A Teen Author Success Story - Interview With Anna Caltabiano

A Teen Author Success Story - Interview With Anna Caltabiano A Refreshing Teen Author Success Story - Interviewing Anna Caltabiano While the good folks of the â€Å"publishing industry† are discussing trends, numbers, and predictions over at the DBW conference, we thought we would give the readers of the Reedsy blog a sneak peek of what the future could actually hold.Today, we interview Anna Caltabiano, a rising teen author who self-published her first novel, All that is Red at the age of 14. She did things her own way because she didn’t know how a book was supposed to be written or published. And guess what? She nailed it. She now has a three-book deal with Hachette, and published the first of those last year.Whatever the future of publishing is, authors will always be at its core. And It is today’s teen author community that will ultimately shape it, a community we don’t know too well†¦Hi Anna, great to have you here. I loved reading your story in The Guardian, particularly because, as a young author, you offer a fresh view on writing and publishing.  Is there something, in y our opinion, that characterises a â€Å"teen author†? Something you, for example, would do very differently from your elder peers?Thanks for having me on the Reedsy blog! One of the things I love the most about being an author my age is that I don’t have to look back on my teenage years to write from that perspective. Adults can look back on their experiences and give advice they wish they had heard when they were our age. Though I’m too young to do that quite yet, I can talk about things as I experience them- the good, the bad, and the plain messy.You said you did things â€Å"your own way† for your first novel, because you didn’t know how you were supposed to do them. Now that you’ve been through the â€Å"traditional† process (signing with a publisher), which â€Å"way† do you prefer? What have been, so far, the pros and cons of having a publisher?At their core, both traditional and self-publishing are actually very similar. Though it sounds obvious, most of the effort is in actually writing the book. The other essential common ingredient of both approaches is that turning a raw story into a finished novel requires seeking out and learning from a network of editors, cover artists, publicists, and proof readers. In a traditional publisher, the network is, for the most part, â€Å"in house,† while in self-publishing, you must take the initiative to create your own network. Both paths are exciting journeys.Usually, when you start from nothing, with no knowledge, and have to learn on your own and do things â€Å"your own way†, you actually end up discovering a smarter way to do it (that’s often how startups are born). Does that apply in your case? Have you done some particularly innovative things that have sparked your success?When I started my writing journey, I clearly did not know anything. I trolled the internet to learn what I could, but I also found experienced writers, publisher s, and various people in the book business who were willing to share their experience and give advice. There are so many â€Å"how-to† books, and so much â€Å"established wisdom† in this industry, but in the end the right path to writing and publishing is not the same for everyone. For example, I live in Northern California, but my initial breakthroughs have tended to come from London, and then later migrating to the US. I am not sure why, but it could be that my writing style and subject matter is closer to English tastes, or it could be that simply through chance, I happened to first find people that believed in my writing in England.You have a three-book deal with your current publisher. But do you see yourself going back to self-publishing after that? Or become a fully hybrid author?It’s really exciting! As for the future, it’s hard to tell even what type of novels I will be working on. I think the most important thing is to work with a team thatâ₠¬â„¢s as excited as you are to tell the story you want to tell, whether that leads you to self-publishing or traditional publishing.How did you self-publish? Did you basically replicate the steps of traditional publishing, hiring several editors and a cover artist?As I mentioned, the basic steps in writing a novel are quite simple, and the same whether done through a traditional publisher or self-publishing. You have to write the novel, go through a very extensive editing process to make the novel as good as possible, make sure that it is carefully proof read, and design an attractive cover. I found great people to help me in all of these areas, but also did much of it myself, so I felt a huge sense of accomplishment when it was all done. When I moved on to traditional publishers for my trilogy, I found I was actually more experienced in all of these aspects of creating a novel because I had to directly manage and participate so deeply in all aspects during the publishing process of my first book.You wrote most of your first novel on your iPad, with some bits of dialogue on your iPhone (texting yourself). This actually reminded me of some  Japanese novels that were written in SMS in the 2000s. We often hear that the future of content consumption is mobile, do you think the future of long-form writing can also be mobile?Definitely! As a reader, when I’m in the middle of a good book and I can’t wait to get home to finish the rest of it, I’ll download a copy on my phone to finish it during a break at school or in line at lunch. For the longest time, my dad thought I was crazy, but even he has started reading poetry on his phone.When I’m writing, I’ll have a quick idea I’ll want to write down before I forget. This often leads to me writing a scene or an entire chapter on my phone. Writing and reading can both be mobile. Whatever feels comfortable. There’s no wrong way to do either.How do you go about the writing p rocess? Do you first plot, outline and define the structure? Or do you dive straight into it?  Though every book is a bit different, I tend to be an outliner. I’ll start with a few characters in mind, and a mental image of what I want the end of the book to leave the reader with. I’ll write starting from the beginning of the story, following my outline, but inevitably my story veers off into an unexpected direction and I change my outline to follow it.You have a particularly awesome website in terms of design. At Reedsy, we have a particular focus (like most startups out there) on design, as we believe it is going to play a much more important role in the future of internet. Is that a belief you share?Thank you! I think design needs to be two things: nice to look at and easy to use. With the internet, I think we’re now more accustomed to everything being at our fingertips. Being user-friendly is a given. In our current world, I think the way to stand out from the pack is to create something visually attractive that draws in the user.Many authors, even established ones, still really struggle with social media. Teen authors have the chance to have grown up with those, understand them, etc. Do you think it is possible to be a successful author today without having a strong social media presence? Would you have any tips for other authors for that?Social media helps me connect with my readers. I hear first hand what they liked or didn’t like about my latest story, and I find myself taking that into account when I’m writing my next work. Though I’ve grown up with social media and almost everyone I know uses some form of it, I still find social media challenging at times. It can be hard to find a balance between maintaining some amount of privacy and being â€Å"with it† in terms of social media use. My biggest tip is to try to show your best self on social media, rather than try to promote your book. People follow y ou on Twitter and Facebook to learn more about you and to hopefully interact with you. If they wanted to read a summary of your book, they would look elsewhere.Finally, because it’s that time in the year, what do you wish for yourself in 2015? And for the publishing industry as a whole?That’s a hard question! With the upcoming adventure of publishing two books this summer in two different countries and finally graduating high school, I know I’ll be learning and doing a lot of new things. I hope I’ll be able to use what I’ve learned in 2014 and apply some of that this coming year. As for the publishing industry, I hope it keeps taking new changes in stride, as everything needs to continue to evolve to stay with the times.Thanks a lot for your time, Anna!You can find Anna and Reedsy on Twitter:  @caltabiano_anna  and @ReedsyHQCredit for the Japanese cell phone novel photograph goes to Tyler ShoresDo you, too, think that indie and traditional publ ishing are actually pretty much similar? Or that the future of writing is mobile? Do leave us your opinion, or any question for Anna, in the comments below!

Axis of Evil essays

Axis of Evil essays George W. Bushs term Axis of Evil which he uses to describe a trio of countries, including Iraq, Iran, and North Korea is inappropriate regarding North Korea. In North Koreas case this term only promises to escalate tension between the United States and North Korea. This term has locked the United States - North Korean foreign policy at an enemy stance. It encourages a weapons race with North Korea as it heightens North Koreas fear of being attacked by the United States. Referring to North Korea as an evil terrorist, and aligning their country with the other countries that are the focus of the United States antiterrorism campaign, causes tension and debate throughout the two nations and the rest of the world that can be prevented. Placing the term evil on a country has many grave side consequences. In his 2002 State of the Union address George W. Bush stated, North Korea is a regime arming with missiles of mass destruction, while starving its citizens.... States like these, and their terrorist allies, constitute an axis of evil, arming to threaten the peace of the world. Calling North Korea evil has made our attempt to pursue peaceful diplomatic solutions to dangerous threats nearly impossible. As Joseph Montville, a retired foreign service officer, said in an interview on National Public Radios All Things Considered, The trouble with evil is that you can not make a deal with it; you have to kill it. Once you have put a state of people in the category of evil, you appear to be setting them up for some serious punishment. North Korea has always posed a security threat to the United States. North Korea refuses to disarm because nuclear weapons are the only power they have, due to their lack of natural resources and exports. Now, with the United States posing as a serious threat to North Korea their fear and security concerns have only wors ...

Asbestos in Industry Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Asbestos in Industry - Case Study Example Many of the individuals who were directly affected by the asbestos also unknowingly affected other people who are close to them. This of course led to Johns-Manville and other asbestos production and manufacturing companies to declare bankruptcy due to being sued overwhelmingly because of the deaths of their workers and its effect on those related to them. As much as it tried to lobby for aid from the US government, that did not work to their desired result. In my opinion, the responsibility really falls on the managers and shareholders of the Johns-Manville Company and the other asbestos producing and manufacturing companies. In the first place, it should be understood that they are aware of the products that they are producing and its effects on others. They are most likely aware of the risks involved to the employees and other individuals who are working in an asbestos filled environment. The indemnity should be carried out by the managers and the shareholders of these asbestos companies. At the same time, considering the massive amount of lawsuits against these companies that drove them to bankruptcy, a legal limit should be imposed on the amount of lawsuits that should be settled against them. For these companies to pay, they have to continue operating to make a profit in which an agreed amount would be set aside and allocated for payment of lawsuits. At the same time, there will be a queue for those making such lawsuits. The queue will be made in a manner wherein the asbestos companies could continue to operate and pay their indemnities without having to go

Models of Decision Making Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Models of Decision Making - Essay Example 2. My responses to the questions in the activities were primarily based on my knowledge of basic mathematical operations and principles. My judgment of each situation/activity is based on the assumption that the answer for each activity would require only a knowledge of math, specifically, statistics. However, from what the correct responses for each activity showed, it became evident that a deeper analysis is embedded in each response. Each response required a look into how, if an alternative, logical kind of reasoning is applied, a different answer emerges-an answer that is somewhat different from what was earlier generalized, based only on simple mathematical analyses. 3. From each activity arise different principles that demonstrated how, in decision- making, detailed and methodical reasoning is imperative. Take as an example the first activity shown, wherein at first analysis, most individuals would answer Option 1 rather than Option 2.

Understanding of the material presented on social learning and general Essay

Understanding of the material presented on social learning and general strain theories - Essay Example The general strain theory is a criminology branch that has a perspective that criminal behavior is a result of pressure by negative emotions such as anger which results to negative or strain relationships with others. The social learning and the general strain theories have some similarities and differences that explain more concerning them. The difference between the two that, general strain theory puts emphases on the negative relationships with others while the theory of social learning focuses much on the cognitive information acquired through the learning process. The general strain theory involves a motivational element of emotions that are negative while social learning involve a general learning process of either negative or positive things around the human beings (Agnew 67). For general strain theory, motivation occurs before the negative performance, but for social learning theory, motivation occurs when the desired behavior is achieved, although reinforcement is applied whenever a learner shows undesirable action. The social learning theory has some general similarities with the theory of general strain. Both of the two theories focus on the behavior one acquires from their environment they live. Both theories influence the development of a human being under any specified circumstances. They both explain how the human surrounding influences the relationship that he will have to the people around or even objects (Agnew 68). The two theories have motivation and reinforcement as the key factor that influence the action one engage in. They are both behaviors centered as compared to the other theories. The two theories propose that both behaviors of conformance and criminal like behavior are some kind of behaviors that one acquire and maintain, or even change through interaction with others. The most convincing theory between the two mentioned theories is the social learning theory. This theory can easily handle behavior

William Shakespeare An Analysis

William Shakespeare An Analysis Why was William Shakespeare regarded as the best English play writer? In his book Will in the World, Stephen Greenblatt describes Shakespeare as â€Å"the greatest playwright not of his age alone but of all time†. This echoes the fact that ‘the Bard’ is often considered to be one of England’s greatest authors. Even today his work is read by thousands of schoolchildren, his plays are performed in many theatres (including the replica Globe in London which is named after him), his plays have been repeatedly filmed and turned into parts of popular culture, and his language is often quoted in various forms. In addition, his home town of Stratford has become one of England’s premier tourist attractions. Considering Shakespeare is such a famous figure, it is remarkable how little we actually know about his life. In fact, some critics have suggested that this is one reason for his continuing success or for the ‘cult’ of ‘The Bard’: if the man himself is a myth then he can be permanently recreated for many generations. However there are some details that we can identify with relative confidence. Shakespeare was born in 1564, probably on April 23rd as he was baptised on the 26th. He was born in Stratford-upon-Avon in the county of Warwickshire where his father was a glover and alderman. He   received a good education at the local grammar school, the Kings New School, where boys were taught Latin grammar and classical texts (he later used Latin sources for the plots of some of his plays, for example Titus Andronicus refers to Ovid’s tales Metamorphoses). By the time Shakespeare was 18 he was married to a relative and local woman named Anne Hathaway, with whom he eventually had three children, called Susanna, Hamnet and Judith. Between 1585 and 1592 there are few records to indicate where Shakespeare was living and under what occupation, though a number of different stories suggest he was already in London, or had fled accused of poaching, or was in fact himself a teacher: â€Å"He had been in his younger years a schoolmaster in the country† wrote John Aubrey. But by 1592 records suggest that he was established in London as a playwright, where he continued to write and perform plays with considerable success until shortly before his death in 1616 (coincidentally, on April 23rd, his birthday). When Shakespeare’s plays were originally published all together in the First Folio of 1623, they were collected for the first time, and were divided into comedies, tragedies and histories. While these generic categories are not always upheld today, and there are some plays such as Measure for Measure which do not easily fit into one group or another, there are consistencies between some of the plays which allow them to be grouped in this manner.   We can identify certain patterns based upon genre. For example, in Othello, Othello’s murder of Desdemona followed by suicide restores the social status quo of a powerful state under white leadership. Hamlet’s death in Hamlet disrupts the royal line but succeeds in first purging the state of the corruption, the â€Å"something rotten†, that affects the country. However both of these plays, like Macbeth, are mainly concerned not with social relations but with following the decline of a powerful character. It is true that there is often a comic subplot in the plays to provide a light relief, but the main plot follows a tragic flaw in character to a tragic conclusion usually of multiple deaths. By contrast, where tragedy has multiple deaths, the comedy plays usually offer multiple marriages – this is one of their most characteristic features. Confusion and misinterpretations are resolved not in duels or deaths but in reconciliation and the restoration of characters to their proper social roles. At the end of Twelfth Night, Orsino responds to the revelation of Sebastian and Viola’s identities with the following lines: â€Å"If this be so, as yet the glass seems true, I shall have share in this most happy wrack† (V.i) Although â€Å"wrack† suggests the potential for catastrophe, it has found its proper romantic conclusion and the love-plot is untangled. Viola is released from her disguise as the boy Cesaro and restored to her proper female role, and everyone’s identity revealed. Social reconciliation usually takes this form in Shakespeare’s comedies as lovers are united in marriage, usually in groups of two or three pairs whose plots are followed together throughout the play. Multiple narratives are drawn together often in the final scene. The ability to resolve complex plots in such a way is one of the features that make Shakespeare such a great dramatist. Shakespeare’s construction of love, though often seemingly simplistic in its conclusion, is sophisticated in being able to question each character’s ability to make the right decisions for themselves, and the different layers of narrative serve as comments upon the other plots that work alongside them. In the complex reversals of affection in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, one of Shakespeare’s most popular romantic comedies, the proper order of the lovers is disrupted and then restored by Oberon and his servant Puck: â€Å"When they next awake, all this derision, Shall seem a dream and fruitless vision† (III.ii.370-1) A popular theme running throughout the plays is disguise and the complication of identity which in the case of gender roles enables Shakespeare to further entangle the male-female tensions which are at the centre of marriage plots. Famous heroines who dress up as boys include Viola in Twelfth Night and Rosaline in As You Like It, who are able under the cover of their male identities to act out courtship activities, Viola acting on behalf of Orsino in carrying his suit to Olivia and Rosaline teaching Orlando to woo in the guise of Ganymede. In Twelfth Night this then creates comic confusion (and sometimes pain) in a typical love triangle: â€Å"My master loves her dearly, And I (poor monster) fond as much on him, And she (mistaken) seems to dote on me† (II.ii) Viola is a â€Å"monster† in the play because she is not in her proper position as a woman, and cannot express her feelings to the Duke. It is only when she is restored to her female role that the plot can be properly concluded. In speeches such as this one, the audience’s ability to see which way love is really directed in the play create a distance of dramatic irony that reduces the damaging effect of characters who are experiencing pain. Also, the passionate language that Shakespeare is sometimes so flowery that it enables him to generate comedy from expressions of passion: â€Å"O when mine eyes did see Olivia first, / Methought she purged the air of pestilence† (I.i). Unlike in tragedy, when Gertrude â€Å"protests too much† in Hamlet and is then horribly implicated in the crimes which have so upset her son, this kind of exaggeration in comedies creates the effect of laughter, because the audience realise that they have more knowledge than the charact ers in the play. One of the reasons often given for Shakespeare’s enduring popularity is his â€Å"universal† appeal: his stories cross many genres and different places and periods in history and thus they always seem relevant to a particular society at a particular moment in time, or can be adapted to seem relevant (and they have been adapted into many languages around the world). Sometimes this provides a political context for the plays, sometimes it merely serves to add fresh ways of interpreting the language and the scenery, for example in Baz Luhrman’s film William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet the story takes place in a futuristic modern-day setting at ‘Verona Beach’ in America, where the commercial rivalry of the Capulets and Montagues replaces their social positions and where guns and advertising are everywhere, contrasting with the romantic poetry as it is retained from the play. But it remains a tragic and affecting story. Shakespeare himself created an impression of universal drama in the language that he uses in suggesting that what was represented in the theatre could represent the whole world. In As You Like It he wrote the following famous lines, â€Å"All the world’s a stage, And all the men and women merely players: They have their exits and their entrances; And one man in his time plays many parts† (II.vii) Here he refers to the activities in the theatre, the actors coming on and off stage, to suggest a metaphor for how people live their lives. He suggests that anybody could play a different part, or any part, so we could all recognise ourselves in a Shakespeare play. It also hints towards the way that characters such as Olivia and Rosaline dress up as other than they are, assume different roles or become different ‘players’. It was common in Shakespeare’s time for the actors in each company to play many different roles, sometimes within the same plays and sometimes across several plays that were being performed in the same week. This kind of language is also reflected in plays such as Macbeth, in tragedy rather than in comedy, where in the dying speech of the play’s hero or antihero he says, â€Å"To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow, Creeps in this petty pace from day to day, To the last syllable of recorded time; And all our yesterdays have lighted fools The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle! Lifes but a walking shadow, a poor player, That struts and frets his hour upon the stage, And then is heard no more. It is a tale Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, Signifying nothing.† (V.v) Here the metaphor extends to the process of life itself, which is only like a â€Å"poor player† who has only an â€Å"hour† to perform. This is perhaps wishful thinking on the part of Macbeth who would like to imagine that his actions were only â€Å"performed† and that they â€Å"signified nothing†, as he is now consumed by guilt for the murder of Duncan. The metaphors of theatre run right through the plays in a way that both playfully emphasises their artificiality, as stories and characters who are performed many times in many different ways, and a way that makes them feel eternal, that they could be acted a countless number of times and still have something to say to us. Also, it is notable that the theatre in which Shakespeare spent the longest years working was called The Globe, drawing attention again to the round stage as representing the universe. The legacy of Shakespeare’s language can be observed not just in how frequently his plays are quoted but also in everyday language and conversation; even without realising it we have absorbed many of his sayings into modern English which we now take for granted. From Lady Macbeth saying â€Å"what’s done is done† in Macbeth to Juliet parting from Romeo in â€Å"such sweet sorrow,† these phrases have become part of our vocabulary so that often their use is unconscious. Shakespeare also used proverbs which may have been popular at the time and which have been handed down to us through the medium of his plays, including phrases like â€Å"to the manner born† and â€Å"brevity is the soul of wit†, both of which can be found in Hamlet. By the time Shakespeare died in 1616 he had written a remarkable quantity of plays and enjoyed a successful career as both playwright and actor. When his plays were finally published together in 1623 they were preserved for future generations to enjoy and to adapt. Today the popularity of Shakespeare appears to be as high as ever, as people all over the world continue to read the plays and to recognise the universal value of the ‘great Bard’. Bibliography Shakespeare, William, Macbeth, Penguin (1967) Shakespeare, William, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Arden (2005) Shakespeare, William, Twelfth Night, Penguin (1994) Shakespeare, William, As You Like It, Arden (2006) Crystal, David, Think on My Words: Exploring Shakespeare’s Language, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press (2008) Greenblatt, Stephen, Will in the World: How Shakespeare Became Shakespeare, London: Pimlico (1995), Macrone, Michael Lulevitch, Tom, Brush Up Your Shakespeare!: An Infectious Tour Through the Most Famous and Quotable Words and Phrases from the Bard, Collins (2000)

National Development Essay

We are here to debate on our country and its developments.The citizens of India have the basic responsibility to think and do his best for the development of the country. In one sentence , te secret of development of india can be achieved on set up of Industries and thereby generation of Employment and value addition of Produce goods and for this infra stature of Good Roads and transportation mode has to be good enough . We need good governence in turn for the development of the nation. For a good Goverence , we need Good Government and a set of good Politicians form a good Government . As the post † Politicians † it self gives a sign of freedom to act politically / changing faces ., our politicians are have multi faces to manage money for SELF but NOT for the nation. We need good Governors and not Politicians . they shall be treated as Public Servents but not Social servents . A good pay for a lavish life style has to be given first , so that they earn and live at the highest level of life style , as the ae the Managers / Governors / care takers for a given area. To select these so said Governors ,there shall be a scale to measure the crediantial and mere being a Citizen of the nation. Even a Peon , whose work is to keep the office clean and place the work desk in order need basic educition , and why not a leader/ governor doesnt need !! If not education , he should have done good enough for the nation and † Not on Mere records â€Å". So we have to concerntate on selection of these Leaders/ Governors.

Classical Music Essay

Kerala (/ˈkeÉ ªrÉ™lÉ™/), also known as Keralam (/ˈkeÉ ªrÉ™lÉ™m/) is a state located in the south-west region of India on the Malabar coast. Thiruvananthapuram is the state capital among the 14 districts; other major cities include Kochi andKozhikode. At a population of 33,388,000 in 2011, the state has the lowest population growth rate. It also has the highest literacy rate; It is also considered as the â€Å"cleanest state in India. Production of pepper and natural rubber constitute prominent output in the total national output, as well as in the agricultural sector, coconut, tea, coffee, cashew, spices are important. Climate Kerala has a wet and maritime tropical climate influenced by the seasonal heavy rains of the southwest summer monsoon and northeast winter monsoon. Agriculture Kerala produces 97% of the national output of black pepper[180] and accounts for 85% of the area under natural rubber in the country.[181][66] Coconut, tea,coffee, cashew, and spices—including cardamom, vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg—comprise a critical agricultural sector.[182][183][184][185][89][186] The key agricultural staple is rice, with varieties grown in extensive paddy fields Fisheries Kerala is one of the leading producers of fish in India. about 1.1 million people earn their livelihood from fishing and allied activities such as drying, processing, packaging, exporting and transporting fisheries. Culture-Dance The culture of Kerala is composite and cosmopolitan in nature and it’s an integral part of Indian culture. Kerala is home to a number of performance arts. These include five classical dance forms: Kathakali, Mohiniyattam, Koodiyattom, Thullal andKrishnanattam, Culture-Music: Carnatic music dominates Keralite traditional music. Development of classical music in Kerala is attributed to the contributions it received from the traditional performance arts associated with the temple culture of Kerala. Culture-Cuisine- Kerala cuisine has a multitude of both vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes prepared using fish, poultry and meat Elephants Elephants have been an integral part of culture of the state. Kerala is home to the largest domesticated population of elephant in India—about 700 Indian elephants, owned by temples as well as individuals.[324] These elephants are mainly employed for the processions and displays associated with festivals celebrated all around the state. Tourism Kerala is a tourist destination: the backwaters, beaches, Ayurvedic tourism, and tropical greenery are among its major attractions. Kerala’s beaches, backwaters, mountain ranges and wildlife sanctuaries are the major attractions for both domestic and international tourists. The city of Kochi ranks first in the total number of international and domestic tourists in Kerala. RÄ jasthÄ n, ) Known as â€Å"The land of kings†, is the largest state of the Republic of Indiaby area. It is located in the northwest of India. Jaipur is the capital and the largest city of the state. Eastern Rajasthan has the world famous Keoladeo National Park near Bharatpur, a World Heritage Site known for its bird life. It also has two national tiger reserves, Ranthambore and Sariska Tiger Reserve, and a famous temple in Khatu, Sikar district, Language: Rajasthani is the main spoken language of the state, although Hindi and English are used for official purposes. It is spoken by 13 million peo ple in Rajasthan and other states of India. Economy Rajasthan’s economy is primarily agricultural and pastoral. Wheat and barley are cultivated over large areas, as are pulses, sugarcane, and oilseeds.Cotton and tobacco are the state’s cash crops. Rajasthan is among the largest producers of edible oils in India and the second largest producer ofoilseeds. Rajasthan is also the biggest wool-producing state in India and the main opium producer and consumer. There are mainly two crop seasons. The water for irrigation comes from wells and tanks. The Indira Gandhi Canal irrigates northwestern Rajasthan. The main industries are mineral based, agriculture based, and textiles. Rajasthan is the second largest producer of polyester fibre in India. Rajasthan is pre-eminent in quarrying and mining in India The state is the second largest source of cement in India Tourism: Endowed with natural beauty and a great history, tourism is a flourishing industry in Rajasthan. The palaces of Jaipur and Ajmer-Pushkar, the lakes of Udaipur, the desert forts of Jodhpur, Taragarh Fort (Star Fort) in Bundi, and Bikaner and Jaisalmer rank among the most preferred destinations in India for many tourists both Indian and foreign. Culture: The Ghoomar dance from Udaipur and Kalbeliya dance of Jaisalmer have gained international recognition. Folk music is a vital part of Rajasthani culture.Kathputli, Bhopa, Chang, Teratali, Ghindr, Kachchhighori, Tejaji etc. are the examples of the traditional Rajasthani culture. Rajasthan is known for its traditional, colorful art.wall painting in bundi . The block prints, tie and dye prints, Bagaru prints, Sanganer prints, and Zariembroidery are major export products from Rajasthan. Handicraft items like wooden furniture and handicrafts, carpets, and blue pottery are some of the things commonly found here. Rajasthani clothes have a lot of mirror-work and embroidery. A Rajasthani traditional dress for females comprises an ankle length skirt and a short top, also known as a lehenga or a chaniya choli. Cuisne Rajasthani cooking was influenced by both the war-like lifestyles of its inhabitants and the availability of ingredients in this arid region.[1] Food that could last for several days and could be eaten without heating was preferred. Rajasthani cuisine is a splendid array of colorful, spicy and unique dishes. Rajasthani food is incomplete without the mention of the famedDal-Baati-Churma, a distinctive dish of the state. Amir Khusrau AmÄ «rKhusrow was an Indian musician, scholar and poet. He was an iconic figure in the cultural history of the Indian subcontinent. A Sufi mystic and a spiritual disciple of Nizamuddin Auliya of Delhi, AmÄ «r Khusrow was not only a notable poet but also a prolific and seminal musician. He wrote poetry primarily in Persian, but also in Hindavi. He compiled the oldest known printed dictionary (Khaliq-e-bari ) in 1320 which mainly dealt with Hindvi and Persian words. He is regarded as the â€Å"father of qawwali†. He is also credited with enriching Hindustani classical music by introducing Persian and Arabic elements in it, and was the originator of the khayal and tarana styles of music. The invention of the tabla is also traditionally attributed to AmÄ «r Khusrow. Early life and background AmÄ «r Khusrow was born in Patiyali in Uttar Pradesh. His father, AmÄ «r Sayf ud-DÄ «n MahmÃ… «d, was a Turkic officer and a member of the Lachin tribe of Transoxania, themselves belonging to the Kara-Khitais.[5][6][7] His mother was the daughter of Rawat Arz, the famous war minister of Balban, and belonged to the Rajput tribes of Uttar Pradesh Khusrow the royal poet Khusrow was a prolific classical poet associated with the royal courts of more than seven rulers of the Delhi Sultanate. He is popular in much of North India and Pakistan, because of many playful riddles, songs and legends attributed to him. Through his enormous literary output and the legendary folk personality, Khusrow represents one of the first (recorded) Indian personages with a true multi-cultural or pluralistic identity. Last Days I 321 Mubarak Khilji was murdered and Ghiyath al-Din Tughluq came to power. Khusro started to write theTughluqnama. 1325 Sultan Muhammad bin Tughluq came to power. Nizamuddin Auliya died, and six months later so did Khusrow . Khusrow ‘s tomb is next to that of his master in the Nizamuddin Dargah of Delhi. ————————————————- Tulsi Das TulsiDas also known as Goswami Tulsidas), was a Hindu poet-saint, reformer and philosopher renowned for his devotion to the god Rama. A composer of several popular works, he is best known as the author of the epicRamcharitmanas, a retelling of the Sanskrit Ramayana in the vernacular Awadhi. Tulsidas was acclaimed in his lifetime to be a reincarnation ofValmiki, the composer of the original Ramayana in Sanskrit.[4] He is also considered to be the composer of the Hanuman Chalisa, a popular devotional hymn dedicated to Hanuman, the divine devotee of Rama.[5] Tulsidas lived permanently and died in the city of Varanasi.[6] The Tulsi Ghat in Varnasi is named after him.[3] He founded the Sankatmochan Temple dedicated to Hanuman in Varanasi, believed to stand at the place where he had the sight of Hanuman.[7] Tulsidas started the Ramlila plays, a folk-theatre adaption of the Ramayana.[8] He has been acclaimed as one of the greatest poets in Hindi, Indian, and world literature.[9][10][11][12] The impact of Tulsidas and his works on the art, culture and society in India is widespread and is seen to date in vernacular language, Ramlila plays, Hindustani classical music, popular music, and television series. Tulsidas is believed to be a reincarnation of Valmiki Early life Birth Tulsidas was born on the seventh day of the bright half of the lunar Hindu month Shraavana (July–August). After renunciation, Tulsidas spent most of his time at Varanasi, Prayag, Ayodhya, and Chitrakuta but visited many other nearby and far-off places. He traveled across India to many places, studying different people, meeting saints and Sadhus and meditating Tulsidas died at the Assi Ghat on the bank of the river Ganga in the Shraavan (July–August) month of the year Vikram 1680 (1623 CE). Like the year of his birth, traditional accounts and biographers do not agree on the exact date of his death. Different sources give the date as the third day of the bright half, seventh day of the bright half, or the third day of the dark half.[77][78] ————————————————- Works Kamban Kambar (Kampan in casual address) was a medieval Tamil poet and the author of the Tamil Ramayanam Ramavatharam, popularly known as Kambaramayanam, the Tamil version of Ramayana. He was born in the 12th century in Tiruvaluntur in Tanjore district ————————————————- Life Kambar belonged to the Ochchan or Occhan caste, traditionally nadaswaram players in southern India.[3][4] But he was brought up in the household of a wealthy farmer in Vennai Nellur in south India. The Chola king having heard of this talented bard, summoned him to his court and honoured him with the title Kavi Chakravarthi or The Emperor of Poets. The Ramavataram or Kamba Ramayanam of Kamban is an epic of about 11,000 stanzas as opposed to Valmiki’s 24000 couplets. Kamba Ramayana is not a translation of the Sanskrit epic by Valmiki, but an original retelling of the story of the God Rama. The poetic work is well known for its similes. Many Tamil poets, statesmen, kings and common people have praised Kambar for his Kambaramayanam which has more than 10000 songs forming one of the greatest epics of Tamil. Kambaramayanam has more than 45000 lines. Thyagaraja Kakarla Tyagabrahmam (May 4, 1767–January 6, 1847), was one of the greatest composers of Carnatic music or classical South Indian music. He was a prolific composer and highly influential in the development of the South Indian classical music tradition. Tyagaraja composed thousands of devotional compositions, most in praise of Lord Rama — many of which remain popular today. Of special mention are five of his compositions called the Pancharatna Krithis (English: â€Å"five gems†), which are often sung in programs in his honor. Tyagaraja was born in 1767 in Tiruvarur, Tiruvarur district, in what is now called Tamil Nadu, to Kakarla Ramabrahmam and Sitamma in a Telugu Brahmin family of the Mulukanadu subsect He was named Tyagaraja after Lord Tyagaraja, the presiding deity of the temple at Tiruvarur. Tyagaraja began his musical training under Sri Sonthi Ramanayya, a music scholar, at an early age. He regarded music as a way to experience God’s love. His objective while practising music was purely devotional, as opposed to focusing on the technicalities of classical music. Tyagaraja, who was totally immersed in his devotion to Lord Rama and led the most spartan way of life without bothering in the least for the comforts of the world, The songs he composed were widespread in their popularity. due to the labour of love by these musicians and researchers, there is a definitive collection of Thyagaraja’s music. However out of 24,000 thousand songs said to have been composed, about 700 songs remain known. Tyagaraja Aradhana, the commemorative music festival is held every year at Thiruvaiyaru in the months of January to February in Tyagaraja’s honour. This is a week-long festival of music where various Carnatic musicians from all over the world converge at his resting place. SAROD The sarod is a stringed musical instrument, used mainly in Indian classical music. Along with the sitar, it is the most popular and prominent instrument in Hindustani (northern Indian, Bangladeshi and Pakistani) classical music. The sarod is known for a deep, weighty, introspective sound, in contrast with the sweet, overtone-rich texture of the sitar, with sympathetic strings that give it a resonant, reverberant quality. It is a fretless instrument able to produce the continuous slides between notes known as meend (glissandi), which is important to Indian music. The sarod is believed by some to have descended from the Afghan rubab, a similar instrument originating in Central Asia and Afghanistan. The nameSarod roughly translates to â€Å"beautiful sound† or â€Å"melody† in Persian . Design The design of the instrument depends on the school (gharana) of playing. There are three distinguishable types, discussed below. The conventional sarod is an 17 to 25-stringed lute-like instrument — four to five main strings used for playing the melody, one or two drone strings, twochikari strings and nine to eleven sympathetic strings. The design of this early model is generally credited to Niyamatullah Khan of the Lucknow Gharana as well as Ghulam Ali Khan of the Gwalior-Bangash Gharana. Among the contemporary sarod players, this basic design is kept intact by two streams of sarod playing Another type is that designed by Allauddin Khan and his brother Ayet Ali Khan. This instrument, referred to by David Trasoff (Trasoff, 2000) as the 1934 Maihar Prototype, is larger and longer than the conventional instrument, though the fingerboard is identical to the traditional sarod described above. This instrument has 25 strings in all. Sarod strings are made either of steel or phosphor bronze. Early sarod players used plain wire plectrums, which yield a soft, ringing tone. Playing The lack of frets and the tension of the strings make the sarod a very demanding instrument to play, as the strings must be pressed hard against the fingerboard. There are two approaches to stopping the strings of the sarod. One involves using the tip of one’s fingernails to stop the strings, and the other uses a combination of the nail and the fingertip to stop the strings against the fingerboard

Free Essays on Tinnenaman Square

The Student Movement of Tiananmen Square; A Democratic Movement or Merely a Call for Reform? The economic reforms instituted by Deng Xiaoping during the late 1970’s eased the pressure of daily life for Chinese people. As freedom increased within the economic sector, some Chinese citizens began to call for political change to compliment the increased economic openness. Prior to the spring of 1989, a myriad of economic, political and social problems pervaded Chinese society. The economic reforms that Deng Xiaoping initiated, at first boosted the Chinese economy and then sent it into massive disarray causing rampant inflation. The unstable economic environment was coupled with uncurbed corruption and nepotism with the Communist Party. Cadres took advantage of the open-door economic policies to financially better themselves and their families. However, the average Chinese citizen’s finical situation lagged behind. As a result, the social unrest brewing within the population was looking for an excuse to explode. The voices advocating change erupted on April 15, 1989, when former Party General Secretary Hu Yaboong died. What began as a mourning of a revered leader, soon turned into a massive student movement calling for political reform. Although the international arena christened the Tiananmen Square student protest during the spring of 1989 a â€Å"Democracy Movement,† the students did not demand a democracy in China. Rather, they wanted specific democratic principles be incorporated into the Communist system. Disillusioned by the Communist Party’s corrupt practices, the students called for reforms that would enable Chinese citizens to have greater personal freedoms under an honest and more open leadership. Webster’s Dictionary defines democracy in several ways. The definition states: a: government by the people; especially rule of the majority. B: a government in which the supreme power is... Free Essays on Tinnenaman Square Free Essays on Tinnenaman Square The Student Movement of Tiananmen Square; A Democratic Movement or Merely a Call for Reform? The economic reforms instituted by Deng Xiaoping during the late 1970’s eased the pressure of daily life for Chinese people. As freedom increased within the economic sector, some Chinese citizens began to call for political change to compliment the increased economic openness. Prior to the spring of 1989, a myriad of economic, political and social problems pervaded Chinese society. The economic reforms that Deng Xiaoping initiated, at first boosted the Chinese economy and then sent it into massive disarray causing rampant inflation. The unstable economic environment was coupled with uncurbed corruption and nepotism with the Communist Party. Cadres took advantage of the open-door economic policies to financially better themselves and their families. However, the average Chinese citizen’s finical situation lagged behind. As a result, the social unrest brewing within the population was looking for an excuse to explode. The voices advocating change erupted on April 15, 1989, when former Party General Secretary Hu Yaboong died. What began as a mourning of a revered leader, soon turned into a massive student movement calling for political reform. Although the international arena christened the Tiananmen Square student protest during the spring of 1989 a â€Å"Democracy Movement,† the students did not demand a democracy in China. Rather, they wanted specific democratic principles be incorporated into the Communist system. Disillusioned by the Communist Party’s corrupt practices, the students called for reforms that would enable Chinese citizens to have greater personal freedoms under an honest and more open leadership. Webster’s Dictionary defines democracy in several ways. The definition states: a: government by the people; especially rule of the majority. B: a government in which the supreme power is...

Adoption By Gays- Its Okay Essays - Same-sex Sexuality, Free Essays

Adoption By Gays- It's Okay Essays - Same-sex Sexuality, Free Essays Adoption By Gays- It's Okay When a gay couple sought to adopt a boy- who had leukemia, had been neglected by his biological parents, had lived in five foster homes, and whose adoption was favored by his legal representative- the judge deemed it not in the interest of a seven-year-old male child to be placed for adoption into the home of a pair of adult male homosexual lovers.(Utne 58) Three years of searching for a qualified heterosexual couple failed. This and many other similar cases have denied children a family by ignoring many qualified homosexuals. With this being an age when people are supposedly more open-minded, why is it that gays are treated this way just because of their sexual orientation? Many Americans are still uncomfortable with the idea of gay parents. The traditional family has always included a mother and a father. However, today more and more families are being headed by gay parents. Some have children from previous marriages. Many must use artificial insemination or surrogate mothers because it is extremely difficult for gays to adopt children. Although it seems to contradict societys view of the traditional family, homosexuals should be allowed to adopt because they deserve equal rights, and sexual orientation is not a reasonable determining factor in the qualifications of a parent. Also, allowing them to adopt can actually help society. Surveys suggest that a large majority of the American public generally favor anti-discrimination laws.(Harris 2) Why then, according to a Newsweek survey, do only 36% of those surveyed think gay couples should have the right to adopt? Samuel Chavers, assistant general counsel for Children and Families, says adoption is not a right; its a privilege. If this is true, there is still not a rational basis for denying homosexuals the privilege to adopt. It is clearly an anti-gay bias. Although only two states specifically ban adoption by gays, most states discourage it. Just as blacks and women have fought for equal rights, gays are now struggling to do the same. It is unfair to single out a group of people with many members who would make great parents. Since we live in a world where all men are created equal, homosexuals should enjoy the same rights as heterosexuals. Gays face discrimination because of their sexual preferences, and they must also face the qualifications for adopting. June Amer has a son of her own, whom she and her partner have raised. They wanted to adopt a second child. Amer truthfully filled out an application form that asked whether she was a homosexual. Her application was immediately rejected.(Fitzgerald 1B) This was a woman who had already proved to be a good parent and who lived in a healthy environment. She could have provided much-needed care for another child. Her only characteristic that did not meet the qualifications was that she had a female lover. Because of this reason, many qualified applicants are being turned down. It is great that people are willing to adopt children, but it is terrible that this one qualification is stopping so many of them. Sexual orientation alone doesnt make a person a good or bad parent.(Kantrowitz 57) Hedy Weinberg, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee, agrees. The goal should be to identify those homes that would provide nurturing environments. The determination should not be sexual orientation.(Wagner 1) Adoption agencies need to quit using sexual orientation as a factor. A family is a family. That is exactly what so many children today are in need of: a family. There are now 36,000 children in this country- in foster homes or institutions- who are free for adoption.(Utne 54) These children need the love that homosexuals can provide just as well as heterosexuals. If the many willing gays could adopt these children, it would help our society by lessening the problem of children without families. A home is much better than an institution, or worse, the streets. It would also help by diversifying society. All people are not the same, so why should all families have to be the same? If children are adopted by gay parents, more people will become accepting and open-minded towards different lifestyles. Society will definitely be positively affected the day that homosexuals

Manangment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Manangment - Essay Example Impact of organizational culture would show in both positive or negative response like there will be higher satisfaction among employees when there is recognition at work. There will be lesser employee turnover when retention programs are offered to employees or in reverse, loss of interest when there is no motivation at all. Overall, organizational culture motivates people to work and be aligned with the organization. 2. Can the culture of an organization be changed to increase performance? The culture of an organization can be changed to respond to internal and external pressures perceived by members of the organization like decline of sales. For example, the company has to set up a new department to cope up in new ways due to problems of consumer complaint. Thus a strategy of change is affected by the manager to respond to this problem. Change is also needed for cost cutting efficiencies, like top management may feel a department is too big to manage, and so it has to be split for efficiency purposes. External influences also encourage the organization to institute change. For instance, competition, government regulations, financial limitations, and suppliers and technological advances impact for change.

A Formalist Criticism of A Tell-Tale Heart Annotated Bibliography

A Formalist Criticism of A Tell-Tale Heart - Annotated Bibliography Example The old man, eye, and the narrator, I, may be the same person; and the story represents the inner turmoil ending with severing head from heart. (Pitcher 232) Pritchard, from a somewhat feminist point of view, interprets the monologue as sexual in nature just before the murder. She points to the narrator’s love/hate relationship with the victim characterizing the behavior as sadist. Pritchard relates the narrator’s mental state to that of Poe’s dark imagination. This connection is controversial in these articles, and this author’s view is a valuable counter to others. The source is valuable, and the journal is peer reviewed and reliable. A caretaker finds he is cursed by an evil eye belonging to a beloved old man. The eye â€Å"vexes† him. (Poe 193) The caretaker/narrator kills the old man in order to â€Å"silence† the eye. The caretaker keeps hearing the beating of the heart, driving him to confession. The reader is left to decipher whether the narrators hearing acuity is a delusion or is the sound a hallucination. (Reilly 1969) During the murder, they each screamed once. The narrator hears the heartbeat muffled by the bed, but rationalizes the neighbors can’t hear it. The neighbors could hear screams, but not heartbeats. Knowing this, the reader cannot disengage from the monologue. The reader is trapped like the narrator. Poe uses these devices brilliantly to place the audience in the insane mind of a killer. An overview of Poe’s fascination with the â€Å"evil eye† across his stories and specifically in â€Å"The Tell-Tale Heart†. Other Southern writers and literature is examined regarding the eye. The narrator, of whom the reader knows nothing (sex, age, relationship to the old man) admits to loving the old man, but hating his eye. Narration is broken down as forensic oratory, a defense rather than a confession. The narrator