hillary on writing

2011 - My Favorite Discoveries

2012-01-06T17:08:00.000-06:00

While everyone has had their own 2011 retrospectives, I was busy with Christmas and travel and coming up with material for my critique group (who thinks that holiday breaks are for sissies). So now that I've had time to reflect on the entirety of the last year, here are some of my favorite finds...

1. Midnight in Paris

"I see - rhinoceros." I love this movie. I love the situational comedy, the observations about human nature, and the Disneyland-esque trip through the Jazz Age. It's also the film that made Hollywood that realize that charm still sells. Who knew that such a thing would be said about a modern Woody Allen film?

2. White Collar

This USA Network dramedy is a rare beast - it's got style, clever writing, affection for its characters, and a true respect for marriage. I know, weird, right? But we love it. If you love Castle, give this a try. The first two seasons are streaming on Netflix.

3. Arthur Christmas

We saw Hugo, The Muppets, and TinTin, but my favorite family film of the holidays? Arthur Christmas, hands down. The characterizations and motivations are clearly and lovingly drawn, the pacing is quick and clever, and the voice talents are perfect. Catch it while it's still in theaters!

4. Susanna Kearsley novels

Until recently, Susanna Kearsley has been Canada's best kept secret. But with strong releases like The Rose Garden and re-releases like Winter Sea, this will not always be so. Kearsley's gift for writing strong, smart, sensible women (who don't feel the need to hit us over the head with how strong, smart, and sensible they are) means that every book gives us a heroine we can truly cheer for.

More than that, Kearsley's plots are truly creative - contemporary/ historical/ not-quite-magical-realism but not quite fantasy either, in Roses she handles time travel in a way I've not read before, and does it sensibly. Bet you didn't think that was possible, huh?

5. Cracked Black Pepper

Technically, I finally took the cracked black pepper plunge at the end of 2010, but I'm more thoroughly bonded now. Before you judge that it took so long, know that my childhood experiences with black pepper was the dusty stuff that my grandmother loved. My grinder is about empty, and I'm experiencing the same kind of panic I usually experience when my butter reserves run low.

6. Once Upon a Time

Snow White, Cinderella, Jimminy Cricket, oh my! I've read a lot of fairy tale mash-ups, so it's fun to see what the Once Upon a Time writers do with the original material. I love the Snow White/ Charming thread the most - makes me think of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.

7. Pinterest

I came late to the party, but once I caught the vision, I was hooked. You can find my latest pins here.

8. Mod Podge

The joys of quick-drying clear paste! Again, late to the party, but such fun. Getting to do things with Mod Podge takes me back to grade school crafts, but the end results are much more sophisticated.'

9. Smith's Rosebud Salve

I would have loved this before I moved to the desert, but now that I'm here, it's that much more appreciated. It's a happy day when $6 buys you a really, really good dry skin combatant. It's long lasting, sweet smelling, with a long list of uses - I've read about it as a lip treatment, obviously, but there's also dry patches, minor burns, in-a-pinch hair product, winter eye cream, scars, abrasions, cuticles, insect bites, and diaper rash. So no matter what, you WILL find a use for it.

10. Swiffer Duster

Again with the desert, land of dust and dirt, and throw in a little (okay, a lot) of dog hair. The dusters are fast, easy, and frankly quite fun, if swiping things with something that looks like a fluffy-ended magic wand is your thing.

11. Microplane Zester

I finally got one! And I heart it. Really works as well as everyone says, and loved it so much I used a Christmas giftcard to get the larger grater.

Well, there's 2011 for you. I read of someone who doesn't care for even-numbered years, but I think (when pressed) that I prefer them. Do you have a preference? What were your favorite finds this last year?

Allons-y

2011-12-21T13:35:00.001-06:00

My husband has beautiful eyes.

When he was young, his mother told him that, one day, a young lady would fall in love with those eyes. She was totally right

So when he told me that he wanted to drive to Bellingham before driving to Eugene (which happens before we drive to Lincoln City), I was, ultimately, putty.

Stressed-out putty, but putty nonetheless.

So we're tidying and packing and collecting the gifts (both wrapped and unwrapped) and hauling ourselves north (before we go south).

All because of those eyes, and the fact that my husband's branch is moving something very large tomorrow (this is, admittedly, a bit of a misnomer, since they seldom move things that aren't extraordinarily large. But it's being moved out of the ocean, so that ups the cool factor).

So who knows if I'll be able to post between here and Christmas. If not, here are my Christmas presents to you:

1.) The Red-Nosed Herald Angels Sing it Twice - The second most popular post on this blog, for reasons that mostly escape me, aside from the fact that it's funny and Christmassy.

2.) Christmas time really does mean peace on earth, good will to men - even at LAX. Read about it here.

3.) Scrappy Ornaments - I've been making these for our tree and LOVING it. They're ridiculously easy and relaxing in the way only a paste-and-fabric craft can be. The best part? They look great on the tree - kitschy and colorful and personalized. You could make them for a newlywed couple using fabric scraps that echo their wedding colors, tie them onto packages, hang them in windows - and they're a great (if slightly messy) craft for kids if they need something to do before school starts back up.

(By the by, I found this craft on Pinterest. If you're on Pinterest, come find me here, and if not, you're missing out!)

4.) And if you haven't made it to Arthur Christmas yet (which, if that's the case, should sadden you), here's a happy bit to tide you over.

5.) And one of the things I'm most looking forward to? The Doctor Who Christmas Special! Last year's was my favorite, so I'm very excited for this year's The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe-themed installment.

And if you've never watched Doctor Who, it's never too late to start.

Merry Christmas!

The Sparkly Shoes Blog

2011-12-15T00:12:00.000-06:00

I've been looking for sparkly shoes lately - sparkly shoes for less than $30. Thing is, I couldn't find any that weren't:

a.) Open toed (too cold)

b.) Too tall (I'm already two inches shy of six feet. I don't need a 4.5 inch platform, thank you much. I'm going to church, not to Vegas.)

c.) Too expensive (though I found the perfect pair... for $149 plus tax.)

Yesterday morning, I *literally* woke up with one thought in my head - could I make sparkly shoes?

I asked my husband. Had to ask twice, actually, because I kept mumbling (first thought, you know). He thought the chances were pretty good.

When I was awake, I poked around online. I found this (rather adorable) video, which was a good start, followed by this excellent post. I used the Dainty Squid's method of mixing the glitter with the Mod Podge, using heels instead of flats and spending a long time taping up the edges before starting.

$16.99 Payless Heels

I put on four coats, followed by a final topcoat.

Tesla, waiting for me to finish so I could come play.

Honestly, I couldn't be more pleased. Because I mixed the glitter with the Mod Podge, they don't shed at all - every bit of glitter is sealed up. I didn't even get through half of the $5 bottle of Martha Stewart glitter (in Hematite), either. The next time I do this (and there will be a next time), I'm looking forward to using another Martha glitter - the extra fine texture and sophisticated color really make the shoes special.

So there's my Christmas project - what are you working on?

Sur La Table

2011-12-06T18:21:00.000-06:00

...is also the name of a store. But that's not what this post is about.

When not traveling, moving, or raising a spirited (read: obstinate) puppy, I've spent the past year cultivating a new book project. Though new is a bit of a misnomer, since it was cooking in my head well before Jayne made an appearance.

But it's been what I like to call a slow-cooker idea, requiring a lot of time to develop. In between, it has changed tremendously in the best way.

One key component of the book has been the same, however - it has always been about the food.

Well, that and two people who find each other. But they eat well.

The two specific kinds of cuisine found in the book are French and Italian. Now, I'm fairly conversant in Italian food. It's really pretty straight-forward and very accessible. Versions of it can be found in Olive Gardens, Macaroni Grills, and in every restaurant where someone boils pasta and tops it with sauce.

French food...it's a bit trickier.

There is often some technique involved in French cookery, and if not, there's the appearance of technique. You don't find Coq au vin in pizzerias, or cassoulet at buffets. Shari's does not have tarte tatin month. Here in Tri-cities, the likelihood of my finding a little French bistro is well below nil.

But I need it for the book, so I popped onto Amazon and picked out a small selection of books, as well as a blue steel crepe pan that I'm really quite in love with. But along with the crepe pan, it's obvious that I'll also need a proper Dutch Oven soon, as well as a roasting pan and a tart pan (had one, but the bottom is missing and that's a somewhat crucial piece). Oh, and ramekins.

"Lodge" Cast Iron Dutch Oven, 6-Quart

After flipping through the books - which look amazing - it's very clear that I will have to get over my dislike of whole roasted chicken specifically, and my inexperience when it comes to roasting meats in general.

(I've roasted vegetables - does that count for anything?)

But it's been a good year for expanding my repertoire, since I'm now quite proficient with cutlets, sauces, and roux making. Oh, and custard.

This is Walter. He likes custard.

Well, off to contemplate making potato leek soup. Will post later as the food adventures continue...

Thankfulness

2011-11-23T12:11:00.002-06:00

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving.

I'm all for giving thanks, and being thankful, and spending time with family, and eating. Really, I am. But I can sum up my feelings about Thanksgiving best in a recent Twitter post:

I have ADD. That's just the way it is. So Thanksgiving can be the Trifecta of stress for me. Don't get me wrong - my love of food and cooking is well documented. But cooking on a schedule is...dicey. And cleaning? No, we're not hosting Thanksgiving (thanks be to heaven above), but we're still leaving, and being a woman, I don't like coming home to a messy house.

And travel?

Little bit traveled out.

Little bit.

A lot.

So throw in the fact that Thanksgiving food is not my kind of food and my general apathy towards professional football, and it leaves me with a strong desire to fast-forward to the yuletide season lurking around the corner.

(And if you've stepped inside a place of retail in the last month, you've caught it mid-lurk)

But I'm thankful for my husband, and his job, and our house, and my publishing career, and our wiggy dog. I'm thankful for red curry, sunny days, digital photography, antique china, Nars lipstick, how Danny looks in his motorcycle jacket, title insurance, new friends, old friends, Starbucks, good books, alpacas, freeze-dried beef liver treats, sale books at Barnes & Noble, red leaves, TJ Maxx, Nutella, full-spectrum light bulbs, Target, comfortable shoes, pink nail polish, candied ginger, the bulk section of WinCo, butterflies, dry shampoo, vacuum cleaners, pink spackle, Doctor Who, and the fact that the holiday movie season approacheth.

I'm thankful for my family, my parents, siblings, parents-in-law, siblings-in-law, aunts, cousins, uncles, and another holiday with my 95-year-old grandmother.

I'm thankful for my agent, for the wonderful editors I've gotten to work with, my publicists, and the booksellers who help people discover my books.

I'm thankful we found a truly crackerjack dog trainer to help with Tesla's "special needs."

I'm thankful that we are no longer building a house.

I'm thankful that the Lord is gracious.

Because of that thankfulness, I can handle a traffic-snarled bit of organized thanks-giving.

And after Thanksgiving? Let the advent season commence!

Update: Also thankful for this -

Yay! Sometimes it really is the little things :-)

Rescue, Kiss, Repeat

2011-11-07T15:02:00.000-06:00

I don't know about you, but I'm loving ABC's new show, Once Upon a Time. It's one of those rare TV shows that keeps getting better and better with each episode.

In the first few episodes, we see Prince Charming (whose real name is James, we learn), wake Snow White. Later, we learn how Snow and Charming met. It was the kind of meet cute that involves a lot of flirtatious squabbling, adventure, a grudging admiration and a certain amount of chemistry. She saves him. He saves her.

Rescue, kiss, repeat.

I love that. I love it because it's a truer model for a real-life happy ending in marriage. It's not just the prince rescuing the princess in the classic model, or the princess rescuing the prince in the feminist model. Long-term love involves both. Marriage is committing to rescue each other, over and over again. It's having each other's backs, it's being strong for each other.

Fairy tales will always have a special place in my heart, but I'm troubled by the lack of stories that involve courage on behalf of both men and women. East of the Sun, West of the Moon is one of the rare examples of a couple who must rescue each other. The prince, as the bear, rescues the girl from poverty. The girl rescues the prince from the troll princess.

There is still a happily ever after for them, but both the man and the woman have had to work for it.

And that's how marriage is, isn't it? Courage is required for both the husband and wife to fight for and rescue each other, facing down despair, discouragement, illness, and injury in battle.

You never know how many battles you'll face in marriage, or when the next one will find you. The happily-in-betweens? Absolutely worth the work.

Happy End of Tacky Day

2011-10-31T22:56:00.000-05:00

Okay, I know. Tacky Christmas decorations abound. But are they as tacky as Halloween decorations? No. Not at all. No contest.

Our neighbor down the street has an inflated skull with inflated ghosts coming out of it.

Really hoping that it'll get put away for storage. Also, really hoping they're just as into Christmas lights. I love Christmas lights.

So...blogging this much. *Almost* as much of an epic fail as getting (or trying to get) Tesla's toenails ground at the PetSmart in Mount Vernon, WA. (We ended up having to get a refund. It wasn't going to happen.)

We ended up, once we got back from the three-week Memphis/Little Rock/St. Louis trip, having to go to Portland (Anacortes for Danny), Anacortes (Mount Vernon for me), and Los Angeles (technically Foothill Ranch, east of Irvine).

By the end, I was a complete mess. Actually, I think I was a mess beforehand, but that doesn't mean we didn't have some fun. In California, we got to go to Disneyland (my first time!) and I got to hang out with my dear friend Kara and see her digs in West Hollywood. A grand time had by all, even for Tesla, who got to be admired by one and all on the tram to and from the Disneyland Kennels.

Now that we're back, it's time to return to the task of moving into our house. I'm just about done with choosing which photos need to be printed for which walls - I'm VERY excited about having artwork up! As the granddaughter of two artists, I don't handle blank walls well. My brain doesn't know how to handle them..

In other important news - both ABC and NBC aired their fairy tail themed shows, Once Upon a Time and Grimm, respectively.

When the trailers were released, I thought Grimm looked a bit more focused. Having watched both pilots, I'm wondering if it's too focused - it feels more forced and rote than Once.

Not that Once doesn't have its awkward moments, but it's sticking close to the Hero's Journey arc for its heroine, played by Jennifer Morrison. You might remember Morrison as Cameron from House. Now, I'm convinced that the writers for House kind of really hate women, since Cameron's character was wheedly and annoying. Not so with Emma Swan, who has got a backbone and knows how to use it. It's refreshing, honestly.

In Grimm, the lead, David Giuntoli, is stiff and bland. Werewolf Silas Weir Mitchell (Prison Break) is far more interesting, but it's tricky when the best character is a supporting character.

It often takes a few episodes (or a couple seasons) for a show to hit its stride. So we'll see how goes, but do catch Once - it's well-cast and has vision. Whether the vision is carried off or not remains to be seen, but I think it's off to a strong and inventive start.

Anybody else watching the two shows? What's your take?

Un Jour de Pluie

2011-10-05T19:27:00.001-05:00

The rain, it comes.

You know you live in the desert when it rains and you're confused about what, exactly, is going on. This is after 25 years in the Willamette Valley, where it rains 10 months out of the year.

Still. Brain trying to recollect what one does when it rains.

Tesla is completely befuddled by the moisture from the sky, because she spent her Spring rainy season in our corporate apartment as a young pup, only experiencing the rain that blew/dripped in past the patio covering.

(I apologize for the crick in your neck. I'm not techy enough to figure out if the orientation can be changed. But cute, no?)

Right now, Tesla will ring her bells to go outside; I'll open the door, she'll take in the scenery and decide - no, actually, not worth it.

Just kidding.

I've been reading The Paris Wife, FINALLY - I've wanted to read it for some time, but the Kindle edition is on the pricier side, and the wait list at the library took a long time...

...anyway, reading it now, and oh. My. Goodness. Poor Hadley! An excellent read so far, The Paris Wife tells the story of the first Mrs. Hemmingway from her perspective, from meeting Ernest in Chicago to marrying him at the age of 28 (he was 21). They moved shortly after the wedding to Paris - and not the nice part of Paris, either - and make a home for them while he struggled to find himself as a writer.

Writers are difficult people in the best of times; Hemingway had hemochromatosis, the inability to metabolize iron, as well as (most likely) bipolar disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder.

He also drank like a fish.

Easy man to be married to? Not so much.

Another book that makes for terrific rainy-day reading?

Jenny B. Jones' There You'll Find Me is perfect for a day with precipitation. I should have realized it was also perfect for an airplane ride...I slogged through a truly terrible book (actually, two of them) on the flight back from St. Louis, which was painful because Danny's book was absolutely brilliant.

He'd giggle at his book and I'd role my eyes at the pages (and pages) of limp characterization.

I came home and pulled out There You'll Find Me. I loved it for all of the reasons that I loved Anna and the French Kiss - a very real, very likeable heroine, a gorgeous setting, and a crush-worthy boy.

(Speaking of, Stephanie Perkins has a new novel out. I'll get back to you on that...)

There You'll Find Me treads perfectly across themes of loss and hope, romance and change, friendship and grief. Did I mention it's funny? That the protagonist refers to Pride and Prejudice as the single girl's Magna Carta?

Really, it's grand. Trust me.

So if it's rainy where you are - these are the books! Grab a mug of tea (carefully) and tuck yourself into bed with a book.

Or, if you're Tesla, you can go catch a raindrop.

Tricks of the Trade

2011-09-29T01:10:00.000-05:00

I mentioned on Facebook that I wasn't going to blog about ACFW until (at least) tomorrow, and that's still true. I've got, like, 500 photos from the Memphis-Little Rock-St. Louis trip that need to be loaded onto my computer.

It's a job, let's just put it that way.

Anyway, lots of exciting stuff on the horizon and the realization that my year of quiet has come to a close. Once book projects become official, I will have a lot of work to do. This is good, because it's a little disconcerting to be a writer by trade and not have any official projects on the horizon.

I am a bit overwhelmed at the prospect, though, partly because the writing process for Sara (and Jayne, in some ways) was VERY stressful. I have to remember that I've learned a lot; every book is a learning experience!

Several of my friends have books releasing soon, so I thought that until I get those 600 or so photos downloaded (which, I have to admit, are largely photos of waterlilies in various botanical gardens. Apparently I have a waterlily photography "issue"), I've definitely got time to share the bits of writer's life wisdom I've discovered along the way...

1.) When the going gets tough, the tough go underwear shopping. And socks. Basically, when you're on a deadline/ tight marketing schedule, laundry needs to not be quite so high up on the list. Stock up on undies and socks, and an extra pair of jeans for everyone in the family.

2.) Spruce up your own wardrobe. The writer's life doesn't lend itself to business wear acquisitions, but you'll appreciate having go-to pieces of clothing for headshots, book events, and conferences. Take a small chunk off the top of your advance and look for pieces that can be dressed up or down (like a silk blouse in a print) and worn for multiple seasons. I'm a big fan of denim suiting pieces for author events - a denim blazer or trouser pant looks polished without being stuffy. You're a writer, not a stockbroker. Have some fun with your look!

3.) Set goals and stick to them. It seems basic, but it really is helpful. Figure out how many words per day you need to crank out, be realistic, and work from there.

4.) When it comes to marketing, now is better. When you get interview requests with questions, do them right away. It's much easier to get those done and sent off rather than keep track of the interviewer's schedule and have it leave the forefront of your consciousness. Take a break from writing, set a timer, and answer the questions (however brilliant or inane they happen to be). Just think back to the days of email forwarded surveys...

5.) Keep your files organized. I strongly recommend keeping your headshot jpg (in a large and small size) and book cover jpg (ditto) in the same folder (mine is labled "promotions"), as well as your press release and whatever interviews you're working on. That way, they're ready to go on a moment's notice whenever you're asked.

6.) Look sharp. Speaking of headshots, it's really best of an author shot to be a true head/shoulders shot. More than that, if it's viewed from far away or printed small, isn't going to read as well (and by "read as well," I mean that the image won't be quite as easy to understand or have the same visual impact). During the conference, there was one author who's photo made us scratch our heads until we figured out what was going on in that image. Simple really is okay - it's your face we want to see!

7.) Synopsize! I totally made up the word, but you get the picture. Basically, if you're thinking ahead about your story's events and structure, you'll spend less time repaving over plot potholes later on down the road. Seat-of-the-pants writing is only for people with years of time on their hands to write.

8.) Eat. Just not too much... Maintaining a steady blood sugar is important, so make sure you're feeding your brain as you work. However, know that the write/snack/write/snack thing will come back to bite you - literally - in the behind. Typing does not burn calories. Watch the munchies - eat smart.

9.) Take breaks. If you're not spending time with your family/friends/spouse/children/dog/cat/whathaveyou, you will become a hull of a human being and a sucky writer. It's okay to back away from the computer. Boundaries are your friend.

10.) Exercise. I get through writer's block while walking with my husband (and these days, my dog). The exercise does a lot for your body and your brain chemistry, so make sure to figure it into your schedule.

Remember, you can get creative with your exercise, as demonstrated here:

Well...it's my bedtime. What tricks of the trade have you picked up?

ACFW from the Agent's Perspective: a Q & A with Sandra Bishop

2011-09-21T00:26:00.001-05:00

If you're ACFW-bound, I strongly suggest taking a brief break from your packing. On the blog today is my fabulous agent, ACFW 2010 Agent of the Year Sandra Bishop. I asked Sandra a few ACFW-pertinent questions, which she was gracious enough to answer (and answer on a short time-frame). This is information you won't want to miss!

Hillary: As an Agent, describe the ACFW experience.

Sandra: It's fun. I get to wear dark glasses and skulk around looking for aliens.

H: What elements of ACFW surprised/interested you during your first conference experience?

S: That the "poolside rooms" in which they'd set faculty up for meetings were next to a covered pool. Actually, the organization and appointments are very well run. The staff is amazing and incredibly accommodating of faculty. I think they genuinely appreciate us.

H: When you're meeting with writers, what are elements that grab your interest?

S: Incredible writing. For me, it's always the writing. I see a lot of good writing, but that doesn't do it for me anymore.

H: I feel the same way about chocolate...back to the meetings, though - what are some of your pet peeves when you're meeting with writers?

S: When they don't actually bring a writing sample with them but say "they told us not to!" Who are "they" to tell you what you can have in your bag of tricks. If an agent or editor wants to see your writing and you don't have it, you've missed an opportunity to make a meaningful connection - or cross someone off your list.

H: Are there any cues that make you think, "Hey, this is going to be a really good meeting"?

S: Actually, when someone knows what they want from me. Even if it's just an opinion. Of course I love meetings with calm, focused, and confident authors who know what they are writing, and why. But, I also don't mind just encouraging writers who need it or talking through ideas - if they know that's what they want from the beginning so we don't end up with 45 seconds at the end of the meeting to talk about it.

H: Share a humorous, conference-related anecdote (you know how I enjoy humorous anecdotes).

S: I laughed about it now, though I didn't at the time. ... Once a writer refused to accept my advance critique saying I hadn't edited the whole thing and pushed it back across the table saying I owed him more. I pushed it back to him reminding him I really didn't owe him anything but that we could spend the rest of the time talking about his idea if he'd like. He pushed it back across the table again, stood up, and said "you are going to take this and I'm going to go talk with the conference director to make sure I get my money's worth." I took it and dropped the floor and said "any chance you might have had to work with me just landed where this is going. Good luck with the director." I like to think he learned a valuable lesson - and got his money's worth - though I doubt it. As it turns out, the director refunded his fee for the advance critique and invited him never to return to the conference.

H: Oh my goodness! I've said it before - do not be that guy! It never ends well. Let's talk food. Mealtimes are generally conference-Kosher times to pitch to both agents and editors. What are good, non-obnoxious ways to gauge an editor/agent's interest?

S: Honestly, meals are hard because it's often times difficult to hear. If you don't get a chance to pitch your idea, don't despair. If you do, speak up and have a statement ready, which answers the following questions:
Are you published; in what genre are you writing; and what's the hook of your story. If they want to hear more about it, ask when they might have a few minutes to talk, or if you can contact them later. This gives others a chance and demonstrates that you're not desperate!

H: Because desperate is bad. Any additional tips for ACFW-bound writers?

S: Have fun, take notes, be assertive but not aggressive, and remember God may have plans for you you haven't even considered.

H: Excellent advice! Thanks so much for stopping by!

You may now resume your conference packing. See you soon!

Fashion Disconnect of a Delicate Nature

2011-09-16T20:56:00.001-05:00

This post began to brew in my head when I watched last night's Project Runway, and came to a head when I read this post earlier today.

You can watch the episode yourself here, or read the EW recap here.

Basically, the episode's challenge involved husbands and boyfriends coming in to help design a runway garment for their significant other. There were men who knew what their ladies enjoyed wearing and men who were aware that their sweethearts wore clothes, but couldn't describe these clothes, their colors, or their general shape.

Marilyn Monroe, en pointe

It was amusing.

I have full faith, for the record, that my husband would be very, very good at this.

Sofia Vergara

The trickiness with the challenge was that the designers were designing for clients, and clients are shaped differently than models.

Some designers celebrated this fact. Others - Olivier - were displeased with the turn of events. Sure, they want to design clothes. Sure, these clothes become a line which would be sold to retailers with the eventual reality being that they would be worn by women....

Designer Olivier Green, pondering the breast situation

But for some...Olivier...this was a problem. He liked to design for models. Why? They don't have breasts. He's good with this. More than good, because he prefers for women not to have breasts. "It disrupts the line," or something like that.
Much was made over the fact that these "real women" had "large breasts," "large hips," "large everything." Those of us in the audience could point that that these womanly attributes, for most women, are not "large," simply "existent."

First Lady Dolly Payne Todd Madison

Now, a good deal of humor was to be found, since one husband was quite vocal about his obsession with his wife's breasts. He liked talking about them very much, awkwardly, and every time the subject came up, Olivier looked as though he wanted to curl in a fetal position. He fussed about not knowing what to do, or how to sew around them, and when he found out that he was designing for a woman with breasts described as a "Double D" he was truly confused.

How confused? He had to have the concept explained by the checkout girl at Mood. "It's a cup size," she said.

"Hellooo! Our swimwear doubles as a girdle!"

It's probably for the best that she didn't go into bandwidth, and the fact that a 34DD is a very, very different cup size than a 38DD. He probably would have quit the show.

The fashion world's abhorrence of breasts has long been a subject of contention for me. While some women have smaller breasts and some women have larger breasts, breasts are a genetically-given part of a woman's anatomy. They have purpose, as do hips.

Sophia Loren at Cannes

But for some reasons, breasts are not en vogue. This has not always been the case. In fact, for centuries, it was considered a good thing for women to have breasts. They went out of style in the 1920's, but returned a decade later, and continued until the 60's when the "Twiggy" look became popular.

Am not a fan of her myself.

Is it that breasts are so 1891?

Andrej Pejic, of the manly legs

There are beautiful, feminine women with small breasts. There are beautiful, feminine women with large breasts. My point is that fashion shouldn't exclusively design for small-to-nonexistent breasts.

But where are we now? We live in a world where you can have a man work the runway for both men's and women's apparel. The women's apparel is not designed for a body that appears womanly. The People.com article says that model Andrej Pejic looked just like every other young woman coming down the runway, but I'd like to point out that those are MAN LEGS.

I don't care how slim they are, the muscles are just structured differently.

Joan Harris, my hero

Add the fact that in 2010 alone, 319,123 breast augmentation surgeries were performed. Considering that 138,152 breast reduction surgeries were performed in the same year, it means that a woman is more likely to have cosmetic surgery performed on her breasts than any other body part.

It also means that, in America, they just keep getting bigger.

Just saying.

Fall 2011 Films to Look Forward To

2011-09-15T11:09:00.001-05:00

On one hand, I have mixed feelings about the upcoming fall releases. We had a very strong summer when it came to female-centric films, between Bridesmaids and The Help. So it's a little disappointing to look at the fall offerings and wonder - where are the ladies?

That said, there are films with huge potential coming up, especially since Oscar-bait films have begun to roll out earlier in the last few years. Beginning with...

Drive - September 16

To say that Drive is "buzzy" is...so much of an understatement I can't think of a good metaphor. It's been compared to The Godfather, early reviews are glowy, and it found much film festival love at the Venice and TFF festivals.

It has cars that go fast, so it's kind of automatically in watch-list, but the critical acclaim and solid cast doesn't hurt, either.

Moneyball - September 23

Brad Pitt's role in Moneyball has been called Redford-esque, and my guess that it's the role just as much as the floppy hair. With the screenplay by Stephen Zaillian (Schindler's List, Searching for Bobby Fisher) and Aaron Sorkin (The Social Network, The American President) and a strong cast, the film should be good even if the A's have been tanking.

The Ides of March - October 7

Clooney! Gosling! Giamatti! Seymour-Hoffman! Tomei! Wood!

That's pretty much all I have to say.

The Three Musketeers - October 21

I want this to be campy costume fun, in the A Knight's Tale, Clash of the Titans, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl tradition, and since there are ninjas (in, um *cough* France) in the trailer, it looks like the camp as well as the costume are fully accounted for. Actually, the ninjas bring to mind Brotherhood of the Wolf, that well-made French Canadian genre mash-up that brought werewolves and ninjas to France...same ninjas? Difficult to say. But there's a coming apocalypse in the French court (I hate when that happens), so we'll see how goes. The cast features several of my favorite import actors - Mads Mikkelsen, Christoph Waltz, and Matthew MacFadyen, as well as Milla Jovovich having Fun With Wires and Swords. As a Summit release, this movie has been paid for by the Twilight foundation. We'll find out in October if Summit can find success with a film that doesn't involve Perpetually Shirtless Young Men.

The Descendants - November 18

The "other" Clooney film, this one helmed by Sideways guy Alexander Payne. Will probably pick up an Original Screenplay nomination come January. The trailer looks a little aimless, but when it comes to picking scripts, George makes good calls. And Judy Greer makes an appearance, though her moments of utter brilliance may be behind us.

Hugo - November 23

Heart keys, plucky children, funny dog cutaway shots, heartwarming adventure, brought to us by...Martin Scorcese? C'est vrai, and with its cineast references to French film and toymaker Georges Méliès, it really looks terrific.

The Muppets - November 23

Oh, Miss Piggy. It's been too long. I hope you and Amy Adams got along...

Quick Update: The Muppets camp just released this trailer spoof of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo trailer. It's awesome.

The Artist - November 23

Nostalgia is big business this year. After the uber-successful Midnight in Paris, we have another look back in time. This time it's the era of silent films, when screens (and the film stock) really were silver, toes tapped, and an actress could break hearts with the flutter of an eyelash. What I think has been discovered in the wake of Midnight is that, in our post-9/11 world, there is a market for well-made charm.

I have to say, The Artist is the film I'm most looking forward to. I grew up on the song-and-dance films of Hollywood's Golden Age, so The Artist takes me to a happy place. That said, I can't get over the scene in the trailer when the blond throws the newspaper at the dog. Seriously! The dog?

What are you looking forward to seeing this fall?

ACFW on the Mind

2011-09-12T13:43:00.000-05:00

This blog comes to you from the Mid-South again, though a few miles south of Memphis than before (we're staying in Southaven this go-round). Danny had meetings and further work training to complete in the Memphis branch (though "complete" may be an optimistic term), and with ACFW coming up, we decided to connect the St. Louis trip with the Memphis trip and make it one, giant trip away from home.

Danny's busy in the office and hydraulics shop by day. I've been spending my time getting ready for ACFW.

I confess, my priorities are not as my agent would have them. I need to get together my pitch materials for my conference meetings...but let's be honest. Those (when the author chooses to focus on them) tend to come together quickly. You know what takes more time and effort?

Getting your ensemble for the ACFW Awards Banquet ready.

I've got the dress - it took two tries (the first color I ordered was back-ordered until the day *after* the banquet), but it arrived before we left and it's at an alterations shop as I type. I've got the shoes - picked them up to wear for Easter this last spring. I've got the handbag - found it at TJ in Richland. Bought a cute little hair-clippy and bracelet yesterday. Still haven't figured out what lipstick to use, and if I'm going to get arty with my accessories and perform some last-minute tweaking, but the essentials are there.

So now that *that's* taken care of, I'm on to the task of getting the pitches ready. This involves creating a title and names for character for a story concept I've loved but hadn't spent time articulating the particulars of. Now, if you've followed this blog for any length of time, you know that I take my names very, very seriously.

For both Plain Jayne and Simply Sara, the main character names were entirely informed by the titles. This is not typically how I roll. I research, I think about the character in my head, I write out lists, I wait for the right name to pop out and say that this is the one that fits.

Kind of like trying on shoes.

Also, I used to be pretty good at naming books. I think that period of my life is over.

Next, I'm going to tidy up the first few chapters of my WIP (work in progress), since the second chapter isn't doing for me what I'd like it to. Especially in an age when readers decide to purchase books depending on the strength of the sample offered on e-reader, the opening chapter and a half (or so, depending on the publisher) is even more important than ever. The days of easing the reader into a story are over. The days of being lazy about starting a plot are over. Bookselling is a competitive marketplace - edit! Tighten! Rewrite! You'll never sit back and sigh, "If only I hadn't given my book a stronger opening sequence."

Seriously.

In other random ACFW news:

Last year at ACFW was tough for me. I resolved then to do what I'm doing this year, which is arrive early to rest up before the conference begins.

I didn't know until a couple weeks ago that I'd be given two weeks to acclimate to the time change, but we'll still arrive at the hotel a day early to get settled and figure out the lay of the land.

Also, ladies, I highly recommend packing this product - Benefit's Eye Bright pencil. They describe it as a nap in a stick, and I would consider that to be an accurate description. I went searching for something, anything to fix my under-eye issues after our last drive back from Memphis - things had gotten so bad I avoided looking at myself in the mirror in the morning. You can apply it under your under-eye concealer, on top of your makeup at the corners of your eyes, pretty much wherever you need to banish dark shadows. It really is magic, and I don't travel without it.

I also recommend packing plenty of cardigans as well as comfortable shoes - considering that you're moving from one part of a hotel to another part of a hotel, there's still plenty of time on your feet (especially if you're me and you're running late and you've got to seriously hike it from your room to the elevator, and the elevator takes forever and you'd totally take the stairs if you weren't on the ninth floor, and even after you've caught the elevator you make two or three stops before making a dash to the conference room on the opposite side of the building, down a long hall) *and* you never know how the a/c is going to be tuned. Layers are your friend.

Well, it's back to pitch-work for me. If you're at ACFW in a couple weeks, be sure to track me down!

Birthday Clafoutis and Book Proposals

2011-08-18T17:33:00.002-05:00

See, I thought it was appropriate to make a cherry clafouti for my birthday because the word clafouti sounds like a party in and of itself. Like confetti. It just tastes better.

I've been circling this recipe for a month or two, waiting for the opportune moment (i.e. a loving reunion with my KitchenAid and assorted bake-ware. Oh, and my sieve) to do something really special with a bag of cherries.

Life is a bowl of cherries. Preferably sans pits.

I could be wrong about this. All I know is:

A. There are a lot of cherries here.

B. There seem to be more cherries than back home.

C. Generally, like the dentist situation in Tri-Cities (*never* have I seen so many dentists' offices. Ever.), it means that there's simply more of them.

But I digress.

A few things about this recipe:

It looks great when you put it together, smells even better in the oven.

Also, it's like, *really* bland.

Fresh out of the oven.

I didn't use the kirsch the recipe called for, and my vanilla beans were about a year old and would have needed some TLC to be usable. I used my good Mexican vanilla extract, and threw a bit of cardamom and ginger into the flan batter.

On the table, sunning itself.

What really needed to go in was another tablespoon of sugar (which is really something, coming from me - I don't like my sweets overly sweet) and a generous tablespoon of lemon zest. And maybe an additional tablespoon of flour.

It's certainly not an ugly dessert. Though I will say, once you cut into it, photogenic isn't a word I'd use. And the cherries tasted really good. I have more left. They may very well turn into these.

A note on book proposals: I chatted with my agent this morning. I told her about how I'd gone to my first critique-group meeting here in Tri-Cities, and how I wanted to tweak the sample chapter in my current book proposal. The group had pointed out some things about my transitions (mainly, there weren't any. This is a fault of mine that I freely admit). The chapter itself was written, mostly, three or so years ago, and I hadn't done a whole lot of heavy-duty editing to it.

My reasoning is that while the sample chapter you include with your proposal should be clean, they also shouldn't be over-thought. Slaving away at that chapter is kind of like naming livestock - an editor may turn around and say, "Hey, we love it, but how do you feel about writing ______ instead?"

This has happened to me several times. I've learned to put emotional distance between myself and these chapters. I work on them, and then I move on. It's a mental health thing.

Now, I want to work on the sample chapter because I want to like it more than I do. It's an easy fix. But my agent did point out that editors can be wary of über-perfect sample chapters. Kind of, when you think about it, like guys on first dates who say they love children, small dogs, and Jane Austen.

So don't kill yourself striving for abject perfection when you're including those sample chapters. Make sure they're really, really, good - and then move on with your life. There are other things to pay attention to.

Like figuring out how to fix a bland clafouti.

Try saying that three times fast.

Reinvent Your Writing

2011-08-17T13:01:00.001-05:00

Today's guest-poster, the lovely Lynne Gentry, knows a thing or two about reinvention. Her debut novel, Reinventing Leona, is all about making changes for the better.

Also red lipstick. But I'll let you discover that for yourself. Here's Lynne!

Writing good stories is like raising good kids, they never happen by accident. Someone has to invest a lot of time and effort in the project to achieve an award-winning result.

How many times have you thought you’d written the next bestseller only to take it to your critique group meeting and have them mop the floor with you? I’ve done it more times than I can count. Yet, every Tuesday night I print out a chapter and set off for another grueling round of iron-sharpening-iron.

Why do I put myself through this torture?

Because these trusted friends have only my best interest at heart. I’d rather hear what’s NOT working with my story in the comfort of someone’s cozy living room than have the flaws plastered all over an Amazon review.

True writing friends are not here to tell me I’m wonderful. They’re job is to make me a better writer. I’ll admit, crits can sting. But I’ve learned to consider their points and to think through why something tripped them up. Their suggestions challenge me to ratchet up the tension here or find a fresh way to drive my point home there.

Are you writing in secret?

Don’t do what I did. I wrote my first 400 page novel without letting anyone take a peek. When I finally summoned enough courage to submit the book to an editor, I received this terse response eight minutes later: I’m sorry, your writing does not measure up to the standards of our publishing house.

Ouch!

What did I learn? Don’t submit another thing until you get some help. I needed a group that would challenge, yet encourage a pleaser like me to continue in this often brutal and solitary calling.

Fortunately, I found a constructive writing group. And humbly submitting to the process reinvented my writing.

When I consider what each of the members of our writing group bring to the table, I’m reminded of how women used to gather around a well or quilting frame. Together, they helped each other raise their families, withstand the hard times, and make the world a better place.

What if writers did the same today?

About Lynne's novel, Reinventing Leona:

Leona Harper loves being a pastor's wife. Her impressive resumé touts thirty years of coaxing hot water from rusty parsonage plumbing, planning church potlucks, and standing beside her husband while members take potshots at his sermons. Except for the little tiff with her grown children, Leona feels her life is right on track with the wishes of the Almighty...until her husband drops dead in the pulpit.

When the church board decides to fill the Reverend's vacated position Leona is forced to find a paying job, mend her fractured family, and tackle her fears. With life spiraling out of control, Leona might find the church members antics comical if she weren't so completely panicked. Can the faith of an overwhelmed widow withstand the added heartache of two resentful children and several underhanded church members?

If Leona can't trust God, how will she learn to trust herself?

Don't miss it! Full of warmth and wit, I recommend reading with a glass of iced tea.

Journey's End

2011-08-15T01:50:00.000-05:00

And what a journey it's been.

We moved in November, spending the month in Portland, doing our best to stay dry. We drank good coffee, dodged parked cars on narrow streets, and enjoyed living with family across the street from the Kennedy School.

We drove to Memphis in December. We met some of Danny's extended family in the Little Rock Area, visited museums and restaurants in Little Rock, Memphis, and Nashville. We got to meet Ree and Ladd Drummond at the now-closed Davis-Kidd Bookstore. We watched the Peabody Ducks swim in the hotel fountain and waddle down a red carpet to the elevator.

Also heard my first tornado siren.

Hoping it's the last.

We returned to the Pacific Northwest in early March and moved into a corporate apartment which, after living in a dark, smelly hotel room for three months, was particularly magical. Throw in some sunshine, the ability to sit on a couch and have both an extra bedroom *and* bathroom, and we were in good shape.

We got a puppy, who turned out to be a teenage girl in disguise. We also looked for a house, fell in love with one and watched as the deal fell through. We began to build a second, which took...

...a while.

But it ended.

And we completed the sale.

And the bank did not laugh at us or throw rocks.

And we moved in. Actually, not in that order. We didn't actually fund before we moved in, which made me nervous that the bank would, at the last minute, decide to laugh or throw rocks (not that they have reason to do so, but I'd had a *bit* of anxiety about the subject).

So now we have a house, our first house, and a garage and a KITCHEN and a yard and an actual dining room...

...Did I mention the kitchen?

It's good to be home. I'm realistic enough to know that we'll probably move again, very possibly out of state again, but for right now it's nice to let some roots go deep. And now that we're settled, life starts again. Work starts again. There will be guest posts on this blog and more posts about writing, since I'll be back to full-time work. Thanks for being patient through this unexpected hiatus, and don't worry - there will be more books!

The Countdown

2011-07-28T00:05:00.000-05:00

Very soon...

1.) Tesla will no longer have vertical blinds to drive us crazy with.

2.) Neither will she have a coffee table to hide under.

(We've been in a furnished corporate apartment)

3.) We will have COUNTER SPACE.

4.) And a full-sized fridge! For the first time in four years!

5.) Our things will be out of storage. Including:

a.) My KitchenAid! Sadie!

b.) My pastry-cutter! Which I stupidly did not haul out to Memphis!

c.) My knives!

d.) My DISHES!!!

e.) My husband's third and fourth pairs of cargo shorts! (It's been 90+ degrees around here since June, and he only brought two pairs to Memphis because we wintered in Memphis and bringing more seemed silly. O that we knew how we'd have only that which we took to Memphis for our first five months in Richland...in the spring and summer. Hindsight and all that.)

f.) My desk!

g.) My copies of Plain Jayne and Simply Sara! (So that when people ask to buy/ read copies, I'll actually have one on hand. Or, like, fifty.)

6.) No more crazy-loud upstairs neighbors!

7.) No more crazy-loud downstairs neighbors...

8.) No more housekeepers who show up at inopportune moments.

9.) No more housekeepers to take out the trash and occasionally scrub out the guest bathroom tub. Hm.

10.) Likewise the landscapers...

11.) We'll have a kitchen with an actually, honest-to-goodness PANTRY!

12.) Also, we'll have real-live guest rooms. With beds. For guests.

13.) No more Oregon sales-tax exemption...

14.) No more state income tax (and if you're self-employed in the state of Oregon, you know there is a definite ouch factor there!). Ooh, and LTD tax. For a bus I haven't ridden since my freshman years of high school.

15.) We'll finally have a home. And that is something to look forward to.

P.S. That picture? So totally not actually our house. Just in case you were wondering

Expecting Disaster

2011-07-19T20:11:00.000-05:00

We've been in the process of having a house built here in Richland. There are days I feel our house has been built by Lemony Snickett - it truly has been a series of unfortunate events.

They broke ground in late March. The first disaster occurred when the builder began to build with the wrong interior plans. Unfortunately, we did not know this until after the house had been plumbed, which wouldn't have been an issue *if* we hadn't changed the way the master bath was laid out. (Our real estate agent, if you must know, did not forward the plans to the builder. But that, dear reader, is a sad story for another day). and the slab foundation was poured. The concrete was ripped up, the bathroom re-plumbed. Until just over a week ago, the hole remained, as a reminder that we should be wary.

You should know we have really wonderful builders. The work is very good. Also, they're all either Central or Eastern European, so it's kind of like having your house built by Tom Hanks' Viktor Navorski, though it's possible that Hanks' Navorski moved a bit quicker.

(It should be noted that one of our builders in particular has a very heavy accent, and has difficulty with his vowels. Particularly "e" sounds. "Beat" becomes "bit." So when he talks about sheet-rock and sheeting, read into that what you will.)

We've had to pick out carpets twice, bathroom flooring three times. The carpet was back-ordered, as was the first vinyl for the bathrooms. The second vinyl was simply not sent by the manufacturer - twice. The wrong laminate floors arrived. We picked out a new stove (first was back-ordered). Afterwards, we volunteered to pick out a new microwave hood and dishwasher, all of them in-stock in Tri-Cities, for the sake of avoiding disaster.

At this point, I find comfort in the fact that it is difficult to find back-ordered sod; likewise with paint (the paint was ostensibly applied earlier today. We shall see). All of the light-fixtures, that I know of, have been picked up and/or ordered. When I sent the list, I sent pictures, item numbers, installation orientations, website links - basically everything short of a store manager's personal cell phone number. So far, so good.

We shall see.

Did I mention that while we've been doing this, we've also had a post-spay surgery dog in the house? A dog who doesn't care that the vet wants her to stay calm? Who isn't particularly worried when she starts bleeding from her incision site, or when said mess winds up on the carpet? Who, before we got her, trained herself to be immune to Xanax (it was deliberate, I'm sure)? Who has *literally* been climbing the walls?

Well, we do.

I've gotten to the point that when I see that I've got an email, I freeze up. I think, "what has gone wrong now?" This happened earlier today when I received an email from the builder's agent that simply read "Give me a call."

Did the carpet catch fire? Difficult to say. I called. I expected the worst.

"When they paint the walls," she asked, "do you want the doors to be painted too?"

Um, sure.

I realize I may be a bit overly twitchy.

So, should you ever decide to build a house, my first word of advice is to expect abject disaster.

My second word of advice is to keep a sense of humor about it. Because at the end of the day, it might be all you have left.

Happy Anniversary, Us - Part IV

2011-07-07T15:30:00.101-05:00

Four years ago today, I married my best friend.

When I wrote my second novel, Simply Sara, one of the themes that developed was the idea of home, and how home isn't necessarily a place.

What I've discovered in this past year is exactly how true that is. Since our last anniversary, we've lived in Eugene, Portland, Memphis, and Richland. At some point in the future (and goodness knows when) we'll move again, this time across town into our freshly-built house.

We've lived with family, we've lived far from family. But no matter where we are, my home is wherever Danny is. As much as I miss my family, my friends, and the trappings of familiarity, I need Danny more. No matter how unsettled our living situation is, as long as I'm with him, I can manage.

The thing is, no matter where we are, Danny's feet are still ticklish. He still consumes large quantities of ice cream and Hot Tamales. He still complains when his hair gets too long and it flops in his face. He still opens my car door. He still reaches for my hand when we walk together. He's still taller than me, even if I'm in five-inch heels. His smile still lights up his face (I know it's a cliché, but it's true). His hug is still the one that truly makes things better. We still get each other. Our "us-ness" remains the same, even if our location has shifted.

He's my home, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Synopsis Stuff

2011-06-22T20:32:00.000-05:00

After a reply Tweet from a friend, I realized something big has changed:

I'm no longer afraid of writing synopses.

This might be because I've written seven in the last year, at least. After about two or three, my attitude changed. I started worrying less and focused more on "knocking it out," telling myself I'd change things later.

You know, like you're supposed to when writing.

So there you go. My success tip for synopses. Write them really fast. Don't overthink them - all you need is to basically sketch out how the book follows a basic three-act structure. Don't worry about all of the crucial information you're leaving out (hint: you'd be surprised how much you don't really need). Don't worry about going to long or two short.

And remind yourself that everything - especially the book you're summarizing - can be changed. Just because something is in your synopsis, doesn't mean it has to be in the book.

The caveat to that is that the synopsis is what your publisher uses to write catalogue copy, possibly before you're done. So if you change things up, let them know. I was waffling about whether or not Sara went to visit her sister Rebecca for a while. The catalogue release sewed that one up.

So there you go. Happy synopsis writing!

The Panini Post

2011-06-21T16:33:00.000-05:00

I've written about my lunch-related angst before. At long last, I seem to have made a breakthrough.

Hello Panini. Let's be friends.

Paninis solve several problems. First, the bread is grilled, so you're unlikely to get icky bits of bread stuck in your teeth, which I hate. Also, the grilling is pretty forgiving. You can use somewhat stale-ish bread, and it's okay.

I mean, I wouldn't serve it that way if I ran a restaurant. But this is me, in my kitchen, at lunchtime. I'm good with stale-ish bread.

Also, there is almost always cheese. I love cheese.

And the pressing method warms the sandwich through, so you can put all sorts of veggies inside (ones more nutritious, say, than the requisite lettuce leaf).

Did I mention there are hundreds of variations? This one is a variation on one of my signature sandwiches (I used ham and provolone instead of prosciutto and fontina), and I'm dying to try this one (with less bread, though, the one pictured is a bit overwhelming.

What's also great is that Danny enjoys them too. We had dinner at Frost Me Sweet here in Richland, and while he was a bit wary going in (the seafoam green exterior paint and girly writing on the sign doesn't really connote manfood within), their Italian panini won him over.

Also, they had french fries.

But back to the panini. It's pepperoni, salami, prosciutto, mozzarella and marinara sauce - very approachable for the red-blooded American male. Also very easy to recreate at home.

(Side note - the salted caramel cupcake at Frost Me Sweet? Very good.)

So we bought a panini press. You can spend a lot of money on them (one at TJ Maxx was going for $80), but I opted for the Hamilton Beach model. Large enough to accommodate two sandwiches, a nice swivel-y top (so the top presses straight down, not from an awkward acute angle), but not particularly expensive. Also, fits nicely on top of our mini-convection oven.

Here are some panini ideas in case you're feeling adventurous...

~ Southwestern (kind of) Panini ~

Inspired by the one at Starbucks, not available in Tri-Cities or the city of Memphis.

Flatbread if you have it, ciabatta, or sliced sourdough if you don't

Salsa

Sour Cream (I use light)

Monterey Jack cheese

Deli roasted chicken

Red and green bell peppers

Olive oil

Brush the outer slices of bread (i.e. the bread that will wind up on the outside) with olive oil, or spray if you have a spritzer or Pam-type olive oil spray), lay out on cutting board. Mix the salsa with the sour cream in equal portions, spread onto bread. Add some cheese to one side, then chicken, peppers, and more cheese on top (helps everything to stick together). Grill until golden.

Note: Cheese will ooze. Lost cheese is sad, so keep your cheese towards the middle. Don't worry, it'll spread to the edges on its own.

~ Pear and Brie Panini ~

Inspired by a sandwich at Cafe Eclectic, by far one of the best places to eat (sans BBQ) in Memphis.

Brie

Thin-sliced Ripe Pear

Ciabatta Bread

Honey

Honey-Dijon mustard (optional)

Arugula

Slice Ciabatta in half, hollow it out a bit. Feed the leftover bits of bread to the dog. Brush the outsides with olive oil. Mix some mustard and the honey together in a very small container (measuring cup works well), spread onto inside of bread. Stack thin-sliced brie, pear, and arugula on the inside. Press until golden and the brie is completely melted.

~ Italian Panini ~

Bread of Choice (sliced sourdough, ciabatta, Italian - really can't go wrong here)

Pizza sauce of choice (I like Boboli; use a pizza sauce rather than jarred marinara - less watery, less likely to soak the bread and get grossly soggy on the inside. Which isn't what happened at Frost Me Sweet, but has happened elsewhere)

Salami of choice (I use Genoa)

Prosciutto

Pepperoni (I decline, but Danny likes it)

Roasted Red Peppers (optional)

Arugula (optional)

Mozarella cheese (aged or fresh)

Spray/brush bread with olive oil. Stack ingredients. Cook. Enjoy.

~ Sweet Potato Fries ~

Partly inspired by Frost Me Sweet, who bake their fries with minced garlic, parsley, and shaved Parmesan cheese, and partly inspired by the idea that sweet potato fries are better for you but not quite *there* yet.

Frozen Sweet Potato Fries (make your own fresh and fry them yourself, but this is faster. This is lunch, people)

Fresh Rosemary

Fresh OR freeze-dried (thank you, Lighthouse!) Parsley

Olive Oil

Garlic, minced

Sea Salt

Fresh Cracked Pepper

Parmesan, grated or shaved

Pour some olive oil into a medium-ish bowl. Add spices and garlic, let them sit for a few minutes to infuse a bit. Toss in frozen fries, throw them around with your hands until they're adequately coated. Dump them onto a foil-lined pan; top with sea salt and a couple twists of cracked pepper. Bake according to the package instructions. Top with cheese once they're out of the oven; serve when cheese has melted.

Those are my food obsessions - what are you eating and enjoying right now?

BTW, booked my hotel room for ACFW. Who all is St. Louis-bound?

Summer Kindle Reads

2011-06-02T17:36:00.001-05:00

I promise I really will announce the winners of the PW contest; I need to get my husband to pick a random number - all about fairness here!

Productivity has come to a screeching halt since I came down with a cold over the weekend. I don't do mild colds. When they happen, they're big and gross and frankly it's just best to stay home and remain in a fetal position. Thankfully I only tend to get sick twice per year.

Anyway (sorry, totally burying the lead here), know that Amazon has a bunch of Kindle books on sale for summer. This was well-timed in my case, since I was in need of something to read between sneezes. My recommendations?

(Though you should note that I haven't read all of these books, but the ones I'm posting I've either read or would very much like to)

Eva Marie Everson's This Fine Life, currently free,

Julie Carobini's Fade to Blue, on sale for $1.99,

Denise Hildreth's Savannah from Savannah,

Sara Evans' and Rachel Hauck's The Sweet By and By

Donald Miller's Blue Like Jazz (always a classic),

...and James Scott Bell's Plot and Structure, for the writerly-minded, all listed for $1.99.

For $2.99, take a look at Mary Ellis's A Widow's Hope,

Helen Hollick's The Forever Queen (reading this now, so far very interesting),

Susanna Kearsley's Winter Sea,

....and hello there, familiar faces! It's my first-born, Plain Jayne.

Happy reading!

Things to Watch on Netflix, Part II

2011-05-23T23:36:00.001-05:00

I've finally figured out how to see stats on Blogger (which is horrifying if you know how many techy people are in my family). Quite amused by which posts seem to be popular. But it seems like people are always looking for stuff to watch on Netflix, and there are tons of new viewing, so let's get started...

Doctor Who: Series 5

The Premise: The Doctor (Matt Smith) has regenerated and landed somewhere in Scotland. He meets a young girl, and after a repast of fish fingers and custard, offers to take her for a spin in the Tardis. Thing is, he's got to be right back. He leaves and returns to find that young Amelia is gone. In her place is Amy, Amelia all grown, a girl who grew up with the idea of her imaginary friend, The Doctor, in the back of her mind.

My Take: Stephen Moffat has taken the reins for the series from Russel T. Davies; likewise, Matt Smith has replaced David Tennant as the Doctor. But the story-telling is so strong, and Smith so winning, that in many ways the series feels re-reborn (especially if you're watching series 6 right now on BBC America. Oh. My. Goodness). Rory takes a while to become likeable, but (as it always happens on the show), once he does, he's grand.

Masterpiece Mystery: Sherlock Holmes

The Premise: A modern-day take on Holmes and Watson, solving crimes out of 221B. This time, Holmes mocks the police with text messages and Watson's war wounds are from Afghanistan.

My Take: Written by Who writers Stephen Moffat and Mark Gatiss, the dialogue is snappy and the plot is twisty. A Study in Pink is my favorite. The others aren't quite as tight, but they're still completely enjoyable. House viewers will particularly enjoy the dynamic between Holmes and Watson, as it's quite similar to House and Wilson at their best. I'm very much looking forward to the second season.

**P.S. You should know that Watson is played by Martin Freeman, who's also the new, younger Bilbo in Peter Jackson's upcoming adaptation of The Hobbit. And it makes sense. He has a proper hobbit-y sort of nose.

Me & Orson Wells

Premise: Young, innocent Richard ((Zac Ephron) gets more life lessons than he bargains for when he finagles himself into a role in Orson Welles' Broadway production of Julius Caesar. Richard is alternately awed and disgusted by the sheer talent and hubris of Welles, brilliantly played by Christian McKay. Claire Danes has a supporting turn, but my favorite appearance is Zoe Kazan's short story-writing Gretta Adler.

My Take: Me & Orson Welles should have received more American awards love, but at least Christian McKay received an Independent Spirit nod, as well as a BAFTA nomination for his turn as Welles. For writers and film-buffs, it's really not to be missed.

Heartbreaker

Premise: In a scenario that's rather like Hitch in reverse, Alex (Romain Duris), his sister, and her husband have tapped into the niche-market of breaking up bad relationships. But when he's hired to break up the perfect couple (Vanessa Paradis, most famous in America for being the mother of Johnny Depp's children, and Andrew Lincoln, of Love, Actually), Juliette and Jonathan, before their Monaco wedding, he meets his match. Specifically, his love-match in the spunky, independent, George Michael and Dirty Dancing-loving Juliette.

My Take: Since Hollywood hasn't released a proper romantic comedy in a while that's managed to be both romantic and funny, Heartbreaker is a breath of fresh French air. It's spontaneous and light, and while some of the subplots get a bit murky, the comedic high-points make up for it. Romain Duris, of Moliere and Paris, is charming and funny in a way that most American actors wish they could be. Vanessa Paradis' Juliette is a class act, whip-smart and winsome as her wedding approaches and she starts to second-guess her choice in a spouse. There are dozens of hysterically funny set-ups and pay-offs (and trust me, it's even better the second time around), but my favorite is the ongoing tribute to Dirty Dancing as Romain Duris' Alex recreates Patrick Swayze's iconic dance sequence. He's no Patrick, but he has enough French swagger to make it a memorable cinematic moment.

Dirty Dancing

...and if watching a tribute to the classic makes you want to watch the real thing, you're in luck! One of my favorite parts? Watching Emily Gilmore shimmy at the end.

The Fountain

Glass bubbles in space! Angry indigenous peoples! The Spanish Inquisition! Awkward bathtub scenes! Monkey test subjects! Hugh Jackman tattooing himself in space in linen pajamas! Not only is it Darren Aronofsky's worst film, but it was the film Danny and I watched on our first real date. I highly recommend watching the first twenty minutes, just so you can see how completely bizarre this movie is. In worst-beginnings-ever, it's up there with Scorpion King; the trouble is, it's sincere.

(Though it should be noted, the last ten minutes are really something as well. Especially if you garden.)

So! There you have it. What are you watching, especially now that network TV is wrapping up for the season?

Maybe Later

2011-05-20T17:11:00.000-05:00

So, I've tried to write a blog about characters for two days now.

That dog just won't hunt.

This one won't either. She's a herder, not a hunter.

She also likes tulips.

And naps with Danny.

Baths? Not so much.

Peanut butter? Yes, ma'am.

P.S. The Black Heels to Tractor Wheels: A Love Story contest runs through tomorrow at noon, so be sure to pop over there if you haven't had a chance to enter!

Black Heels and a Book Contest

2011-05-16T13:36:00.000-05:00

So, a long time ago (February), in a far away land (Memphis), I attended a very large, very cool book signing at the Davis-Kidd Bookstore.

The business has since been auctioned off, but I'm VERY glad I got to be here, the night before we left to return for the Northwest.

Who was the author? None other than The Pioneer Woman, Ree Drummond!

Though in reality, it took some work to get to the point where you could actually see her. You know who was easier to find?

A slightly iconic figure of the blogosphere...

...whom we usually see frowning at cows or covered in dirt. Or cow poop. Or...let's just be honest, from the back. Not only was he clean and posing for picture, but he signed books!

It was very impressive. Danny was in awe, since my book signings cause him conflicting desires; to be wildly proud of his wife vs. staying as far out of the fray as humanly possible.

After a not-short wait in line (which turned out to be longer because the line system was a bit confusing, and I was VERY glad I'd worn flats rather than heels, because I wouldn't have wanted to be in tears by the time I got to the front of the line), I made it to the lovely P-Dub...

...who graciously signed the stack of books I'd brought her. Bless her. And bless Danny for shooting the picture for me. Did I mention he was there with me through the craziness the whole time? Aside from when he had to make an emergency Best Buy (or was it Office Max?) run when I realized I'd forgotten the memory card for my camera (again. I'm going to chalk it up to the going-crazy-packing-to-drive-across-the-country-brain).

He's quite grand, my husband.

The other funny part of that whole experience is that the girl in line in front of us was not only on her cell phone, but she stayed on her cell phone when she took her books to Ree and in fact passed the phone to her, asking her to speak to the person on the other end of the line.

For the record, a.) PW handled it very graciously, b.) I would not personally encourage this behavior, and c.) if a reader did that to me at a book signing, I can't even imagine what awkward thing I would say. But I thought it hysterically funny. What *did* people do before cell phones?

Anyway, I have a copy of this book...

(Which Tesla, an avid reader, recommends very much. And this picture was taken with my phone, so don't judge.)

...signed by both Ree and Marlboro Man, whose real name (for those interested) is Ladd Drummond. This book has been lovingly transported across the country, protected from the elements, and has been hanging out in my closet (until just recently, when I made the dog pose with it) until I could get my electronic act together (more on that later).

Black Heels to Tractor Wheels is the story of how Ree and Ladd met, fell in love, and married. If you've read the blog account (as I had), rest assured that there are parts not in the blog, and also tells the story about their crazy Australian honeymoon and the birth of their first girl-child. Also, if you're familiar with her recipes, gives a bit of history around some of her favorite foods and how they came to be.

If you'd like to win the copy, here's what to do:

1.) Comment below and answer the following question: What food means love to you?

2.) Hit the "Like" button on my Hillary Manton Lodge Fiction page on Facebook...

or...

3.) Follow me on Twitter

or

4.) Hit the "Follow" button to the right of this blog.

If you're already following, liking, Twittering, what-have-you, then all you have to do is comment, the other part is automatic. The winner will be chosen at random. Good luck!

Back From Hiatus

2011-05-03T19:19:00.000-05:00

The Columbia River from Howard Amon Park in Richland, WA

Didn't exactly *mean* to go on hiatus, but that's what happened. Since the Oscar post with the ever-delightful Robbie Iobst, we've...

1.) Driven across the country
2.) Visited friends and family at home VERY quickly
3.) Gathered our somewhat-in-storage belongings from various family members (four homes in total, bless them)
4.) Drove northeast with family to Richland, WA, our new home, and moved into our
5.) Glorious corporate apartment, which is fabulously amazing (especially after the...um...less than ideal hotel room we'd survived for the previous three months.)

I can wax about the apartment. It has a mostly full kitchen, complete with a real oven and a real dishwasher and a real garbage disposal, which means I don't have to flush scraps down the toilet anymore.

If that grosses you out, you can either a.) know that the toilet was only six feet away, so this was actually a very convenient solution, or b.) pretend I didn't write it. Whatever works for you, I'm good with it.

Anyway, we also have a second bedroom, AND a second bathroom (which is great for the after-church bathroom rush, you know?), and there are walls and doors and - oh yeah - CENTRAL AIR, and a fireplace...

...the only thing that could make it more magical would be a unicorn on the patio. Which the dog would probably bark at.

Also a little more counter space. But it's fantastic for now.

What else?

6.) The dog - we got a puppy. And in all honesty, this is probably one of the biggest reasons I've been on hiatus. Because she's less of a puppy than she is a 7-month-old infant who bit and peed and ran circles around things and caused me to cry and wonder why I'd spent three years desperately wanting a puppy.

Then, because she's full of much wisdom, she would choose that particular moment to curl up in my lap and sleep.

This caused two reactions. First, I didn't give her away. Secondly, I went to sleep myself. Since those first few weeks, Tesla has a.) house-trained, save the evening accident, b.) kennel-trained, c.) learned to sit, d.) learned to lay down, e.) learned to drop (when it suits her), f.) learned to roll over, and most importantly, g.) figured out that nipping lands her in jail (aka kitchen), and that licking people's hands instead grants her far more positive attention.

However, she's yet to figure out that a bath has yet to lead to her imminent demise. Oh well.

So things, at this stage, are good. We love the puppy. The puppy loves us. It was just a bit rocky there for a while, especially on four hours of sleep.

But wait, there's more!

7.) We put in an offer on a house. After a long, protracted amount of back-and-forthing, we
8.) Decided to build in a neighborhood with easy access to the Barnhart yard for Danny, and easy access to Target and Starbucks for me.
9.)We've since picked out our exterior paint as well as our counter tops, despite the presence of walls or counter tops.

But enough about us. How about the rest of the world?! The Royal Wedding-pocalypse came and...kind of went. Kind of, in that it isn't dominating all of the media, but there's still plenty of coverage concerning Pippa's date and the going-away clothes and the timing of the honeymoon...

And let's be honest. We know the pregnancy speculation is right around the corner. It's like a Presidential campaign - you know it's coming, and there's nothing you can do to stop it. If I were Kate, I'd invest in some industrial-strength level Spanx. Though she is impressively svelte as is, you know that the moment she exhales the wrong way, that photo's going viral in a mater of seconds.

That's just my two cents.

And while the world was engrossed in said wedding, a super-secret-don't-tell-ANYONE-especially-not-People-Magazine SEAL team (who used to be referred to as Team 6, but after the press coverage, they've probably changed their name to Team 8 or something, to keep things top secret) struck in Pakistan, killing Osama bin Laden in a fire fight, thoroughly confirming the identity of the body before burying it at sea.

While I'm glad the search is over, I do have mixed feelings on this. I wish bin Laden could have been tried for his crimes. I wish another death wasn't necessary. I wish we didn't live in a fallen world. It's interesting seeing the reactions of others, from measured dread to jubilation. I think this C.S. Lewis quote sums up a Godly response nicely - "We may kill if necessary, but we must not hate and enjoy hating. We may punish if necessary, but we must not enjoy it."

On a lighter note...

A few days ago, Tesla picked up her water dish (my 5-inch Corningware dish) with her mouth from its place on the carpet to the tile by the fireplace, where she dropped it for no reason but noise. Now, it's Corningware, so it's nearly indestructible (I say nearly, because I broke one at a Target once), but the overall effect was reminiscent of the clanging of a beer stein and yelling for the barkeep.

Glad to be back! Be sure to check in in the comments section down below.

Oh! And to kick off my return to the blogging world, I'll be doing my first-ever contest. And let me tell you, it's cool. So stay tuned!

The Oscar Blog - With Robbie Iobst!

2011-02-25T23:39:00.000-06:00

So excited about this post! Joining me for the Oscar prognostications is my fellow blogger and film-enthusiast, devotional author Robbie Iobst.

There are a lot of categories, so we're going to dive right into the Best Actor Category -

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role

Robbie: Colin Firth. This is a no brainer. He won the Golden Globe and the SAG for The King’s Speech. He is just excellent as the stuttering King George VI. His fear is palpable. I’m a long time Firth fan, since I saw him as the gorgeous Mr. Darcy in BBC’s Pride and Prejudice. I say it’s about time.

Hillary: Hear, hear! I’m in total agreement. Colin’s put out a lot of good work lately; he gets stuck in some thankless roles sometimes (The Accidental Husband comes to mind,) so I’m delighted that he’s gotten the recognition for his more serious work.

He’s a talented man, even when he’s not walking out of a lake.

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role

Hillary: Natalie Portman. End of conversation. It was very shrewd of her to become pregnant and engaged to the choreographer of her film, because her “aww” factor is unbeatable at this point. It doesn’t hurt that she acted her bony little toes off in Black Swan, either – that statuette is hers.

Robbie: I haven’t seen Black Swan, but she’s won for this role at the Golden Globes and the SAGs. My personal favorite is Nicole Kidman in Rabbit Hole. She was soooooo good!

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role

Robbie: Christian Bale playing Dicky Eklund in The Fighter is a tour de force performance. I didn’t recognize him at all. He’ll win, but I do have a place in my heart for Geoffrey Rush from The King’s Speech. He is outstanding in it.

Which of these would you choose, Hillary?

Hillary: Christian Bale. But I feel the same way about Geoffrey Rush! It was nice to see him not dressed as a pirate for once :-)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role

Hillary: I’m going with Hailee Steinfeld on this one. I think Melissa Leo had it pretty much sewn up until she pulled this stunt, which was – weirdy weird? I don’t even know what to say. And frankly, if she doesn’t show up to the Oscars in flow-length fur.

But Hailee, Hailee is young and fresh as a California daisy, with enough spunk and screen presence to hold her own next to Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon, and Josh Brolin. And as far as I know, she’s publicly avoided fur.

Robbie – you’ve seen both True Grit and The Fighter. Thoughts?

Robbie: Melissa Leo will win. I used to love watching her in an old TV show called Homicide. So I’m a fan. And when I saw The Fighter, I didn’t recognize her at all. Total transformation. Hailee was excellent, but I believe Melissa was better. As far as the ad goes, you’re right – weirdy weird! Hope that doesn’t ruin it fur her.

Hillary: Groan!!!

Best Achievement in Directing

Hillary: This one’s tricky! Normally the DGA (Director’s Guild Awards) is the major predictor for this category. Tom Hooper of The King’s Speech won, but all the buzz and predictions is in David Fincher’s favor (The Social Network).

I’m a fan of Fincher – I thought his Zodiac was amazing, and I feel that under his direction, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo has a shot at being okay.

But…I’m going with the guild with this one. I may be wrong. But the guild seldom leads me astray.

Robbie, what do you think?

Robbie: I think the Academy Award voters will actually split and give the Best Picture to The King’s Speech and give Best Director to Tom Hooper. I doubt The Social Network will get any other awards besides writing, and this is a wonderful, relevant movie. Hooper will win is my guess.

Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen

Robbie: David Seidler will win for The King’s Speech because it will win best movie of the year. Mr. Seidler suffered from a stutter as a child and that tidbit adds to the sentimental factor. But Christopher Nolan SHOULD win for Inception. It is original and written with a rhythm and complexity that makes the audience actually think about the plot. Loved it!

You’re a wonderful writer Hillary, so what do you think?

Hillary: Aw, thanks Robbie :-) Both Inception and The King’s Speech, obviously great screenplays. It’s tricky to compare the two, because they’re so different. Inception is so very plot-oriented, The King’s Speech is all about character.

Of the two, I definitely have a stronger emotional attachment to The King’s Speech. I loved how it was about so many things without being heavy-handed in one direction or another.

The win will definitely go to The King’s Speech, but truly, if Speech and Inception hadn’t released the same year, the award would go to Chris Nolan for Incpetion.

Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published

Hillary: Aaron Sorkin (The Social Network) has this in the bag. Though I have to say, while the writing was classic Sorkin brilliance most of the time, I found the opening sequence to be a little too “Hey look at me, see how clever my writing is,” and made it difficult to really get into the film at first. If you’re writing is stopping the reader/viewer/partaker of media from becoming involved in the piece as a whole, it’s time to edit.

There’s my Social Network rant.

In my perfect, happy world, I would honestly give the award to the Cohen siblings for True Grit. I loved the dialogue; it was wordy when it needed to be and spare when necessary. But that’s just me.

Back to you, Robbie!

Robbie: You make a great point about the cleverness of Aaron Sorkin, but that’s what I adore about his writing. I think he deserves the trophy. The Cohen brothers based their movie more on the book than the original John Wayne movie and I believe the book is where they got the style of writing from. So, although True Grit’s wording is interesting, I found The Social Network to be more interesting.

Hillary: I can honor that!

Best Animated Feature Film of the Year

Robbie: Toy Story 3 should and will win! My son liked How To Train Your Dragon much more, but the voters are all adults who will award not just this movie but the dynasty of great animation movies that is Toy Story 1,2 and 3.

Hillary: Totally agree. It’s kind of like the Best Picture win for Return of the King, except with Fisher Price toys. Loved HTTYD, though. Note: just looking at this picture makes me teary!

Best Foreign Language Film of the Year

Hillary: I’m going with Incendies, from Canada, but this is always a tricky one to predict. I haven’t seen any of the films, but I’ll definitely catch most of them after they release to DVD.

Dark horse: Suzanne Bier’s In a Better World, mainly because the Academy loves Suzanne Bier. (She directed 2006’s After the Wedding, which showed the softer side of Mads Mikkelsen).

Robbie – have you seen any of the nominees?

Robbie: Nope. But every time I Netflix a foreign movie, I base it on the last year’s nominees. So eventually I’ll see them all. For this category, I vote randomly. Incendies sounds good.

Best Achievement in Cinematography

Robbie: I hope Roger Deakins will win for True Grit. He’s been nominated for this award 9 times for films like Fargo and The Shawshank Redemption but he’s never won. True Grit was not my favorite movie this year, but the camera work is excellent and makes you feel as if you are truly in the old west. I love the underdog and for someone to be nominated 9 times and not win, well, that’s sad. I’m hoping number 10 will be a charm.

Hillary: This is another tricky one. Inception won the ASC award, but there are a lot of people who want to see Roger Deakins win. While I think giving him the award is not unlike Martin Scorcese’s Oscar for The Departed, I hope he wins. If he doesn’t, the Oscar will be going home with Wally Pfister for Inception.

Best Achievement in Editing

Hillary: The Social Network won the Eddie Award (how cute is that!), which is the Editor’s Guild award. Though technically Alice in Wonderland won an award as well, the Oscar will go to The Social Network.

My Preference: Well, my heart is with The King. The thing that worries me is that, traditionally, the film that wins Best Editing usually wins Best Pic…

Robbie: My heart, too, is with The King’s Speech. However, I have to tell you I was shocked that Inception was not included in this category. I felt the editing in that movie kept the suspense taut and the action moving. My personal Robbie Award for Best Editing – Inception!

Hillary: Yeah, Inception’s lack of a nom here was strange. Christopher Nolan won a special award at the Eddies, but I’m not sure it makes up for the slight.

Best Achievement in Makeup

Robbie: I haven’t seen any of these movies, but I checked out the character’s make up online from each one. Barney’s Version is aging make up. The Way Back is war time battle make up and The Wolfman is monster make up. My vote is for The Wolfman because they transformed Benicio del Torro from a beautiful man to a hairy creature. That’s craft!

Hillary: I agree! Though I do think Benicio del Toro is kinda funny looking. ..

Robbie: Then I’ll take the funny looking one.

Best Achievement in Costume Design

Hillary: Both Alice in Wonderland and The King’s Speech took home Costume Designers Guild Awards, but Colleen Atwood (Alice won fairly recently for both Memoirs of a Geisha and Chicago. Jenny Beavan, on the other hand, hasn’t won since A Room With a View, though she’s costumed films such as Ever After, Possession, Sherlock Holmes, and Sense and Sensibility, all films I really like and thought were very strong costume-wise.

So I’m going with Jenny.

Robbie: Absolutely. The King’s Speech costumes were on the money.

Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Song

Robbie: “We Belong Together” from Toy Story 3 is my pick. The songs from 127 Hours, Country Strong and Tangled are all slow beautiful ballads, but Randy Newman’s “We Belong Together” is fun, cheerful and perfectly fits the friendship theme in Toy Story 3.

Hillary: Agreed! Throw in the Toy Story 3 “aww” factor (up there with Natalie’s baby bump), and it’s definitely Randy Newman for the win :-)

Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score

Hillary: Again, it’s between The Social Network and The King’s Speech. Again, it’s between the hip factor and the conservative but nice.

However, I think the fact that the Academy is…how to put it…aging…the fact that Alexandre Desplat’s score is truly lovely, and the fact that he’s been nominated four times – I’m going with Alex, despite the fact that he has a strange looking upper lip.

Which score did you prefer, Robbie?

Robbie: I disagree with you on this one, Hillary. Although the scores from The Social Network and The King’s Speech were wonderful, the score from Inception was brilliant. It probably won’t win but it should. I think if not Inception’s score, the score from The King’s Speech will win.

Hillary: Interesting choice!

Best Achievement in Sound Editing

Robbie: Inception. The sound is dreamy. Yes, that was an intentional pun.

Hillary: Well, if there’s going to be a pun, it may as well be intentional…

Best Achievement in Sound Mixing

Hillary: Inception. Because it’s cool and techy.

Robbie: Much better than cold and tacky.

Best Achievement in Visual Effects

Robbie: The Visual Effects team of Inception should and will win, hands down. The dream scenes with all the paradoxical architecture are absolutely outstanding. A house has a flood within it, a street of buildings collapse slowly and a staircase appears to never end. These are just three of the amazing visual effects this movie has to offer.

Hillary: I’m going to disagree here. My prediction is a win for Iron Man; Academy voters have historically been shown to be easily swayed by men in metal suits.

…

Just kidding. Starting to get loopy here. If there wasn’t a pun above, it probably wouldn’t have happened. The award will go to Inception.

Robbie: Oh, Hillary-san, you funny when loopy.

Best Achievement in Art Direction

Hillary: This one is tricky too. Alice in Wonderland is favored by many to win, but it didn’t win an Art Director’s Guild award.

But it was big and splash and had Johnny Depp in it.

But The King’s Speech – which did win an ADG award, was really lovely.

Difficult to say. At this point…erg. Will it go to Alice because Alice isn’t likely to win anything else? Or to King’s Speech because voters are caught up in a wave of voting love, as they tend to do?

I’m going to argue with the other predictors and go with Speech. I may be wrong.

OR…voters could go with Inception, which also won a ADG award and looked amazing, and less like a Tim Burton movie. Truly and deeply conflicted. Did the elderly voters stay awake long enough to see Paris fold over on itself? Sticking with Speech for the time being, but I’ll let you know if I change my mind.

Robbie – insight? Help?

Robbie: You bring up a great point about the “seniority” of the Academy Award members. But I am going to be idealistic and say that they saw all of the entries with an open mind. If they did, I believe it would be between Inception (I really liked that movie – can you tell?) and Alice in Wonderland. I’m going to go with my favorite, Inception.

Hillary: Thank you for your calm words of wisdom, Robbie-san.

Best Documentary, Features

Robbie: The only one I’ve seen is Exit Through the Gift Shop and I think it will win. It’s the story of graffiti artists. Doesn’t sound that interesting, but it made me care about these nocturnal lovers of graffiti art.

Hillary: I’ve heard good things about Exit, but all the buzz I’ve read about is saying Inside Job. This may be because a lot of Hollywood celebs lost a lot of money last year.

Best Documentary, Short Subjects

Hillary: Based on the subject material, I’m going for Killing in the Name. Mind you, I haven’t seen any of the shorts.

Robbie: I think I’ll choose Poster Girl although I haven’t seen any of them either. I like the irony of the film – The film’s subject was on the cover of an Army magazine and went to Iraq and then suffered from post traumatic stress disorder. I want to see this one.

Best Short Film, Animated

Robbie: The only one I’ve seen is the one that will win. Not because of me, of course. Day and Night was the short film by Pixar that was shown before Toy Story 3. I thought it was brilliant.

Hillary: I’m leaning towards The Lost Thing myself, but this tends to be a tricky category to predict.

Best Short Film, Live Action

Hillary: Ebert says Na Wewe – I say, sure!

Robbie: Ebert knows.

And finally, the Big Kahuna….

Best Motion Picture of the Year

Robbie: The King’s Speech. It has the Academy Award feel of a Best Picture. It is a great story and wonderfully told, well-acted, and the ending allows the audience to feel wonderfully. There is a slight chance for an upset with The Social Network taking the honor being a movie of our times, completely relevant to what is going on in our technological world. But most of the voters are older, so I’m going to go with The King’s Speech.

Hillary: I agree, for the same reasons. While I think the fact that it has that Best Pic Material sheen seemed to it hurt it earlier on, The Social Network experienced the same backlash that Up in the Air did last year to a certain extent.

That being said, The King’s Speech is a wonderful story with characters that really resonate; the film’s success is an illustration of the way audiences respond to films with well-written characters.

Robbie: Lovely to banter with you Hillary! Here’s to the Oscars!

Hillary: And speaking of the ceremony - what will you be wearing?

Robbie: After weeks of consider all my options, I have narrowed what I will wear down to two lovely gowns. Both are modeled here by Penelope Cruz, an actress with many similarities to me.

Hillary: Both lovely choice - so sweet of Penelope to model them for you! I always hear such good things about her. I had trouble deciding myself -

Elie Saab, from the Spring 2011 collection.

This is from Carolina Herrera's Fall 2011 collection; you can see it move here. The skirt is, like, alive. But I'd probably want to stick a giant sparkly pin on the waistband, so I'm not to be trusted with fashion.

So there you have it, folks! The Oscars, the awards, and the clothes - be sure to check in on Twitter on Sunday during the awards. Barring a snowstorm in Flagstaff (so lame, I know), I'll be live-tweeting through the ceremony.

I mean, live micro-blogging. I forget sometimes that I forget I don't use the word "tweet" unless actual birds are involved.

And be sure to catch posts on Robbie's blog!

Robbie Iobst is a movie aficionado with a love for the Academy Awards. She also is a writer living in Centennial, CO with her husband John, son Noah and puggle Scooby. Check out Robbie’s world here.

Lemon Tartlets in a Small Kitchen

2011-02-22T17:05:00.001-06:00

Isn't it pretty? I used the recipe (both the filling and the crust) from the Smitten Kitchen recipe. With...well...subtle changes.

I decreased the butter in the filling by one tablespoon, mainly because I had one stick short of a tablespoon in the fridge and decided that would have to be enough (don't think that I'm stingy on butter. I'm not. This recipe is not short of butter!).

Also, I don't exactly quite have a food processor. I have a food processing attachment that goes with our immersion blender, which works great, but only ever holds about a cup or so of anything. So I processed in smaller portions, mixed, processed some more, at least with the filling. I did the crust by hand. I realized that my pastry cutter (among many other things) is in storage, and cutting the butter in with knives wasn't floating my boat, so I rubbed the butter in with my (clean) fingers. Mary Englebreit got me onto that, and sometimes it's quite handy.

Discovered (belatedly) that it would have been easier to simply press the chilled dough into the tartlet pans, rather than try to roll it out using my can of Baker's Joy. I was afraid of overworking the dough, but as a result of not whaling on it, the crust was thicker than I intended.

But it tasted good.

The tartlet shells did shrink up just the tiniest but, but it actually made it easier to remove from the pan.

As for the lemon filling, it set up without any problems. However, I actually think I'll use a regular lemon next time with the zest of a second lemon (as opposed to one Meyer Lemon). Or maybe one Meyer Lemon and the zest of a regular lemon.

Anyway, not as sit up, hold the phone lemony as I wanted it to be, so I'll tweak that for next time. And don't get me wrong - there's definitely going to be a next time!

Cooking in a tiny hotel kitchen-let is not for the faint of heart (or specifically for the faint of heart, the kind who order take out all the time. It can go either way). With two burners (and one saucepan), it really forces me to streamline the prep process for anything I'm making. But its been a good exercise in using things creatively. Rather than sauté veggies every time, I may roast them in the mini-convection oven (which has proved its worth, btw) so I can use that second burner for something else. If I'm making a brown-butter sage sauce, I skip the browning and melt the butter with the sage in the microwave. Is it purist cooking? No, but it works.

Though sometimes, it's easier to order Thai.

Out and About in Tennessee

2011-02-18T22:03:00.000-06:00

We had a wonderful weekend in Nashville last week. Far and away, the highlight was the Cheekwood Botanical Garden and Museum of Art. From the architecture to the gardens, to the sculptures to the Fabergé collection, it was absolutely worth the drive.

My favorite, the Glass Bridge by Siah Armajani, was created with the memory of the bridge designed to span the Grand Canal in Venice, during the heyday of Murano's glass industry. The original collapsed, but this one stands surrounded by oak trees.

This is bamboo in the forest near the Japanese gardens. Almost makes me want a bamboo forest of my own.

Except I don't, because bamboo is like a tattoo for your yard. Once it's there, it's not budging.

We also really loved the spider-web patterns formed in the melting ice over the ponds. At some point, someone must have thrown rocks in, breaking the ice. As it melted, it left the sheerest traces of patterned ice.

Moments later, we literally watched as the wind blew over the surface. When we returned 40 minutes later, most of the patterns were gone. I shot these two photos with my point-and-shoot; I'm really pleased with how the exposure turned out, since it was entirely guesswork on my part (LCD screens not being wildly reliable).

We'll actually be going back to Nashville to meet up with some college friends of mine. Since we weren't able to visit every part of the grounds (it's quite extensive), I'm not-so-secretly hoping to go back.

And when we return for a brief time to Memphis in June (most likely; we don't have solid dates yet), I'm hoping for another weekend Nashville trip.

In less sophisticated entertainment, we finally got to see the Peabody Ducks!

There they were! Swimming around and around in the fountain in the center of the lobby. And after swimming, sometimes one would hop up on the ledge to get a look around...

...and preen.

Which makes sense, because it's not an insignificant audience. We arrived twenty minutes ahead of the 5pm march out, and the place was packed! We were able to get a spot on the mezzanine. This was good, since we got a nice overhead view, but bad, because the flowers happened to block quite a lot of the exit.

Like, pretty much all of it.

After a while, the Duck Master (I'm totally not making this up) starts to prep the area by shoving away small children and preparing the red carpet.

Not an easy task.

After a rousing retelling of the hotel's origins - and how the ducks came to reside inside - the music played, the ducks swam more frantically, and the Duck Master called up!

And as far as I can tell, each duck jumped up. But it's hard to say, because the flowers were in the way.

Then the Duck Master and the Honorary Duck Master (the elderly lady in the chair on the left, celebrating her 85th birthday, bless her) proceeded to walk the ducks down the red carpet.

At least that's my guess. It's hard to see ducks when there are two adults walking behind them. But they waddled (the ducks, not the adults) right into the elevator.

It was an excellent time. As was dinner at Bhan Thai, which had one of the best Pad Thais I've had. And very nice people, since I left my navy blue cardigan (the one I wear almost three times a week) and they not only found it but folded it nicely until we picked it up later.

We head back to the West coast on the 26th. We both miss being near friends, family, and familiarity terribly. But until then - we're still cramming in as much sight-seeing (and eating) as possible. We'll meet Danny's cousin and great aunt at the Memphis Zoo tomorrow; Sunday, it's a whirlwind trip to Nashville.

And then...Washington!

Can't wait!

Spring Movies!

2011-02-08T11:45:00.002-06:00

I know I'm writing a lot about TV and movies. But if you were living in an essentially windowless hotel room, you would too.

Trust me.

So. We're about to get to the end of the January to February film Dead Zone, where the Films No One Expects to Do Well are typically dumped. At best, it's B-Movie land, at worst...films like No Strings Attached and Season of the Witch.

After Valentine's Day, things start to look up. Now, usually around this time of year, at least one studio releases a date-movie for V-Day (last year it was named "Valentine's Day," just to clear up any confusion). This year? The closest thing to a romantic comedy is the Adam Sandler pic Just Go With It, which is as much like a romantic comedy as, say, a Kia Soul and a Bugatti Veyron. Sure, they're both cars...but there's a kind of palpable difference between them.

So. That said, here's what else the weeks and months ahead have to offer.

Unknown - 2/18

Based on the casting alone, I'm interested. Liam Neeson, Diane Kruger, January Jones, and Frank Langella are all people who are interesting to watch on screen. I like a good cerebral thriller - the concept looks solid if the somewhat untested writers and director can pull it off.

The Adjustment Bureau - 3/4

I've been looking forward to this movie since before it was bumped from a September to a March release. Again, great cast. It's based off of a short story, if I remember right, so here's hoping to translates well to a feature film.

Jane Eyre - 3/11

According to this blog, there are two kinds of people - Wuthering Heights people and Jane Eyre people. Well, I'm solidly in the Jane Eyre camp (I even enjoyed this recent YA adaptation). I had my doubts when Mia Wasikowska was cast as Jane, but a mousy dye-job and lots of furrowed eyebrows shows that she can be librarian-ish enough to be the title character. No matter - it has the Judy Dench seal of approval, which will have to be enough for everyone else.

Red Riding Hood - 3/11

Two girl movies releasing the same weekend? This is Catherine Hardwicke's first film since Twilight; Little Red Riding Hood reimagined as a werewolf tale. I like a good dark, gothic romance, so I'm excited about this. From the trailer, it looks as though this film got the budget Twilight ought to have had, but oh well. Cast members include Billy Burke and Virginia Madsen; Julie Christie as the grandmother is a classy touch.

Hanna - 4/8

Another movie with an unusual concept (one I wouldn't have expected director Joe Write to helm, at least) and a strong cast. I'll be curious to see the reviews for this, but until then, it's on my to-watch list. Oh, and with the red hair - does Cate Blanchett remind anyone else or Nina Sharp?

What I'm waiting to hear more about - Arthur, with Russell Brand, Hellen Mirren, and Jennifer Garner. I love two out of the three, but with no trailer released yet, I'm wondering how concrete the April release is. Source Code could be good, or it could be Vantage Point meets Groundhog's Day. Rango just looks weird to me. Like Water for Elephants could be good, but given the source material (Sara Gruen's bestselling novel and former NaNoWriMo project of the same title) and the stars (Reese Witherspoon, Robert Pattinson, Christoph Waltz), the April release date could mean the studio has something large and not quite cohesive on their hands (a la Robin Hood). Sucker Punch has a lot of fanboy (and girl) love, but I'm not sold on the concept yet.

So we'll see. Even if nothing pans out, there's a lot come May that looks like fun...

...but more about that later.

Odds and Ends

2011-02-08T09:32:00.000-06:00

When I put together the Things to Watch on Netflix, I had on my list (but somehow neglected to write about)...

1.) Departures

The winner of 2009's Best Foreign Film, it only played at one film festival. That was enough, though, to get it onto the Oscar ballots.

Like the best of films, it's both funny and tragic. Like Cameron Crowe's Elizabethtown, it explores death and burial, this time within the context of Japanese culture. When he is let go from the orchestra - after purchasing a very expensive cello, musician Daigo returns to his hometown where he answers a job ad to make ends meet. The job is to be an assistant to the town's nakanshi, who prepares the dead for burial (there's a sequence involving the filming of an instructional DVD that's completely hilarious). Social taboos regarding the handling of the dead, however, threaten Daigo's marriage even as he finds in the nakanshi, Ikuei, the father figure he never had.

2.) We're headed to Nashville this weekend! It's out little Danny's Birthday / Valentine's getaway; we're excited. It'll only be a short trip, but it'll be fun to get out of town. The biggest piece of the itinerary is a trip to the REI store in Brentwood; Danny's North Face jacket, after 13 years of honorable service, is going to be ...upgraded.

Not quite replaced. Just upgraded. And there aren't a lot of REI stores in the area.

Go figure.

3.) I'll admit, we skipped the Super Bowl. Neither of us were much interested in the game, and with this newfangled thing they call the "internet," commercial watching has never been easier. Our favorite? It is (not surprisingly, the Audi Ad.

I love it all - the Kenny G, the Russian Wolfhounds (gorgeous dogs, actually - I totally want one), the spleen complaint...it's just glorious.

BUT, you've got to see the BMW commercial too. Watch it! The Spartanburg factory? That's where we were last summer. Remember the Big Giant Robots I kept going on about? THOSE ARE THE ROBOTS!!!

THE ROBOTS!!!!

4.) The one downside to missing the Super Bowl was that I missed the advertising blitzkrieg revealing the Glee episode afterwards.

I was probably the only American with a TV who didn't know. But hey, there's hulu. And it was a good episode. The season's struggled with consistency; the writing at times just not as sharp and perfect as we know it can be. This episode? Sue's taking raccoon hormones? Of course she is. And now I totally want to watch 13 Going on 30, if only for the Thriller sequence. And Katie Couric at the end? Wow. So great.

5.) Danny's birthday chocolate is, like, 18 inches away from me, and that's too close.

6.) There's a geeky guy with dark, curly hair in The Social Network in one of the Harvard scenes, and I've totally seen him in something, but for the life of me (and even with the help of imdb.com) I can't figure out where I've seen him. If you have insight, share please.

7.) Naptime approacheth.

8.) I think I'm going to make the Pecan Pie Muffins again soon...

The Social Network vs. The King's Speech: Some Thoughts

2011-02-07T12:58:00.000-06:00

They're two well-made, well-written, well-acted films. And if you haven't been paying attention, they're the films said to be the top contenders for the Best Picture Oscar on February 27th.

The Social Network released in October when we were too busy with life to make it out to the theater. We saw The King's Speech on Christmas Day with both of our families.

It's funny, because they're two extraordinarily different films. The King's Speech has the feel of a comforting British Melodrama in the style of Merchant and Ivory; told in a linear fashion, cast with beloved English actors.

The Social Network is told in flashbacks from multiple perspectives. The dialogue is rapid-fire, the actors young up-and-comers and former boy-band members. For instance, Rooney Mara, who plays the fictional girl who inadvertently instigated Facebook, will appear as computer hacker Lisbeth Salander in the American film adaptation of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (and if you're familiar with the material, you know that calling Lisbeth a "computer hacker" doesn't even begin to cover it). British Actor Andrew Garfield, who plays Mark Zuckerberg's former friend, will star as Peter Parker in the Spiderman reboot releasing next Summer (I will be very, very surprised if Garfield, who's also appeared in The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, Never Let Me Go, and Doctor Who, doesn't become a Big Deal). There's also Justin Timberlake, who pleasantly surprised the critics by not being terrible.

The world of The Social Network is populated with anti-heroes and people we're overall indifferent to. Zuckerberg crashes the Harvard servers with a site that allows visitors to compare female students to each other on the basis of their online Harvard Face Book photos. Twins Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss (you just can't make this stuff up), who fulfill every child-of-privilege cliché available - they're tall, blond, and row crew - approach Zuckerberg to help them with their "Harvard Connect" website.

Zuckerberg agrees, takes the nugget of their concept - a Harvard-only social networking site - and builds "The Facebook." In his mind, he's done nothing wrong at all; after all, he didn't use any of their programming code. He points out later that a guy who makes a nice chair doesn't own owe money to everyone else who built a chair. In truth, intellectual property has become increasingly murky ground with the commonality of the internet.

The money for the servers is fronted by Zuckerberg's best and only friend, Eduardo Saverin. As the popularity of The Facebook grows - and spreads to colleges across the country, two things happen. First, it enrages the twins, who feel it was their idea and, as gentlemen, that such a thing should not have happened. Secondly, it garners the attention of Napster founder Sean Parker, played by Justin Timberlake. The twins try to go through school channels to stop Zuckerberg and are dismissed out of hand.

Zuckerberg shrugs them off, chalking it up to angst over not getting their way, pointing out that their idea wasn't nearly as good as his.

Three-hundred years ago, they would have challenged him to a duel. It probably wouldn't have worked then, either. That Zuckerberg is much, much smarter than Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss is obvious. Not that they're dull, but Zuckerberg is of genius-level intelligence when it comes to the logical analysis of computer programming and human nature. He could see the nugget of their idea and envision what it had the potential to be; Roger Ebert compared him to chess prodigy Bobby Fisher in this respect.

This does not translate to interpersonal skills; Zuckerberg comes across as having a touch of Asperger's. Social cues and niceties don't register for him. Is it because of Asperger's or simply because social niceties don't interest him intellectually? It's difficult to say. You can see his boredom when it comes to dealing with ordinary people. The irony of the film is that the creator of the social networking phenomenon that Facebook became was, in many ways, isolated by his own intelligence.

Zuckerberg managed to isolate himself from his best friend, Saverin, in a series of unfortunate events. Sean Parker, for not-wholly altruistic reasons, who helped Zuckerberg's The Facebook go global. He advised dropping the "the," a relocation to the heart of Silicon Valley, lined up big-money investors, and helped Facebook to cross the pond. Meanwhile, Zuckerberg and Saverin argued about advertising. Zuckerberg was reluctant, and Parker agreed - while Facebook grew and took hold, maintaining its cool factor was the number one priority. In fact, the cool factor was probably Parker's most important contribution, and I think Zuckerberg intuitively knew it.

Parker also tried to introduce Zuckerberg to his partying, VIP lifestyle. But Zuckerberg? Not interested. He's all about the coding, all about work. It's as if he spent his young life searching for a project to let his mind really, truly work, and when he's found it, that's all he needs.

There are lawsuits. The Winklevoss twins have not given up. Saverin is forced out of his CFO position largely by Parker, and by no apparent reason other than he can. Zuckerberg answers the attorney's questions for the depositions, but only because he must. He'd rather be coding, and the legal proceedings are a waste of his time. The film circles back around to Erica (Rooney Mara's character) in a very Rosebud, Citizen Kane kind of way.

Text at the end tells us what became of the legal proceedings. But what does it all mean, in the larger scope of things? We don't yet know how the Mark Zuckerberg story plays out; only this 2003-2011 window. It is recent history, without the benefit of contextual hindsight.

The King's Speech, in so many ways, couldn't be more different. Interpersonal relationships take center stage. We are given the man - and the character - of Bertie, the second son of an elderly king. The eldest son, Edward, inherited the impressive cheekbones and regal stature, but he's delighted to play footman to a married American socialite.

Bertie, as played by Colin Firth, is a man who would prefer to live in the shadows. He's had a stammer since childhood, has been the subject of ridicule and disappointment his entire life. He's reminded of how he doesn't measure up to the royal expectations at every turn. He loves his wife; she loves him. They have two young daughters.

It is a difficult thing for a wife to try to help a husband whose spirit has been crushed. The pedigreed speech therapists only frustrate and shame Bertie more. Elizabeth, played by a very dialed-down Helena Bonham Carter, seeks out a progressive speech therapist from Australia. The man is Lionel Logue, played by Geoffrey Rush, who looks very different when he's not dressed as a pirate. Lionel agrees to take on Bertie, but only if he meets with him at his own offices, and not at the castle.

From there we have the rest of the movie - a wife doing what she can to give her husband his dignity back, a therapist who needs to earn his patient's trust, friendship between men in two very different stations in life...but maybe aren't so very different.

The politics of the time add drama. King George V dies; Edward abdicates the throne soon after in favor of marrying the now-divorced Wallis Simpson. Bertie inherits the throne - as well as the expectation to be a well-spoken King in the face of troubles on the continent.

It's a lovely film about marriage, about masculinity, about responsibility, about friendship. It's a character film about character.

So far, The King's Speech has walked away with guild awards from the Producer's Guild, Screen Actor's guild, and Director's Guild. Tom Hooper won the Best Director DGA award, which essentially guarantees him the Best Director statuette on Oscar night. Critics have pointed out the historical inaccuracies, but it's a shame to let the truth get in the way of a good story - it wasn't meant to be a documentary, after all.

My favorite of the two? Clearly The King's Speech. I think it will best The Social Network at the Oscars as well. There's some speculation that True Grit could edge them both out...but I don't think so.

We want to believe in marriage, in friendship. We want to believe that the good guys win. Those are the stories that feed our souls.

Things to Watch on Netflix

2011-02-05T08:02:00.009-06:00

We're all about Netflix Instant Watch these days. With DVD rental being what it is (essentially obsolete), and the fact that mail is tricky when you live in a hotel, we're glad that watching things online has been an option. And, thankfully, there have been some pretty great things to catch up on.

Doctor Who

The Premise: The Doctor, a 900-year-old Time Lord, travels through time and space to keep universal peace. He is joined by an assistant; there are adventures. The show will appeal to viewers ages 13+, particularly ones who enjoy shows by JJ Abrams and Joss Whedon.

My Take: I didn't think much about watching this BBC production until I found out the writers responsible for the new Masterpiece Mystery! Sherlock Holmes series were writers for Doctor Who. It took me a few episodes to get into it, but once the plot started coming together, both Danny and I were completely hooked.

The writers are great at setting up future plot points and making sure the pay-offs work in the end. They also have a better sense of sequencing and remembering what happened in earlier episodes than most other sequential shows. They also are incredibly skilled at writing characters you love, even when you start out thinking this isn't going to go so well. The Doctor's Assistant Donna in the fourth series? Incredibly annoying. But...she grows on you. You get to like her.

One of the trickinesses of the show is that the Doctor is 900 years old; when he is mortally wounded, he regenerates. This means you've got a different actor playing a different facet of the same character, which is not easy to write when that character is the central character. The writers pull it off, though. I was really not sure when Matt Smith took over from David Tennant (to be fair, I wasn't a fan of David Tennant after Christopher Eccleston). But by the end of the series, I really did think bow-ties had the potential to be "cool."

Unlike American television, the end of a season (or "series") is typically not left as a cliff-hanger. So at the end of the series, you're not miserable. I like that.

The other great thing about Doctor Who? It's one of the few smart, witty shows that's appropriate for family viewing. Just be aware that though there's no gore, sex, language, drugs, or Rock n' Roll, it can still be genuinely scary. Scary, but there is always - always - a happy ending.

Top Gear (Series 9-12)

The Premise: Three white, middle-aged British men test and review high-performance sports cars, host celebrities, and perform "challenges" such as turning a Renault Minivan into a convertible (which ends in flames), going on an RV trip (which ends in flames), trying to make an inexpensive car faster with their own impressive lack of engineering skills (which makes Danny giggle). Oh, and there's The Stig. Some say..his favorite film of 2010 was Nanny McPhee Returns, and that he washes his hair with liquid nitrogen. All I know is he's called The Stig.

And if you've watched the show, you know why that's funny.

My Take: This is the best kind of reality TV, because each of the hosts are fantastic characters is their own right. Series 9-12 are available on Instant Watch. The highlights include:

9.1: Richard Hammond reviewing his harrowing accident in the Vampire jet-car; Richard, James, and Jeremy try to resurface roads better than the city. It goes badly.
9.3: Jeremy, Richard, and James try to buy (rather than rent) a car in Miami for $1000. It goes badly.
9.5: The Kristin Scott Thomas episode - one of my favorite "Star in a Reasonably-Price Car" segments.
10.5: The Challenge? To find out the fastest way to cross London. The Stig takes public transport (hilarity ensues), Richard Hammond rides a bike (sweat ensues), James May drives a Mercedes-Benz GL500, and Jeremy Clarkson attempts a powerboat down the Thames.
10.8: James Blunt in the Star in a Reasonably-Priced Car - one of my other favorite SIARPC bits.
10.10: The David Tennant episode! I've never seen anyone handle Jeremy Clarkson so gracefully.
11.1: Police cars are built. It doesn't end well.
11.6: Germany vs. Britain (a personal favorite).
12.1: Jeremy, Richard, and James attempt to drive semi-trucks (aka "lorries").
12.6: The Communist Car episode. One of my very favorites. Also includes extensive testing of the Ford Fiesta.

Not available on Instant Watch but worth mentioning:

8.1: The Renault Espace Convertible Challenge. You can watch it here.

And, last but not least, episode 13.6, the Mallorca Time Trial Rally, the first part of which can be viewed below.

Or, as I like to refer to the episode, "The Blond, the Spaniard, and the Midget."

It's glorious.

Also available for your viewing pleasure:

Tell No One

On of the best thrillers I've ever seen. It shares similarities to The Fugitive, but the plot is even more twisty and mind-blowing. In French with English Subtitles. If you're not a foreign film watcher, this is one to watch anyway. The star, François Cluzet, is reminiscent of a dialed-down Dustin Hoffman. Actor François Berléand (The Choir, The Transporter), also plays a key character, and Kristin Scott Thomas shows off her French.

Bottle Shock

My favorite wine movie. Stars Alan Rickman, Bill Pullman, and Chris Pine. You may not have thought that a movie about wine could be suspenseful, but this one will surprise you. Centered around the wine-tasting competition in 1977, you may consider moving to wine country after viewing.

Or France. It's a toss-up.

Possession

Starring Gwyneth Paltrow, Aaron Eckhart, Jeremy Northam, Jennifer Ehle, a literary mystery and romance based on the A.S. Byatt novel. It may not measure up to the novel's pedigree, but the film is well-written and acted. One of my new favorite films.

The September Issue

Basically, it's The Devil Wears Prada: The Documentary. Though in reality, Anna Wintour is surprisingly less demonic than she's made out to be - watch how she interacts with her daughter. No joke, she's tough, but if she were a man, I have a hunch she'd be revered for notoriety rather than snickered at. The woman knows her stuff, there's no denying it.

Outsourced

American employee has to go to India to train the phone team who's replaced his stateside department. It's a classic fish out of water scenario, but this romantic comedy is surprisingly sweet and occasionally insightful when it comes to analyzing cultures.

There are other great finds, but I'm running out of steam. What are you watching?

Travels: Part IV - Your Turn Signal, Your Friend

2011-02-04T11:54:00.000-06:00

I let Danny take the car to work this morning. We may or may not get more snow/ice/questionable precipitation, and I didn't feel like dealing with Memphis drivers in weather again.

There are days when I think God moved us to Memphis so that when we moved to Washington, the Washington drivers wouldn't seem so bad. Because as erratic as Washington Drivers are, Memphis drivers are a whole other brand of nuts.

Why? Well...

1.) Memphis drivers don't like to signal. I believe the thingy to the left of the steering wheel is colloquially referred to around here as a "sissy stick."

2.) Memphis drivers don't like to stay in their own lanes. Lanes, oftentimes, are merely suggestions. (Mind you, this can apply for both white and yellow lines from time to time).

3.) Memphis drivers don't like to check their mirrors or look over their shoulder before changing lanes. Often this is lanes, multiple, because hopping over two-three lanes gives them great joy.

4.) Especially at 70-90+ miles per hour.

5.) Also disconcerting, Memphis drivers get lonely. This is why they like to drive in blind spots. Now, it's a driving phenomenon that when one driver passes another, he'll unconsciously match the speed to mimic the car he's passing before accelerating past. Memphis drivers just happen to be more prone to this. Which is why it's reeeeally important around here to check before shifting lanes, because more often than not, there's someone right there, just hanging,

6.) Even if it's snowing.

7.) Or icy.

8.) Which is why you can get pretty twitchy on the roads.

Also:

9.) Memphis drivers tend to view using headlights as optional in the rain or snow. Or, not infrequently, at night.

10.) The slow lanes are actually in the middle of the freeway, rather than the right. This makes merging a blast.

Lastly:

11.) We watched as a police officer spent five minute trying to parallel park his Dodge Charger downtown.

12.) Danny stopped laughing eventually.

Travels: Part III - They Bag the Milk

2011-01-14T12:32:00.001-06:00

They really do. If you go to the grocery store and buy a gallon of milk, when you check out, they put it in a bag. It's one of many things that are different 'round these parts.

Also, there aren't a lot of hills or mountains. I mean, sometimes the road goes up and down a bit, but it's not like you every look out the window and say "hey, look at those hills." I grew up in Eugene, which is partly framed by the Coburg Hills, which turn purple and misty sometimes in the early morning hours. I got really excited when we were driving to Little Rocks a few weeks ago, because for the first time in a long time, I looked out the window and saw a hill, a really ill. It rose out of the ground, beautiful and green. I turned to Danny (who was driving) to point it out. We admired it for a moment...then sniffed.

"Yeah..." Danny said. "That's an old landfill that's been covered over."

Oh.

It was pretty, though. For a landfill.

My favorite BBQ place around here, so far, is Corky's on Poplar. We stepped inside and were immediately gestured forward as if we were not only expected, but late. We were seated immediately. Later we realized how lucky we'd been - the entryway was full of people waiting for a table. The food was delicious, the fries were the best I've had in Memphis, the staff was friendly and attentive, and everyone wandered around humming along with the strains for Elvis and his contemporaries that played over the sound system.

Also, the food was plated very well. You come to appreciate this after a while. And the apple BBQ sauce? Amazing.

The BBQ was good. We tried going out for Mexican, which turned out to be a mistake. There just aren't enough Mexicans in the area for good Mexican food. There were peas in the Spanish rice. Oh, and they managed to put bacon on the menu. Authentic Mexican, it wasn't. Ironically, the place was packed; online, it's reviewed as the best Mexican place in town.

It's been very cold lately, but we're looking forward for a touch of warmth. We walked through the Memphis Zoo before Christmas. Next up? Walking through Rhodes college. It's really beautiful, architecturally. Also, my grandmother had lunch at the Peabody Hotel in 1947 and watched the ducks walk around the lobby. The ducks "march" in at 11am daily - I'm thinking duck-watching and lunch, one of these days.

We're still looking for a church. We've tried a couple, but finding a West-Coast style of worship and teaching in the middle of the Bible Belt is a little tricky. The funny thing is that Danny's co-workers ask, often, if we've found a church yet.

I know a lot of my readers don't hail from the Pacific Northwest, so let me fill you in - this would never, ever happen back home. The area is so un-churched and largely anti-Christian that you never approach the subject with a stranger without making observations first (stray Bible verse, book from a Christian publisher, a promise to pray about something, t-shirt/bumper-sticker with religious overtones, etc.), then moving on to oblique questions on the subject.

The funny thing is, once two believers realize they're both believers, a certain amount of spiritual chest-beating can ensue. Years of Sunday School taught, Bible-Study leadership, Christian College attendance...all of this is to prove that you're not an entry-level believer.

Worry not, evangelism is alive and well in the Northwest. There are lots of people to spread the gospel to. The method's just different, that's all.

What really cracks me up out here is that there is, I kid you not, a Baptist Rehabilitation Center.

I love it. I love it much.

On a completely different subject, the Golden Globes are Sunday! Barring a terrible time-zone related mix-up (which, surprisingly, happened last year), I'll be micro-blogging through the live broadcast here. Can't wait! In the meantime, here are some red-carpet tips in case you feel like getting into the spirit of Award Season. I might keep some in mind for this year's ACFW Banquet!

Game Day

2011-01-10T15:21:00.002-06:00

Oregon Football, in the city of Eugene, is a Very Big Deal.

There have been good seasons. There have been bad seasons. There have been very, very bad seasons, but this wasn't one of them.

You'd have thought it would be. They previous season marked Coach Chip Kelly's first season as head coach, taking the reins after the much beloved Mike Belotti shifted into the Athletic Director's chair. The season started poorly with an embarrassing loss to Idaho State that ended in a fist fight.

After that crushing, ugly day, the Ducks came back with a winning season and a trip to the Rose Bowl.

But the off-season months were marked with player arrests, the loss of quarterback Jeremiah Masoli after he plead guilty to charges of felony second-degree burglary, marijuana possession and a traffic citation. Running back LaMichael James and Ron Beard were suspended from the opening game against New Mexico after they both plead guilty to harassment.

It was bad, but again, didn't stay that way. The Ducks kept winning, game after game. LaMichael returned to play. Darren Thomas turned out to be a good quarterback. The wins continued to stack up. Chip Kelly's critics quieted down and remembered episodes like this. His "Win the Day" motto took hold.

And then the Ducks won Civil War. Oregon had made its way to the number two spot in the BCS; they'll play tonight for the National Championship.

Did I mention this is a Very Big Deal? The Biggest Deal for Duck Football in Duck Football History?

Bigger than than Kenny Wheaton's Touchdown. Bigger than Joey Harrington tripping into the end zone.

And a lot of other really great moments.

We'll be watching the game tonight. Being a Eugene native, a third generation UO graduate, and very far from home is honestly kind of tough right now...and not just far from home, but in the heart of SEC Territory.

The national attention for the Ducks has been fun. I mean, Sebastian Bach (of Gilmore Girls and Skid Row) writing a Duck power ballad?

Not to be missed.

Or the music it's inspired?

Also not to be missed. And my parent's dog, Brinkley?

He's so ready. Me? I've been waiting for this day for a long, long time.

Me, giving the Ducks a thumb's up.

While I'm sad I can't be in Eugene to celebrate with everyone, what makes me happy is seeing the Ducks, and my hometown, in the national limelight. It's a great place. There really is no place like home.

Listening In

2011-01-08T12:42:00.000-06:00

We were sitting in a restaurant in Arkansas; the little boy behind me, voice laden with drawl, expounded on how good he was at "ropin'," and how he had his eye on a new Stetson that could be found at "Wahllgreens."

I smiled in delight and leaned forward towards Danny. "Are you hearing all this?" I asked. "This is fantastic!"

Danny shook his head. "I try not to listen to other people's conversations."

I didn't know what to say to that. I live for other people's conversations. They're one of my great joys in life. Keeping in tune to others helps me keep my dialogue realistic, and reassures me of the quirkiness of others. But my husband had spent a lifetime granting privacy to others, which made me feel guilty.

Until I read this and discovered - I'm not alone! And I agree with Connie - y'all are fascinating. My favorite places to hear things tend to be dressing rooms, where people don't realize that even if you can't see everyone else, it's doesn't mean we're out of earshot. Whether it's body image confessionals from angsty teens or cries of delight from little girls in dresses ("It's poufy and pink and it twirls!"), it's all insights into human nature. Same for women's restrooms (as noted here).

And not to be left out, restaurants. While sitting and working on a book proposal, I can't help but hear a young man speaking with great authority on the subject of breast feeding. Not only does he spend several minutes expounding on said feeding, but he does so to two other young men and a woman.

Now, another moment's listening clarifies things to the point where I gather that they'r pre-med students. But that's besides the point.

I write fiction; I make up stuff people say for a living. But real life? There's no way I could match it. Fiction is good, but life?

It's grand.

Bright Side

2011-01-03T13:46:00.000-06:00

It's been a doozy of a year. Difficult, in many, many ways. I kicked it off at the start with the release of one book (Plain Jayne) while being waaaaay behind schedule on another (Simply Sara, the little snot). I got my first taste of book signings, radio interviews, and publicity campaigns. Danny had a promising job offer, which was very exciting until it fell through.

We continued by getting Danny done with graduate school, me turning in Sara (she redeemed herself), and flying out to the East Coast so Danny could properly matriculate, which he turned out to be very good at. I was supposed to be working on galley edits while we were out, which I turned out not to be very good at.

During the summer, Danny and I celebrated our third wedding anniversary. I taught at Oregon Christian Writers; Danny recovered from graduate school. By the end of that week, both my grandfather and Danny's grandfather went home to Jesus. We traveled to one memorial and wished that we could have been at the other as well. Simply Sara released, looking a little out of breath. Short weeks later, not only had the previous job offer been placed back on table, but it was backed up by an interview in Memphis while I attended my first ACFW conference.

As the weeks progressed, we prepared ourselves for a move to the Mid-South when the company came back and offered Danny a job in their Richland, Washington office, a move that stunned us both but felt like a grand idea. We tidied, we donated, we packed, we moved, we relied on the kindness of others and later drove across the country so Danny could do his engineer training in Memphis.

It's been a tricky year. We've had a lot of loss, change, difficulties, both personal and professional. It's been hard some times to choose joy, to choose to examine the beautiful parts while giving mourning its due.

During our trip to the East Coast we got to see some of the best-looking ceilings in the country

The Library of Congress

The National Cathedral

...and some of it's prettiest architecture. We've gotten to visit children we love...

...and enjoy the simple beauty of God's creation near our home.

We've had adventures, and we will have more. We visited 19 states, made new friends, visited old ones. It's been a big year for us, and I don't have any reason to think next year won't be just as crazy.

So I'm embracing the crazy. As long as the Father knows what He's doing (and He assures me He does), I eagerly anticipate what the next year has in store for us.

Why You Should Go See Dawn Treader

2010-12-15T10:48:00.000-06:00

1.) It's far, far, far, far, far and away the best of the Narnia adaptations. Now firmly in the hands of Brit Michael Apted, it's breathtakingly beautiful and...

2.) ...well translated to film. I was worried when I read that they'd made plot changes, and part of me wonders if that bit of press didn't hurt the release. But you know what? The changes were subtle and they worked.

3.) More than that, they set things up nicely for The Silver Chair.

4.) Will Poulter makes the best Eustace Scrubb EVER. Which I knew he would, because he was fantastically wonderful as Lee Carter in Son of Rambow. That was a bit of casting I was excited about when it released, and it was just as good as I expected.

5.) Dawn Treader had a lousy opening weekend. Lousy to the point that it's the end of the franchise if people don't head out to the theater and bring the numbers up.

5.) It would be really sad if the franchise ended here, because The Silver Chair is probably the most filmable of all of the books, with the exception of The Horse and His Boy, which is my absolute favorite. I really, reeeeeaaally want to see The Horse and His Boy. And I want to see Michael Apted do Silver Chair (which he will if the franchise continues).

6.) So bundle up your children, sweet-talk your husband (not that mine needed any), coerce a friend, do what you have to do, just go see the movie. You'll like it. It's lovely, and it shouldn't be the last.

Note: See it in 2D. We saw it in 3D, and it really wasn't worth it. The colors will be brighter, the image sharper in 2D.

Once Upon a Time

2010-12-14T18:35:00.000-06:00

When I start a book, I always think it's going to be easier than it really is.

Beginning a story is tricky. Some people start their book before they start their story. They begin with prologues and opening scenes and lay out their groundwork very carefully, like chefs who set out their ingredients ahead of time.

The thing is that, realistically, as writers we don't really have that luxury. Those opening scenes are only good for you, as information about who your characters are. Think about this - if your book doesn't really get going until the fifth chapter, a.) you're banking on a fairly patient reader, and (more importantly) b.) you haven't showcased the best part of your book when it's being looked at by the Powers that Be. Whether it's agents, editors, or a Publishing Committee, remember that even if your readers are willing to settle slowly into a story, it's not likely that anyone in publishing will.

Your first three chapters become more than the beginning of the book - they're your resumé, your proof that you know how to take your readers out for a spin and show them the sights.

Think about your first three chapters as being the pilot episode for a TV series (The pilot for Gilmore Girls is a great example, fyi). You need to give an idea of where you're going and who your principle characters are within those first three chapters. Specifically, introduce the main character, explain her world, set up the main conflict, and introduce the love-interest in the three-chapter time frame.

Bada-bing, bada- boom. You're now ready to write the rest of your novel.

For example: in Nicole Mones The Last Chinese Chef, the main character, Maggie, is an food-writing American widow who goes to China to settle a claim against her late husband's estate. While she's there, she discovers a.) her husband had secrets and b.) the mysterious world of Chinese haute cuisine while writing about chef Sam Liang.

Mones works fast - in the first chapter, she manages to get her protagonist out of her houseboat, onto a plane, in China, and introduced to Sam. All in 17 pages.

The second chapter better establishes Sam as a character and introduces some of the principle supporting cast, Sam's Chinese uncles.

The third chapter showcases Sam's cooking and Maggie's writing. We learn the history of Sam's father, grandfather, and Chinese uncles, as well as several of the tenants of traditional Chinese cuisine.

Likewise, in Sarah Addison Allen's Garden Spells, Allen has entirely set up the main characters, the love-interest, and the world of magical realism.

In contrast, in The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, Stieg Larsson didn't introduce Mikael Blomkvist to Lisbeth Salander for 18 chapters. EIGHTEEN CHAPTERS. Lisbeth doesn't even make an appearance for the first 38 pages, which would be forgivable (it's still in the second chapter) if she weren't the driving force of the book. Mikael, as a character, is fairly bland. Lisbeth is one of the most interesting characters to be written in the last ten years, at least. When you've got someone that good, putting her in the background is a bad idea.

Yes, I know Girl has been an international success. I know, I know. Just because a book is successful doesn't mean it couldn't have been better written.

I mean, Dan Brown, folks.

Really.

Travels, Part II

2010-12-11T11:00:00.000-06:00

So we arrived in Memphis, and we pulled up at the place where we were to stay for the next three months.

The lobby smelled of stale cigarette smoke. I was worried but didn't say anything. We accepted our keys and walked down the musty hallway to our assigned room.

It didn't smell of stale cigarettes, but it did smell like slightly rancid fried potatoes. The furniture was dated and chipped. The carpet was stained. There were wires where the smoke detector used to be.

I plugged in one of my Febreeze scented-plug-ins, but had difficulty because all of the outlets were either upside-down or sideways. (Note: it wasn't until yesterday that I discovered that the Febreeze pluggy-thingy is actually rotatable. So keep that under your hat). Danny pulled out one of our power-strips and tied it around the chair in a slip-knot we could try to replace our room's greasy fryer scent.

But...by the time we found hairs of a concerning nature in various places in the bathroom...it was time to decamp.

Calls were made. Opinions asked. It was a tricky situation to be in, considering that Memphis, Tennessee is not anything like anywhere in Oregon, or anything like anywhere bordering Oregon. I don't wish to insult any from the south, but here's the thing - the Pacific Northwest and the Mid South are not like apples and oranges. They're like apples and dental floss.

Eventually, one of Danny's co-workers from Portland who was familiar(ish) with the area advised Danny to go to one of the Marriotts in Southaven, Mississippi, about 15 minutes away.

We did. We packed up, checked out, and fled.

The room at the Marriott was magical. By magical, I mean clean.

We spent the weekend looking at other extended-stay hotels. We made preliminary efforts to move to one on Monday that appeared to be safe and clean (better smell, no garbage or syringes to be seen), but were dissuaded from that when we learned that the company had sent employees to that one before, who had reported that there were prostitutes roaming the hallways. In what capacity, we didn't know, but just the same we elected to move to another hotel farther east, bordering Germantown.

It's been better. The hallways are still stale and the toilet burps sometimes when others flush, which apparently means something's wrong with the plumbing somewhere in a very bad way...but nothing bad's happened yet, so here's hoping. Visited Target and TJ Maxx and picked up things to make it a bit homier.

So far? Memphis is very different from Oregon. Everyone sounds like Paula Dean. I've yet to be able to get a spring greens salad at a restaurant (though the Macaroni Grill had a romaine salad with a bit of frisee on top), but we've been able to find things we were expecting to do without, such as Oregon Chai tea concentrate and Odwalla juices. We had wonderful Thai Iced Teas at dinner the other night (though the Pad Thai was not the best. Danny's dish was good, though). There's a Whole Foods close by with lots of options - I'm hoping (hoping!!) that I might be able to find Tillamook cheese...

Recycling? Not so much.

Oh, and another thing? In Oregon, if the speed limit is 55 - especially if it's in-town driving - at most people are traveling at 62 or so. Memphis? It averages around 70 to 75, with some people in the end lanes traveling around 85-90.

On our drive from the Marriott to our extended stay hotel, my hands were so tight on the steering wheel I had wrist pain afterwards.

Our plans? Find good barbeque. Our first venture out sent us to a well-recommended and much-loved restaurant that no longer existed, and in its place was okay barbeque and depressing sides (green beans from a can. An old can). But everyone's telling Danny to go to Central Barbeque, so that's our destination after we see Dawn Treader. Looking forward to a night out together!

Travels, Part I

2010-12-10T14:59:00.000-06:00

I'm frankly a little appalled at how infrequently I've blogged in the last year. All I can say is that it's been quite a year.

Since the last blog, we've traveled from Portland to Eugene for Thanksgiving; we had a wonderful holiday with family. That night, however, while we were staying at my grandmother's, Danny heard her call for me. Thinking I'd left a dish in the wrong place (it's happened before), I got up to see what she needed.

Well, she'd fallen and (we later discovered) broken her hip. We didn't know that at the time. She wanted us to help her to bed so she could sleep it off. At one point she asked Danny if he could just grab her foot and drag her down the kitchen floor (he declined). Instead, he called an ambulance and she was whisked away for painkillers, x-rays, and ultimately surgery to repair the hip.

I'm happy to report that she's doing quite well. She's in a rehab facility (though looking forward to being out) and has her spunk back (not that it was ever far away).

The Monday after Thanksgiving, we packed up (again) and began our journey to Memphis. We drove to Fresno, CA, first, where we got to see some of Danny's cousins and their kids. From Fresno we continued to Bakersfield and hung a left to Arizona.

1.) Parts of the desert are incredibly beautiful. I find this comforting since we will eventually be moving to the desert.

2.) The freeway, eastbound, in Arizona is weird. I'm still astounded that we didn't see any hippies out there with their tambourines, but they may have been on their smoke breaks. There were plenty of places to stop and see fake dinosaurs, though, if we were so inclined.

3. The streets roll up early in Williams, AZ, where we spent our second night. Very glad for Safeway, bearer of food.

4. Flagstaff, AZ could be Bend if you added a couple mountains. Same type of people - they all look like they were just out surfing/snowboarding. Deeply grateful to Starbucks, from whom we searching out breakfast every morning.

5. New Mexico is a dull place to drive through. Just sayin'.

6. Amarillo, TX is a good place to order in pizza if you've been driving all day and the thought of going back into the car and walking around in public makes you want to cry.

7. Van Buren, AK has my favorite Holiday Inn Express.

And then...

...we got to Memphis.

He Said She Said

2010-11-18T16:06:00.000-06:00

At least my life is following the script - true to form, now that I'm done with the main business of moving (though in the upcoming days we need to pare down our belongings yet again, and put enough in storage so that what we're taking to Memphis actually fits in our car), I'm sick.

Sick enough with a potpourri of ailments that, while none of them are all that bad individually, the combination provides a potent cocktail of misery that's had me in bed the last few days.

It's just as well, because I hardly managed 10,000 words during last year's NaNoWriMo, and between the move and the illness...well...I'm just glad I'm not under deadline at the moment. Being sick while under deadline is the pits.

So rather than talk about being sick, I thought I'd write about writing dialogue.

I love dialogue. It's one of the parts of writing that's the easiest for me, that's the most fun, the most gratifying. Here are some things I've found to be true and helpful about writing dialogue:

1.) Think about how and where you're staging the conversation. Consider the photo above (yes, it is from Gilmore Girls. Yes, I do think you should watch Gilmore Girls if you want to learn about dialogue. Thanks for asking) - Luke, bless his heart, is going to teach Lorelei how to fish before her date with another man (incidentally, her date is Billy Burke, the future father of Bella Swan). You can watch the scene here.

That's the basic scenario. It's fantastic because you've got all sorts of things to work with - wading pools, strange clothes, fishing equipment. Giving your characters things to do and interact with will make your action beats and dialogue tags a lot easier. The fact of the matter is that when we talk, we don't tend to stand still and speak. Rather, we fidget. We interact with our space.

2.) Dialogue written in an active sequence (practice fishing in a wading pool) will often create more momentum than dialogue written in a passive sequence (sitting at a coffee shop). If you're trying to get your characters to move, make them talk and walk. If they need to sit and figure things out, let them sit. Just sit them somewhere interesting. (There's that episode of House in Season Four when House tells the TV crew that they talk while walking, it gives the illusion of the story moving forward... :-)

3.) What's not being said is just as important as what is being said. Consider what your characters want, and how they express it verbally. Consider what they're afraid of, and how that shades what they say. Be aware of subtext. In the fishing scene, there's a lot of silly with the fishing equipment before Luke gets down to business and asks enough questions to find out why exactly Lorelei's going fishing, though he's already got an idea. Notice how Lorelei hedges and Luke keeps probing, and when he finds out, things get quieter. When Lorelei says "You don't want to hear about my personal life," Luke stays quiet for a while, before asking "So this will be your first date or second date?"

He answers indirectly. He doesn't say "Why, yes, I do want to hear about your personal life," his evasion shows that he wants to know, but he doesn't want to be obvious about it. That he's hurt that she doesn't think he'd be interested. But he also wants to stay in the picture - he shows that by offering his pole and tackle box - which is a whole lot more interesting than Luke saying "Hey, when you're done with Charlie Swan, do you want to go out?"

4.) Dialogue tags and action beats. Dialogue tags are the "He said" bits that we stick around the dialogue so we know who's talking.

Now, it's okay to use certain amounts of "he said, she said" for tagging purposes. Readers will notice them less than if you try to get creative and use "he articulated" or "she uttered." However, you can also use action beats instead of tags.

Consider:

"I don't know why, but I like the other one better," she said.

"I don't know why, but I like the other one better," she said, wrinkling her nose.

The action beat attached to the tag is pretty straightforward, but gives a bit more detail visually.

"I don't know why," she tilted her head to the side. "But I like the other one better."

Throwing the beat into the middle puts a longer pause in the the center than you'd get from just a comma. This helps if you want to give your characters time to think and have it show up on the page. Depending on how you use the beats, you can mix up your pacing quite easily.

That's it for now...thinking about taking a pre-dinner nap. Hoping tomorrow is the magic day that I'll feel well enough to leave the house...also hoping this blog is coherent. I trust you to tell me if it's not.

ECPA Happiness...and Moving

2010-11-03T23:29:00.000-05:00

Big, big news in the life of this writer - Simply Sara hit #13 on the prestigious ECPA list. This was sometime last week, or possibly the week before. If I think about it long enough, I remember that it was November 1st, because that's when the list released...but the last couple weeks are a blur. So here's the pertinent information.

1. Simply Sara is #13.

2. You can see it here.

3. It is good. There was rejoicing.

4. We celebrated by packing.

I'd share a picture here, one of Danny lining up all of our DVD cases, except that I don't know where that particular camera is, and I don't know where the connection cord for it is, and I'm not at all motivated to go look.

Just know that it's funny, and it was a lot of DVDs.

Part one of our moving process is over. We've left our apartment for good, the one we moved into after being married for about two weeks. When all of our things were packed up and strewn on the sidewalk outside, I walked to our bedroom, leaned against the door frame and cried. Not that I have a deep affection for that apartment, with its Berber carpet that chewed up the bottoms of my feet, cobweb-prone entryway, and inability to stay heated, but it was our home, and life was changing, and it was changing quickly, and I hadn't quite settled myself out for how I felt about all of the life alterations that were coming at us so quickly.

We moved the bulk of our belongings (and I do mean bulk, and the wonderful people who helped us move would agree) into a storage unit in Portland. The rest of the things are with us, at my cousin's home in Northeast Portland, just a mile from where (conveniently) Danny's job is for the time being.

Things that I thought would fit into our car didn't. Spacial reasoning, I've discovered, is not my thing. We have more packing ahead of us. I'm living pleasantly in denial about it until then.

Memphis is in our future; at this point, it looks like we'll be in Tri-Cities by March-ish, though, which is nice because I wasn't looking forward to trying to pack for a shifty Tennessee springtime.

Until we leave for Memphis, I'm looking forward to exploring Portland for Gemma's sake and tracking down places she'd like. Cacao, Powell's (naturally), Saint Cupcake...all good things, though I'm waiting until tomorrow when I have more energy and don't have to fight the weather quite as much.

Feeling the need to bake something, though I'm not sure what. I've got the Rustic Fruit Desserts book, which has much deliciousness between its pages. The one trickiness is that my cousin's oven is a gas model that requires lighting before use. Now, I'm afraid of ovens as it is, so throw in matches and the manual lighting of gas and it's kind of the trifecta of terror.

That said, I've been lighting the stove successfully (though I tend to jump a foot back once the gas lights) for 24 hours (the lure of tea. You know how it goes) and have yet to die. So logic would hold that I'll be able to conquer the oven soon :-)

Let's see what else...if you're a Portland reader, know that there's a signed copy of Plain Jayne at the Lloyd Center Barnes & Noble.

I'm hoping to be back on track (or, really, on a track at all) for NaNoWriMo. Until then, here's my question for you - how do you pronounce NaNoWriMo?

Plot Twist

2010-10-20T10:24:00.000-05:00

One of the reasons I haven't blogged much is that I've had to be careful. Very careful. Because things have been very much up in the air.

The big news? Danny got a wonderful job as a Project Engineer in Richland, Washington. It's with Barnhart Crane and Rigging, the company you call if you need a nuclear reactor moved. And yes, there are nuclear reactors in Richland. Hence the job placement.

It wasn't what we expected, though. Danny's been pursued by this company for several months now, for the last bit of it we were looking at a move to Memphis, Tennessee, where the company is headquartered. It was all Memphis, Memphis, Memphis, we love you in Memphis, until we got the offer letter for...Richland. Which was a surprise, but a good one.

Things I like about Richland/Tri-Cities:

1. It's still in the Pacific Northwest. No gigantic culture or time-zone changes.

2. It's within driving distance for family. This has the parents kicking up their heels like it's 1999.

3. The weather is dryer (it's the desert side of Washington), so I won't be as susceptible to barometric-pressure-caused headaches and creakiness of the knees.

4. Nearness of Tillamook Cheese.

5. Nearness of Oregon Chai.

6. Nearness of Odwalla Juice.

7. Availability of Topography (I don't do flat. I equate flat with post-apocalyptic.)

8. The Columbia river flows nearby. I like that river.

We will still be in Memphis, Tennessee for 4-6 months while Danny does the mandatory company engineer training, where he'll get to learn to weld and do all sorts of fun man activities.

I, on the other hand, will be writing a book.

Likely at Panera.

The story about the photo above? Not knowing when/if we would be leaving, I went out and took pictures of some of my favorite trees near our apartment complex a couple weeks ago. This shot was my absolute favorite :-)

Wool Weather and Kindle Reading

2010-10-18T18:44:00.000-05:00

So. It's October. And it's crazy cold in the mornings. I like this post by Stephanie Pearl McPhee, The Yarn Harlot, about fall and the waiting game before turning on the heat, and the things you do before you get there.

I find, for cold mornings, that running laundry and the dishwasher will heat our little apartment just as effectively as turning on the heater, if not more so. Tea is also good. And socks (as much as I dislike them). And knitting (it's like a lap blanket that turns into a sweater). And wool.

There's something about my brain that, once the temp drops below, say, 45 degrees, all I want to wear is wool. Wool wool wool. Wool and mohair. And cashmere. My subconsciousness doesn't mess about with sweater weather; it's straight and to the point. Since I have several cute tops I've picked up over the summer months that I'd like to continue wearing, I took a little trip to Loft. Not only are there reasonably priced wool-blend cardigans that are a.) long but b.) femininely fitted (I don't do boxy), but they're on sale when you by two.

I was very good. I didn't buy a scarf. I might when they go on sale, though.

Moving on. Simply Sara is now available here on Kindle! You can read about Sara's adventures in technicolor, fashion, and confusing managers from your Kindle or smart phone.

In further news, we're in the market for a new car. A new to us car, at least. Our current car, Sally, bless her little 2-door heart is at a point where she needs new wheels, tires, brakes, paint, a proper alignment...it is not a short list.

Also, since the "incident of the mouse," our affection for her has waned somewhat. I apologize for not bringing up said incident earlier. It went like this:

1.) One sunny summer morning, I smell a smell. This is not a good smell. This is a "someone stuck cat food into our air vents" smell.

2.) I remember that there has been a thunking sound when we turn the A/C fan on.

3.) I also consider that we live in the middle of a wetland.

4.) I conclude that, in all likelihood, something small and rodenty has crawled into our car and died. Which, depending on how you look at it, could be a romantic way to perish.

For a mouse.

(That was for all the Anne fans out there. You know who you are)

5.) The nice man at the auto fix-it shop took out the mouse. I say nice man because really, he was very sweet, and that's a job I really, really wouldn't want. Ick.

6.) I filled the car with dryer sheets to cover the residual eau de dead mouse smell. The dryer sheets turned out to be almost worse.

All that to say...we're car shopping. And my husband, being an engineering genius (I'm the wife, I get to brag) is spending an increased amount of time looking at cars. He has been tasked to come up with a spreadsheet of the cars of interest, their makes, models, years, mileage, price, etc.

I feel this is very efficient. I also feel that this is a side-effect of being an engineer's wife.

The sweater knitting is going well. I've ripped out the sleeves and yoke a few times, and I need to finish the second sleeve start and begin again. But it's l-o-v-e-l-y, so it's worth it :-)

How about you? How long do you wait to turn on the heat? Any little heating tips in the meantime?

Knitting and Cookies

2010-09-30T18:28:00.000-05:00

I'm knitting this sweater from Kristeen Griffin-Grimes' French Girl Knits book with this yarn (best picture I could find, I bought it a while ago) and it's really quite lovely. I love the yarn - it's like knitting a fairytale.

That said, I've been waiting to post because I keep hoping I'll have stuff to post about...

...but life's pretty slow right now. Well, not slow-slow. But there's not a lot of change as yet.

Until then...

1.) If you're anywhere near Eugene, don't miss the Simply Sara book signing even at Barnes & Noble this Sunday, October 3rd, 4pm.

2.) I've been on a chocolate chip cookie making kick. I have the best chocolate chip cookie recipe in the world - that is, if brown sugary, chewing chocolate chip cookies are your thing. The recipe goes like this:

Blend...

1/3 c. butter, softened (I use salted, and don't even think about using margarine. And if you do, stop it.)

1/3 c. Crisco (and I do use butter flavor. So help me.)

1/2 c. granulated sugar

1/2 c. dark brown sugar (don't even think about using light. It will affect the consistency of the cookie)

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

Mix together separately...

1 1/2 c. flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

Combine dry ingredients with wet ingredients. Stir in a heaping cup of chocolate chips. Bake at 375 degrees (preheated oven, naturally) for 8 or so minutes on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet, until they've just just browned on top but still look pretty doughy. They'll collapse, finish baking, and look perfect later.

Most baking people use wire racks to cool. For cookies, I don't. This is partly because I don't own a wire rack. But if you cool cookies on newsprint or some other kind of paper product, the paper absorbs some of the grease (read: fat), giving you a somewhat healthier cookie.

Everyone wins.

3.) I'm crazy mad at Glee right now. The first episode was lame, the second was a mess. The characters, whom I love much, have been reduced to caricatures. The plot...there really isn't one yet, and we're two weeks in.

The way I see it, TV episodes are like chapters. And in the first three chapters of your book, you want to come in with guns blazing. Great characters. Lots of plot. Those chapters are your springboard.

With Glee, not only did they use the cheap voice-over "what everyone did this summer" bit, but instead of working any of the Britney numbers into the plot, they were thrown into a dream sequence. A dream sequence.

The way it's going, we'll have flashback sequences and people falling into pools, just so we can hit as many writing clichés as possible. We're supposed to believe that Mr. Schuester is uptight, but hey, this is the guy who started a boy band with Ken Tenaka. Sang Aerosmith. How uptight can he be? He doesn't think Britney is appropriate but he has no issues with Lady Gaga? Really? I don't like when shows tweak characters (or in this case, flat out maul) to suit a flimsy plot twist. They think viewers won't notice. They think wrong.

4.) I'm also crazy mad at Fringe, though for different reasons. I'm sooooo mad that Walter and Peter haven't figured out that the Olivia sitting next to them is Alternate Olivia. I mean, they're both geniuses. And I'm deeply concerned that the real Olivia has truly been brainwashed by Walternate...

...But I realize this feeling of discontent is the result of things going well in the writing room. So for now, I'm letting it slide.

For now.

Don't watch Fringe? You should start. Really, you should. Because it's better than Glee right now.

5.) Also? The Good Wife? Very good season premier. There was plot. There was character. Makes me want to clap my hands.

6.) If you have a spare minute, watch this bit of ye olde Hollywood joy. Do. It's grand.

7.) Just finished Sophie Kinsella's Mini Shopaholic. Love!

I think that's it by now. In case you were wondering, no I haven't unpacked from ACFW yet. Because that's how we roll...

On returning from ACFW

2010-09-23T10:31:00.000-05:00

As you can see, there was fun to be had at ACFW. At that particular time, I was goofing off with my handbag, vaguely registering that Carla's camera was locked, loaded, and firing.

So now you know. I have issues.

At least my husband thinks I'm funny.

ACFW was a lot of fun. I loved getting to meet my publicist Jeane Wynn, and authors Carla Stewart, Mary Ellis, Kathi Lipp, Susan Meissner, Susan May Warren, Rachel Hauck, Julie Garmon, Lynette Sowell, Kellie Coates Gilbert, Brandt Dodson, Jerry Eicher, Cara Putnam, and many others.

I watched my agent win the coveted ACFW Agent of the Year award. That was fun.

A fun experience all the way around, but there are things I would do differently. Thing, singular, actually - I would fly in earlier. I'm an introvert, and dealing with 620 other conferees when I'm crazy exhausted from a long red-eye flight is difficult for me.

But it was great. And it was great having Danny with me. We also visited the Panera across the street - amazing! I didn't have time to hit the TJMaxx that was near by, but I sent it happy thoughts.

We also got to see Danny's aunt and grandmother from Ohio before we flew out, which was a really nice way to wrap up the trip.

...And yes, we did watch House immediately after arriving home (at 10pm), though we did save Castle for later. Loved House, loved Castle, felt like last night's Glee was not quite up to snuff. I'm actually looking forward to the Brittany Spears episode, which I would not have thought possible before, but the season premiere was sorely lacking in the area of character development and grand-scale musical productions.

Fringe is tonight! I'm starting to love autumn. And I'm not just saying that because I had a Pumpkin Spice Latte yesterday...

ACFW and Fall TV

2010-09-16T10:50:00.001-05:00

I know my blogging lately has been erratic at best. Things have been pretty crazy lately for many reasons, including (but not limited to) the fact that ACFW is this weekend!

Things I'm excited about for ACFW:

1. No cooking/meal planning all weekend. Yeah, I know I blog about food a lot, but when I'm stressed, making food decisions and preparations makes it worse. Letting someone else feed me for a while? Yes, please.

2. I'm just a plain ol' conferee. I'm not teaching (though I am signing books) or leading worship or organizing everything. I get to show up at my classes looking cute, ready to meet people and talk craft. And if you read this blog regularly, you know how much I love talking craft.

3. I get to meet my publicist, Jeane Wynn, face to face. I've loveloveloved working with her so far, so I'm very excited to get to swap smiles and handshakes with her in real time.

4. It's warm in Indianapolis. And not raining.

5. There are lots of lovely authors attending who I'll get to meet for the first time! Very exciting :-) I am expecting our suitcase to be much heavier on the flight back - all of those books!

6. The ACFW Banquet! From what I hear, it's Christian Fiction's answer to prom. I've got a gorgeous cocktail dress which should be out of alterations before I board the plane, as well as an adorable clutch and the shoes I wore to Danny's graduation (which I affectionately refer to as my Tokyo Prostitute shoes - they're very black, very shiny, and very tall). I'm still working on the necklace, which has proved to be much more difficult in practice than it was in theory. Complicating matters, I need my shipment of beads and chain link to arrive today. If not, I'll have to get creative, since I'm mostly sure that my new idea to get the thing to hang right will work. Mostly. If not...

...I'll deal with that when the time comes. I suppose I can always super-glue the beads to my neck.

Because that wouldn't be at all awkward.

In other news...

...Fall TV is starting up next week! And I'm excited. Very excited. And a little embarrassed about how many shows I'll be following this next season.

Monday, September 20:

1. House. Househousehousehouse. Ooh, and House and Cuddy. Jennifer Morrison will be leaving to do a turn on How I Met Your Mother, while Amber Tamblyn will be doing a multi-episode arc as a bright med student who's not quite certified to treat patients. I'm delighted to have Tamblyn back on the screen, and having her on House is that much better. Episodes will include a guest appearance by Jennifer Grey, a double date with Wilson and Sam, and House and Cuddy (oh good heavens, that's all I've got to say on that. For now),

2. Castle. Everyone was really sad at the end of the season finale, so hopefully things will get un-sad. I say that because this show makes me emit a high-pitched giggle only audible to my husband and small dogs. I'm ready for another season of wordy murder and mayhem.

3. Dancing with the Stars. I told my sister I probably wasn't going to follow DWTS much this season...until I remembered that Jennifer Grey is dancing. So...we'll see. I may watch, or I may just be satisfied with her turn on House.

Tuesday, September 21:

4. Glee!! The wrap-up episode from last season was pitch perfect in the way it left things. Let us hope the momentum starts right back up. I've missed Sue. I was told erroneously that if I missed Glee I should watch The Choir on BBCA. But no. It didn't cut it for me. I need Sue. And Rachel. And Emma. And Brittany...

5. The Good Wife. A strong cast, strong writing, strong plotting - very curious to see what the next season will hold. Especially since Julianna Margulies' Alicia Florick seemed very ready to lose her "Good Wife" status.

Thursday, September 23:

6. Fringe! This is tricky, because Fringe and Grey's are on at the same time. Will have to figure this out (we can only DVR one network show at a time...). But I'm more invested in Fringe, having spent the off-season telling everyone I know to start watching Fringe. I love strong characters and involving ensemble casts, and that's Fringe in a nutshell. I miss everyone. Even Gene. I have hopes that everyone will be restored to their proper dimensions shortly, but I am realistic. This is television.

7. Grey's Anatomy. Don't judge. Please. I'm not a Mc-Anything swooner, but I really love a lot of these characters. They're flawed and complicated and they make flawed and complicated decisions. Sometimes it's tangled in melodrama, but other times they get it right. The times they get it right makes it worth it.

And yes. I'm desolated that Casanova has left Project Runway.

Oh - and for everyone who's pre-ordered Sara but hasn't had copies shipped - they will be shipped shortly. The cases of books bound for Amazon left on the 8th of this month, and Amazon's turnaround tends to be quite speedy. So keep an eye on your email. I'll get a call from Barnes & Noble when they have Sara in stock here in Eugene, but keep in mind that the signing is October 3rd...not far away at all!

Off to pack! More later from Indianapolis :-)

Project Runway, or, Where's Donald Trump When You Need Him?

2010-08-27T11:28:00.000-05:00

Did anybody watch Project Runway last night? Weird episode! I kept wondering if I was watching an (early) episode of The Apprentice. Team challenge, big personalities, bigger egos, and a team leader who needs a lot of therapy.

Oh, Gretchen. She's a good designer, won the first two challenges, but she's also a subtle bully. Her "help" during the party store challenge killed Sarah's design and ousted her from the show.

Last night, the challenge involved the designers being broken up into two teams, each charged with the task of coming up with a 6-piece collection.

Team "Luxe" contained several challenge winners, and they knew it. They (meaning Gretchen) came up with the convoluted plan of having everyone make several pieces. Every look they put together was the result of two or three people's efforts. They were so pleased with themselves, their teamwork, their love, their slightly pinko-plan, and their own talent. A lot of hand-holding and back-patting. Not a lot of critical thinking.

Team "Military and Lace" contained several people who had been in the bottom two. Their plan of attack was to assign each person to a look. They bickered a lot in the process, there was a lot of manic running around, but they also worked hard. And because each person had a specific look to be responsible for, everyone owned his/her work because they had control over their own vision, within certain perimeters.

Casanova had a meltdown when Tim didn't love his blouse. Now, I love Tim, but there are times when his advice needs to be taken with a grain of salt. On its own, the black lace blouse could look dated. But styled with white military-style pants and modern hair, it was very chic.

Long story short - Gretchen bullied her team (which was not, technically, to have a team leader) into doing a collection with her design aesthetic. Except, it came out baggy. Oversized. Oddly zippered. Cheap looking.

It was bad. It was really bad.

Team Military and Lace, though, gave Casanova and Peach (I love Peach!) a chance to really shine. Casanova was declared the ultimate winner, having redeemed himself from the dresses termed "pole-dancer in Dubai" and "transvestite flamenco dancer going to a funeral" by Michael Kors (Oh, my goodness. Does he work on these ahead of time, ready to pull out when appropriate, a la Mr. Collins? Really? And how is he not British? Aren't the difficult to please judges all supposed to be British?)

And then the weirdness started. Gretchen gave a speech in the back room (very long speech) about how they were going to stand together and be united and not point fingers link arms and sing "Kum-bay-yah" and "We Shall Overcome." They tried this, and Gretchen gave another speech to the judges with painful, awkward earnestness. Scant seconds later, the tune changed to "Michael done us wrong," which was problematic because Michael had immunity.

A word about Michael: He don't get no respect. He won last week by starting over at the last minute and creating a lovely dress. The rest of the cast sniped behind his back, though, about how he wasn't a visionary and the dress wasn't all that. And maybe he doesn't have the best technical skills, but he really impressed the judges, and on a judged competition, that's kind of all that matters.

Anyway. The finger-pointing started, and Gretchen gave it a good kick-off. Back and forth and back and forth...it was painful. I wanted Trump to come in with his pink firing tie and make the whole thing stop.

In the end, Gretchen and AJ were in the bottom two. AJ left, and it was a good call. But before Tim gave AJ his send off in the back, he (Tim) gave Gretchen what-for. I've never seen him do it before, but he called her to the carpet for bullying her teammates, and scolded the rest of them for letting themselves be bullied.

Curious to see what happens next week, and the episode trailer didn't illuminate anything at all, other than the fact that the challenge would be difficult, the designers wouldn't be happy about it, there would be a surprise twist they'd be even less happy about it, followed by a dressing-down by the judges.

So, pretty much, business as usual.

Did you see the episode? What did you think?

Simply Sara and Magic Red Pepper Sauce

2010-08-26T23:22:00.000-05:00

Not sure where to start.

I'll start with the book. Simply Sara arrived via FedEx this morning. She's lovely. And Shiny.

There are some things you should know about this book.

1.) Simply Sara is a slimmer volume than Plain Jayne. Don't think that you're getting less book, though. Sara is actually about 5,000 words longer. She's just formatted for print in such a way that she uses less paper.

2.) Ergo, Sara is quite eco-friendly. Which will make Sonnet's parents happy. You'll find out why when you read the book.

3.) Do me a favor. Please. Pretty please. Do not flip to the back to read the ending. Please. Don't do it. You know who you are. I've done this myself - things get dicey and you want to know that the author is going to land this plane on the tarmac, not the middle of the Indian ocean.

You have to trust me. The plane lands. It's a surprise. It's a good surprise. This is not Hamlet. There are no bodies being dragged off the stage. I'm just as invested in the happiness of my characters as you are. Probably more. One night Danny came home to find me having an absolute meltdown because of what Sara (who technically is not a real person) was going through.

But you know what? A week later in the writing game, things turned around. Sara winds up very happy, and she does so in a manner that completely surprised me. I wish that same surprise for you. So keep your fingers from flipping back there. Nothing good can come of it. And the witty acknowledgements are in the front, so you really have no excuse.

4. You can download the first chapter here.

5. You can view the super cute book trailer here.

6. You can also mark your calender for the first official book signing at Barnes & Noble in Eugene, which is October 3rd at 4pm.

Moving on.

I'm now working on a book about Jayne and Sara's dear friend, Gemma. Ah, Gemma, who cooks like an angel and accessorizes in a way that Michael Kors would approve of. Gemma who has a job many would dream of. Gemma who cannot, it seems, get a decent date.

There's more to the story than that, and my agent and I are shaping and discoursing over it, but I think it's going to be amazing.

And not just because, well, it's Gemma, and we get to hang out in the kitchen with her. Though that is one very good reason.

In the chapter I'm working on, she makes herself dinner. I want to sit at her feet in the kitchen, sneaking bites whenever she gets distracted. The first item I included was a red pepper sauce.

The sauce is inspired by the Pioneer Woman's Red Pepper sauce. Now, I love her, and I loved the sauce, but I had a hunch it could go places. Yummy places.

So I experimented, and...wow.

You want this sauce. Trust me.

What you need:

Pasta of choice (I like campanelle and farfalle at the moment)

4 large red peppers

1/2 an onion

2-3 cloves of garlic

Creme Fraiche

Heavy Cream

Red pepper flakes

Some sugar

Some salt

Some milk

Grated Parmesan cheese (Pecorino Romano works too)

Note: This recipe is not particularly...precise. But we're not baking here. It's okay to make things the way you want them in a sauce like this.

1. Roast the peppers. This can take a bit, so bring a book, or your phone, or your child, or something. I stick mine on a baking sheet covered with foil and place them under the broiler, top rack of my oven. Once the tops get nice and blackened, pull out the sheet and turn them. Keep doing this until they're completely black and blistered. Stick them (using tongs), into a plastic ziplock bag and let them sweat for a while.

2. While they're sweating, chop the onion and garlic. Saute them in a medium saucepan in some olive oil, over medium-ish heat. Throw in some red pepper flakes. I just shook it a couple times - if you like things spicier, go for it. You're eating it. Cook until the onions are golden but not dry. Remove from heat.

3. Pull out your blender. Hopefully, your peppers are cool enough to handle by now. If not, you can work on the first one while you stick the others in the fridge to take the edge off. Remove the blackened skin and inside seeds, but don't worry about having little tiny bits of burn in there. It's okay. Stick your finished peppers in your blender. Add the onion mixture and puree.

4. When the pepper and onion mixture is quite smooth, transfer it back to the sauce pan. Add a couple dollops of creme fraiche (so good!). Oh, and if your blender is like mine and it's hard to get every last bit out, pour in a bit of milk. Like, 1/4 cup or so. Swish it around, pour it into your pot. Add some heavy cream. Stir. Reheat it.

5. Taste it. At this point, I added some salt and about 1/2 tsp or so of sugar to bring out the sweetness of the peppers. Maybe even a whole teaspoon. Not a lot, but enough.

6. Let it sit on the burner on low while you cook the pasta. Serve with grated cheese and snipped arugula over the top. You could also put some extra creme fraiche on the top, if you were feeling a bit underweight.

7. Now, if you're eating this with a man, I totally recommend a pork & portobello mushroom sausage that's at Costco. I'm sorry, I can't tell you want kind it is, specifically. There's also provolone in it too, I think. It's good. You can fry it up (don't need oil, it has plenty of its own fat) while the pasta is cooking, cut into half-rounds. Give it a good rinse when it's done, though. It's not low-fat, but rinsing it will take the edge off. Once you've drained and rinsed the pasta, throw in the sausage and pour the sauce over it.

Seriously. It's magical, and very very flavorful.

Getting sleepy. If you make the pasta, let me know, k?

It's my Birff-day

2010-08-18T12:15:00.000-05:00

...Though I have a hard time believing it. Really. There's been so much crazy going on, on so many different levels. I haven't blogged much lately. Haven't used Twitter, either, but if you've been following the "news," you'll know that Twitter kills.

Anyway.

I got up this morning and checked my facebook page.

And realized that over the last year, my life has changed.

I discovered Greek yogurt. I got hooked on green tea. I found the perfect mascara. I learned to drive a car with cruise control. I got back on the sewing wagon. I figured out how to sift powdered sugar. I rediscovered the color yellow. I cut my hair short, as short (if not shorter) than it was in college. I watched my husband graduate with a masters degree. I made my first roux. I sang along with Glee.

I published a book. I can't tell you how many years I blew out my candles, wishing for a contract, wishing to publish a novel.

Plain Jayne came out in January. Sara will be out shortly. Over the last year, I've experienced my first release, first review in Publishers Weekly, first booksignings, first radio interview...

Because of the book, I've gotten to meet wonderful readers online, women who I'd never be able to connect with otherwise. It's crazy. It's humbling.

And I have no idea what next year will bring. But if there's something better than Greek yogurt out there, I'm ready.

Passing Through

2010-08-07T11:47:00.000-05:00

I need a better blogging system. By that, I mean that having a blogging system at all wouldn't be the worst idea. Life is unstructured right now; I'm between projects. Rather than spend long days trying desperately to get 1,200 words out, I'm working on everything else I put off until I hit one of the many deadlines that lead up to a print date.

So here's everything that's been going on in the Lodge camp:

1. Our grandpas passed away this last week. Two of them, opposite sides of the country, within 24 hours of each other. One was expected. We had no idea about the other until we got the call. Danny and I each have our own roller-coaster moments, but we're hanging in there. Can I just say that if you want to rack up treasure in heaven, grocery shop for those who have experienced loss. A precious friend brought us dinner (and then some!). It's amazing how something so simple can be so profound.

2. In other news, the Oregon Christian Writers' Conference went down beautifully. A herd of writers came out. It was fantastic. My classes went well, meetings with conferees over manuscripts went well, copies of Plain Jayne graduated from the back of my car to the loving homes of several readers. I am a bit exhausted, though. While I do a pretty good impersonation of an extrovert when necessary, it's nice to be home in the quiet.

3. I started work on the next book! It's about Gemma (friend to Jayne and Sara, feeder of many), and I have to say, It's going to be delicious. If you have any amazing recipes to pass on, let me know (and by amazing, I mean "something you'd feed to a food critic" good. Gemma doesn't mess around. Unless it's Oreos. She has a secret weakness for them...)

4. I'm officially all registered to attend the ACFW conference in September. This will be my first ACFW conference, as well as my first venture into the state of Indiana.

5. I bought yarn last night. Haven't knitted anything in about a year (I know; the mind reels). I have a bunch of Louisa Harding's Ca'D'Oro but it's not particularly seasonal - I just can't work with wool in the heat of the summer. So I bought a sweater's worth of this last night - it's the grey color shown at the top (though I really liked the Apple Blossom, I thought the grey would be be more multi-seasonal).

Sorry. This isn't my funniest or most insightful blog. Not for lack of material - I probably ought to write a whole blog about my new smart phone (in particular my intelligence-challenged so-called "genius button"), but I'm not there yet. Hopefully soon, though. It's an unusual season to be passing through; the trick is to remember we're just passing through.

The Affair of the Vanilla Bean

2010-07-15T21:11:00.001-05:00

So, if you've been following things on Facebook or Twitter, you know we've been on an ice cream making kick.

I made lavender ice cream. Danny made vanilla. Actually, he was intending to make cookies and cream, but this was the kind of seriously eggy, custardy, vanilla beany ice cream that we were loathe to put Oreos in to, so we didn't.

I ate it over nectarines. Danny ate it with chocolate sauce. It was perfection either way.

My lavender ice cream...well...it tasted like plant. Strongly like plant. I knew I was kind of generous with the tablespoon of dried petals I used to infuse the cream, but when your ice cream tastes of sweetened soap, there's a problem.

(Side note: I still like idea of lavender ice cream, but I think the addition of 1/2 of a vanilla bean and a serious decrease of petals, and a scant pinch of salt will give it a more rounded flavor. I'll letcha know how that goes.)

Anyway, we ate all the vanilla ice cream. I wanted more. I scraped away at our remaining vanilla bean (left over from infusing the sugar for my sister-in-law's bridal shower last year), stirred the cream over the stove, beat the eggs and superfine sugar, tempered the eggs, and returned everything to the pot, over medium heat, so the thing would simmer until "thick enough to coat a spoon."

I hate the phrase "thick enough to coat a spoon." Coat for how long? How thick? Winter coat? Spring jacket?

And then the thing separated on me. Suddenly, it looked like the illegitimate offspring of tapioca pudding and corn grits. I don't know why (I have my theories), but there is nothing in the recipe that told me to do anything differently.

Feeling like I'd just ruined the batch, I began to make plans to start over. This is a labor of love as well as the action born from desperation, because it was 90 degrees outside and standing over a hot stove, even with our freestanding A/C on, still isn't my idea of perfection.

I'd made a trip to Wal-Mart earlier in the day to restock on cream and whole milk. I'd looked for vanilla beans. There were none.

So I went to Albertsons, where I found a bottle with a single vanilla bean. It was $12.34. One bean.

I couldn't do it. I couldn't take it home and make the most expensive ice cream on the planet, especially since I had designs on two other batches, and I really didn't want to spend $37.02 on three batches of ice cream.

I went to Win-Co, to see if they had cheaper beans. They didn't. They had no beans.

I called Trader Joe's - no beans.

I drove up Beltline to Delta Highway to Market of Choice. In the spice aisle - one bean, $8.83(ish). Better. Kind of.

In bulk?

$2.25. Each.

I bought four.

They're not Madagascar Bourbon vanilla beans. They were not cultivated by monks. They were not fertilized by fire berries. They were not shipped to the country cradled in a bed of silk.

But they're $2.25 each. I. Don't. Care.

P.S. I churned up the lumpy custard. It came out perfectly.

Happy Anniversary, Us - Part III

2010-07-07T15:24:00.000-05:00

Three years ago today, I married my best friend.

You'd think tickling his feet has gotten old by now, but it hasn't.

This year has been a wild ride. Danny worked overtime hours while completing a master's degree. I published and promoted one book while writing 92,000 of the most difficult words I've ever written.

Danny celebrated with me when my first book arrived, and a few days later, when a whole box of books followed. He made me laugh at the cover of the Large Print Edition, came to every book signing and event, helped set up and take down the books, poster, postcards, and punch bowl full of chocolates.

He was very, very angry when he read my worst book review. He beamed over my Publishers Weekly and Booklist reviews.

I got to go to Vermont with Danny and watch as he gained the respect of his classmates and professors during his masters residency. I pinned his masters hood in place, and saw him shake the dean's hand as he received his diploma.

I like the quiet moments best, though. Tea on Saturday mornings. Walks we take, hand in hand. Sitting on the couch, reading books with the windows open.

I like the funny bits that have become our own - the way grass makes us laugh, the way Danny eats cheese, the way I giggle over the phrase some say.

I like how Danny brings adventure into my life in ways I never thought would happen.

It hasn't been an easy year, but it's been a good one. I can't imagine what the next will hold.

Writing lessons from Eclipse

2010-07-06T14:14:00.000-05:00

Writing Lessons Inspired by the Undead and the Furry:

1.) Show, Don't Tell.

Yeah, Jacob says he's in love with Bella. We heard him. Several times, actually, the kid was a broken record. (And honestly, saying you'll love someone until their heart stops beating is...awkward.) But...how does he show it? Actively show it, not just repeat it over and over while inserting insults regarding her boyfriend?

Aside from a bracelet with a wolf charm, there's not much evidence. Dude, buy a vowel. Maybe the reason she's with him and not you is because you won't stop yapping about how you're right and he's wrong. Just saying.

2.) Unless your villain is really, really, interesting, we don't need to spend much time with him/her.

Pretty much, unless your villain is this guy...

...or this gal...

...just assume we're not all that emotionally or intellectually invested in this person. Sure, we respect that he/she needs to be there as a plot device, but given the choice we'd rather be hanging out with the main characters than with the army of baby vampires and their problems that mean less to us than what Alice picks to wear on any given occasion.

3. Be aware of your pacing.

Pretty much, you want lots of rising action, no matter what genre you're writing in. And when you reach your climax, the amount of time you spend in it should be directly proportionate to the amount of time you've spent building it up. So, if (for instance) you've been having issues with a certain redhead for three books/film installations, maybe dispatching her three minutes after she and the protagonist share the same screen is a bit quick. Just a little.

4. Establish your universe perimeters early and stick to them.

I may be missing something, but I don't remember Jasper having a southern accent in either of the two previous films. I don't remember references to a drawl in any of the books. But suddenly, he's so southern he sounds like he's auditioning for a role in True Blood.

Also - when Vampires die they shatter? I don't remember this. Did this happen earlier? Do they splinter? Are there shards?

Are they extra-flammable? Because Victoria seemed to catch fire real quick. The whole thing reminded me a little of the second Hellboy film, the way the Elves turned to ivory or alabaster or something after they died (I couldn't tell which, but it looked cool).

That's what I thought about when I watched Eclipse. What did you think?