R. Frederick Riddle's Blog, page 29

Ron’s Tip of the Day Being an Indie

Welcome to Ron’s Tip of the Day. Today I am looking at Being an Indie.

I have blogged in the past on being an Indie Author and an Indie Publisher. But I’ve never blogged, to my knowledge, about just being an Indie.

What is an Indie?

For starters Indie is short for Independent. Basically, that is a person who has chosen to write and publish their books apart from traditional or even so-called self-publishing venues. It is a person who is going the DIY (Do It Yourself) route.

What is an Indie Author?

This is a person who takes the responsibility of writing, editing, and proofing. It doesn’t necessarily mean that person does each of these things. They either do them or hire someone to do them, but they are in control of all it.

What is an Indie Publisher?

This is a person who takes personal control of everything required for a professional looking book. He/she controls the printing of the book, the book cover, and all preparation. Again, it does not mean that this person personally does each of these things. They may hire it out, but ultimately, they are in control.

What is an Indie Marketer?

Once again, we have a person taking personal control. In this case, it is taking control of marketing the book. This may involve personal work and/or hired work.

Tip of the Day: Being Indie gives you control.

You can get our free Guide to Writing by contacting us at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. Plus we will send you our Free Brochure which tells you about our services.

Let’s do it!

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

ARE YOU A BOOK REVIEWER? I am always looking for book reviews for R. Frederick Riddle and Tess Riddle books. I value your reviews.

If you would like to review our 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 best known for Christian Historical and Speculative Fiction. 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.

Ron’s Tip of the Day How DBA Works

Welcome to Ron’s Tip of the Day. Today I am looking at How DBA Works.

I recently blogged on the Type of Business and focused on Doing Business As. In this blog I will take the subject a little deeper.

When we opened our business in 2014, we wanted a name people would easily remember. So, we came up with T&R Independent Books, which became our DBA. When dealing with the state government they recognize that Teresa and Ronald Riddle are doing business as T&R Independent Books.

This now gave us legal standing to establish a Business Bank Account, to do commercial business, to collect taxes if need be, and perform other business transactions. In short, that meant that we were regarded as a legal business entity though we are technically just husband and wife.

Another benefit of using a DBA is the low reporting requirements and fees. Instead of dealing with time consuming reports we get one per quarter that is a single page which I do online. It allows me time to work the business.

Still another benefit is my business email which is marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. The dot com domain used to be where our website was located, but last year the website was moved to the same domain as this blog. So, we now have blog and website located at the same url.

The reason for the above changes began with our decision to be an Indie Publisher and have continued as we expand (we now have TR Writing Services as part of the business).

Tip of the Day: DBA gives great flexibility.

You can get our free Guide to Writing by contacting us at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. Plus we will send you our Free Brochure which tells you about our services.

Let’s do it!

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

ARE YOU A BOOK REVIEWER? I am always looking for book reviews for R. Frederick Riddle and Tess Riddle books. I value your reviews.

If you would like to review our 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 best known for Christian Historical and Speculative Fiction. 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.

Ron’s Tip of the Day Type of Business

Welcome to Ron’s Tip of the Day. Today I am looking at Type of Business.

In my last blog I referred to the naming of your business. Today I want to discuss what I believe is the best type of business for writers.

If you watch my video series Its Your Business you will learn about Types of Business. There are Corporations, Limited Liability Corporation, Partnership, and Doing Business As (DBA). I favor the DBA because it costs less, easier to establish, and requires less reporting.

Its primary problem is lack of protection.

Essentially, a DBA is simply a name recognized by the government as you (individual) doing business under that name.  It allows you to concentrate more on the writing and less on trying to meet a lot of government red tape.

If you must have a corporate structure, then an LLC is best. You have maximum protection while enjoying the benefits of being incorporated. But if you don’t have a convoluted business I believe the DBA is the best.

Because a DBA is a recognized entity it allows you to set up a Business bank account, conduct business, enact contracts, and most other business activities. All of that with minimal costs!

Tip of the Day: Take a deep look at a DBA.

You can get our free Guide to Writing by contacting us at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. Plus we will send you our Free Brochure which tells you about our services.

Let’s do it!

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

ARE YOU A BOOK REVIEWER? I am always looking for book reviews for R. Frederick Riddle and Tess Riddle books. I value your reviews.

If you would like to review our 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 best known for Christian Historical and Speculative Fiction. 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.

Ron’s Tip of the Day Naming Your Business

Welcome to Ron’s Tip of the Day. Today I am looking at Naming Your Business.

In my last blog I referred to my blog and video on Its Your Business. Let’s dive deeper into this subject.

One of the first items of discussion when speaking of your business is the name of your business. To help you I will provide a very brief summary of my business name: Chronicles, RFrederickRiddle, and T&R Independent books (TR-Indbkstore). The first referred to my first book, the second to me as an author, and the third to our business. All were correct, but it is better if you have a vision of your future.

Chronicles – the book was Refuge: Genesis Chronicles. Great if only that book written.

RFrederick Riddle – Author’s name. Most writers should probably use their author name.

TR-Indbkstore – Our business name as an Indie Publisher.

The reason it is best to get a name that lasts is your website, Business Facebook page, your legal identity, and much more are tied to that name. These can be very difficult to change. We went this route because I didn’t anticipate writing several novels nor did I anticipate establishing myself as an Indie Publisher. This caused me to purchase new domains and rebuild my webpages, etc. All cost time and money.

Tip of the Day: Seriously consider your vision of future when naming business. Failure can cost time, effort, and money.

You can get our free Guide to Writing by contacting us at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. Plus we will send you our Free Brochure which tells you about our services.

Let’s do it!

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

ARE YOU A BOOK REVIEWER? I am always looking for book reviews for R. Frederick Riddle and Tess Riddle books. I value your reviews.

If you would like to review our 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 best known for Christian Historical and Speculative Fiction. 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.

Ron’s Tip of the Day Revisiting Your Business

Welcome to Ron’s Tip of the Day. Today I am looking at Revisiting Your Business.

Recently I wrote a blog on Its Your Business (intro). Have you watched the video and the video series? I am constantly looking at ways of improving how I communicate with you and how I can help you.

The video series demonstrates that I am relatively new at using video, but it also demonstrates that I have information that I can impart to you for FREE! Following is a description of why I feel that treating your writing as a business is so important.

I started writing as a teenager. If you were to see those first pitiful attempts, you would shake your head. How did he ever become a writer? But I did.

Unfortunately, I didn’t know much about writing and had to learn through the school of hard knocks. But you don’t have to.

I struggled through my teen years, early adulthood, and middle age without being able to put together a complete novel. Moreover, I had no idea that I should approach the whole thing as a business. The result was that my struggles were painful. I knew I wanted to write but that was it! If I had treated my writing career as a business, I would have made better decisions, sought out experienced advice, and studied my craft.

It was this experience that inspired me to help others who want to write. The Its Your Business video series along with the cheat sheets are free to you to download and use. Learn the principles without the years of frustration.

Tip of the Day: Go to Its Your Business and upgrade your career!

You can get our free Guide to Writing by contacting us at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. Plus we will send you our Free Brochure which tells you about our services.

Let’s do it!

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

ARE YOU A BOOK REVIEWER? I am always looking for book reviews for R. Frederick Riddle and Tess Riddle books. I value your reviews.

If you would like to review our 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 best known for Christian Historical and Speculative Fiction. 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.

Ron’s Tip of the Day Story Location

Welcome to Ron’s Tip of the Day. Today I am looking at Story Location.

Where (and when) does your story take place? This is not as critical to your story as you may think. Stories have been written where the location is never disclosed to the reader without hindering the story itself.

However, if you do state a location, whether fact or fiction, be sure of your description. This is especially true of actual places. You don’t want a reader who has been there to dispute your facts.

A good example of this was a story (don’t remember the name) where a man owned two cats who helped him solve mysteries. The thing is you never know the city or even the region he lived in other than the Midwest.

Putting this principle to work requires a bit of research on your part. When writing Perished: The World That Was I had to research the first five hundred years after the Flood. Why? Because little is known outside the Bible’s narrative of what that world was like. By looking at the rise of civilization after the Flood I got a peak into the past.

Tip of the Day: Research location or time of your story. Readers will notice.

You can get our free Guide to Writing by contacting us at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. Plus we will send you our Free Brochure which tells you about our services.

Let’s do it!

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

ARE YOU A BOOK REVIEWER? I am always looking for book reviews for R. Frederick Riddle and Tess Riddle books. I value your reviews.

If you would like to review our 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 best known for Christian Historical and Speculative Fiction. 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.

Ron’s Tip of the Day Become the Character

Welcome to Ron’s Tip of the Day. Today I am looking at Become the Character.

There is a lot of good advice about character traits. We can all learn to do better regarding our character traits. But why not go further and become the character?

What Does Become the Character mean?

It means that you (the writer) immerse yourself into the character. You let the character live the story instead of you forcing the character into a certain mold. There are a lot of areas where you the writer dominate and decide. But the actual details should be generated by the character.

For example, in my book Perished, when Adam was talking or doing something, I became him. I saw what Adam saw, experienced what he experienced, and thereby made decisions. These decisions were his not mine the author. How did I do that?

First, although Adam is an historical person, I am the person who created his personality in the book. Second, because of that I knew him and felt him. And third, I let my imagination impose his personality upon mine. Finally, Adam became the author, writing his own scenes.

Does that make sense?

Chances are you have gone through a similar process but just didn’t realize it. You know your character inside/out, so why not take that next step and let the character take control?

Tip of the Day: Use your imagination and let the character take control.

You can get our free Guide to Writing by contacting us at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. Plus we will send you our Free Brochure which tells you about our services.

Let’s do it!

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

ARE YOU A BOOK REVIEWER? I am always looking for book reviews for R. Frederick Riddle and Tess Riddle books. I value your reviews.

If you would like to review our 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 best known for Christian Historical and Speculative Fiction. 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.

Ron’s Tip of the Day Plotting

Welcome to Ron’s Tip of the Day. Today I am looking at Plotting.

The plot is the framework of the story. It’s the structure upon which you build, insert characters, scenes and the like. You want to always keep the plot in the back of your mind so you can call it back when needed.

The plot is essential. Without it your story will ramble, bore, and ultimately fail. The plot does not guarantee success of the story, but no plot will guarantee the story will flop.

Every scene should somehow connect with that plot. Think of the plot as the foundation of a building. It is the necessary framework to support that building and you are the engineer building the story character by character, and scene by scene.

You probably have a library filled with books in your favorite genre. Examine some of them and you will see how important plot is to the story. As with other aspects of writing you can find entire books written about plotting. Check out your library or local bookstore and you will find some excellent books. But mostly remember to keep your plot in mind when writing.

Tip of the Day: Always keep the plot in mind.

You can get our free Guide to Writing by contacting us at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. Plus we will send you our Free Brochure which tells you about our services.

Let’s do it!

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

ARE YOU A BOOK REVIEWER? I am always looking for book reviews for R. Frederick Riddle and Tess Riddle books. I value your reviews.

If you would like to review our 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 best known for Christian Historical and Speculative Fiction. 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.

Ron’s Tip of the Day Discover Your Audience

Welcome to Ron’s Tip of the Day. Today I am looking at Discover Your Audience.

This can be tricky. If you have previously written books, then you already have something to gauge who is your audience.

Principle

So, there are three principles:

New Authors: Make use of reviewers. Identify those with a positive view.Established Authors: Review sales data to see who buys and who reviews your books.All Authors: Look at other authors in your genre. Who is in their audience?

Make a list of audience possibilities. Then narrow the list down until you have gotten it as refined as possible.

Tip of the Day: Make a list of audience possibilities. Then narrow the list down until you have gotten it as refined as possible. 

You can get our free Guide to Writing by contacting us at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. Plus we will send you our Free Brochure which tells you about our services.

Let’s do it!

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

ARE YOU A BOOK REVIEWER? I am always looking for book reviews for R. Frederick Riddle and Tess Riddle books. I value your reviews.

If you would like to review our 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 best known for Christian Historical and Speculative Fiction. 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.

Ron’s Tip of the Day Memorial Day

Welcome to Ron’s Tip of the Day. Today I am looking at Memorial Day.

Today is Memorial Day. It is the day set aside to honor those who died defending the very values and country we love. I hope that all of you are enjoying yourselves.

While you do, always remember the sacrifices made. Men and women of our services died so that our representative democracy could continue. They died so that if we want to worship God we can or if you want to deny Him, you can do that also. They died so we could lift up praises to God and thank Him for giving us this nation.

They died so that a man or woman in Rhode Island could vote, or in Iowa, or in W. Virginia, or anywhere in the United States. They died so that our flag would bravely wave. They died for the right to salute the flag or pray for the President or to vote.

They died for the people living then and they died for the people living now. They didn’t choose to die (in most cases) but when the time came to take a stand, they did.

Tip of the Day: Remember those who in uniform died for us all.  

You can get our free Guide to Writing by contacting us at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. Plus we will send you our Free Brochure which tells you about our services.

Let’s do it!

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

ARE YOU A BOOK REVIEWER? I am always looking for book reviews for R. Frederick Riddle and Tess Riddle books. I value your reviews.

If you would like to review our 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 best known for Christian Historical and Speculative Fiction. 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.