A Comprehensive Guide To College Writing For First Year Students

A Comprehensive Guide To College Writing For First Year Students Navigating through the first year of college can be intimidating and challenging for a wide array of reasons. Getting acquainted with the new environment takes time, energy and patience. From getting to know your new classmates and lecturers to becoming familiar with the campus and classes, starting college is a major event in any student's life. This is a new chapter filled with a lot of essay writing. However, first-year students can prepare in advance for their life on campus by researching classes and extra-curricular activities and reading mandatory books in advance. Possibly the biggest change first-year students have to face is the type of writing they are expected to produce and hand in for different classes. College writing has to be complex, structured and backed up by research. No college paper is complete without quotes and references. Few first-year students are prepared to tackle this type of writing. To come to their help, this ultimate guide to college writing will walk you through the fundamentals of writing an academic paper, answering some very important frequently asked questions about introductions, conclusions, outlines, proofreading and formatting. Contents HIGH SCHOOL VS COLLEGE WRITING WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW1. Defining and Understanding Arguments2. Understanding an Assignment DRAFTING AND WRITING YOUR PAPER HOW TO OUTLINE, INTRODUCE AND CONCLUDE A PAPER1. The Importance of Essay Outlining - How to Choose the Right One for Your2. The Yays and Nays of Your Introduction3. How to Reach an Effective Conclusion DEALING WITH WRITER'S BLOCK1. How Talking to a Tutor Can Spark Your Productivity Again2. On the Importance of Taking Notes ABOUT TITLES AND PROOFREADING - HOW TO POLISH YOUR PAPER THROUGH FORMATTING 1. How to Choose the Right Title2. The Importance of Proofreading3. The Importance of Formatting High School Vs College Writing - What You Need to KnowWriting your own academic papers for college can seem scary, especially if you didn't do a lot of writing in high school or if you dread the entire process. You can seek help for researching, structuring, writing or proofreading papers when you have more urgent assignments to attend to or when you're stuck and don't know how to get out of the rut. College professors have higher standards than your former instructors from high school. If in high school you were expected to write either one-page essays giving your personal opinions on various topics or half-page answers to simple questions, college writing might take you by surprise. ​Your academic papers will be expected to accurately summarise and extract important information from a wide array of readings. You will need to prove a full and correct understanding of the subject matter as well as speculate about it. You might be asked to give your opinion on a topic, analyse it and support your claims with well-structured arguments. These are all essential features of academic writing and you have to master the art of arguments if you want to deliver A+ papers every time. 1 Defining and Understanding Arguments An intelligent argument is the backbone of a successful college paper. It demonstrates to your professor that not only are you well-acquainted with the reading or topic that is being discussed, but that you also have your own thoughts about the matter which you can elaborate in a fluent, cleverly designed paper. Powerful essays start with a claim. You need to state the facts but also entice the readers to keep on reading. You can then follow up with your evidence. The aim of evidence-based facts is to support the claim and make it sound plausible. Ideally, when reading the reasons for the claim, your readership should nod in agreement and want to eagerly keep on reading your academic paper. A thoughtful essay goes further and presents the limits to the claim stated in the beginning of the text. A savvy writer goes beyond simply presenting a claim and backing it up with evidence. They think about limitations and thus prove their ability to think outside the box, embracing challenges and objections. By presenting a few objections to your claim you show a deeper understanding of the subject and you also set your paper apart from other mediocre essays that barely scratch the surface of the topic they engage in. 2 Understanding an Assignment While some professors will give you a detailed account about what they expect to see in your paper, others will merely present you with a very general question and expect you to decide the structure of your essay on your own. Whichever the case, your first priority when receiving an assignment is to fully grasp what the instructor expects you to hand in. Are they expecting a summary of a reading? Do they want a one-page essay or a five-page paper backed up by a bibliography of at least three books? Answering these questions can be hard but not impossible. Start by looking at the phrasing of the assignment and decipher what you have to do. Some assignments will be formulated to suggest opposite claims. This is one of the happiest scenarios where the requirement is clear and you have a good starting point for your paper. However, when the requirement asks you to discuss, show how or illustrate, things can be a bit more complicated. These types of tasks don't require a summary but rather a deep and thorough analysis connected to motifs, patterns and reasons. Your professor will expect you to make a claim, back it up with evidence from the text and uncover how the reading works. You will, of course, have to introduce an argument and prove to your instructor that you have thoroughly understood the meaning of the text in discussion.Back To Contents Drafting and Writing Your Paper - How to Outline, Introduce and Conclude a PaperNow that you know what to expect from college writing and how to tackle assignments so that you can ace your very first essay, we can concentrate on finding relevant information that will help you prove your point and make your readership nod in agreement. Before drafting the first version of your paper, it's essential to read the text, novel or book that you are discussing in a critical way. Your objective should be collecting data (which will support your claim) and analysing it (in order to reach a plausible conclusion, suitable for your essay). 1 The Important of Essay Outlining - How to Choose the Right One for You Every writer is different. Whether you set out to create a one-page essay or a 20-page academic paper, you will most likely need an outline to guide you in putting pen to paper and articulating your ideas. You can either create a full-fledged detailed outline that will comprise your main ideas and sub-points for each of them or a scratch outline that lists the main topics you want to discuss. There is no universal method of outlining your paper and since each writer has a unique process of creating, you will have to experiment with both methods in order to discover what works best for you. A detailed outline might require more prep time. You have to jot down your main points and carefully consider how to arrange their sub-points. You can, of course, change this outline later on but it's worth spending the extra time on the backbone of your paper which will guide you through a powerful and clear analysis. A scratch outline is less structured and emphasises topics rather than a particular order. This might not be as time-consuming as the previously mentioned method of outlining but you will still have to spend time arranging your topics in a coherent order and assigning sub topics to each main point. Back To Contents2 The Yays and Nays of Your Introduction Many college students will agree that writing the introduction for a paper is the most difficult part of the entire essay. To come to their help, professors all around the world preach a simple solution: leaving the introduction for last. This means you can go ahead and start working on the body of your paper and leave that one or two introductory paragraphs for last. While this technique is not unanimously accepted and implemented, it does manage to put some students at ease. Writing your introduction last means you already know the topic inside out and can write a powerful and enticing intro. That's not always the case. Ruining an introduction is easy, even if you have the best intentions. Sure, you could paraphrase your assignment but does that succeed in putting across your point and letting your readership know what approach you've chosen? It's also tempting to include an account of your thought process in the introductory paragraph. However, you will fail to announce your main subject and your readers won't know what to expect from the essay. Finally, you could state the obvious in your introduction, but you would end up oversimplifying the matter in question and failing to encourage readers to keep on reading. So what does a great introduction comprise of? It emphasises what you will try to achieve in the paper by explaining the whys and illustrating the hows. A gripping introduction should make ample use of key terms that let the readership know how you plan to answer a question. Back To Contents3 How to Reach an Effective Conclusion Unlike introductions, students find that conclusions practically write themselves. After being engulfed in the topic, after reading, re-reading, analysing, underlining, polishing, and rewriting, a good conclusion should come easily. This part of your paper should be complex and rich. You can begin your conclusion by reiterating your main idea and underlining if there are any questions that still remain unanswered. It's always interesting to leave your readership with some food for thought that will spark their interest even more. Classic essay conclusions often state the importance of solving a problem or answering a question. Emphasise your point once again and possibly identify any further implications that can branch out into different areas. Back To Contents Dealing with Writer's BlockEveryone finds themselves in a rut every now and then whether they're writing a one-page or a 10-page paper. Since you're striving to achieve so many things at once in an essay, you might find it difficult or impossible to start. There might be a multitude of angles you can take and a dozen of questions to answer. Which one is the perfect one and what choice will bring you the highest grade? 1 How Talking to a Tutor Can Spark Your Productivity Again Writing a college paper should not focus entirely on pleasing the instructor and achieving the highest grade possible. Instead, you should concentrate on choosing a unique approach, posing creative questions and finding interesting new ways to answer seemingly simple questions. Once you establish your intentions, you can start collecting evidence and organising it in a neat collection that will help you back up your point. If you're feeling unproductive or if you have writer's block don't wait for the deadline to be just around the corner unless you want to start panicking. Take action immediately and discuss your issues with a tutor. Talking about your intentions, the question you want to pose and your approach with someone else will help spark your creativity again and bring in new perspectives that you might have overlooked. However, don't rely entirely on your tutor to do your job for you. Thoroughly prepare for the appointment in advance. Be ready to talk about your progress and have the outline of the paper with you at the meeting. Bring everything you have written up to that point with you and show it to the tutor. They should be able to get the gist of your work and progress from what you show them as well as from your explanations. Don't be shy to talk about what troubles you or what is keeping you from advancing with your paper. Offer concrete examples and details. Keep in mind that you have to be as clear as possible if you want to receive genuine and useful feedback from your tutor. 2 On the Importance of Taking Notes Keep in mind that you should be taking notes all throughout your meeting with the tutor. Write down suggestions and even outline a plan of action with help from your tutor. While talking about your problems, you might feel like you clearly understand what your next steps should be and how you should approach difficult issues. But a couple of hours later you might discover your plan has evaporated from your mind and you're back where you started. It's essential to fully understand everything you discuss with your tutor so don't leave any matters up in the air. Insist on getting help with the plan and make sure this is consistent, actionable and easy to follow. Back To Contents About Titles and Proofreading - How to Polish Your Paper Through FormattingAn important part of any college paper writing is knowing when your essay is finished and when it can be revised, proofread and formatted. A finished paper should feel coherent, strong and thought-provoking. It should have a logical structure, look aesthetically pleasing and be easy to read no uber-long paragraphs, no long, knotty sentences that run-on for an entire paragraph. Your finished paper should give you a sense of satisfaction. Wait a few hours or a day between the initial revisions and the final revision. This will allow you to review the essay with a fresh mind and eyes. You will also be able to spot grammatical errors, misspellings, typos or ambiguous sentences. Once you are content with the claim you have made and the evidence you have presented to back this up, you can revise the entire text for one final time. In this stage, you can still rewrite parts of your paper that you find unsatisfactory or bits that you feel don't add any value to the material. You should also spend time on finding the right titles, both for your paper and for each topic. Toy around with various possibilities and decide which one is best suited for the text as a whole. Use an online proofreading tool such as Grammarly to make sure you didn't miss anything and that your text is impeccable from a grammar standpoint. 1 How to Choose the Right Title Often times underestimated, titles hold much more power than we're aware of. A reader who will skim your paper generally looks at your main titles and sub-titles. They also notice quotes, bold and italicised words, however, titles have the biggest impact. This is why you shouldn't dismiss them too quickly. Try to avoid choosing a bland name for your paper that merely echoes the assignment the teacher handed out. After all, you don't want your paper to bear the same name as those of your other 50 classmates, do you? Take a little longer to find the right title that does justice to all the hard work, effort and time you've poured into your paper. The title should encompass the key words you used in your text that are most likely also found in your conclusion. It's best to choose terms that did not appear in the instructor's assignment. This will speak volumes about your work ethics and meticulousness. Your title should be a reflection of your paper. It shouldn't bring something new to the table nor use terms that don't appear throughout the entire essay. Don't use bombastic empty words in your title that fail to anticipate the key concepts in your writing. Back To Contents2 The Importance of Proofreading Proofreading (or lack of it thereof) along with formatting distinguishes organised, neat, and mature writers from careless, rushed, and sloppy ones. No great paper is truly finished until it is carefully scrutinised for spelling, punctuation and formatting errors. Confusing words like their and they're or your and you're will undoubtedly make your paper look unprofessional, sloppy and careless. No spell-checkers are 100% reliable, so take the time to read your paper twice or thrice looking for mistakes. If your eyes are tired, you might be able to spot mistakes faster by reading a hard copy of your paper. If that's not an option, increase the font size in your word document and adjust your screen's contrast so that it's comfortable for your eyesight. You can also ask a colleague or roommate to give your paper a read and signal any undetected mistakes. Back To Contents3 The Importance of Formatting Just like proofreading, impeccable formatting will make your paper look professional and organised. Keep things simple and consistent. Use the same type of lists and bullet points throughout your entire paper. Unless your instructor requires otherwise, follow these guidelines to ensure proper formatting for your paper. Type font stick to consecrated type fonts that are used world-wide for academic papers. The font choice of your text weighs heavily so this is not a good time to experiment with new things. It goes without saying you should stay away from Comic Sans or other ornate fonts. Safe choices include Times New Roman, Garamond, Arial, Verdana or Helvetica. Font size the preferred font size for college papers is 12. Don't use font size in order to make your paper look shorter or longer. In the former case, you will use a font size that is too small which will put a strain on your instructor's eyesight. It's hard to fool anyone about the word count of your material, so keep it professional even if you are under or above the limits. Ink colour ensure the printer you're using yields black, clear text. Don't experiment with the colour of the text otherwise, your paper will stand out but not in a good way. Spaces you should leave a single space for quotes and double space between regular lines. Margins keep the margins set to 1.25 for all pages with no exceptions. Not only does this look polished and organised, it also gives you ample room to staple the pages together and gives the instructor enough space to jot down observations. Numbering your pages should always be numbered in the upper right corner. Personal information add your name, date and class details on the first page of your paper in the upper right corner. Your name should appear on every page of the material. The easiest way to do this in Microsoft Word is to add it as a header. This way, if a page gets misplaced, your professor will know where it belongs.Back To Contents

Public Policy Essays

Public Policy Essays Public Policy Essay Public Policy Essay Johnson, R. W. , ; Joyce, P. G. (2008) Public budgeting systems (8th ed. ). Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett Schuster II, W. Michael 2010 For the Greater Good: The Use of Public Policy Considerations in Confirming Plans of Reorganization New York: LFB Scholarly Publishing, LLC Williams, Cathy The Georgia Public Policy foundation retrieved from gppf. org/ on June 5, 2011

Supports or argues Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Supports or argues - Essay Example Therefore, Wade Allison’s contributions in the support of the massive use of nuclear power should be disregarded since no one knows when the use of such nuclear power may be uncontrolled. Allison clearly states notes the health concerns of nuclear radiation; however, he diminishes this fact and narrows it down to small quantity of admission like in the case of X-ray examinations. It is true that small amounts of absorption of radiation into the body are less harmful to the body. Nonetheless, he must have considered that erection of the nuclear power plants may emit such small radiation, but constantly. In other words, medically administered radiations are usually monitored and controlled and are never continuous; thus, they have minimal effect to the human health (Jha and Boseley 02). For instance, examining internal tumors in the body or cracked bones among other internal organs may only subject a person to the radiation once after sometimes. On the other hand, nuclear power plants will subject the environment and the humanity to a constant dose of radiation thereby increasing health risks related to the radiation. Additionally, imagining of a situation where such nuclear power plants are erected about ten to twenty in every nation. What is the amount of the nuclear related radiation will be submitted into the atmosphere? Nonetheless, it is worth noting that small amount of radiation is never highly dangerous to humanity and the environment, but cumulative small amounts per power plant will lead to enormous amounts of nuclear particles into the environment that cannot be tolerated by the human body thereby leading to devastating global health problems (Jha and Boseley 02). Reading from the Allison’s understanding of the history of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, he should have noted that massive emission of nuclear related particles or radiation into the environment usually have long and dangerous effects to the present and generation

Madness Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Madness - Essay Example Finally after years of hospital visits, therapy, and lots of different types of medicine, Mayra found a routine that has worked for her so far. Like Mayra has proven and other people with Bipolar disorder know, this illness has no cure. It is a lifelong process of taking medicines to alleviate the symptoms of the disorder. Over the years the more doctors have learned about being Bipolar. When Mayra was first diagnosed, she got a generic Bipolar diagnosis. Now there is two different types of Bipolar; Bipolar I and Bipolar II. It was once thought that a person had long manic phases and long depressed phases, but as Mayra has shown her moods changed daily. Today doctors know more, but more research and study is needed. Like many people with Bipolar disorder, Mayra self medicated since her adolescence. Alcohol to come down or take the edge off her manic phases, pills to chase away the blues. After being hospitalized for her eating disorder, Mayra stopped taking pills. However her alcohol intake increased for years. She was also a cutter. After an almost near death experience after slitting her veins, she stopped regular cutting. Mayra did not receive help sooner than her thirties, even though diagnosed with Bipolar ten years earlier, because she did not take the disease seriously. Finally Mayra had to face the fact that she was never going to be normal, but with medicine could live with the disease. Once she stopped drinking, she still did not take the disease seriously. Only after addressing her illness, did Mayra find a tenuous balance with medicine and therapy. wards, medicine, detox, AA, and therapy. At first diagnosed with anorexia/bulimia, Mayra was hospitalized for that. The goal for treating anorexia/bulimia is to get a patient to eat. The weight Mayra gained or lost was more important than her mental state. They grouped her with other anorexia/bulimia patients that were depressed. The medicine Prozac might have helped Mayra with

CCOT Analysis Essay Example for Free

CCOT Analysis Essay The Indian Ocean was a significant division of water that was bounded primarily by the Indian Subcontinent, the Arabian Peninsula, and eastern Africa. Many changes occurred over time in the area, especially from 500 BCE and 1400 CE. The interaction of Buddhism and Confucianism altered, increased wealth came to new towns and ports, and population increased due to advancements in technology. Though there were many changes, many things stayed constant in the region. The Indian Ocean region continued to keep many economic/religious factors the same, such that Islamic world continued to spread and exotic goods remained as the basis of trade. Buddhism and Confucianism were the main religious views in the Indian Ocean region. They both flourished initially keeping a stable ratio, but Buddhism began to diminish during the Tang Dynasty. The Tang Dynasty based their civil service exams on Confucianism, which as a result led to more focus on Confucianism and later to the downfall of Buddhism. Interactions between developing trade routes led to city popularity, wealth and success. Such cities include, Cairo, Quilon, and Melaka, which became major factors in Afro-Eurasian trade. Technology in the region also led to many different changes in the Indian Ocean region. The three-field crop rotation rapidly changed the rise of cities. Since they were now able to grow dissimilar crops in the same area, more food and trade products came about. As urbanization increased, simultaneously, rural areas increased system also played a big role. As cities grew, they began to prosper. Agriculture boomed and therefore more opportunities for merchants were available as trade was excellent in the area. Many significant transitions and alterations occurred in the Indian Ocean region, which encouraged, primarily, economics, religion, and city success. Coming from the changes that occurred, many things also did remain the same in the Indian Ocean region. Islam continued to spread throughout the division. Trade relations have existed between Arabia and the Indian subcontinent, which linked the Indian Subcontinent to the Islamic world. On top of Islam’s prosperous spreading, Indian trade was still and is still based on exotic goods. A good example of this could be how gold, slaves, silk, and spices were traded at around 150 CE, as well as 700-1000 CE. These constants were significant for the foundation of the regions trade, and the rise of a new religion. The Indian Ocean region had many changes and continuities that all occurred over time. Some changes were made including the rise of cities and trade, and the fall of Buddhism. The continuities include the constant spread of the Islamic world, and the same basis of trade; exotic goods. These factors all shaped the region building a stronger base of advancement demographically, culturally, and economically.

Vegetarianism Essay -- Healthy Lifestyle Essay

â€Å"Let food be thy medicine and thy medicine be thy food.† stated Hippocrates, the father of Western medicine, 460-377 BC (Silverstone 15). Every American should live by this quote, but things have drastically changed since Hippocrates voiced that divine statement . Nowadays peoples personification of health has nothing to do with what we consume on an everyday basis. Our generation, most certainly will drive straight to McDonalds’s for a Big Mac without hesitation of the harm it is doing to your body. Education of health is essential; people need to learn what they are eating and how it will affect them in the long run. Due to mega rich corporations and institutions, they are keeping all of us in this denial because of pouring millions of dollars into efforts to keep us from knowing what is truly going on (Silverstone 16). Whether it’s to help reduce your risk of diseases, or purely to attain better health, leaving farmed animals entirely out of your diet is an effortless decision with life-long benefits. Plant-based diets will strengthen your immune system, beautify your skin, increase your energy, and reduce risk of various diseases (Silverstone 1). Being vegetarian is a step in the right direction by protecting your health, animals, and the environment. As a human being, by nature are we meant to be meat-eaters? Giehl et al. argues that â€Å"It has been discovered that the diet of any animal in its natural state fits to its anatomical structure and established body functions. With attentive analysis, it is evident that humans are not naturally suited to a diet which includes flesh.† For example, when you look at meat animals such as wolfs, lions, hyenas, etc their fang teeth are built to rip flesh and devour meat. It would be vir... ... only do I feel fitter on daily basis, my body hasn't been seriously sick since being vegetarian. I actually was convinced to finally give up meat after reading the book â€Å"The Kind Diet† by Alicia Silverstone. I have never been fond of killing animals but once educating myself I knew I could never go back to consuming meat. Being healthy, protecting animals, and saving the environment are the key reasons to become a vegetarian. Adapting to a vegetarian lifestyle will benefit you in several ways and contribute to making our society more livable. Your making a difference, and taking a stand for what you believe in. There are plenty of appetizing recipes for a vegetarian, you will never lack from inefficient amount of food. If you choose to eat meat or not, taking vegetarianism into consideration can only feed your body with nutrients and elongate your delicate life.

Blood Promise Chapter Twenty-Four

Avery was a spirit user. â€Å"Oh shit.† I sat back down on the bed, my mind reeling. I'd never seen it coming. Hell, no one had. Avery had made a good show of being an air user. Each Moroi had a very low level of control in each element. She'd just barely done enough with air to make it seem like that was her specialization. No one had questioned her further because honestly, who would have ever expected another spirit user around? And since she was out of school, she had no reason to be tested anymore or forced to demonstrate her ability. No one was there to call her on it. The more I thought about it, the more the little signs were there. The charming personality, the way she could talk people into anything. How many of her interactions were spirit controlled? And was it possible†¦ was it possible that Adrian's attraction had been compulsion on her part? I had no reason to feel happy about that, but†¦ well, I did. More to the point, what did Avery want with Lissa? Avery compelling Adrian into liking her wasn't too out there. He was good-looking and came from an important family. He was the queen's great-nephew, and although family members of the current monarch could never inherit the throne immediately afterward, he'd have a good future, one that would always keep him in the highest circles of society. But Lissa? What was Avery's game there? What did she have to gain? Lissa's behavior all made sense now-the uncharacteristic partying, weird moods, jealousy, fights with Christian†¦ Avery was pushing Lissa over the edge, causing her to make horrible choices. Avery was using some sort of compulsion to spin Lissa out of control, alienating her and putting her life in danger. Why? What did Avery want? It didn't matter. The why wasn't important. The how was, as in how I was going to get out of here and back to my best friend. I looked down at myself, at the delicate silk dress I wore. Suddenly, I hated it. It was a sign of how I'd been, weak and useless. I hastily took it off and ransacked my closet. They'd taken away my jeans and T-shirt, but I'd at least been allowed to keep my hoodie. I put on the green sweater dress, seeing as it was the sturdiest thing I had, feeling moderately more capable. I slipped the hoodie on over it. It hardly made me feel like a badass warrior, but I did feel more competent. Sufficiently dressed for action, I returned to the living room and started that pacing that tended to help me think better-not that I had any reason to believe I was going to come up with new ideas. I'd been trying to for days and days with no luck. Nothing was going to change. â€Å"Damn it!† I yelled, feeling better with the outburst. Angry, I flounced into the desk chair, amazed that I hadn't simply thrown it against the wall in my frustration. The chair wobbled, ever so slightly. Frowning, I stood up and looked at it. Everything else in this place was state-of-the-art. Odd that I'd have a faulty chair. I knelt down and examined it more closely. There, on one of the legs, was a crack near where the leg joined with the seat. I stared. All of the furniture here was industrial strength, with no obvious joints. I should know, seeing how long I'd beat this chair against the wall when I first arrived. I hadn't even dented it. Where had this crack come from? Slamming it over and over had done nothing. But I hadn't been the only one to hit it. That very first day, I'd fought with Dimitri and come after him with the chair. He'd taken it from me and thrown it against the wall. I'd never paid attention to it again, having given up on breaking it. When I'd later tried cracking the window, I'd used an end table because it was heavier. My strength hadn't been able to damage the chair-but his had. I picked up the chair and immediately slammed it into that diamond-hard window, half-hoping I might kill two birds with one stone. Nope. Both remained intact. So I did it again. And again. I lost track of how many times I slammed that chair into the glass. My hands hurt, and I knew despite my recovery, I still wasn't at full strength. It was infuriating. Finally, on what felt like my gazillionth try, I looked at the chair and saw the crack had grown bigger. The progress renewed my will and strength. I hit and hit, ignoring the pain as the wood bit into my hands. At long last, I heard a crack, and the leg broke off. I picked it up and stared in amazement. The break hadn't been clean. It was splintered and sharp. Sharp enough to be a stake? I wasn't sure. But I knew for a fact that wood was hard, and if I used enough force, I might be able to hit a Strigoi's heart. It wouldn't kill one, but the blow would stun. I didn't know if it'd be enough to get me out of here, but it was all I had now. And it was a hell of a lot more than I'd had one hour ago. I sat back on the bed, recovering from my battle with the chair and tossing the makeshift stake back and forth. Okay. I had a weapon now. But what could I do with it? Dimitri's face flashed in my mind's eye. Damn it. There was no question about it. He was the obvious target, the one I'd have to deal with first. The door suddenly clicked open, and I looked up with alarm. Quickly, I shoved the chair into a dark corner as panic raced through me. No, no. I wasn't ready. I hadn't fully convinced myself to stake him. It was Inna. She carried a tray but didn't wear her usual subservient expression. The brief look she gave me was filled with hate. I didn't know what she had to be pissed off about. It wasn't like I'd caused her any damage. Yet. I strode over like I was going to examine the tray. Lifting the lid, I saw a ham sandwich and french fries. It looked good-I hadn't eaten in a while -but the adrenaline running through me had shoved any appetite I might have to the background. I glanced back up at her, smiling sweetly. She shot me daggers. Don't hesitate, Dimitri had always said. I didn't. I jumped at Inna, throwing her so hard against the floor that her head slammed back. She looked dazed, but quickly recovered and tried to fight back. I wasn't drugged up this time-well, not much-and my years of training and natural strength finally showed themselves again. I pressed my body against her, keeping her firmly in place. Then, I produced the stake I'd had concealed and pressed those sharp points against her neck. It was like being back in the days of pinning Strigoi in alleys. She couldn't see that my weapon was a chair leg, but the sharp points got her attention as I dug them into her throat. â€Å"The code,† I said. â€Å"What is the code?† Her only response was a string of obscenities in Russian. Okay, not a surprise, considering she probably didn't understand me. I flipped through the meager Russian-English dictionary in my head. I'd been in the country long enough to pick up some vocabulary. Admittedly, it was equivalent to a two-year-old's, but even they could communicate. â€Å"Numbers,† I said in Russian. â€Å"Door.† At least, that's what I hoped I said. She said more impolite things to me, her expression defiant. It really was the Strigoi interrogation all over. My stake bit harder, drawing blood, and I forcibly restrained myself. I might question whether I had the strength to pierce a Strigoi heart with this, but severing a human's vein? Cake. She faltered a little, apparently realizing the same thing. Again, I attempted my broken Russian. â€Å"Kill you. No Nathan. Never†¦Ã¢â‚¬  What was the word? The church service came back to me, and I hoped I had it right. â€Å"Never eternal life.† It got her attention. Nathan and eternal life. The things most important to her. She bit her lip, still angry, but her tirade had stopped. â€Å"Numbers. Door,† I repeated. I pushed the stake in harder, and she cried out in pain. At last she spoke, rattling off a series of digits. Russian numbers were something I had memorized pretty solidly, at least. They were essential for addresses and phone numbers. She cited seven numbers. â€Å"Again,† I said. I made her say it three times and hoped I had it. But there was more. I was pretty sure the outer door had a different code. â€Å"Numbers. Door. Two.† I felt like a caveman. Inna stared, not quite getting it. â€Å"Door. Two.† Understanding glinted in her eyes, and she looked mad. I think she'd hoped I wouldn't realize the other door had its own code. More cutting with the stake made her scream seven more numbers. Again, I made her repeat them, realizing I had no way to know if she was telling me the truth at least until I tried the numbers. For that reason, I decided to keep her around. I felt guilty about what I did next, but these were desperate times. In guardian training, I'd been taught both to kill and to incapacitate. I did the latter this time, slamming her head back against the floor and rendering her unconscious. Her expression went slack, her eyelids drooping. Damn. I was reduced to hurting teenage humans. Standing up, I moved to the door and punched in the first set of numbers, hoping I had them right. To my complete and utter astonishment, I did. The electronic lock clicked, but before I could open the door, I just barely made out another click. Someone had unlocked the outer door. â€Å"Shit,† I muttered. I pulled away from the door immediately, picked up Inna's unconscious body, and hurried to the bathroom. I set her in the tub as gently as possible and had just shut the bathroom door when I heard the main door open. I felt the telltale nausea that signaled a Strigoi was nearby. I knew one of the Strigoi could smell a human, and I hoped shutting her away would be enough to mute Inna's scent. I emerged from the hall and found Dimitri in the living room. I grinned at him and ran into his arms. â€Å"You're back,† I said happily. He held me briefly and then stepped back. â€Å"Yes.† He seemed slightly pleased at the greeting, but soon his face was all business. â€Å"Have you made your decision?† No hello. No how are you feeling? My heart sank. This wasn't Dimitri. â€Å"I have more questions.† I went over to the bed and lay down in a casual way, just like we always did. He followed a few moments later and sat on the edge, looking down at me. â€Å"How long will it take?† I asked. â€Å"When you awaken me? Is it instantaneous?† Once more, I launched into an interrogation session. Honestly, I was running out of questions, and at this point, I didn't really want to know the intricacies of becoming Strigoi. I was becoming more and more agitated with each passing moment. I had to act. I had to make use of my fleeting opportunity here. And yet†¦ before I could act, I had to reassure myself that this really wasn't Dimitri. It was stupid. I should know by now. I could see the physical changes. I'd seen his coldness, the brutality. I'd seen him come fresh from a kill. This wasn't the man I'd loved. And yet†¦ for that one fleeting moment earlier†¦ With a sigh, Dimitri stretched out beside me. â€Å"Rose,† he interrupted, â€Å"if I didn't know better, I'd say you were stalling for time.† Yeah, even as a Strigoi, Dimitri knew how I thought and schemed. I realized if I was going to be convincing, I had to stop playing dumb and remember to be Rose Hathaway. I put on a look of outrage. â€Å"Of course I am! This is a big deal. I came here to kill you, and now you're asking me to join you. You think this is easy for me to do?† â€Å"Do you think it's been easy for me to wait this long?† he asked. â€Å"The only ones who get choices are Moroi who willingly kill, like the Ozeras. No one else gets a choice. I didn't get a choice.† â€Å"And don't you regret that?† â€Å"No, not now. Now that I'm who I was meant to be.† He frowned. â€Å"The only thing hurt is my pride-that Nathan forced me and that he acts as though I'm indebted to him. Which is why I'm being kind enough to give you the choice now, for the sake of your pride.† Kind, huh? I looked at him and felt my heart breaking all over again. It was like hearing the news of his death once more. I suddenly grew afraid I might cry. No. No tears. Dimitri always talked about prey and predators. I had to be the predator. â€Å"You're sweating,† he said suddenly. â€Å"Why?† Damn, damn, damn. Of course I was sweating. I was contemplating staking the man I loved-or thought I'd loved. And along with sweat, I was sure I was giving off pheromones of my agitation. Strigoi could smell all of those things, too. â€Å"Because I'm scared,† I whispered. I propped myself up and stroked the edge of his face, trying to memorize all of his features. The eyes. The hair. The shape of his cheekbones. In my imagination, I overlaid the things I remembered. Dark eyes. Tanned skin. Sweet smile. â€Å"I†¦ I think I'm ready, but it's†¦ I don't know. It's such a big thing.† â€Å"It'll be the best decision of your life, Roza.† My breathing was growing rapid, and I prayed he'd think it was because of my fear of being turned. â€Å"Tell me again. One more time. Why do you want to awaken me so badly?† A slightly weary look crossed his face. â€Å"Because I want you. I've always wanted you.† And that's when I knew. I finally realized the problem. He'd given that same answer over and over, and each time, something about it had bothered me. I'd never been able to pinpoint it, though. Now I could. He wanted me. Wanted me in the way people wanted possessions or collectibles. The Dimitri I'd known†¦ the one I'd fallen for and slept with†¦ that Dimitri would have said he wanted us to be together because he loved me. There was no love here. I smiled at him. Leaning down, I kissed him gently. He probably thought I was doing it for the reasons I always did, out of attraction and desire. In truth, it was a goodbye kiss. His mouth answered mine, his lips warm and eager. I held out the kiss a little longer, both to fight back the tears leaking out of my eyes and to lull him into an unsuspecting state. My hand closed around the chair leg, which I'd hidden in my hoodie pocket. I would never forget Dimitri, not for the rest of my life. And this time, I wouldn't forget his lessons. With a speed he wasn't ready for, I struck out and plunged the stake through his chest. My strength was there-sliding the stake past the ribs and straight into his heart. And as I did it, it was like piercing my own heart at the same time.