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    How do you win a Nobel Prize for writing? Here's the secret from a previous winner: make it short, keep it real, and work hard.

Canadian author Alice Munro, 82, was awarded the 2013 Nobel Prize in literature. She is known for her short stories about personal relationships of ordinary people, usually women.

    Munro was born into a farming family in Ontario. The family was very poor. Munro did a lot of physical work as a young girl. She decided to be a writer at the age of 12. Now Munro turns her hard childhood into great writing ideas. The story Dear Life, for example, opens with a description of the neighborhood in which Munro grew up. Also, she talks about her poor relationship with her mother in many of her stories, such as Lives of Girls and Women and Friend of My Youth.

    Since she published her first book in 1968, Munro has won many awards, with the Nobel Prize as her biggest honor. But Munro doesn't see herself as a talented(有天赋的) writer.

    “I'm the opposite of a writer with a quick gift. I don't grasp it very easily at all, the‘it' being whatever I'm trying to do,” she said.

    Do you dream of becoming an author while sadly admitting you are not that talented? Munro has a tip for you: use notebooks and write a lot.

    “I have lots of notebooks that contain(包含) this writing,” she said. But it helps her sort out (整理) her mind. “Stories would just be working in my head for so long that when I started to write I was deep into them.”

    Mike always loves ships. When he was older, he said, “I'm going to be a soldier.” But his eyes were not very1and he did not get in.

    Then he said, “I'm going to2a small boat and I'm going around the world.” But boats were very expensive, and Mike did not have enough3

    Last summer Mike found a swimming4near his house. The lessons did not cost very5 and Mike began going to the school at every end of the week and having6. Now he is a good swimmer.

    Last week a little boy said to him, “You're a very good swimmer. How do7learn to swim so well?”

    “I'm not good at all,” Mike said and he smiled. “8 I'm in the water, I say to myself, “There are 9fishes behind me!” Then I'm very afraid, and I10quickly.”

I think the most terrible thing in life for my little brother is getting up in the morning. He is almost sick when my mother calls," Herbert! It's seven o'clock! Get up!" Hebert answers," I'm coming!" and goes right back to sleep. I'm not all like my brother. I don't like to go to bed at night but I don't mind getting up in the morning. I usually wake up before my mother calls me. I jump out of bed and go into the bathroom to take a shower. I get dressed, brush my teeth, comb my hair, and get ready to go downstairs for breakfast as soon as my mother calls.

    But not for Herbert. He just sleeps. After calling a few more times my mother has to come upstairs and pull Herbert out of bed. It's that way every day with my little brother. Perhaps some day he'll learn to get up on time, but I really don't think so.

    Amy told her mother she wasn't feeling well yesterday morning. She stomachache, a high fever, and a sore throat.

    The mother thought that she had caught a bad cold and became very worried, so she drove her Centre Hospital right away.

    They got to the doctor's waiting room at 8: 20. There were too many patients, so they had to wait there. At 11: 20, Amy finally saw the doctor. The doctor asked her a few questions and began to check her. He listened to her breathing and took her temperature. After finishing her check-up. The doctor was sure that she was quite sick, although he still couldn't make sure what was wrong with her. There were more tests that he could do to find out her illness, but at first, he decided to just ask her about her symptoms (症状) to see if he could get a better diagnosis(诊断).

    The doctor asked, "Young lady, what is troubling you the most right now?"

    The little girl answered: "What's troubling me the most? It's my elder brother Johnny. He is always breaking my toys and sometimes beats me!"

In April 2021, a group of elephants started to walk north from their home in the wild in Yunnan. They quickly became stars and got a lot of attention from around the world. A team of eight people were following the elephants. They worked 24 hours a day, both on the ground and with drones(无人机).

The team shared some interesting moments of the elephants' trip on the Internet. The moments made people smile. For example, two baby elephants once fell down, and an adult(成年的) elephant had to use its long nose to help the babies stand. At another point, a sleeping baby elephant was on its mother's back. It moved its body and legs in the air. It seemed the baby elephant was dreaming about something funny.

These elephants were so cute. Some reporters from other countries even came to Yunnan. They got to know more about the elephants as well as the friendly people there.

No one knew why the elephants left home. Maybe they were looking for better food. Maybe they were lost. Maybe they were just having a good time.

Take a pleasant "citywalk" around Xi'an

Citywalk means walking around the city. When it is getting more and more popular, we can't help wondering what places are worth walking around in a city. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}.

When you enter the Hanguang Gate, you will meet Tianshuijing Street and feel the noise and crowds being far away. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}. There are also modern coffee shops and clubs.

An old building nearby has a lot of stories to tell. It always attracts many photography lovers. The next stop is the Bingjiao (Ice House) Alley. It is used for keeping the ice cubes in the summer. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}. Its historical and cultural places can bring you many surprises.

Walking out of the alley, you're at Sifu Street, which leads to the Small South Gate. You shall not miss the morning market at the Small South Gate. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}. You may fall in love with this area easily. In fact, besides the busy morning market here, there are also coffee shops for pleasure in the afternoon and diners and bars for a late-night meal. Having drinks and a relaxing chat with friends, you can feel the great power of the slow-paced time.

Not far from the Taiyangmiao Gate, you may come across a "balcony concert". {#blank#}5{#/blank#}.

After knowing these places, you'll like them.