. A blog can be a great place to put out your writing in a place where it will get read. People's responses can help you learn and grow as a writer. You might even get some name recognition. Try doing an interview. Ask a prominent person if they are willing to talk to you. You might be surprised who would be willing to talk to you for a bit of additional publicity. Such a big name can bring in new readers. . Review a book and send the review off to local newspapers or websites that are interested in the subject. These will give you an opportunity to get your name in print. Furthermore, engaging in a deep way with the work of a great writer will give you some perspective on your own creative endeavors. Writing short pieces for magazines, websites, and newspapers might not be what you want to do with your life. However, it will give you some name recognition and a bit of money to help you live the life of a writer. Most importantly, working on a time table under experienced editors will get you accustomed to the pace and style of professional writing.

Summary: Start a blog Write book reviews Do piece work.

Each space on a Cranium board corresponds to a certain type of card. The cards contain activities that must be completed before your team can move across the board. There should be a small hourglass timer that comes with cranium that allows players one minute to complete the activity. If you do not have your timer, you can use a watch or phone to keep track of time. One type of card is the creative cat. The creative cat card involves a creative activity. You may use the clay to make a sculpture and have another player guess what you're sculpting. You may also do a Pictionary-type drawing activity. Unless otherwise specified on the card, you can choose which team member performs the activity. When playing Creative Cat, it's a good idea to pick a more artistically inclined player. If someone is good at drawing or sculpting, allowing that person to engage in the activity will give your team a better chance at winning. Data Head cards are simple trivia cards. They have regular types of trivia in addition to true/false and multiple choice questions. To successfully complete this activity, you need to answer the questions correctly. Choose a player with a knack for trivia to complete this activity. If someone is good at something like bar trivia or Trivial Pursuit, they'll be your best bet for this activity. If you're chosen for a Data Head activity and you don't know the answer, go with your gut response. Many times, trivia answers are things we've learned at some point but do not consciously remember. If you have a gut feeling one answer is right, take a shot. You should be especially willing to take this risk if the answer is multiple choice or True/False. You'll have a 25-50% chance of being correct. Word Worm cards involve challenges with words. Words may be scrambled, for example, or you may have to guess the definition of a given word. Pick a player with a good vocabulary for this card. People who read a lot or who write for a living might be better at defining or unscrambling words. If anyone on your team has a background in etymology or linguistics, choose them for this activity. Oftentimes, the roots used in words offer a hint to their meaning. Someone who's studied words academically is more likely to pick up on these subtleties. Star Performer cards are slightly more elaborate. They come in three different categories. Humdinger cards involve humming the tune to a popular song. The other player has to guess what song you are humming. If you have a Humdinger, you should pick someone that is able to carry. Also choose someone who knows popular music. Someone who's a classically trained pianist could potentially be great at humming. However, if this person has spent his whole life playing Chopin he might not know the tune to a Bruce Springsteen song offhand. Copycat cards require you to act like a famous person. Pick a team member who's fun-loving, uninhibited, and somewhat dramatic. The more someone is willing to put themselves out there and perform, the better chance you have of guessing the answer. As with a humdinger card, make sure it's someone well acquainted with pop culture so they'll recognize the name on the card. Cameo cards are similar to charades in which you have to get the other player to guess a particular person, place, or thing by silently acting out clues. Yet again, someone who is willing to put themselves out there and perform is your best choice. Some cards have a "club cranium" symbol on them. When a team draws such a card, all players have to join in. Whichever team successfully completes the activity first gets to move across the board. Try to focus on your own team during the activity. Listening in on other players can cause stress, distracting you from your own players. Remember to have fun. Getting too competitive during board games can take away some of the entertainment value.

Summary: Play Creative Cat. Try Data Head. Use the Word Worm card. Do a Star Performer card. Play a club cranium card.

Make sure your ideas are consistent with the rest of what you've written; for example, a happily-ever-after ending might work for a romance story but perhaps not for a horror story. Make sure your chosen ending tells your readers what they want to know. Don't leave any loose threads hanging; for example, if one of your characters was about to have surgery in the middle of the story, your readers will probably want to know what happened to her. As writer Kurt Vonnegut advised, "Use the time of a total stranger in such a way that he or she will not feel the time was wasted." Endings such as "it was all a dream" or "they were dead all along" are usually a bad idea, as they almost never resolve conflict or provide a logical conclusion, and this can make your reader feel like they were tricked. Avoid the deus ex machina (literally, "god in the machine") ending, where something happens to occur in the nick of time to help a character overcome a difficult obstacle: for example, a detective in a suspense story only solves the mystery because he gets a call from a mysterious person who has all the answers. Try not to "change the rules" on your reader. So, for example, if your heroine has never wanted to get married and she changes her mind at the end of your story, make sure that her reasons for that decision are shown throughout the story, rather than just having it suddenly happen. For example: "Millie walked to the closet. She listened to the scratching within and tried to overcome her fear. Suddenly she grabbed the handle and opened the door. A little mouse ran out of the closet, and she laughed." This way you know exactly what happens; you will come back and polish the language in Part 4. Keep an eye on length. A good ending will be proportionate to the rest of the story.

Summary: Choose your favorite ideas from your brainstorming and free-writing. Compare your potential ending with the story outline you wrote in Part 1. Respect your reader. Ensure that your ending follows the internal logic you've established in the story. Write out the final events in concise sentences.

Argumentative people will often argue out of a desire to see an emotional response from their opponent. Don't show if the interaction is making you upset or angry. Smile. Show your antagonist you aren't going to let an argument bring you down. Sometimes that's all an angry, argumentative person is looking to do. Instead of trying to convince an argumentative person to see things your way, ask them questions to explain their viewpoint. Often this can help you get to root of the argument. For example you can ask "What is your reasoning behind that idea?" Aside from not having to justify your own position to your opponent, you are allowing them an opportunity to vent and feel their voice is heard. Many times this will be enough to calm an argumentative person, even if it doesn't resolve the disagreement. If you feel a situation is not going to be resolved in a positive manner, just step away from it. You can always pick up the topic again at a later time when you feel it can be discussed in a reasonable manner.
Summary: Stay calm. Ask questions. Know when to walk away.