You’ve written your book, passed out from joy, and woken up—and now you need to write a dedication to that person (or those people) that made it all possible. You want the dedication to mean something, but how do you make it work? There are lots of options, from simple to complex, and from formal to informal. Here are some dedication examples to give you an idea of how it can be done. Once you are finished your dedication, you may want a second opinion, and our manuscript editors would be happy to take a second look.
HAPPY NEW YEAR 2015!
Tuesday 30 September 2014
DEDICATION
How to Write a Dedication
And the dedication goes to…
Don't let yourself get stressed over your
next dedication. Follow our helpful tips to
guide you through your next dedication page.
When you have finally completed the gruelling yet wonderful process of writing a book, short story, dissertation, etc., you are then faced with the difficult decision of dedicating this source of all your hard work to someone special. Here are some helpful tips to ease your anxiety and assist you in writing a dedication page.
Picking a person
The most difficult part of writing this piece of front matter is choosing who you would like to dedicate your work to. Some writers may find it to be the most difficult part of the whole process. When choosing who to write your dedication for, think about the process you just went through and who helped you get through it. This could include a variety of people, including a parent, sibling, or other family member, a spouse or partner, a friend, a supervisor, a colleague, or even a pet. This is a very personal choice and there is no wrong decision.
Naming names
After you have decided who you will write your dedication for, you must decide how you are going to identify them. This will be based on your own personal preference and what is appropriate, according to your relationship with that person. The identification could vary from formal to informal.
On the formal end of the spectrum, your dedication could be addressed to Dr. So and So, Mr. X, or even Mother and Father. In between formal and informal, there are options like Mom, Dad, My sister, My friend, a person’s first and last name (no title), etc. On the informal side, you could use the first name or nickname of someone you know.
Reason for the dedication
The next component in writing your dedication is explaining why you chose this person. Many authors provide a reason for their dedication selections. As with the whole dedication process, this is an extremely personal and subjective decision. The dedication could simply be: "For my mom"; others may choose to explain their decision: "For my mom; without her I would not be here." You may want to write a funny anecdote about the person, an experience you shared, or even a private joke shared only by the two of you. As seen in our example dedicationpage, there are many types of dedications, each with it's own style. Your reason is completely dependent on your personality and your relationship with the person to whom you are dedicating your work.
Addressing the dedication
There are many ways you can address your dedication. You could write, "I dedicate this book to …", "This is dedicated to …", "To: …", "For: …", or simply just start writing your dedication without any formal address. It should be on its own page so everyone will get the hint that it is a dedication page, even if there isn’t any formal address. Take into consideration the person you have chosen to dedicate your work to, your personality, and the formality of your relationship and the address will follow suit.
Alternative dedications
It has been extremely popular over the years to write a dedication page using alternative formats. Authors have used poems or funny anecdotes to express their gratitude. In the past, many dedications were often written in the style of a formal letter.
The most important things to remember when writing a dedication are to keep it simple, concise, and ensure that it truly reflects your personality and your relationship with the person the dedication is for. Remember to get your finished dedication edited by one of our manuscript editors. You don’t want to overlook calling your spouse the pettiest person in the world when you really meant the prettiest person in the world!
Monday 29 September 2014
10 Character Traits That Successful People Have In Common
10 Character Traits That Successful People Have In Common
“Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.” – Dr. Seuss
No person has ever achieved success without first having to develop a success mindset. That mindset will, in turn, build your character, form good daily habits, and ultimately, create your success. That is why, without possessing these 10 characteristics all successful people have, you will be on a very bumpy and misleading road to inevitable doom.
Although I would never advocate to “be someone else,” I do, however, recommend finding a role model that you can learn and grow from. That role model will become the vessel that will help you to develop the characteristics that success-minded individuals possess. Find the personality traits that has made them successful, and then develop that for yourself!
10 Character Traits All Successful People Have
1 | Successful people are workaholics!
Successful people wake up early every morning in order to work day and night to make their dreams become a reality. They understand the value of time, and the value of working tirelessly on your goals. But to invest a great deal of time into your dreams, you must absolutely love what it is that you do. Successful individuals understand that, when they are not working, someone else out there is. They understand that by working now and enjoying life later, they will be much more happier in life; and they’re absolutely correct.
2 | They are always curious & eager to learn
Successful people never limit their learning to only when they are told; they learn because they’re genuinely interested in the topic at hand. They’re not afraid to ask questions, even if those questions are somewhat obvious enough to the general audience. And when answers are left as a mystery, they find a way to solve the riddleno matter what. Become a student for life, and you will never stop growing.
3 | They invest in themselves & never gave up!
“If you are not in the process of becoming the person you want to be, you are automatically engaged in becoming the person you don’t want to be.” - Dale Carnegie. Successful people invest their time and money towards themselves, because they realized that, without knowledge, power is nonexistent. Without knowledge, you would not know what to do to reach the next level. And most importantly, they knew they could not give up. They don’t believe in excuses or limitations to stop their dreams; that is left for unsuccessful people to do.
4 | They use their creativity to solve unique problems
Unsuccessful people will give up on finding solutions prematurely, whereas the successful will never give up in thinking of a solution. Be a thinker, and you will attract creative ways to solve any problems deemed difficult. The harder you work, the luckier you get. And the longer you think, the better your ideas will become!
5 | They take responsibility & become self-reliant
On average, only 2-4% of all our decisions are made consciously. That means that over 95% of your actions are done subconsciously, in the subconscious mind. This is, however, not a characteristic of successful people. Escape that “autopilot” mentality and you can begin to take control of your life. Realize that success comes with the price of having a great deal of responsibilities that require you to be self-reliant. If you can’t decide what’s best for you, who else could?
6 | They keep their perspective & are usually relaxed
Successful people know who they really are and what they are capable of achieving. Once that confident flows within you, you will be able to keep your composure even during the worst of situations. Believe in yourself and never take crap from anyone. Your perception of reality is different from the rest, so don’t expect others to understand your dreams and goals of the future.
7 | They live in the present moment
Successful people are rooted in the present. They don’t think about the past that no longer exists nor the future that is but their imagination. And they don’t worry about the risks since they would rather have their eyes on the benefits instead. Live each day with the mindset that today is the only day you will ever need to focus on, and that is the key to success.
8 | They take action immediately!
Not only do successful people act fast, but they also think before they act. If the opportunity to take action presents itself, they will take it and never let allow any regrets to invade their lives. If they only had one shot at success, they seize that moment without fail. Never wait at the door of opportunity.
9 | They network & connect with others
Successful people network with like-minded individuals whose goals are also aligned with theirs. They seek out the people who will elevate them to the next level; to bring out the very best in them. Unsuccessful people will network and connect with those that bring no positive results other than the satisfaction of having some companionship. Choose your friends wisely, because you are “the average of the five people you spend the most time with.”
10 | They look past the wall to see the future
Successful people never stop moving forward. They don’t treat a brick wall as the final point in their journey. They look at brick walls as a checkpoint for everything they’ve accomplished thus far. If these brick walls did not exist, it would not be able to stop the people who truly didn’t want it as badly as you do.
Character traits can be developed over time. But it takes such a consistent, focused effort to change who you are, that if you don’t work on yourself everyday, you will revert back to your former self. Don’t give up, because change is inevitable. The only person stopping you from being the person you need to be is staring right back at you in the mirror.
“Let us strive to improve ourselves, for we cannot remain stationary; one either progresses or retrogrades.” ~ Mme. Du Deffand
Tuesday 2 September 2014
From the Board of Wisdom
"Eleven Hints for Life"
1. It hurts to love someone and not be loved in return.
But what is more painful is to love someone and never
find the courage to let that person know how you feel.
2. A sad thing in life is when you meet someone who
means a lot to you, only to find out in the end that it was
never meant to be and you just have to let go.
3. The best kind of friend is the kind you can sit on a
porch swing with, never say a word, and then walk away
feeling like it was the best conversation you've ever had.
4. It's true that we don't know what we've got until we lose
it, but it's also true that we don't know what we've been
missing until it arrives.
5. It takes only a minute to get a crush on someone, an
hour to like someone, and a day to love someone-but it
takes a lifetime to forget someone.
6. Don't go for looks, they can deceive. Don't go for wealth,
even that fades away. Go for someone who makes you
smile because it takes only a smile to make a dark day
seem bright.
7. Dream what you want to dream, go where you want to go,
be what you want to be. Because you have only one life and
one chance to do all the things you want to do.
8. Always put yourself in the other's shoes. If you feel that it
hurts you, it probably hurts the person too.
9. A careless word may kindle strife. A cruel word may wreck
a life. A timely word may level stress. But a loving word may
heal and bless.
10. The happiest of people don't necessarily have the best
of everything they just make the most of everything that comes
along their way.
11. Love begins with a smile, grows with a kiss, ends with
a tear. When you were born, you were crying and everyone
around you was smiling. Live your life so that when you die,
you're the one smiling and everyone around you is crying.
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