How To Craft a Compelling Story - Freewrite Store

How To Craft a Compelling Story - Freewrite Store How To Write With Impact Whether you’re writing a short story, novel or a sales page for your website, keeping your readers hooked is your main goal. If you fail to hook them, you lose them - and not just in the short term. They’ll remember how underwhelmed they were by your writing - and probably won’t give you a second chance. To have a positive impact on your readers, you have to impress them with your skill. Compelling content that almost forces them to keep reading will stick in their mind long after they’ve finished reading - and they’ll want to come back for more. That’s the secret to building a loyal audience that will benefit you long into the future.   Writers - just like you - come to me frustrated because they’re not happy with their writing. It lacks that attention-grabber hook that propels you from writer to storyteller. It doesn’t mean you’re not a great writer. It doesn’t mean you should quit. It just means you need to develop the skills. How To Write With Impact Writing a compelling story isn’t easy - not even when you’ve been doing it for years. You have to work hard at it, then edit, refine and improve until it’s a polished piece that could almost reach out and grab your readers by their lapels. It’s a skill you develop and practice, not something that’s innate - which is why so many writers get frustrated by the process. Related: Story vs. Plot So, what makes a compelling story? What techniques do you have to use to grab your reader’s attention and keep them firmly on those writing hooks? There’s no magic formula for this kind of powerful writing, but there are some key ingredients. What’s more, they work for content marketing, business writing and blog posts just as well as they do for fiction. Crafting content that’s compelling is a truly transferable skill. Let’s dive into the top 1.Show, Don’t Tell Okay, so this old cliche is so tired and worn out I really debated about whether to put it in - but despite its overuse, it’s still important. When you’re trying to hook your audience, it’s no good telling them how your character feels. Showthem, with a description that’s loaded with opportunities for your reader to slip into your character’s shoes and immerse themselves in the story. Related: Show and Tell Rather than explaining to your readers, you’re giving them the opportunity to draw their own conclusions. Once they’re in your character’s shoes, you’ve started the process of making them care - and that means they’re much less likely to abandon the story early on. 2. Shock and Surprise Startle your readers with something they weren’t expecting. Marketers do this a lot - aiming for the shock factor - but it’s just as important if you’re writing a short story or novel. Make it truly shocking and unexpected and you’ll have your readers right where you need them. Related: Did you catch our April 1 'product launch'?   We encounter the unexpected every day - and how we respond is part of our learning process. Injecting something shocking into your writing keeps it real and (most) readers will be intrigued as to how the character handles what’s happened. Is it different from how your reader would respond? Is there something they can learn from this? The shock factor is a sure fire way to get your readers on the hook - because you’ve grabbed their attention. Now you just have to keep them on the hook. 3. Relatability Compelling writing is real, gritty, and doesn’t pull any punches. If you want to keep your readers on the hook, they have to be able to relate to what’s happening in your story. To master relatability, you have to know your audience inside out. What problems do they have? What in their lives causes them the most pain. If your reader encounters a character they can relate to, who has problems as they do, they’re automatically more engaged. Your readers care about the characters they can relate to. They don’t care about the characters they have nothing in common with. Far too often, the reason why you’re not hooking your audience is because you don’t fully understand them. 4. Raise The Stakes You’re writing about real situations (or situations that could be happening to your readers) - but that doesn’t mean you have to confine yourself to strict realism. Your readers have put themselves in your character’s shoes, been shocked by something, and can relate to the problem - so now you have to raise the stakes. What’s the worst thing that could happen to your character right now? Even if it’s not really likely, you have to raise your readers’ investment in the story you’re telling. You’re playing with their emotions now, and you can’t hold back. (Well, you could, but make it too ‘ordinary’ and your readers will slide right off the hook again.) When you raise the stakes, you create that edge-of-the-seat anticipation in your reader. You know, that feeling where you can’t put the book (or tablet, e-reader, magazine, whatever) down because you just have to find out what happens next. That’s exactly what you’re aiming for. 5. Mining The Depths Characters that your readers care about aren’t 2D cardboard cutouts. When you’re creating content - whether fiction or non-fiction - 2D cardboard cutouts aren’t going to get you the results you want. You have to bring your characters to life - so it feels like they’re living, breathing people bursting off the page. You bring your characters to life by creating layer after layer of details. To do that, you need to know everything about your character’s backstory (even if you’re just creating them for a digital marketing campaign!). I’ve had students tell me that it’s way too much effort for content marketing, and should only be for fiction, but it works for me and the results are worth the effort. It’s the little details that bring your character to life. Anchor them in real-life events that have enough detail to make it sound like you’re giving eyewitness testimony in the courtroom. Names, places, feelings, sensations, emotions - build the details until you start to feel like you are giving eyewitness testimony. 6. Make It Memorable Compelling writing leaves a lasting impression on your reader - which makes them remember you. Whether you’re a novelist or a social media marketer, your goal is to ensure that your reader remembers you. Compelling writing inspires loyalty in your readers, building an audience that is already primed to sign up for your mailing list or like your Facebook page. Making an impression on your readers isn’t easy when there are so many other writers trying to do exactly the same thing. You have to stand out. You have to get your hook so deep into your audience that they won’t be able to forget how your writing made them feel, or how your writing changed their life. One way to ensure that your readers remember you and remain firmly on your hook is to leave them with a feeling of unfinished business. Don’t resolve all of the conflicts in your story. Leave an unresolved thread that will be like a constant itch at the back of your reader’s mind. Refining Your Writing    Don’t expect your first draft to be a masterpiece of compelling writing. While some writers may be ready to publish after the second draft, most writers go through multiple drafts. I don’t put a number limit on my drafting process - I redraft until I’m happy that I’ve done everything I can. Sometimes it takes five drafts. Other times it takes fifteen. I’m a ruthless editor, too. Crafting compelling stories isn’t something you can do in an evening, sitting with your laptop on your knee in front of the TV. Cut out all the distractions and immerse yourself in your characters’ world. Distractions and interruptions only dilute the strength of your writing. Give your writing the dedicated time it deserves, and you’ll master the art of writing with an impact much more quickly.       About the author: Ariella is an experienced copywriter, editor, and digital marketing consultant. Driven by a passion for writing and content creation she takes pride in producing articles that deliver the latest information in an engaging manner and marketing campaigns that deliver exceptional results. Ariella has a BA (Hons) in English Language and Creative Writing (First), an MA in Theology and Ministry, and is a published author of three novels and a bestselling non-fiction book. A creative at heart, Ariella has 14 years’ industry experience and always aims to keep abreast of current trends and developments. She lives in the UK with her three beagles Zeke, Hope, and Sandy, who always make life interesting. How To Craft a Compelling Story - Freewrite Store How To Write With Impact Whether you’re writing a short story, novel or a sales page for your website, keeping your readers hooked is your main goal. If you fail to hook them, you lose them - and not just in the short term. They’ll remember how underwhelmed they were by your writing - and probably won’t give you a second chance. To have a positive impact on your readers, you have to impress them with your skill. Compelling content that almost forces them to keep reading will stick in their mind long after they’ve finished reading - and they’ll want to come back for more. That’s the secret to building a loyal audience that will benefit you long into the future.   Writers - just like you - come to me frustrated because they’re not happy with their writing. It lacks that attention-grabber hook that propels you from writer to storyteller. It doesn’t mean you’re not a great writer. It doesn’t mean you should quit. It just means you need to develop the skills. How To Write With Impact Writing a compelling story isn’t easy - not even when you’ve been doing it for years. You have to work hard at it, then edit, refine and improve until it’s a polished piece that could almost reach out and grab your readers by their lapels. It’s a skill you develop and practice, not something that’s innate - which is why so many writers get frustrated by the process. Related: Story vs. Plot So, what makes a compelling story? What techniques do you have to use to grab your reader’s attention and keep them firmly on those writing hooks? There’s no magic formula for this kind of powerful writing, but there are some key ingredients. What’s more, they work for content marketing, business writing and blog posts just as well as they do for fiction. Crafting content that’s compelling is a truly transferable skill. Let’s dive into the top 1.Show, Don’t Tell Okay, so this old cliche is so tired and worn out I really debated about whether to put it in - but despite its overuse, it’s still important. When you’re trying to hook your audience, it’s no good telling them how your character feels. Showthem, with a description that’s loaded with opportunities for your reader to slip into your character’s shoes and immerse themselves in the story. Related: Show and Tell Rather than explaining to your readers, you’re giving them the opportunity to draw their own conclusions. Once they’re in your character’s shoes, you’ve started the process of making them care - and that means they’re much less likely to abandon the story early on. 2. Shock and Surprise Startle your readers with something they weren’t expecting. Marketers do this a lot - aiming for the shock factor - but it’s just as important if you’re writing a short story or novel. Make it truly shocking and unexpected and you’ll have your readers right where you need them. Related: Did you catch our April 1 'product launch'?   We encounter the unexpected every day - and how we respond is part of our learning process. Injecting something shocking into your writing keeps it real and (most) readers will be intrigued as to how the character handles what’s happened. Is it different from how your reader would respond? Is there something they can learn from this? The shock factor is a sure fire way to get your readers on the hook - because you’ve grabbed their attention. Now you just have to keep them on the hook. 3. Relatability Compelling writing is real, gritty, and doesn’t pull any punches. If you want to keep your readers on the hook, they have to be able to relate to what’s happening in your story. To master relatability, you have to know your audience inside out. What problems do they have? What in their lives causes them the most pain. If your reader encounters a character they can relate to, who has problems as they do, they’re automatically more engaged. Your readers care about the characters they can relate to. They don’t care about the characters they have nothing in common with. Far too often, the reason why you’re not hooking your audience is because you don’t fully understand them. 4. Raise The Stakes You’re writing about real situations (or situations that could be happening to your readers) - but that doesn’t mean you have to confine yourself to strict realism. Your readers have put themselves in your character’s shoes, been shocked by something, and can relate to the problem - so now you have to raise the stakes. What’s the worst thing that could happen to your character right now? Even if it’s not really likely, you have to raise your readers’ investment in the story you’re telling. You’re playing with their emotions now, and you can’t hold back. (Well, you could, but make it too ‘ordinary’ and your readers will slide right off the hook again.) When you raise the stakes, you create that edge-of-the-seat anticipation in your reader. You know, that feeling where you can’t put the book (or tablet, e-reader, magazine, whatever) down because you just have to find out what happens next. That’s exactly what you’re aiming for. 5. Mining The Depths Characters that your readers care about aren’t 2D cardboard cutouts. When you’re creating content - whether fiction or non-fiction - 2D cardboard cutouts aren’t going to get you the results you want. You have to bring your characters to life - so it feels like they’re living, breathing people bursting off the page. You bring your characters to life by creating layer after layer of details. To do that, you need to know everything about your character’s backstory (even if you’re just creating them for a digital marketing campaign!). I’ve had students tell me that it’s way too much effort for content marketing, and should only be for fiction, but it works for me and the results are worth the effort. It’s the little details that bring your character to life. Anchor them in real-life events that have enough detail to make it sound like you’re giving eyewitness testimony in the courtroom. Names, places, feelings, sensations, emotions - build the details until you start to feel like you are giving eyewitness testimony. 6. Make It Memorable Compelling writing leaves a lasting impression on your reader - which makes them remember you. Whether you’re a novelist or a social media marketer, your goal is to ensure that your reader remembers you. Compelling writing inspires loyalty in your readers, building an audience that is already primed to sign up for your mailing list or like your Facebook page. Making an impression on your readers isn’t easy when there are so many other writers trying to do exactly the same thing. You have to stand out. You have to get your hook so deep into your audience that they won’t be able to forget how your writing made them feel, or how your writing changed their life. One way to ensure that your readers remember you and remain firmly on your hook is to leave them with a feeling of unfinished business. Don’t resolve all of the conflicts in your story. Leave an unresolved thread that will be like a constant itch at the back of your reader’s mind. Refining Your Writing    Don’t expect your first draft to be a masterpiece of compelling writing. While some writers may be ready to publish after the second draft, most writers go through multiple drafts. I don’t put a number limit on my drafting process - I redraft until I’m happy that I’ve done everything I can. Sometimes it takes five drafts. Other times it takes fifteen. I’m a ruthless editor, too. Crafting compelling stories isn’t something you can do in an evening, sitting with your laptop on your knee in front of the TV. Cut out all the distractions and immerse yourself in your characters’ world. Distractions and interruptions only dilute the strength of your writing. Give your writing the dedicated time it deserves, and you’ll master the art of writing with an impact much more quickly.       About the author: Ariella is an experienced copywriter, editor, and digital marketing consultant. Driven by a passion for writing and content creation she takes pride in producing articles that deliver the latest information in an engaging manner and marketing campaigns that deliver exceptional results. Ariella has a BA (Hons) in English Language and Creative Writing (First), an MA in Theology and Ministry, and is a published author of three novels and a bestselling non-fiction book. A creative at heart, Ariella has 14 years’ industry experience and always aims to keep abreast of current trends and developments. She lives in the UK with her three beagles Zeke, Hope, and Sandy, who always make life interesting.

State of Immigration Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

State of Immigration - Research Paper Example Nevertheless, the proposal offers provisional status to millions of undocumented immigrants. The country need to come up with measures aimed at solving current challenges in immigration. The first step is to secure the borders. The border with Mexico still allows many illegal immigrants to move into the country hence it need to be secured. A guest-worker program will ensure that people from other countries are accorded the opportunity to work in the United States especially in carrying out hose jobs that have been neglected by the citizens of the nation. However this needs to be backed up with the necessary surveillance so as to ensure that only those who meet the needed qualifications are allowed into the country (Bush, J., McLarty, T. F., & Alden, E. H. 2009). The nation need to increased funding for the U.S. Border Patrol and adding more federal agents who will ensure that no illegal immigrants find their way into the country. Welfare benefits for the illegal immigrants need to be stopped as well as prohibiting in-state education of children from the illegal immigrants’ families. These moves will tend to discourage those who think being immigrants in the United States will offer them with the best opportunities at a lower cost (Borjas, 2007). Chris Gafner and Stephen Yale-Loehr argue that immigration brought great deal of talented and bright immigrants who made positive contributions in the economy as well as other spheres of life among the American people. However the trend is changing due to the fact that many nations have devised strategies aimed at attracting the best of the immigrants thus denying the United States the opportunity of gaining the best of the of the immigrants. Countries such as Canada, China and the European Union have come with attractive means of enticing the best of the immigrants from developing countries especially

The gravedigger scene may be taken as a key to the play Hamlet as a Essay

The gravedigger scene may be taken as a key to the play Hamlet as a whole. Why - Essay Example Thus Hamlet says, "that skull had a tongue in it, and could sing once: how the knave jowls it to the ground, as if it were Cain's jaw-bone that did the first murder." This aspect of the scene also shows how Hamlet, whether he likes it or not, constantly returns to the same themes whatever situation he is in. The fact that the jawbone could be that of Cain, leads him to the subject of murder which in turn leads him to the fact that he believes his father was murdered by his Uncle and mother. Hamlet makes fun of all the titles, property and pride that make him a "Prince", but which will eventually disappear into that great equalizer. The fact that he has felt uneasy with the idea of being a royalty occurs through the play and is persistent in this scene as he looks at skull that might have been "a lawyer's" or a "great buyer of land". They are all equal now within death. The theme of death taking away the innocence of childhood appears as Hamlet says the famous line, "alas, poor Yorick, I knew him well". Death's bit is even more keen when it has occurred to someone that we fondly remember from out childhood. Again, Hamlet asks a series of questions that he knows the answer to before he has spoken them. These are perhaps the ultimate rhetorical questions: "where be your gibes now, Your gambols Your songs Your flashes of merriment, that were wont to set the table on a roar Not one now, to mock your own grinning." The fact that Yorick, who apparently displayed all the vitality and zest for life that Hamlet sorely lacks, is dead, makes Hamlet's own attempts to both cheat death and to avenge it seem rather pathetic. The idea that there is no-one to "mock" the permanent "grin" that Yorick's skull is showing is perhaps the most telling fact of all. Hamlet suggests that death is mocking all mortals - so no mortal mocking is actually needed. The unfairness of death is a theme that resounds throughout the play. It is unfair that his father has been killed while his useless uncle lives. It was unfair that Polonius was killed needlessly (even though Hamlet cares little himself), and it is unfair that Ophelia has been driven to madness and hence to suicide. Death, it seems, takes those who are most innately suited to life. While those such as Hamlet himself, so thinks the Prince, are left to suffer within a tortured life. The fact that death makes all equal is expounded upon by making the dead seem to be part of death's joke on the prideful ambitions of life. Thus the stinking skull that Hamlet is handling (that of Yorick) brings him to consideration of the fact that the "imagination trace the novel dust of Alexander, till he find it stopping a bung hole" Throughout Hamlet the title character is unable to stop his flights of imagination, and all of these turn into a kind of reduction ad absurdum in which the whole of life is rendered meaningless and somewhat laughable by the cold facts of death. Life is very short, mutable and transient in its importance while death is eternal and majestically terrible in its permanence and resonance. Alexander may be the dust bunging up one hole or another for much longer than he was ever a great ruler. This sense of futility is resoundingly summed up within the following rhyming couplets: Imperious Caesar, dead and turn'd to

Workplace Saftey Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Workplace Saftey - Case Study Example Assessment of risks in the operational department in a bank involves assessing the various risks including their effects, establishing possible alternative ways of avoiding the risk, making the decision on the best strategy to mitigate the risk and implementing the risk controls adopted by the firm. By the time a bank makes decision on the mitigation measures, the management has accepted the occurrence of the risks and is not trying to reduce the effects on the firm. In one of the banks, the management assessed the risks affecting its operations department by beginning by assessing the issue at hand. This was followed by balancing resources in establishing possible solutions and balancing resources in establishing the solutions. Thereafter, the management communicated the risks and intended intentions by its actions. A debrief that involved taking of action and monitoring responses followed. Task 2: WHS Harmonization a. Objectives of Harmonisation The main objective of the harmonizat ion of the act was to ensure that the entire country has one law that governs work place safety for all employees. In addition, the regulations are to ensure safe working conditions for the entire country and commonwealth countries. The states had to maintain their jurisdiction over because employees work in the states and it would be easier for them to handle workplace safety issues rather than the federal government. b. Features of a WHS act The act is about setting a good working environment regarding health and safety of employees in organizations. The changes that were made to the act were several and were made in different section of the law as outlined below. In section four, a new definition of â€Å"engage in conduct† was given as the means of doing an act while the corresponding jurisdiction was provided as â€Å"A jurisdiction may extend the operation of a provision that applies to a corresponding WHS law to specified laws of the jurisdiction. This should be dealt with separately in the provision or regulations under the provision† (Safework Australia 2) In section 7, the jurisdiction note was omitted and replaced by anew jurisdiction note that sought to alter section 7(1). In some sections such as sections 8(2), 20(1)a, 22(5), 28(d), 36 and 52(3) among others, articles and prepositions were added to alter the meanings of the constituents of the law. In section 98, merely was replaced by only while clause 110 was omitted and replaced by another clause outlining discriminatory conduct, its proof, avoiding discrimination and jurisdiction over misconduct (Safework Australia 3). c. Implications of WHS act for i) Organizations The implications of the act on organization are that firms should establish a healthy and safe working environment. All working environments in Australia and other commonwealth countries are to comply with the act failure to which they will be sued. The organization is responsible for initiating the necessary changes regarding a safe and healthy working environment for its employees. ii) Managers/supervisors The managements of companies are responsible for implementing the policies stipulated in the act regarding provision of a healthy and safe working environment. The act stipulates what is called a safe and healthy working environment. What is reasonably practicable in relation to duty to ensure safety and health means what is to be done reasonably to ensure health and safety of employees. The managers and supervisors in an organization are to provide the practicable duty of care in any form of business. Proper inspection of premises should be undertaken frequently by the management to ensure that a proper

Principles Of Management Nokia Marketing Essay

Principles Of Management Nokia Marketing Essay When Nokia phones were first introduced, they needed a lot of promoting and advertising because they were not recognized enough to sell based on their quality and offers to their consumers, so this is where Nokia spent the biggest quantity of money promoting their goods and establishing their brand as a leader in the communications market. These refer to government policies, regulations and legal issues in the country of operation. For example, employment laws, taxation policy and government stability. Political decisions can impact on many important areas for business such as the education of the workforce, the nation health and the quality of the economy infrastructure such as the road and rail system. Legal constraints, such as 3G, must be considered because many businesses plan to make a profit so they may be tempted to misinform their customers about pricing, products quality and the availability of their goods. Also, they may try to cut expenses by using lower quality materials in their products, such as weaker resources for Nokia cases and batteries. Also some companies may set out their waste in ways that harm the environment without ensuring high standards of hygiene and safety in the workplace. Including, outlet stores, which are illegal and can cause legal problems for companies. In 2000, the UK Government started to accept bids from thirteen companies who wanted to run a licence to sell next-generation mobile phones. It raised  £22.47, a neat sum to anybody. Some businesses see profits as more valuable than a strong ethical code and this can run behavior and business conduct. Some unethical practices are illegal and companies can not become involved in them. However there are also some practices that are legal by law but are considered highly unethical by the consuming public. Companies who take on in these practices can lose a lot of market share if they are caught. For example, cosmetic testing on animals is legal, but some of the general public arent happy about it and boycott. Because of this companies, companies must be very cautious about how they conduct themselves. In the communications market, technology is most probably the most important factor that companies like Nokia have to take into account. They must keep up to date with all the newest technological advances, such as camera and video phones, if they intend to obtain the biggest market share and keep ahead of their competitors, such as Sony and Panasonic.

Why Do Children Talk To Themselves? :: Psychology Psychological Papers

Why Do Children Talk To Themselves? Whether you are a parent, teacher, child care giver, or a child observer you may have noticed that many children talk to themselves. Laura Berk reports that, â€Å"private speech can account for 20-60 percent of the remarks a child younger than 10 years makes† (78). Why do children do this? Does it benefit the child as Vygotsky would say, or is it just that the child is making egocentric remarks that play no positive role in normal cognitive development as Piaget would claim? I am going to be looking at the differences between Vygotsky’s and Piaget’s points of view. Then, I will look at Laura Berk’s findings in her article, â€Å"Why Children Talk to Themselves.† I will also talk about other findings concerning this topic. Jean Piaget and Lev Vygotsky were developmental psychologists interested in the origins and processes of cognitive development. These two psychologists disagreed sharply on the role that private speech played in one’s cognitive development. Vygotsky called this private speech while Piaget called it egocentric speech. Piaget observed the activities of three to eight year old kindergarten children, and discovered such uses of speech as verbal repetitions of another individual, monologues during an activity, and non-reciprocal remarks in collective settings. In these instances their speech was not directed towards other individuals. In Piaget’s mind these patterns of speech showed evidence of egocentrism, a sign of cognitive immaturity, and an inability to share the perspective of another individual. However, he argued, as the children grow older they socialize increasingly more with others, and their speech becomes communicative. Their speech moves away from being self- to other-oriented, a sign that they are able to adopt the perspectives of others. A child overcomes egocentrism by beginning to think critically and logically, causing egocentric speech to fade away. Vygotsky believes that a child’s cognitive development originates in socialization activities, and then goes through a process of increasing individuation. He argued that self-directed speech did not show any cognitive immaturity, but did show some form of development. He claims that private speech represents a functional differentiation in the speech of a child, or that a child begins to differentiate between speech that is directed towards the others and speech that is self-directed.

Forward the Foundation Chapter 6

15 Cleon was no longer quite the handsome young monarch that his holographs portrayed. Perhaps he still was-in the holographs-but his mirror told a different story. His most recent birthday had been celebrated with the usual pomp and ritual, but it was his fortieth just the same. The Emperor could find nothing wrong with being forty. His health was perfect. He had gained a little weight but not much. His face would perhaps look older, if it were not for the microadjustments that were made periodically and that gave him a slightly enameled look. He had been on the throne for eighteen years-already one of the longer reigns of the century-and he felt there was nothing that might necessarily keep him from reigning another forty years and perhaps having the longest reign in Imperial history as a result. Cleon looked at the mirror again and thought he looked a bit better if he did not actualize the third dimension. Now take Demerzel-faithful, reliable, necessary, unbearable Demerzel. No change in him. He maintained his appearance and, as far as Cleon knew, there had been no microadjustments, either. Of course, Demerzel was so close-mouthed about everything. And he had never been young. There had been no young look about him when he first served Cleon's father and Cleon had been the boyish Prince Imperial. And there was no young look about him now. Was it better to have looked old at the start and to avoid change afterward? Change! It reminded him that he had called Demerzel in for a purpose and not just so that he might stand there while the Emperor ruminated. Demerzel would take too much Imperial rumination as a sign of old age. â€Å"Demerzel,† he said. â€Å"Sire?† â€Å"This fellow Joranum. I tire of hearing of him.† â€Å"There is no reason you should hear of him, Sire. He is one of those phenomena that are thrown to the surface of the news for a while and then disappears.† â€Å"But he doesn't disappear.† â€Å"Sometimes it takes a while, Sire.† â€Å"What do you think of him, Demerzel?† â€Å"He is dangerous but has a certain popularity. It is the popularity that increases the danger.† â€Å"If you find him dangerous and if I find him annoying, why must we wait? Can't he simply be imprisoned or executed or something?† â€Å"The political situation on Trantor, Sire, is delicate-â€Å" â€Å"It is always delicate. When have you told me that it is anything but delicate?† â€Å"We live in delicate times, Sire. It would be useless to move strongly against him if that would but exacerbate the danger.† â€Å"I don't like it. I may not be widely read-an Emperor doesn't have the time to be widely read-but I know my Imperial history, at any rate. There have been a number of cases of these populists, as they are called, that have seized power in the last couple of centuries. In every case, they reduced the reigning Emperor to a mere figurehead. I do not wish to be a figurehead, Demerzel.† â€Å"It is unthinkable that you would be, Sire.† â€Å"It won't be unthinkable if you do nothing.† â€Å"I am attempting to take measures, Sire, but cautious ones.† â€Å"There's one fellow, at least, who isn't cautious. A month or so ago, a University professor-a professor-stopped a potential Joranumite riot single-handedly. He stepped right in and put a stop to it.† â€Å"So he did, Sire. How did you come to hear of it?† â€Å"Because he is a certain professor in whom I am interested. How is it that you didn't speak to me of this?† Demerzel said, almost obsequiously, â€Å"Would it be right for me to trouble you with every insignificant detail that crosses my desk?† â€Å"Insignificant? This man who took action was Hari Seldon.† â€Å"That was, indeed, his name.† â€Å"And the name was a familiar one. Did he not present a paper, some years ago, at the last Decennial Convention that interested us?† â€Å"Yes, Sire.† Cleon looked pleased. â€Å"As you see, I do have a memory. I need not depend on my staff for everything. I interviewed this Seldon fellow on the matter of his paper, did I not?† â€Å"Your memory is indeed flawless, Sire.† â€Å"What happened to his idea? It was a fortune-telling device. My flawless memory does not bring to mind what he called it.† â€Å"Psychohistory, Sire. It was not precisely a fortune-telling device but a theory as to ways of predicting general trends in future human history.† â€Å"And what happened to it?† â€Å"Nothing, Sire. As I explained at the time, the idea turned out to be wholly impractical. It was a colorful idea but a useless one.† â€Å"Yet he is capable of taking action to stop a potential riot. Would he have dared do this if he didn't know in advance he would succeed? Isn't that evidence that this-what?-psychohistory is working?† â€Å"It is merely evidence that Hari Seldon is foolhardy, Sire. Even if the psychohistoric theory were practical, it would not have been able to yield results involving a single person or a single action.† â€Å"You're not the mathematician, Demerzel. He is. I think it is time I questioned him again. After all, it is not long before the Decennial Convention is upon us once more.† â€Å"It would be a useless-â€Å" â€Å"Demerzel, I desire it. See to it.† â€Å"Yes, Sire.† 16 Raych was listening with an agonized impatience that he was trying not to show. He was sitting in an improvised cell, deep in the warrens of Billibotton, having been accompanied through alleys he no longer remembered. (He, who in the old days could have threaded those same alleys unerringly and lost any pursuer.) The man with him, clad in the green of the Joranumite Guard, was either a missionary, a brainwasher, or a kind of theologian-manque. At any rate, he had announced his name to be Sander Nee and he was delivering a long message in a thick Dahlite accent that he had clearly learned by heart. â€Å"If the people of Dahl want to enjoy equality, they must show themselves worthy of it. Good rule, quiet behavior, seemly pleasures are all requirements. Aggressiveness and the bearing of knives are the accusations others make against us to justify their intolerance. We must be clean in word and-â€Å" Raych broke in. â€Å"I agree with you, Guardsman Nee, every word. But I must see Mr. Joranum.† Slowly the guardsman shook his head. â€Å"You can't ‘less you got some appointment, some permission.† â€Å"Look, I'm the son of an important professor at Streeling University, a mathematics professor.† â€Å"Don't know no professor. I thought you said you was from Dahl.† â€Å"Of course I am. Can't you tell the way I talk?† â€Å"And you got an old man who's a professor at a big University? That don't sound likely.† â€Å"Well, he's my foster father.† The guardsman absorbed that and shook his head. â€Å"You know anyone in Dahl?† â€Å"There's Mother Rittah. She'll know me.† (She had been very old when she had known him. She might be senile by now-or dead.) â€Å"Never heard of her.† (Who else? He had never known anyone likely to penetrate the dim consciousness of this man facing him. His best friend had been another youngster named Smoodgie-or at least that was the only name he knew him by. Even in his desperation, Raych could not see himself saying: â€Å"Do you know someone my age named Smoodgie?†) Finally he said, â€Å"There's Yugo Amaryl.† A dim spark seemed to light Nee's eyes. â€Å"Who?† â€Å"Yugo Amaryl,† said Raych eagerly. â€Å"He works for my foster father at the University.† â€Å"He a Dahlite, too? Everyone at the University Dahlites?† â€Å"Just he and I. He was a heatsinker.† â€Å"What's he doing at the University?† â€Å"My father took him out of the heatsinks eight years ago.† â€Å"Well-I'll send someone.† Raych had to wait. Even if he escaped, where would he go in the intricate alleyways of Billibotton without being picked up instantly? Twenty minutes passed before Nee returned with the corporal who had arrested Raych in the first place. Raych felt a little hope; the corporal, at least, might conceivably have some brains. The corporal said, â€Å"Who is this Dahlite you know?† â€Å"Yugo Amaryl, Corporal, a heatsinker who my father found here in Dahl eight years ago and took to Streeling University with him.† â€Å"Why did he do that?† â€Å"My father thought Yugo could do more important things than heatsink, Corporal.† â€Å"Like what?† â€Å"Mathematics. He-â€Å" The corporal held up his hand. â€Å"What heatsink did he work in?† Raych thought for a moment. â€Å"I was only a kid then, but it was at C-2, I think.† â€Å"Close enough. C-3.† â€Å"Then you know about him, Corporal?† â€Å"Not personally, but the story is famous in the heatsinks and I've worked there, too. And maybe that's how you've heard of it. Have you any evidence that you really know Yugo Amaryl?† â€Å"Look. Let me tell you what I'd like to do. I'm going to write down my name on a piece of paper and my father's name. Then I'm going to write down one word. Get in touch-any way you want-with some official in Mr. Joranum's group-Mr. Joranum will be here in Dahl tomorrow-and just read him my name, my father's name, and the one word. If nothing happens, then I'll stay here till I rot, I suppose, but I don't think that will happen. In fact, I'm sure that they will get me out of here in three seconds and that you'll get a promotion for passing along the information. If you refuse to do this, when they find out I am here-and they will-you will be in the deepest possible trouble. After all, if you know that Yugo Amaryl went off with a big-shot mathematician, just tell yourself that same big-shot mathematician is my father. His name is Hari Seldon.† The corporal's face showed clearly that the name was not unknown to him. He said, â€Å"What's the one word you're going to write down?† â€Å"Psychohistory.† The corporal frowned. â€Å"What's that?† â€Å"That doesn't matter. Just pass it along and see what happens.† The corporal handed him a small sheet of paper, torn out of a notebook. â€Å"All right. Write it down and we'll see what happens.† Raych realized that he was trembling. He wanted very much to know what would happen. It depended entirely on who it was that the corporal would talk to and what magic the word would carry with it. 17 Hari Seldon watched the raindrops form on the wraparound windows of the Imperial ground-car and a sense of nostalgia stabbed at him unbearably. It was only the second time in his eight years on Trantor that he had been ordered to visit the Emperor in the only open land on the planet-and both times the weather had been bad. The first time, shortly after he had arrived on Trantor, the bad weather had merely irritated him. He had found no novelty in it. His home world of Helicon had its share of storms, after all, particularly in the area where he had been brought up. But now he had lived for eight years in make-believe weather, in which storms consisted of computerized cloudiness at random intervals, with regular light rains during the sleeping hours. Raging winds were replaced by zephyrs and there were no extremes of heat and cold-merely little changes that made you unzip the front of your shirt once in a while or throw on a light jacket. And he had heard complaints about even so mild a deviation. But now Hari was seeing real rain coming down drearily from a cold sky-and he had not seen such a thing in years-and he loved it; that was the thing. It reminded him of Helicon, of his youth, of relatively carefree days, and he wondered if he might persuade the driver to take the long way to the Palace. Impossible! The Emperor wanted to see him and it was a long enough trip by ground-car, even if one went in a straight line with no interfering traffic. The Emperor, of course, would not wait. It was a different Cleon from the one Seldon had seen eight years before. He had put on about ten pounds and there was a sulkiness about his face. Yet the skin around his eyes and cheeks looked pinched and Hari recognized the results of one too many microadjustments. In a way, Seldon felt sorry for Cleon-for all his might and Imperial sway, the Emperor was powerless against the passage of time. Once again Cleon met Hari Seldon alone-in the same lavishly furnished room of their first encounter. As was the custom, Seldon waited to be addressed. After briefly assessing Seldon's appearance, the Emperor said in an ordinary voice, â€Å"Glad to see you, Professor. Let us dispense with formalities, as we did on the former occasion on which I met you.† â€Å"Yes, Sire,† said Seldon stiffly. It was not always safe to be informal, merely because the Emperor ordered you to be so in an effusive moment. Cleon gestured imperceptibly and at once the room came alive with automation as the table set itself and dishes began to appear. Seldon, confused, could not follow the details. The Emperor said casually, â€Å"You will dine with me, Seldon?† It had the formal intonation of a question but the force, somehow, of an order. â€Å"I would be honored, Sire,† said Seldon. He looked around cautiously. He knew very well that one did not (or, at any rate, should not) ask questions of the Emperor, but he saw no way out of it. He said, rather quietly, trying to make it not sound like a question, â€Å"The First Minister will not dine with us?† â€Å"He will not,† said Cleon. â€Å"He has other tasks at this moment and I wish, in any case, to speak to you privately.† They ate quietly for a while, Cleon gazing at him fixedly and Seldon smiling tentatively. Cleon had no reputation for cruelty or even for irresponsibility, but he could, in theory, have Seldon arrested on some vague charge and, if the Emperor wished to exert his influence, the case might never come to trial. It was always best to avoid notice and at the moment Seldon couldn't manage it. Surely it had been worse eight years ago, when he had been brought to the Palace under armed guard. This fact did not make Seldon feel relieved, however. Then Cleon spoke. â€Å"Seldon† he said. â€Å"The First Minister is of great use to me, yet I feel that, at times, people may think I do not have a mind of my own. Do you think that?† â€Å"Never, Sire,† said Seldon calmly. No use protesting too much. â€Å"I don't believe you. However, I do have a mind of my own and I recall that when you first came to Trantor you had this psychohistory thing you were playing with.† â€Å"I'm sure you also remember, Sire,† said Seldon softly, â€Å"that I explained at the time it was a mathematical theory without practical application.† â€Å"So you said. Do you still say so?† â€Å"Yes, Sire.† â€Å"Have you been working on it since?† â€Å"On occasion I toy with it, but it comes to nothing. Chaos unfortunately interferes and predictability is not-â€Å" The Emperor interrupted. â€Å"There is a specific problem I wish you to tackle. Do help yourself to the dessert, Seldon. It is very good.† â€Å"What is the problem, Sire?† â€Å"This man Joranum. Demerzel tells me-oh, so politely-that I cannot arrest this man and I cannot use armed force to crush his followers. He says it will simply make the situation worse.† â€Å"If the First Minister says so, I presume it is so.† â€Å"But I do not want this man Joranum†¦ At any rate, I will not be his puppet. Demerzel does nothing.† â€Å"I am sure that he is doing what he can, Sire.† â€Å"If he is working to alleviate the problem, he certainly is not keeping me informed.† â€Å"That may be, Sire, out of a natural desire to keep you above the fray. The First Minister may feel that if Joranum should-if he should-â€Å" â€Å"Take over,† said Cleon with a tone of infinite distaste. â€Å"Yes, Sire. It would not be wise to have it appear that you were personally opposed to him. You must remain untouched for the sake of the stability of the Empire.† â€Å"I would much rather assure the stability of the Empire without Joranum. What do you suggest, Seldon?† â€Å"I, Sire?† â€Å"You, Seldon,† said Cleon impatiently. â€Å"Let me say that I don't believe you when you say that psychohistory is just a game. Demerzel stays friendly with you. Do you think I am such an idiot as not to know that? He expects something from you. He expects psychohistory from you and since I am no fool, I expect it, too. Seldon, are you for Joranum? The truth!† â€Å"No, Sire, I am not for him. I consider him an utter danger to the Empire.† â€Å"Very well, I believe you. You stopped a potential Joranumite riot at your University grounds single-handedly, I understand.† â€Å"It was pure impulse on my part, Sire.† â€Å"Tell that to fools, not to me. You had worked it out by psychohistory.† â€Å"Sire!† â€Å"Don't protest. What are you doing about Joranum? You must be doing something if you are on the side of the Empire.† â€Å"Sire,† said Seldon cautiously, uncertain as to how much the Emperor knew. â€Å"I have sent my son to meet with Joranum in the Dahl Sector.† â€Å"Why?† â€Å"My son is a Dahlite-and shrewd. He may discover something of use to us.† â€Å"May?† â€Å"Only may, Sire.† â€Å"You'll keep me informed?† â€Å"Yes, Sire.† â€Å"And, Seldon, do not tell me that psychohistory is just a game, that it does not exist. I do not want to hear that. I expect you to do something about Joranum. What it might be, I can't say, but you must do something. I will not have it otherwise. You may go.† Seldon returned to Streeling University in a far darker mood than when he had left. Cleon had sounded as though he would not accept failure. It all depended on Raych now.