Month: August 2022

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Blog by Tess – Preparing Easy Recipes

Preparing Easy Recipes for your personal pleasure.

Have you ever been in a situation where you’ve needed a quick easy recipe to prepare? Maybe some company was coming over, you were invited to an event and needed to prepare something to take, or you just weren’t in the mood to mess up your kitchen while preparing the food/appetizer.

I’m going to share some of my ideas with you. Some I found on the internet and came up with my own version to prepare. Others have been handed down to me by a family member/relative. I use a large skillet to combine everything when cooking, so I don’t mess up a lot of dishes. 

More on the other side of this break.

T&R Independent Books brings you this blog post to keep you informed on the issues of today. Authors need to stay informed so that they can relate to their readers facts as well as entertain them with their imagination.

Authors Basic Training is a basic writing Course that explains and guides you into becoming an author. Powered by video along with PDFs and Coaching you learn the basics of writing. Watch for the headline ‘Authors Basic Training Open for Registration’.

To discover how you can be the writer you want to be, write to us at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. We will respond with a free copy of our Guide to Writing.

Check us out and get your career moving.

Now back to the article.

Easy Recipe of Bean and Hamburger Dish.

This is the first meal I prepared for my husband before we got married. He loved it.

Needed:

  • 1 pound of browned hamburger meat, with grease, drained off.
  • 1 can of beans of your choice – I use Bush’s baked beans. (Note – use any size you want, depending on the number of people you’re cooking for.)
  • Barbecue sauce (enough for flavoring).

Directions:

  1. Combine the beans in the skillet with the prepared hamburger meat.
  2. Let simmer until thoroughly heated through, stirring often.
  3. As the mixture simmers, add the barbecue sauce, a little at a time, until you get the consistency that you want.
  4. Serve while hot.

Easy Recipe of Sausage Balls.

This is a nice appetizer to make to an event or to just snack on at home. I make them the way my mom always did.

Needed:

  • 3 cups of Bisquick.1 pound of pork sausage (regular, sage, or hot – depending on your preference. I use the regular.)
  • Up to 1 pound of grated or shredded cheddar cheese.
  • Enough water to hold the ingredients together.

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Place parchment paper on a baking sheet.
  3. Mix the above ingredients together in a bowl, until well blended.
  4. Place each ball on the baking sheet.
  5. Bake for about 20 minutes.

My Own Easy Recipe for Hamburger Stew.

Needed:

  • 1 pound of hamburger meat browned and drained.
  • 2 cups of vegetables of your choice (To save time I mix frozen vegetables together: carrots, corn, green beans, and potatoes).
  • 1 can of Stewed or diced tomatoes.
  • A half of a package of an onion soup mix, to give the mixture a little flavor.
  • Extra water to cover the vegetables with.

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Directions:

  1. In the skillet with the browned hamburger meat, add the two cups of vegetables, the tomatoes, the onion soup mix, and enough water to cover up the vegetables so they won’t dry out while simmering.
  2. Let simmer until the vegetables are done, stirring constantly. (Note: add more water if you need to during the simmering.)

My Mom’s Easy Recipe for Goulash.

Needed: (Note: the amount of each ingredient that you use will depend on how many people you’re preparing the recipe for.)

  • 1 pound of hamburger meat prepared in a skillet until no pink shows. Drained.
  • 1 cup of macaroni.
  • 1 cup of fresh tomatoes, cut up.
  • 1 cup of homemade tomato sauce (which my mom used. I use store-bought.)
  • Salt and pepper to taste.

Directions:

  1. In the skillet with the browned hamburger meat, add the macaroni and tomatoes, and sauce.
  2. Let it simmer, stirring often. Add salt and pepper for taste. Simmer the mixture until the macaroni is cooked.  (Note: a little water may need to be added so the mixture won’t go dry.)
  3. Hint: I like adding a little garlic to my recipe for an added taste.

Next week I’ll do a blog on quick no-bake dessert recipes that you can make with just a few ingredients.

Have a wonderful week.

VISIT MY AUTHOR’S PAGE TODAY: amazon.com/author/Tessriddle.

Don’t forget to comment below. We are always interested in your opinions. And to make sure you get our blogs, simply check the box that says, Notify me of new posts via email.

Company information:

T&R Independent Bookstore is a division of T&R Independent Books founded in 2014 by R. Frederick and Tess Riddle. TR Ministry, aka Ministry Services, is both a charge and an exciting outreach to the Christian Community.

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Blog by Ron – Interviewing Your Characters

Interviewing Your Characters is based on old blog I wrote years ago, but it is as timely now as it was then.

When writing your story you get well acquainted with your characters. In fact, you become quite knowledgeable about them, especially the main characters.

Have You Ever Thought About Interviewing Your Characters?

I suggest that you should do this for two reasons and at two different times. The reasons are simple enough:

  1. To develop your story.
  2. To market your book.

The timing is also simple:

  1. As you are writing the story.
  2. After you have published the book.

Developing Your Story By Interviewing Your Characters

Later in this blog, I will share an interview I did with Noah. As you know he is a major figure in the Bible. But in my novel Perished: The World That Was he was also a major figure. So, I interviewed him.

Now that interview was part of my marketing the book, but I could have had a private interview with him to help develop the story.

How So?

Noah was a real person who God used to save his family from the Flood and to start a whole new world after the Flood. And as such he has a lot to say. And since I was writing about him, he had a lot to say about the character in my book.

Interviewing Your Characters can be Beneficial

In writing Perished, I got to know Noah pretty well. And while I didn’t sit down and do an interview, I did consult with him throughout the writing. Not by spiritualism but by reading the Bible, studying him, and asking questions like, Why did you do that?

Nor did I hear voices, but the answers did come. The more I knew about Noah, the more my imagination answered the questions through him. And this enabled me to picture Noah in different situations and facing different problems. Not only did he face them, but he solved the problems.

When you use this technique, it can help you build your primary character and the supporting cast. It helps you flesh them out and make them real to your readers.

I’ll discuss the Interview on the other side of this break.

T&R Independent Books brings you this blog post to keep you informed on the issues of today. Authors need to stay informed so that they can relate to their readers facts as well as entertain them with their imagination.

It’s Your Business is a Basic Writing Course that explains and guides you into becoming an author. Powered by video along with PDFs and Coaching you learn the basics of writing. Sign up is Coming Soon and Class will start shortly afterward. Watch for the headline ‘Authors Basic Training Open for Registration now’.

To discover how you can be the writer you want to be, write to us at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. We will respond.

Check us out and get your career moving.

Now back to the article.

Marketing by Interviewing Your Characters

Marketing is a difficult part of business. We often need help. One such help in interviewing the primary characters, so I decided to sit down and have an interview with Noah.

To help you understand how this helps you I will break the interview up into segments.

When Interviewing Your Characters, Introduce Them.

In my introduction I explained who Noah was, then I turned to him.

R. Frederick Riddle: “Thank you for agreeing to this interview. It is possible that some of our readers don’t know the real you, especially with Hollywood’s rendition of you. So, could you tell us a little about yourself?”

Noah: “Of course. I am the grandson of Methuselah, who lived longer than anyone else in the Bible and in history. My father was Lamech, but I was mostly influenced by Methuselah.

“Your readers probably have heard of me in relation to the Flood. I understand that some don’t believe that I am real. But I am, and I can tell you I am nothing like Hollywood portrays. In fact, I accepted this interview so I could correct the record.”

The Reason for Interviewing the Characters

R. Frederick Riddle: “I agree. My first question is, Why did you build the Ark?”

Noah: “The simple truth is that I am a farmer by trade, a grower of grapes by profession. I was not a shipbuilder, although I knew carpentry as it was helpful in farming. So, building a ship was not on my mind. I had seen smaller ships before, but my knowledge was limited.

“Actually, I was called of God. He appeared to me and specifically called me to build the Ark. He gave me what people today would call a blueprint.”

R. Frederick Riddle: “A blueprint?”

Noah: “Yes. While I understood it in general terms, there was much I didn’t know. For example, I knew what a cubit is, but I didn’t know all the finer details of shipbuilding. That’s why I needed a Master Builder such as you described in the book. Hiram did most of the work, but I had the final approval. And I must add that it was a fantastic ship!”

R. Frederick Riddle: “Could you describe the ship for us?”

Noah: “Of course. I have heard all sorts of descriptions from circular to a cube.”

R. Frederick Riddle: “Like in the myth of the Epic of Gilgamesh?

Noah: “Yes. That was written a long time after the Flood and bares little resemblance to the actual events. The Ark was a rectangular vessel 450 feet long, 75 feet wide, and 45 feet tall. It had the same ratio as modern ships do, which is 6 to 1. People who say it wasn’t seaworthy simply don’t know what they are talking about.”

Encourage Your Character to Speak

R. Frederick Riddle: “Many people believe the Epic of Gilgamesh was written first.”

Noah: “That’s funny. That was written many years after the Flood. In fact, it was written after the Confusion of Tongues at Babel. It’s my personal opinion that Gilgamesh and other myths were based on faulty memories of the dispersed tribes. They weren’t concerned with accuracy, but with providing their own version of the Flood.”

Keep Your Interview of Your Characters Under Control.

R. Frederick Riddle: “There is a lot of evidence supporting your view, but let’s move on. In a recent movie you were presented in an unfavorable way. What was your relationship with your family and those who helped build the Ark? Were you as bad as depicted?”

Noah: “I had excellent relations with everyone. I loved my family and was prepared to die for them. My wife was valued, as was her wisdom. As for my sons and their wives, I could not have been more pleased.

“I was also pleased with Hiram’s crew. I required them to listen to my preaching and I really wanted them to trust God and go to safety in the Ark. But none of them ever did. It really saddened me then and I am still sad.”

R. Frederick Riddle: “That brings up another question, Did no one respond to your preaching?”

Noah: “A few did, but they all died before the Flood. In the end it was only my family and myself.”

Close Interviewing Your Characters on a Positive Note

R. Frederick Riddle: “Is there anything you wish to tell us before we leave?”

Noah: “Yes. Put God first in your life! You have the Bible which is far better than what I had. Read it and put it to work in your lives.”

R. Frederick Riddle: “Excellent advice! Thank you for your time, Noah.”

Interviewing Your Characters Should Provide Insights Into Your Story.

In the above interview I encouraged Noah to comment on current events that were relevant to his experience. The actual interview was longer and went into his getting drunk after the ship landed as well as other experiences.

Think about doing this for your own characters. By using an interview as your method of telling you can relate information from your book in an entertaining way. And you just might spark someone’s interest and create a sale.

– – – – – – –

VISIT MY AUTHOR’S PAGE TODAY: amazon.com/author/rfrederickriddle.

Don’t forget to comment below. We are always interested in your opinions. And to make sure you get our blogs, simply check the box that says, Notify me of new posts via email.

Company information:

T&R Independent Bookstore is a division of T&R Independent Books founded in 2014 by R. Frederick and Tess Riddle. TR Ministry, aka Ministry Services, is both a charge and an exciting outreach to the Christian Community.

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Blog by Ron – What to do About Writers Resources?

Writers Resources. That is a question that I have recently been dealing with. It all began when I decided to use my knowledge of writing to build a Basic Training Course for writers. As I began developing the course, I realized that it would be one huge course if I prepared a lesson on each resource.

What to do about writers resources?

So, I decided to provide resources, aka tools, to my students as downloadable PDFs. I prepare these tools and then post them on the student’s page. But then I had another question:

What are these Writers Resources?

The word resources is rather broad, so I needed a narrower definition to work with. I have already used the word, so I will tell you again. It is tools.

Writing tools, to be exact.

Tools that will enable people to write effectively. But that was still somewhat broad.

So, I redefined it again, and arrived at: specific tools.

What are These Specific Tools?

Glad you asked. And I will get more specific on the other side of this break.

T&R Independent Books brings you this blog post to keep you informed on the issues of today. Authors need to stay informed so that they can relate to their readers facts as well as entertain them with their imagination.

It’s Your Business is a Basic Writing Course that explains and guides you into becoming an author. Powered by video along with PDFs and Coaching you learn the basics of writing. Sign up is Coming Soon and Class will start shortly afterward. Watch for the headline ‘Authors Basic Training Open for Registration now’.

To discover how you can be the writer you want to be, write to us at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. We will respond.

Check us out and get your career moving.

Now back to the article.

Building a Library of Writing Resources

If you have never built a writing resources library, now is the time to do it. It is true there are professionals out there that can do much of the work needed for you to succeed. But I am a believer in learning how to do things even if I hire someone later to do them.

With that said, Let’s Build That Library.

A Resources Library is in my opinion a necessity. So, without further ado, let’s look at these resources or tools. You should have in your library (physical or digital):

  • Customs and Manners of historical times and places.
  • Dictionary.
  • Grammar book.
  • Grammarly.com (or something akin to it).
  • History books (if you write historical fiction).
  • Word processing program.
  • A Writing program, such as Microsoft Word.

These are just some of the resources you need. And if you plan to establish yourself as a business, then you need:

  • Information regarding setting up a business.
  • Programs or books on writing basics.
  • and more.

Some of these tools are easy to get hold of and relatively cheap until you add them all up. Building a library can get expensive. The good news is that there are places you can get that information relatively free.

For Example, Writing Resources are Available from this Blog.

I use blogs and social media provide information to readers like you. While I also have a Writers Basic Training Course, I believe in providing as much information as possible to people at no cost.

Which brings me to a tip: Build a Digital Library.

A physical library is important to have, but in this day and age a digital library is virtually a must.

How Do I Build a Digital Library of Writing Resources?

You begin by following bloggers like me who are willing to provide information free. Will you always need all the information that a blogger provides. No, but I was once told that if you go to a meeting and get one nugget of value from it, then that meeting was worth your time and expense.

Much of what I learned over the years about writing came from information I gleaned from bloggers, marketers, and others. I slowly built up my own digital library and I added then and still add material now to that library. It will help you immensely.

What Writers Resources Should I Start with?

The answer to that depends to some degree on what genre you are writing. That said, I think it is essential that you have a word processing program with strong editing features, such as Microsoft Word or a program like it.

(One side note: Never allow editing software or a human editor to dictate your writing. Consider the advice, then you make the decision. It is your book, and they are merely tools to help you, not control your literary genius.)

Another tool not mentioned above is called a Beta Reader, which I will discuss in the future.

VISIT MY AUTHOR’S PAGE TODAY: amazon.com/author/rfrederickriddle.

Don’t forget to comment below. We are always interested in your opinions. And to make sure you get our blogs, simply check the box that says, Notify me of new posts via email.

Company information:

T&R Independent Bookstore is a division of T&R Independent Books founded in 2014 by R. Frederick and Tess Riddle. TR Ministry, aka Ministry Services, is both a charge and an exciting outreach to the Christian Community.