10 Tips for Getting a Staff Writing Job

10 Tips for Getting a Staff Writing Job 10 Tips for Getting a Staff Writing Job 10 Tips for Getting a Staff Writing Job By Mark Nichol Chances are that your job involves some writing, but perhaps demonstrating that skill doesn’t constitute enough of your workload, or it’s not the type of writing you’d like to do. Or perhaps you’re still in college, or have a job that doesn’t involve writing any more complicated than signing your time sheet. Regardless of your situation, at least some of the following tips will help lead you toward the writing job you want. 1. Develop a portfolio of college or continuing-education writing projects that resemble the work you would like to do professionally, and distribute it, or samples from it, to people who work at a company or in a profession that interests you. 2. Blog about your passions, on your own blog or someone else’s. Again, emulate the kind of writing you want to get paid to do. 3. Find people who do what you want to do for a living and volunteer to do some writing for them to supplement, not to pass off as, their own assignments. 4. Submit articles to a local publication or to a website for a nonprofit organization with a mission or an area of interest that appeals to you. If they can’t pay you, offer to write for them anyway (at first). 5. Obtain an internship in a professional field you’d like to be part of, and persist in asking people you report to for writing assignments until they comply just to get you out of their office. Make yourself indispensable so that when a writing position is created or becomes vacant, managers will think of you. 6. Get an entry-level job in a company or organization that sells or does something you like, and act like an intern. And, just as an intern should, become the person known for stepping up and solving problems so that your name comes up when a writing-job vacancy appears. 7. To help you develop your skills, study the publications you desire to contribute to or familiarize yourself with the types of documents you wish to write. 8. At informational interviews, ask what people in the interviewees’ positions look for when they assign or accept content, and refer them to your blog or another online source of samples of your writing and ask if they can spare some time later for a brief critique. 9. Volunteer for a group or organization that supports or otherwise is integral to the profession you want to work in. Offer to be a chapter secretary or outreach coordinator or webmaster/website content manager all jobs that require writing. 10. Start out as a freelance writer (search this site for those keywords for information and advice), and ask your clients to let you know about job openings at their company or elsewhere in the industry. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Freelance Writing category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Grammar Test 1Do you "orient" yourself, or "orientate" yourself?Educational vs. Educative

Starbucks Marketing Strategy How to Create a Remarkable Brand

Starbucks Marketing Strategy How to Create a Remarkable Brand Starbucks is one of the most recognizable brands  in the world. Their brand recognition has reached epic heights thanks to the strength of their marketing and their commitment to keeping their brand consistent. Not all of us have multi-million dollar marketing budgets, which makes replicating Starbucks’ marketing tactics at the same level nearly impossible. However, there are some basic core principles behind the Starbucks marketing strategy that nearly any brand can borrow and implement. In this post, we’ll cover how their commitment to consistent branding made Starbucks the successful brand it is today. We’ll also go over the tactics they are currently using that are continuing their tradition. Plus, we’ll cover actionable takeaways you can use to implement those marketing strategies and basic branding principles yourself. Whats ? is the industrys leading marketing calendar platform, helping over 8000+ marketers get organized. See how you can plan content + social media marketing better. How can you build a brand like Starbucks? Start learning here:Download Your Marketing Strategy Template Bundle Once you’ve read how Starbucks has mastered the art of  branding and marketing strategy, use these templates to get organized, document your strategy, and build brand consistency into everything you do. In this bundle, you’ll receive: A marketing strategy template to format all your ideas into a workable outline for you and your team to follow. A marketing calendar  template to organize all your projects. A brand style guide template to help your marketing team maintain branding consistency. Each of these templates will help you get your marketing team organized and outline the expectations  that need to be met to keep everything consistent. Starbucks Marketing Strategy: How to Create a Remarkable BrandThe History Of Starbucks Starbucks was founded in 1971 by Jerry Baldwin, Zev Siegl, and Gordon Bowker. At first, the coffee company only sold coffee beans and didn’t offer the premium coffee drinks it's known for now. The famous logo, inspired by Norse woodcutting  that contained a siren, the mermaid-like figure has been with the company since its inception (although it has undergone a few redesigns). In 1986, the original owners sold Starbucks to former manager Howard Schultz, who took the brand and helped build it into the coffee behemoth it is today. Here is a brief overview of the growth the company has experienced in the last 47 years:

The Role of Black Holes in the centers of Galaxies Essay

The Role of Black Holes in the centers of Galaxies - Essay Example In the Milky Way, the supermassive black hole is known as Sagitarrius A*, which is read as â€Å"A-star† (Naeye & Gutro, 2008). Sagitarrius A* is known to be â€Å"27,000 light years from the Earth [and] is four million times bigger than the Sun† (Ghosh, 2012). However, NASA reports Sagitarrius A* to be 26,000 light years away from the Earth, and not 27,000 (â€Å"A Mystery,† 2002). In fact, the existence of black holes has long been theorized by British astronomer Sir Martin Rees in 1974 and, according to him, â€Å"Supermassive black holes [or] ones with a million or even a billion solar masses might exist within the centers of some galaxies† (â€Å"A Mystery,† 2002). According to Durham University astrophysicist Ian Small, â€Å"The black holes [that we studied] are seen precisely at the point where they can have the most influence on the properties of the galaxies they reside in† (qtd. In Lovgren, 2005). This means that if the supermassiv e black holes are located at other points in the galaxy except the center, then it cannot exert equal influence on all parts of the galaxy. In short, for it to exert an almost equal gravitational force on every part of the galaxy, then it has to be at its center. The same principle works if the supermassive black hole is to release energy towards every part of the galaxy it is in, but this release of energy is merely hypothetical. According to Professor Richard Genzel of the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics, â€Å"The center of the galaxy was a â€Å"unique laboratory for the study of the strong gravity, stellar dynamics and star formation with a level of detail ‘never possible beyond our galaxy’† (qtd. in â€Å"Black hole,† 2008). This means that there must be one good reason for the supermassive black hole to eventually reside in the galactic center other than position. Genzel’s hypothesis is therefore the possibility that the ph ysics of the center of the galaxy is unusually different from the rest of its parts. Perhaps then there is a much stronger gravitational attraction as well as different principles of stellar dynamics and star formation towards the galactic center. Furthermore, according to Cain, the center of the galaxy, where the supermassive black holes reside, serves as the place where â€Å"every galaxy serves to focus and concentrate material as the galaxy was first forming† and it is also possible that this is the same exact point â€Å"where the black hole formed first, and collected the rest of the galaxy around it† (Cain, 2008). The aforementioned statement means that the possible origin of the galaxy may in fact be the exact point where the supermassive black hole is located and perhaps the galaxy still continues to grow from that central point. The implication of this theory is that, if it is true, then much constructive material is located in the black hole and that the gal axy is in fact never growing old and its parts constantly being replaced by these materials from the black hole. Another observation of Lovgren (2005) is that, according to scientists, â€Å"pairs of galaxies – and their black holes often merge together [thus producing] tidal forces [that] drive a lot of gas toward the center of the

Smoking and Youth Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Smoking and Youth - Essay Example This paper will provide the factors leading to excessive smoking addiction during adolescence, and various approaches that will help diminish this obsession. Adolescence is attracted to smoking owing to various factors.  Ã‚  One of the most prominent reasons why people start smoking at a very young age is the influence of their friends. In other words, peer pressure is the number one cause why teens would smoke.   Secondly, when a child grows up in an environment surrounded by smokers like if a father, uncle, aunt or cousins, smoke, chances of smoking is higher because smoking will appear as a normal activity to him.     In addition, youth today is exposed to television, beauty magazines where they see beautiful images of their favorite celebrities and models smoking, as a result, giving them the impression that it is something advisable, and enhances ones personality. However, once an individual starts tobacco consumption their reasons for smoking keep changing. It is a fact that once a child initiates smoking it becomes an addiction and it is not possible to quit that easily. When asked, the reason youth gave for smoking was either boredom or to relieve stress. Anxiety and stress is related to low self-esteem. Hence, one can say that low- self-respect could be one of the major reasons why youth smoke. Likewise, depression in youth is another important issue that should be considered when it comes to smoking, depressive symptoms seems evident in divorced parents or increased abusive behavior towards the child. In such circumstances, a child would be more inclined to smoking cigarettes to hide the pain and trauma. Hence, research shows the most important factors associated with under- age tobacco consumption is peer pressure, family environment that includes parents and siblings and most importantly low self-esteem.  Studies show that â€Å"each day, between 82,000 and 99,000 young people around the world start smoking†

In View of Traditional and Modern Ethics Essay Example for Free

In View of Traditional and Modern Ethics Essay Introduction The study of philosophy has long been a part of our society. The field of ethics is one of the important branches of philosophy. Ethics deals about moral values our understanding of what is right or wrong, about life, about one’s rights and regarding the Divine being. What we are now is the product of the past. Ethics mold our personality. It is how we live our lives. Ethics guides us in seeking the answers to the many different queries we have in mind like why we exist, why we long for true happiness, and why can’t we avoid immoral acts. Traditional vs. Modern Ethics The focus of traditional ethics differs from the modern ethics in many ways. Traditional ethics goes back during the times of Plato, Aristotle, and Socrates in the ancient times. These ideas of traditional ethics have become the basis of succeeding ethics foundations. The ethics being promoted today has already existed before. The world has changed. People have also changed. Thus, ethics change to adapt to the changes in the world and the people’s perspective. Ethical and political philosophy awakening started as early as 5th century B.C. in Greece by the Sophist. They desired to discover the essence of moral virtues, the â€Å"form of good† which is the ultimate source of reality and value. There are a number of themes or doctrines that emerged. These are skepticism, relativism, subjectivism, egoism, and hedonism. Some ethical egoists suggested that one’s highest objective is to lead a pleasant life focusing on his or her pleasures. It gave birth to Epicureanism and Stoicism. During the medieval times the Christianization of ethics took place with the coming of St. Augustine, St. Hildegard, and St. Thomas Aquinas. Later on utilitarianism emerged and also philosophers like Thomas Hobbes, Immanuel Kant, and John Stuart Mill. Around 18th and 19th centuries moral philosophy focused on politics. People were also exposed to Liberalism, Marxism, Communism, and Anarchism. Recent moral and political philosophers introduce the concept of normative ethics, emotivist, invisible hand mechanism, conservatism, socialism, and democratic socialism to name a few. Philosophers include G.E. Moore, W.D. Ross, John Rowls and other important names. Conclusion Moral issues are important concern for all people not just for the philosophers. All the philosophers from the ancient to the modern times have contributed to our own system of beliefs regarding life and the many issues of human existence. Indeed traditional and modern ethics are related and supportive of each other. Ideas of the traditional ethics are the foundation of the modern ethics. Advocates of modern ethics customized or revised the concepts of the traditional ethics to fit today’s society. Both traditional and modern ethics have influenced the way people think and analyze life and their society. Reference Moore-Bruder, (2005). â€Å"Moral and Political Philosophy.† Philosophy: The Power of Ideas, Sixth Edition. The McGraw-Hill Companies

bombing of world trade center in manhatten 1993 :: essays research papers

Tapes Depict Proposal to Thwart Bomb Used in Trade Center Blast Law-enforcement officials were told that terrorists were building a bomb that was eventually used to blow up the World Trade Center, and they planned to thwart the plotters by secretly substituting harmless powder for the explosives, an informer said after the blast. The informer was to have helped the plotters build the bomb and supply the fake powder, but the plan was called off by an F.B.I. supervisor who had other ideas about how the informer, Emad Salem, should be used, the informer said. The account, which is given in the transcript of hundreds of hours of tape recordings that Mr. Salem secretly made of his talks with law-enforcement agents, portrays the authorities as being in a far better position than previously known to foil the February 26th bombing of New York City's tallest towers. The explosion left six people dead, more than a thousand people injured, and damages in excess of half-a-billion dollars. Four men are now on trial in Manhattan Federal Court [on charges of involvement] in that attack. Mr. Salem, a 43-year-old former Egyptian Army officer, was used by the Government [of the United States] to penetrate a circle of Muslim extremists who are now charged in two bombing cases: the World Trade Center attack, and a foiled plot to destroy the United Nations, the Hudson River tunnels, and other New York City landmarks. He is the crucial witness in the second bombing case, but his work for the Government was erratic, and for months before the World Trade Center blast, he was feuding with th F.B.I. Supervisor `Messed It Up' After the bombing, he resumed his undercover work. In an undated transcript of a conversation from that period, Mr. Salem recounts a talk he had had earlier with an agent about an unnamed F.B.I. supervisor who, he said, "came and messed it up." "He requested to meet me in the hotel," Mr. Salem says of the supervisor. "He requested to make me to testify, and if he didn't push for that, we'll be going building the bomb with a phony powder, and grabbing the people who was involved in it. But since you, we didn't do that." The transcript quotes Mr. Salem as saying that he wanted to

Manage People Performance Essay

Project 1 When allocating it is important to consider that work should be allocated on a fair basis taking into consideration the employee experience, expertise, skills, knowledge understanding and workloads. It i salso important to consider the following: Goals and objectives Work must be goal and target oriented. Managers and their employees need to set goals that are realistic, achievable and have timeframes attached. Large goals can be broken into smaller steps to which specific timeframes are attached so they can become milestones. This enable work to be allocated and to be monitored and measured as it progresses. Competence When allocating work the competencies, knowledge, skills and experience of employees must be considered so that work is allocated to those who are best equipped to do it. When drawing up actions plans it is important that managers and leaders take into consideration the competencies of the staff members to be involved, the interest of the staff members, their availability and the likely outcomes of involving specific employees. Operational need When drawing up a work plan it is important to focus on the goal of the action plan. Action plans outline what will be done, how it will be done, by whom it will be done and the timeframes and deadlines that apply and the resources that will be required. The plan will outline what needs to be done and who is responsible for the various implementation aspects of the plan. Efficiency A plan must be performed in the best possible manner with the least waste of  time and effort possible. This means using all the information, knowledge and skills learnt and using the time at your disposal. Also giving employees responsibility, accountability and delegating appropriately are all processes which will increase involvement, commitment and enthusiasm for the achievement of specific outcomes and that, I believe, is a way to make a plan efficient. Cost effectiveness To maintain costs at an acceptable level, resources must be used in the most effective ways so that use is maximised and expenditure is minimised. Staff should learn to manage the work they do in ways that don’t needlessly waste resources and work allocations must allow for the most effective use of resources. Hiring and training new staff costs, as mistakes, rework and misuse of resources. It is also necessary to negotiate the best possible prices for resources. Consultation Consultation is a key element in the development of an operatinal plan. It is important to consult with people who use the resources to determine the best deployment and acquisition methods. Employees who use resources on a day-to-day basis in order to complete their work will be able to identify problems and if encouraged to do so will be able to suggest improvements that will increase resource efficiency and effectiveness. Also consultation involves employees and gives value and credence to their ideas by making them feel valued and aware them that they contribute toward the big picture goal achievement of the organisation. When allocating work and drawing up work plans it is also necessary to consider the following: Develop KRAs and KPIs that meet the organisation’s needs  It is important to develop KRAs and KPIs because thay are a vital part of the organisational planning process. They provide a clearly defined way of measuring whether or not organisational goals have been achieved. KPIs enable organisations to measure progress towards its goals, but also define  what progress looks like. KRAs are generally formulated for the long term and focus at a higher level of organisation, while KPIs are measurable in very short intervals, they are directly tied to actions on the frontline and adjustable in real time. Develop and implement effective performance management systems Performance management systems are necessery to identify, evaluate and develop employees and teams work performances so that an organisation’s goals and objectives are more effectively achieved. Performance management systems enable management to track, monitor and evaluate work to ensure that is contributing towards the success of the organisation. Performance management is also the process of communication between manager and employee that results in mutual understanding of what employee is to be doing during the next period of time. Have a code of conduct for the organisation It is important to have a code of conduct because it provides a guide to staff for appropriate behaviour. It will not cover all issues that arise but will provide a framework within which staff can address behavioural and ethical issues. The code establishes standards by which staff and management conduct themselves towards other staff or collegues, government authorities and the general community and perform their duties and obligations. A code of conduct is generally established on values such as integrity, honesty, conscientiousness, compassion, courtesy, fairness and respect. Regurarly monitor and evaluate the work of employees It is necessary to monitor employees performance to identify and establish performance requirements as KRAs and KPIs and also to clarify and communicate the organisation’s goal achievement strategies. When conducting performance monitoring both managers and employees must have a clear agreement and understanding of the performance expectations, evaluation, processes and implications. By drawing up an action plan it becomes possible to monitor each step in the implementation process and to assess effectiveness as you go. Employees are able to see what they are achieving as they achieve it. Give effective feedback and reinforcement to employees and acknowledge good work Feedbacks are important because they reinforce good work and encourage employees to continuing improvement. Employees whose contribution to improvement processes and organisational success is recognised will be motivated to continue improving and, at the same time, it will be created an higher level of enthusiasm. If employees don’t receive feedback to let them know what they are doing well so they will continue doing it or what they are not doing well so they can make adjustments, they will not know whether their efforts are noticed and whether their performance meets the organisation’s expectations. Also satisfied staff will stay with the organisation and so will the knowledge and skills. Have systems in place to manage poor performance Is important to understand that feedbacks on poor performance will be more effective if they are adressed at the time they occur and not left until they are either escalated or been forgotten about. When poor performance is identified it is necessary to take specific steps to address it. This will involve the collection and analysis of performance related to information. When possible is better to collect direct information and from a number of different sources. It might be necessary to report to senior management the performance issues and the proposed steps that will be taken to resolve the issues that are identified by the monitoring and evaluation process. Understand the organisation’s termination policy and the legislation to which it relates It is necessary to understand that any kind of action should be performed in accordance with the law and that there are regulations that protect the employee and that prevent the management to take definitive actions if they don’t follow the law. (Fair Work Act 2009). If mangers decide that an employee’s performance is so poor as to necessiate dismissal, they must be aware of the requirements and possible consequences of dismissal under unfair dismissal laws. Unlawful dismissal are primarly based on discrimination grounds and notice periods. Project 2 It is clear that at the base there is a problem of communication within the organisation. In this case I think that the main problems are two. The first is represented by a poor training to staff which leads to insufficient knowledge of the methodology to be used during these operations and poor ability to deal with issues once they arise. The second problem is the lack of communication between the two leading department. This gap has led the supply department to make mistakes such as the client didn’t receive the goods on time or the goods have not fully made up. The result of these two major gaps made that the work was done wrong and has led the customer to be dissatisfied. To make sure that such situations do not arise again, as a manager / leader of the organisation I would focus on improving the phase of training of staff in which I’d put special attention on the internal communication between the various department. First of all, the training must be done so that employees have the material, the support and the time to acquire all the information needed so they can do their job in the best way possible and in the way that they are able to remedy any errors that may occur during one of the processes. The training also needs to be tested on site with real performances and, occasionally, with updates. Internal communication whithin an organisation is vital. Without good communication made of daily contacts between the various department, reporting changes or improvements and updates on the methodology, an organisation can not do the job in the right way, bringing the results to be insufficient for the customer and, most likely, the failure on the market. Both managers and employees therefore need training so they understand how the system works, how they can and should contribute and what the results of an appraisal should be. They must know and be involved in setting the relevant performance standard. They need to understand how the appraisal process fits with the organisation’s procedures and expectations for future performance. Starting with the basis of a good training to managers and employees and  giving proper attention to the communication system, I believe that the results of an organisation are intended to improve, even in the short term period. In the event that, despite efforts to bring the level of knowledge of the individual employee and the team to a satisfactory level, I don’t see improvements in the production and receive constant complaints from clients, I would probably consider the possibility of proceeding with more important procedures such as a final conclusion of work of the staff responsible for the lack of results.

Chinese Nationalist Party Essay

On 1 October 1949, Mao Zedong, leader of the Chinese Communist Party declared victory over the Nationalist Party (Guomindang) and brought an end to four brutally long years of Civil War. The Communist victory in the Civil War has however, created significant debate among historians, namely: was a Communist victory inevitable and if so is it more sensible to see the Chinese Civil War as a Communist victory or as a Nationalist defeat?When researching these questions it becomes blatantly obvious that the Guomindang government led by Chiang Kai-Shek was riddled with problems and they are very much the cause of their own downfall. Widespread government corruption, spiraling inflation, loss of public confidence and intractable poverty are just a few of the failings the Guomindang afflicted upon the Chinese people. These monumental failings make a Communist victory seem almost inevitable, in that they just happened to be there to assume power as the Nationalists lost support and drowned in their own mistakes. In this sense it is more sensible to view the Civil War as a Nationalist defeat, rather than a Communist victory. On the other hand, the Communists were able to turn dismal rural poverty and the Japanese invasion into assets, using them to convince villagers that radical change was imperative and that the Communist Party was best qualified to bring about this change. Seen in this light, superior strategy and organisational methods allowed the Communists to achieve victory and not just â€Å"move into a vacuum† as suggested by Barnett (Barnett, 1965: 1). There is certainly an element of inevitability with regard to the Communist victory, however, in this essay I will argue that not only was the outcome of the Chinese Civil War not preordained, but I will also critically evaluate the reasons the Guomindang lost the Civil War and explain that given their policy mistakes, the Civil War should be seen as a Nationalist defeat rather than a Communist victory. If the Nationalists had been willing to adapt and had they initiated some changes in their strategies, the Communist Party, no matter what its internal organisation or external strategies, would not have been able to bring revolution to China. This theory is not supported by Kubek, who argues that the cause of the  Nationalist defeat was due to a lack of aid from the United States, declaring â€Å"sovietisation of China and Manchuria could be the only logical outcome of post-war United States policy in China† (Kubek, 1965: 62). This view point is unduly simplistic and overvalues America’s role in China, an opinion supported by Chang, who believes the Guomindang government’s â€Å"failure was due not so much to lack of American support, but to its inherent defects† (Chang, 1965: 40). Before analysing these inherent defects and the reasons that the Nationalist Party lost the Civil War, it is important to understand the fundamentals of the situation in China at the end of World War Two; specifically the consequences of the eight year war with Japan that totally exhausted the Guomindang militarily, economically and spiritually. Hsu argues that the war with Japan is the â€Å"single most important cause for the downfall of the Nationalists† and â€Å"had there been no Japanese war, the situation in China would have been very different† (Hsu, 1990: 734). Many of the Guomindang’s problems such as factionalism, corruption and leadership were prevalent prior to the Sino-Japanese War; however it was during the last phases of the Sino-Japanese War that these problems reached crisis proportions and in hindsight it seems impossible that the Guomindang could have overcome these problems to defeat the Communists (Service, 1965: 29). Chang also believes that the Guomindang faced insurmountable problems prior to the Civil War, stating that â€Å"the government of Chiang Kai-Shek was built on quicksand and clay. How can it stand? Is it any wonder that it fell like a house of cards when it had to face the Communist crisis?† (Chang, C. 1965: 41). Westad, (2003: 7) however argues that â€Å"in spite of the Guomindang’s weaknesses, the outcome of the post-war conflict with the Communists was no way predetermined in 1945†. At the end of the Sino-Japanese War the Guomindang held significant advantages over the Communists, with its widely recognised legitimate government controlling China, giving it the power to tax and conscript. On the other hand, the Communists could not match the Guomindang’s troops in terms of training and equipment and could be  Ã¢â‚¬Å"outgunned and outmanoeuvred in all major regions of the country† (Westad, 2003: 8). Furthermore, the Communist party was hardly represented in the cities at all, which of course was the power base of the Guomindang. However, the Communists also had successes resulting from the war with Japan including increasing their area of control and practiced evolving their strategies of protracted guerrilla warfare against the Japanese which in turn generated public support. Despite this the party’s main forces were still located in North-west China and they were not in such a powerful position that a civil war with the Guomindang would be a mere formality in securing control of the country. The Civil War is therefore simply not a case of the imminent decline of the Guomindang and the Communists’ irresistible rise. Rather the Sino-Japanese War provided the framework for the decisions and strategies that would ultimately lead to Nationalist defeat. The war with Japan left the Guomindang decimated and they did need to undergo reform in order to survive; however the factionalism and corruption within the Guomindang resulted in increasingly repressive controls being implemented upon the war weary Chinese people. At a time when new strategies were needed, the government instead continued its repressive controls and when war again broke out, the government lost even more support and collapsed with cataclysmic speed. This was due in no small part to the leadership of the Guomindang, whose perpetuation of their own power dominated over all other considerations (Service, 1965: 28). The arrogance and mismanagement of the Guomindang alienated the Chinese people and caused a loss of public confidence and respect. This loss of respect not only resulted in the Nationalists losing influence in their own power bases, but made it easier for the Communists to exploit this public disharmony and encourage the Chinese people to think that a change in administration would bring about a change in their fortunes. An example of the Guomindang’s poor leadership strategies can be seen in their occupation of former Japanese colonies (Service, 1965: 29). The Chinese citizens within these Japanese occupied territories had waited eight  years for the return of Nationalist rule, but instead of being treated as victims of war, they were exploited. The Guomindang leaders did not return their land but acquired it as their own property; moreover, they virtually eliminated the monetary assets of these people. This was caused by the currency in the occupied territories going through extreme inflation as the government only offered the exorbitant exchange rate of two hundred to one; when a more reasonable rate would have been half that much (Phillips, 1996: 158). Furthermore, the puppet leaders that had been installed by the Japanese often kept their positions or became members of the Guomindang. Poor policy decisions such as this would lead to the downfall of the Guomindang, as it is impossible to fight an effective war without the support of the people and the economic policies of the government alienated millions of suffering people. The Guomindang’s economic problems were not limited to the territories formerly occupied by the Japanese. All over China inflation was an exceptionally large problem, for as the increases seen during the Japanese War were allowed to spiral out of control during the Civil War. Service, (1965: 29) argues that this is a direct result of corruption within the Guomindang, and that they refused to take any effective steps to check inflation or implement agricultural reforms for fear of losing the support of the landlord class in China. In view of this, the Guomindang developed urban industry at the expense of agricultural and financed this by simply printing more bank notes. Their economic mismanagement was disastrous for the majority of the Chinese people and meant that by 1948 government expenditure had become thirty times larger when compared to its pre-war level; the budget deficit had also blown out to thirty times it pre-war level and inflation was increasing at the rate of thirty per cent a month (Chang, K. 1965: 23). The Nationalist government faced imminent financial doom and the Chinese people were becoming aware of the selfish nature of their government whose economic policies and financial mismanagement destroyed the livelihood of hundreds of millions of Chinese. The failings of the Guomindang would provide the Communist party with ample opportunities to exploit the discontent of the Chinese people. This was one of the reasons for the Communist victory in that they were able to gain the support of people from the rural areas who the Guomindang had alienated. An example of this can be seen in the rural land reforms implemented in newly gained territories. In these areas the Communists promoted production and ensured supplies by creating a self-sufficient economy. To rouse the productive enthusiasm of the peasants, they launched a campaign to reduce rent and interest. Peasant associations and other organisations were urged to demand and enforce a 25 percent rent reduction, with a rent ceiling set at 37.5 percent of the crops. The interest rate on loans was limited to 1.5 percent a month, or 18 percent a year, much lower that the excessive rate formerly charged by the landlords (Westad, 2003: 11 and Fielding, 1999: 134). They were able to achieve these reforms without confiscating large amounts of land, as considerable redistribution of land to the peasants was accomplished by impo sing graduated taxes in such a way that larger landholders voluntarily sold land because it was no longer profitable. It is arguable that the Communists had no intention of eliminating the economic power of the landlords, but instead they showed the peasants that they could exercise their power locally and play an active role in the war against a government that some had come to despise. The Communists gave the peasants what they wanted: an army of friendly troops who not only did not steal their crops but helped them bring in the harvest and who implemented popular but gradual economic reforms (Ebrey, 1996: 289). This is in stark contrast to the Guomindang who did not understand the peasants and showed no interest in aiding them. They failed to see the revolutionary potential of the peasant masses and unlike the Communist Party never attempted to organise them. This situation was best summarised by Hsu: â€Å"the stone that one builder had rejected became the cornerstone of the other’s house† (Hsu, 1990: 738). However, many of the most important cause of the Nationalist defeat during the Civil War were military ones. Despite emerging from the Japanese War better equipped and trained, the Nationalist Army was a tired force (Hsu, 1990: 734). This war-weariness was felt throughout China and there was  widespread recognition that full scale civil war would be a tragedy for the country. It is therefore, not surprising that the Guomindang’s persistence in military aggression towards the Communists, who were Chinese after all, failed to arouse the same patriotic loyalty as when the enemies were Japanese (Stuart, 1965: 19). Given this situation the Nationalist Army needed good leadership and to gain the support of the people; they were unsuccessful on both counts. This was largely due to the leadership system created by Chiang Kai-Shek that was â€Å"a congerie of conservative political cliques† concerned primarily with maintaining their own power (Service, 1965: 30). Furthermore, the highest military posts were reserved for those who like Chiang Kai-Shek had graduated from the Whampoa military academy and this often meant that more talented officers were turned away. General Barr of the United States said of the Guomindang leadership in 1949 that, â€Å"their military debacles in my opinion can all be attributed to the world’s worst leadership and many other morale destroying factors that lead to a complete loss of will to fight† (Barr, 1949: x quoted in Bianco, 1971: 180). In fact, many battles were lost by the Nationalists without a fight, as hundreds of thousands of troops simply defected or surrendered to the Communists (Barnett, 1965: 5). An example of this may be seen during the Huai-Huai Campaign, where poor military leadership caused the Nationalist troops to become surrounded and resulted in an irreparable loss of manpower without a fight (Phillips, 1996: 158). Rather than undertaking offensives to seek out and destroy the main mobile guerrilla units of the Communists, they holed up for the most part in isolated, vulnerable, defensive positions allowing the Communists to concentrate their forces and attack and overwhelm Nationalists’ positions one by one (Barnett, 1965: 5). This strategy played into the hands of the Communists whose primary goal was to reduce the numbers of the Nationalist army. They were not concerned with holding specific geographic areas and this allowed them to be a lot more flexible in their attacks. Moreover, the Communist troops were ordered to avoid large battles and to engage the enemy only when there was a high probability of victory. Mao Zedong argued that the only way guerrilla warfare could succeed  is if the army had the support of the people, and the Communists certainly had this (Mao Zedong, 1940: x cited in Bianco, 1971: 184). The Communists successfully achieved this through the use of propaganda. They portrayed themselves as defenders of the nation and the Guomindang as enemies of all levels of society, from peasant to scholar (Chang, C. 1965: 40). Chiang Kai-shek himself admitted that the Nationalists failure in propaganda â€Å"was a major defect in our struggle against Communism† (Kai-shek, 1965: 77). Despite this, the Nationalist army had many opportunities to seriously weaken the Communists. However, their leadership too often committed crucial tactical mistakes, which were the result of lack of communication and disputes within the party caused by the factionalism that riddled the Guomindang leadership (Westad, 2003: 11). Clique politics and factionalism would eventually lead to the situation where unified action to either solve the problems in Nationalist held territory or to fight against the Communists became virtually impossible (Barnett, 1965: 6). This is in stark contrast to the leadership of the Communist armies, whose generals were not concerned with personal gain, but instead co-operated with each other and gained the support of the Chinese people and worked towards a united goal (Westad, 2003: 9). These superior military tactics and aforementioned economic reforms brought the Communists wide spread support and ultimately victory. However, this victory would never have been achievable were it not for the military, economic and social failings of the Guomindang. Chiang Kai-Shek himself admitted major defects in organisation and technique in the Nationalists’ war against Communism, however he argued that these defects were remediable, â€Å"so long as our strategy and policy were correct, I believe we still could have won† (Kai-Shek, 1965: 82). It is in this light that the Chinese Civil War should be viewed not as a Communist victory, but as a Nationalist defeat. There is no doubt that the war against Japan was a crushing blow to the Nationalists economic and military power, however it was not fatal. The  Nationalist government could have continued to consolidate its power and authority by the sheer weight of its military strength and financial resources (Tsou, 1965: 28). Even though the Nationalist government was far from popular, it was the most powerful military and economic force in China and could have survived if it had been willing to regain the support of the people. Defeat to the Communists was therefore, far from inevitable, and the Nationalists were very much the engineers of their own demise. BIBLIOGRAPHY Barnett, A. (1965), ‘Multiple factors’, in Pichon Loh (ed.) ‘The Kuomintang Debacle of 1949: Conquest or Collapse?’ D.C. Heath & Company, BostonBianco, Lucien. (1971), ‘Origins of the Chinese Revolution, 1915-1949’ Stanford University Press, StanfordChang, Carsun. (1965), ‘Chiang Kai-shek and Kuomintang dictatorship’, in PichonLoh (ed.) ‘The Kuomintang Debacle of 1949: Conquest or Collapse?’ D.C. Heath& Company, BostonChang, Kia-Ngua. (1965) ‘War and Inflation’ in Pichon Loh (ed.) ‘The Kuomintang Debacle of 1949: Conquest or Collapse?’ D.C. Heath & Company, BostonEbrey, Patricia. (1996), Cambridge Illustrated History: China, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, EnglandFielding, Mark & Morcombe, Margot. (1999), ‘The Spirit of Change – China in Revolution’ McGraw Hill Book Company, Roseville, NSWHsu, Immanuel C.Y. (1990), ‘The Rise of Modern China’ Oxford Univer sity Press, New YorkKai-shek, Chiang 1965, ‘Communist designs and Kuomintang blunders’, inPichon Loh (ed.) The Kuomintang Debacle of 1949: Conquest or Collapse?, D.C. Heath & Company, BostonKubek, Anthony 1965, ‘Communist subversion and American appeasement’, inPichon Loh (ed.) The Kuomintang Debacle of 1949: Conquest or Collapse?, D.C. Heath & Company, BostonPhillips, Richard. (1996) ‘China since 1911’ St Martin’s Press, New York. Service, John S. 1965, ‘The enthronement of reaction’, in Pichon Loh (ed.)The Kuomintang Debacle of 1949: Conquest or Collapse?, D.C. Heath & Company,BostonStuart, John L. (1965), ‘Popular Discontent and Creeping Paralysis’, in Pichon Loh (ed.)The Kuomintang Debacle of 1949: Conquest or Collapse?, D.C. Heath & Company,BostonTsou, Tang 1965, ‘Contradictions between program and practise’, in PichonLoh (ed.) The Kuomintang Debacle of 1949: Conquest or Collapse?, D.C. Heath& Company, BostonWestad, Odd Arne 2003, Decisive Encounters: the Chinese Civil War 1946 -1950, Stanford University Press, California

Upmarket Fiction The Forgotten Middle Child of the Publishing World

Upmarket Fiction The Forgotten Middle Child of the Publishing World Upmarket Fiction: The Forgotten Middle Child of the Publishing World Calling something â€Å"commercial† can sound like an insult in some circles, as if it’s a trifling entertainment not worthy of the term â€Å"literature.† In other circles, the term â€Å"literary† results in a half-stifled yawn, and is considered pretentious. A question you might ask when you’re writing is, "Can a book be both literary and commercial?† The answer is yes: you've just described "upmarket fiction." Can a book be both literary and commercial? Yes: that's upmarket fiction. While this article won't settle any age-old commercial vs. literary debates, it will help you get a better grasp on how to distinguish both types of fiction - and, above all, it answer the question you’ve been wondering: what is upmarket fiction?A brief history of the novel - and how terms like â€Å"genre† and â€Å"literary† came to beIn the 17th and 18th centuries, the novel was considered a genre in itself. It was a relatively new form of narrative, a drawn-out prose detailing fictitious matters. As Joshua Rothman notes in The New Yorker: â€Å"When Catherine Morland, the heroine of Austen’s ‘Northanger Abbey,’ is rebuked for reading too many Gothic novels, the proposed alternative isn’t ‘literary fiction’ but non-fiction (a friend suggests she try history). ‘Northanger Abbey’ was written in 1799.† How did distinctions like commercial, literary, and upmarket come to be? Find out inside. 50 Book Marketing Ideas Every Author Needs to Know Read post Just like with choosing your degree, understanding the market from the outset of the process is crucial. If you’re hoping to make a career off of your novels, you need to study your market, your competitors, and to identify where your story will fit there. Why is it so important to be able to classify what kind of fiction you're writing? Find out here Even if your book is classified as commercial, that does not mean it has less merit as a piece of literature. Commercial and literary fiction both have their place: just like a spoon works better for ice cream and spaghetti requires a fork. This fiction is kind of like a spork, then: it can be used for either occasion.The classification is a sales tool - it’s important to know. In the end, if you can write a book that someone enjoys reading, that someone derives meaning from, that challenges someone to think, that helps someone unwind, that’s fun, or sad, or uplifting - in other words, if you can write a book that speaks to someone, then, well done. Not sure if your book is commercial, literary, or upmarket fiction? Take this quiz to find out http://bzfd.it/2xQofFP Are you still not 100% sure how to classify your novel? Take our quiz to find out!What are some of your favorite works of commercial, literary, or upmarket fiction? Share them with us in the comments below!

Critical Analysis Example

Critical Analysis Example Critical Analysis Example Critical Analysis Example: Learn, Learn, and Learn Once Again Vladimir Lenin used to say To Learn, to Learn and to Learn Once Again. So let us follow his advice and learn writing critical analysis. It is obvious that any skill should be learned from professionals: a cook will best teach you how to cook, a shoemaker to make shoes, a poet to write poems. And if you want to learn how to perform the critical analysis you should study examples of those people, who already know how to do that. Let us consider what aspects you should pay attention to in the critical analysis example. Aspects of the Critical Analysis Example Logic. The first thing you should look at in the critical analysis example that you examine is logic. Find the connection between every statement in the critical analysis example. If you learn to see drawbacks in logic of other authors, you will not make such mistake yourself and moreover you will develop critical thinking skill. Structure. Any critical analysis example must contain an overview, detailed analysis and conclusions. Do not try to change this traditional structure, it must be the same in your critical analysis. Points of view. Above all, you have to understand that critical analysis means unbiased analysis, if you do not want to sound preconceived, remember this. You should pay attention to how clearly the author of the critical analysis example expresses his point of view. For the analysis to be critical other viewpoints also must be analyzed. The author of the critical analysis example (and you when you write your critical analysis) should consider also those viewpoints that do not support his (your) own. Your attitude. When you read enough critical analysis examples, you will almost definitely experience the temptation of copying and combining them for your own critical analysis. If you manage to resist this temptation, before writing your critical analysis think over what you have read, consider what you agree or disagree on with the author of the critical analysis example: Critical Analysis Essay Final Note When you consider the critical analysis example, you should pay attention to every abovementioned aspects. A good critical analysis example contains all of them and makes things clear for you, i.e. does not leave any questions after reading. It is not easy to write the critical analysis if you are not experienced in it, but learning from critical analysis examples will smooth things down for you and make you a professional with competent essay writing service! Read also: Descriptive Essay Writing Argumentative Essay Topics Writing Thesis Papers Writing a Dissertation Proposal Thesis Topics

Emerging Trends in Civil Liability Cases Annotated Bibliography

Emerging Trends in Civil Liability Cases - Annotated Bibliography Example For a case to be successful, the applicant has to prove that the government official violated his or her constitutional or federal law rights and whether the officers acted under color of law. As such, the article presents a discussion of a series of case rulings in which the plaintiffs sought to be awarded legal relief under the provision of Section 83. The liability cases studied and analyzed by Ross are related to correctional officers, since such officials are at the highest risk of litigation. In total, the study examined 3,205 correctional liability cases filed against correctional officials under Section 1983. The claims for such cases were many and varied, but Ross identified sixteen categories indicating trends in the litigation claims. These categories include violation of free speech rights, cruel and unusual punishment, and failure to protect a claim. The large sample evaluated increases the reliability of the study. In addition, by examining the trend over a long period of time and considering cases from all facilities in the United States District Court system, the validity of the findings from the study is increased. This validity is further strengthened by the credibility of the researcher since Ross is a University Professor with the Criminal Justice Program. The study observed that majority of the cases were filed without legal counsel, and this could present a weakness in the findings since some of them could have no legal basis. According to Ross’ findings, the number of correctional liability claims filed under Section 1983 is directly related to the prisoner population and would continue to increase with a proportional increase in the population of prisoners. CJ professionals would use this fact to vary the population of inmates in particular correctional facilities, thus reducing potential conflicts that could result in litigation claims against correctional officers.