#My goal is to finish posting Round 1 before the first Round 1 posts expire so that I can reblog the first ones for anyone who wasn't around

[sexiestpodcastcharacter]

Okay I think that's enough for tonight. Tomorrow I have a TTRPG game that I haven't finished getting my character ready for, so I don't think I'll get another 24 posts up and finish posting Round 1 this weekend. I might be able to finish it up Monday before work, but we shall see. Thank you for your patience so far.

#I hope everybody in every timezone working every shift gets a restful sleep the next time they lay down. <3 #Not A Poll #To be clear I am planning on posting tomorrow. But I spent all day today on this and got 24 polls posted. So I don't think I'll get 24 poll #posted in half of a day. #(I videocalled with a friend and watched video essays. It was a fun day.) #My goal is to finish posting Round 1 before the first Round 1 posts expire so that I can reblog the first ones for anyone who wasn't around #when they were posted. #Mod Update

[reallychocolateinternet]

Son Heung-min, a "video letter" to his retired former colleague..."It's been five years."

I didn't forget my old colleague. Son Heung-min 다파벳 가입(28, Tottenham Hotspur), who announced his retirement, cheered for the second act of his life, saying, "You've worked really hard." Tottenham's fan page, "Spursweb," said on the 31st of last month (Korean time) that Son Heung-min recently announced his retirement. Thank you for your dedication to Spurs and congratulations on finishing your 16-year career. Formum, who joined Tottenham in the summer 다파벳 우회주소of 2014, mostly played as a backup goalkeeper. He has played a total of 48 games for the Spurs. In the first place, he left the team due to the expiration of his contract. Then, he returned to North London with an injury to Hugo Lloris. After a one-year short-term contract, he left Tottenham again with Jan Vertonghen 다파벳 입금in July. His career record is 48 runs in 48 games and 17 clean sheets. In the video clip posted by Spursweb, Son said, "I am always grateful for the dedication that Form has shown us in our team for five years. If you want to contact me, please contact me anytime. I'll arrange다파벳 출금 a nice party. I love you, brother," he said with a big smile. Son Heung-min will play Brighton in the seventh round of the Premier League on Tuesday. I'm after two rabbits. He suffered a 0-1 defeat to Royal Antwerp in the UEFA Europa League on April 30. It is necessary to set the team mood with a complete victory before Brighton. In addition, he is currently the top scorer in the PL with eight goals, and he is aiming to take the lead in this다파벳 카지노 category. The team should beat Dominic Calvert-Rewin (23, Everton) who scored seven goals and Mohamed Salah (28, Liverpool) who scored six goals.

#다파벳 가입 #다파벳 우회주소 #다파벳 입금 #다파벳 출금 #다파벳 카지노

[thepermanentrainpress]

EVERYBODY LOVES FIN: EPISODE 3

The Canucks’ road trip kicked off with an early evening contest in St. Louis—too early, as I was still at work and missed a chunk of it commuting home. Nevertheless, they pulled out a fourth straight victory – a feat they never actually reached last season – and I had Stove Top Stuffing for dinner, so it was a happy occasion all around.

The Blues remain relatively intact after their Stanley Cup run and struck first tonight, Robby Fabbri jumping on a rebound for his first of the season. Micheal Ferland picked up his first under similar circumstances to tie the game 1-1.

Thatcher Demko started his second game in a row with Markstrom on a leave of absence. The reigning cup champs got 2 quick ’n early in the second period, but Demko stood his ground for the remainder and made some great saves in the third, including a wrap-around attempt by Ivan Barbashev when the Canucks were still down a goal. He stopped 34 of 37 shots, and all six shootout attempts (with a little help from his goal post!) Demko was the team’s second round pick in 2014, and this was only his 12th appearance in net. If he continues to develop at an NHL level, he may be their starting goalie as early as next season; it will be interesting to see how they divide the next 76 between him and Markstrom.

A goalie interference call and subsequent bench minor gave the Canucks a full 2 minutes of 5-on-3. It was awful! Leivo was on the first unit. They passed and passed and passed. Just as the penalties were about to expire, Petey got the puck and deked around Jordan Binnington. The play was initially thwarted by a diving Colton Parayko and I started to roll my eyes to the back of my head, but they managed to jam it home with the goal credited to Captain Bo. Binnington then toppled over Petey in the crease – which looked avoidable and not much like an accident – but I digress.

Their PP went 3/5 against Detroit on Tuesday, but against a veritably more skilled Blues team, they didn’t even register a shot through their first 3 man-advantages. Petey and Boeser need to get back to unleashing those one-timers, because every pass to Edler for the point shot and potential-tip-but-more-often-the-shin-pads shaves years off my life.

Despite being relegated to PP2, Quinn Hughes logged over 22 minutes of ice time and continues to impress with his hockey IQ and speed. During OT he used his stick to propel Petey on the backcheck—an always entertaining gesture that has been used by Boeser and Bo in past seasons.

They survived the final minute of OT and it was on to the shootout. I was not about Round 5 Alex Edler; fortunately Leivo delivered in Round 6, with the fake and the finish before falling with style. 4-3 for the good guys.

Posted by: Natalie Hoy

#Canucks #Vancouver Canucks #Everybody Loves Fin #Thatcher Demko #hockey #hockey blog #NHL #Alex Edler #Elias Pettersson #Josh Leivo #Vancouver #Natalie

[stringnarratives]

An Act of Shelf Discovery

[This post brought to you spoiler free and full of the blogger’s personal experience!]

In my third-ever post on this blog on March 23, 2017, I wrote about making the switch from physical books to e-books. For someone who loved (and still loves) the sensory aspect of physical books, it was a daunting challenge, but a necessary one: At the time, I would go on average 6 months between moves, had three shelves at my consistent disposal, and more books than I could count. Books lived in piles next to my bed, were stored in boxes in the closet, were forced upon my brother (who is also an avid supporter of this blog and probably reading this post: In which case, hi!) under the guise of “recommendations” so they could live in his space instead of mine. 

Fast forward two years and that habit has set in hard - I purchase between 85 and 90 percent of my books digitally now, even though some of the circumstances that made it necessary have thankfully expired (For the record, infrequent moving is an absolute joy!). In addition to a more compact, generally cheaper library that I abuse less and finish more, e-books have also contributed strongly to another new book-buying habit I’ve developed: Preordering.

In 2019, I made it a goal to learn more about my own literary consumption by forgoing the majority of traditional book shopping and preordering any new release that piqued my interest. Tracking each of my pre-purchases via color-coded spreadsheet (as one does, and indeed, must), I’ve thrown myself full-force into the new, and learned a lot in the process, both about the function of preorders in the publishing industry and about my own taste in literature.

The Purpose of Preorders

Before this experiment, my main experience with pre-orders had been primarily in relation to video games (I’m a sucker for midnight release downloads directly to my console) or limited edition media that I’m unlikely to procure without being proactive. I didn’t really know much about them beyond the consumer perspective, but being the chronic researcher I (clearly) am, I wanted to know what my new purchasing habit meant in greater context. 

To break it down, preorders serve two main purposes in the publishing industry. They are A) a promotional tool for authors and publishers to build hype for a book before it’s released and B) an indicator for stores to properly respond to a book’s demand.

A preorder’s promotional value could come from a few different avenues. As pre-order sales contribute to the release week sales total for a book (as mentioned in this Parnassus Musings post), they can be valuable fuel for books that rocket to the top of bestseller lists. For first time or less well-known authors, having a preorder page automatically create an additional searchable content and feeling of legitimacy for books in the promotional phase. The more people who pre-order the book are also potentially more people who would share about their pre-order with their friends.

For established authors, preorders often come from existing fans of a series or the author themselves, and serve as an indicator as to the activity of the existing fanbase, efficiency of an author’s platform for communicating with fans, as well as their interest in new work.

In 2016, the written script of “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” became Amazon’s No. 1 preorder for the year, according to CNET, and topped Barnes & Noble’s chart as well, according to Rolling Stone. While the exact number of preorders was apparently not released, it makes complete sense that the number would be a big one. Pottermore (which Wikipedia describes as a “digital publishing, e-commerce, entertainment, and news company from J. K. Rowling” not limited to the popular virtual Hogwarts experience) released a bulletin early last year that over 500 million Harry Potter books had been sold in the 20 years since the first book’s release. 

In addition to their promotional function, preorders also serve as an indicator for a book’s popularity upon release. In a 2017 blog post to authors about the importance of pre-orders, Penguin Random House stresses that a high enough preorder number could “lead to retailers increasing their initial orders.” Last November, Barnes & Noble reported former first lady Michelle Obama’s memoir “Becoming” to be the most preordered book of 2018, according to The Washington Post.  This article in particular points out how booksellers prepare for a book’s popularity based on a preorder buzz, “bracing” for enormous numbers of books to fly off the shelves by bulking up their orders ahead of time.

Preorders are a function of marketing in the publishing industry - an opportunity to get readers in the door early, and get them to talk about a book before its release. In return, readers get discounts, bonuses, the satisfaction of knowing they’ll be one of the first members of the public to receive the work, and, very occasionally, some insight into who they are as readers.

Getting Shelf-ish

In the four-ish months (at time of writing), around 22 books have come to me through the preorder method. With 13 books total read so far this year, about 7 of them were preorders, both they and the books between them have plenty to tell about how I read.

My taste is more consistent in concept than it is in practice.

Anyone who’s stuck around String Narratives long enough will know that, across mediums, I’m big on a few genres: Science fiction, horror and satire, primarily. When I started preordering books as a part of this experiment, I thought it pretty safe to assume that if a book fell into one of those categories, there was a good chance I’d enjoy it. Which, for the record, probably still holds true. 

But one thing that I did notice early on in this experiment and didn’t expect at all was that I very, very quickly get bored with my own taste. I can get ahold of too much science fiction at once, too much horror. Both genres can get absolutely exhausting without a break between them - breaks I took naturally when purchasing books in a more traditional fashion without realizing. So, for all of those winter sci-fi reads I was so excited about started losing their appeal, I found myself turning to much different fare as a palate cleanser: YA fiction, books about food, and biography - three genres much lower on my radar which I ended up enjoying just as much.

Access to books is rarely the thing that keeps me from reading.

It is what it says on the tin. Where I’d previously easily blamed “not having anything to read” (a concept laughable to anyone who knows me, much less has lived with me and my books) for a lack of desire to consume printed work, I have to now own up to my truth. As books are on a similar mid-week release schedule as most other popular media, I get at least one book delivered to my e-reader most Tuesdays, which means there is always something to read. If I don’t want to read, it’s simply because I don’t feel like it. (Which is totally okay! Life happens and we roll with it.)

My library is built from recommendations.

Recommendations and reviews are my bread and butter when it comes to choosing what kind of media I want to ingest, and not always in the way you think. I typically rely on others to help discern the true atmosphere of a work when I’m easily caught up in cover art and promotional images. While books in the promotional stage are less likely to have a significant number of reviews, I still rely fairly heavily on Advance Reader Copy (ARC) reviews to estimate how much I’ll enjoy a book before preordering. Adding onto that, I get a lot of my book news from online outlets specifically dedicated to new book releases, including Verge’s monthly round-up of science fiction books and Book Riot’s whole entire site. 

My new release discovery time is anywhere between 1 month and 10 months.

Was I absolutely stoked to find out that my book of the year 2018 - Semiosis by Sue Burke - was getting a sequel? I absolutely was. Did I preorder that sequel nine months and 11 days before it’s projected to come out? I absolutely did. For authors I already know, love and follow, I’m happy to be that fan that lets everyone know I’ve already made the preorder. For authors I’m less familiar with, or who are debuting their first book, that ten month window might actually shrink to something more like ten days. It isn’t a hard and fast rule, but there certainly is something to being in the know when it comes to favorite authors’ upcoming releases - a result of great communication and even better marketing.

The narratives we consume say a lot about us. They speak to our loves, our fears, the places we want to go between the hours of our waking lives. We pass them along to those around us, intentionally or not. 

But as we become consistently more aware of how the stories around us shape our lives and mature in our understanding of how they fit into the world, we must also, I believe, recognize something else: The way we acquire narratives says just as much about us as the stories we choose to slip into. 

#topics #preorders #books #book #ebooks #topic #preorder #a horrifying pun title

[nbatrades]

Chicago Bulls Land Jack Marin In Trade with Buffalo

On November 27th, 1975, the Buffalo Braves traded forward Jack Marin to the Chicago Bulls for a 1977 first round draft pick (Tate Armstrong).

Jack Marin became a member of the Buffalo Braves after he was acquired in a four-player, trade deadline deal with the Houston Rockets in 1974. Marin finished out the rest of the 1973-74 season with Buffalo and amassed 13.4 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 1.7 APG, 0.9 SPG and 0.7 BPG in 27 contests and 25.2 MPG.

Buffalo was 26-29 when they made the move to acquire Marin. The Braves went 16-11 after to finish fourth in the Eastern Conference with a 42-40 record. Buffalo qualified for the fourth seed and battled the top-seeded Boston Celtics in Conference Semifinals.

The series opener saw the Braves build a 12-point advantage after three quarters. Boston rebounded in the fourth quarter as they outscored Buffalo 38-16 — Dave Cowens had 20 points in the final period — and took a 1-0 lead with a 107-97 win. Bob McAdoo had 23 points and 20 rebounds in Game Two as Buffalo evened the series with a 115-105 victory.

In the third game, Celtics star John Havlicek dominated with 43 points, 12 rebounds and 8 assists in a 120-107 Celtics win. Braves forward Jim McMillan tipped in a a missed McAdoo jumper to help Buffalo win 104-102 in the fourth game.

Game Five was tight but Boston prevailed 100-97 thanks to 25 points from Havlicek and a strong defensive performance from Dave Cowens (19 points and 12 rebounds) who held Braves star McAdoo to 5-for-20 shooting and 16 points.

Boston closed out the series 106-104 in Game Six after guard Jo Jo White nailed two free-throws after a foul was called on McAdoo as time expired. In the 4-2 series defeat, Marin averaged 8.5 PPG on 46.8% from the field, as well as 3.2 RPG and 1.3 APG in 20.2 MPG.

During the 1974-75 season, the Braves had a strong start, winning 15 of their first 18 games. They continued to be one of the better teams in the NBA, as they finished 49-33. A big reason for that was Bob McAdoo. The centerpiece of the team, McAdoo won ‘74-‘75 NBA MVP with 34.5 PPG, 14.1 RPG and 2.1 BPG. Marin appeared in 81 games and posted 11.8 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 1.6 APG and 0.6 SPG in 26.5 MPG.

In the 1975 Eastern Conference Semifinals, the Braves dueled with the 60-22 Washington Bullets. Game One went to the Braves, as McAdoo had 35 points and 14 rebounds in a 113-102 score. The second game featured Washington’s duo of Elvin Hayes and Wes Unseld. The Bullets teammates had more rebounds (41) than the entire Braves roster (36) in a Game Two 120-106 victory.

Hayes and Phil Chenier combined for 58 points in the third game as Washington took a 2-1 series lead with a 111-96 win. Game Four saw the Braves outscore Washington 61-46 in the second half as they won 108-102 with Bob McAdoo leading the way with 50 points.

Washington’s star Hayes responded in the fifth game with an impressive 46 points and 12 rebounds as Washington won a tight 97-93 game. McAdoo had 37 points and 10 rebounds in a 102-96 Braves victory that knotted the series at three games apiece. 

In the seventh and final game Washington pulled away early, building an 18-point lead at halftime. The Bullets held on for a 115-96 win with Chenier starring with 43 points on 13-of 18 shooting. Marin managed 5.3 PPG and 2.4 RPG in 15.4 MPG during the seven-game matchup.

Marin played in 12 games (9.1 PPG, 3.3 RPG and 1.9 APG in 23.2 MPG) with the Braves during the 1975-76 season before being traded to the Chicago Bulls. Buffalo was  9-7 when they dealt Marin. He ended his tenure in Buffalo with 11.9 PPG, 4.4 RPG, 1.7 APG and 0.7 SPG in 120 career games. Marin shot 47% on FGs and 87% from the charity stripe.

Marin went to a Bulls team in flux. The team had also dealt an unhappy Nate Thurmond to the Cleveland Cavaliers in a separate trade on the same day. Marin joined Chicago for the rest of the 1975-76 season and shared minutes at the two forward positions with Mickey Johnson and Bob Love. Chicago was 3-11 before the trade, and continued to struggle. The Bulls finished with the worst record in franchise history at the time with a 24-58 record. Marin competed in 67 contests with the Bulls after the trade and produced 11.0 PPG, 3.2 RPG 1.8 APG and 0.6 SPG in 24.3 MPG.

After the disappointing season, Bulls coach Dick Motta quit the team — with two years left on his contract — and signed with the Washington Bullets. The Bulls replaced him with Ed Badger.

Marin had a rough go of it for the 1976-77 season. He missed nearly a month of action with mononucleosis and also announced plans to retire midway through the ‘76-‘77 season. He finished out his final season in the NBA with career-lows across the board of 16.1 MPG, 6.8 PPG and 1.7 RPG. He also managed 1.1 APG in 54 games. 

Chicago experienced a very rough start during the ‘76-‘77 campaign. They dropped 14 of their first 16 games. The Bulls improved their play, but still found themselves with the second worst record in the Western Conference through 58 games (24-34).

Things would turn around, as Chicago won 20 of their final 24 games to finish the year 44-38 and in the playoffs. The Bulls faced the 49-33 Portland Trail Blazers in the first round of the postseason. Blazers forward Maurice Lucas had 29 points and 7 rebounds as the Blazers took the series opener 96-83.

The Bulls evened the series at one game apiece wth a 107-104 win that saw 82 of the team’s 107 points come from Artis Gilmore, Wilbur Holland and Mickey Johnson. In the final game of the series, Bobby Gross led the Blazers with 26 points as Portland hung on for an eight-point victory. In Chicago’s first round exit, Marin produced 5.3 PPG on 61.5% from the field in 17.7 MPG. 12 of his 16 total points in the playoffs came in the finale.

After Marin’s retirement, he finished his Bulls run with 9.1 PPG, 2.5 RPG and 1.5 APG in 121 games. The 6′7″ forward shot 43% on field goal attempts and 85% from the charity stripe.

The Braves traded the first round pick acquired from Chicago to the Milwaukee Bucks for Jim Price nearly a year later. On June 7, 1977, Milwaukee dealt the pick back to the Braves with center Swen Nater for a first round pick. 

Three days later on draft day, the Braves traded the pick back to its original home of Chicago, where the Bulls selected guard Tate Armstrong with the 13th overall pick. Armstrong went on to play two seasons with the Bulls.

Jack Marin on getting adjusted to Chicago (via Chicago Tribune):

“[First opponent after trade] The Bucks probably know the Chicago offense better than I do now. I can start if that’s what the coach wants, and I prefer it. The guards initiate a lot of things here and Tom [Boerwinkle] can make life easy for you. 

“It’s disciplined movement, not helter-skelter like the one-man show [Bob McAdoo] at Buffalo. That’s not healthy for a team because if limits the other players. I'm sure [coach] Dick [Motta] will take advantage of my skills here because he’s a people coach not an X-and-O man. What I don't get on the break will develop from the picks they set for me. 

“The Bulls play rough defense with a lot of action around the basket and I’ll get into that. The Braves told me a week and a half ago I’d be staying there and I've been digging on defense, trying to get more playing time.”

Bulls head coach Dick Motta on how the forward minutes would work out among Mickey Johnson, Bob Love and new addition Marin (via Chicago Tribune):

“It's Mickey’s [Johnson] job now and Marin will have to take it from him if he can. I’ll rest Bob Love more now and the three of them should split the 96 minutes of forward time every game.”

Image via Main Line Autographs

#Jack Marin #Braves #Bulls #1975 #1975*76 Season #Tate Armstrong

[mitchbeck]

CANTLON: (FRI) HERSHEY WINS ONE-GOAL BATTLE WITH WOLF PACK

BY: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings HARTFORD, CT - The Hartford Wolf Pack deserved a better fate. Ed Wittchow's goal with 5:48 remaining in regulation would prove to be the only goal either goalie surrendered in a playoff-type atmosphere as the Hershey Bears tripped up the Wolf Pack in a 1-0 Friday night battle at the XL Center before 4.489 fans. Left winger Ryan Dmowski (Old Lyme/Gunnery) had the puck along the left wing boards,but couldn’t get it past Shane Gersich who won the one on one battle and gained possession. He got the puck to Brian Pinho who found Wittchow open coming off the left point top of the left wing circle he one timed wired a shot off the far post for his fifth of the season. The perfect shot nothing Wolf Pack goalie J.F. Berube could do about it. “It was tough for us it was two huge points we wanted and we know how big games are at this time of the year. We just gotta try to take a positive out of it there were a lot of good things we did tonight,” noted Berube played his fifth game as a member of the Wolf Pack The Pack threw a barrage of 17 shots at Hershey’s Vanacek in the third period and he stopped them all and they came from everywhere and everyone. From Mason Geersten low bullet at 1:21 to Matt Beleskey two minutes later the red light stayed off. Danny O’Regan at 4:25 was denied and then Dmowski on a left wing rush at 5:31 the Wolf Pack were in constant forward motion. Patrick Newell at 12:28 off a smart rush into the Hershey end of the ice was stifled and Nick Jones screaming in off the right wing lost his edge at the last second for his shot attempt. Boo Nieves back in the lineup after 13 games filling in for Tim Gettinger with a high wrister at 10:04 that couldn’t crack the wall Vancek was building around the Hershey net. “We deserved a better outcome. Forget about tonight, move onto to tomorrow and get back at it,” remarked Berube. With a tripping penalty in the final minute of regulation on recently acquired Daniel Sprong it was golden chance for the Wolf Pack, but a six on four advantage couldn’t produce a goal for Hartford. Steven Fogarty had two chances one right on the Bears doorstep,but no room to maneuver to shoot on Vanacek was available. Matt Beleskey backhander missed the target and then Darren Raddysh with the last of his four shots for the game with 11.4 seconds was the last chance that was repelled by the Bears netminder. A last second faceoff win and the found its way to Vinni Lettieri saw his big blast blocked by the Bears Beck Malenstyn went all the way back behind the Wolf Pack net ending the game. The two teams meet again tomorrow at 7pm at the XL Center,but the Bears (36-18-3-3, 78 points) have a five point lead on the Wolf Pack (31-17-6-5) in the Atlantic Division. Utica kept Charlotte five points behind the Wolf Pack with a 2-1 win over Checkers, but Providence moved three points ahead of Hartford with a 2-1 overtime win at home against Springfield. For head coach Kris Knoblauch there is not much you can find fault in a game like this. “Besides the first 10 minutes I thought we played a pretty good game. Give a lot of credit to Hershey they’re a good hockey team.” In the second period only nine shots were registered between the two teams and the Berube an stopped former teammate Matt Moulson’s bid with 2:56 left in the period. Then Philippe Maillet, a fellow Quebecer tried his luck from the right wing as time expired at the end of the second period with the two chatting in French likely about Berube’s snatching his attempt away. “He is friend from back home we chatted a bit nothing too dangerous,” chuckled Berube about a light moment in this intense game. The Pack had two big chances by Vinni Lettieri with just officially counting. Lettieri in his garden spot top of the left wing circle, but on his back foot let one go that hit the post and few minutes later darting off the right wing was stopped by Vanacek with 5:52 left in the period. “It’s a matter time before those go in Vinni had the right spot just hit post there,” remarked Berube. The Pack also weather an intense Bears shift in which they kept Hartford in their zone for almost two minutes The first period was a chess match as each team sought to see where they could create chances, but the period still saw an early momentum swing. Big Mason Geersten nailed Bears forward Shane Gersich with a clean, thunderous check at their blue line in front of the Hershey bench. Wittchow made a bee line from the left defensive side in the Hershey zone to battle Geersten in a spirited heavyweight fight at 6:33 with Wittchow getting the instigator on the play. The Wolf Pack 27th ranked powerplay stalled on that chance and one right afterwards as well. Berube made a superb stop on a two on one break denying Daniel Sprong on his attempt to score early. Berube is familiar with Hershey from his time in Lehigh Valley. “I’m sure there some pre-scouting done on their part, but some on my part too. I know they like to go East-West they like to find those seams, it something they do real well,”. Saturday will be a major test for the Wolf Pack. LINES: O’Regan-Kravtsov-Fogarty Jones-Newell-Gropp Beleskey-Lettieri-Nieves McBride-Dmowski-Ronning LoVerde-Hajek Ebert-Geersten Raddysh-Crawley SCRATCHES: Tim Gettinger - Upper Body - Day-To-day. Yegor Rykov - Healthy Greg Chase - Healthy Gabriel Fontaine - Shoulder Surgery - Season-ending NOTES: Knoblauch was non-committal about his starting goalie for Saturday’s night rematch. UCONN lost Friday night in their regular season finale in Lowell 3-1 to UMASS-Lowell to finish at .500 overall at (15-15-4 and 12-10-2 in HE). The loss took away any chance of a home playoff game and will finish 5th or 6th and might play with Boston University or Northeastern next weekend. Yale University lost Game 1 of their ECACHL opening round playoff game series 3-0 to Union College. Big off ice changes, the Springfield Thunderbirds announced on Friday they have signed a standard five year affiliation/partnership agreement with the St. Louis Blues starting next season. Blues needed a new home after the San Antonio Rampage their present AHL farm team was sold to the Vegas Golden Knights last month. The team will be moved there to play in the fall at the Orleans Arena in the fall as likely the Las Vegas Silver Knights until their new arena, the Lifeguard Arena presently under construction is completed. The current parent team, the Florida Panthers who never wanted to be in Springfield in the first place will be heading a little closer to home to Charlotte, North Carolina. Where they will surprisingly take the place of the nearby Carolina Hurricanes who we first reported three weeks ago are moving their farm team prospects to Chicago to hook up with the Wolves to save money. We learned from an NHL source they did try to buy the Wolves,but owner Donald Levin’s price tag was a tad steep for the team. Stockton and Calgary have extended their agreement by another year to tidy up all the AHL off ice business for the year. The hockey world lost one of its best players today as Henri “The Pocket Rocket” Richard passed away at the age of 84 have battled Alzheimer’s the past several years. His career numbers were simply stupendous for a player who stood in the shadow of a legendary brother, Maurice “The Rocket” Richard. Richard was captain of the Canadiens from 1971 to his retirement in 1975, succeeding the legendary Jean Beliveau, with whom he shares the record of playing 20 seasons for the NHL club. He was nicknamed the Pocket Rocket for his five-foot-seven, 160-pound frame. Despite his small stature, Henri Richard was a giant in the game playing 1,256 regular-season games, another Canadiens record that he still holds. He scored 358 goals and had 1,046 points, third in team history behind Guy Lafleur (1,246) and Beliveau (1,219). He also amassed 129 points in 180 playoff games. His 11 Stanley Cups, one more than Beliveau and another former Canadiens captain Yvon Cournoyer, is unlikely ever to be surpassed. Seven were won when the NHL had only six teams. He was known for his playmaking skills and determination with and without the puck, Richards twice led the NHL in assists, with 52 in 1957-58 and 50 in 1962-63. He had nine 20-goal seasons, including a high of 30 in 1959-60. He won the Bill Masterton Trophy for sportsmanship and perseverance in 1974 and was selected to four league all-star teams. The Canadiens retired his number 16 on December 10, 1975, and he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1979. Read the full article

#BooNieves #BostonUniversity #CarolinaHurricanes #CHL #DanielSprong #DannyO’Regan #ECAC #FloridaPanthers #GabrielFontaine #GregChase #HartfordWolfPack #HersheyBears #HockeyHallofFame #MattBeleskey #MattMoulson #NHL #NickJones #RyanDmowski #SanAntonioRampage #SpringfieldThunderbirds #St.LouisBlues #StevenFogarty #TimGettinger #UConn #UMASS-Lowell #UnionCollege #VinniLettieri #XLCenter #YaleUniversity #YegorRykov

[flauntpage]

Flyers Should Still Sell At Deadline Despite Their Recent Hot Play

So, you’re on board with the Flyers getting back in this playoff race, eh?

I understand why. The team is 11-2-1 in their last 14 games. They shrugged off a pivotal home loss to Pittsburgh and a terrible first period the next night in Minnesota to come back and beat the Wild.

They are once again just six points behind Pittsburgh for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference with just 25 games to go. Pretty remarkable since a month ago they were the worst team in hockey.

But the odds of making the playoffs remain long.

Don’t believe me? See for yourself:

Odds of the Flyers making the playoffs as of 2/13/19 

HockeyReference.com – 3.4%

SportsClubStats.com – 1.5%

The Athletic – 9.0%

PlayoffStatus.com – 8.0%

MoneyPuck.com – 5.1%

So, unless your name is Lloyd Christmas, your focus should be on the 2019-2020 season already.

The reason being, it’s really hard to expect the Flyers to maintain the level of the Tampa Bay Lightning (they’d have to finish the season roughly 14-7-4 in those last 25 games, making it 25-9-5 over the final 39 games of the season) AND have three of four teams falter to the tune of .500 records or worse the rest of the way (Columbus, Pittsburgh, Carolina and/or Buffalo).

It’s really asking a lot. That’s why their odds are so long no matter where you look.

So, with the trade deadline now less than two weeks away, General Manager Chuck Fletcher needs to concentrate on next season.

This Flyers team is close. You are seeing what kind of a difference a consistent goaltender can make. You are seeing what kind of a difference good team defense can make. Fletcher doesn’t need to tear it down, he just needs to fine-tune it.

Which is why he wasn’t lying when he said the Flyers will be both buyers and sellers at the trade deadline.

Fletcher could move players on expiring contracts. He could move players that may have term left but could bring valuable return. And he could put the Flyers in a great position heading into the draft and free agency with extra picks, a stocked cupboard of prospects and plenty of cap room.

So, who could go? I’ve been sniffing around as best I can and I’m hearing some things that are interesting some things that are not a surprise and am being left to speculate in other areas. So let’s tackle this after the jump:

1. Wayne Simmonds

Everyone in the NHL is talking about Wayne Simmonds, and his case is certainly an interesting one. There’s no doubt Chuck Fletcher has put him out there for trade discussion, but will he find a deal that makes sense? My inkling is he will, but the Flyers are making it tough on him right now.

That’s because to a man, everyone in the Flyers locker room loves Simmonds and what he brings to the team. Yes, his point production is down and yes, there have been times this year where he’s looked like a shell of himself. But the guy plays the game with his balls to the wall. He’s got one of the great motors in the sport in the past decade and he definitely can be a difference maker on a Cup-contending team.

I’ve been told that each of the following teams has expressed interest: Tampa Bay, Calgary, Nashville, Vegas, Boston, Winnipeg and Toronto.

Considering the Predators had to trade a second round pick for depth forward Brian Boyle last week, the Flyers are poised to do much better than that with Wayne. He’s going to net them at least a first rounder. I say “at least” because if Fletcher is able to get desperate teams into a bidding war, he might be able to procure another prospect or even NHL player in return as well.

I think this price tag will be too rich for Toronto, Calgary and Nashville, who are already limited by what they can trade, but I’m thinking Simmonds can be the missing piece for Tampa as they try to net their second Cup.

And the other bit of tea leaf reading on Simmonds is this – because he means so much to the organization, and the players in the Flyers locker room, he could certainly be a candidate to be moved at the deadline, make a run somewhere else, and then come back to the Flyers as a free agent in the offseason if he’s willing to sign a shorter-term deal.

That could well be the best play for Fletcher and I wouldn’t be surprised if that conversation has come up with Simmonds and his agent.

2. Michael Raffl

Another unrestricted free agent, the Flyers could look to get something for Raffl who could be a valuable depth piece for a playoff team who needs to add to their penalty kill.

Raffl is mostly a fourth liner these days for the Flyers, but has shown the versatility to play any forward position and anywhere in the lineup. Not to mention he’s hard to knock off the puck, making him desirable to teams who need a little size and possession skill.

Pure speculation here, but St. Louis would be a nice fit for Raffl now that they have worked their way back into a playoff spot.

3. Brian Elliott

He hasn’t played in three months, but the Flyers might want to get Elliott a game or two of action before the deadline as he is the kind of veteran goalie with playoff experience that can come in handy for a team down the stretch and as insurance in the postseason.

Because he’s also an unrestricted free agent, Elliott could be of interest to a team like Dallas, who is dealing with an injury to Ben Bishop, or Vegas, who might want a reliable backup for Marc-Andre Fleury.

But, it’s important to prove he’s healthy first. So, don’t be shocked if he gets a couple starts instead of Carter Hart. Hart is the future for the Flyers. Elliott can bring a return to add to that future.

4. Radko Gudas

He has been the Flyers’ most consistent defenseman all season – and I’m sure that’s noticeable around the league.

What’s also notable around the league is, he’s a stay-at-home defenseman, he’s a right-hand shot, he plays heavy, he blocks shots and he kills penalties – all desirable traits at the trade deadline.

He’s signed for one-more season at a $3.35 million cap hit, which is certainly manageable for the team acquiring him, and it increases his value.

Think Tampa would like him back as a third pair defenseman, especially with Anton Stralman, Braydon Coburn and Dan Girardi all set to hit the free agent market at season’s end?

Or how about Winnipeg as an upgrade to Ben Chiarot or Joe Morrow? The Jets are willing to trade their first round pick, could they put together a nice package for both Simmonds and Gudas?

The Flyers have depth on defense going into next season, so this is a place where they can trade from to improve elsewhere – namely scoring depth. Which brings us to the biggest debate:

5. Shayne Gostisbehere

There is certainly a polarizing argument going on about Ghost on Flyers Twitter. Should the Flyers trade him, or not?

Those saying hell no will point out that he was runner up for the Calder Trophy four seasons ago and that he garnered some Norris Trophy votes last season.

They argue that you don’t just bail out on a young, highly-skilled defenseman because of one bad season.

It’s a salient argument.

But so is this:

Gostisbehere is almost 26. It’s not like he’s 21 or 22 like Ivan Provorov and Travis Sanheim, both of whom are ahead of Gostisbehere on the Flyers depth chart.

And it’s not like he’s a rookie or in his second season and still feeling his way. He’s approaching 250 games played in the NHL. He shouldn’t be having an “off year” at this point in his career.

Yes, guys go through rough stretches at any age, but good players find a way through them. Gostisbehere was not a fan of Gord Murphy, who was the Flyers assistant coach in charge of defense during Ron Hextall’s regime as GM.

So, the Flyers made a change there, brought in defenseman whisperer Rick Wilson and have watched Provorov re-find his game and Sanheim flourish. Yet, Gostisbehere is still floundering.

He had a solid game Monday against Pittsburgh and after a brutal turnover against the Wild on Tuesday he was able to get two shots through to the net on the power play that resulted in a pair of Flyers goals, including the game-winner.

It’s those things that he hasn’t been able to do with any consistency this season but has flashed in the last two games.

Still, not being a top pair guy, the Flyers having a guy in Sanheim who could replace him on the power play, and with some depth coming behind him (Phil Myers for sure, and maybe a couple others), Gostisbehere is more expendable than one would think.

Another fallacy is the Flyers would be selling low, but that’s not true. He has a team-friendly contract for any team in the NHL and because of that, not just contenders would be interested – a rebuilding team would likely give up some value for him to see if he can re-find his game in the less-pressurized atmosphere of a rebuild.

Finally, I have been told from a few places in the organization that there is a concern about Ghost’s game internally and that the concern stretches beyond just one bad year. Also, if he didn’t like the old coaching staff and it affected his game, why can’t he get going with a new coaching staff?

I’m just not sure he’s giving Fletcher a good impression.

Yet, as I said on the Press Row Show, I think Gostisbehere can be moved in the offseason – when all 31 teams have a more optimistic view.

The Flyers just need to decide if he should be part of their future – which should start hitting it’s stride as soon as next season – or if they can still get there without him and if he can be an asset that can help fill gaps in other places.

It’s a bit of a conundrum, but I’m thinking it’s ultimately going to be the latter – even if it doesn’t happen until the summer.

The post Flyers Should Still Sell At Deadline Despite Their Recent Hot Play appeared first on Crossing Broad.

Flyers Should Still Sell At Deadline Despite Their Recent Hot Play published first on https://footballhighlightseurope.tumblr.com/

[jasonheart1]

Kick in the gut! Broncos fall 19-17 on Mac miss

DENVER -- Well, that was a kick in the gut. And the face. And in the pants.

With a chance to keep their season relevant, the Broncos found a new way to churn their heart in a blender. Brandon McManus missed wide right on a 51-yard field goal as time expired, sending the Broncos to an excruciating 19-17 defeat at chilly Mile High Stadium.

"Bad kicks. Terrible kicks. The guys gave me a chance to win the game, and I was terrible," said McManus, who offered no excuses for the snap or the wind. "It sucks because you come into the game kicking pretty well, and I didn't give us a chance. I let these guys down."

Trailing on the final drive, quarterback Case Keenum converted a pair of fourth downs on completions to Emmanuel Sanders and Jeff Heuerman. However, with 20 second remaining, the Broncos ran the ball up the middle, leaving a serious degree of difficulty for McManus. The Texans iced him, and he hustled over to the sideline and kicked into the net. He entered the field to a loud roar, known for his clutch kicks, dating to the Super Bowl 50 season. 

This one wasn't close. He hit it right, and it never moved, sending the Texans, including Demaryius Thomas, into jubilation. The Broncos felt resignation, their playoff hopes all but dashed with a 3-6 record as they enter the bye week. 

"It's gut-wrenching," said coach Vance Joseph, whose employment status will be subject to question with his 8-17 overall record, though he's expected to survive. "I know how hard the guys work. I want to win for them."

Entering Sunday, the Broncos needed to deliver on a mandate: Own Your Job. It plastered the TV screens in the locker room on Thursday and Friday in block blue letters on a white backdrop.

With the defense smothering Houston like a python -- Von Miller and Bradley Chubb added to their sack totals -- the Broncos responded with a 12-play, 81-yard drive to secure a 17-16 advantage. It represented the second longest drive of the season, six shy of a first-half march Sunday. 

"My knee felt better as the game wore on. Rushing the passer is like being a prize fighter. You have to be ready to go 12 rounds," Miller told me in the tunnel after the game as he hung out with former teammate Demaryius Thomas. "I will be fine after the bye. It's just tough to lose."

Keenum's dime to Heuerman shoved the Broncos ahead by a point, but it felt uneasy. The Broncos' inability to finish has been an issue since winning Super Bowl 50. They have shown they can compete, but crossing the line with the lead remains a difficult skill to recapture. 

The Texans pulled ahead 19-17 on Ka'imi Fairbairn's 37-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter. And they made it stand.

"The margin for error is so small for our team. We can't mess up and win," said veteran cornerback Chris Harris Jr., frustrated that the Texans didn't challenge him more in the passing game. "We have to find a way to eliminate those little mistakes that kill us every game."

It didn't start well for the Broncos because it started with a bubble screen, as it so often does with Thomas. It was his signature play for eight-plus seasons. OK, not so much the past two years as Thomas leaned out, going vegan, and playing roughly 10 pounds lighter, leading to his yards after contact to vanish. But Sunday, after a Jumbotron tribute, he went to work. He broke inside, slipped a missed tackle by Tramaine Brock, and skated 31 yards. He followed with an 18-yard reception -- it was impressive he was running entire route tree after three practices -- setting up an easy score.

"I loved my time here. It was just a different bond. You had guys you would think would never shed a tear that were shedding tears. I had a great time. We won a Super Bowl," said Thomas, who finished with three catches for 61 yards. "But it's up and done, and on to the next.

DeShaun Watson, clearly a player who has Thomas feeling young again, connected with tight end Jordan Thomas for a a 7-yard touchdown, who beat Josey Jewell in coverage. He became the third quarterback in NFL history with at least 35 touchdowns in first 16 games, joining Hall of Famers Kurt Warner and Dan Marino.

"It was good for Demaryius," Watson said. "He did a great job of making catches when we needed him, and he had a leadership role on the sideline. I just kept the faith."

The Broncos responded with his replacement Courtland Sutton. He delivered a critical 21-yard reception, breaking a tackle. Then, it went wrong. He was called for a block in the back and dropped a touchdown in the end zone. Brandon McManus salvaged the drive with a 44-yard field goal, shaving the deficit to 7-3 with 4:42 remaining in the first.

A fourth down stop ignited the crowd moments later. This was the type of play to change a Sunday. Instead, it altered nothing. Devontae Booker fumbled as Justin Reid pawed out the ball and recovered it on Denver's 22-yard line. Watson made the Broncos pay with a 16-yard score to DeAndre Hopkins on a communication breakdown. It brought a sobering reality that players not guarded by Harris would be open too often.

The game, if not the season, sat a crossroads.  Embattled Keenum, who has been only marginally better than last season's carousel at the halfway point, engineered his best and longest drive of the season. In four plays, the Broncos raced 87 yards. 

Who knew the Broncos had a tight end passing weapon? Matt LaCosse caught a ball in the flat and broke down the sidelines like a kid running from class to recess. His 44 yards on the play led the Broncos in receiving in the first half. Jeff Heuerman, who delivered his best game as a pro with 10 receptions for 83 yards, followed with a 14-yard reception, and Booker found redemption with a 14-yard scamper for a score, his first since Oct. 30 last season. 

An encouraging half turned dark in the waning minutes. Center Matt Paradis left the field on a cart after fracturing his right fibula. He said he will be fine, believing the break will heal. He had played every snap since 2014 -- 3,850 entering the game -- before exiting for Connor McGovern. Brandon McManus followed with a missed 62-yard field goal, leading to Houston's final score. Paradis is expected to miss the remainder of the season as he enters free agency, joining left guard Ron Leary (Achilles). 

"I am gonna be fine after some time," Paradis told Denver7. 

Added Keenum, who completed 26 of 42 passes for 290 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions, "He's top notch, as solid as they come. It's a tough deal."

At the end of the first half, Denver's field goal decision backfired. Watson completed two quick strikes, setting up Fairbairn's 46-yard field goal. It swelled in importance as the game inched toward a conclusion, and was made worse by the fact that he missed his first attempt. Joseph, it turns out, de-iced the kicker.

It captured the season. The Broncos found a way to do just enough to lose. 

"If I could put my finger on it, we'd be winning," Miller lamented. "It's a tough league. We give teams hell each and every week. We just have to find ways to come out on top." 

Footnotes

The Broncos honored Demaryius Thomas before the game with a 1-minute long video tribute. Thomas thanked the fans, who gave him a warm welcome. The Broncos also added "Thank You" to the banner of Thomas hanging outside the south end of the stadium. ... Von Miller looked limited because of a brace on his left knee. But he entered the sack column for the four consecutive game, corralling Watson in the third quarter. ... Shane Ray limped off late in the third quarter, favoring his right ankle. ... The Broncos' inactive list included five injured players and two healthy scratches, linemen Sam Jones and Nico Falah. ... Bradley Chubb's eight sacks represent the most by an NFL rookie at this point of the season since Von in 2011. 

Enjoy this content? Follow Denver7 on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and download the Denver7 app on iOS and Android devices for continual access to breaking news, weather and sports.

Want Broncos news? Denver7 Broncos insider Troy E. Renck is your source. He talks to the players, covers the games and reports scoops on Denver7 and the Denver7 app. He is a CU grad who has covered pro sports in Colorado since 1996, including 14 years at The Denver Post. Follow him on Facebook, Twitter and TheDenverChannel.com’s Broncos page. Troy welcomes most of your emails at [email protected].

from Local News https://www.thedenverchannel.com/sports/broncos-face-texans-in-critical-must-win-game

[thrashermaxey]

Ramblings: Jets Take Game 7, Hamilton, Pacioretty, Skinner, Eichel, Islanders Wingers – May 11

In our only Game 7 of the second round, a matchup that the entire hockey world was looking forward to came to its conclusion. Each team looked great in stretches but the difference was a couple of early goals from the WInnipeg Jets that led them to a 5-1 win over Nashville, and a date with Vegas in the Western Conference Final.  

Hockey is a fickle sport, goaltending in particular. An all-world goalie like Pekka Rinne can look unbeatable one night and an ECHL goalie the next. On this evening, he was the latter. Those two early goals by Winnipeg, one by Tyler Myers and one by Paul Stastny, were both of the soft variety. The Myers goal snuck between his pad/skate and the post from a sharp angle while Stastny jammed a backhand short side off his own rebound. In a one-and-done game with thin margins of error, this is often, and in this case was, the difference between winning and losing.

Stastny finished the game with two goals and an assist. Not a bad deadline pickup.

A quick shout out to the Winnipeg fourth line. It’s not often fourth lines get the limelight but they were excellent in this game. With the Jets leading almost the entire game, Paul Maurice didn’t hesitate to use his depth and they had a few shifts of extended zone time, great cycling, and even a couple good looks on net. Being able to wear down your opponent and give your top guys some rest makes for a valuable trio, and they did just that.

It’s a tough out for the Preds. From the outset of the playoffs, and I mean this in all due respect to the rest of the West, these two teams seemed destined for a collision where the winner would be the West’s Cup Final representative. Now, Winnipeg still has a tall order in a Vegas team that has been playing lights-out hockey, in particular from Marc-Andre Fleury. All this is to say that I think many people saw this inevitable matchup as a Cup Final-worthy series in its own right. And it was.

The entire core of the Nashville roster save for Rinne and Nick Bonino are under 30 years old and signed through next year. They will be a Cup contender again. It was just a tough matchup.

Congratulations to the Jets and their fans. They’ve been waiting decades for this level of playoff success. I’m excited for a fast-paced Conference Final.

*

All the goings on with the Carolina Hurricanes lately had me digging into their season a little bit more. Expected goals were covered last month (here and here) but they mostly covered rookies like Jakub Vrana and Jesse Puljujarvi or depth players like Sam Bennett.

Something interesting stuck out to me with Carolina and individual expected goals: both Jordan Staal and Sebastian Aho saw significant declines in their individual expected goals per 60 minutes at five-on-five last year. In the sample of 227 forwards to play at least 700 five-on-five minutes in both 2016-17 and 2017-18, both Aho and Staal were among the 20 biggest declines. Here is the top-20 list, including ties (data from Corsica Hockey):

  I don’t think anyone would complain about their actual output from a fantasy perspective, but here’s where things get interesting: Teuvo Teravianen saw one of the biggest increases in individual expected goals per 60 minutes at five-on-five. Out of the same 227 forwards, he was inside the top-50 for increase between 2016-17.

Did Teuvo do a better job getting to the net? Shooting off an odd-man rush? Line mates looking for him? If this is the start of a trend, Teravainen’s goal-scoring prospects look bright so long as the line stays together. We’ll see how this lineup is tinkered with over the summer.

*

Following a season that was beset by injuries, Flyers defenceman Sam Morin looked to put in a good showing for Lehigh Valley in the AHL playoffs. Unfortunately, he appeared to suffer a knee injury on Wednesday night and left the game. That was the game that went to five overtimes.

Morin is part of the glut of young defencemen the Flyers are hoping are all regular for them in the next couple years. This is pretty much a lost season of development for him. Let’s hope he’s fine for September. All the best to him.

*

Could Dougie Hamilton really be on the move again? For some reason, his name is popping up in trade rumours. This seems insane considering Hamilton is a bona fide top-pair, 24-year old defenceman signed through his prime at a very reasonable cap hit. Alas, it was insane that he was traded the last time.

As a Hamilton keeper owner, seeing him in a different franchise that will play him 24-plus minutes a game rather than the 20:20 per game he’s averaged in Calgary would be nice. He’s as consistent as they come among fantasy blue liners and his upside still hasn’t been reached. Calgary desperately needs to re-stock the prospect pool, particularly among their forwards. That’ll be hard to do without a pick until the fourth round in this year’s draft. Maybe Hamilton for a good scoring winger and a couple lesser picks makes sense. Again, though, it seems crazy to trade him. We’ll see.

*

Sticking in Alberta, Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Sun has been reporting that Peter Chiarelli is actively shopping the 10th overall pick for immediate help. Given that their glaring need is scoring on the wings (go ahead, make your jokes) and more defensive depth, I can’t help but think the scoring is going to be prioritized. The 10th overall pick is not going to land you a superstar blue liner like Erik Karlsson and the pieces they’d have to add to make it work would just deplete the roster, so going for a top-end scoring winger makes more sense. Here are a few that stand out:

  Max Pacioretty

If the team needs immediate scoring help, Pacioretty should be at the top of the list. He had a down year in 2017-18 that eventually ended with injury but he’s still one of the most consistent scorers of this generation with five consecutive 82-game seasons with at least 30 goals. The problem is his expected goals at five-on-five took a dip for the second straight year. Is that a product of trying to fit with Jonathan Drouin? Just a down year with Philip Danault? He just never seemed to mesh with anyone this year. All the same, the Oilers should be familiar with trading low on a proven goal scorer who just had one bad year but maybe they’re looking for someone with more term as Pacioretty is a UFA after 2018-19.

  Jeff Skinner

Another winger coming off a down year, Skinner runs into the same contract problem as Pacioretty because he’s a UFA after this coming season. All the same, it seems pretty obvious there are some changes coming to Carolina. Skinner, Jordan Staal, and Justin Faulk are all at least 26 years old (actually, Skinner turns 26 next week, for the sake of accuracy), but the new core of this team (Aho, Teravainen, Lindholm, Hanifin if he’s not traded, Pesce, Slavin, Necas, Bean, and whoever they draft second overall) are all 25 or under. Trading a contract set to expire for a guy who will be 27 when he’s due a new one to get a second pick inside the top-10 makes sense from a certain angle. Skinner has been one of the top scorers in the league since getting to the NHL, coming in tied for 6th in goals per 60 minutes at five-on-five since 2010. That’s ahead of both Alex Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby.  He’s also a wonderful skater who can get to the net. That seems like a good skill mix for Connor McDavid’s winger.

  Jason Zucker

I know most Oilers fans would roll their eyes at Zucker because he’s name A Name but it seems pretty obvious changes are coming in Minnesota. In the six seasons since those monster contracts were signed by Ryan Suter and Zach Parise, the team has two playoff series wins and zero Conference Finals appearances. Zucker is a pending RFA so a sign-and-trade deal would make sense for the Oilers. He could play on either the first or second line and should the latter be the case, would make a nice running mate for Leon Draisaitl.

If you missed my Ramblings a couple days ago, there was some discussion on Zucker. You can read that here.

One last guy that had crossed my mind was Mark Stone but the package to get him would take a lot more than just the 10th overall and Edmonton doesn’t really have the prospect depth to do it. They would need to be roster players like Darnell Nurse or Jesse Puljujarvi and I’d hope Chiarelli doesn’t do that considering those are the areas they need to fill. I guess we never know with good ol’ Peter though.

What say you, Dobber Heads? If the Oilers target a winger in a trade, who would you like to see next to McDavid?

*

We’re technically just at the halfway point of the playoffs but it’s hard not to look ahead to the next fantasy season. We still have the draft, free agency, and trades to deal with but there are still some pressing questions worth discussing.

  Does Jack Eichel come at some sort of draft-day discount?

Some people, myself included, had Eichel as a first-round pick this past season. Injuries assured he wouldn’t end up returning that value. Here’s the thing: his 82-game pace for his career this far is 29 goals, 41 assists, 288 shots, and 26 power-play points. Those are very good numbers and he’s just coming into his fourth full year. 

Anyone who drafted him last year was burned and anyone who didn’t wasn’t given a reason to take a leap of faith on him this year. Does he come in undervalued? His ADP will be fascinating.

  Discount on Islanders winger?

One thing that we could see, if John Tavares signs elsewhere, is fantasy owners bailing on the Islanders wingers. Honestly, though, if Mathew Barzal continues on the trajectory he showed in his first season, why stay away from the Islanders top line?

At the least, Anders Lee should be a mainstay of the first trio, if anything to pump up his trade value by the deadline. Even before his 40-goal season, he averaged 26 goals per 82 games for his career. Barzal seems plenty capable of keeping him in the 30-goal range.

Tavares signing with another team would be a nightmare for Islanders fan but could be good news for the value-hunting fantasy owners.

  Eeli Tolvanen over-drafted?

The Shiny New Toy is a thing in any fantasy sport, hockey included. Fantasy owners will be keenly aware of Tolvanen’s upside as the notion will be beat into submission in a cascade of “Breakout Target” articles. The thing is, it seems the top-six is pretty locked with their left wingers. It is possible he supplants Kevin Fiala but that probably won’t be the case coming out of training camp.

Had Tolvanen been a fixture of the playoff push like Fiala was last year, maybe it inflates his draft-day price even more. That he can’t crack the lineup, though, might be good news for those who want to keep his ADP reasonable. All the same, it won’t take much more than a couple exhibition game videos to get the fantasy owners riled up. We can wait and see how much he’ll eventually cost but my initial lean is this will be a situation to avoid come September.

from All About Sports https://dobberhockey.com/hockey-rambling/ramblings-hamilton-pacioretty-skinner-eichel-islanders-wingers-may-11/

[richardlucianos]

How to Speed Read a 240-Page Book in 2 Hours

Reading is the best thing I’ve done to help me progress professionally.

From working as a retail store manager and in a call center, to working as a senior marketing manager for one of the world’s largest publishing companies to a senior content marketer for an online and mobile giving provider, reading has been the most influential catalyst in my professional development.

But trying to read more books can be frustrating.

Work.

Family.

Demands.

Lack of time.

BIG books.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed, you’re not alone.

Like most professionals and students, you have a list of books you want to read the length of your arm. A list of books you’d like to finish by the end of this year.

Here’s the deal:

You can read more books without learning how to speed read.

In this post, I’m going to show you how to read more books in less time.

We’re going to cover the following topics:

What is the average reading speed?

How do I test my reading speed?

How long does it take to read 100 pages?

How long does it take to read 200 pages?

How long does it take to read 300 pages?

What you need to know before reading a book

4 steps to reading a 240-page book in two hours

Why you should pace your reading

When not to read this way

Alright, happy reading!

What is the average reading speed?

Based on a speed-reading survey by Staples, the average adult reading speed is 300 words per minute (wpm).

In this study, the team also observed these different reading speeds based on someone’s level of education:

Average college student = 450

Average “high-level executive” = 575

Average college professor = 675

Speed readers = 1,500

World speed reading champion = 4,700 (yikes!)

I understand these numbers may feel vague to you, so let’s take a look at the length of some books to help you see how fast you can read a book.

For starters, the average count for a page in a book is 250–300 depending upon its trim size, margins, and font size. If you read 300 words per minute, then you will able to read one page in 49–60 seconds.

These numbers may encourage or discourage you but hang tight. Help is on the way.

How do I test my reading speed?

“How fast can I read?”

After seeing the average reading speeds above, you’d probably like to know how fast you can read.

Well, if you have a few minutes, here are 4-steps you can take to test your reading speed:

Step 1: Set a timer

For this exercise, you’re going to read for one minute.

Before you start, set a timer for 1 minute on your phone, watch, or online.

It doesn’t matter what you use as long as you’re ready to time your reading.

Step 2: Pick a regular book

For this test, you don’t want to read a dictionary or a book with small font and margins. You want to pick a book you usually read. This way your reading test will be as accurate as possible.

Step 3: Read, read, and read

Alright, now it’s time to read!

Hit the start button on your timer and read until the time expires.

As you read, keep these three tips in mind:

Don’t look at the time as you read

Don’t try to read faster than normal

Just read at your average pace

If you follow these three-pointers, then you won’t throw off the results of your test.

Step 4: Stop and count

It’s team to test your results.

Here are the four steps you’ll need to take to figure out how fast you can read:

Count the number of words per line for four lines

Divide this number by four

Count the number of lines you read during your 1-minute test

Multiply the number from step 2 by the number in step 4 to get your average reading speed per minute

Let me show you how!

#1. Count the number of words per line for four lines

In this example, I’m reading Real Artists Don’t Starve by Jeff Goins.

On this page, there are 44 words in the first four lines.

#2. Divide this number by 4

Alright, 44 words divided by 4 equals 11 words per line.

44 ÷ 4 = 11

If you come up with an uneven number, then round up or down to the closest number. As a way of example, you would round up 12.6 to 13, or you would round down 12.4 to 12.

#3. Count the number of lines you read during your 1-minute test

In this test, let’s say I read 44 lines in one minute.

#4. Multiply the number from step 2 by the number in step 4 to get your average reading speed per minute

Okay, so I read 44 lines in one minute, and the average words per line are 11, so this means I read 484 words.

44 lines x 11 words per line = 484

How many words do you read per minute?

Depending on how much time you have, it’s best to take the test above 3–5 times and average your results from every test. This will give you a pretty good idea of your reading speed.

Not happy with your reading speed?

Don’t worry if your reading speed doesn’t compare well to the averages shared above. Learning how to read faster is not about where you start. It’s about where you’re going. And you can significantly increase your reading speed at any age.

Now that you know your reading speed, let’s take a look at how long it will take you to read average book lengths.

To figure out how long it will take to read a book that is 100, 200, or 300 pages long, let’s assume the average word count per page is 250–300 and that your reading speed is 300 words per minute.

How long does it take to read 100 pages?

If the average page has 250–300 words, then the word count for a 100-page book totals 25,000–30,000.

By reading 300 words per minute, it will take you 83–100 minutes to read this book.

How long does it take to read 200 pages?

At 200 pages, the total word count for this book equals 50,000–60,000.

If you read 300 words per minute, then it will take you 166–200 minutes to read this book.

How long does it take to read 300 pages?

If the book you want to read is 300 pages, then the word count for this book is between 75,000–90,000.

If you read 300 words per minute, then it will take you 250–300 minutes to read this book.

Hate doing math? Or don’t have time to run the numbers?

Join the club.

To help you see how long it will take to read some of the most popular books, NPR’s Fresh Air created this nifty infographic:

Is the book you need to read not in the list above?

To find out how long it will take you to read whatever book is on your list, check out How Long to Read. On this site, you can search over 12 million books to see how long it will take you to read if your average reading speed is 300 words per minute.

Recently, I read The Stand by Stephen King, so I was curious to learn how long it should have taken me to read it. I read the complete and uncut version, which comes in at a whopping—yet enjoyable—1,439 pages.

Honestly, I don’t remember how long it took me to read this book. I read it at night before going to bed, read several hundred pages, took a break, and picked it back up a few months later to finish.

Based on How Long to Read, it should have taken me at least 17 hours:

Since I read this at night to relax, I imagine it took me every bit of 17 hours to complete.

Ready to read? Start here

To help you read non-fiction books faster, you’ll need to know the pattern that most of them follow. Understanding this pattern ahead of time will help you read faster and retain what you read.

Here’s the format most non-fiction books follow:

#1. Introduction of the chapter

The introduction of a chapter will provide you with the point an author is trying to make.

In the introduction, an author’s goal is to entice you to read the rest of the chapter. To do this, they’re going to talk about their thesis—the point they want to make—in such a compelling way that you’ll be interested in moving on.

You can also expedite this step by reading the last paragraph of the introductory remarks.

Looking again at Real Artists Don’t Starve by Jeff Goins, you can see the message he wants to convey in the last paragraph of his introduction:

#2. Sections

After the introduction and before the conclusion, the individual chapters are broken down into multiple sub-sections. In the image above, you can see the title of one sub-section: The Rule of Ownership.

In the first sentence or toward the beginning of each section, the author will share the point he or she wants to make. Within each section, the individual paragraphs will provide supporting information and illustrations to prove their point.

For most non-fiction books, you can read the first paragraph and last paragraph to learn the point of the sub-section you’re reading.

#3. Conclusion

When I preached on occasions for a local church I once served, a standard principle I learned in public communications was to tell people what you’re going to say, tell them, and then tell them what you told them. The same principle is a good one to follow for non-fiction books, too.

The concluding remarks of a chapter should reiterate the author’s main point from the introduction. If the conclusion is written well, then the author will not present new ideas. But they will share a cliffhanger to entice you to turn the page to the next chapter.

Now that you know how the average non-fiction book is laid out, you are ready to move forward with learning how to increase your reading speed.

4 steps to reading a 240-page book in two hours

There will be times when you need to read a book quickly.

Whether you’re cramming for a presentation, preparing for an exam, or writing a research paper or blog post, you’ll need to know how to devour a book as quickly as possible.

To learn how to read a 240-page book, let’s imagine you’re reading Real Artists Don’t Starve by Jeff Goins (no surprises here, right?).

#1. Read the book description

Well written book descriptions will tell you in a few hundred words or less what the book is about, the benefits you’ll receive, and a cliffhanger to compel you to purchase the book.

Here’s the description of Real Artists Don’t Starve:

Bestselling author and creativity expert Jeff Goins dismantles the myth that being creative is a hindrance to success by revealing how an artistic temperament is in fact a competitive advantage in the marketplace.

For centuries, the myth of the starving artist has dominated our culture, seeping into the minds of creative people and stifling their pursuits. But the truth is that the world’s most successful artists did not starve. In fact, they capitalized on the power of their creative strength.

In Real Artists Don’t Starve, Jeff Goins debunks the myth of the starving artist by unveiling the ideas that created it and replacing them with timeless strategies for thriving, includingsteal from your influences (don’t wait for inspiration), collaborate with others (working alone is a surefire way to starve), take strategic risks (instead of reckless ones), make money in order to make more art (it’s not selling out), and apprentice under a master (a “lone genius” can never reach full potential).

Through inspiring anecdotes of successful creatives both past and present, Goins shows that living by these rules is not only doable but it’s also a fulfilling way to thrive. From graphic designers and writers to artists and business professionals, creatives already know that no one is born an artist.

Goins’ revolutionary rules celebrate the process of becoming an artist, a person who utilizes the imagination in fundamental ways. He reminds creatives that business and art are not mutually exclusive pursuits. In fact, success in business and in life flow from a healthy exercise of creativity.

You’ll be well on your way to understanding how you’ll benefit from Jeff’s book after reading this description.

#2. Determine your reading goal

From what you know about the book from the description, what do you need to learn? What is the purpose of the book? What benefits do you expect you receive?

In How to Read a Book, author Mortimer Adler identifies four-levels of reading:

Elementary

Inspectional

Analytical

Synoptical

Based on your reading goals, will you need to take a superficial approach and get the high-level ideas? Or do you need to mine the depths of the book you’re reading by unearthing everything you can?

I highly recommend How to Read a Book, but, if you don’t have the time to read this classic, then check out this post from Brian Clark on Copyblogger: How to Read. Brian shares everything with you that you’ll need to know.

Before moving forward, determine your reading goal.

#3. Skim the table of contents

How is the book broken down?

Did the author provide different sections?

Are there loosely tied together chapters?

Is there an introduction, acknowledgments, and epilogue?

After reading the table of contents, select the chapters you need to read to accomplish your goal.

But keep this mind:

What you need to read may change after you start reading.

So, be open to reading different or additional chapters.

#4. Break the chapters down into time blocks

When you give yourself two hours to read a book, you have to pace yourself.

In other words, you have to set a limit on how long you’ll spend reading each chapter.

For the sake of this exercise, say you read 300 words per minute.

Now, how many pages does the chapter you need to read have?

Based on the numbers above, if it’s 20 pages or less, then you’ll be able to finish it in the time you have.

For Real Artists Don’t Starve, there are twelve chapters you can read (not including the epilogue). This means you will have 10 minutes at most to read every chapter.

If you’re pressed for time and choose to read every chapter, then you may need to only read the introduction and conclusion, and then read the first and last sentence of every paragraph. This will help you to grasp the main point the author is trying to make.

For the record, when I use this approach, I’m typically pressed for time or attempting to read a wide variety of books for something I’m writing. But more on this in a minute.

Why pace your reading?

Setting your pace is essential to reading a book in two hours or less.

If you don’t pace yourself, then you’ll end up sending 1 hour and 45 minutes absorbing a few chapters but blaze through the rest of the book.

The result: An imbalance understanding of the book.

Pacing yourself eliminates this problem.

Why?

It allows you to give the essential topics equal attention.

More importantly, when you spend less time on scannable books, you have more time to crawl through the heavier ones.

When not to read this way

This method is not intended for every book. Use this only when you need to read something quickly.

Many books you read require a slow, careful reading—not a high-level overview. These are classics like War and Peace, contemporary novels, or religious texts like the Bible.

However, many contemporary business books are heavy on ideas and light on content. This doesn’t mean these books lack depth—far from it.

What I’m saying is that these books have been written in such a way to convey an idea in a clear, concise, and compelling way, as are many of the five usability books every web writer must read, except for Morville and Rosenfeld’s.

Your turn

I’ll repeat it: You don’t want to read every book this way.

In the words of Francis Bacon, “Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested.”

Whenever you approach a new book, determine your reading goals ahead of time. Then plan your reading accordingly.

This way you can comprehend more in less time. And stockpile in your brain only the essential and vital ideas.

What do you think about chapter pacing? Do you have any speed reading tips you can share? Drop a line in the comments below!

The post How to Speed Read a 240-Page Book in 2 Hours appeared first on The Copybot.

from SEO Tips http://thecopybot.com/read-book-two-hours/

[rodneyfgarrett]

How to Speed Read a 240-Page Book in 2 Hours

Reading is the best thing I’ve done to help me progress professionally.

From working as a retail store manager and in a call center, to working as a senior marketing manager for one of the world’s largest publishing companies to a senior content marketer for an online and mobile giving provider, reading has been the most influential catalyst in my professional development.

But trying to read more books can be frustrating.

Work.

Family.

Demands.

Lack of time.

BIG books.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed, you’re not alone.

Like most professionals and students, you have a list of books you want to read the length of your arm. A list of books you’d like to finish by the end of this year.

Here’s the deal:

You can read more books without learning how to speed read.

In this post, I’m going to show you how to read more books in less time.

We’re going to cover the following topics:

What is the average reading speed?

How do I test my reading speed?

How long does it take to read 100 pages?

How long does it take to read 200 pages?

How long does it take to read 300 pages?

What you need to know before reading a book

4 steps to reading a 240-page book in two hours

Why you should pace your reading

When not to read this way

Alright, happy reading!

What is the average reading speed?

Based on a speed-reading survey by Staples, the average adult reading speed is 300 words per minute (wpm).

In this study, the team also observed these different reading speeds based on someone’s level of education:

Average college student = 450

Average “high-level executive” = 575

Average college professor = 675

Speed readers = 1,500

World speed reading champion = 4,700 (yikes!)

I understand these numbers may feel vague to you, so let’s take a look at the length of some books to help you see how fast you can read a book.

For starters, the average count for a page in a book is 250–300 depending upon its trim size, margins, and font size. If you read 300 words per minute, then you will able to read one page in 49–60 seconds.

These numbers may encourage or discourage you but hang tight. Help is on the way.

How do I test my reading speed?

“How fast can I read?”

After seeing the average reading speeds above, you’d probably like to know how fast you can read.

Well, if you have a few minutes, here are 4-steps you can take to test your reading speed:

Step 1: Set a timer

For this exercise, you’re going to read for one minute.

Before you start, set a timer for 1 minute on your phone, watch, or online.

It doesn’t matter what you use as long as you’re ready to time your reading.

Step 2: Pick a regular book

For this test, you don’t want to read a dictionary or a book with small font and margins. You want to pick a book you usually read. This way your reading test will be as accurate as possible.

Step 3: Read, read, and read

Alright, now it’s time to read!

Hit the start button on your timer and read until the time expires.

As you read, keep these three tips in mind:

Don’t look at the time as you read

Don’t try to read faster than normal

Just read at your average pace

If you follow these three-pointers, then you won’t throw off the results of your test.

Step 4: Stop and count

It’s team to test your results.

Here are the four steps you’ll need to take to figure out how fast you can read:

Count the number of words per line for four lines

Divide this number by four

Count the number of lines you read during your 1-minute test

Multiply the number from step 2 by the number in step 4 to get your average reading speed per minute

Let me show you how!

#1. Count the number of words per line for four lines

In this example, I’m reading Real Artists Don’t Starve by Jeff Goins.

On this page, there are 44 words in the first four lines.

#2. Divide this number by 4

Alright, 44 words divided by 4 equals 11 words per line.

44 ÷ 4 = 11

If you come up with an uneven number, then round up or down to the closest number. As a way of example, you would round up 12.6 to 13, or you would round down 12.4 to 12.

#3. Count the number of lines you read during your 1-minute test

In this test, let’s say I read 44 lines in one minute.

#4. Multiply the number from step 2 by the number in step 4 to get your average reading speed per minute

Okay, so I read 44 lines in one minute, and the average words per line are 11, so this means I read 484 words.

44 lines x 11 words per line = 484

How many words do you read per minute?

Depending on how much time you have, it’s best to take the test above 3–5 times and average your results from every test. This will give you a pretty good idea of your reading speed.

Not happy with your reading speed?

Don’t worry if your reading speed doesn’t compare well to the averages shared above. Learning how to read faster is not about where you start. It’s about where you’re going. And you can significantly increase your reading speed at any age.

Now that you know your reading speed, let’s take a look at how long it will take you to read average book lengths.

To figure out how long it will take to read a book that is 100, 200, or 300 pages long, let’s assume the average word count per page is 250–300 and that your reading speed is 300 words per minute.

How long does it take to read 100 pages?

If the average page has 250–300 words, then the word count for a 100-page book totals 25,000–30,000.

By reading 300 words per minute, it will take you 83–100 minutes to read this book.

How long does it take to read 200 pages?

At 200 pages, the total word count for this book equals 50,000–60,000.

If you read 300 words per minute, then it will take you 166–200 minutes to read this book.

How long does it take to read 300 pages?

If the book you want to read is 300 pages, then the word count for this book is between 75,000–90,000.

If you read 300 words per minute, then it will take you 250–300 minutes to read this book.

Hate doing math? Or don’t have time to run the numbers?

Join the club.

To help you see how long it will take to read some of the most popular books, NPR’s Fresh Air created this nifty infographic:

Is the book you need to read not in the list above?

To find out how long it will take you to read whatever book is on your list, check out How Long to Read. On this site, you can search over 12 million books to see how long it will take you to read if your average reading speed is 300 words per minute.

Recently, I read The Stand by Stephen King, so I was curious to learn how long it should have taken me to read it. I read the complete and uncut version, which comes in at a whopping—yet enjoyable—1,439 pages.

Honestly, I don’t remember how long it took me to read this book. I read it at night before going to bed, read several hundred pages, took a break, and picked it back up a few months later to finish.

Based on How Long to Read, it should have taken me at least 17 hours:

Since I read this at night to relax, I imagine it took me every bit of 17 hours to complete.

Ready to read? Start here

To help you read non-fiction books faster, you’ll need to know the pattern that most of them follow. Understanding this pattern ahead of time will help you read faster and retain what you read.

Here’s the format most non-fiction books follow:

#1. Introduction of the chapter

The introduction of a chapter will provide you with the point an author is trying to make.

In the introduction, an author’s goal is to entice you to read the rest of the chapter. To do this, they’re going to talk about their thesis—the point they want to make—in such a compelling way that you’ll be interested in moving on.

You can also expedite this step by reading the last paragraph of the introductory remarks.

Looking again at Real Artists Don’t Starve by Jeff Goins, you can see the message he wants to convey in the last paragraph of his introduction:

#2. Sections

After the introduction and before the conclusion, the individual chapters are broken down into multiple sub-sections. In the image above, you can see the title of one sub-section: The Rule of Ownership.

In the first sentence or toward the beginning of each section, the author will share the point he or she wants to make. Within each section, the individual paragraphs will provide supporting information and illustrations to prove their point.

For most non-fiction books, you can read the first paragraph and last paragraph to learn the point of the sub-section you’re reading.

#3. Conclusion

When I preached on occasions for a local church I once served, a standard principle I learned in public communications was to tell people what you’re going to say, tell them, and then tell them what you told them. The same principle is a good one to follow for non-fiction books, too.

The concluding remarks of a chapter should reiterate the author’s main point from the introduction. If the conclusion is written well, then the author will not present new ideas. But they will share a cliffhanger to entice you to turn the page to the next chapter.

Now that you know how the average non-fiction book is laid out, you are ready to move forward with learning how to increase your reading speed.

4 steps to reading a 240-page book in two hours

There will be times when you need to read a book quickly.

Whether you’re cramming for a presentation, preparing for an exam, or writing a research paper or blog post, you’ll need to know how to devour a book as quickly as possible.

To learn how to read a 240-page book, let’s imagine you’re reading Real Artists Don’t Starve by Jeff Goins (no surprises here, right?).

#1. Read the book description

Well written book descriptions will tell you in a few hundred words or less what the book is about, the benefits you’ll receive, and a cliffhanger to compel you to purchase the book.

Here’s the description of Real Artists Don’t Starve:

Bestselling author and creativity expert Jeff Goins dismantles the myth that being creative is a hindrance to success by revealing how an artistic temperament is in fact a competitive advantage in the marketplace.

For centuries, the myth of the starving artist has dominated our culture, seeping into the minds of creative people and stifling their pursuits. But the truth is that the world’s most successful artists did not starve. In fact, they capitalized on the power of their creative strength.

In Real Artists Don’t Starve, Jeff Goins debunks the myth of the starving artist by unveiling the ideas that created it and replacing them with timeless strategies for thriving, includingsteal from your influences (don’t wait for inspiration), collaborate with others (working alone is a surefire way to starve), take strategic risks (instead of reckless ones), make money in order to make more art (it’s not selling out), and apprentice under a master (a “lone genius” can never reach full potential).

Through inspiring anecdotes of successful creatives both past and present, Goins shows that living by these rules is not only doable but it’s also a fulfilling way to thrive. From graphic designers and writers to artists and business professionals, creatives already know that no one is born an artist.

Goins’ revolutionary rules celebrate the process of becoming an artist, a person who utilizes the imagination in fundamental ways. He reminds creatives that business and art are not mutually exclusive pursuits. In fact, success in business and in life flow from a healthy exercise of creativity.

You’ll be well on your way to understanding how you’ll benefit from Jeff’s book after reading this description.

#2. Determine your reading goal

From what you know about the book from the description, what do you need to learn? What is the purpose of the book? What benefits do you expect you receive?

In How to Read a Book, author Mortimer Adler identifies four-levels of reading:

Elementary

Inspectional

Analytical

Synoptical

Based on your reading goals, will you need to take a superficial approach and get the high-level ideas? Or do you need to mine the depths of the book you’re reading by unearthing everything you can?

I highly recommend How to Read a Book, but, if you don’t have the time to read this classic, then check out this post from Brian Clark on Copyblogger: How to Read. Brian shares everything with you that you’ll need to know.

Before moving forward, determine your reading goal.

#3. Skim the table of contents

How is the book broken down?

Did the author provide different sections?

Are there loosely tied together chapters?

Is there an introduction, acknowledgments, and epilogue?

After reading the table of contents, select the chapters you need to read to accomplish your goal.

But keep this mind:

What you need to read may change after you start reading.

So, be open to reading different or additional chapters.

#4. Break the chapters down into time blocks

When you give yourself two hours to read a book, you have to pace yourself.

In other words, you have to set a limit on how long you’ll spend reading each chapter.

For the sake of this exercise, say you read 300 words per minute.

Now, how many pages does the chapter you need to read have?

Based on the numbers above, if it’s 20 pages or less, then you’ll be able to finish it in the time you have.

For Real Artists Don’t Starve, there are twelve chapters you can read (not including the epilogue). This means you will have 10 minutes at most to read every chapter.

If you’re pressed for time and choose to read every chapter, then you may need to only read the introduction and conclusion, and then read the first and last sentence of every paragraph. This will help you to grasp the main point the author is trying to make.

For the record, when I use this approach, I’m typically pressed for time or attempting to read a wide variety of books for something I’m writing. But more on this in a minute.

Why pace your reading?

Setting your pace is essential to reading a book in two hours or less.

If you don’t pace yourself, then you’ll end up sending 1 hour and 45 minutes absorbing a few chapters but blaze through the rest of the book.

The result: An imbalance understanding of the book.

Pacing yourself eliminates this problem.

Why?

It allows you to give the essential topics equal attention.

More importantly, when you spend less time on scannable books, you have more time to crawl through the heavier ones.

When not to read this way

This method is not intended for every book. Use this only when you need to read something quickly.

Many books you read require a slow, careful reading—not a high-level overview. These are classics like War and Peace, contemporary novels, or religious texts like the Bible.

However, many contemporary business books are heavy on ideas and light on content. This doesn’t mean these books lack depth—far from it.

What I’m saying is that these books have been written in such a way to convey an idea in a clear, concise, and compelling way, as are many of the five usability books every web writer must read, except for Morville and Rosenfeld’s.

Your turn

I’ll repeat it: You don’t want to read every book this way.

In the words of Francis Bacon, “Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested.”

Whenever you approach a new book, determine your reading goals ahead of time. Then plan your reading accordingly.

This way you can comprehend more in less time. And stockpile in your brain only the essential and vital ideas.

What do you think about chapter pacing? Do you have any speed reading tips you can share? Drop a line in the comments below!

The post How to Speed Read a 240-Page Book in 2 Hours appeared first on The Copybot.

from SEO Tips http://thecopybot.com/read-book-two-hours/

[samabd]

How to Speed Read a 240-Page Book in 2 Hours

Reading is the best thing I’ve done to help me progress professionally.

From working as a retail store manager and in a call center, to working as a senior marketing manager for one of the world’s largest publishing companies to a senior content marketer for an online and mobile giving provider, reading has been the most influential catalyst in my professional development.

But trying to read more books can be frustrating.

Work.

Family.

Demands.

Lack of time.

BIG books.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed, you’re not alone.

Like most professionals and students, you have a list of books you want to read the length of your arm. A list of books you’d like to finish by the end of this year.

Here’s the deal:

You can read more books without learning how to speed read.

In this post, I’m going to show you how to read more books in less time.

We’re going to cover the following topics:

What is the average reading speed?

How do I test my reading speed?

How long does it take to read 100 pages?

How long does it take to read 200 pages?

How long does it take to read 300 pages?

What you need to know before reading a book

4 steps to reading a 240-page book in two hours

Why you should pace your reading

When not to read this way

Alright, happy reading!

What is the average reading speed?

Based on a speed-reading survey by Staples, the average adult reading speed is 300 words per minute (wpm).

In this study, the team also observed these different reading speeds based on someone’s level of education:

Average college student = 450

Average “high-level executive” = 575

Average college professor = 675

Speed readers = 1,500

World speed reading champion = 4,700 (yikes!)

I understand these numbers may feel vague to you, so let’s take a look at the length of some books to help you see how fast you can read a book.

For starters, the average count for a page in a book is 250–300 depending upon its trim size, margins, and font size. If you read 300 words per minute, then you will able to read one page in 49–60 seconds.

These numbers may encourage or discourage you but hang tight. Help is on the way.

How do I test my reading speed?

“How fast can I read?”

After seeing the average reading speeds above, you’d probably like to know how fast you can read.

Well, if you have a few minutes, here are 4-steps you can take to test your reading speed:

Step 1: Set a timer

For this exercise, you’re going to read for one minute.

Before you start, set a timer for 1 minute on your phone, watch, or online.

It doesn’t matter what you use as long as you’re ready to time your reading.

Step 2: Pick a regular book

For this test, you don’t want to read a dictionary or a book with small font and margins. You want to pick a book you usually read. This way your reading test will be as accurate as possible.

Step 3: Read, read, and read

Alright, now it’s time to read!

Hit the start button on your timer and read until the time expires.

As you read, keep these three tips in mind:

Don’t look at the time as you read

Don’t try to read faster than normal

Just read at your average pace

If you follow these three-pointers, then you won’t throw off the results of your test.

Step 4: Stop and count

It’s team to test your results.

Here are the four steps you’ll need to take to figure out how fast you can read:

Count the number of words per line for four lines

Divide this number by four

Count the number of lines you read during your 1-minute test

Multiply the number from step 2 by the number in step 4 to get your average reading speed per minute

Let me show you how!

#1. Count the number of words per line for four lines

In this example, I’m reading Real Artists Don’t Starve by Jeff Goins.

On this page, there are 44 words in the first four lines.

#2. Divide this number by 4

Alright, 44 words divided by 4 equals 11 words per line.

44 ÷ 4 = 11

If you come up with an uneven number, then round up or down to the closest number. As a way of example, you would round up 12.6 to 13, or you would round down 12.4 to 12.

#3. Count the number of lines you read during your 1-minute test

In this test, let’s say I read 44 lines in one minute.

#4. Multiply the number from step 2 by the number in step 4 to get your average reading speed per minute

Okay, so I read 44 lines in one minute, and the average words per line are 11, so this means I read 484 words.

44 lines x 11 words per line = 484

How many words do you read per minute?

Depending on how much time you have, it’s best to take the test above 3–5 times and average your results from every test. This will give you a pretty good idea of your reading speed.

Not happy with your reading speed?

Don’t worry if your reading speed doesn’t compare well to the averages shared above. Learning how to read faster is not about where you start. It’s about where you’re going. And you can significantly increase your reading speed at any age.

Now that you know your reading speed, let’s take a look at how long it will take you to read average book lengths.

To figure out how long it will take to read a book that is 100, 200, or 300 pages long, let’s assume the average word count per page is 250–300 and that your reading speed is 300 words per minute.

How long does it take to read 100 pages?

If the average page has 250–300 words, then the word count for a 100-page book totals 25,000–30,000.

By reading 300 words per minute, it will take you 83–100 minutes to read this book.

How long does it take to read 200 pages?

At 200 pages, the total word count for this book equals 50,000–60,000.

If you read 300 words per minute, then it will take you 166–200 minutes to read this book.

How long does it take to read 300 pages?

If the book you want to read is 300 pages, then the word count for this book is between 75,000–90,000.

If you read 300 words per minute, then it will take you 250–300 minutes to read this book.

Hate doing math? Or don’t have time to run the numbers?

Join the club.

To help you see how long it will take to read some of the most popular books, NPR’s Fresh Air created this nifty infographic:

Is the book you need to read not in the list above?

To find out how long it will take you to read whatever book is on your list, check out How Long to Read. On this site, you can search over 12 million books to see how long it will take you to read if your average reading speed is 300 words per minute.

Recently, I read The Stand by Stephen King, so I was curious to learn how long it should have taken me to read it. I read the complete and uncut version, which comes in at a whopping—yet enjoyable—1,439 pages.

Honestly, I don’t remember how long it took me to read this book. I read it at night before going to bed, read several hundred pages, took a break, and picked it back up a few months later to finish.

Based on How Long to Read, it should have taken me at least 17 hours:

Since I read this at night to relax, I imagine it took me every bit of 17 hours to complete.

Ready to read? Start here

To help you read non-fiction books faster, you’ll need to know the pattern that most of them follow. Understanding this pattern ahead of time will help you read faster and retain what you read.

Here’s the format most non-fiction books follow:

#1. Introduction of the chapter

The introduction of a chapter will provide you with the point an author is trying to make.

In the introduction, an author’s goal is to entice you to read the rest of the chapter. To do this, they’re going to talk about their thesis—the point they want to make—in such a compelling way that you’ll be interested in moving on.

You can also expedite this step by reading the last paragraph of the introductory remarks.

Looking again at Real Artists Don’t Starve by Jeff Goins, you can see the message he wants to convey in the last paragraph of his introduction:

#2. Sections

After the introduction and before the conclusion, the individual chapters are broken down into multiple sub-sections. In the image above, you can see the title of one sub-section: The Rule of Ownership.

In the first sentence or toward the beginning of each section, the author will share the point he or she wants to make. Within each section, the individual paragraphs will provide supporting information and illustrations to prove their point.

For most non-fiction books, you can read the first paragraph and last paragraph to learn the point of the sub-section you’re reading.

#3. Conclusion

When I preached on occasions for a local church I once served, a standard principle I learned in public communications was to tell people what you’re going to say, tell them, and then tell them what you told them. The same principle is a good one to follow for non-fiction books, too.

The concluding remarks of a chapter should reiterate the author’s main point from the introduction. If the conclusion is written well, then the author will not present new ideas. But they will share a cliffhanger to entice you to turn the page to the next chapter.

Now that you know how the average non-fiction book is laid out, you are ready to move forward with learning how to increase your reading speed.

4 steps to reading a 240-page book in two hours

There will be times when you need to read a book quickly.

Whether you’re cramming for a presentation, preparing for an exam, or writing a research paper or blog post, you’ll need to know how to devour a book as quickly as possible.

To learn how to read a 240-page book, let’s imagine you’re reading Real Artists Don’t Starve by Jeff Goins (no surprises here, right?).

#1. Read the book description

Well written book descriptions will tell you in a few hundred words or less what the book is about, the benefits you’ll receive, and a cliffhanger to compel you to purchase the book.

Here’s the description of Real Artists Don’t Starve:

Bestselling author and creativity expert Jeff Goins dismantles the myth that being creative is a hindrance to success by revealing how an artistic temperament is in fact a competitive advantage in the marketplace.

For centuries, the myth of the starving artist has dominated our culture, seeping into the minds of creative people and stifling their pursuits. But the truth is that the world’s most successful artists did not starve. In fact, they capitalized on the power of their creative strength.

In Real Artists Don’t Starve, Jeff Goins debunks the myth of the starving artist by unveiling the ideas that created it and replacing them with timeless strategies for thriving, includingsteal from your influences (don’t wait for inspiration), collaborate with others (working alone is a surefire way to starve), take strategic risks (instead of reckless ones), make money in order to make more art (it’s not selling out), and apprentice under a master (a “lone genius” can never reach full potential).

Through inspiring anecdotes of successful creatives both past and present, Goins shows that living by these rules is not only doable but it’s also a fulfilling way to thrive. From graphic designers and writers to artists and business professionals, creatives already know that no one is born an artist.

Goins’ revolutionary rules celebrate the process of becoming an artist, a person who utilizes the imagination in fundamental ways. He reminds creatives that business and art are not mutually exclusive pursuits. In fact, success in business and in life flow from a healthy exercise of creativity.

You’ll be well on your way to understanding how you’ll benefit from Jeff’s book after reading this description.

#2. Determine your reading goal

From what you know about the book from the description, what do you need to learn? What is the purpose of the book? What benefits do you expect you receive?

In How to Read a Book, author Mortimer Adler identifies four-levels of reading:

Elementary

Inspectional

Analytical

Synoptical

Based on your reading goals, will you need to take a superficial approach and get the high-level ideas? Or do you need to mine the depths of the book you’re reading by unearthing everything you can?

I highly recommend How to Read a Book, but, if you don’t have the time to read this classic, then check out this post from Brian Clark on Copyblogger: How to Read. Brian shares everything with you that you’ll need to know.

Before moving forward, determine your reading goal.

#3. Skim the table of contents

How is the book broken down?

Did the author provide different sections?

Are there loosely tied together chapters?

Is there an introduction, acknowledgments, and epilogue?

After reading the table of contents, select the chapters you need to read to accomplish your goal.

But keep this mind:

What you need to read may change after you start reading.

So, be open to reading different or additional chapters.

#4. Break the chapters down into time blocks

When you give yourself two hours to read a book, you have to pace yourself.

In other words, you have to set a limit on how long you’ll spend reading each chapter.

For the sake of this exercise, say you read 300 words per minute.

Now, how many pages does the chapter you need to read have?

Based on the numbers above, if it’s 20 pages or less, then you’ll be able to finish it in the time you have.

For Real Artists Don’t Starve, there are twelve chapters you can read (not including the epilogue). This means you will have 10 minutes at most to read every chapter.

If you’re pressed for time and choose to read every chapter, then you may need to only read the introduction and conclusion, and then read the first and last sentence of every paragraph. This will help you to grasp the main point the author is trying to make.

For the record, when I use this approach, I’m typically pressed for time or attempting to read a wide variety of books for something I’m writing. But more on this in a minute.

Why pace your reading?

Setting your pace is essential to reading a book in two hours or less.

If you don’t pace yourself, then you’ll end up sending 1 hour and 45 minutes absorbing a few chapters but blaze through the rest of the book.

The result: An imbalance understanding of the book.

Pacing yourself eliminates this problem.

Why?

It allows you to give the essential topics equal attention.

More importantly, when you spend less time on scannable books, you have more time to crawl through the heavier ones.

When not to read this way

This method is not intended for every book. Use this only when you need to read something quickly.

Many books you read require a slow, careful reading—not a high-level overview. These are classics like War and Peace, contemporary novels, or religious texts like the Bible.

However, many contemporary business books are heavy on ideas and light on content. This doesn’t mean these books lack depth—far from it.

What I’m saying is that these books have been written in such a way to convey an idea in a clear, concise, and compelling way, as are many of the five usability books every web writer must read, except for Morville and Rosenfeld’s.

Your turn

I’ll repeat it: You don’t want to read every book this way.

In the words of Francis Bacon, “Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested.”

Whenever you approach a new book, determine your reading goals ahead of time. Then plan your reading accordingly.

This way you can comprehend more in less time. And stockpile in your brain only the essential and vital ideas.

What do you think about chapter pacing? Do you have any speed reading tips you can share? Drop a line in the comments below!

The post How to Speed Read a 240-Page Book in 2 Hours appeared first on The Copybot.

from SEO Tips http://thecopybot.com/read-book-two-hours/

[chrisfvargas]

How to Speed Read a 240-Page Book in 2 Hours

Reading is the best thing I’ve done to help me progress professionally.

From working as a retail store manager and in a call center, to working as a senior marketing manager for one of the world’s largest publishing companies to a senior content marketer for an online and mobile giving provider, reading has been the most influential catalyst in my professional development.

But trying to read more books can be frustrating.

Work.

Family.

Demands.

Lack of time.

BIG books.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed, you’re not alone.

Like most professionals and students, you have a list of books you want to read the length of your arm. A list of books you’d like to finish by the end of this year.

Here’s the deal:

You can read more books without learning how to speed read.

In this post, I’m going to show you how to read more books in less time.

We’re going to cover the following topics:

What is the average reading speed?

How do I test my reading speed?

How long does it take to read 100 pages?

How long does it take to read 200 pages?

How long does it take to read 300 pages?

What you need to know before reading a book

4 steps to reading a 240-page book in two hours

Why you should pace your reading

When not to read this way

Alright, happy reading!

What is the average reading speed?

Based on a speed-reading survey by Staples, the average adult reading speed is 300 words per minute (wpm).

In this study, the team also observed these different reading speeds based on someone’s level of education:

Average college student = 450

Average “high-level executive” = 575

Average college professor = 675

Speed readers = 1,500

World speed reading champion = 4,700 (yikes!)

I understand these numbers may feel vague to you, so let’s take a look at the length of some books to help you see how fast you can read a book.

For starters, the average count for a page in a book is 250–300 depending upon its trim size, margins, and font size. If you read 300 words per minute, then you will able to read one page in 49–60 seconds.

These numbers may encourage or discourage you but hang tight. Help is on the way.

How do I test my reading speed?

“How fast can I read?”

After seeing the average reading speeds above, you’d probably like to know how fast you can read.

Well, if you have a few minutes, here are 4-steps you can take to test your reading speed:

Step 1: Set a timer

For this exercise, you’re going to read for one minute.

Before you start, set a timer for 1 minute on your phone, watch, or online.

It doesn’t matter what you use as long as you’re ready to time your reading.

Step 2: Pick a regular book

For this test, you don’t want to read a dictionary or a book with small font and margins. You want to pick a book you usually read. This way your reading test will be as accurate as possible.

Step 3: Read, read, and read

Alright, now it’s time to read!

Hit the start button on your timer and read until the time expires.

As you read, keep these three tips in mind:

Don’t look at the time as you read

Don’t try to read faster than normal

Just read at your average pace

If you follow these three-pointers, then you won’t throw off the results of your test.

Step 4: Stop and count

It’s team to test your results.

Here are the four steps you’ll need to take to figure out how fast you can read:

Count the number of words per line for four lines

Divide this number by four

Count the number of lines you read during your 1-minute test

Multiply the number from step 2 by the number in step 4 to get your average reading speed per minute

Let me show you how!

#1. Count the number of words per line for four lines

In this example, I’m reading Real Artists Don’t Starve by Jeff Goins.

On this page, there are 44 words in the first four lines.

#2. Divide this number by 4

Alright, 44 words divided by 4 equals 11 words per line.

44 ÷ 4 = 11

If you come up with an uneven number, then round up or down to the closest number. As a way of example, you would round up 12.6 to 13, or you would round down 12.4 to 12.

#3. Count the number of lines you read during your 1-minute test

In this test, let’s say I read 44 lines in one minute.

#4. Multiply the number from step 2 by the number in step 4 to get your average reading speed per minute

Okay, so I read 44 lines in one minute, and the average words per line are 11, so this means I read 484 words.

44 lines x 11 words per line = 484

How many words do you read per minute?

Depending on how much time you have, it’s best to take the test above 3–5 times and average your results from every test. This will give you a pretty good idea of your reading speed.

Not happy with your reading speed?

Don’t worry if your reading speed doesn’t compare well to the averages shared above. Learning how to read faster is not about where you start. It’s about where you’re going. And you can significantly increase your reading speed at any age.

Now that you know your reading speed, let’s take a look at how long it will take you to read average book lengths.

To figure out how long it will take to read a book that is 100, 200, or 300 pages long, let’s assume the average word count per page is 250–300 and that your reading speed is 300 words per minute.

How long does it take to read 100 pages?

If the average page has 250–300 words, then the word count for a 100-page book totals 25,000–30,000.

By reading 300 words per minute, it will take you 83–100 minutes to read this book.

How long does it take to read 200 pages?

At 200 pages, the total word count for this book equals 50,000–60,000.

If you read 300 words per minute, then it will take you 166–200 minutes to read this book.

How long does it take to read 300 pages?

If the book you want to read is 300 pages, then the word count for this book is between 75,000–90,000.

If you read 300 words per minute, then it will take you 250–300 minutes to read this book.

Hate doing math? Or don’t have time to run the numbers?

Join the club.

To help you see how long it will take to read some of the most popular books, NPR’s Fresh Air created this nifty infographic:

Is the book you need to read not in the list above?

To find out how long it will take you to read whatever book is on your list, check out How Long to Read. On this site, you can search over 12 million books to see how long it will take you to read if your average reading speed is 300 words per minute.

Recently, I read The Stand by Stephen King, so I was curious to learn how long it should have taken me to read it. I read the complete and uncut version, which comes in at a whopping—yet enjoyable—1,439 pages.

Honestly, I don’t remember how long it took me to read this book. I read it at night before going to bed, read several hundred pages, took a break, and picked it back up a few months later to finish.

Based on How Long to Read, it should have taken me at least 17 hours:

Since I read this at night to relax, I imagine it took me every bit of 17 hours to complete.

Ready to read? Start here

To help you read non-fiction books faster, you’ll need to know the pattern that most of them follow. Understanding this pattern ahead of time will help you read faster and retain what you read.

Here’s the format most non-fiction books follow:

#1. Introduction of the chapter

The introduction of a chapter will provide you with the point an author is trying to make.

In the introduction, an author’s goal is to entice you to read the rest of the chapter. To do this, they’re going to talk about their thesis—the point they want to make—in such a compelling way that you’ll be interested in moving on.

You can also expedite this step by reading the last paragraph of the introductory remarks.

Looking again at Real Artists Don’t Starve by Jeff Goins, you can see the message he wants to convey in the last paragraph of his introduction:

#2. Sections

After the introduction and before the conclusion, the individual chapters are broken down into multiple sub-sections. In the image above, you can see the title of one sub-section: The Rule of Ownership.

In the first sentence or toward the beginning of each section, the author will share the point he or she wants to make. Within each section, the individual paragraphs will provide supporting information and illustrations to prove their point.

For most non-fiction books, you can read the first paragraph and last paragraph to learn the point of the sub-section you’re reading.

#3. Conclusion

When I preached on occasions for a local church I once served, a standard principle I learned in public communications was to tell people what you’re going to say, tell them, and then tell them what you told them. The same principle is a good one to follow for non-fiction books, too.

The concluding remarks of a chapter should reiterate the author’s main point from the introduction. If the conclusion is written well, then the author will not present new ideas. But they will share a cliffhanger to entice you to turn the page to the next chapter.

Now that you know how the average non-fiction book is laid out, you are ready to move forward with learning how to increase your reading speed.

4 steps to reading a 240-page book in two hours

There will be times when you need to read a book quickly.

Whether you’re cramming for a presentation, preparing for an exam, or writing a research paper or blog post, you’ll need to know how to devour a book as quickly as possible.

To learn how to read a 240-page book, let’s imagine you’re reading Real Artists Don’t Starve by Jeff Goins (no surprises here, right?).

#1. Read the book description

Well written book descriptions will tell you in a few hundred words or less what the book is about, the benefits you’ll receive, and a cliffhanger to compel you to purchase the book.

Here’s the description of Real Artists Don’t Starve:

Bestselling author and creativity expert Jeff Goins dismantles the myth that being creative is a hindrance to success by revealing how an artistic temperament is in fact a competitive advantage in the marketplace.

For centuries, the myth of the starving artist has dominated our culture, seeping into the minds of creative people and stifling their pursuits. But the truth is that the world’s most successful artists did not starve. In fact, they capitalized on the power of their creative strength.

In Real Artists Don’t Starve, Jeff Goins debunks the myth of the starving artist by unveiling the ideas that created it and replacing them with timeless strategies for thriving, includingsteal from your influences (don’t wait for inspiration), collaborate with others (working alone is a surefire way to starve), take strategic risks (instead of reckless ones), make money in order to make more art (it’s not selling out), and apprentice under a master (a “lone genius” can never reach full potential).

Through inspiring anecdotes of successful creatives both past and present, Goins shows that living by these rules is not only doable but it’s also a fulfilling way to thrive. From graphic designers and writers to artists and business professionals, creatives already know that no one is born an artist.

Goins’ revolutionary rules celebrate the process of becoming an artist, a person who utilizes the imagination in fundamental ways. He reminds creatives that business and art are not mutually exclusive pursuits. In fact, success in business and in life flow from a healthy exercise of creativity.

You’ll be well on your way to understanding how you’ll benefit from Jeff’s book after reading this description.

#2. Determine your reading goal

From what you know about the book from the description, what do you need to learn? What is the purpose of the book? What benefits do you expect you receive?

In How to Read a Book, author Mortimer Adler identifies four-levels of reading:

Elementary

Inspectional

Analytical

Synoptical

Based on your reading goals, will you need to take a superficial approach and get the high-level ideas? Or do you need to mine the depths of the book you’re reading by unearthing everything you can?

I highly recommend How to Read a Book, but, if you don’t have the time to read this classic, then check out this post from Brian Clark on Copyblogger: How to Read. Brian shares everything with you that you’ll need to know.

Before moving forward, determine your reading goal.

#3. Skim the table of contents

How is the book broken down?

Did the author provide different sections?

Are there loosely tied together chapters?

Is there an introduction, acknowledgments, and epilogue?

After reading the table of contents, select the chapters you need to read to accomplish your goal.

But keep this mind:

What you need to read may change after you start reading.

So, be open to reading different or additional chapters.

#4. Break the chapters down into time blocks

When you give yourself two hours to read a book, you have to pace yourself.

In other words, you have to set a limit on how long you’ll spend reading each chapter.

For the sake of this exercise, say you read 300 words per minute.

Now, how many pages does the chapter you need to read have?

Based on the numbers above, if it’s 20 pages or less, then you’ll be able to finish it in the time you have.

For Real Artists Don’t Starve, there are twelve chapters you can read (not including the epilogue). This means you will have 10 minutes at most to read every chapter.

If you’re pressed for time and choose to read every chapter, then you may need to only read the introduction and conclusion, and then read the first and last sentence of every paragraph. This will help you to grasp the main point the author is trying to make.

For the record, when I use this approach, I’m typically pressed for time or attempting to read a wide variety of books for something I’m writing. But more on this in a minute.

Why pace your reading?

Setting your pace is essential to reading a book in two hours or less.

If you don’t pace yourself, then you’ll end up sending 1 hour and 45 minutes absorbing a few chapters but blaze through the rest of the book.

The result: An imbalance understanding of the book.

Pacing yourself eliminates this problem.

Why?

It allows you to give the essential topics equal attention.

More importantly, when you spend less time on scannable books, you have more time to crawl through the heavier ones.

When not to read this way

This method is not intended for every book. Use this only when you need to read something quickly.

Many books you read require a slow, careful reading—not a high-level overview. These are classics like War and Peace, contemporary novels, or religious texts like the Bible.

However, many contemporary business books are heavy on ideas and light on content. This doesn’t mean these books lack depth—far from it.

What I’m saying is that these books have been written in such a way to convey an idea in a clear, concise, and compelling way, as are many of the five usability books every web writer must read, except for Morville and Rosenfeld’s.

Your turn

I’ll repeat it: You don’t want to read every book this way.

In the words of Francis Bacon, “Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested.”

Whenever you approach a new book, determine your reading goals ahead of time. Then plan your reading accordingly.

This way you can comprehend more in less time. And stockpile in your brain only the essential and vital ideas.

What do you think about chapter pacing? Do you have any speed reading tips you can share? Drop a line in the comments below!

The post How to Speed Read a 240-Page Book in 2 Hours appeared first on The Copybot.

from Internet Marketing http://thecopybot.com/read-book-two-hours/

[peterjcameron]

How to Speed Read a 240-Page Book in 2 Hours

Reading is the best thing I’ve done to help me progress professionally.

From working as a retail store manager and in a call center, to working as a senior marketing manager for one of the world’s largest publishing companies to a senior content marketer for an online and mobile giving provider, reading has been the most influential catalyst in my professional development.

But trying to read more books can be frustrating.

Work.

Family.

Demands.

Lack of time.

BIG books.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed, you’re not alone.

Like most professionals and students, you have a list of books you want to read the length of your arm. A list of books you’d like to finish by the end of this year.

Here’s the deal:

You can read more books without learning how to speed read.

In this post, I’m going to show you how to read more books in less time.

We’re going to cover the following topics:

What is the average reading speed?

How do I test my reading speed?

How long does it take to read 100 pages?

How long does it take to read 200 pages?

How long does it take to read 300 pages?

What you need to know before reading a book

4 steps to reading a 240-page book in two hours

Why you should pace your reading

When not to read this way

Alright, happy reading!

What is the average reading speed?

Based on a speed-reading survey by Staples, the average adult reading speed is 300 words per minute (wpm).

In this study, the team also observed these different reading speeds based on someone’s level of education:

Average college student = 450

Average “high-level executive” = 575

Average college professor = 675

Speed readers = 1,500

World speed reading champion = 4,700 (yikes!)

I understand these numbers may feel vague to you, so let’s take a look at the length of some books to help you see how fast you can read a book.

For starters, the average count for a page in a book is 250–300 depending upon its trim size, margins, and font size. If you read 300 words per minute, then you will able to read one page in 49–60 seconds.

These numbers may encourage or discourage you but hang tight. Help is on the way.

How do I test my reading speed?

“How fast can I read?”

After seeing the average reading speeds above, you’d probably like to know how fast you can read.

Well, if you have a few minutes, here are 4-steps you can take to test your reading speed:

Step 1: Set a timer

For this exercise, you’re going to read for one minute.

Before you start, set a timer for 1 minute on your phone, watch, or online.

It doesn’t matter what you use as long as you’re ready to time your reading.

Step 2: Pick a regular book

For this test, you don’t want to read a dictionary or a book with small font and margins. You want to pick a book you usually read. This way your reading test will be as accurate as possible.

Step 3: Read, read, and read

Alright, now it’s time to read!

Hit the start button on your timer and read until the time expires.

As you read, keep these three tips in mind:

Don’t look at the time as you read

Don’t try to read faster than normal

Just read at your average pace

If you follow these three-pointers, then you won’t throw off the results of your test.

Step 4: Stop and count

It’s team to test your results.

Here are the four steps you’ll need to take to figure out how fast you can read:

Count the number of words per line for four lines

Divide this number by four

Count the number of lines you read during your 1-minute test

Multiply the number from step 2 by the number in step 4 to get your average reading speed per minute

Let me show you how!

#1. Count the number of words per line for four lines

In this example, I’m reading Real Artists Don’t Starve by Jeff Goins.

On this page, there are 44 words in the first four lines.

#2. Divide this number by 4

Alright, 44 words divided by 4 equals 11 words per line.

44 ÷ 4 = 11

If you come up with an uneven number, then round up or down to the closest number. As a way of example, you would round up 12.6 to 13, or you would round down 12.4 to 12.

#3. Count the number of lines you read during your 1-minute test

In this test, let’s say I read 44 lines in one minute.

#4. Multiply the number from step 2 by the number in step 4 to get your average reading speed per minute

Okay, so I read 44 lines in one minute, and the average words per line are 11, so this means I read 484 words.

44 lines x 11 words per line = 484

How many words do you read per minute?

Depending on how much time you have, it’s best to take the test above 3–5 times and average your results from every test. This will give you a pretty good idea of your reading speed.

Not happy with your reading speed?

Don’t worry if your reading speed doesn’t compare well to the averages shared above. Learning how to read faster is not about where you start. It’s about where you’re going. And you can significantly increase your reading speed at any age.

Now that you know your reading speed, let’s take a look at how long it will take you to read average book lengths.

To figure out how long it will take to read a book that is 100, 200, or 300 pages long, let’s assume the average word count per page is 250–300 and that your reading speed is 300 words per minute.

How long does it take to read 100 pages?

If the average page has 250–300 words, then the word count for a 100-page book totals 25,000–30,000.

By reading 300 words per minute, it will take you 83–100 minutes to read this book.

How long does it take to read 200 pages?

At 200 pages, the total word count for this book equals 50,000–60,000.

If you read 300 words per minute, then it will take you 166–200 minutes to read this book.

How long does it take to read 300 pages?

If the book you want to read is 300 pages, then the word count for this book is between 75,000–90,000.

If you read 300 words per minute, then it will take you 250–300 minutes to read this book.

Hate doing math? Or don’t have time to run the numbers?

Join the club.

To help you see how long it will take to read some of the most popular books, NPR’s Fresh Air created this nifty infographic:

Is the book you need to read not in the list above?

To find out how long it will take you to read whatever book is on your list, check out How Long to Read. On this site, you can search over 12 million books to see how long it will take you to read if your average reading speed is 300 words per minute.

Recently, I read The Stand by Stephen King, so I was curious to learn how long it should have taken me to read it. I read the complete and uncut version, which comes in at a whopping—yet enjoyable—1,439 pages.

Honestly, I don’t remember how long it took me to read this book. I read it at night before going to bed, read several hundred pages, took a break, and picked it back up a few months later to finish.

Based on How Long to Read, it should have taken me at least 17 hours:

Since I read this at night to relax, I imagine it took me every bit of 17 hours to complete.

Ready to read? Start here

To help you read non-fiction books faster, you’ll need to know the pattern that most of them follow. Understanding this pattern ahead of time will help you read faster and retain what you read.

Here’s the format most non-fiction books follow:

#1. Introduction of the chapter

The introduction of a chapter will provide you with the point an author is trying to make.

In the introduction, an author’s goal is to entice you to read the rest of the chapter. To do this, they’re going to talk about their thesis—the point they want to make—in such a compelling way that you’ll be interested in moving on.

You can also expedite this step by reading the last paragraph of the introductory remarks.

Looking again at Real Artists Don’t Starve by Jeff Goins, you can see the message he wants to convey in the last paragraph of his introduction:

#2. Sections

After the introduction and before the conclusion, the individual chapters are broken down into multiple sub-sections. In the image above, you can see the title of one sub-section: The Rule of Ownership.

In the first sentence or toward the beginning of each section, the author will share the point he or she wants to make. Within each section, the individual paragraphs will provide supporting information and illustrations to prove their point.

For most non-fiction books, you can read the first paragraph and last paragraph to learn the point of the sub-section you’re reading.

#3. Conclusion

When I preached on occasions for a local church I once served, a standard principle I learned in public communications was to tell people what you’re going to say, tell them, and then tell them what you told them. The same principle is a good one to follow for non-fiction books, too.

The concluding remarks of a chapter should reiterate the author’s main point from the introduction. If the conclusion is written well, then the author will not present new ideas. But they will share a cliffhanger to entice you to turn the page to the next chapter.

Now that you know how the average non-fiction book is laid out, you are ready to move forward with learning how to increase your reading speed.

4 steps to reading a 240-page book in two hours

There will be times when you need to read a book quickly.

Whether you’re cramming for a presentation, preparing for an exam, or writing a research paper or blog post, you’ll need to know how to devour a book as quickly as possible.

To learn how to read a 240-page book, let’s imagine you’re reading Real Artists Don’t Starve by Jeff Goins (no surprises here, right?).

#1. Read the book description

Well written book descriptions will tell you in a few hundred words or less what the book is about, the benefits you’ll receive, and a cliffhanger to compel you to purchase the book.

Here’s the description of Real Artists Don’t Starve:

Bestselling author and creativity expert Jeff Goins dismantles the myth that being creative is a hindrance to success by revealing how an artistic temperament is in fact a competitive advantage in the marketplace.

For centuries, the myth of the starving artist has dominated our culture, seeping into the minds of creative people and stifling their pursuits. But the truth is that the world’s most successful artists did not starve. In fact, they capitalized on the power of their creative strength.

In Real Artists Don’t Starve, Jeff Goins debunks the myth of the starving artist by unveiling the ideas that created it and replacing them with timeless strategies for thriving, includingsteal from your influences (don’t wait for inspiration), collaborate with others (working alone is a surefire way to starve), take strategic risks (instead of reckless ones), make money in order to make more art (it’s not selling out), and apprentice under a master (a “lone genius” can never reach full potential).

Through inspiring anecdotes of successful creatives both past and present, Goins shows that living by these rules is not only doable but it’s also a fulfilling way to thrive. From graphic designers and writers to artists and business professionals, creatives already know that no one is born an artist.

Goins’ revolutionary rules celebrate the process of becoming an artist, a person who utilizes the imagination in fundamental ways. He reminds creatives that business and art are not mutually exclusive pursuits. In fact, success in business and in life flow from a healthy exercise of creativity.

You’ll be well on your way to understanding how you’ll benefit from Jeff’s book after reading this description.

#2. Determine your reading goal

From what you know about the book from the description, what do you need to learn? What is the purpose of the book? What benefits do you expect you receive?

In How to Read a Book, author Mortimer Adler identifies four-levels of reading:

Elementary

Inspectional

Analytical

Synoptical

Based on your reading goals, will you need to take a superficial approach and get the high-level ideas? Or do you need to mine the depths of the book you’re reading by unearthing everything you can?

I highly recommend How to Read a Book, but, if you don’t have the time to read this classic, then check out this post from Brian Clark on Copyblogger: How to Read. Brian shares everything with you that you’ll need to know.

Before moving forward, determine your reading goal.

#3. Skim the table of contents

How is the book broken down?

Did the author provide different sections?

Are there loosely tied together chapters?

Is there an introduction, acknowledgments, and epilogue?

After reading the table of contents, select the chapters you need to read to accomplish your goal.

But keep this mind:

What you need to read may change after you start reading.

So, be open to reading different or additional chapters.

#4. Break the chapters down into time blocks

When you give yourself two hours to read a book, you have to pace yourself.

In other words, you have to set a limit on how long you’ll spend reading each chapter.

For the sake of this exercise, say you read 300 words per minute.

Now, how many pages does the chapter you need to read have?

Based on the numbers above, if it’s 20 pages or less, then you’ll be able to finish it in the time you have.

For Real Artists Don’t Starve, there are twelve chapters you can read (not including the epilogue). This means you will have 10 minutes at most to read every chapter.

If you’re pressed for time and choose to read every chapter, then you may need to only read the introduction and conclusion, and then read the first and last sentence of every paragraph. This will help you to grasp the main point the author is trying to make.

For the record, when I use this approach, I’m typically pressed for time or attempting to read a wide variety of books for something I’m writing. But more on this in a minute.

Why pace your reading?

Setting your pace is essential to reading a book in two hours or less.

If you don’t pace yourself, then you’ll end up sending 1 hour and 45 minutes absorbing a few chapters but blaze through the rest of the book.

The result: An imbalance understanding of the book.

Pacing yourself eliminates this problem.

Why?

It allows you to give the essential topics equal attention.

More importantly, when you spend less time on scannable books, you have more time to crawl through the heavier ones.

When not to read this way

This method is not intended for every book. Use this only when you need to read something quickly.

Many books you read require a slow, careful reading—not a high-level overview. These are classics like War and Peace, contemporary novels, or religious texts like the Bible.

However, many contemporary business books are heavy on ideas and light on content. This doesn’t mean these books lack depth—far from it.

What I’m saying is that these books have been written in such a way to convey an idea in a clear, concise, and compelling way, as are many of the five usability books every web writer must read, except for Morville and Rosenfeld’s.

Your turn

I’ll repeat it: You don’t want to read every book this way.

In the words of Francis Bacon, “Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested.”

Whenever you approach a new book, determine your reading goals ahead of time. Then plan your reading accordingly.

This way you can comprehend more in less time. And stockpile in your brain only the essential and vital ideas.

What do you think about chapter pacing? Do you have any speed reading tips you can share? Drop a line in the comments below!

The post How to Speed Read a 240-Page Book in 2 Hours appeared first on The Copybot.

from Peter Cameron Business Consultant http://thecopybot.com/read-book-two-hours/

[juliadgomezus]

How to Speed Read a 240-Page Book in 2 Hours

Reading is the best thing I’ve done to help me progress professionally.

From working as a retail store manager and in a call center, to working as a senior marketing manager for one of the world’s largest publishing companies to a senior content marketer for an online and mobile giving provider, reading has been the most influential catalyst in my professional development.

But trying to read more books can be frustrating.

Work.

Family.

Demands.

Lack of time.

BIG books.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed, you’re not alone.

Like most professionals and students, you have a list of books you want to read the length of your arm. A list of books you’d like to finish by the end of this year.

Here’s the deal:

You can read more books without learning how to speed read.

In this post, I’m going to show you how to read more books in less time.

We’re going to cover the following topics:

What is the average reading speed?

How do I test my reading speed?

How long does it take to read 100 pages?

How long does it take to read 200 pages?

How long does it take to read 300 pages?

What you need to know before reading a book

4 steps to reading a 240-page book in two hours

Why you should pace your reading

When not to read this way

Alright, happy reading!

What is the average reading speed?

Based on a speed-reading survey by Staples, the average adult reading speed is 300 words per minute (wpm).

In this study, the team also observed these different reading speeds based on someone’s level of education:

Average college student = 450

Average “high-level executive” = 575

Average college professor = 675

Speed readers = 1,500

World speed reading champion = 4,700 (yikes!)

I understand these numbers may feel vague to you, so let’s take a look at the length of some books to help you see how fast you can read a book.

For starters, the average count for a page in a book is 250–300 depending upon its trim size, margins, and font size. If you read 300 words per minute, then you will able to read one page in 49–60 seconds.

These numbers may encourage or discourage you but hang tight. Help is on the way.

How do I test my reading speed?

“How fast can I read?”

After seeing the average reading speeds above, you’d probably like to know how fast you can read.

Well, if you have a few minutes, here are 4-steps you can take to test your reading speed:

Step 1: Set a timer

For this exercise, you’re going to read for one minute.

Before you start, set a timer for 1 minute on your phone, watch, or online.

It doesn’t matter what you use as long as you’re ready to time your reading.

Step 2: Pick a regular book

For this test, you don’t want to read a dictionary or a book with small font and margins. You want to pick a book you usually read. This way your reading test will be as accurate as possible.

Step 3: Read, read, and read

Alright, now it’s time to read!

Hit the start button on your timer and read until the time expires.

As you read, keep these three tips in mind:

Don’t look at the time as you read

Don’t try to read faster than normal

Just read at your average pace

If you follow these three-pointers, then you won’t throw off the results of your test.

Step 4: Stop and count

It’s team to test your results.

Here are the four steps you’ll need to take to figure out how fast you can read:

Count the number of words per line for four lines

Divide this number by four

Count the number of lines you read during your 1-minute test

Multiply the number from step 2 by the number in step 4 to get your average reading speed per minute

Let me show you how!

#1. Count the number of words per line for four lines

In this example, I’m reading Real Artists Don’t Starve by Jeff Goins.

On this page, there are 44 words in the first four lines.

#2. Divide this number by 4

Alright, 44 words divided by 4 equals 11 words per line.

44 ÷ 4 = 11

If you come up with an uneven number, then round up or down to the closest number. As a way of example, you would round up 12.6 to 13, or you would round down 12.4 to 12.

#3. Count the number of lines you read during your 1-minute test

In this test, let’s say I read 44 lines in one minute.

#4. Multiply the number from step 2 by the number in step 4 to get your average reading speed per minute

Okay, so I read 44 lines in one minute, and the average words per line are 11, so this means I read 484 words.

44 lines x 11 words per line = 484

How many words do you read per minute?

Depending on how much time you have, it’s best to take the test above 3–5 times and average your results from every test. This will give you a pretty good idea of your reading speed.

Not happy with your reading speed?

Don’t worry if your reading speed doesn’t compare well to the averages shared above. Learning how to read faster is not about where you start. It’s about where you’re going. And you can significantly increase your reading speed at any age.

Now that you know your reading speed, let’s take a look at how long it will take you to read average book lengths.

To figure out how long it will take to read a book that is 100, 200, or 300 pages long, let’s assume the average word count per page is 250–300 and that your reading speed is 300 words per minute.

How long does it take to read 100 pages?

If the average page has 250–300 words, then the word count for a 100-page book totals 25,000–30,000.

By reading 300 words per minute, it will take you 83–100 minutes to read this book.

How long does it take to read 200 pages?

At 200 pages, the total word count for this book equals 50,000–60,000.

If you read 300 words per minute, then it will take you 166–200 minutes to read this book.

How long does it take to read 300 pages?

If the book you want to read is 300 pages, then the word count for this book is between 75,000–90,000.

If you read 300 words per minute, then it will take you 250–300 minutes to read this book.

Hate doing math? Or don’t have time to run the numbers?

Join the club.

To help you see how long it will take to read some of the most popular books, NPR’s Fresh Air created this nifty infographic:

Is the book you need to read not in the list above?

To find out how long it will take you to read whatever book is on your list, check out How Long to Read. On this site, you can search over 12 million books to see how long it will take you to read if your average reading speed is 300 words per minute.

Recently, I read The Stand by Stephen King, so I was curious to learn how long it should have taken me to read it. I read the complete and uncut version, which comes in at a whopping—yet enjoyable—1,439 pages.

Honestly, I don’t remember how long it took me to read this book. I read it at night before going to bed, read several hundred pages, took a break, and picked it back up a few months later to finish.

Based on How Long to Read, it should have taken me at least 17 hours:

Since I read this at night to relax, I imagine it took me every bit of 17 hours to complete.

Ready to read? Start here

To help you read non-fiction books faster, you’ll need to know the pattern that most of them follow. Understanding this pattern ahead of time will help you read faster and retain what you read.

Here’s the format most non-fiction books follow:

#1. Introduction of the chapter

The introduction of a chapter will provide you with the point an author is trying to make.

In the introduction, an author’s goal is to entice you to read the rest of the chapter. To do this, they’re going to talk about their thesis—the point they want to make—in such a compelling way that you’ll be interested in moving on.

You can also expedite this step by reading the last paragraph of the introductory remarks.

Looking again at Real Artists Don’t Starve by Jeff Goins, you can see the message he wants to convey in the last paragraph of his introduction:

#2. Sections

After the introduction and before the conclusion, the individual chapters are broken down into multiple sub-sections. In the image above, you can see the title of one sub-section: The Rule of Ownership.

In the first sentence or toward the beginning of each section, the author will share the point he or she wants to make. Within each section, the individual paragraphs will provide supporting information and illustrations to prove their point.

For most non-fiction books, you can read the first paragraph and last paragraph to learn the point of the sub-section you’re reading.

#3. Conclusion

When I preached on occasions for a local church I once served, a standard principle I learned in public communications was to tell people what you’re going to say, tell them, and then tell them what you told them. The same principle is a good one to follow for non-fiction books, too.

The concluding remarks of a chapter should reiterate the author’s main point from the introduction. If the conclusion is written well, then the author will not present new ideas. But they will share a cliffhanger to entice you to turn the page to the next chapter.

Now that you know how the average non-fiction book is laid out, you are ready to move forward with learning how to increase your reading speed.

4 steps to reading a 240-page book in two hours

There will be times when you need to read a book quickly.

Whether you’re cramming for a presentation, preparing for an exam, or writing a research paper or blog post, you’ll need to know how to devour a book as quickly as possible.

To learn how to read a 240-page book, let’s imagine you’re reading Real Artists Don’t Starve by Jeff Goins (no surprises here, right?).

#1. Read the book description

Well written book descriptions will tell you in a few hundred words or less what the book is about, the benefits you’ll receive, and a cliffhanger to compel you to purchase the book.

Here’s the description of Real Artists Don’t Starve:

Bestselling author and creativity expert Jeff Goins dismantles the myth that being creative is a hindrance to success by revealing how an artistic temperament is in fact a competitive advantage in the marketplace.

For centuries, the myth of the starving artist has dominated our culture, seeping into the minds of creative people and stifling their pursuits. But the truth is that the world’s most successful artists did not starve. In fact, they capitalized on the power of their creative strength.

In Real Artists Don’t Starve, Jeff Goins debunks the myth of the starving artist by unveiling the ideas that created it and replacing them with timeless strategies for thriving, includingsteal from your influences (don’t wait for inspiration), collaborate with others (working alone is a surefire way to starve), take strategic risks (instead of reckless ones), make money in order to make more art (it’s not selling out), and apprentice under a master (a “lone genius” can never reach full potential).

Through inspiring anecdotes of successful creatives both past and present, Goins shows that living by these rules is not only doable but it’s also a fulfilling way to thrive. From graphic designers and writers to artists and business professionals, creatives already know that no one is born an artist.

Goins’ revolutionary rules celebrate the process of becoming an artist, a person who utilizes the imagination in fundamental ways. He reminds creatives that business and art are not mutually exclusive pursuits. In fact, success in business and in life flow from a healthy exercise of creativity.

You’ll be well on your way to understanding how you’ll benefit from Jeff’s book after reading this description.

#2. Determine your reading goal

From what you know about the book from the description, what do you need to learn? What is the purpose of the book? What benefits do you expect you receive?

In How to Read a Book, author Mortimer Adler identifies four-levels of reading:

Elementary

Inspectional

Analytical

Synoptical

Based on your reading goals, will you need to take a superficial approach and get the high-level ideas? Or do you need to mine the depths of the book you’re reading by unearthing everything you can?

I highly recommend How to Read a Book, but, if you don’t have the time to read this classic, then check out this post from Brian Clark on Copyblogger: How to Read. Brian shares everything with you that you’ll need to know.

Before moving forward, determine your reading goal.

#3. Skim the table of contents

How is the book broken down?

Did the author provide different sections?

Are there loosely tied together chapters?

Is there an introduction, acknowledgments, and epilogue?

After reading the table of contents, select the chapters you need to read to accomplish your goal.

But keep this mind:

What you need to read may change after you start reading.

So, be open to reading different or additional chapters.

#4. Break the chapters down into time blocks

When you give yourself two hours to read a book, you have to pace yourself.

In other words, you have to set a limit on how long you’ll spend reading each chapter.

For the sake of this exercise, say you read 300 words per minute.

Now, how many pages does the chapter you need to read have?

Based on the numbers above, if it’s 20 pages or less, then you’ll be able to finish it in the time you have.

For Real Artists Don’t Starve, there are twelve chapters you can read (not including the epilogue). This means you will have 10 minutes at most to read every chapter.

If you’re pressed for time and choose to read every chapter, then you may need to only read the introduction and conclusion, and then read the first and last sentence of every paragraph. This will help you to grasp the main point the author is trying to make.

For the record, when I use this approach, I’m typically pressed for time or attempting to read a wide variety of books for something I’m writing. But more on this in a minute.

Why pace your reading?

Setting your pace is essential to reading a book in two hours or less.

If you don’t pace yourself, then you’ll end up sending 1 hour and 45 minutes absorbing a few chapters but blaze through the rest of the book.

The result: An imbalance understanding of the book.

Pacing yourself eliminates this problem.

Why?

It allows you to give the essential topics equal attention.

More importantly, when you spend less time on scannable books, you have more time to crawl through the heavier ones.

When not to read this way

This method is not intended for every book. Use this only when you need to read something quickly.

Many books you read require a slow, careful reading—not a high-level overview. These are classics like War and Peace, contemporary novels, or religious texts like the Bible.

However, many contemporary business books are heavy on ideas and light on content. This doesn’t mean these books lack depth—far from it.

What I’m saying is that these books have been written in such a way to convey an idea in a clear, concise, and compelling way, as are many of the five usability books every web writer must read, except for Morville and Rosenfeld’s.

Your turn

I’ll repeat it: You don’t want to read every book this way.

In the words of Francis Bacon, “Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested.”

Whenever you approach a new book, determine your reading goals ahead of time. Then plan your reading accordingly.

This way you can comprehend more in less time. And stockpile in your brain only the essential and vital ideas.

What do you think about chapter pacing? Do you have any speed reading tips you can share? Drop a line in the comments below!

The post How to Speed Read a 240-Page Book in 2 Hours appeared first on The Copybot.

from SEO Tips http://thecopybot.com/read-book-two-hours/

[flauntpage]

Flyers Should Still Sell At Deadline Despite Their Recent Hot Play

So, you’re on board with the Flyers getting back in this playoff race, eh?

I understand why. The team is 11-2-1 in their last 14 games. They shrugged off a pivotal home loss to Pittsburgh and a terrible first period the next night in Minnesota to come back and beat the Wild.

They are once again just six points behind Pittsburgh for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference with just 25 games to go. Pretty remarkable since a month ago they were the worst team in hockey.

But the odds of making the playoffs remain long.

Don’t believe me? See for yourself:

Odds of the Flyers making the playoffs as of 2/13/19 

HockeyReference.com – 3.4%

SportsClubStats.com – 1.5%

The Athletic – 9.0%

PlayoffStatus.com – 8.0%

MoneyPuck.com – 5.1%

So, unless your name is Lloyd Christmas, your focus should be on the 2019-2020 season already.

The reason being, it’s really hard to expect the Flyers to maintain the level of the Tampa Bay Lightning (they’d have to finish the season roughly 14-7-4 in those last 25 games, making it 25-9-5 over the final 39 games of the season) AND have three of four teams falter to the tune of .500 records or worse the rest of the way (Columbus, Pittsburgh, Carolina and/or Buffalo).

It’s really asking a lot. That’s why their odds are so long no matter where you look.

So, with the trade deadline now less than two weeks away, General Manager Chuck Fletcher needs to concentrate on next season.

This Flyers team is close. You are seeing what kind of a difference a consistent goaltender can make. You are seeing what kind of a difference good team defense can make. Fletcher doesn’t need to tear it down, he just needs to fine-tune it.

Which is why he wasn’t lying when he said the Flyers will be both buyers and sellers at the trade deadline.

Fletcher could move players on expiring contracts. He could move players that may have term left but could bring valuable return. And he could put the Flyers in a great position heading into the draft and free agency with extra picks, a stocked cupboard of prospects and plenty of cap room.

So, who could go? I’ve been sniffing around as best I can and I’m hearing some things that are interesting some things that are not a surprise and am being left to speculate in other areas. So let’s tackle this after the jump:

1. Wayne Simmonds

Everyone in the NHL is talking about Wayne Simmonds, and his case is certainly an interesting one. There’s no doubt Chuck Fletcher has put him out there for trade discussion, but will he find a deal that makes sense? My inkling is he will, but the Flyers are making it tough on him right now.

That’s because to a man, everyone in the Flyers locker room loves Simmonds and what he brings to the team. Yes, his point production is down and yes, there have been times this year where he’s looked like a shell of himself. But the guy plays the game with his balls to the wall. He’s got one of the great motors in the sport in the past decade and he definitely can be a difference maker on a Cup-contending team.

I’ve been told that each of the following teams has expressed interest: Tampa Bay, Calgary, Nashville, Vegas, Boston, Winnipeg and Toronto.

Considering the Predators had to trade a second round pick for depth forward Brian Boyle last week, the Flyers are poised to do much better than that with Wayne. He’s going to net them at least a first rounder. I say “at least” because if Fletcher is able to get desperate teams into a bidding war, he might be able to procure another prospect or even NHL player in return as well.

I think this price tag will be too rich for Toronto, Calgary and Nashville, who are already limited by what they can trade, but I’m thinking Simmonds can be the missing piece for Tampa as they try to net their second Cup.

And the other bit of tea leaf reading on Simmonds is this – because he means so much to the organization, and the players in the Flyers locker room, he could certainly be a candidate to be moved at the deadline, make a run somewhere else, and then come back to the Flyers as a free agent in the offseason if he’s willing to sign a shorter-term deal.

That could well be the best play for Fletcher and I wouldn’t be surprised if that conversation has come up with Simmonds and his agent.

2. Michael Raffl

Another unrestricted free agent, the Flyers could look to get something for Raffl who could be a valuable depth piece for a playoff team who needs to add to their penalty kill.

Raffl is mostly a fourth liner these days for the Flyers, but has shown the versatility to play any forward position and anywhere in the lineup. Not to mention he’s hard to knock off the puck, making him desirable to teams who need a little size and possession skill.

Pure speculation here, but St. Louis would be a nice fit for Raffl now that they have worked their way back into a playoff spot.

3. Brian Elliott

He hasn’t played in three months, but the Flyers might want to get Elliott a game or two of action before the deadline as he is the kind of veteran goalie with playoff experience that can come in handy for a team down the stretch and as insurance in the postseason.

Because he’s also an unrestricted free agent, Elliott could be of interest to a team like Dallas, who is dealing with an injury to Ben Bishop, or Vegas, who might want a reliable backup for Marc-Andre Fleury.

But, it’s important to prove he’s healthy first. So, don’t be shocked if he gets a couple starts instead of Carter Hart. Hart is the future for the Flyers. Elliott can bring a return to add to that future.

4. Radko Gudas

He has been the Flyers’ most consistent defenseman all season – and I’m sure that’s noticeable around the league.

What’s also notable around the league is, he’s a stay-at-home defenseman, he’s a right-hand shot, he plays heavy, he blocks shots and he kills penalties – all desirable traits at the trade deadline.

He’s signed for one-more season at a $3.35 million cap hit, which is certainly manageable for the team acquiring him, and it increases his value.

Think Tampa would like him back as a third pair defenseman, especially with Anton Stralman, Braydon Coburn and Dan Girardi all set to hit the free agent market at season’s end?

Or how about Winnipeg as an upgrade to Ben Chiarot or Joe Morrow? The Jets are willing to trade their first round pick, could they put together a nice package for both Simmonds and Gudas?

The Flyers have depth on defense going into next season, so this is a place where they can trade from to improve elsewhere – namely scoring depth. Which brings us to the biggest debate:

5. Shayne Gostisbehere

There is certainly a polarizing argument going on about Ghost on Flyers Twitter. Should the Flyers trade him, or not?

Those saying hell no will point out that he was runner up for the Calder Trophy four seasons ago and that he garnered some Norris Trophy votes last season.

They argue that you don’t just bail out on a young, highly-skilled defenseman because of one bad season.

It’s a salient argument.

But so is this:

Gostisbehere is almost 26. It’s not like he’s 21 or 22 like Ivan Provorov and Travis Sanheim, both of whom are ahead of Gostisbehere on the Flyers depth chart.

And it’s not like he’s a rookie or in his second season and still feeling his way. He’s approaching 250 games played in the NHL. He shouldn’t be having an “off year” at this point in his career.

Yes, guys go through rough stretches at any age, but good players find a way through them. Gostisbehere was not a fan of Gord Murphy, who was the Flyers assistant coach in charge of defense during Ron Hextall’s regime as GM.

So, the Flyers made a change there, brought in defenseman whisperer Rick Wilson and have watched Provorov re-find his game and Sanheim flourish. Yet, Gostisbehere is still floundering.

He had a solid game Monday against Pittsburgh and after a brutal turnover against the Wild on Tuesday he was able to get two shots through to the net on the power play that resulted in a pair of Flyers goals, including the game-winner.

It’s those things that he hasn’t been able to do with any consistency this season but has flashed in the last two games.

Still, not being a top pair guy, the Flyers having a guy in Sanheim who could replace him on the power play, and with some depth coming behind him (Phil Myers for sure, and maybe a couple others), Gostisbehere is more expendable than one would think.

Another fallacy is the Flyers would be selling low, but that’s not true. He has a team-friendly contract for any team in the NHL and because of that, not just contenders would be interested – a rebuilding team would likely give up some value for him to see if he can re-find his game in the less-pressurized atmosphere of a rebuild.

Finally, I have been told from a few places in the organization that there is a concern about Ghost’s game internally and that the concern stretches beyond just one bad year. Also, if he didn’t like the old coaching staff and it affected his game, why can’t he get going with a new coaching staff?

I’m just not sure he’s giving Fletcher a good impression.

Yet, as I said on the Press Row Show, I think Gostisbehere can be moved in the offseason – when all 31 teams have a more optimistic view.

The Flyers just need to decide if he should be part of their future – which should start hitting it’s stride as soon as next season – or if they can still get there without him and if he can be an asset that can help fill gaps in other places.

It’s a bit of a conundrum, but I’m thinking it’s ultimately going to be the latter – even if it doesn’t happen until the summer.

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