Now "the personal productivity guru" (Fast Company) shows readers how to increase their ability to work better, not harder every day. Based on Allen's highly popular e-newsletter, Ready for Anything offers readers 52 ways to immediately clear your head for creativity, focus your attention, create structures that work, and take action to get things moving. With wit, inspiration, and know-how, Allen shows readers how to make things happen with less effort and stress, and lots more energy, creativity, and effectiveness. Ready for Anything is the perfect book for anyone wanting to work and live at his or her very best.

    Avoid Grammatical Minefields with this Entertaining GuideConfused about when to use "its" or "it's" or the correct spelling of "principal" and "principle"? My Grammar and I...or Should That Be me? is a refresher course for anyone who has ever been stumped by spelling confusion, dangling modifiers, split infinities, or for those who have no idea what these things even are.Clever, informative, and fun, this delightful little handbook offers practical and humorous guidance on how to avoid falling into language pitfalls.* Sentence Structure: Let's ponder the subject or object: Is it "I" or is it "me"?* Parts of Speech: "whose" or "who's"? "which" or "that"?* Punctuation: So where does that comma go, anyway?* Spelling and Confusables: There are times when the spelling "rules" confuse.* Elements of Style: You'll find there's lots more to know about grammar.* ...and for grammar know-it-alls, there are entertaining "Smart Aleck" tidbits throughout.

    Gaze into the mile-deep chasm of the Grand Canyon, tap into the pulse of iconic cities like New York, or let sultry southern music and food stir your soul; all with your trusted travel companion. Get to the heart of the USA and begin your journey now!Inside Lonely Planet USA Travel Guide:Color maps and images throughoutHighlights and itineraries help you tailor your trip to your personal needs and interestsInsider tips to save time and money and get around like a local, avoiding crowds and trouble spotsEssential info at your fingertips - hours of operation, phone numbers, websites, transit tips, pricesHonest reviews for all budgets - eating, sleeping, sight-seeing, going out, shopping, hidden gems that most guidebooks missCultural insights give you a richer, more rewarding travel experience - including history, art, literature, cinema, music, architecture, politics, landscapes, national parks, wildlife, cuisine and wineOver 96 mapsCovers New England, New York, the Mid-Atlantic, Florida, the South, Great Lakes, Great Plains, Texas, Rocky Mountains, Southwest, Pacific Northwest, California, Alaska, Hawaii, and moreeBook Features: (Best viewed on tablet devices and smartphones)Downloadable PDF and offline maps prevent roaming and data chargesEffortlessly navigate and jump between maps and reviewsAdd notes to personalize your guidebook experienceSeamlessly flip between pagesBookmarks and speedy search capabilities get you to key pages in a flashEmbedded links to recommendations' websitesZoom-in maps and imagesInbuilt dictionary for quick referencingThe Perfect Choice: Lonely Planet USA , our most comprehensive guide to the USA, is perfect for both exploring top sights and taking roads less travelled.Looking for just the highlights of the USA? Check out Lonely Planet Discover USA, a photo-rich guide to the country's most popular attractions.Looking for a guide focused on New York City, San Francisco or Los Angeles? Check out our Lonely Planet New York City guide, San Francisco guide, and Los Angeles, San Diego & Southern California guide for a comprehensive look at all these cities has to offer; Discover New York City or Discover San Francisco , photo-rich guides focused on these cities' most popular attractions; or Lonely Planet Pocket New York City, Pocket San Francisco , and Pocket Los Angeles guides, handy-sized guides focused on the can't-miss sights for a quick trip.Authors: Written and researched by Lonely Planet.About Lonely Planet: Since 1973, Lonely Planet has become the world's leading travel media company with guidebooks to every destination, an award-winning website, mobile and digital travel products, and a dedicated traveler community. Lonely Planet covers must-see spots but also enables curious travelers to get off beaten paths to understand more of the culture of the places in which they find themselves.

    Personal Geographies gives you the tools and techniques you'll need to create artful maps of your self, your experiences and your personal journey. Chart the innermost workings of your mind, document your artistic path and create an unfolding maze of your future dreams and goals.Inside Personal Geographies you'll discover:- 21 mixed-media map projects featuring artistic techniques like working with alcohol inks and pochoir, painting on a black surface and carving custom stamps - Insight into the world of traditional and contemporary maps and how they relate to and inspire personal mapmaking - A gallery of maps by contributors from around the world to spark your own creativityFrom mapping your head, hands and heart to recording powerful memories or experiences, the maps in Personal Geographies are a gateway into the fascinating and meaningful world of you.

    But how can you be the person who comes up with those ideas? In this revised and expanded edition of his groundbreaking Thinkertoys, creativity expert Michael Michalko reveals life-changing tools that will help you think like a genius. From the linear to the intuitive, this comprehensive handbook details ingenious creative-thinking techniques for approaching problems in unconventional ways. Through fun and thought-provoking exercises, you’ll learn how to create original ideas that will improve your personal life and your business life. Michalko’s techniques show you how to look at the same information as everyone else and see something different.  With hundreds of hints, tricks, tips, tales, and puzzles, Thinkertoys will open your mind to a world of innovative solutions to everyday and not-so-everyday problems.

    The featured work ranges from lettering expert Jill K. Berry's beautifully calligraphied travel journals to Jeannette Sclar's whimsical gardening books, and the techniques include everything from toner-based transfer to stitching with fabric and paper. With over 200 inspirational photos to guide them, even beginners can create works of art right from the start.

    In the richly illustrated pages of this book, she unfolds a myriad of wonders — the pattern of a bee abdomen, varieties of ice forms and sky colors, the joys of a garden — and shows us how to capture them on the page. Hinchman's respect for the miracle of our five senses, and her passion for what they can tell us about the world, is contagious. "Start with a smell, like a crushed marigold leaf, the sea, coal smoke," she advises, and from such raw materials begin to "decant the stuff of life" into journal form, "where it remains fresh, still tasting of its source." Even for one who has no intention of journal-keeping, to delve into Hinchman's own work is to see with new eyes. A Trail Through Leaves is a true gift and inspiration, a treasure-box of ways to write, draw, and be alive to the world. * "This is an important book, brilliantly produced. Its light will linger a long, long time." — John R. Stilgoe, professor in the history of landscape, Harvard University * "[B]oth a rich work of performance art and a personal growth tool with many handles." — Boston Globe

    Still, only a few of us have the discipline to make it past the first few entries, and fewer still manage to create diaries whose insight and visual beauty can inspire anyone but their authors. Drawing from Life: The Journal as Art is an exploration of these exceptionsbooks of obsessive wonder filled to their borders with drawings, sketches, watercolors, graphs, charts, lists, collages, portraits, and photographs. Jennifer New takes readers on a spirited tour into the private worlds of journal keepersan architect, a traveler, a film director, an archeologist, a cancer patient, a songwriter, a quiltmaker, a gardener, an artist, a cyclist, and a scientist, to name just a fewillustrating a broad range of journaling styles and techniques that in the end show how each of us can go about documenting our everyday lives. Excerpts from journals by such artists as Maira Kalman, Steven Holl, David Byrne, and Mike Figgis give us a peek at how creative souls observe, reflect, and explore.For those who already keep a journal, Drawing from Life will be an inspiration. For those who have always wanted toor tried and failedit might just be the motivation needed to get past that first week.

     This clever and pithy book challenges introverts to take ownership of their personalities...with quiet strength. Sophia Dembling asserts that the introvert’s lifestyle is not “wrong” or lacking, as society or extroverts would have us believe. Through a combination of personal insights and psychology, The Introvert’s Way helps and encourages introverts to embrace their nature, to respect traits they may have been ashamed of and reframe them as assets. You’re not shy; rather, you appreciate the joys of quiet. You’re not antisocial; instead, you enjoy recharging through time alone. You’re not unfriendly, but you do find more meaning in one-on-one connections than large gatherings. By honoring what makes them unique, this astute and inspiring book challenges introverts to “own” their introversion, igniting a quiet revolution that will change how they see themselves and how they engage with the world.

    To believers, the Ark was the vessel holding the stone tablets of the Ten Commandments. The bible contains hundreds of references to the Ark's power to level mountains, destroy armies & lay waste to cities. The Ark itself, however, mysteriously disappears from recorded history sometime after the building of the Temple of Solomon. After ten years of searching thru archives in Europe & the Middle East, as well as braving the real-life dangers of a bloody civil war in Ethiopia, Hancock has succeeded where scores of others have failed. This intrepid journalist has tracked down the true story behind the legends--revealing where the Ark is today, how it got there & why it remains hidden. Part fascinating scholarship, part entertaining adventure yarn, tying together some of the most intriguing tales of all time--from the Knights Templar & Prester John to Parsival & the Holy Grail--this book will appeal to anyone fascinated by the revelation of hidden truths.

    Anderson, M.J. Rose, Heather Graham, J.A. Konrath, Gayle Lynds, Alexandra Sokoloff, Jonathan Maberry, and more. How to develop your craft, improve your writing, get an agent, promote your work, embrace the digital age, and prepare yourself for the coming changes in the publishing industry. Edited by Scott Nicholson.

    Just look up the weak verb you'd like to replace, and choose a stronger verb from the alphabetized lists. For example: Weak: Sally walked across the room. Stronger: Sally scurried across the room. Weak: Harry lightly touched the edge of the book. Stronger: Harry trailed his fingers along the edge of the book. Weak: Karen ran as quickly as she could to her closet. Stronger: Karen charged her closet in a panic. Weak: Lucy hit her palm on the desk. Stronger: Lucy smacked her palm on the desk. Ready to weed out the weak verbs and not-so-helpful adverbs in your writing and replace them with strong verbs? Let's get started! Indie Author Resources Book 2

    Six-Figure Freelancing shows writers how to make the most of the ballooning freelance industry by adopting a business-like approach to their craft, while offering insightful, first-hand advice to help maximize time and profit.• Includes worksheets and templates to assess and establish the best possible business strategy• Advice on time management and repurposing material for multiple markets, as well as how to gain a competitive edge in a growing market

    Stone, a former assistant professor at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, draws on his experience as novelist, writing instructor, and military officer to help get you and your writing into tip-top shape.This boot-camp-in-a-book includes 101 carefully crafted drills designed to show you how to:Identify and develop story ideas with laser-like perceptionCreate realistic "alpha" characters who can take charge of any sceneKnow what motivates your protagonist's enemy so that you can amp up the conflictOutline your story to avoid sneak attacks from flawed plot twistsDodge the land mines of bad writing like Deadly Modifier Buildup (DMBU)Triage your scenes to ensure a thorough and precise revision processPlus, there's a twelve-week boot camp battle plan that you can use to stay the course and finish your novel.Novelist's Boot Camp provides you with all the ammunition you need to approach your work with dedication, confidence, and skill. Now, report for duty and start writing that bestseller!

    McManus not only calls us to reclaim our creative essence but reveals how we can craft our lives into a work of art. There are no shortcuts to quality, and McManus celebrates the spiritual process that can help us discover our true selves.McManus demonstrates that we all carry within us the essence of an artist. We all need to create, to be a part of a process that brings to the world something beautiful, good, and true, in order to allow our souls to come to life. It's not only the quality of the ingredients we use to build our lives that matter, but the care we bring to the process itself. Just like baking artisan bread, it's a process that's crafted over time. And God has something to say about how we craft our lives. With poignant, inspirational stories and insights from art, life, history, and scripture interspersed throughout, McManus walks readers through the process of crafting a life of beauty and wonder.