G2. Poetry & Prose - Writing stylishly for fun.

Haiku poetry typically are in the form of prose - non-rhyming lines with a specific rhythm to the number of syllables. The first and third lines typically have five syllables and the second line has seven, however, the number might vary. The theme is generally about nature and the third line may bring it to a thought provoking or surprising conclusion. Haiku are like very short stories.

Poetry may activate the brain similarly to music by helping increase brain connectivity in a way that is similar to what occurs when someone is listening to or composing music.

• Read more about poetry and neuroscience: Great Ways Poetry Lights Up the Brain (G2.1)

Read more on Confirmation bias: 

• What is Confirmation bias?  (G2.2)
• Top 10 list of Psychology's Big Questions and the Answers. (G2.3)

Worrying about worries may just strengthen them - jot down a worry and put it in a worry jar and designate a few minutes a week to look at them - and in the mean time forget about them - you have done something constructive about it and therefore don't need to worry about it or further confirm its existence. Or break it down into constructive action steps to help build a safer or different future in your present life. Worries are not a useful use of time.

     Writing about worries has been found to help relieve stress and more recent research has shown that writing about happy thoughts may also help relieve stress and anxiety. Just a few minutes a day jotting down memories or ideas may help relax or take our worries off our mind for the moment. You don't know what might help until you try it and writing in a journal or on the back of junk mail envelopes can be a safe and easy strategy to try. You can also write online with a free blog site, see: Best Free Blogging Sites in 2018 - Compare Platforms, (G2.12). Share or keep it private, your choice! If you would like something simpler and don't have an envelope handy, consider a note-taking app, see TechAcute: 10 Great Note-Taking Apps for Both iOS and Android, (G2.15)

• Read more about the recent research on the mental health benefits of writing or journaling on the World Economic Forum site: Here's why writing down your happy thoughts could combat stress and anxiety. (G2.13) 

The research didn't show physical health benefits but it was only for a few weeks. Other research looked at the mental health benefits of writing in a gratitude journal or writing letters about gratitude. The study group was made of college students who were seeking mental health services and their progress was tracked for 12 weeks. Benefits were felt by the students on average after four weeks whether the gratitude letters or journals were shared with others or kept private and benefits in mental health increased by the 12 week point in the study. See the Greater Good Magazine article: How Gratitude Changes You and Your Brain.  (G2.14)  

     Over time reduced stress levels may help protect physical health by reducing risk of long term negative effects of oxidative stress - the physical effects that can occur from normal metabolism, strenuous exercise, or mental and emotional stress. Early childhood worries may have formed without words so drawing pictures or taking photos may be a wordless way to release some stored emotions or memories for some people. The research study was with participants who did not have any psychological diagnoses. 

Puns are fun, they stimulate the mind - however they can overstimulate the mind and may be more likely to be taken the wrong way than writing that is kept as clear as possible. Puns play with word meanings or rhyming sounds or alliterative sounds - or all  three.

Words that overstimulate should be avoided, unless that is the goal,  Whether intellectually with a word play that makes the mind stumble a moment and have to pause and say, "What?" <scratching head in puzzlement emoji>, or whether words that might make someone blush or get angry, words that are "hot button" words should be reserved for hot button topics and situations only - used for a reason that is worth risking bewilderment or anger or a blush.

• A writing course on the website Udemy.com was helpful at explaining  the overall structure of a work of writing no matter what length and ways to develop a theme throughout:  Ninja Writing: The Four Levels Of Writing Mastery , by Shani Raja, Ex-Wall Street Journal editor. See udemy.com: (G2.4). 

The word "ninja" has become over-used at this point but it was a helpful course even with a buzzword. -- Never judge a book by its buzz?  <ducking fusilage of rotten tomatoes>

Writing courses and a free blog are available for professional content marketers - which is practically everyone these days to some extent - at copyblogger.com : (G2.5). 

Writing courses are also available as MOOC's - Massive Open Online Courses on sites such as Coursera.org. A series on improving basic skills for academic writing in English includes subtitles in a few other languages. See Academic English: Writing Specialization, (G2.9). Another writing course available on the site works on improving skills for organizing and writing scientific articles for peer reviewed journals, or for summarizing scientific articles for lay readers. See  Writing for the Sciences, (G2.10). Courses for learning English and improving skills as a non-native speaker are also available. See Business English for Cross-Cultural Communication, (G2.11).

     We are marketing ourselves on social media and in texts that last longer than a spoken conversation would have lingered in memory.

     So never leave home without your copy of the Associated Press Stylebook - updated annually, see apstylebook.com: (G2.6).

Many companies are now available that provide self publishing services and training materials to assist with producing a polished product. Single print publishing made it possible to make birthday books for the grandkids and holiday party books for the company party. 

     A benefit that may not be considered at the time - or may be the very reason for the effort - is that it is preserving the family photos or art images or writing in a form that is less likely to be lost when a computer or external hard drive breaks and you had forgotten to make back up copies of your work - and forgot to save it in the virtual cloud with a data storage company - etc.  Losing work is not fun.

I have an external hard drive that may be able to have salvage work done (good news, it was salvageable for a price - $800) but in the meantime I was glad to see some of the missing artwork in a picture book I put together for fun. The company blurb.com offers print on demand and ebook services with a focus on photography more than text oriented books.

• Seeds of Change, Seeds of Growth, a journey in images.   Super frog is on the watch - so be careful about liquid waste - it ends up in our drinking water. Super Frog along with a theme of change and a need to protect the planet from pollution can be viewed in a preview available online, and the e-book is free for some types of tablets and e-readers  
• see Blurb.com: (G2.7).
• I found some of the images in the book on another website too, and I was able to take screenshots. They can be viewed in a slideshow in the section G. Art & Relaxation: Children's & Teen Art Gallery.
• I spent more time working on my first picture book on the same site, the goal for the book was to show how images can help you reach your subconscious self. Favorite lines of poetry or quotes may also reveal what you care about or what topics you may have suppressed fears or worries about. the book includes resources for mental health and nutritional services and some basic information about nutrient deficiencies that can cause symptoms of mental illness. Discovering Self in Reflections is the title, and I was working n more edits, but my favorite motto for fighting perfectionism may apply: "Done is better than perfect."' See Blurb.com (G2.8). The book can be read online, a full preview is available if you follow the directions on the website.

• Disclaimer: Opinions are my own and the information is provided for educational purposes within the guidelines of fair use. While I am a Registered Dietitian this information is not intended to provide individual health guidance. Please see a health professional for individual health care purposes. 
• The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics has a service for locating a nutrition counselor near you at the website eatright.org: (eatright.org/find-an-expert)