Writer

The Stay at Home Parent/Writer The Stay at Home Parent/Writer The Stay at Home Parent/Writer By Guest Author This is a guest post by Rhonda Franz. If you want to write for Daily Writing Tips check the guidelines here. The great thing about being a writer with young children is the material. There’s emotion (good or bad) in everything from how their first word was â€Å"NO,† to the way they walk when they’ve put their pants on backwards. The difficult thing about writing with young kids at home is that they’re young, and, well, they’re at home. Children in the high-maintenance stages between birth and Kindergarten make for an extremely busy, sometimes overwhelming, season in a mom and dad’s life. In order to manage writing- and the business of writing- from home, it’s important to treat it as the job it is, and expect family members to do the same. Have a Routine Children generally behave best when they know what to expect. If it works in your household to get a little writing done during the day, make sure your children have specific activities to work on, and/or special toys they get to play with only during that time. For toddlers and preschool-aged children, consider letting them use this time to look at books, â€Å"write† with their crayons, markers, or pencils, or, if they have one, work on their own toy laptop computer. Then sit down, get to work, and don’t feel guilty about your children having to entertain themselves for a few minutes; it’s good for them. Novelist Barbara Kingsolver once said that she has always written while her children were in someone else’s care. That’s absolutely the best thing to do, but if you’re a stay-at-home parent with babies or toddlers (or both), and don’t choose daycare, the children are in your care. It’s essential to have a regular time- even if it’s when they’re sleeping- to work when they won’t require constant attention. Get up a couple of hours early, stay up a few hours late: whatever suits you and your family. Certain Time, Same Place Again, this touches on routine. If you plan to write while they’re around, try to do it at a certain time, or certain times, throughout the day. Of course, of course parents have to be flexible and deal with emergencies and crying babies and so on and so forth: ‘tis the life of the home manager. But the more consistent you are in making time for writing, the more it will become a habit, and therefore, just a normal part of your day, and of your child’s day. Sitting in front of a computer looks different than teaching piano lessons or tutoring students in your home. The only visible action is that of your fingers on the keyboard. It can be difficult to get children (and sometimes, spouses) to take you seriously when you’re interacting with computer screen or notebook. Call it your â€Å"writing work,† or â€Å"writing job,† but refer to it as what it is: serious business. It’s up to you to set the tone. If your computer usually sits in an open place, move it to a particular room or area of the house while you write. This way, you set up a distinction between Mommy or Daddy cruising mindlessly around the web and actual work being done. Save the cruising for after the children are in bed. Make Notes Place list paper, sticky notes, tablets, scrap paper, pencils or pens, in desks, the kitchen drawer, under the changing pad, and by your bedside. When an idea strikes during the day, it’s likely you’ll only have mere seconds to jot it down before your toddler heads for the stairs. Get Out of the House There’s always something calling out for attention in a house: laundry, phone messages, unpaid bills, dust. If you are fortunate enough to have someone who can occasionally watch your children, or you can take advantage of a local Mom’s Day Out or community program, consider getting out of the house and going to your local library, bookstore, or coffee house to write. Plant yourself in a corner and relish the fact that someone else gets paid to sweep that floor. Multitasking is Great, But†¦ it isn’t always the most effective way to get something done. Use certain blocks of time to write, and certain blocks of time to do household chores. When you’re at the writing time, do not get distracted by the overloaded trash bin, or the dirty dishes in the kitchen sink. When ideas come to you while working on those tasks, jot down ideas on the nearest piece of paper. Do not get immersed in a household responsibility. Remind yourself that you will see to those jobs during the time you’ve made to work on chores. If you are easily distracted, see the above information about escape. Remember Your Priorities There are days when your children require special attention. This is a good day to shut down the computer, put away your notebook, and concentrate on the reason you’re staying home in the first place. Your writing can always be revised; your children can’t. Rhonda Franz spent seven years teaching other people’s children before taking a leave to raise her own. She learned to keep paper and pens everywhere in her house after using a Crayola marker to write a phrase on a disposable diaper. You can read more about her views on writing in public places at Freelance Writing Gigs. She’s a regular contributor at ParentingSquad.com, and writes on a variety of topics at her own blog, Coffeehouse Mom. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Freelance Writing category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Useful Stock Phrases for Your Business EmailsTry to vs. Try andGrammar Review #1: Particles and Phrasal Verbs

Profile of the Greek God Zeus

Profile of the Greek God Zeus The Greek god Zeus was the top Olympian god in the Greek pantheon. After he took credit for rescuing his brothers and sisters from their father Cronus, Zeus became king of heaven and gave his brothers, Poseidon and Hades, the sea and the underworld, respectively, for their domains. Zeus was the husband of Hera, but he had many affairs with other goddesses, mortal women, and female animals. Zeus mated with, among others, Aegina, Alcmena, Calliope, Cassiopea, Demeter, Dione, Europa, Io, Leda, Leto, Mnemosyne, Niobe, and Semele. In the Roman pantheon, Zeus is known as Jupiter. Family Zeus is father of gods and men. A sky god, he controls lightning, which he uses as a weapon, and thunder. He is king on Mount Olympus, the home of the Greek gods. He is also credited as the father of Greek heroes and the ancestor of many other Greeks. Zeus mated with many mortals and goddesses but is married to his sister Hera (Juno). Zeus is the son of the ​​Titans Cronus and Rhea. He is the brother of his wife Hera, his other sisters Demeter and Hestia, and his brothers Hades and Poseidon. Roman Equivalent The Roman name for Zeus is Jupiter and sometimes Jove. Jupiter is thought to be made up of a Proto-Indoeuropean word for god, *deiw-os, combined with the word for father, pater, like Zeus Pater. Attributes Zeus is shown with a beard and long hair. His other attributes include scepter, eagle, cornucopia, aegis, ram, and lion. The cornucopia or (goat) horn of plenty comes from the story of his Zeus infancy when he was nursed by Amalthea.​ Powers of Zeus Zeus is a sky god with control over weather, especially of rain and lightning. He is King of the gods and a god of oracles especially in the sacred oak at Dodona. In the story of the Trojan War, Zeus, as a judge, listens to the claims of other gods in support of their side. He then renders decisions on acceptable behavior. He remains neutral most of the time, allowing his son Sarpedon to die and glorifying his favorite, Hector. Etymology of Zeus and Jupiter The root of both Zeus and Jupiter is in a proto-Indo-European word for the often personified concepts of day/light/sky. Zeus Abducts Mortals There are many myths about Zeus. Some involve demanding acceptable conduct of others, whether human or divine. Zeus was enraged with the behavior of Prometheus. The titan had tricked Zeus into taking the non-meat portion of the original sacrifice so that mankind could enjoy the food. In response, the king of the gods deprived mankind of the use of fire so they wouldnt be able to enjoy the boon theyd been granted, but Prometheus found a way around this, and stole some of the gods fire by hiding it in a stalk of fennel and then giving it to mankind. Zeus punished Prometheus with having his liver pecked out every day. But Zeus himself misbehaves at least according to human standards. It is tempting to say that his primary occupation is that of seducer. In order to seduce, he sometimes changed his shape into that of an animal or bird. When he impregnated Leda, he appeared as a swan [see Leda and the Swan].When he abducted Ganymede, he appeared as an eagle [see Zeus and Ganymede] in order to take Ganymede to the home of the gods where he would replace Hebe as cupbearer; andwhen Zeus carried off Europa, he appeared as a tempting white bull[see Europa and Zeus] although why the Mediterranean women were so enamored of bulls is beyond the imaginative capacities of this urban-dweller setting in motion the quest of Cadmus and the settling of Thebes. The hunt for Europa provides one mythological version of the introduction of letters to Greece. The Olympic Games were initially held to honor Zeus.