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Spanakopita and "greek" roast potatoes
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Aug. 24th, 2007 @ 11:08 am
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Spanakopita:
2 lbs or so spinach
1 onion, finely chopped (I didn't have an onion so used onion powder, which I often do anyway because I hate little bits of onion in stuff)
8 oz or so feta cheese
2 eggs, beaten
1 pkg phyllo pastry
olive oil
minced or granulated garlic
salt
pepper
nutmeg
parsley
melted butter
Clean and drain the spinach, squeezing to get rid of extra moisture. (I used frozen, and it was fine.)
Saute onion in some olvie oil, then add the garlic, then the spinach and stir well. The recipe I had called for 4 Tbsp oil, I found I needed much more to coat the spinach the way you're supposed to. Do NOT add water!
Cover and cook gently five or six minutes.
Add seasonings--a Tbsp or so of parsley, maybe half a tsp each of salt and pepper? Your taste. But only a few whispers of nutmeg, as it can overpower. You can always add more later.
Set aside to cool a little.
Crumble the feta into the beaten eggs.
If the spinach mixture has released and liquid, drain it. You might want to taste it to check the seasonings.
Add the egg/feta mixture and stir well. Set aside.
Use phyllo according to package instructions in a baking dish, brushing melted butter on each layer. They say to keep phyllo covered with a damp cloth; this was disastroud for me as damp phyllo is like damp toilet paper. I took the damp towel off and after a moment found it much easier to work with; if you're quick enough you shouldn't have problems with drying, but I don't like in a dry climate either.
I used four layers for the bottom. Then add the spinach, then cover with more phyllo and keep covering. I used six layers and thought it could have used more, but I love phyllo. So next time I'll probably use 8 layers for each. It's best if you can then put this in the fridge for half an hour to set.
Cut the top layers into a diamond patter to allow steam to escape. Bake at 190 (375F) for 40 minutes or so until pastry is golden. let sit ten minutes before cutting.
Parboil potatoes in their skins (I used new potatoes, which aren't red here. You might try fingerlings or similar small potatoes, too.) Drain. Cut the largest ones into pieces.
Preheat oven to 425 (210C). Pour olive oil into a roasting pan big enough for your poatatoes, and heat the oil for ten minutes.
Add potatoes, pop back into oven. Check and stir them every fifteen minutes or so. They'll cook for about fifty minutes.
Fifteen minutes before the potatoes are done, add the following:
a good sprinkle of salt (I like these salty, so I add a Tbsp or so.)
A good grinding of pepper
Oregano--a heaping half Tbsp or so
Parsley--same
nutmeg--a dusting, maybe 1/8 tsp?
Squeeze half a lemon over the top--to your taste, but I only gave it one squeeze.
Stir well, put back in the oven for the final fifteen minutes, and serve hot.
I was worried about these but they really were delicious, and lovely with the spanakopita. |
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Peanut Butter Cake
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Aug. 24th, 2007 @ 10:59 am
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1/2 Cup AP flour
1/2 cup packed brown sugar (here in the UK I use dark muscovado for this part, which is the topping, and light for the cake)
1/4 Cup peanut butter
3 Tbsp butter or margarine (butter works better)
Stir together flour and brown sugar, then use a pastry blender to cut in the peanut butter and butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. (Usually when I do it it's rather damp and sticky too, which is fine.) Set aside.
In a large bowl, mix:
2 Cups AP flour
1 Cup packed brown sugar (again, light muscovado in the UK)
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda (bicarbonate)
1/4 tsp salt (note, UK peanut butter is slightly less salty than US. I add a little extra salt to make up for it.)
1 Cup milk
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
2 eggs (WELL beaten. This is a fairly stodgy cake; you want to introduce a lot of air into the eggs to get it to really rise.)
Beat these ingredients on High for three minutes, scraping bowl frequently.
Grease a 13x9x2 baking pan. Pour mixture into it. Sprinkle topping mix over the top.
Bake at 375 (190 UK) for about thirty minutes, test with toothpick.
Don't panic if it smells a little burned. It's the sugar topping.
This cake is much better the second day. It's good the first but excellent after it's had a chance to sit (covered of course) for a while. |
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Slow-Roasted Pork
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Apr. 30th, 2007 @ 02:29 pm
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Oh, this is so yummy. I was never a big pork fan before (and I still can't stand the smell or taste of ham, for some reason) but this is delicious and so, so easy.
1 pork roast, shoulder or leg (I prefer shoulder). You want at least 4 pounds, but the recipe will work for anything bigger.
garlic and spices--minced garlic, rosemary, sage, a little mustard powder, salt and pepper. (If there are other spices you like better you can of course substitute those. I know a lot of people like chilis and stuff on this, but I don't care for spicy.)
Olive oil
Red wine vinegar
Heat the oven to 200C/400F.
Place the roast in a roasting tin (on a rack, if you like). Press garlic into the scores on the skin and rub the skin and meat with the other spices and more garlic (you'll probably use a tbsp or so of garlic altogether, depending on the size).
Rub a lttle oil on, too. Pork has plenty of fat but this will be cooking for a long time. Pour a little vinegar over. It helps the skin crisp up and adds a little flavor.
Roast at 200C/400F for thirty minutes. Then turn the heat down to 110C/230F, and cook for...at least eight-ten hours, depending on the size of the roast, but 24 hours is best.
Every once in a while turn it, or add a little more oil or vinegar (but no vinegar within the last few hours, unless you really want it to taste vinegar-y).
At 20-24 hours, the meat will fall apart--you can pull it with your fingers, and it's amazingly juicy and delicious. Really. This is one of my favorite things to cook simply because it's such a huge reward for such little work. |
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Mar. 13th, 2007 @ 10:04 am
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Books
*Look at the list of books below.
*Bold the ones you’ve read.
*Italicize the ones you want to read.
*If you are reading this, tag you're it.
1. The Da Vinci Code (Dan Brown)
2. Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen)--one of my favorites
3. To Kill A Mockingbird (Harper Lee)--one of my favorites
4. Gone With The Wind (Margaret Mitchell)--one of my favorites
5. The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (Tolkien)
6. The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring (Tolkien)
7. The Lord of the Rings: Two Towers (Tolkien)
8. Anne of Green Gables (L.M. Montgomery)
9. Outlander (Diana Gabaldon)
10. A Fine Balance (Rohinton Mistry)
11. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Rowling)
12. Angels and Demons (Dan Brown)
13. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Rowling)
14. A Prayer for Owen Meany (John Irving)--I hated this book
15. Memoirs of a Geisha (Arthur Golden)
16. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (Rowling)
17. Fall on Your Knees(Ann-Marie MacDonald)
18. The Stand (Stephen King)
19. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban(Rowling)
20. Jane Eyre (Charlotte Bronte)
21. The Hobbit (Tolkien)
22. The Catcher in the Rye (J.D. Salinger)
23. Little Women (Louisa May Alcott)
24. The Lovely Bones (Alice Sebold)
25. Life of Pi (Yann Martel)
26. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (Douglas Adams)
27. Wuthering Heights (Emily Bronte)--started a few times, never finished
28. The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe (C. S. Lewis)
29. East of Eden (John Steinbeck)
30. Tuesdays with Morrie(Mitch Albom)
31. Dune (Frank Herbert)
32. The Notebook (Nicholas Sparks)
33. Atlas Shrugged (Ayn Rand)
34. 1984 (Orwell)
35. The Mists of Avalon (Marion Zimmer Bradley)--I own a copy, it's TBR
36. The Pillars of the Earth (Ken Follett)
37. The Power of One (Bryce Courtenay)
38. I Know This Much is True(Wally Lamb)
39. The Red Tent (Anita Diamant)
40. The Alchemist (Paulo Coelho)
41. The Clan of the Cave Bear (Jean M. Auel)
42. The Kite Runner (Khaled Hosseini)
43. Confessions of a Shopaholic (Sophie Kinsella)
44. The Five People You Meet In Heaven (Mitch Albom)
45. Bible (not the whole thing)
46. Anna Karenina (Tolstoy)
47. The Count of Monte Cristo (Alexandre Dumas)--again, own it, TBR
48. Angela’s Ashes (Frank McCourt)
49. The Grapes of Wrath (John Steinbeck)
50. She’s Come Undone (Wally Lamb)
51. The Poisonwood Bible (Barbara Kingsolver)
52. A Tale of Two Cities (Dickens)
53. Ender’s Game (Orson Scott Card)
54. Great Expectations (Dickens)
55. The Great Gatsby (Fitzgerald)
56. The Stone Angel (Margaret Laurence)
57. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Rowling) - read
58. The Thorn Birds (Colleen McCullough)
59. The Handmaid’s Tale (Margaret Atwood)
60. The Time Traveller’s Wife (Audrey Niffenegger)
61. Crime and Punishment (Fyodor Dostoyevsky)
62. The Fountainhead (Ayn Rand)
63. War and Peace (Tolstoy)
64. Interview With The Vampire (Anne Rice)
65. Fifth Business (Robertson Davis)
66. One Hundred Years Of Solitude (Gabriel Garcia Marquez)
67. The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants (Ann Brashares)
68. Catch-22 (Joseph Heller)--I hated this book
69. Les Miserables (Hugo)
70. The Little Prince (Antoine de Saint-Exupery)
71. Bridget Jones’ Diary (Fielding)
72. Love in the Time of Cholera (Marquez)
73. Shogun (James Clavell)
74. The English Patient (Michael Ondaatje)
75. The Secret Garden (Frances Hodgson Burnett)
76. The Summer Tree (Guy Gavriel Kay)
77. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (Betty Smith)
78. The World According To Garp (John Irving)
79. The Diviners (Margaret Laurence)
80. Charlotte’s Web (E.B. White)
81. Not Wanted On The Voyage (Timothy Findley)
82. Of Mice And Men (Steinbeck)
83. Rebecca (Daphne DuMaurier)--one of my favorites
84. Wizard’s First Rule (Terry Goodkind)
85. Emma (Jane Austen)
86. Watership Down(Richard Adams)
87. Brave New World (Aldous Huxley)
88. The Stone Diaries (Carol Shields)
89. Blindness (Jose Saramago)
90. Kane and Abel (Jeffrey Archer)
91. In The Skin Of A Lion (Ondaatje)
92. Lord of the Flies (Golding)
93. The Good Earth(Pearl S. Buck)
94. The Secret Life of Bees (Sue Monk Kidd)
95. The Bourne Identity (Robert Ludlum)
96. The Outsiders (S.E. Hinton)
97. White Oleander (Janet Fitch)
98. A Woman of Substance (Barbara Taylor Bradford)
99. The Celestine Prophecy (James Redfield)
100. Ulysses (James Joyce) |
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A Lovely Soup
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Feb. 22nd, 2007 @ 09:25 am
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I had a craving for soup, but had very little money. All I had in the fridge/freezer was half a roast chicken, left over from Sunday dinner, and a pound of ground beef. Here's what I did:
First I bought a package of carrots (37p). Because the carrots were cheap I went ahead and splurged out and got another package of chicken breasts, £2.17.
I made the meatballs the night before.
1 lb (or 500g, to be exact) ground beef
a couple of handfuls of bread crumbs--maybe 1/4 cup?
3 tbsp or so of Worcestershire sauce (I was low on milk--and wanted to use what I had for dumplings--but needed something liquid for the crumbs. Luckily, I love Worcestershire.)
1 1/2 tbsp or so of herbs de Provence
Combine. Roll into small balls--maybe half an inch?
Bake in a 190C/375F oven for about 12 minutes. (Note: if you want bigger balls--heh heh--just adjust the cooking time. I usually make one-inch balls for pasta sauces, using a different version of this recipe, and bake them 20 minutes.)
You can drop these right in the soup if you've made it all at once. I kept them in the fridge overnight. They were delicious, so yummy I'm trying to think of new recipes to use them in.
Okay. For the soup:
meatballs
2 chicken breasts (roughly). I baked the new breasts with the same Herbs de Provence as I used in the meatballs and on Sunday's roast.
Carrots. It was a 1 pound sack of sliced carrots, I believe. About 2 cups worth?
Beef stock (actually, I use Better than Bouillon)
Chicken stock (I used a Knorr liquid stock mix)
Boiling water, about 5-6 cups/1.7L
Herbs de Provence
olive oil
butter
salt & pepper
garlic powder
onion powder
flour (AP)
white wine (optional)
shallots (dried)
Dumplings (see bottom).
Okay. Heat about 3 tbsp olive oil and 1-2 tbsp butter in the bottom of a large pot. Add carrots. Sweat (a very low fry) for five minutes or so.
Add garlic and onion powder, maybe 2-3 tbsp or so of each? I don't usually measure this stuff out. If you like a lot of garlic and onion, use more. If not, use less. Add a tsp or so of salt and pepper.
Keep stirring carrots, then sprinkle with flour. Stir more.
Add a tsp or so of Better than Bouillon. Stir.
Add shallots. I meant to add a tsp or so, but my hand slipped and I think I ended up with over a tbsp. This actually ended up being delicious, so use a tbsp or so. Stir.
You should add boiling water right away, but I had to wait for the kettle to heat. I don't know if this deepend the flavor or not, but the carrots were brownish from the bouillon and kind of sludgy from the flour and flavor powders when I added it.
Okay. Pour on the water. Stir. Add a glug or two of wine if you're using it. Maybe 1/4 cup or so. (In metric thats, what, 75 mil or so? I'd duble check that if I were you.)
At this point I thought I'd made a mistake, because it smelled both bland and astringent. Almost like bleach or something. I figured, it takes time for the flavors to develop, and so set it to a gentle boil and gave it forty minutes or so.
Then I shredded the cooked chicken and added it. Let that boil for another half hour or so.
Now I tasted the stock and it was truly getting yummy.
I added the meatballs.
It was a bit liquidy yet, so I made a buerre blanc (hot stock mixed with flour) and added it in to thicken a little. Then I turned the heat up and let it reduce for half an hour or so.
At this point I could have made the dumplings, but hubs wasn't on his way home yet, so it ended up simmering for another half hour. This is why I love soup.
Finally it was time to do the dumplings. I love, love, love dumplings. My Mommy used to make me chicken and dumplings (which I will post the recipe for at some point) all the time, especially when I was sick. I freaking love dumplings, seriously. So I was happy to make them, especially as it meant I didn't have to spend the money to buy bread to go with the soup.
Dumplings:
2 cups sifted AP flour (they rise better if the flour is sifted)
3 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp shortening
1/2 cup parsley*
1 cup milk
Cut the shortening into the flour, salt, and baking powder combo. Add parsley*. Add milk. Stir.
Drop by large tsp into lightly boiling soup. Work quickly. When you've added it all, cover the pot tightly. Turn the heat down. DO NOT PEEK. I cannot emphasize this strongly enough. DO NOT, DO NOT, DO NOT PEEK. If you do the dumplings will be hard and yucky.
Cook 20 mins. Voila.
*The dumplings used in chicken and dumplings contain only parsley. For last night's soup I added some Herbs de provence. This was delicious...but also, I think, a bit much with that particular flavor combo. next time I will either not add it to the chicken as much, or leave it out of the dumplings. It WAS delicious, don't get me wrong. The hubby and I each ate two big bowls of this soup. Even the kids had a little--Princess loved the meatballs. But it may have been a bit much.
Also, if you like a more liquidy soup, don't let it reduce as long.
This was so thick with meatballs and chicken and carrots, and the broth was so light, and the dumplings so fluffy and flavorful...mmmm. A yummy new invention by me! I could eat this once or twice a week, I think, no problem!
Oh, and I was originally going to add frozen peas to this, but forgot. I think they would be delicious in there, too, so go ahead if you're a pea fan! |
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We have officially moved
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Jan. 29th, 2007 @ 11:11 am
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This blog no longer connects to the December Quinn website. I'm sad, because it's so pretty here...
Update your bookmarks!
http://www.decemberquinn.blogspot.com |
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MOVING
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Jan. 13th, 2007 @ 12:31 am
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Well, folks...it seem the action is all on Blogger these days, so we are in the process of officially making the Blogger blog part of the website.
What that means to you is...you'll be reading the same posts over there, but you'll be able to interact a little more too, since I actually get comments there.
It's http://www.decemberquinn.blogspot.com
Hope to see you there! |
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I am a terrible pen pal
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Jan. 8th, 2007 @ 10:28 am
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I may have mentioned this before, but it's true no matter how many times I say it.
I am seriously the world's worst Pen Pal.
You'd think email would make it easier. I'm on the damn computer all the time, right?
But it doesn't. It actually makes things worse, because I forget emails. I don't want to; it's not that they're unimportant. But I think, "I don't have time to write back now, I'll do it later," and nine times out of ten I've forgotten by then.
And then I hate myself for it, but I get so many emails a day that I never remember who I owe emails to, and it seems the kids have some sort of radar for when I sit down to try and figure it out, and the bottom line is, if I owe you an email I'm sorry. Maybe you could email me again and remind me?
I promise I won't forget this time.
We watched "Munich" this weekend. Damn, that is a good movie. And damn, Eric Bana is HOT in it! He never really appealed to me, but the 70's-looking Bana, with stubble and longer hair ...oh yeah! Yeah! Not to mention our lovely new Bond, Daniel Craig, is in it too.
But no matter who was in it, it's an excellent film. Bana was freaking robbed when it comes to the Oscars. That was a performance worth a statue, and while I can't comment on the performances of last year's Best Actor nominees (because sad to say, I haven't seen any of the films)...they must have been truly amazing to top Bana.
I hadn't wanted to see the film, because I thought it was about the actual tragedy at the Olympics and I don't particularly like movies where everybody dies at the end (except The Dirty Dozen.) But it wasn't. It's about the aftermath, and it's about assassination, and if there's one thing I love to see movies about it's assassination. (Unless it's tacky "what-if" films about assassinations of actual living figures, in which case I do not watch. That's not a political statement, simply a matter of style.)
Anyway, go rent or buy "Munich".
And I almost forgot: Happy Elvis's Birthday, everyone! |
| » Those Boring Male Strippers |
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No, seriously--keep reading, even if you're a man.
(BTW, I've found one thing I actually like about Beta Blogger--the "New Post" button in the upper right-hand corner. It's nice not to have to go to my dashboard every time I want to do a new post. So, surprise surprise, there's one un-sucky thing about Beta Blogger.)
I planned to do a very different post today, but I realized that might step on a post I have planned for next month. So you get this instead, and you'll hear my thoughts on male archetypes of the 70's next month. Seriously. It'll be a lot of fun, too. I'm excited about it.
No, today I'm going to tell you why I have an aversion to male strippers. And trust me, it relates to writing too.
I've seen male strippers a few times. I went to a male strip club about, oh gosh, ten years ago now, for the first time. A friend of a friend was dating one of the guys and we all tagged along.
It was...okay. It wasn't quite as sleazy as I thought it might be, but it was pretty sleazy, and I have to admit, seeing Stripper's Girlfriend giggle and say "I wish he wouldn't look at me while he does that, it gets me too turned on" or whatever the exact phrase was, while Stripper humped the air and made his banana-hammock bounce in what I frankly thought was a revolting way, made me wonder what was wrong with me. Maybe there still is something, because I'm not really a fan of the Bouncing Peenie.
This feeling was confirmed when I went with a friend of my brother's to the "male dancing" half of a strip club on my brother's bachelor night. And was confirmed for the final time when my best friend Cori and I went to what was otherwise a pretty good ladies' night at a Ft. Lauderdale bar. (Actually, it was kind of a genius LN--$1 Cosmos, Sex and the City on the big-screen, and drinks served by male strippers. Pretty cool. Except the music was too loud, which defeated the purpose of having SATC on the TVs. Anyway.)
Every hour or so, one of the "waiters" would do his strip show. And here's my point, hidden though it may be:
Watching male strippers actually strip is pretty hot. Watching them hump the bar in a g-string? Isn't.
My favorite part of the male strip show was that first time, and always has been, watching them actually disrobe. At that first club there was a guy in a full Navy uniform. It was An Officer and a Gentleman right there in the club...until he tore it all off--even the hat, the moron--within about thirty seconds and proceeded to be Bouncing Peenie Man.
Why, oh why?
Why bother wearing this great costume--the Navy uniform, the police or mechanic uniform, the tuxedo (that was nice), if you're going to lose it all before the first chorus of whatever song you're using and just be Mr. Generic with your dangly bits flying around?
It's the unearthing part that's sexy. The rest isn't sexy. It's just graphic. It's the difference between a sex scene in Body Heat and a sex scene in Not Without my Dildo.
(I realize I write very explicit things, so this may seem a bit incongruous coming from me. But I don't think it is, and here's why. Because I try my best to allow my reader to form at least some kind of connection with the characters before the sex starts. Because although I use words like cock and cunt, I also try to focus on emotions. I try not to make it mechanical. In other words, I try to keep the male dancers' clothes on long enough for you to enjoy seeing them dance shirtless with their pants on for a while [am I the only one who thinks a guy in just pants is hot?]before you get to the good stuff.)
But that isn't even the point. It's not about my sex scenes, or any sex scenes. It's about character. It's about show, don't tell (really!)
You can rip that stripper's pants off in the first ten minutes by introducing a character like so:
Mollie was thirty-three and wore a long black dress covered with lace. Her hair was light brown and curly. She always wished she had straight hair. Her eyes were blue. She was an accountant and she liked numbers. She was lonely. She hadn't wanted to go to this party but she thought maybe she could meet somebody, a boyfriend even, so she let her friends talk her into going. Mollie wanted to get married soon and her friends said...blah blah blah...
Or you could keep things hidden, like so:
Mollie adjusted the skirt of her black lace dress and tried to look like she belonged here. When did people attending parties get so much younger? And when had she started thinking longingly of her empty bed, instead of wishing someone was in it with her?
Probably around the time she realized Tammy had lied, and her chances of meeting an eligible man here were about as good as her chances of falling down a well into another dimension. Sp, pretty much zero chance.
Now, neither of those are great examples, but you get the idea.
This works for plots, too. Let the reader guess things, let them wonder. Let them be intrigued by the little mysteries you've created around your characters as they get to know them.
Don't put it all upfront.
Don't turn your characters into Bouncing Peenies. Keep the stripper's pants on for a while.
Jan. 5th, 2007 @ 06:11 pm
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| » Living in Fear |
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Okay, first of all, I am officially blonde again. After going fire-engine red last May, I switched to dark brown about two months ago because the red kept fading and looking rusty. Plus, as is always the case when I color, I get bored and was already feeling the re-blonde itch, so wanted to get rid of as much red as I could so I wouldn't turn brassy.
(Those of you who also have pinkish tones in your complexion know what I'm talking about--golden or yellowy blondes make us look like horrible tomato people.)
Anyway. I better finish or this whole post will be about hair, thus rendering the clever title ineffective. Last week I scoured the shops here to find a bleach that actually works--for some reason, blonde dyes here are really useless. They couldn't lift an empty paper bag. But I did find a 40-volume developer and bleaching kit which would have worked beautifully if I'd had time to really let it. I didn't. (See, I used to bleach my hair white. The way to do that is to leave the shit on until it dries. Seriously. I'd leave it on for like 6 hours.) This time I only had an hour and a half, so my hair ended up orangey-pink with white roots. It was, in a word, absolutely fucking hideous. I looked like some sort of creepy sugarplum doll turned evil. And also, tomato face. It didn't help that I had a stress-related spot on my chin, either (which is thankfully gone).
So hubby had to go to Tesco for me, because I didn't want to leave the house, at least not without piling my cotton-candy hair in a hat, and buy me some dye. Light ash blonde.
Sigh. I look like a normal, pretty girl again. I'm sure in photographs I'll still look like a fat-nosed moonface with piggy eyes and no chin, but trust me, I do actually look pretty in person. And that's probably the only time you'll ever hear me admit that.
I also chopped off about three and a half inches, so I have a chin-length bob. I prefer to think of it as sexy flapper hair, not dull suburban mom hair.
Anyway, on to the point of the post, if you're still with me.
I'm scaaaared.
Scared because my 750 will be up at Miss Snark this weekend, and I am more and more convinced that it will make me look like a hack. I rewrote it but thought I had to send it right away so didn;t give myself enough time to edit. I'm sure it's garbage. More to the point, I am sure every agent and/or editor I might ever want to query, or who might ever see it, will be reading the COM and will know I'm a terrible writer. They'll get my query and say, "Yeah, I remember this. Garbage. She sucks" without even looking at the new, improved pages I sent. I mean, c'mon, it's not like my hook is one people will forget, is it?
So that's Fear #1. But nipping at its stylish heels is Fear #2...because I have two lovely new releases, I will also soon be getting reviews. That's right. People who don't know me, or possibly know of me and think I'm an idiot bitch, will be telling other people if my books are worth reading or not.
You guys know how strongly I believe people have a right to their opinons. I am fully prepared to stand by my previous rants on the subject. If a review opens with, "December Quinn thought she could pass this shit off as a story people might want to read, but we know it's The Worst Book Ever Written and she's a talentless hack with ugly pinkish hair," I'll take it on the chin (where the stress spot thankfully no longer rests). I sent it to people for reviews. My publishers have sent it to people for reviews. It's the name of the game, and I've sent it to some places where I highly respect their opinions and ability to express those opinions but where, also, I'm quite aware they get snarky. I love the snark. If they snark me, I asked for it, and it won't mean I think any less of them for it.
But that doesn't mean I'm not terrified, and hope hope hoping they don't snark it (too much) and call me a crapbag who only thinks she can string a couple of words together. I hope they don't laugh at me. I hope they don't make fun of me. I hope they love the book(s). I hope they love the characters and are entertained. That's the point, isn't it? If I was writing just for myself and not to entertain people I'd be writing Mary Sue fantasies about me and various comic book heroes/actors/Sid Vicious.
But there's no guarantees...so I'm very, very scared.
Jan. 4th, 2007 @ 10:52 am
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| » New Releases! |
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I had TWO new releases yesterday, from Whiskey Creek Press-Torrid!
First is my novel, Prince of Death. It's available both in ebook and print...and is very graphic, so be warned! Here's the blurb:
They called him the Prince of Death…
War is coming, and Prince Cynwrig's enemies the Cliothens will do anything to have victory. So when he finds Ayani Suntwister, a Cliothen warrior woman, lying beaten and near death in the road, he knows she's dangerous. When he allows her to seduce him, suspecting there is more to her sudden appearance in his lands than meets the eye, he knows he’s risking his life.
What he doesn't know is that the danger isn't just to his body, but to his heart as well. Will the Prince of Death find a reason to live in the arms of a woman he cannot trust-but cannot resist?
Next, I have a short story, The Ice House, in The Best of Torrid Teasers, Volume One. My Teaser (two erotic shorts in one book) was the debut book for the Teaser line--released in January 2006--so it's really exciting to have another Teaser release to start this year with! They're already up to Volume 20 with the Teasers--40 short stories--so being picked as one of the "Best of" is quite exciting. Not to mention my fellow Indulge Authors Anna J. Evans, Sherrill Quinn, and Kate Lang have stories in there as well! The Best of... is also available in ebook and print.
So go get those, and if you haven't already, go download your copy of The Black Dragon as well!
Jan. 2nd, 2007 @ 03:35 pm
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| » Greetings from the Future! |
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Yep. It's been 2007 here for a couple of hours already.
It looks pretty much the same.
I have to say, as much as I enjoy the whole "eat what you want, drink all day" holiday mentality, I'm kind of glad the season is over.
Why? Because I'm looonely. (And gaining weight, but that's a whole nother story.)
So many of my bloggy buddies are away for the holidays, or taking time off. My comments levels seem to have dropped. Hardly anyone is posting. It's depressing, especially when I have both kids home and a husband off at work, which means I don't have to get up early or, well, leave the house at all, and so can spend as much time as I want online in between making lemonade or pasta for the girls.
Jenny Rappaport posted about a different writer posting about how many words he wrote this year. His included blog posts. I have no idea how to even come close to guesstimating word count for my posts, so let's just look at actual written work:
approx. 2006 word count (first drafts only): 280,000k.
You can probably add another 20k or so for edits and second drafts, to bring me to an even 300,000 original fiction words written this year.
On the one hand, not bad. On the other, totally sucks. That's not even a clear thousand words a day. Yes, I was forced to take a lot of time off this year, with one thing and another--parental visits, a little writer's block, family who seemed to think I should actually pay attention to them, blah blah blah...and I did take some time off between projects, too.
But next year, dammit, I need to do better than that.
I think I've probably done at least another 100k in blog posts, when you consider how wordy I can be, and that this isn't my only blog.
My goal next year will be 500,000 written fiction words.
Oh, and to get an agent and a book deal, but let's not get ahead of ourselves.
I am convinced my 750 for Miss S stink. I decided to rewrite my opening before sending it and I really don't think I let it sit long enough after the rewrite. For instance, there are some repeated words I would have caught if I hadn't thought I needed to submit right away. Just hoping A) I don't get roasted for that, and B) the actual opening scene is compelling enough to make people not think my writing sucks.
We shall see.
2007 looks just fine, folks. Come on over!
(Oh yeah, and I have two books releasing from Whiskey Creek Press-Torrid today!)
Jan. 1st, 2007 @ 02:36 am
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| » My Early New Year's Resolution |
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And I expect all of you to make it with me.
Seriously.
Here's my New Year's Resolution, and I'm making it a few days early so it doesn't get lost in all the other resolutions.
Every time I buy a book in 2007, I will buy a second book to go with it. Or rather, I will buy one extra book every time I go to the bookstore.
This "extra" book will be by an author I haven't read before. It may be a first book by a new author, or it may not. But the point is, whether the book was recommended to me or it just looked interesting, I'm not leaving the bookstore without at least one book by an author I haven't read before.
I'll try to focus on first books by new authors, but that isn't always possible here, because we tend not only to get books after their US release, but sometimes not at all, and stores here don't seem to carry back catalogs as much as they do in the states.
Anyway. I want all of you to do this with me. And spread it around. Those of us who are writers know how important it is to support new writers. Those of you who aren't writers--it's important. It's important to try new authors, to buy their first books (new, not used).
So. You know how I sometimes do "Recommend a book day"s? I'm going to do them more regularly, and we'll try specifically to recommend first books by new authors.
Anybody else want to participate?
Dec. 27th, 2006 @ 01:48 pm
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| » Stuff |
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Oh my, it's been a few days, huh? I've been trying to keep up with the COM (for those who don't know, it's a sort of writing exercise happening on Miss Snark's blog) and everyone's blogs but I confess I've been so busy. I know I owe some emails (one of you in particular, I'm sorry) but I swear, I've barely had a minute to myself.
And my email load has gone up sharply, too. I've been lucky enough to have several people email me to congratulate me on the COM, or to say thanks, or to say something nice about my comments in general, which was absolutely lovely. So despite the busyness I've had a really nice week!
Oh, and I have been anointed "Queen of Blow-Job Fiction". The anointer (someone I argued with at the AW forums) was trying to be rude and nasty, but I think it's a pretty cool compliment. Who wouldn't want to be Queen? And what's wrong with blow-job fiction?
I confess, though, I'm burning out on the COM. I don't know how Miss S, or any other agent, does it. This is the clearest look at a real agent's slushpile I think I've ever seen, and it's amazing they manage to slog through it all. Granted, I do think it's harder on a computer screen, but still. Wow. How many has she actually requested pages on, out of the 400 she's done? 25, maybe? 50 or 60 tops? Has anyone been counting?
It makes me a little sad, too, the number of entries that end up with no comments, or only one or two. People who've put their heart into those hooks, and not only does Miss S not find it interesting, nobody else does either.
And of course I'm terribly worried about my 750 words. I decided after getting the request that my opening needed to be rewritten, to get the "dead body" right in at the start. So I scrapped about the first 1000 words or so and made the fifth page or so the beginning, and I do hope it works. After the new year I need to redo the whole first chapter so I can get the essential backstory in.
And I'm rereading a bunch of Maeve Binchy books. I do love her books. They're very soothing, which is just what I need this time of year.
More tomorrow. Rants, plus an early New Year's Resolution that will be easy to keep. In fact, it will be part of a resolution challenge, where I'll try to force all of you to do it with me and we'll discuss it throughout the year. (It's to do with books, not weight loss or giving up fuckwords or anything dull like that.)
Dec. 24th, 2006 @ 12:20 am
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| » Release and Contests! |
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The Black Dragon is released!!
You can go buy it here.
And of course you're all going to go buy it, right?
To celebrate, I'm doing a couple of contests.
1. Go join my forum. Then post something. A holiday wish, a book recommendation, anything to start a topic or join an existing one. That automatically enters you to win
these dragon earrings.
2. The first 50 people to email me, through here (my email address is in my profile) or the website, and answer the following question, will be eligible to win one of three Amazon gift cards! Here's the question:
What was the name of Gruffydd's sister?
(Yes, this requires you read the book.)
There you go! Go forth and enter!
Dec. 19th, 2006 @ 12:20 pm
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| » Oh, the brain |
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The other night I had a very detailed, very realistic dream in which I explained the plot of Bye, Bye Birdie to someone. I don't know who the person was, but they were very interested and sat spellbound while I sang "One Last Kiss" complete with demonstrations of the proper hip-rolling motions. And discussed with enthusiasm what a clever publicity ploy it really was, having Conrad Birdie kiss a random girl goodbye.
I have no idea why I dreamt this. What deeper meaning was my brain searching for in Bye, Bye Birdie? And why do I now have various songs from the score floating around in my head?
Any ideas?
Another brain blip: this morning I was walking home from dropping my eldest off at school. As always when I don't have the Princess with me to chat, I had my iPod on. And I suddenly realized I was singing along. Out loud.
So anyone outside at that particular moment would have been treated to a very off-key (I'm a terrible singer) rendition of "Rudie Can't Fail."
What is up with my brain? I feel like after finishing my big WIP, my head is gone. My CP and I are starting another cowritten book, but since she has it at the moment I'm not actively working on or thinking about it. There's a big void where creative stuff should be, and like a black hole it's spreading to other parts of my head, like the vital bits that remind me not to sing along to my iPod because nobody hears the music but me, something so elementary I usually do not even have to remind myself.
So to recap: dreaming of fascinating strangers with the plot of musicals, and singing out loud in public. Yes indeedy.
What does your brain do when you're not working? Do you feel good, or uneasy? I'm letting the book sit until the new year before doing any rereading/editing, so I'm not even still working with it, and I'm trying not to think of it either.
I am leaving in a couple of hours to head down to the hotel for The Party. So I won't be back here pretty much until tomorrow.
The Black Dragon should be releasing today, but I'm not counting my chickens until I have a link. So I will post that and announce my contests and stuff tomorrow.
Dec. 15th, 2006 @ 10:13 am
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| » A Seperate Industry? |
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Thanks to the stupid new Beta Blogger, I can no longer copy my posts complete with html tags before reposting them over here. I can't even go into the editing screem and do it there because it's already assimilated or accepted or whatever-computers-do-with-tags my tags.
So head on over there to view my latest rant about erotic romance ebooks and how they should be considered a seperate industry from other ebooks.
http://www.decemberquinn.blogspot.com
Dec. 13th, 2006 @ 12:24 pm
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| » But would it make a good movie? |
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(Yes! Two posts in a short period of time! Look at me, I'm creative!)
I'm sure you're all eager to hear my opinion on Britney's "womanly space" (as Furonda from America's Next Top Model so charmingly called it), but something else has taken my fickle fancy.
The book-as-movie, or the book-to-movie, or the "My book would make a great movie!"
It seems to me this is a question that really separates the men from the boys (yeah, I'm sexist that way), or the writers from those interested in playing the Published Author Role-Playing Game (TM).
I don't write movies. I don't ever sit and think, "Who would play my characters in the movie?" In fact, I don't model my characters on particular actors either (although I do have a hero who bears a slight resemblance to James Franco. Sheer coincidence, and the resemblance is only in my head--I didn't use that as a visual clue for the readers, because I consider that rather cheap--but there it is. Mmmm. James Franco. I digress.)
It always confuses me when people talk about their books as movies, or who would be in the movie, or "My book would make a great movie!" Because I just don't think that way. I write because I love to read and I love to write.
I love to read and write in all different sorts of formats. I love ebook and print books and comics and graphic novels--and I love the visual storytelling of comics and graphic novels, but I still don't read those as "If only this was a movie". Comics and graphic novels don't need to be movies (although they tend to translate well) because they're already visual. They're art. They can do things movies can't do.
I think what bothers me so much about the "movie fixation" is it implies a desire to lose ownership of one's work. It implies the book itself is not good enough, that a story must be on a movie screen for it to be legitimate--in the author's eyes. It's as if they don't think writing books is good enough, and that makes me sad.
(BTW, don't get me wrong. My theory on books-as-movies relating to my own books pretty much follows Stephen King's--give me the money and do what you like. The books are still out there, in the form the author intended. I wouldn't say no, believe me. I just don't see the desperate appeal of such a thing.)
I wonder, if you're writing with a movie in mind, are you really writing the book you should be writing? Or is some subconscious part of yourself thinking, "Don't put that, it wouldn't work onscreen"? Are you failing to commit to your book because somewhere in your mind it's really a film?
Perhaps this is why agents tend to list "My book would be a great movie" as one of their big turn-offs? Perhaps even if the book is good, that phrase implies the author is not committed to writing as a craft and an art form? That they view a book as a stepping stone, and not a finished product on its own.
Commit to your work. You're writing a story for people to read, whether it's a plain book or a picture book or a comic book. Stop worrying about the peripherals.
Thoughts?
Dec. 11th, 2006 @ 11:57 am
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| » Oh goody...beta blogger |
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Since about 15% of me is possessed of a child's fascination with anything that promises to be easier and spiffier, when Blogger offered me--little old me--the chance to upgrade this morning I took it. This despite the other 85%, the Luddite part, who knew no good could ever, ever come from all this messing about. I mean, come on. I'm the girl who freaks out for weeks when Yahoo decides it needs yet another "new look". And no matter how many times they promise it will be easier to navigate, it isn't.
So why then, did I fall for Blogger's promises that changing templates and stuff would be oh so much easier with the new Beta Blogger?
I believe it was for much the same reason poor Charlie Brown tries to kick the ball again and again...because I thought, "Maybe this time..."
Alas, no.
"Rounders" still sucks for customization (witness the dumb little white triangle thingies around all the boxes, even the ones I made invisible) and Beta Blogger seems to have even less available templates. I did manage to make the blog title box a really cool, dark gray.
Unfortunately, for some reason the html codes for Technorati, Library Thing, and my little hit counter, all of which work perfectly well in this template, were all "unacceptable" to Beta Blogger's "edit html" screen.
So I gave up. I'm still stuck with Beta Blogger (Shiny! New! Awful! Begone, instruments of evil!) but at least I have my sort of old look back and didn't lose my links.
Speaking of which, the background here has been changed because I'm planning to do away with the deadjournal and embed Blogger into my website. The website blog looks so pitiful--nobody ever comments there--whereas this blog is of course a hotbed of fascinating discussion and freindly chatter. Okay, maybe not a hotbed. But I'm working on it. More rants coming soon! Thanks (or no thanks, as the case may be) to Bam, I have been forced to view images of Britney Spears' ladyparts. I plan to rant about said ladyparts, along with the whole "cult of celebrity" and how it relates to writing, either later today or tomorrow.
But first, note to self: New does NOT equal better. Ever.
We had quite a weekend. Friday was the Faery's second birthday. Princess's school had its Christmas Disco and we went. My new friend (remember! I officially have friends here now!) and I decided we were going to avoid the buffet of egg salad sandwiches and cold pizza, and so brought wine (everyone brought wine), Chinese appetizers, olives, hummus, crackers, and pretzels, and we all had a special little picnic on our table way in the back. It wasn't far enough back to get away from the cavalcade of shitty pop music ("Barbie Girl", for example, and they didn't even play any good shitty pop music like the Spice Girls, which is at least kitschy), but we tried.
Saturday those same friends came over for dinner. I'm telling you, we are social lions.
And yesterday we put up our tree, drank sherry, and watched the Patrick Stewart version of A Christmas Carol which is IMO the finest version ever.
So busy busy busy.
**Note: Ah. I see I can no longer copy my unposted posts for easy pasting into the dj. Nice. So I get to go back and rewrite all my html tage over there. Good thing I didn't include any links in this post. (shakes fist at Blogger)
Dec. 11th, 2006 @ 11:15 am
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| » News, news, and stuff |
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Okay! Item One:
The Black Dragon will be released on 15th December. So my contests and stuff will be announced either that morning or the following afternoon, as the 15th is the evening of hubby's big work do and I will be away most of the day. At the hotel spa, btw, ladeda.)
Item Two:
Personal Demons is my query. So get over to EE and comment. Feedback me, feedback me. All night looong.
Item Three:
This morning I got an email about a project I subbed way back in February, recommending I send it to a couple of other people in the same company. This is, I am tentatively hoping, a Good Sign. So my little fingers are crossed.
I am hoping my cold stays at bay for the next couple of weeks, because of teh busyness. But it is cold and miserable outside, oh yes indeed. There was a tornado in north London today! Which is several hours away, but my goodness! Our power flickered a few times. So I did not walk to pick up Princess. We took a cab.
Okay, sorry for the dull. I'm stopping now.
Dec. 7th, 2006 @ 06:52 pm
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