Reddit mentions: The best communication improvement books

u/ExpressNess I think Communication Studies is a fun minor to have if you are looking to use computer science to create positive change in society or communicate better with people. It's a lot valuable life-skills, work/life relationship skills, ethical reasoning skills, and soft-skills that non-programming Computer Science classes try to teach and just aren't able to teach effectively. I personally only know 3 other people in Computer Science actively pursuing it. Here's my experience:

Comm Theory is definitely a harder class in my opinion (it's a pre-req) because of memorization and if you aren't used to studying human communication and relationships, but it's definitely valuable in learning. A lot of things seem like common sense but they are based on different theories.

Textbook: https://www.amazon.com/First-Communication-Theory-Conversations-Theorists-ebook/dp/B00VF61QTC/ref=sr_1_3?crid=238JE3CAIS2CI&keywords=communication+communication+communication&qid=1554518401&s=books&sprefix=communication+communication+comm%2Cstripbooks%2C210&sr=1-3

Beyond that class, there's a lot of cool opportunities and fun and useful classes.

I already had public speaking out of the way coming to UNC Charlotte and took COMM 2102 - Advanced Public Speaking to enhance my public speaking abilities since I do a lot of workshops and talks in tech. I've learned so many other ways to give speeches that I've never have thought about. It's gotten me skills to be confident enough to write an outline and practice a speech to submit for a TED talk. Also, I learned a bit of voice acting.

COMM-3120 Mass Media was fun! I took it with Prof. Tim Horne online and basically watched a lot of Netflix and wrote about how media and tech shapes manipulation of our reality. If anything, I learned a lot of skills to spot fake news if I daresay.

COMM-3136 Leadership, and Service with Adam Burden was amazing. Got to do volunteering work and meet a lot of student leaders on campus and learn about leading a team. The things I've learned in that class has helped me in a lot of group projects and I learned a lot on my personal strengths and values when working in teams and organizations. There's a service project which is just group volunteering which does help you with your soft-skills on your resume. It's based on relational leadership:

This is an awesome textbook that's used for that class: https://www.amazon.com/Exploring-Leadership-College-Students-Difference/dp/1118399471

There also a lot about the process of being inclusive and empowering others purposefully and ethically which a lot of tech companies are looking at as it's generally a problem in the tech industry.

Global Media - You learn a lot of views of the whole world and how technology effects culture and vice versa. It really opens up on a lot of ethical perspectives on how tech and media effects democracy and marginalized communities. Really, I think it the class should be called "Working towards achieving world peace through emerging tech, civilizations, media, and economies" tbh. Also, the professor is famous, worked for the United Nations, and wrote the textbook.

Textbook: https://www.amazon.com/Citizenship-Democracies-Engagement-Marginalized-Communities-ebook/dp/B075R3YXJ2/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=democracy+marginalized+economies&qid=1554517749&s=books&sr=1-1

For a related LBST 2102 Global Connections class, I'd also recommend taking Language, Media, and Peace with Prof. Jillian Wagner at the same time with Global Media or Mass Media if possible. This class is similar but focuses on the power of language and peace.

There's also Interpersonal Communications, Group Communications, etc...

There is a time for silence and watching the mind, and there is a time to garner wisdom from those who have gone before you. Learn by reading and watching videos about whatever interests you. Before I expand on that, I will say I've meditated over 20 years and it has changed my life for the better. It can be hard for the first year or two, but there are rewards at that time, too. It is not a quick fix, but it does change your perspective. However, it's usually best to start meditating before the doo-doo hits the fan. But, if you want to start, there is no time like now.

Read Ken Wilber's works. Start with A Brief History of Everything. There is a lot on the internet about KW, his work is excellent, but he can't choose his friends and I'd stay away from Andrew Cohen and others. Also, you don't have to do his retreats or anything. People always come back and say they are so expensive. I've never done any, but KWs works really changed my life. I came to really understand why fundamentalists (of any religion) are that way and why there are people who just "don't get it."

Jack Kornfield is a great meditation teacher with a lot of wisdom. Some of his talks are here, on DharmaSeed.org. Joseph Goldstein is also good, but his work in much of the last 10 years has been for more advanced meditators, here.

You could read the story of Angulimala (do a google search and read the various versions, it's a big story in India and some Asian countries), who murdered many people, and how the Buddha helped him. If you read, read through all the way to the end because it's a really cool ending, and one I think you will find helpful to you right now.

Another thing to consider is journaling. Just write your thoughts and emotions. A book that helped me a lot is Reflective Journaling -- free pdf on that site.

Although in our culture we often identify ourselves by our jobs, bank account, appearance, etc, we are none of these, because if we were these, there would not be a beginning nor end to them. What doesn't start nor end? We are the sweet silent emptiness behind the form, and if we start to talk about that, we've missed, too. Our kindness and truthfulness is what approaches our true nature.

Albert Einstein said:

>The ideals that have lighted my way, and time after time given me courage to face life cheerfully have been kindness, beauty, and truth."

The following resources helped me immensely:

1) Finding someone in-person

Go to psychologytoday.com -> Find a Therapist -> Enter your location -> Scroll down on the side until you see "Types of Therapy" and expand to see all the options -> Select "Motivational Interviewing" or "Coaching"

2) YouTuber Dan O'Connor (he offers online courses but also has tons of free YouTube content)

3) Books:

How to Win Friends and Influence People (Classic and helpful/condensed versions are great too)

Communicating Effectively For Dummies (the "For Dummies" series is straight forward and inexpensive)

4) Myers-Briggs Personality Test:

This can help you gain a sense of self and why you communicate a certain way vs. other personalities. I LOVED learning about this. It is incredible and so so helpful.

https://www.16personalities.com/free-personality-test (free version)

https://www.mbtionline.com/TaketheMBTI (official version/costs $50)

5) Communication Courses at a local college

Look to see what your local college offers! Business Communication, Psychology courses, and Sociology are all fantastic ways to learn!

>I was thinking of making an Anki deck with grammar points and practicing making sentences from that, but

At the bottom of this message is a copy/paste from a prior post. It's general advice, perhaps you'll find it helpful. In regards to your specific question:

• I agree, reviewing dozens grammar patterns in Anki will quickly get boring.
  
• The most important grammar patterns are are those you see/hear/read every day. It's more useful to learn those patterns really well rather than developing a broad but shallow understanding ones you'll rarely hear or use. (Note: as a student you may have to review more patterns than helpful because you will be tested on them).
  
• Building on the prior point, the patterns you review should be sourced from the media you consume and the conversations you have.
  
  One thing you can try is keeping a journal. It's a great way to reinforce grammar and it's more holistic than writing practice sentences in isolation. You don't need to write much nor be especially creative. Each day pick one pattern and build a short paragraph around it. Spend no more than 10-15 minutes doing this. The following day, before you write, take a moment to review the prior day(s) writings/patterns. If possible, share your journal with a native speaking friend and ask them to provide feedback using the shared document's "comments" function. (Keep the comments as a record and do not "resolve" them). Do not edit your original text; you want to keep it as a record as well. (Any edits your partner wants to make can be added in-line as new text (in a different color), or in a separate paragraph. I find it easier to make quick comparisons with this method than using a red line/mark up function).
  
  Finally, here is a list of grammar resources that might help you:
  
  Appropriate for Beginning Learners
  
  
• [Allset Learning Grammar Wiki] (https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Main_Page)
  
• Modern Mandarin Chinese Grammar: A Practical Guide
  
• Basic Patterns of Chinese Grammar
  
• Schuam's Outlines of Chinese Grammar
  
  Appropriate for Intermediate or Advanced Learners
  
  
• An A to Z Grammar for Chinese Language Learners, (traditional only) ISBN 9789570851069
  
• Common Chinese Patterns 330
  
• A Guide to Proper Usage of Spoken Chinese
  
• Error Analysis of 900 Sample Sentences
  
• A Learn's Handbook of Modern Chinese Written Expressions
  
  --------------
  
  Repetition is the key to success, specifically: 1) high volume, 2) varied, 3) contextual, 4) mutual reinforcing, 5) enjoyable.
  
  
• Varied: learning/using grammar and vocabulary through different topics and mediums
  
• Contextual: not learning vocabulary/grammar in isolation
  
• Mutual reinforcing: learning activities that reinforce and/or build upon each other
  
• Enjoyable: liking the topic and methods through which you are learning it
  
  

“How much power does the media have?” Sounds like a question of measurement, but that’s an oversimplification. This is a question that’s been asked by many social scientists for literally decades, and the research into newer forms of media is ongoing. It’s far too vast a literature to describe in a Reddit comment. I am literally getting a PhD in this and I will never be able to read it all.

But, in short, the media does have an effect of some size on almost everyone because almost everyone consumes media. Most do so for both entertainment and information, and that then influences our attitudes and beliefs, the way we think about social reality (what the society we are in is like even though we will never meet even 1% of the people in it, what our position is in that society and how it relates to other people or groups), which in turn influences our judgements/decisions and behavior choices. There are effects for both entertainment and informational media. It may be different effects for different people or groups, depending on your personality and social identity (or rather, identities). It may be different sizes of effects depending on your personal style of information processing and volume of information, personal or information consumption circumstances, and other forms of information you consume and have access to and use, like interpersonal conversations or direct experience. But effects exist in some size for most people a significant amount of the time.

Media is just a systematic way of distributing or consuming information and stories, usually such that it doesn’t require an in-person transfer anymore. Much of the power of media derives from the power of information and the power of stories. Information and stories existed before media in general and mass media in particular. If you think you are influenced by and use information, then you can be influenced by media.

One common trope used by such researchers is that media do not successfully tell you what to think, but DOES succeed in telling you what to think ABOUT. (This isn’t quite true...sometimes the media can successfully tell you what to think, but it’s much more difficult because people aren’t passive consumers, any more than they are of religion or things told to them by their parents or friends.) Know that trope how “Don’t think of an elephant” doesn’t work because you have to think of the concept of an elephant in the process of consuming the words? And now you are thinking about elephants, positively or hatefully or with boredom but you are still thinking about them. Media effects and media power is more like that.

That said, media effects do not exist in a vacuum and you don’t consume media in a vacuum. They are enhanced or contradicted by your family, your friends and peers, your coworkers and industry, and other elements of your social world in a cycle. Would you say your parents had no effect on the way you think about things and the decisions you make and the way you behave? No. Would you say they have an absolute effect such that you are exactly what they made you and what they intended? Also no. Even if you went against the grain, what they did influenced you specifically enough to reject it. Parenting is powerful, but it’s not determinate. Same for media.

Don’t think of media as brainwashing or copy/paste editing. Thing of it more like the flow of a river you are swimming in. It pulls and pushes you in a particular direction and influences where you end up, but it’s not the only element of the equation in the journey nor the destination. You aren’t totally powerless in the river but you also aren’t in total control, and how much you can influence where you end up compared to an Olympic swimmer compared to a young child or some other person varies.

If you want to know what kinds of effects exist and have been demonstrated, the search term you are looking for is “media effects” or “media impact” and you can look in media psychology, communication, political communication, political science, social psychology and sociology academic disciplines for books and studies.

If you want a place to start, my favorite overview book is “Media Effects: Advances in Theory and Research” by Bryant and Oliver. The 3rd edition is here: https://www.amazon.com/Media-Effects-Advances-Theory-Research/dp/0805864504
but you can get a free sample intro on the Kindle version to get an overview of the state of the research at the beginning, and either rent it or search for individual chapters online based on your interest, some of which have been posted for free fair use purposes by their authors. I like agenda setting, priming, framing, and cultivation theory, but there are many more.

Hope that helps.

It sounds to me like psychedelics have catalyzed a stage of development for you that many people reach that way, and others reach in different ways. I came to a similar transition (and I'm still in it) without psychedelics, and then embraced psychedelics from that place.

This stage I think you're entering is called many things by many people -- Kohlberg's "post-conventional stage of moral development" being the most popular term in developmental psychology, but not the most helpful. It sounds pretty bland, but the transition into this stage is anything but boring. It's often experienced by individuals as a struggle, crisis, or catastrophe.

My own transition has been a mix of all three, and has taken (so far) about four or five years. I suspect I'm on the exit ramp headed toward a new kind of equilibrium, but I don't feel stabilized here yet, for what it's worth. I've struggled with nihilism, thoughts of suicide, several career changes, loss of community and common ground with old friends, and dissolution of many closely-held beliefs. It's rewarding, though, discovering more of my own truth at each milestone of the journey. Despite the whirlwind of torturous emotions, I wouldn't trade it for anything.

What most defines this new stage is the ability to define the purpose of life in one's own terms without consulting the conventions or norms of society (and that's going to sound to most people like, "oh hey, that's me! I fucking hate the conventions and norms! I must already be at this stage." Don't kid yourself -- being cynical about the mainstream media doesn't mean you know how to abandon moral conventions, and anyway, I wouldn't recommend doing so without being completely forced into it by your own conscience). The reason this transition comes with such emotional turbulence is that many of us derive our psychosocial stability from those same conventions we're questioning. It feels like standing on the branch you're sawing off. A lot of people back down from the challenge, not daring to upend their stable lives, relationships, or resources.

There's another, more subtle way to cheat yourself out of this evolution: it's possible to experience all these upsets and struggles without actually transitioning to a post-conventional frame of reference or completing the stage transition -- you can simply hop from one set of norms into another. If, for instance, you go from being a traditional neoliberal capitalist with ambitions of success and financial security, to suffering an existential crisis, and then find yourself suddenly caring only about the Earth and committing to live in a hippie commune, then you may simply adopt hippie conventions and an environmentalist ethos without searching your own soul first. If you do so, beware; your developmental urge to be free is still lurking beneath the surface, and you'll eventually have to quit playing the conventional game and tend to your own issues of free will, integration, and self-expression.

Carl Jung wrote wonderfully on this topic, often calling it "the psychic ordeal," or simply, "individuation," and I highly recommend reading up on it -- though his writing is a bit dense and perplexing, it's rewarding. Some other authors have taken deep approaches to this quandary, too, and turned out some very helpful guides. My favorites have been Ken Wilber (A Brief History of Everything is a profound framework for understanding the development of your own psyche), Terence McKenna (whom you're probably well acquainted with, if you're into the psychedelic side of this journey), and unexpectedly, Jordan Peterson (who often rubs me the wrong way, but his Maps of Meaning lecture series is excellent for both scholarship and personal philosophy). Each of these guys has an incomplete map of the territory, and their map is still far, far away from any other person's experience on the journey, but having a few maps is comforting as fuck, and sometimes important to help you orient yourself.

Lastly, even though this journey is completely individual, it helps to know other people who are somewhere on the path, taking a similar journey or looking back at it from a new place. The times I've spent talking even briefly to others in the struggle -- whether they were older or younger, more or less experienced than me, more or less intelligent, or more or less informed -- has been comforting and stabilizing. I've been wholeheartedly surprised and delighted by the depth of wisdom that a 21-year-old will share when confronting nihilism and disillusionment.

If you'd like to connect and compare notes on the journey, or just want to shoot the shit, PM me. I'm not a trained expert, but I've got empathy for your struggle, and could always use a good conversation with a fellow skeptic of convention. Good luck to you, fellow traveler.

I noticed most of these posts are about fiction. I feel like all the books I read change my life, but the biggest ones that changed the way I look at the world have been:

Pop Science books by Steven Johnson (Emergence, Everything Bad is Good For You, Where Good Ideas Come From) and Malcolm Gladwell (Blink, Tipping Point, Outliers). These books changed all of my preconceived notions, and gave me a drive to search for intelligent outside perspectives. Emergence was especially influential. I approach Emergence in an almost religious way, you can see "God" or whatever you would call it, in Emergent intelligent behavior, a more science-friendly conception of God, I feel the same way when I watch Koyaanisqaatsi.

A Brief History of Everything by Ken Wilber. Most people either like Ken Wilber or hate him. To me, he gives a good model of looking at religion, spirituality, science, society, myth, and the way different people think similar to Joseph Campbell. If you ever wonder why religious people think a certain way, and scientific people and postmodern philosophers think a different way, this is the book.

The Shock Doctrine by Naomi Klein. I didn't even finish this book because I got to depressed. It may be pretty biased, but it is really one of the best geopolitical books out there. I learned everything I needed to know about foreign policy and the economic conflict going on around the world.

EDIT: Another great one is The Book by Alan Watts

Stephen Littlejohn's book Theories of Human Communication (probably on its 15th edition by now) is a basic overview of most com theories. I personally think the book has been over edited to death and is very sterile but it is a flagbearer book. Well-respected. https://www.amazon.com/Theories-Communication-Eleventh-Stephen-Littlejohn/dp/1478634057/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_14_img_0?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=SF4YEF2TEVC9CJ61032D

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A graduate level read that is a really good overview of the scope of com theories is this book by Robert Craig and Heidi Mueller: https://www.amazon.com/Theorizing-Communication-Readings-Across-Traditions/dp/1412952379/ref=sr_1_fkmrnull_2?keywords=communication+theory+robert+craig&qid=1557254455&s=books&sr=1-2-fkmrnull

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This book by Shepherd, Striphas, and St. John is also one that I like...it is a different approach, more laid back in its writing and it tries to approach communication from a different angle. The book is a series of essays by prominent scholars explaining how they "see" communication. Worth checking out. https://www.amazon.com/Communication-as-Perspectives-Gregory-Shepherd/dp/1412906571/ref=sr_1_1

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Kathy Miller's communication theory book is good as well but I haven't seen any of the newer editions. I used to teach out of that book 10 years ago and liked it. https://www.amazon.com/Communication-Theories-Perspectives-Processes-Contexts/dp/0767405005

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You should be able to find a used copy of all these books for not that much money. There are plenty of com theory books out there, but these are good starting points and will prep you well for your MA program.

I think the stage is set for a successor structure that serves the purpose of a union, but is radically different from most (if not all) current unions.

I think the pieces are in place for this, demand is there, but I do not see any action in developing anything different or interesting. Whatever this is, the networked economy will be its beating heart.

I think information markets will play a role. But that's a guess.

Work has changed radically. Workers have changed radically. Industries have changed radically (due to the net and IT). Unions ...not so much. The successor structure/organization would have to be adaptable and responsive and resilient in ways the current union is nothing of the kind.

== Interesting ==

Venture Labor: Work and the Burden of Risk in Innovative Industries

Glassdoor, an inside look at jobs and companies would be the kind of tool such a successor might employ.

The "B" Corporation could very well play a part, as could crowdfunding. (Or a variant that mixes in networked funding and collective bargaining with a dash of social media -- "upvote - downvote" ...hmmm.)

Alright, well I have given it a second read and realized that while you dance around what you want to write about in your first paragraph, you do not state what you are going to write about. Even if the prompt is what you think it is, I would suggest saying: "It is the intention here to discuss how innovation always has two sides to it." Moreover, it that is the prompt, pick a side. It is OK to acknowledge that two sides exist, but take a side and stick to it as if you are Richard Dawkins being confronted by Bill O'Reilly. Show that you can use reason while being reasonable.

"Every time someone will invent something great that will benefit mankind. There's always someone else that will take what's invented and make it bad." This is why when you get accepted to college you need to have someone else read over your work. People become attached to what they write and our fragments make sense.

You talk about how radiation poisoning sucks... You can do that but considering you went the compare and contrast route (because there are two sides to every coin) you need to discuss how fossil fuels kill people. Moreover, what do you know about DNA and how fragile it is? Ideally you could source this statement but I do not know if it that is allowed in this paper. If not you need to get creative. (It may be what they are looking for). Maybe try saying that while fossil fuels are harmful to our environment and affect the things outside of our body making skin cancer more relevant, one nuclear spill can put radiation into our water supply that is essentially irreversible and would immediately hurt people from the inside out with less time for humans to adapt. Anyways I am getting off point here.

Your last paragraph (what should be a conclusion) does sum up what you are trying to say. It does not however sum up how you were trying to say it. After examining and comparing x, y, and z, we can now conclude that...

You are obviously a good writer and you make interesting points. Always question why you are putting something into words. As you progress in your studies, I seriously suggestpicking up a copy of this to keep on your desk. Everyone should not just you. Writing is a dying art according to my more senior profs and people are entering university not knowing how to write an essay or cite properly.

Also, be aware that your essay may have met the status quo. That said, the people on the other side are humans too and may see a fragment and say "thats the end of that" because they have not had their coffee yet or their dog shat on their rug last night. The best advice I can give you as you move forward is to be persistent to achieve your goals.

Good Luck and I hope I did not come off as too much of a dick. I have never gotten a 100% on a paper and I may be projecting my years of profs nit-picking through my work on to you. But hey, it is their job to do that so we let the world keep turning.

Over the years, have you felt the content of your show (regarding current events) has contributed to the public sphere of media? In a world with so much noise, emotional-bred word spinning, and generally bottom-of-the-barrel news reporting have you felt that your comedy segments have served the role of counter-reporting against biased news outlets?

In the chapter Political Culture Jamming by Warner (pages 145-154 of Dines & Humez) The Daily Show was attributed as a form of reverse political culture jamming.

In essence, the comedy in your show criticizing mainstream media on the many "Wtf?" things they would say was a form of political culture jamming. Your show's content counter-acted the emotion-infused "news" and "political coverage" of news outlets with your own comedy-infused "news" and "political coverage". In a way, it was a reliable source of information on political, domestic, and international matters because the comedy behind the segments revolved around taking the "content" from news outlets that are supposed to be "fair and unbiased" and made fun of them for being the opposite. In actuality, your counter-content allowed your viewers to gain entertainment from the comedy behind the situations, but also to make their own decisions on the issues in a serious context--whether they realized it or not.

If you have time, do you think that your form of news reporting is actually a necessity? Personally, I think those that have watched your show (including myself) have benefited from yours, and the writers work.

Without someone standing on the side of the road with a sign that says, "Hey, you're being an asshole!", I think many people (and politicians) traveling the road would feel more freedom to act like an asshole. We need more The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and The Colbert Report with Steven Colbert!

I know I'm late to the game, but I just want to write you some additional information and critique some other comments. There are many anthropologists that have examined this question, like Asif Agha, Greg Urban, Zane Goebel, and indeed some have argued that this is really the only thing that distinguishes anthropological linguistics from linguistics proper. Anthropology is considered to be 4-field: Biology, Sociocultural, Archaeology and Linguistics. Here. is a paper that attempts to explain the difference.

If you really want to know the anthropological perspective, Agha's book Language and Social Relations will tell you everything you need to know in terms of theoretical background. A term you'll want to familiarize yourself with is "register" which simply put is a a manner of speaking that is recognized by others as emblematic of a particular social position and the relationships that position entails. Recognition implies that the hearer has some internal model for that register. When many people have these models (they are referred to as stereotypes of indexicality), than this is the realm of anthropologists, certainly. There are obvious examples like professional registers (the fact that you can imitate a lawyer by saying, "I object!" indicates that indeed you possess some sort of an internal model), and not so obvious examples, which I'll present shortly. There are even manners of speaking that characterize groups of people, BUT, are not recognized as such by those speaking it or those hearing it: this is not the realm of Anthropologists.

The papers that rusoved, although are really cool, don't answer your question. Not even a little, I don't think. They simply confirm your observation, that some people have certain perceptions of manners of speaking. He references socially constructed meanings, but doesn't address how in fact they are constructed, which is the heart of your question. I am going to give you some papers that do in fact try to do this empirically. Agha's book alone will point you to quite a few, but here's some more:

Enregistering Ethnicity and Hybridity in Indonesia, by Zane Goebel

What does Language Remember? Indexical Inversion and the Naturalized History of Japanese Women, by Miyako Inoue (This is a personal favorite).

Gay Language and Indonesia: Registering Belonging, by Boellstorf

Reclaiming Sacred Sparks: Linguistic Syncretism and Gendered Language Shift among Hasidic Jews in New York, by Ayala Fader

Those naughty teenage girls: Japanese Kogals, Slang, and Media Assessments, by Laura Miller

Stereotypes and registers of Honorific Language

Mobile phones and Mipoho’s prophecy: The powers and dangers of flying language, by Janet McIntosh

Pronouns of Address in Swedish: Social Class Semantics and a Changing System, by C.B. Paulston

Social Indexicality in French Pronominal Address, Janet Morford

Anyways, just hoping to provide a different perspective.

I definitely agree that it's worth it to engage such conversation (though only when you have both the time and inclination so that you're not appearing antsy or overly aggressive).

One of the other good things that I've seen done is to ask if there is any evidence that anyone could provide that would cause them to change their mind. Tell them to ignore whether they think it is possible that any such evidence might arise; but, if something shown to them that they could independently verify that directly contradicted their bible verses, would they be willing to change their belief about the truth of even a single verse? If they answer that no evidence would ever change their mind then they have admitted they are too closed-minded to have any kind of productive conversation and they're admitting they not actually seeking the truth.

Lastly, make sure you're not only talking about items of data like science facts or the specifics about what a particular verse in the bible says. You have to find some way of reaching them emotionally since most of the death grip on their beliefs originates from an emotional process (including self-identity) that facts will help with but will be nearly useless on their own. [See: Boghissian's "A Manual for Creating Atheists" and Romm's "Language Intelligence: Lessons on persuasion from Jesus, Shakespeare, Lincoln, and Lady Gaga" for making your spontaneous interaction with proselytizers more satisfying.

Plenty of writers started late. You're fine. Do NOT let bullshit like this slow you down. Here are a few suggestions:

1. Have a place where you can easily focus. Whether it be your room, the library, or in the middle of nowhere, just find somewhere you can be without distractions.
   
   
2. Read. Read a lot, and read deeply and critically. Underline parts you like, and try to think about the author's process. Want to write thrillers? Read a bunch of thrillers, learn what's been done, try to think of what hasn't. If there's a story you want to read and it hasn't been written, it's up to you to write it. And you don't have to break the bank buying books to read. The library should be your first resource, as well as any places in your area where people drop off unwanted books. Used book stores if you want to buy something, and there are plenty of places online to get cheap E-books. Project Gutenberg is a good place to start for classics. You may even want to try reading poetry. In my opinion reading and writing poetry is excellent for when it comes time to write some prose that isn't just functional. Here's a good place to start
   
   
3. Write. For fuck's sake just WRITE. Don't spend days just thinking about your story, write it. Or at least write down all your ideas and compose an outline. Outlines are very useful for determining what goes where, and doing macro-level thinking about the overall story. If you feel like you're stuck, make an outline. If you're not stuck and are being lazy, stop being lazy. Write the damn story, and don't stop. Do not stop after 3 paragraphs and start editting. Just write, even if it's shit. Especially if it's shit. Often it's the only way to advance your ideas. It is fine if your first draft is dogshit. What is not fine is not having a first draft after six months.
   
   Here are a few youtube channels about writing, and links to some books on writing.
   
   Lessons from the Screenplay This one is focused on scripts, but the concepts translate well when it comes to the overall story.
   
   Terrible Writing Advice These are all examples of what NOT to do.
   
   Just Write Similar to LFTS, but of lesser quality.
   
   Stephen King talking about writing
   
   The Elements of Style The OG writing book.
   
   Style: the art of writing well
   
   Stephen King: On Writing Part memoir and part writing guide. Well worth reading.
   
   
   These are good, but always be on the lookout for more resources.
   
   
   
   My last bit of advice, and probably the most important, is be authentic. It's your story. Write what you want to read, not just what other people want. Say what you want to say, even if it's uncomfortable, even if it's not profitable. Don't be a pussy, and you'll be ok.

Gotcha. Cause like I said, a lot of companies use those for tests either during or after interviews. So after busting my butt for two years after college, I finally got a journalism job. So I apologize for coming off like a D-Bag the other day, since I assumed you were trying to cheat on something that people strive really hard to break into.

But good luck on your studies! Also, try this

Yea, it's a textbook, but I honestly still use my older college edition at my office sometimes. Or if you don't have the latest AP style book, I'd recommend going out to get one. If you wait towards mid-December or mid-May, you should be able to snag a good used copy from Amazon.

i dont know what you're seeing as backpedaling since i re-summarized the exact point i was making and even included a handy guide to help you read better.

> there is more to the industry than a list celebrities and studio execs and key grips and best boys.

nobody is on the other side of your argument. we know there are people behind the scenes. they are workers, not leprechauns. everyone believes they exist.

> Theater workers don't get paid by movie studios they are paid by you the movie goer.

obviously they AREN'T paid by me or this discussion would be moot.

the fact that they are trying to cling to a job market that is fading out of existence isn't any concern for me. the same way i don't really care about the people who used to service pay phones. you either change the way the industry is run to fit the market or your industry fades into obscurity. if you are demanding that people start hindering progress so you can keep your job then just go on welfare so the rest of us can move on.

> the ups driver that brings you the DVD you ordered online.

he'll still keep his job delivering external hard drives that i order on amazon, because his industry is flexible,at least until drones start delivering things. then he has a choice to either stomp his feet and demand people stop using a faster, easier, more efficient method of delivery... or he learns to fly delivery drones

> The system admin the runs the website you view the movies on.

i thought you don't like that guy because he's cutting into the profits from the guys who work at the movie theater. either way, he gets paid with ad revenue and sometimes a very reasonable subscription fee that costs the price of a couple movie tickets for an entire year's worth of entertainment

> Your understanding of the entire system is incredibly narrow so I don't think you have authority to tell anyone who piracy hurts.

I understand it just fine, i just don't care. either get with the times or get left in the dust. it's not my job to take care of your mismanaged antiquated business model, nor is it anyone else's


EDIT: i just wanted to mention that "you just don't understand" is an argument a teenage girl makes when she can't get a ride to the mall, someone who actually has points that haven't been refuted usually brings them up. you could try this book or if you don't have 63 bucks to view a single piece of information once or twice, you can always try downloading it

There are several annual collections published as books. One of my favorites is the Best American series

• Magazine Writing http://www.barnesandnoble.com/mobile/w/the-best-american-magazine-writing-2016-sid-holt/1123830173?ean=9780231181556&st=PLA&sid=BNB_DRS_Core+Shopping+Books_00000000&2sid=Google_&sourceId=PLGoP62465
  
• Sports Writing (There's a lot to be learned about writing from these folks even if sports will not be your friend's focus.) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01912OYOU/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1
  
• Science and Nature Writing https://www.amazon.com/Best-American-Science-Nature-Writing/dp/B01L9AJKYG
  
• Travel writing https://www.hmhco.com/at-home/featured-shops/popular-series/best-american-series/ba-travel
  
• Crime reporting https://www.amazon.com/Best-American-Crime-Reporting-2009/dp/0061490849
  
• Infographics (This is a booming sector of journalism with some of the best job prospects and best pay. These skills also open up the door to stories others won't see) https://www.hmhco.com/at-home/featured-shops/popular-series/best-american-series/ba-infographics
  
  Other journalism-related books that you might consider:
  
• Boys on the Bus, a must-read first person account of journalists' lives on the presidential campaign trail https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00D5BFDKI/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1
  
• The New York Review Abroad: 50 years of International reporting https://www.amazon.com/dp/B008LNDO2E/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1
  -Journalism's Roving Eye, a history of foreign reporting https://www.amazon.com/Journalisms-Roving-Eye-American-Reporting/dp/0807143596
  
• The New New Journalism https://www.amazon.com/New-Journalism-Conversations-Americas-Nonfiction/dp/140003356X
  
• Sex Drugs and Cocoa Puffs https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000FC0U30/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1
  
• The Investigative Reporter's Handbook https://www.amazon.com/Investigative-Reporters-Handbook-Documents-Techniques/dp/031258997
  
• Precision Journalism https://www.amazon.com/Precision-Journalism-Reporters-Introduction-Science/dp/0742510883
  
• The Associated Press Guide to Newswriting http://www.barnesandnoble.com/mobile/p/the-associated-press-guide-to-news-writing-rene-j-cappon/1122972240/2675698122266?st=PLA&sid=BNB_DRS_Marketplace+Shopping+Textbooks_00000000&2sid=Google_&sourceId=PLGoP20449&k_clickid=3x20449

I would say that reading Burke directly is a really bad idea for most people. I found this book: http://www.amazon.com/The-Elements-Dramatism-David-Blakesley/dp/0205334253 rather helpful. It's concise and much clearer than reading directly from Burke.

The book does contain actual Burke passages but with some explanation before and after them. It really helps. Good luck!

I just finished his book Empire of Illusion: The End of Literacy and the Triumph of Spectacle. It's a long essay clearly inspired by The Society of the Spectacle, that pretty much says America as we know it is an illusion in many different levels. And sooner or later we're going to have to recognize the reality of our country and its vast underside that the illusion is used to conceal.

Shakespeare did have a large influence on the language, partially due to being born in the right place at the right time. Before Shakespeare's lifetime, most books printed in Europe were in Latin. During his life, England alone printed thousands of items in English, and literacy rates were rising rapidly.

The Renaissance as a whole added at least 10,000 new words to the English lexicon. As writing in the vernacular became more popular, authors borrowed words--mostly from Latin, French, Spanish, or Dutch-- to fill the holes they saw in English. But how many of these words can we credit directly to Shakespeare?
The Oxford English Dictionary claimed at least 2,000 English words were first used by the playwright. But this is in need of revision, as many of these words were actually used previously by a lesser-known author. The OED is currently being revised, a process that will take many years. But from the pages edited so far, we can conclude that around 30% of words credited to Shakespeare were actually first used by someone else.

But the true genius of William Shakespeare lies in the way he put words together, and created new metaphorical definitions for existing words. The updated OED currently claims that Shakespeare invented around 8,000 new word senses. Here is a good quote by Bernard Levin that shows many of the phrases we use today were invented by Shakespeare.

souces: The Story of English and Bad English

There's an entire discipline in social science (communication) devoted to answering questions like this, and you're kind of asking to have summarized most of the findings of that discipline, which is a tall order.

I'll start by pointing you to two good overviews of the subfield of media effects, which seems to be what you're getting at.

Jennings & Oliver's Media Effects: Advances in Theory and Research, Third Edition

https://www.amazon.com/Media-Effects-Advances-Theory-Research/dp/0805864504/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1527168732&sr=8-1&keywords=media+effects

Nabi & Oliver's The SAGE Handbook of Media Processes and Effects

https://www.amazon.com/SAGE-Handbook-Media-Processes-Effects/dp/1412959969/ref=sr_1_38?ie=UTF8&qid=1527168732&sr=8-38&keywords=media+effects

https://www.amazon.com/Communication-Skills-Dummies-Elizabeth-Kuhnke/dp/1118401247

But seriously, you talking about 37-year-old Millenials or 22-year old millennials? Perhaps explaining the problem you are having would be a bit better.

But I know what has always worked for me. Making an effort, trying, and meeting whomever halfway. Outside of that, a simple google search will give you a bunch of hits or miss best practices. From what I saw I would recommend treating them like adults, and keeping it informal when possible, and that "because I said so" gets you about as far as you think it would.

Get "Writing Philosophy: A Student's Guide to Writing Philosophy Essays". I highly recommend it in any Philosophical toolkit. It'll help with reading, writing, and understanding Philosophy.

Also, the "60 Second Adventures In Thought" series is a quick start into some famous thought experiments.

I got this book, reccomened by my professor. He said, "this book can make getting a P.HD relatively straightforward."

writing Philosophy

It seriously helped me so much. It helps with becoming clear, concise, and logical, which is kinda what makes a good philosophy essay.

Until I think of a work of fiction. Try this book by Ken Wilbur...

Brief History of Everything

Edit: and for what it's worth, Camus and Hesse are great, but whether they are on the top 10 list of authors who will help you beat depression is probably open for debate. Though I could imagine an intense discussion with each of them about it!

The relatively new book Language Intelligence has a chapter on deceptive rhetoric and language - more as a way for the reader to avoid the effects of it, but it could by taken as lesson as well.

If you want an in-depth preview of the material in the book, you can listen to an interview with the author here.

There is a whole book dedicated to this:
https://www.amazon.com/Analysis-Sentences-Intermediate-English-Chinese/dp/7800525155

Old English used to have masculine, feminine and neuter nouns. The use of these started to decline due to contact with other languages - people from different areas had to communicate and the lose of features such as gender, verb conjugations (most of which english also lost) and grammatical cases (also lost) makes a language much less complex. If you're interested, I recommend this book.

To the scientifically illiterate and logically challenged, it would appear that you have a point there, that your observations of your local weather conditions can be extrapolated to the state of the planet's climate.

Your method is rhetoric, not science. If you're unaware that your method is in fact rhetoric, then I would suggest you read this book - Language Intelligence: Lessons on persuasion from Jesus, Shakespeare, Lincoln, and Lady Gaga.

"Everything that exists is made of something smaller" - This reminds me of the holon philosophy (https://www.amazon.com/Brief-History-Everything-Ken-Wilber/dp/1570627401) - a holon is both itself a whole while at the same time being a part of a larger whole, so that reality becomes a series of nested holons https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Integral_theory_(Ken_Wilber)

Empire of Illusion

A Brief History of Everything is something that really opened my eyes

http://www.amazon.com/Empire-Illusion-Literacy-Spectacle-ebook/dp/B002HUU0G0/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1333479155&sr=1-1

https://www.amazon.com/Rookie-Teaching-Dummies-Michael-Kelley/dp/0764524798/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1482559751&sr=1-1&keywords=teaching+for+dummies

https://www.amazon.com/Communication-Skills-Dummies-Elizabeth-Kuhnke/dp/1118401247/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1482559793&sr=1-1&keywords=interpersonal+skills+for+dummies

https://www.amazon.com/Psychology-Dummies-Adam-Cash/dp/1118603591/ref=sr_1_22?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1482559850&sr=1-22&keywords=for+dummies

http://www.amazon.com/Error-Analysis-Sample-Sentences-Intermediate/dp/7800525155

http://www.amazon.com/Common-Chinese-Patterns-330-Chen/dp/7802006473/ref=pd_sim_14_1?ie=UTF8&dpID=5130hfQkQKL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL320_SR228%2C320_&refRID=0QCRDAWC7V3TZXMSCC25

http://www.amazon.com/Story-English-Third-Revised/dp/0142002313

Here. The essay guide was made by a Canadian. I'm sorry.

Alternatively. There's a Canadian version of this book too.

Try the ACER material sample questions (blue book). See how you go. Then make adjustments to your study plan. Try ebay for Des O'Neill books. I reckon you only need the Science Revision, Science MCQs, and Humanities MCQs books.

Go on a quest to attain the tome of leadership and influence