How to Tell a Great Story - Aneeta Sundararaj, Author
5:02 PM Posted by MAC
Aneeta’s
Fried Rice.
Ingredients
2 ½ small bowls of cooked
rice
½ chicken breast cubed
(chicken meat can substituted with mutton or beef)
2 teaspoons of
ginger-garlic-chili paste (this is 1 inch of ginger, 3 pips of garlic and 1 red
chili pounded together)
Salt to taste
½ teaspoon of black
pepper
2 tablespoons of meat
curry powder
1 medium onion, diced.
1 small bowl of mixed
vegetables (peas, corn and carrots)
A handful of fried ikan bilis (anchovies)
2 tablespoons of oil
Method
1. Slice the meat into ½ inch
lengths and marinate with 1 teaspoon of meat curry powder, salt and pepper.
2.
Heat up
oil in a wok. Add the ginger-garlic-chili paste and onion and stir until brown.
3.
Add the
rest of the meat curry powder and stir until fragrant.
4.
Add mix vegetables
and cook for about three minutes.
5.
Add the
meat and stir until cooked.
6.
Lastly,
add the rice and stir until it is properly coated with all the ingredients.
7. Remove from the wok and garnish with fried ikan bilis.
How to Tell a Great Story – Review by Martha A. Cheves, Author of Stir, Laugh, Repeat and Think With Your Taste Buds – Desserts
‘The
art of storytelling is not just about standing before a whole lot of
people and saying the first thing that pops into your head. It is about
communicating your thoughts, ideas and vision to people in an effective
manner. It is about sharing your opinion with someone else. It is
about recording your own history for future generations.’
When
I first started reading How to Tell A Great Story I thought to myself
“I write cookbooks so this book won’t pertain to me.” Wrong! This is
one of the most informative books I’ve ever read pertaining to writing
and that’s all forms of writing as well as speaking. By including
speaking I want to point out that no matter what your topic, when you
stand in front of someone you are a “story teller.” Whenever you start a
conversation you perform all of the steps of telling a story. You have
a theme or topic. There is a purpose in what you are saying and your
conversation will have at least one character. How well your
conversation, story or presentation is presented is determined by how
strongly you emit your theme, purpose and characters. And this is what
Aneeta Sundararaj will teach you in her book How to Tell a Great Story.
She shows how to effectively make the theme the essence of the story.
How to get the purpose of the story across to your audience. How to set
up your settings using smell, taste, feelings, hearing and sight. How
to build character within your characters. But most importantly she
will help you understand ‘why’ you wrote or want to write your story.
This
author takes it even further with her explanation of when, how and if
you should use slang, swearing and clichés. The use of punctuation –
what to use, when and where. And to wrap it all up she supplies the
forms that can be used for your research which is a vital part of your
writing. No one wants to hear someone talk about a subject that they
know nothing about. All-in-all, this is a book that should not only be
used by writers of all genres but also as a study book for corporate
presentations, teachers of all school ages and maybe a pastor now and
then. I write cookbooks but I will be referring back to this for my own
writings.








"This book is made up of 3 individual stories. All three are short reads and other than the setting, which is Mexico, all three are completely different."
(Martha A. Cheves)
"You'll follow Logan as she tramples through kudzu, goes to her first Testicle Festival, rents a room from a woman who runs around at night in the nude and connects with a wolf. You will also follow her as she gets her man, or should I say men."
(Martha A. Cheves)
"Will the people of Hollow Gap pull together and defend themselves from the Indian up-rise or will they fall apart. Find the answers to these questions and more when you read this book of taming the West through love."
(Martha A. Cheves)
"I would NEVER have guessed the turn of events that make up the last 20 pages of Fresh Frozen. The hiring of the spy will surprise you and the murder will surprise you even more. So if you love a good mystery, this book is definitely for you."
(Martha A. Cheves)
"As I read I felt as if I was a witness watching this evil man do the things he did to these young women. As I read through the trial I felt like one of those ready to convict him. As I listened to the comments by his wife, I could feel her pain and confusion."
(Martha A. Cheves)
"After reading Breaking My Silence I saw Jane as a strong person who was determined to do whatever was needed to get her children back into her life and to do whatever it took to make her life as complete as possible without the prostitution. This was one of the most informative books I've ever read about a subject that is normally kept behind closed doors."
(Martha A. Cheves)
"
While reading Genesis Beach I found myself not wanting to put it down. Each page had a piece of evidence that would help me solve the mystery before Logan. I really thought I had pin-pointed the murderer. Boy was I in for a shock."
(Martha A. Cheves)
"I've enjoyed reading this book. It's a cross between a "fiction" and a "true crime." So if you enjoy either genre you will enjoy A Study in Red. Do keep in mind that this book is very descriptive."
(Martha A. Cheves)
"The story captured me from the beginning, the evil of Rovella never ceased to amaze me, and the love that was always there but didn't surface due to guilt made me feel the pain that I'm sure she felt. The ending was perfect."
(Martha A. Cheves)
"This has been a really enjoyable book.
I recommend it to anyone who enjoys a good mystery. Beth, don't change your way of writing! I've really enjoyed reading Basket Case and will be reading more of Beth's books."
(Martha A. Cheves)
"I feel this is a wonderfully written book that would be helpful not just for young people who are overweight but also for those who look at a person, no matter the age, call them names, shun them and refuse to accept them as they are."
(Martha A. Cheves)
"Bertha Speaks Out is a very enjoyable book to read. Bertha finds herself in positions that will make you laugh and cry. You will feel her pain but also feel her pride when she stands up for what is right. It’s a must read for children as well as adults.
"
(Martha A. Cheves)
"Read Thicker than Water and ask yourself these questions. Did the wife make the right choice? Was her decision worth 15 years of her family’s life? Would you have made the same decision?
I highly recommend Thicker than Water. As I said, it was a joy to read."
(Martha A. Cheves)
"As I read I kept asking myself “Who would put out a hit on David and why?” “Who are The Chosen Few and what do they have to do with David?” “Will Max get to David before it’s too late?” You will have to read The Chosen Few yourself to find the answers to these questions."
(Martha A. Cheves)
"This book has taught me that life is like a chain. Everyone we meet becomes a link in our chain. Some links may be weak, but the strong ones keep the chain from breaking. And as memories and secrets are shared with those strong links, they become even stronger."
(Martha A. Cheves)

I'm from Georgia, moved to North Carolina by way of Florida. I've been in Charlotte for 14 years and love it. The recipes in my book Stir, Laugh, Repeat are all tested by "Food Testers" of which I now have 24. They try a dish and rate it from 1-10 with only those scoring at least an 8 making the book. My website is a holding place for my 2nd book Stir, Laugh, Repeat... Again. Please visit my site to find new recipes and tips. All recipes are easy, using common ingredients and according to my testers, great!
September 24, 2011 2:54 PM
Sounds a good book. Thanks.