Category: Christian Speculative Fiction

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Announcing New Novel

World War III picture

The Riddle Report 01 11 2021

Today I am announcing the publication of my newest novel, World War III. This novel is the prequel to Christland.

As many of you know I built my career on writing historical fiction, novels that were based on historical events recorded in the Bible. These have been my primary interest and will continue to be so. However, in the last couple of years I have delved into speculative fiction with my first series Christland.

With this publication the series will include World War III, Death Ship to the Stars, Pauline: A New Home, Task Force Hunter, Black Death, Rise of I.S.I.S., and Battle at Proxima Centauri. It is a series that carves out its own niche within the Sci-Fi or Speculative Fiction genre.

It is also a series I am proud of and have been encouraged by. That being said, I felt that the buildup to the Death Ship to the Stars needed greater exploration. Therefore, I set about writing what is called World War III.

World War III introduces many of the characters that are found in Death Ship to the Stars. You get to know them before those tragic events. One particular character you meet is Don Michaels, one of the heroes of Death Ship to the Stars. You get a deeper understanding of him and of the men and women around him.

But the biggest thing is you get to view World War III, which turns out to be one of the shortest world wars in history or is the shortest. In any case, you get to read and experience the war itself, but also the events leading up to it and following it.

Then there is General Abner Smith. This is a man who is both a brilliant general and a monstrous person. His hatred for all things Christian and Jewish comes through loud and clear at the expense of innocent people!

The writing of this novel allowed me the freedom to explore the world of speculative fiction in greater depth while adding to and, hopefully, expanding the experience of the Christland series. As a result of the new novel, I am rewriting portions of Death Ship to the Stars. This revised version should be coming out soon.

The eBook is in Pre-Order now and the Print book should be available this week. Here is the data:

Title: World War III

Publisher: T&R Independent Books

Author: R. Frederick Riddle

Pages: 357

ASIN: B08SLK6P83

ISBN-13: 9798571715317

Print Retail: $13.99

eBook Retail: $2.99 (in pre-order now)

Get free Guide to Writing at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com.

Subscribe to Author Alerts (click and submit signup form)

For information about us (“we edit, proof, and publish the book within you”) contact us at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com and get our Free Brochure which tells you about our services.

AUTHOR’S PAGE: amazon.com/author/rfrederickriddle.

ARE YOU A BOOK REVIEWER? Want to review our books? Contact me at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com with the subject line indicating that desire. Such as, ‘Seek to review [book Title].’ Be sure to indicate your email address and your name.

==========

R Frederick Riddle is the Editor of TR Writing Services providing help to struggling and/or new authors to write and publish their books. He is also an author of Historical, Speculative, and Mystery fiction, plus co-founder and Vice President of T&R Independent Books. To reply to any blog you can comment on a blog and/or send an email to marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. His Facebook page is at RFrederickRiddlesWorld and his Parler page is authorriddle.

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Self-Publishing vs Indie Publishing

The Riddle Report 01 02 2021

A new year has started, and you are dissatisfied with your writing career. Perhaps you are making money writing for someone else, but publishing books has not really happened for you. You wrote a book that you think is the all-American novel, but you can’t get it published.

You’ve tried the traditional press and they won’t look at your novel unless you have an agent. So, you went out and submitted your books to agents, most of whom turned their collective noses down on your book. And those interested were either in the wrong genre or too expensive.

What to do When Traditional Publishing Doesn’t Work.

There are several options, but we are only going to look at two: Self-Publishing and Indie Publishing.

Self-Publishing.

Self-Publishing has been around for a while. The name suggests that by using their service you are self-publishing your book. That you are in control.

This is not accurate. You, the author, are actually paying a publisher to publish your book and the publisher gets the benefits. Here’s a quick look at the advantages and disadvantages:

Advantages:

  1. No agent required, although some suggest you should get one.
  2. Time from signing contract to actual publication usually only a few months.
  3. Virtually able to have book published.
  4. Author owns ISBN.
  5. Royalty paid.

Disadvantages:

  1. Publisher still in charge.
  2. Author gets low royalties, usually a formula that starts out at 8% or something similar.
  3. Marketing tools available with a price.

On the face of it self-publishing looks good for the author. And for some it probably is good. But if you want to have control of your book from creation to marketing, then there are problems. In the list of Disadvantages, I listed “Publisher still in charge” as the first disadvantage. Why? Because if the publisher is in charge of your book then you aren’t. It’s as simple as that.

Try this simple quiz:

  • If I use their editing services, do I still have final say?
    • Most self-publishing companies offer their authors their editing services. In some cases. they may charge for it.
    • When I published my first book, I used a self-publishing company, but I chose to do my own editing. Why? Because I did not want them to make any corrections unless I agreed to it and I wasn’t convinced that they would do that.
  • How long do I have to review a Proof before returning it for correction or publication?
    • In self-publishing the publisher makes the rules. When I was with a self-publisher, I was given 72 hours to proof the book. Sounds like a lot of time, but you are proofing to find any and all mistakes. For example, I found errors that were repeated throughout the book. I found some and noted them, but not all. So, some errors remained in the published version.
  • Can I pull the book, edit it, and republish after I have already published it?
    • Yes, if you are willing to pay for another book. Generally speaking, once your book is published, it is done.
  •  If so, how much does it cost?
    • This varies but I would estimate between $400 and $800 for one book.
  • How much help do I get marketing the book?
    • I didn’t get much. They did have a variety of tools I could purchase. But actual help, no.
  • What do the marketing tools cost?
    • That varies from publisher to publisher. In my opinion, too much.

Although the answers to the above questions are not ideal, self-publishing is still better than traditional publishing in that you do have more control than before and the book gets published faster.

INDIE Publishing

In 2014 my wife, Teresa, and I went out to lunch at a small McDonalds located in Murdock, part of greater Port Charlotte, and made a very important decision. As we sat there and discussed my writing career and the possibility of hers, although at that time she hadn’t started writing her first novel yet, we decided to establish our own publishing company called T&R Independent Books. The T was for Teresa and the R for Ronald.

Let’s look at the Why form our own publishing company.

Up to that time I had been publishing using what is commonly called self-publishing companies to publish my books. But as I studied these companies I discovered:

  • They controlled the content
  • They controlled the cover
  • They determined the royalties
  • I still had to do the marketing

In other words, while I had more freedom and control that I’d have with a traditional publisher I still didn’t really have control of anything. By going independent and truly publishing by myself, I would:

  • Have control over the content
  • Have control over the cover
  • Determine the royalties
  • Still do the marketing

Now don’t get me wrong. I don’t consider myself a control freak. Rather, I believe that if the author is going to invest his or herself into writing a book, any book, then they deserve to benefit from it.

Case in point. With traditional and self-publishing companies the average author’s royalties are scaled. It varied from publisher to publisher but in general it might go like this: 8% of retail for the first 2,500; 15% for the next 5,000; 25% thereafter. Now the numbers I just used may not be accurate (I did it from memory), but the concept is true.

But by doing my own publishing I can receive 35% or 70% right from the start! That is a major difference.

What about the content?

With traditional publishers you generally have to first go through an agent who then tries to find a publisher. The agent has certain criteria which may involve you changing the content. But just finding an agent can be long and frustrating. Then the agent gets to tell you whether the book is good enough for publishing based on their expertise.

Even self-publishers exert control. For example, say you are writing a book and you quote from the King James Version Bible. It is possible they will substitute a different version whether you agree or not. They may also reject passages they don’t like. In other words, just because you are pleased with your results they might not be and can act accordingly.

Another thing involved is the ability to correct. No matter how or to what extent you have had your book previewed and edited, there is always the chance of errors. Moreover, the publisher may have printing errors. I ran into this with my books. I was sent a ‘Proof’ copy and given about three days to review, find errors, make corrections, and return (electronically, of course). (For more on this see above in section about Self-Publishing.)

But by publishing the book myself I am able to take my time and do a more thorough job of previewing and editing. And, if there are still errors in the published version, I can correct the errors and republish at no cost to myself!

What about the Cover?

I have discussed Cover Creator in previous blogs, but Kindle’s Cover Creator and Photo Gallery provide free pictures or frames in which I can upload my own pictures. Moreover, if I am willing to hire someone to do a professional picture including the bar code, I can do that. Just have to meet KDP’s criteria.

And one last thing: Writing a book can be and is stressful; so is marketing. Having greater control over the publishing removes a lot of stress; and having greater control over price and royalties is far more rewarding.

The result is that you can approach marketing with far less stress than before.

Have you considered Indie Publishing?

More and more authors are discovering the value of the Indie approach. Yes, it requires more work on your part, but it’s worth it. Go to our website and check out our videos, all free, that give you a head start on building your own writing and publishing business.

Get free Guide to Writing at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com.

Subscribe to Author Alerts (click and submit signup form)

For information about us (“we edit, proof, and publish the book within you”) contact us at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com and get our Free Brochure which tells you about our services.

AUTHOR’S PAGE: amazon.com/author/rfrederickriddle.

ARE YOU A BOOK REVIEWER? Want to review our books? Contact me at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com with the subject line indicating that desire. Such as, ‘Seek to review [book Title].’ Be sure to indicate your email address and your name.

==========

R Frederick Riddle is the Editor of TR Writing Services providing help to struggling and/or new authors to write and publish their books. He is also an author of Historical, Speculative, and Mystery fiction, plus co-founder and Vice President of T&R Independent Books. To reply to any blog you can comment on a blog and/or send an email to marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. His Facebook page is at RFrederickRiddlesWorld.

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Ron’s Lit Tip What to Write

10 06 2020

Welcome to Ron’s Lit Tip. Every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday I will share a tip with you.

Finding subjects to write on can be difficult or easy depending on your approach. Experts advise that you find what is popular and write accordingly. I suppose that works if all you are interested in is sales. But if you want to write something good, write upon subjects you find interesting.

For example, I love history, so my favorite genre is Historical Fiction. In that genre I’ve written about Bible based history, which are historical events that are seen from a biblical view. When you use the book of Genesis you get history often written by eyewitnesses.  Out of this genre has come my The World That Was series.

Another genre I enjoy is Speculative Fiction. This and Science Fiction are like kissing cousins. Very much alike, but yet different. I usually explain this way, Speculative Fiction is Science Fiction without little green men. Often Speculative Fiction deals with future events, sometimes events recorded in the Book of Revelation. In one sense this is Historical Fiction in that it is history prewritten. The famous Left Behind series would fit in this genre.

My point is that I write what I enjoy.

Another genre I enjoy reading is Mystery. And that will soon produce Mystery novels. So, I have a question: Are you writing what you enjoy or just what someone else enjoys?

I may get negative feedback on this but writing only what others like may be financially profitable, but it is likely going to be less than your best work. Ideally, you want to write books that sell and that you like! This combination should bring out your best writing and sell.

I do not know of any guaranteed method that will meet that standard. As a general rule I would say first write down possible stories and then search the internet for the most popular genres out there. But just because no one else hasn’t written what you plan to write doesn’t mean your book shouldn’t be written.

On the other hand, don’t be afraid to write in an unfamiliar genre. Study it, learn some basics, and give it a try. Who knows, you might just find something new that you like to write.

Tip: Don’t let $$$ determine what you write.

Tip: Don’t be afraid to write in a popular, yet unfamiliar genre.

Get free Guide to Writing at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com.

Subscribe to Author Alerts (click and submit signup form)

For information about us (“we edit, proof, and publish the book within you”)  contact us at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com and get our Free Brochure which tells you about our services.

AUTHOR’S PAGE: amazon.com/author/rfrederickriddle.

ARE YOU A BOOK REVIEWER? Want to review our books? Contact me at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com with the subject line indicating that desire. Such as, ‘Seek to review [book Title].’ Be sure to indicate your email address and your name.

 – – – – – – –

R Frederick Riddle is the Editor of TR Writing Services providing help to struggling and/or new authors to write and publish their books. He is also an author of Historical, Speculative, and Mystery fiction, plus co-founder and Vice President of T&R Independent Books. To reply to any blog you can comment on a blog and/or send an email to marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. His Facebook page is at RFrederickRiddlesWorld. #Writingservices

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Ron’s Lit Tip Writer’s Growth

10 01 2020

Welcome to Ron’s Lit Tip. Every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday I will share a tip with you.

Are you a beginning writer?

Have you written your first book?

Have you written several books?

If you can answer yes to any of the above questions, then you have something in common with most writers: You need to grow, to improve.

What’s wrong with my writing?

I didn’t say anything was wrong. A better question would be: How do I grow as a writer?

OK, how do I grow?

Think about muscles. If you work out with weights and other exercise equipment there is a likelihood that you are going to get stronger. And if you don’t work out there is an equal chance you will get weaker. Muscles need exercise. Well, think of your writing. The skills you have developed are like muscles. Just like muscles need to be exercised, your writing muscles need to be used.

But Growth also needs Food.

Just as your body and your muscles need vitamins and other nutrients, you as an author also need something. That something can be many things, such as learning new skills, shedding mistakes that hold you back, maybe adding a genre to the one you already have, and many more.

Genre?

Yes. Each genre has its own unique characteristics. For example, my first genre was Historical Fiction. I wrote books that took place in history. My series The World That Was is based on history that took place in biblical times. But my novel Dead Eye Will took place in American History. These are sub-genres under Historical Fiction. So, even adding a sub-genre to your resume can add to your overall appeal and, more importantly, to your skill set.

But adding an altogether different genre will definitely sharpen your skills and add new ones. I told you above that I wrote, and still write, Historical Fiction. I love history and that was a natural for me. But I also enjoy science fiction, so I decided to try writing Science Fiction, although what I write is more appropriately called Speculative Fiction. (I explain the difference as Speculative Fiction being Science Fiction without little green men. It is futuristic, can take place in space, here on Earth, and never involve aliens.)

Two Different Genres Require Two Different Skill Sets.

Some skills transfer to any genre, but writing historical novels requires a knowledge of history and the placement of the novel within the selected historical times. On the other hand, speculative novels require a knowledge of science, whether space science or future science that may impact our daily lives. Since it is generally futuristic you are writing history in advance. This resulted in my Christland series.

If that wasn’t enough, I have become interested in Mystery, a totally different genre. I am currently working on a mystery that involves murder and science set in the future.

These three genres are different from one another and demand different skills from me. Some I know, others I am learning. And that is what I mean by growing. I am adding new skill sets to what I already had and using new tools to do it. These represent multiple genres.

Tip: To grow, add to yourself new skills, tools, and maybe genres.

Get free Guide to Writing at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com.

Subscribe to Author Alerts (click and submit signup form)

For information about us (“we edit, proof, and publish the book within you”)  contact us at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com and get our Free Brochure which tells you about our services.

AUTHOR’S PAGE: amazon.com/author/rfrederickriddle.

ARE YOU A BOOK REVIEWER? Want to review our books? Contact me at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com with the subject line indicating that desire. Such as, ‘Seek to review [book Title].’ Be sure to indicate your email address and your name.

 – – – – – – –

R Frederick Riddle is the Editor of TR Writing Services providing help to struggling and/or new authors to write and publish their books. He is also an author of Historical, Speculative, and Mystery fiction, plus co-founder and Vice President of T&R Independent Books. To reply to any blog you can comment on a blog and/or send an email to marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. His Facebook page is at RFrederickRiddlesWorld. #Writingservices

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Ron’s Tuesday’s Tip: One Genre or Multi-Genre?

Welcome to Ron’s Tuesday’s Tip. Every Tuesday I will share a tip with you. This week I am looking at One Genre or Multi-Genre?

Should I focus on only one Genre or multiple Genre?

That’s actually a good question. I focused for years on one genre, namely Historical Fiction. It remains my preferred genre, but I’ve now completed my first series in Speculative Fiction and I loved it!

Recently I began writing in the genre Mystery. And again I love it.

The real question is Am I able to Write in Multiple Genres?

Ultimately it is your audience that determines the answer to that. However, it is possible that you could end up with a different audience for each genre. In fact, I’d say that is likely that your audiences will change from genre to genre.

Breaking into a new genre (for you) can also be tough. In my case, my primary focus is writing good fiction no matter what the genre. Getting people to like my books is more a matter of marketing than anything else.

So How Can I Know?

Another good question.

Sales will tell you how good your marketing is, although it might have something to say about your writing quality also. But primarily it is about marketing.

Here’s a question for you?

When you write in a different genre, what do you think of your work? After writing, editing, and getting ready for publication sit back and read your book as a book not as a manuscript. Read it through. Did you enjoy it?

Obviously in a mystery you will already know the solution, but the question is, did you enjoy the book? If you did then that is a major plus!

Then try to get Reviews.

How Do I Get Reviews?

There are a lot of people who want to review books. Some will charge you money. Nothing wrong with that as long as they abide by Amazon rules. Why Amazon? Because they are the biggest seller of books out there and your reviews will go online and be visible to their vast number of followers.

So be careful about paid reviewers.

The biggest problem with paid reviewers is the fee charged. Some are costly and some are not. I suggest you google paid reviewers or something like that and check for yourself.

Then there are those who are unpaid reviewers. They love books and maybe certain genres, so they offer to review your book. They get a copy of the book from you, get to read it for free and then they comment on it. It is sort of a win-win for the reviewer and for you the author. It is worth checking into.

What if I’ve Already Started in a Different Genre?

Not a problem.

I started writing in other genres because I liked to read them. For Christland, a speculative novel, I delved into it because I liked Science Fiction. Most Science Fiction is evolutionary in concept and I don’t believe in evolution. Did that rule it out for me?

No!

My Christland novels have human beings contending with other human beings. They travel through space and they face obstacles. There are super weapons and bigger than life characters, but no little green men from Mars.

The thing to remember is that while the genre may be different you are for the most part dealing with human issues, such as war, peace, crime, murder, rape, government, religion, and so on.

Do You Help People Who write in Different Genres?

At TR Writing Services we are there to help you take your manuscript from rough draft to published book. Do we accept all genres?

No.

For example, we will accept books that have sex and violence in them. My own books have those elements. But there is a right way and wrong way to involve them in your book. If your book uses blasphemy, curse words, etc. then we will deem it unacceptable.

Another example is violence. Is it too graphic? Although my books are aimed at adults, that doesn’t mean that excessive and graphic violence is acceptable.

There are other genre’s that we won’t look at, but I’d suggest you contact us at marketing@TR-IndBkstore.com and we will, if interested, request your manuscript. If we reject it, we return the manuscript via email.

For information on TR Writing Services (“we edit, proof, and publish the book within you”)  contact us at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. We have a Free booklet telling you about our services. And we are upfront on our prices (all are low).

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

ARE YOU A BOOK REVIEWER? I am always looking for book reviews. Whether it is Perished The World That Was (Book One), World of Noah and the Ark (Book Two), World of Shem (Book Three), World of Abraham (Book Four) and World of Jacob (Book Five). Or Death Ship (Book One), Pauline A New Home (Book Two), Task Force Hunter (Book Three), Black Death (Book Four), Rise of I.C.E.S. (Book Five),  or Battle at Proxima Centauri. I value your reviews.

And now we add to the list. You may review Tess Riddle’s novel Haney Place Secrets simply by following the steps below.

If you would like to review any of these books contact me at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com with the subject line indicating that desire. An example of an appropriate subject line would be: ‘Seek to review [book Title].’ In the email make sure to indicate your email address, your name, and the choice of copy (PDF or Epub).

 – – – – – – –

R Frederick Riddle is the Editor of TR Writing Services providing help to struggling and/or new authors to write and publish their books. In addition, he is the author of several books and is best known for Christian Historical and Speculative Fiction. For more information on him or his books visit his Amazon Authors Page. He is also co-founder and Vice President of T&R Independent Books where his books are featured. To reply to any blog you have the option of commenting on a blog and/or sending an email to marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. You may also be interested in his Facebook page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld.

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Special Announcement

On Tuesdays I normally write posts that are tips for writers. But today I also have a special announcement.

Final Book of Christland series Published!

That is correct. For those of you who may be following my writing career, I have completed the series Christland. The first book of the series was Death Ship to the Stars, the story that takes place after WW III. Wrongfully blamed for the war (Christians were actually victims) a new world government began a crackdown on all religions, but Christians in particular. As part of this crackdown the persecution included death and led to the rounding up of believers and sending them into space to study their lives and expected fiery death. But the Christians revolted and took over the ship.

The second book was entitled Pauline A New Home. The space traveling Christians of Book 1 headed for Ross 128 and landed on Ross 128 b, naming it Pauling of the Ro Systems. Here they settled, set up a government patterned after the United States. Knowing that the forces of suppression would likely come after them, they began preparing themselves militarily. Meanwhile back on Earth a Christian underground was at work.

In Book 3 Task Force Hunter the world government sent out a new spaceship, the first ever space warship. It’s task was to recapture the Christians at all costs. A high ranking general was charged with this mission and a young admiral captained the ship. It took a while, but they were able to track the Christians to Ross 128 b. But they failed to consider the Christians ability to prepare for battle. Confident in their superiority the ship entered the Ro System. Onboard the ship and unknown to the General were secret Christians determined to stop him. And back on Earth the world government is in trouble and yes those pesky Christians are involved.

In book 4 Black Death, we find that Pauline and Earth are at peace, but an insane criminal has a plot to destroy all Christians. He decides that Pauline is the perfect spot to launch his deadly weapon known only as the Black Death. Before it is over the fledgling government must fight for its life!

Rise of I.C.E.S. is book 5. Captain Coburn, a minor criminal on Earth, decides to build a criminal network known as the Interstellar Criminal Endeavor Syndicate. Taking a page from Dr. Ink of Black Death, Coburn kidnaps 100 women to be used as both sex and work slaves. Taken mostly from Earth, and a few from Pauline, he puts his plan into action. But a young soldier is sent underground and she becomes one of the slaves. Her job is to find the location of I.C.E.S and enable the rescue of the women.

With book 6 Battle at Proxima Centauri we see that I.C.E.S. is still around but Earth and Pauline space forces are united and seeking them. Meanwhile the United States gets a new President and on Pauline an offshoot of I.C.E.S. is trying to establish a criminal empire there. How will it all end?

Battle at Proxima Centauri is now available. In fact, all my books are now a simple click away from their Amazon pages. Order now and you can get the book of your choice by December 20, 2019.

For information on TR Writing Services (“we edit, proof, and publish the book within you”)  contact us at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. We have a Free booklet telling you about our services. And we are upfront on our prices (all are low).

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

ARE YOU A BOOK REVIEWER? I am always looking for book reviews. Whether it is Perished The World That Was (Book One), World of Noah and the Ark (Book Two), World of Shem (Book Three), World of Abraham (Book Four) or Death Ship (Book One), Pauline A New Home (Book Two), Task Force Hunter (Book Three), Black Death (Book Four), Rise of I.C.E.S. (Book Five),  or Battle at Proxima Centauri (Book Six). I value your reviews.

If you would like to review any of these books contact me at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com with the subject line indicating that desire. An example of an appropriate subject line would be: ‘Seek to review [book Title].’ In the email make sure to indicate your email address, your name, and the choice of copy (PDF or Epub).

 – – – – – – –

R Frederick Riddle is the Editor of TR Writing Services providing help to struggling and/or new authors to write and publish their books. In addition, he is the author of several books and is best known for Christian Historical and Speculative Fiction. For more information on him or his books visit his Amazon Authors Page. He is also co-founder and Vice President of T&R Independent Books where his books are featured. To reply to any blog you have the option of commenting on a blog and/or sending an email to marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. You may also be interested in his Facebook page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld.

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Ron’s Tuesday’s Tip: Researching the Net

Welcome to Ron’s Tuesday’s Tip. Every Tuesday I will share a tip with you. This week is about:Researching the Net.

What is Researching the Net?

That’s a term referring to the idea of searching for information on the internet. Almost everyone does it, but are they doing it right.

Let’s look at the pitfalls first.

Unfortunately, there are a great many pitfalls on the net that you need to be aware of. One of the biggest is ‘fake news’.

There is fake news on both sides of the political landscape. However most of it is on the left side. Still, you need to be aware that there is fake news no matter your political persuasion. It used to be that you could you one of the many ‘fact checkers’ to verify facts. I’ve done that in the past.

But these days you have to be careful even of fact checkers. Why? Because so many of them try to hide their true bias behind words like non-partisan or neutral or something like that. The truth is that everyone has a bias. Knowing the bias of the person who is rendering an opinion on something is helpful to you. It enables you to evaluate their opinion.

Follow the old adage that says, ‘follow the money’. Another tool is to examine their record, which way do they usually lean?

Does that mean not to use fact checkers? No. It means know and understand where they are coming from, then consider their opinions.

What about Scams?

Another pitfall is the abundance of scam artists. They create URLs that look real but may just be a scam. Or worse, they could be Trojan horses. So be careful.

Your best bet is to use websites that you know are reliable. If you must use a website that you don’t really know, compare the information with other reliable resources.

How do you find Reliable Resources?

Chances are you already know a few resources that you believe are reliable. That’s a good place to begin.

But assuming you have none to begin with you will need to grow a library of reliable resources. When I first started writing I didn’t know what I could and couldn’t trust on the internet. But I did have reference books that I trusted. Since my books related to the Bible, I also had trustworthy Bible Commentaries. That is where I started. I compared the trusted material that I had with the material I found through Google Search. Over time I built a record of trusted sites.

So, what is Researching the Net?

Basically, it is using Google or some other search engine to search for information. Novels are fiction, but you want them to be based on as much fact as possible. This is true in writing novels based on history (Biblical or secular) and Speculative (or Science Fiction). That’s right, speculative fiction deals with the future, yet to be believable they need facts (like the latest in scientific discoveries). When writing about current events you also need facts.

In other words, research is virtually always needed.

Additional Advice.

What I have found to be helpful is that when I find an article or webpage that is loaded with information it is best to use the Select All command and copy everything to a Word page. Later I can highlight the relevant material and maybe discover more than I was searching for in the first place. That way I always have information available on my computer that I can look up whenever needed.

Searching the internet is one of the easier things you can do. Just be careful.

For information on TR Writing Services contact us at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. We have a Free booklet telling you about our services. And we are upfront on our prices (all are low).

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

ARE YOU A BOOK REVIEWER? I am always looking for book reviews. Whether it is Perished The World That Was (Book One), World of Noah and the Ark (Book Two), World of Shem (Book Three), World of Abraham (Book Four) or Death Ship (Book One), Pauline A New Home (Book Two), Task Force Hunter (Book Three), Black Death (Book Four), or Rise of I.C.E.S. (Book Five), I value your reviews.

If you would like to review any of these books contact me at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com with the subject line indicating that desire. An example of an appropriate subject line would be: ‘Seek to review [book Title].’ In the email make sure to indicate your email address, your name, and the choice of copy (PDF or ePub).

 – – – – – – –

R Frederick Riddle is the Editor of TR Writing Services providing help to struggling and/or new authors to write and publish their books. In addition he is the author of several books and is best known for Christian Historical and Speculative Fiction. For more information on him or his books visit his Amazon Authors Page. He is also co-founder and Vice President of T&R Independent Books where his books are featured. To reply to any blog you have the option of commenting on a blog and/or sending an email to marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. You may also be interested in his Facebook page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld.

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The Writing Game

Every week I deal with different subjects in this blog. I also post my blog to my Facebook page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld. This week I am taking a look at The Writing Game.

To learn more about writing contact TR Writing Services at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com.

When considering what to write about I came up with the title before I actually knew about the content. That’s completely different from my usual practice, but it is what it is.

So What Is the Writing Game?

Well for starters it is everything you find in the Guide to Writing. So I can’t give you an excerpt because that would entail 101 pages if you include the book cover, front pages, and back pages. So this blog is going to look at the subject a little differently than you may expect.

To me the Writing Game begins early in life. Reflect back on your childhood memories. For starters did you like to read? Did you like to write?

Those are fairly common questions, but I want you to look deeper. Are there stories buried in your past, in your childhood (or adulthood for that matter) that are bursting to be told? As I sit here typing I’m also reflecting on my childhood. Now in my case I had epilepsy and was on heavy medication until after my first stint in the ninth grade (I flunked it and then was taken off medications and I did much better afterward).

So much of my childhood is a mystery to me. But the later years (teens and twenties) are much more open to me. So I have memories. There are some good and some bad memories. Are they bursting to be told? Bursting, no. But I am intrigued by the possibilities and may someday write novels based on individual events.

Actually, when I am writing a novel, whether it’s Bible based or Speculative Fiction, I draw from life experiences throughout my life. Perhaps I draw from my feelings, my experiences, my hopes, or my fears. This is my opening point: Your life experiences are a natural resource.

It is this opening point that is the basis for the idea that everyone has a story in them. Everyone therefore has the potential to become a writer.

But what about skills?

As a Christian I believe there are basically two times that we are equipped to become what God wants us to become. The first time is at birth. Everyone is born with certain qualities and innate tendencies. For example, someone who becomes an artist may have been born with an innate skill or interest in drawing. It may also show up in childhood.

In my case, because I was on heavy medication I didn’t play much in sports. I did play in Little League Baseball, but I had no real talent and I wasn’t pushed because I might have blacked out or something. But I did have a lively imagination!

Imagination is not really considered a skill, but it is a necessary ingredient for anyone desiring to be a writer. I spent much of my childhood living in imaginary worlds. Now you might say that is normal for children, and it is. However, in my case it was probably more pronounced than in other children.

Many of my childhood dreams centered on Flash Gordon, Roy Rogers, and other TV heroes. There was also a Navy Officer that entered my daydreams. I not only enjoyed their adventures on television but I made up stories where I was the hero acting out stories that involved villains and others from their shows. But while the characters were well known the story lines became my own. By the time I was in my mid-teens I was desiring to be a writer.

I didn’t start acquiring actual writing skills until I was in my twenties. I subscribed for a while to a writing course and began learning the fundamentals of writing. This lasted until I was unable to afford the service anymore. But I continued to attempt to write. Although all ended in failure I learned how to better write.

Failures are good?

 Yes. In the game of writing failure is a key ingredient. Failure, when combined with a strong desire to succeed, teaches you first of all not to quit. I don’t know how many stories I attempted and failed at, but I never gave up on the goal to be a writer. Instead I doubled down and learned from my mistakes, which were many.

It is this stage of life that led my wife and I to start TR Writing Service. Through this service I can use my failures and successes to help both new and struggling writers with their careers.

The Second Birth changed my life.

In 1973 I asked Jesus into my heart and He gloriously saved me. Now I had eternal life. But there was something else impacted. With the Holy Spirit indwelling me and the Holy Bible available to me I began wanting to glorify God in my writing. And it immediately showed!

I continued to fail, learn, and retry until in the year 2000 God opened my eyes to an opportunity for writing. I was reading the Book of Genesis about Noah and the Flood. I realized that here was a story to be told. Thus I began writing the ‘story behind the story‘ that was eventually published as Refuge: The Genesis Chronicles. That story would later feed into my novel Perished: The World That Was, which in turn launched the series The World That Was and my writing career.

In short, God re-equipped me!

By that I mean I was originally equipped to write by being born with a desire to write and some raw writing skills. Now God equipped me with new skills that took 27 years to develop and another 3 years to bear fruit. Thus it took 30 years of Christian living to undo the first 30 years of Christ-less living!

From the first publication to now (2019) it’s been 16 years of learning, failing, and learning. I have published 11 novels (6 Bible based & 4 Speculative Fiction, and 1 American History) plus I am currently working on 3 new novels (1 Bible based and 2 Speculative Fiction). Actually 1 Speculative Fiction novel (Rise of I.C.E.S.) is being published now with availability within days.

So we now have Life Experiences and Talent, what else do we need?

In one word: Determination! There are thousands of men and women who want to write and actually attempt it yet quit! Why? They didn’t get the sales they wanted, someone gave them a negative review, a relative discouraged them, and so forth. What they need to do is get back up, learn from the bad things said and even the good things said. Determination is the fuel that will cause you to grow.

Finally, there is Opportunity.

Some of you are saying but I never get the opportunity. But I’m here to say that’s no excuse. Whether you use TR Writing Services or some other program you have the opportunity. In this day and age you can write, publish, and market your own book.

In the game of writing you control the game. You have little control over sales, but you have great control over the writing and publishing of your book. And there are ways and means of marketing your book available. If you have all the talent in the world and all the skills but never seize the opportunity you are guaranteeing failure. Permanent failure. On the other hand you have unlimited opportunity available to you every day!

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

ARE YOU A BOOK REVIEWER? I am always looking for book reviews. Whether it is Perished The World That Was (Book One), World of Noah and the Ark (Book Two), World of Shem (Book Three), World of Abraham (Book Four) or Death Ship (Book One), Pauline A New Home (Book Two), Task Force Hunter (Book Three), or Black Death (Book Four), I value your reviews. Please note that the Rise of I.C.E.S. is being published now and should be available in a few days.

If you would like to review any of these books contact me at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com with the subject line indicating that desire. An example of an appropriate subject line would be: ‘Seek to review [book Title].’ In the email make sure to indicate your email address, your name, and the choice of copy (PDF or ePub).

 – – – – – – –

R Frederick Riddle is the Editor of TR Writing Services providing help to struggling and/or new authors to write and publish their books. In addition he is the author of several books and is best known for Christian Historical and Speculative Fiction. For more information on him or his books visit his Amazon Authors Page. He is also co-founder and Vice President of T&R Independent Books where his books are featured. To reply to any blog you have the option of commenting on a blog and/or sending an email to marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. You may also be interested in his Facebook page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld.

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Insights: Death Ship to the Stars

Monday through Friday I deal with different subjects in this blog. I also post my blog to my Facebook page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld. Tuesday’s I try to focus on Insights. This week I am taking another look at Death Ship to the Stars.

The truck sped on throughout the day. Rushing nonstop the caravan turned north. It eventually left the interstate and was soon on County Roads. To those inside the trucks they could feel that they were traveling very fast on a roughly paved road. The question was the destination.
When the truck finally came to a stop John figured they’d been on the road all day and night. He guessed it was a Sunday morning. He knew they had traveled a long way but he was still left in the dark as to where they were now.
After the truck stopped the rear doors were opened and guards came in and unshackled them. A few moments later they were herded outside of the truck and standing in front of a beautiful building with a roof that reminded John of waves or sand dunes.
There was something about the odd shape of the roof that he knew was associated with a particular building that he’d read about. But he couldn’t pin it down.
Suddenly it came to him and he knew where they were.
“Spaceport America!” he exclaimed.
One of the women heard him.
“What?”
“See that building with all the glass in front and a roof that flows like sand in a desert. I know it. We are in New Mexico at Spaceport America.”
“In New Mexico?”
“Yes. It was the first spaceport ever built. It’s founder is dead now, but he founded Virgin Galactic and was a pioneer in space travel. His original vision was to take tourists into space and bring them back. But his company now is engaged in deep space exploration.”
The teenager looked at him, then at the building and finally back at him.
“But what does that have to do with us?”
“I don’t know, but I think we’re about to find out.”
[Excerpt from Death Ship to the Stars]

Virgin Galactic and SpaceX (both of which are in the book) are private pioneers in Space travel. But they are not the only ones. Space research continues on and before the end of President Trump’s first term in office I expect both companies and maybe a few more to have great success in Space. At this writing SpaceX has gotten the largest space in the news media. Aside from having successful launches they have also benefited from a working partnership, if you will, with the government. In addition Blue Origin has plans to launch a manned mission in 2019.
The point I wish to make is not about private entrepreneurs or government programs but about the future of space research and exploration. It is picking up speed. The three I’ve identified are all competing for commercial travel, but it is not hard to imagine them in the future also being involved in building spacecraft for both the government and private enterprises much as Boeing and others do for air travel.
It is changing our world!
Do you remember when space exploration first began in the late 1950s and early 1960s? Now look around your house. Much of what you see has been either invented or impacted by those beginning explorations. Well, I believe you will be seeing a replay of that economic and scientific results within the next few years.
Will I fly on a spaceship?
That would be fun. But at my age that probably won’t happen. But I can envision people doing so.
Then there is the creation of a Space Force.
We haven’t heard much about that lately, but as the commercial endeavors succeed and begin carrying paying customers the need for such a force will quickly outstrip anything the Air Force might have planned.
My personal opinion is that a Space Force should be patterned after the Navy rather than the Air Force.  The reason is simple: there are more similarities with the Navy than the Air Force. But whatever pattern they follow will need to be capable of prolonged mission time and rapid response.
All of this is exciting!
ARE YOU A BOOK REVIEWER? I am always looking for book reviews. Whether it is Perished The World That Was (Book One), World of Noah and the Ark (Book Two), World of Shem (Book Three), World of Abraham (Book Four) or Death Ship (Book One), Pauline A New Home (Book Two), or Task Force Hunter (Book Three), I value your reviews.
If you would like to review any of these books contact me at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com with the subject line indicating that desire. An example of an appropriate subject line would be: ‘Seek to review [book Title].’ In the email make sure to indicate your email address, your name, and the choice of copy (PDF or ePub).

– – – – – – –

R Frederick Riddle is the author of several books and is best known for Christian Historical Fiction. For more information on him or his books visit his Amazon Authors Page. He is also co-founder and Vice President of T&R Independent Books where his books are featured. To reply to any blog you have the option of commenting on a blog and/or sending an email to marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. You may also be interested in his Facebook page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld.

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Everyone Has A Story

Monday through Friday I deal with different subjects in this blog. I also post my blog to my Facebook page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld. Today I am writing about Everyone Has A Story.
You’ve probably heard the phrase “Everyone has a story” sometime in your lifetime. I believe this is true. Most people don’t realize it, aren’t interested in writing, or don’t know how. But all of us have life experiences that can be instructive or entertaining to the rest of us.
I write stories. I write Bible based stories and I write speculative fiction; I also write historical novels. In fact, you could say I write Biblical historical novels, American historical novels, and Futuristic historical novels. In the last cast it would be a history that hasn’t occurred yet.
What Kind of Stories Are You Talking About?
All kinds. You could write about your trip out west. It could be instructive, entertaining, or just a plain telling of the trip. Your story can go in a lot of different directions. How you write the story is up to you.
The same could be said for a purely fictional account loosely base on an historical event. This would require some research, but the labor would be worth it. Research usually enriches the story being told, so I encourage you to do research.
What Kind of Research?
Depends on your story. The more complicated or extensive it is the more research you need. Good research tends to enrich the story.
But I’ve Never Written A Book Before!
There’s always a first time. And while I don’t necessarily recommend it there are ghostwriters who’ll write your book for a fee. But before that try writing a rough draft by yourself. The draft won’t be perfect but it will be a start. You can also purchase books or borrow books from the library to help you write.
Writing can be fun.
But What About Finding an Agent or Publisher?
I’m neither for or against agents, but I don’t usually write about them. The reason is I favor Indie Publishing where you are the publisher. My Friday blogs deal with publishing. I favor KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing) because it is easy and generally free. And the quality is good.
Most of your Traditional Publishers require you having an agent. The process of finding an agent who is willing to represent you can take months, perhaps half a year or longer. Then the agent may take months to find a publisher and the publisher may take up to two years to publish your book. In my view that is way too long!
What About Genre?
Genre is basically a category of artistic expression. It is not just writing books, but that is all I will cover here. It is one of the first things you should check out. Different writers may have different ways of discovering their genre. The best way that I know of is to find other books that are similar to what you want to write. Then find out what categories those books are under.
When I wrote my first novel about space I thought the genre was science fiction. But a reader of this blog told me that Christian Science Fiction is known as Christian Speculative Fiction. So friends, family, and others can help you find out what your genre is. Once you discover that then learn the principles regarding it.
Can I Make Money Writing?
The short answer is yes. There are multiple ways of making money. Whether you can or not is something you must decide. However, if you enjoy writing than I believe that should be your first consideration.
Hone your craft, stick with it, and publish it. All of this can be done for free. And you can get your book out there. Then there’s the matter of advertising and other marketing ideas. In the end a love for writing or a real commitment to writing can sustain you for a long time.
If you have a story to tell why not tell it?
ARE YOU A BOOK REVIEWER? I am always looking for book reviews. Whether it is Perished The World That Was (Book One), World of Noah and the Ark (Book Two), World of Shem (Book Three), World of Abraham (Book Four) or Death Ship (Book One), Pauline A New Home (Book Two), or Task Force Hunter (Book Three), I value your reviews.
If you would like to review any of these books contact me at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com with the subject line indicating that desire. An example of an appropriate subject line would be: ‘Seek to review [book Title].’ In the email make sure to indicate your email address, your name, and the choice of copy (PDF or ePub).

– – – – – – –

R Frederick Riddle is the author of several books and is best known for Christian Historical Fiction. For more information on him or his books visit his Amazon Authors Page. He is also co-founder and Vice President of T&R Independent Books where his books are featured. To reply to any blog you have the option of commenting on a blog and/or sending an email to marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. You may also be interested in his Facebook page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld.