This document summarizes a presentation given by Dick Couch at the Palm Springs Writers Guild on writing. It discusses Couch's background as a naval aviator and author. Couch explains that he writes about what he knows from his experiences. He writes adventure stories to relive the thrill of his past career. The presentation provides tips for writers, including starting small with articles and building experience, as well as the importance of establishing an online presence through websites and social media. It previews the next workshop on developing original story ideas.
Breaking into the Nonfiction Market, Step-by-Stepggaldorisi
This workshop opens the door to the nonfiction market – a more diverse and far easier market to enter than fiction. It’s all about content. Attendees will learn the secrets of success including: What subject areas to pick, how to get started becoming an expert in a field, how to do market research, how to structure a nonfiction book proposal, and how to put together a query letter that will sell.
This describes how and why I adjusted my research unit for ninth graders to be more interesting and appealing in terms of process and product for both the students and myself (as the teacher).
How to Make a Field invisible in Odoo 17Celine George
It is possible to hide or invisible some fields in odoo. Commonly using “invisible” attribute in the field definition to invisible the fields. This slide will show how to make a field invisible in odoo 17.
A Strategic Approach: GenAI in EducationPeter Windle
Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies such as Generative AI, Image Generators and Large Language Models have had a dramatic impact on teaching, learning and assessment over the past 18 months. The most immediate threat AI posed was to Academic Integrity with Higher Education Institutes (HEIs) focusing their efforts on combating the use of GenAI in assessment. Guidelines were developed for staff and students, policies put in place too. Innovative educators have forged paths in the use of Generative AI for teaching, learning and assessments leading to pockets of transformation springing up across HEIs, often with little or no top-down guidance, support or direction.
This Gasta posits a strategic approach to integrating AI into HEIs to prepare staff, students and the curriculum for an evolving world and workplace. We will highlight the advantages of working with these technologies beyond the realm of teaching, learning and assessment by considering prompt engineering skills, industry impact, curriculum changes, and the need for staff upskilling. In contrast, not engaging strategically with Generative AI poses risks, including falling behind peers, missed opportunities and failing to ensure our graduates remain employable. The rapid evolution of AI technologies necessitates a proactive and strategic approach if we are to remain relevant.
Francesca Gottschalk - How can education support child empowerment.pptxEduSkills OECD
Francesca Gottschalk from the OECD’s Centre for Educational Research and Innovation presents at the Ask an Expert Webinar: How can education support child empowerment?
Instructions for Submissions thorugh G- Classroom.pptxJheel Barad
This presentation provides a briefing on how to upload submissions and documents in Google Classroom. It was prepared as part of an orientation for new Sainik School in-service teacher trainees. As a training officer, my goal is to ensure that you are comfortable and proficient with this essential tool for managing assignments and fostering student engagement.
Operation “Blue Star” is the only event in the history of Independent India where the state went into war with its own people. Even after about 40 years it is not clear if it was culmination of states anger over people of the region, a political game of power or start of dictatorial chapter in the democratic setup.
The people of Punjab felt alienated from main stream due to denial of their just demands during a long democratic struggle since independence. As it happen all over the word, it led to militant struggle with great loss of lives of military, police and civilian personnel. Killing of Indira Gandhi and massacre of innocent Sikhs in Delhi and other India cities was also associated with this movement.
2024.06.01 Introducing a competency framework for languag learning materials ...Sandy Millin
http://sandymillin.wordpress.com/iateflwebinar2024
Published classroom materials form the basis of syllabuses, drive teacher professional development, and have a potentially huge influence on learners, teachers and education systems. All teachers also create their own materials, whether a few sentences on a blackboard, a highly-structured fully-realised online course, or anything in between. Despite this, the knowledge and skills needed to create effective language learning materials are rarely part of teacher training, and are mostly learnt by trial and error.
Knowledge and skills frameworks, generally called competency frameworks, for ELT teachers, trainers and managers have existed for a few years now. However, until I created one for my MA dissertation, there wasn’t one drawing together what we need to know and do to be able to effectively produce language learning materials.
This webinar will introduce you to my framework, highlighting the key competencies I identified from my research. It will also show how anybody involved in language teaching (any language, not just English!), teacher training, managing schools or developing language learning materials can benefit from using the framework.
8. “No one ever made a decision based on a number. They
need a story.”
Michael Lewis
The Undoing Project
9. A Few Preliminaries….
• Three promises:
– This will be a fast-paced session
– We’ll learn something…and we’ll have fun
– You’ll have access to these slides…take notes…or not….
• Three assumptions:
– You all are interested in writing as a hobby or avocation
– That includes articles of all kinds as well as books
– You didn’t wake up last Tuesday morning with this notion
• And a word about Power Point….
12. The Five Minute CV
• Went to the U.S. Naval Academy looking for adventure
• Found it…in spades…as a naval aviator…CO of two squadrons
• After that – ship and squadron command and strike groups
• Add to that, two years leading the U.S. delegation to China
• Some years in the defense industry
• Currently at NIWC Pacific – supporting warfighters
14. “For me, I gotta write, and it’s the adventure of it that’s
hooked me. As the writer, I can do it all. I get to be the
National Security Advisor who recommends the action
to the President who must commit the forces. I’m the
senior officer who sends his men into action and who
feels the pain if they don’t make it back. I’m the enemy
and the defender; logistician and staff planner. But
most of all, I’m a young man again, that fresh
lieutenant who must lead his men into battle.”
Dick Couch
“So you Want to be a Writer”
15. Why and What Do I Write?
• First, forget Paris – live your life
• I write what I know
• I write about what concerns me
• I had some parental push – but not like you might think
• I was on the outside, looking in
• I started small…and built on that experience
• I was, and remain, warm to new ideas
16. Living Life…and the Planets Aligned
• Leave No Man Behind
• Tom Clancy Presents Act of Valor (movie and book)
• The Kissing Sailor
• Tom Clancy’s Op-Center
• When the Killer Man Comes
• The Coronado Conspiracy and For Duty and Honor
17. That’s about as open-kimono as an
introverted New Yorker can get….
20. A preview of tomorrow’s workshop…
and more that you can use today
21. Finding the Heart of Your Story: Your Original Idea
“This session will help attendees explore the most basic – yet
most important – element of the writing craft, the original idea
that is the essence of your story. We will first examine how
generating this original idea works for both fiction and non-
fiction. We will deep-dive into where original ideas come from
and then progress to how to shape that kernel of an idea into
novel, narrative non-fiction, or even a screenplay. Attendees will
be provided with online access to all workshop material.”
22. What We Will Cover Today
• A six-session, twelve hour, writing seminar in an hour
• You’ll benefit from the feedback from other seminars
• I’ve been doing this for four decades
• I find it helpful to package what I’ve learned
• Writing anything is a journey
• So let’s walk together for a while, then have Q&A
23. Suggested Goals for This Session
• Learn something useful you can apply now
• Focus on what kind of writing you would like to do
• Have fun doing it rather than make it a chore
• Develop your network with each other
24. Exit Criteria: What You Should Expect
• If you’re interested in writing shorter pieces: blogs,
newsletters, print or online articles – you’re ready
• If you’re interested in writing a book or publishing a
book you’ve already written:
o You know enough to give yourself a good pole position to
break yourself away from the crowd
o You know enough about the resources available that you
can choose the ones that work for you
o You’re mindful of the level of effort required for these
pursuits as well as the odds of success
25. The Basic Building Blocks
• Step One: Why Write?
• Step Two: First - and Essential - Steps
• Step Three: Non-Fiction - The Hungry Market
• Step Four: “The Great American Novel”
• Step Five: Establishing an Online Presence
• Step Six: Social Media - Challenges and Opportunities
26. Step One: Why Write?
• History is what writers say it is
• Picking your medium
• A building block approach
• Due diligence the easy way
27. “History is what the historians and writers say it is.”
Norman Polmar
(Forty books – and counting)
28. Step Two: First - and Essential - Steps
• Content-hungry media
• Repurposing and building content
• Building relationships with editors – a win-win for
both parties
• Solo or with a wingman? The pros and cons of
collaboration
29. So Many Outlets – So Little Time
• A wide array of online media
• Newsletters
• Alumni magazines
• Professional journals
• Popular magazines
• Newspapers
• Portions of non-fiction books
• Non-fiction books
• Short stories
• Novels – of all kinds
30. Step Three:
Non-Fiction - The Hungry Market
• Being - or becoming - the expert?
• Pursuing a subject - or letting life happen?
• Scratching itches - or entertaining?
• How much to tell and what’s next?
• You must make this choice
• My former student’s journey
31. Why Non-Fiction Books?
• It is a hungry market
• Relatively easy to enter
• Lower risk – sell then write
• Can be steady money
• Can query without an agent more easily
• Vastly more nonfiction published than fiction
32. Step Four:
“The Great American Novel”
• Great or not-so-great? What you need to know
getting started
• Mainstream or genre? Which way should you go?
• Defining your audience and picking a “voice” and
point of view
• Getting the sale – and then promoting your work
33. Great or Not-So-Great?
What You Need to Know Getting Started
• Lots of decisions to make:
– Mainstream or genre
– Publisher or self-publish
– Single work or a series
– Time-bounding to complete
• The competition is intense:
– Increasing number of novels published
– This means that far-fewer are commercially successful
– In many ways, the market is over-saturated
– Compared to non-fiction, there are fewer barriers to entry
34. Step Five:
Establishing an Online Presence
• What makes yours unique?
• Beating the competition for “eyes”
• Balancing content and entertainment
• Doing-it-yourself…or…?
35. What Makes Your Online Material Unique?
• Are you providing something people can’t get
anywhere else or get as easily?
• Are you aiming at the right attention span of online
tourists?
• Think of your website the same way as what you
write – tell people a story
• Doing-it-yourself…or…?
36. Step Six:
Social Media-Challenges and Opportunities
• Everyone is doing it
• Vote early and often
• Building a following
• Sustaining momentum
37. Social Media Increases Your Reach
• 74% of online adults use social networking sites
• 71% of online adults use Facebook
• 23% of online adults use Twitter
• 26% use Instagram
• 28% use Pinterest
• 28% use LinkedIn
38. I keep six honest serving-men
(They taught me all I knew);
Their names are What and Why and When
And How and Where and Who.
Rudyard Kipling
The Elephant’s Child
39. Some Things to Consider Before You Write
• Who are you writing for?
• What are you going to write?
• Where are you going to write?
• When are you going to write?
• Why are you going to write?
• How are you going to write?
40. “Storytelling is as human as breathing. Literature, since
it emerged 4,000 years ago, has shaped the lives of
most humans on planet Earth. We are what we read.”
John Sutherland
“Book People”
41. A Preview of Tomorrow’s Workshop
Finding the Heart of Your Story: Your Original Idea
“This session will help attendees explore the most basic – yet
most important – element of the writing craft, the original idea
that is the essence of your story. We will first examine how
generating this original idea works for both fiction and non-
fiction. We will deep-dive into where original ideas come from
and then progress to how to shape that kernel of an idea into
novel, narrative non-fiction, or even a screenplay. Attendees will
be provided with online access to all workshop material.”
42. Finding the Heart of Your Story:
Your Original Idea
• Your Original Idea: Spark That Starts the Process
• Fanning the Flame: From a Spark to a Fire
• Focusing Your Idea: Divergent to Convergent
• Is It Just a Story – Or Something More?
• Turing the Fire Into a Narrative
• Taming the Beast and Writing Your Novel
43. Your Original Idea:
The Spark That Starts the Process
• The coolest thing about writing!
• Only you are the steward of your original idea
• Can you state your idea in one sentence?
• Ideas can be absolutely anything
• Outward vs. inward focus
• A few examples
44. “Deconstructing” a Movie Log Line
The subject of the sentence will describe (1) an
imperfect but passionate and active protagonist. The
verb will depict (2) the battle. And the direct object will
describe (3) an insurmountable antagonist who tries to
stop the protagonist from reaching (4) a physical goal
on account of (5) the stakes, if the goal is not reached.
47. James Hall – Hit Lit
• Gone with the Wind
• Peyton Place
• To Kill a Mockingbird
• Valley of the Dolls
• The Godfather
• The Exorcist
• Jaws
• The Dead Zone
• The Hunt for Red October
• The Firm
• The Bridges of Madison County
• The Da Vinci Code
48.
49.
50. “Listen, Stephen King used to write in the washroom of his trailer
after his kids went to sleep. Harlan Ellison wrote in the stall of a
bathroom of his barracks during boot camp. Elmore Leonard got
up at 5 AM every morning to write before work. Every time my
alarm goes off at 5 AM and I don’t want to get up, or I would
rather sit down after work and play a videogame, I think about
those guys. Take care of your family. They need you and love you.
Make time for them. Then stop screwing around and finish your
damn book.”
Bernard Schaffer
Whitechapel: The Final Stand of Sherlock Holmes
53. “If you decide to become a professional writer, you
must, broadly speaking, decide whether you wish to
write for fame, for pleasure, or for money.”
Ian Fleming
How to Write a Thriller
