using an email marketing service such as MailChimp or AWeber, you can gather email addresses of your loyal fans and communicate with them regularly. Pro authors understand the absolute must of having an email list, and they build their author business entirely around it.Ask Yourself:Am I writing for a specific niche, or do I change topics often?What do my readers like about my work? If you aren’t sure yet, find out why people are reading your stuff.What email marketing service am I using to collect email addresses?Pro Author Trait #8: Recognize the Importance of RewritingEvery great author knows that the real writing isnt in the first draft- the real work towards greatness begins during the self-editing phase. The first draft offers a framework for the book and the rewrite is the guts of the machine; it’s here that all the sweating and crying pays off.Writing is 10% talent and 90% hard work. The pros spend about 20% of their efforts on the first draft and the rest goes towards rewriting, revising, pulling their hair out, and refining the manuscript until they get it to the point that it’s good enough to ship to the editor.Many authors, even the pros, can get bogged down in editing. This is especially true when the perfectionist monster is on your back. But real pros know that an unfinished book is an unpublished book, and nobody reads a book that isn’t published.In a very tiny nutshell, here’s how to be a writer:Be a pro.Revise your work.Let a professional editor polish it.Ship your product.Ask Yourself:Do I spend enough time on rewriting?Do I get bogged down in the editing phase and need to ship it to the editor?Pro Author Trait #9: Ship Product Consistently Despite Their FearsAs Seth Godin says:â€Å"Ship often. Ship lousy stuff, but ship. Ship constantly. Skip meetings. Often. Skip them with impunity. Ship†¦The paradox of our time is that the instincts that kept us safe in the day of the saber tooth tiger and General Motors are precisely the instincts that will turn us into road kill in a faster than fast internet-fueled era. The resistance is waiting. Fight it. Ship.†James Patterson published 15 titles last year. Indie author Patrick King publishes a book every 4-5 weeks.Pro authors are always putting out content and creating. But shipping raises fear in many people. Let’s face it, it’s scary to put stuff out there for everyone to judge and criticize. But if you want to become the professional you know you can be, you have to ship your product as often as you can.Ask Yourself:Am I stuck because I’m afraid of shipping my book?How can I get over the fear of putting my content out there?Pro Author Trait #10: Become a Master of RejectionIf there is any one trait that a professional writer has it is this: the ability to keep pushing forward despite the critics, naysayers, and abundant forms of reje ction. You’ve no doubt heard the stories of power authors like Rowling and Grisham, King and Margaret Mitchell. Getting rejected or having your draft torn apart by critics and reviewers can crush your confidence, but only if you let it.The one trait that turns an average person into extraordinary is the ability of taking rejection and crushing through the barrier of being told â€Å"No.† The authors who make it develop grit. In psychology, grit  is based on your passion for a particular long-term goal, alongside motivation to achieve your objective. In other words, you get what you want when you want it badly enough.Ask Yourself:How badly do I want to write this book?Am I passionate about the story or content I am crafting?How Bad Do You Want It?Success as an author rarely happens by accident. It’s a combination of strategic planning, your mental attitude, and perseverance. Whether you are struggling to write your first book, or you already have a thriving bus iness based on writing, by sticking to the 10 traits of successful authors, you can take your writing career to an all new level.Now you know how to be a writer. But are you going to do it? Imagine where you could be in six months from now once you implement these traits and make it happen.

3short questions Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

3short questions - Assignment Example In addition, any government has a responsibility of protecting the rights and freedoms of her citizens which organizations tend to overlook so as to maximize their profitability. It is the duty of government agencies to ensure that workers’ rights and freedoms such as working conditions, salary and remunerations as well as working hours are observed. Government interference with business operations is also justified by the fact that this is one of the few ways in which business organizations can be forced to engage in operations that are legitimate (Macdonald 72). Such interference ensures that organizations restrict their operations as stipulated in the memorandum of association and article of association and do not engage in acts of lawlessness Businesses participate in politics through various strategies such as through the use of lobby groups and other business professionals. Business organizations sponsor lobbyists and professionals who act on their behalf to ensure that their organizations have made adequate contacts for with the politicians. Though there are rules and regulations that are made to prevent fraud and corruption, businesses through lobbyists end up breaking these rules particularly in the corrupt countries to bribe politicians (law makers) so that they can pass bills that favor their operations. The primary goals as to why business organizations involve themselves in politics are to get contact and to ensure that the elected political leaders are of their choice or are persons whom they share similar business ideologies. Politicians, who are in most countries law and policy makers can create a good business environment/climate that would make business organizations flourish or a hostile environment that would make it collapse (Macdonald 56). Government policies are some of the main factors that

SPORTS LAW RESEARCH PAPER (LANCE ARMSTRONG'S TERMINATION FOR DOPING IN

SPORTS LAW (LANCE ARMSTRONG'S TERMINATION FOR DOPING IN CYCLING SPORT) - Research Paper Example The document submitted by USADA to the authorities internationally meets the requirements of the â€Å"reasoned decision† which is the transparency of the document. The investigation was triggered after a dismissal of United States cyclist Mr Kyle Leogrande for two years in November 2008 under the Anti-doping code. In January 2009, USADA was notified from a number of sources about the mass doping by the Mr Armstrong’s cycling team and his influence and control over his teammates. After a constant effort to gather more evidence, Mr Paul Scott a resident from southern California directed USADA to contact Mr Floyd Landis a former cyclist as he would have a substantial amount of information, which could prove helpful to USADA. On April 12, 2010, communication with Mr Scott about Mr Landis changed the pace of this investigation. On April 20, 2010, the CEO of USADA Travis Tygart discussed Armstrong’s anti-doping violations with Mr Landis. Further investigations made upon fellow cyclists in Mr Armstrong’s team lead USADA discovering a chain of individuals working together in the doping swindle. These individuals include the teamma tes of Mr Armstrong and cyclists from the USPS team. Following the meeting between Mr Tygart and Mr Landis, Mr Landis sent an e-mail to the president of USA cycling, confronting and disclosing other names in the sport who had breached the anti-doping code. USADA sent a letter on June 12, 2012 to Mr Armstrong and other cyclists and team members stating that they are accused of have doped since 1998 to current and were told to appear for a hearing before neutral arbitrators. In response, Mr Armstrong filed a federal lawsuit against USADA for false accusations, which was dismissed by the judge twice over consecutive attempts due to the perception that Mr Armstrong’s mere purpose was to gain publicity. In addition, the USADA’s arbitration rules meets the criteria for the process of this conduct. The evidence

Ethical Issues in International Business Essay Example for Free

Ethical Issues in International Business Essay Tip usually refers to an offer made after services have been rendered. It is not of a legal concern. However, bribing is something of serious concern and it is questionable. Bribing to get a business contract is to secure favor against a party. However, when tip is offered in large amount in order to get a bigger table, it cannot be said as similar to bribing. But it has very little ethical concern compared to bribing for securing a business contract. Securing a better table is having a favor by offering a heavy tip but it does not stand equivalent to bribery. Bribing is more serious because it can affect business dealings and contract loss of the opposing party against which bribe is offered. For example, if two parties wanted to have same contract, but one of them bribed to gain the contract then the other party is a looser and lost their contract and business. So just securing a good table is not of very serious concern as compared to securing of business contract. Bribing is to harm others and gain favor when other party was strong enough to beat the competition. Securing a better table is much less serious issue and it does not involve any legal concerns and does not harm others. But though, it is just getting an advantage over others and getting better place than others. But now-a-days people have started offering heavy tips to have a better table. The moral here is this that thinking of oneself as more important than others. Though in both cases it somewhat looks the same that you’re offering money to get favor and advantage over others. But deeper consequences, legal issues and ethical issues are involved in case of bribing. Securing a table does not involve any legal issues or ethical issues of deeper concern. Tipping cannot be said compatible to bribing. Bribery is far more immoral attitude compared to securing a table. It involves breaking a deal with one party when it already had 90% chances to secure the deal before bribery. Hence, the company who actually deserved the right to have a contract looses it and the one who were not qualified get the deal by offering bribe. Thus, it is an immoral approach, promise breaking, and snatching of rights of other party. It may also involve some legal issues when damages incurred are severe because of bribe. Alienation of agency is one of the worst immoralities, and it happens when bribe-taker’s company breaks the deal or contract with another party after receiving the bribe. There are several other severe consequences of bribe apart from alienation of agency (Andrade, 1985). Therefore, it is understandable that bribe is totally an immoral act. And sometimes it becomes so necessary to bribe that in certain countries nothing gets done if you don’t give bribe (Koukl, 1996). Bribe also results in injustice and prevent justice among the parties. Securing a good table at restaurant, though, to seek a better place in restaurant and to have better service and favor over others is not a severe case as bribery is. Many restaurant owners admit that there is ‘little choice between the tables and only to make more money we reserve some fancy tables. ’ Our morals and ethical issues are not much of concern in having better table. But bribery has several and immoral consequences.

The Cause of World War I Essay -- World War 1 One WWI First History Es

The Cause of World War I I Feel that there many reasons for the start of the First World War and not just one, I think it’s a bit more complicated than that. I have put them into six categories but could be split into more if necessary. All the categories concern the main powers of Europe. The war was mainly started by feuds between the powers. There are alliances between the powers, ‘ The Triple Alliance, ’ which contained: Germany, Austria and Italy. ‘ The Triple Entente, ’ which contained: Great Britain, Russia and France. The trigger to the war I feel was the Franz Ferdinand incident. Franz Ferdinand, the heir to the Austrian-Hungry throne, on the 28th of June 1914 was attempted to be assassinated. The incident happened when a grenade hit his car, injuring an officer. Later on that day on his way to visit the officer in hospital, his driver took a wrong tern straight past Principe of the ‘Black Hand’ movement, who killed the Archduke and his wife. The next event in the chain was that because the Serbs want there people freed they cause up roar, as they are a Nationalist group. Serbia was commanding that they handed over Bosnia. Austria-Hungry after the Archduke being killed feel that they have to go to war with Serbia, but don’t want to as they know that if they do Russia will get involved, as there so many Slavs in Russia. Austria-Hungry go to Germany to ask for there backing in the war. On the 23rd of July, knowing that they will have Germanys backing, send ...

Iron Crowned Chapter 4

Distracting your enemies by saying shocking things is a classic way to get an attack in. If this ghost had wanted to catch me off guard and move in, this would have been her chance. Instead, she just hung there in the air, staring at me. I forced my jaw closed and kind of wished Kiyo had stuck around to hear this bizarre development. Finally, I said, â€Å"That's not what I do. And anyway †¦ I mean, wouldn't you kind of know? Wouldn't you have seen it?† â€Å"No,† she said mournfully. â€Å"Whoever did it shot me in the head before I could see. They made it look like a suicide.† I grimaced. Weak ghosts often appeared in their final state, as they'd looked at the time of death. This one was strong and able to appear as she remembered herself, for which I was grateful. I wouldn't have wanted to see her after that gunshot. â€Å"Well, I'm sorry for your †¦ loss,† I told her, wondering why I hadn't already banished her. â€Å"But private detective work isn't my thing.† â€Å"I can't go to one!† she cried. â€Å"Or the police. Only you can see me. All the other ghosts said you were the one to go to.† â€Å"All the other – what, do you guys have a country club or something?† â€Å"Please, Miss Markham,† she begged. Her eyes were so, so sad. â€Å"I have to find out. If someone dangerous is walking around, I have to know. My family has to know.† From what I knew, family was usually behind most homicides. â€Å"Look, you're obviously strong. You have to be in order to move around like you do and come outside. It makes sense. If you're this upset about what happened, then you're bound strongly to this world while the, um, murder's unsettled. So, the odds are, you probably could appear to someone else. Wouldn't work on most humans, but you might get someone close to you to see you and hear you.† â€Å"But would they believe me?† she asked bitterly. â€Å"They'd think they were imagining things. You're the only one who knows this is real.† I shook my head. â€Å"Sorry. I don't investigate this stuff. Certainly not for ghosts. You're getting my best offer here. Otherwise †¦Ã¢â‚¬  I held up the wand. â€Å"You move on to peace.† She scowled and disappeared. Yes, a very strong ghost, one who should have already been in the Underworld right then and there. I shouldn't have stopped to talk. But what was one more ghost when I was already letting so many slide by? Kiyo's accusatory words came back to me. I felt like I was doing a half-ass job in both worlds, too divided to give either my full attention. Nonetheless, I made the most of my day in Tucson. I knocked off three more jobs for Lara, much to her relief. Jobs meant money, meaning both of us got paid. She'd hinted in the past that our drop in work was creating financial problems, enough that she might need a second job. That made me uneasy because a second job could easily turn into her only job. Finding an administrative assistant who could schedule and bill supernatural appointments wasn't that easy. I came home at last to an empty house, with a note scrawled from Tim saying he had â€Å"a gig† tonight and that there was fettuccine alfredo in the refrigerator if I wanted it. Eating in front of the TV, I selfishly felt resentful that he'd go out on one of the few nights I was home. But why wouldn't he? He certainly had a life, one I was hardly in. What really brought me down was that on a night like this, I once would have been over at my mom's eating dinner. For a second, I stared at my phone and considered taking the plunge. But, no. If she wanted to get in touch clandestinely, she would. Calling now would risk me getting Roland, who would hang up on me. Or most likely not answer. Frustrated, I decided I didn't want to stay here anymore. It was weird, especially since I'd wanted to come home so badly earlier. Yet, I felt like I wasn't welcome in my own house. I showered off the day's fights – no gentry baths for me – and headed right back to the Otherworld. I almost never came and went the same day, but suddenly, my kingdom seemed like the only place I had friends at the moment. They were surprised to see me back so soon. I found Shaya and Rurik playing chess in a formal sitting room, leaning together and laughing as she planned her next move. Both jumped when they saw me. â€Å"Your Majesty,† said Shaya. They'd instantly gone from casual to formal mode. â€Å"Sit, both of you. You should know better.† I sat as well, sinking into a down-filled love seat that I'd inherited from the castle's previous owner. Shaya and Rurik returned to their seats, relaxing somewhat. â€Å"We didn't think you'd be back for a while,† said Rurik, ever blunt. Shaya looked twitchy, like she wanted to get up, despite what I'd said. â€Å"Should I have the kitchen start preparing dinner?† â€Å"No, no, don't bother.† It was common among gentry monarchs for every meal to be a full-fledged banquet, particularly dinner, hosting the full court. With my schedule and the fact that I didn't even keep a full court – just the essentials – that was not the case around here. My kitchen staff had it easy, and I certainly didn't want them to get in a sudden panic over a meal they would have normally started on hours ago, had they known I'd be there. I stared off at the empty fireplace, which had been unused since I'd taken over. Had the Thorn Land shifted into winter, we might have needed it. A kingdom's seasons bent to its monarch's will, and although Tucson was in winter right now, my subconscious apparently thought summer was the proper state. Shaya and Rurik regarded me patiently, wondering what it was I wanted, if not dinner. I wasn't sure myself. I fumbled for something to say. â€Å"News or messages on the war front?† â€Å"No,† said Rurik. Not surprising. Ranelle had probably only just gotten home. She was likely feasting with the Linden King right now. I met Shaya's eyes. â€Å"It's probably dinnertime at Dorian's, huh? Or close to it.† She tilted her head thoughtfully. There were no clocks in the Otherworld, but she had a good sense of the time. â€Å"I would imagine so, Your Majesty.† â€Å"Do you think he'd mind unscheduled visitors?† â€Å"You?† Shaya laughed. â€Å"Hardly.† I glanced between the two of them, feeling a smile creep onto my lips. â€Å"What do you say? Should we go crash his party?† â€Å"Party crashing† might not be a colloquialism among the gentry, but it didn't take Shaya or Rurik long to figure out what I meant. Both sprang to action. I couldn't travel alone during wartime, so Rurik had to assemble a military escort for us. Shaya left to alert the civilians who'd go with us and make herself ready for a royal visit. Both of them were excited, I could tell. Humans and gentry weren't so different, in a lot of ways. Once at Dorian's, Shaya and Rurik would have few official duties. This was the equivalent of an Otherworldly night on the town. In my rooms, I found my handmaiden Nia anxiously awaiting me. Gentry magical skills ranged greatly. I controlled weather. Dorian could rip apart the earth. And Nia? Her talent was in beautifying others, in hair and clothing. Like those of my cooks, her skills were often underutilized. â€Å"Let's get ready,† I told her. Her face lit up, and she practically ran to the wardrobe. â€Å"Which would you like, Your Majesty?† Her hand hovered near a black cocktail dress from the human world, then moved to a gauzy blue sundress. Then, she hesitated altogether and glanced at me questioningly. It wouldn't have been out of character for me to show up at a state function in the jeans I already wore. After my earlier loneliness, I was excited to see Dorian – almost desperately so. He seemed like my only connection right now, and I suddenly liked the idea of surprising him. â€Å"The peach one,† I said. Nia nodded, her fingers skimming the dresses. Finding no peach, she frowned and rechecked them. Then, her gaze went to the other half of my wardrobe, where the gentry dresses she and others had had made for me hung. Her eyes widened as she pulled out a peach silk dress she'd probably never thought would see the light of day. â€Å"Your Majesty!† was all she could gasp. It was like Christmas morning for her. With coppery hair, I had to be careful with what colors I wore, but this was a warm enough shade of peach that it worked. The fabric was shining and fluid, like some living thing. The dress was one long piece, clinging around the torso and then flaring and falling like water from the waist to the floor. Gold ribbons laced up the back, decorated with aquamarines. Straps, also made from strings of aquamarines, hung loosely off my shoulders around my upper arm, trailing more streams of silk beneath my arm and giving the illusion of sleeves. For all intents and purposes, it was a strapless dress, leaving my arms, shoulders, and a healthy amount of cleavage exposed. â€Å"I think I need a bra,† I said, eyeing the way the thin silk wrapped around my chest. â€Å"But that's how it's worn!† said Nia. Gentry, in fashion and other ways, didn't always share the same taste as humans. Nia knew this, and I could see in her face she was terrified I'd do something human to ruin this dream-come-true of finally dressing me properly. â€Å"Fine,† I said. â€Å"But keep my hair down.† Hopefully it would give me some coverage. Lack of a haircut had my ends just barely touching my shoulder blades lately. Nia took this as an acceptable compromise, going over every lock of my hair so that it was smooth and slightly curled at the ends. Aquamarine barrettes (the gentry loved jewels too) were placed strategically throughout my hair, and she forced more jewelry on me in the same color scheme. After a bit of cosmetics, Nia deemed me fit to be a queen. I planned on bringing her to Dorian's and was about to tell her we should go when a strange and unexpected thought came to me. â€Å"Nia †¦ can you get my sister ready too?† â€Å"Your †¦ your sister, Your Majesty?† She was equally surprised. â€Å"Is she coming?† I thought about it, wondering the same thing. I never let Jasmine leave the castle and its grounds, for everyone's safety. Yet, I couldn't shake the thought of how bored and lonely she seemed. Plus, I'd forgotten her Twinkies. â€Å"Yes,† I decided. â€Å"She's coming. Be fast.† Nia nodded and headed toward my door, off to whatever closet she always produced endless stores of dresses and jewelry from. Jasmine had once been the mistress of this castle's former king; for all I knew, her wardrobe was still here. â€Å"Nia?† I called. The gentry girl paused. â€Å"Long sleeves.† Nia nodded again, catching my meaning. It was no secret among the gentry that the Thorn Queen kept her sister a prisoner. That didn't mean I wanted her chains flaunted, however. And when my whole entourage met up to leave, I could see that Nia really was magically gifted with beauty. Jasmine – who looked utterly stunned by this unexpected field trip – wore a dress made of pale green velvet. It was floor-length like mine but had long bell sleeves that did a good job of hiding the chains. The dress was more modest than mine too, but I had a feeling Nia hadn't done it to protect Jasmine's fifteen-year-old modesty. Most likely, Nia didn't want the queen's sister to draw more attention than the queen herself. The minimal jewels on Jasmine proved as much, and the looks from my own people showed that I was definitely attention-getting. I doubted they'd ever seen me dressed up like a full-fledged gentry woman. Riding a horse in that dress was a pain in the ass. It wasn't the first time I'd done so, and I was glad the skirt wasn't as snug as the top. I was also glad our route was short tonight. The Otherworld folded in upon itself, taking travelers through ways that seemed impossible but which often proved the most direct path. These paths also cut through other kingdoms – often my neighbors'. Knowing this, our party was on high alert as we rode, everyone tense. To my relief, the road didn't take us through the Rowan Land – as it frequently did. The only transition between my land and the Oak Land was a brief stint in the Willow Land. Not comforting, but safer than enemy territory. Once Dorian's castle was in sight, my group's mood lifted, and the party-crashing spirit returned. His home was exactly what you expected from a castle, multi-turreted and made of heavy dark stones, with stained glass windows. As always, it was autumn in the Oak Land, and although night prevented me from seeing the orange-leaved trees, the smell of harvest and touch of fall chill on my skin reaffirmed for me what season it was. Scattered on the castle grounds, I spotted small clusters of peasants around campfires, watching us curiously. Like me, Dorian had war refugees seeking aid from their monarch. The sight of their faces twisted my stomach, and I forced myself to look away. Servants took our horses, people scrambling at our unexpected arrival. Guests dropped in all the time for dinner – especially at Dorian's – but we were VIPs. I walked briskly toward the banquet hall while groveling stewards scurried at my side, promising proper accommodations for my companions and checking on anything else we might need. I came to a halt when I reached the banquet doors. Even I with my bad human etiquette knew I had to be announced first. A herald swung open the door, revealing light, color, and noise. Dorian had about a hundred people in there tonight, gathered around various tables on chairs and couches. Most were gentry nobility. Some were his soldiers. Others were creatures of the Otherworld, types I fought when they crossed to the human world. As I'd guessed, dinner was already being served, with servants scurrying around and the guests chatting and eating. That all came to a halt when the herald's voice rang out: â€Å"Her Royal Majesty, Queen Eugenie Markham, Called Odile Dark Swan, Daughter of Tirigan the Storm King, Protector of the Thorn Land, Beloved of the Triple Moon Goddess.† I would never get used to all those titles. Conversation dropped, and then there was the usual screeching of chair legs as people hastily stood up. Once I would have cringed from this, but I knew what was expected now. I began to stride forward but stopped after two steps. Most of my soldiers had stayed at the doors, and none of the rest of my retinue would be announced since I had no high-ranking nobility with me. Almost. I glanced at the herald. â€Å"My sister, announce my sister.† His eyes bugged, and I could guess his confusion. Not only was that kind of a weird request coming from me, it was also hard for him to manage since Jasmine didn't have any official titles. The guy was fast on his feet, though. That was his job. â€Å"The Lady Jasmine Delaney, Daughter of Tirigan the Storm King, Sister of Eugenie the Thorn Queen.† That got a few surprised glances. I smiled at the herald. â€Å"Thank you,† I said softly. â€Å"Only next time, announce my name before our father's.† He blanched. â€Å"Y-yes, Your Majesty.† I entered the room at the head of my party, startled I'd said that to the herald. Where had that come from? A need to diminish Storm King? A desire to tout my own importance? Whatever the reason, I already regretted the words. A long walkway stretched through the room, and halfway down it, Dorian emerged from the crowd and stood to meet me. I reached him, and he took my hand, giving it a long and languid kiss. Among the gentry, that kiss was perfectly acceptable for receiving one's lover or a visiting monarch. â€Å"My dear,† he said, lifting his eyes. They swept over me in that clever, efficient way of his. To all those watching, he was as calm and in control as always, his lips curved into the devil-may-care smile normal for him. Still, I could imagine his surprise. He hadn't expected to see me this soon. He certainly hadn't expected to see me in full queenly glory. I might have been Christmas morning for Nia, but for Dorian, I was dessert being served before dinner. â€Å"You and yours are very welcome.† It was a formality, one that returned the guests to their seats and declared my party was under Dorian's hospitality, meaning no one here could do us any harm and vice versa. â€Å"I guess ‘soon' does mean all sorts of things,† he murmured. He glanced toward my cleavage. â€Å"All sorts of things.† â€Å"Hey.† I kept my voice as low as his. â€Å"Are you looking down my dress?† â€Å"My dear, I want to do much more than look down it. Much, much more. And I want to do it now. I don't suppose,† he added, â€Å"that your transformation came along with an embracing of many of our other superior customs?† He was referring, of course, to couples scattered about the room who had promptly returned to amorous activities after I was announced. People made out, took off clothing, and even had sex with ease in public. Some guests watched, but most went on with their meal as though nothing out of the ordinary were happening. â€Å"No,† I said firmly. â€Å"Are you sure?† he asked, leaning closer. â€Å"No one would take it amiss. Indeed, many would find it reassuring to see their king and queen consummating their relationship. It's a sign of dominance and power.† â€Å"I'm here for dinner,† I said sweetly. Underneath my prim attitude, his words and his body language were already getting to me. You would have thought we'd last had sex a year ago, not this morning. I might not consent to his exhibitionism, but if I said I wanted to go to his bedroom right now, he'd immediately turn around and walk out with me. â€Å"Dinner, it is,† he said regretfully. â€Å"Perhaps I'll serve you something special. And I'm sure you'll enjoy our guests tonight.† He began steering me toward the hall's front. His throne sat on a high pedestal, and below that was the head table where he'd been dining. My eyes fell on the aforementioned guests, and I nearly stopped walking. Instead, I glanced behind me and called, â€Å"Rurik?† I'd given instructions for Shaya and Rurik (and a handful of guards) not to leave Jasmine's side. They were seeking out their own table, and even though they were halfway across the room, Rurik heard me and turned. With a sharp head nod, I gestured for him to join us. He crossed the room swiftly, arching an eyebrow when he saw the dinner guests and understanding why I'd want one of my own people around. There, sitting at the head table and watching me with cold blue eyes was Ysabel – Dorian's former lover.