Prolific Moment: Theory and Practice of Mindfulness for Writing foregrounds the present in all activities of composing, offering a new perspective on the rhetorical situation and the writing process. A focus on the present casts light on standard writing components—audience, invention, and revision—while bringing forth often overlooked nuances of the writing experience—intrapersonal rhetoric, the preverbal, and preconception. This pedagogy of mindful writing can alleviate the suffering of writing blocks that comes from mindless, future-oriented rhetorics. Much is lost with a misplaced present moment because students forfeit rewarding writing experiences for stress, frustration, boredom, fear, and shortchanged invention. Writing becomes a very different experience if students think of it more consistently as part of a discrete now. Peary examines mindfulness as a metacognitive practice and turns to foundational Buddhist concepts of no-self, emptiness, impermanence, and detachment for methods for observing the moment in the writing classroom. This volume is a fantastic resource for future and current instructors and scholars of composition, rhetoric, and writing studies.

This contemporary African classic tells the story of seven unforgettable Kenyan women as it traces more than sixty years of turbulent national history. Like their country, this group of old women is divided by ethnicity, language, class, and religion. But around the charcoal fire at the Refuge, the old-age home they share in Nairobi, they uncover the hidden personal histories that connect them as women: stories of their struggles for self-determination; of conflict, violence, and loss, but also of survival. Each woman has found her way to the Refuge because of a devastating life experience—the loss of family and security to revolution, emigration, or poverty. But as they reflect upon their tragedies, they also become aware of the community they have formed—a community of collective history, strength, humor, and affection. And they learn that they are more connected than they know, as the murder of a student in the neighborhood reveals how their lives have intersected across generations, how securely the past is tied to the present—and to the future—of their young nation.

With contributions by leading demographers, environmentalists, and reproductive health advocates, A Pivotal Moment offers a new perspective on the complex connection between population dynamics and environmental quality. It presents the latest research on the relationship between population growth and climate change, ecosystem health, and other environmental issues. It surveys the new demographic landscape—in which population growth rates have fallen, but human numbers continue to increase. It looks back at the lessons of the last half century while looking forward to population policies that are sustainable and just. A Pivotal Moment embraces the concept of “population justice,” which holds that inequality is a root cause of both rapid population growth and environmental degradation. By addressing inequality—both gender and economic—we can reduce growth rates and build a sustainable future.

Many of us assume that our creative process is beyond our ability to influence, and pay attention to it only when it isn't working properly. For the most part, we go about our daily tasks and everything just "works." Until it doesn't. Adding to this lack of understanding is the rapidly accelerating pace of work. Each day we are face escalating expectations and a continual squeeze to do more with less. We are asked to produce an ever-increasing amount of brilliance in an ever-shrinking amount of time. There is an unspoken (or spoken!) expectation that we'll be accessible 24/7, and as a result we frequently feel like we're "always on." Now business creativity expert Todd Henry explains how to unleash your creative potential. Whether you're a creative by trade or an "accidental creative," this book will help you quickly and effectively integrate new ideas into your daily life.

Why do capable students and scholars fail to complete writing projects? What are "writing blocks," and how can writers overcome them? Why are writing blocks more common for advanced and experienced writers who are not supposed to need help? And why are they more common in the humanities than in the sciences? Keith Hjortshoj answers these and other questions in Understanding Writing Blocks. This book demystifies the causes of writing blocks, which are often ignored, misunderstood, or attributed to obscure psychological disorders. Hjortshoj examines blocks instead as real writing problems arising from specific misconceptions, writing behaviors, and rhetorical factors present at different stages of the writing process. In a lively and informative style, he defines the nature of writing blocks, examines their causes, and offers advanced undergraduates, graduate students, and professional writers the diagnostic tools and strategies necessary for getting their work done. Although appropriate for any writing course, Understanding Writing Blocks targets advanced composition students and graduate writers who are most likely to encounter immobilizing obstacles, and whose experience supports the author's assertion that a writing block is usually "an affliction of the good writer." Hjortshoj draws his material and evidence from extensive research, interviews, and consultations with blocked writers from his twenty-five years of teaching. Especially helpful to students working on dissertations and other complex projects, Understanding Writing Blocks illuminates the factors that undermine writing ability in a wide range of endeavors.

Procrastination, perfectionism and writer's block are not moral flaws; nor are they caused by laziness, lack of discipline or lack of commitment. They are habits rooted in fear and scarcity - and the great news is that once we start alleviating our fears and resourcing ourselves abundantly, our procrastination and related problems are often remarkably easily solved. My new book The Seven Secrets of the Prolific, tells you how! In it, I characterize, in great detail and depth, the major categories of constraining forces that cause underproductivity, including perfectionism; resource constraints; time constraints; ineffective writing processes; bias, ambivalence and internalized oppression; toxic rejection; and exploitative career paths. Then, I tell you how to overcome each.

Taken by a student journalist, these remarkable photographs range from sit-ins to a Klan rally to the historic March on Washington. An absorbing narrative of reminiscences accompanies the 100 black-and-white images, most of them taken in 1963 and previously unpublished.

“A Life Less Beautiful” is a collection of philosophy, poetry and prose written over more than a decade. It is a philosophical landscape of the human heart and the journey it takes to find love and fulfillment. The work is emotionally charged and touches on all the aspects of human life and relationships. It is a literary realistic impression of the Author’s own emotional journeys. Heartache and loss are the central theme of the book which culminates in an emotionally gripping theory of human fulfillment. All of us will recognize pieces of our own journey in the book’s content. It reflects the human condition prevalent in society and the hidden pages of emotional disparity all of us conceal from the world. In times of heartache and despair, anger and loss, we all seek answers to end the chaotic frenzy of disillusionment and suffering. To see expressed in pure literary terms the imperfection and vulnerability of our hearts is to receive the morphine necessary to ease the pain that living and loving brings. The book is a philosophical and poetical genre of life coaching and self help that will place readers in the centre of their emotional self and commence the healing process necessary to find fulfillment. The didactic nature of the verse will further help readers acknowledge the destructive nature of their fears and insecurities and help them embrace the life potential within the painful lessons they learn. Above all “A Life Less Beautiful” is a textbook of love, its pain and its treasures. If Shackleton found “the naked soul of man” on his arctic expedition of 1914, then “A Life Less Beautiful” is “the naked heart of man” published in 2007.

This beautifully designed gift book contains many of the best-loved inspirational quotations and passages from Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh. Basic meditation instructions and messages of peace, love, insight, understanding, and compassion accompany two-color illustrations throughout, with blank pages for personal reflections and inspiration. Moments of Mindfulness is a perfect journal for spiritual exploration. Moments of Mindfulness is intended to be used as a personal notebook or to simply read for everyday inspiration, and to help bring mindful practices and reflection to daily life. With beautiful details and design it makes a wonderful gift. Illustrations by Jenifer Kent.