Suitable for writers, this title includes chapters that offers a writing-related discussion, followed by a five-minute exercise. Five minutes a day spent on an exercise is one of the most effective methods there is to expand your potential and develop self-discipline.

Suitable for writers, this title includes chapters that offers a writing-related discussion, followed by a five-minute exercise. Five minutes a day spent on an exercise is one of the most effective methods there is to expand your potential and develop self-discipline.

One minute of daily writing is better than twenty minutes every two weeks—let this fun and helpful handbook of quick, easy writing prompts show you why short bursts of writing are essential to flexing your creative muscles to create your best work! Are you a “would-be” writer? That is, someone who wants to write, but finds themselves too busy, too tired, or just uninspired. The 1-Minute Writer has the solution to all of those problems and shows you that you can start writing—and keep the creativity going—every day, no matter how little time you have. The 1-Minute Writer includes writing prompts you can complete while standing in line for coffee, riding the subway home after work, waiting for your kid at the dentist—and everywhere in between. Each prompt has four variations: a one-minute prompt, a five-minute prompt, a ten-minute prompt, and a twenty-minute prompt. You can choose prompts based on both the time you have available and the kind of writing you’d like to do. Watch the words pour out of you when you realize just how easy writing is when you tackle it in manageable chunks! There are a lot of writing books out there—maybe you’ve tried some before—but none quite like The 1-Minute Writer. Let these brief prompts encourage and empower you to become the writer you’ve always known you are!

The Five-Minute Linguist has been a popular introduction to the subject of language because it is succinct, clear, accurate, -- and fun to read. Now in its second edition, updated and expanded, the book has been warmly received by readers across the globe because it offers quick and reliable answers to questions about language that most of us have, such as: How many languages are there? What was the first language? What causes foreign accents? Are dialects dying? The book is the work of experts, authoritative and full of facts, but not technical or aimed at an audience of scholars. It is used by beginning students of linguistics and anthropology, and has broad appeal for general readers, people who read for enjoyment as well as knowledge. It has a conversational style that feels more like a series of fireside chats than a college textbook, because it started life as a series of five-minute radio broadcasts. Its chapters are short, suitable for browsing or reading on the run. But although it is intentionally light in tone, the book is full of up-to-date information, written by a cross-section of leading linguists in the U.S. and abroad. The second edition of the book was produced under the sponsorship of the Linguistic Society of America and the (U.S.) National Museum of Language.

At a difficult time in my parenting life, where I wanted to be "anywhere but here" with regard to my children, I embarked upon a daily Time In routine. It would be supremely succinct of me to say that this practice - of interrupting myself to spend five minutes a day with my young children - saved my disintegrating relationships with them. Yet this statement, while entirely true, doesn't reflect truth entirely because it lacks the crucial details demonstrating just how this change came about. A wise high school English teacher said a hundred times if she said it once, "With your words, don't tell me. Show me." And so this book is a deeply personal illustration of my, a floundering parent's, attempts to overcome the cycle of disengagement with a search for charity through small-dosed intentionality. Time In changed the relationship dynamic between myself and each of my five children for the better. I'm talking about a 180-degree reversal. Or at least a 90-degree pivot. Or whatever number of degrees it takes to conceivably point me in a better parental direction and confirm that this crazy simple five-minute experiment works. In real life. It works. My biggest hope is that each customized application of Time In renders an equally rewarding outcome for all parents and the small humans we are blessed to raise. (Visit brittneysmart.me for more of Brittney's stuff.) (Cover photo by Savannah Merrill @smerillphotography) Readers' Unsolicited Praise for The Five-Minute Time In: - "Unbelievably pertinent to the way I've been feeling lately." - "Engaging and thought provoking." - "The message couldn't have been more timely for me. Thank you for reminding us all of the importance of connection and the power that lies in small doses of intentionality." - "All the thumbs up. Can't wait to share it with my kids." - "I asked [my daughter] what was wrong, and she kept telling me, 'nothing.' But tonight during that five minutes before she went to bed, she poured her little heart out to me. It made me realize she's really noticing when I'm actually 'listening.'" - "The best parenting book I've ever read. It's quick and speaks to my soul." - "Full of intelligence, humor, and a down-to-earth outlook at motherhood." - "Motivat[ed] me to be better." - "There are things in here I need right now." - "I could not BELIEVE how much this book hit home. ... I finished it in one night and started implementing the 'Time In' approach the next day. It has been less than a week, and I can't tell you the difference that is already taking place in my mind and home." - "Read it in one setting and really enjoyed it." - "Highly, strongly, lovingly recommend." - "I bawled through a lot of the first part of the book. Relating in so many ways. ... Inspiring and just so real."

Set a timer for five minutes, select one of the more than 300 "prompts" at random, then immediately start writing and don't stop until time is up. The rules of Fast Fiction are simple; the results, liberating. By telling you what to write about ("write a story about a coward", "...warmth", or "...a whisper"), the timed exercises focus all your energies on the telling. By imposing a deadline, they force you to write spontaneously, bypassing the inner critic and allowing your voice - as well as surprising images and associations - to emerge on the page. Step by step, Allen shows how to turn your five-minute writings into short short stories - intense fictions that use language with power and precision. She then shows you how to use the timed exercises to built longer stories and novels. You'll see, for example, how one of her students turned eight of his exercises into a chapter for his novel. By looking at your fiction a piece at a time, the writing process becomes less intimidating and more open to experiment. Allen illustrates all the possibilities with examples of students' work, as well as a variety of published shorts - from classics by Anton Chekhov and Robert Walser to contemporary pieces by Joyce Carol Oates and Mark Strand.

Remember us...when I can't.Thea Hughes has five minutes to live.A car accident stole her parents and left her with the second-worst documented case of amnesia in the world. She now has only minutes of experiences, of consciousness, of life...before her memory is wiped clean. The once effervescent artist with a promising future is reduced to scribbling with pens and paper, living an empty, quiet life, three hundred seconds at a time.Jim Whelan is on autopilot.A foster kid shuffled around the system since birth, he's lived his entire life without knowing love...and it's taken its toll-until he learned to fight back, carry his armor, and keep his head down.Working as an orderly in the Blue Ridge Sanitarium, deep in Virginia countryside, Jim looked up...and found Thea.When Thea has the chance to break free of her five-minute prison with a risky, experimental surgery, it could lead them both to an epic love they never thought possible... or one that could require the ultimate sacrifice.***50 First Dates meets Awakenings in this emotional love story by international and best-selling author, Emma Scott. A Five-Minute life contains subject matter that might be sensitive to some readers.#standalone #newadultromance