the SIMMER blog

missing russ

This isn't a usual post, but this isn't a usual week. Right now I'm mourning the sudden loss of a great friend. Russ Carr was a designer, writer, family man, and not incidentally, a really awesome cook. We miss him terribly.

More about Russ.

back to one more page!

When The Kitchen Daughter came out in hardcover last year, one of my favorite events was a Saturday afternoon visit to One More Page, a fabulous new independent bookstore in Arlington, VA. Not only do they sell an excellent collection of books there, they also offer two other things I love: really good chocolate and really good wine. Mmmmm.

So I'll be back at One More Page to celebrate the paperback release, of course! How could I resist a return trip to a heaven like that?

I'll be reading from and signing The Kitchen Daughter on Saturday, January 28, at 2pm. Here's the info on One More Page. Hope to see you DC-area fans and friends there!

new year, more words

Happy New Year! Kicking off 2012 with the usual flurry of words and food, but haven't been taking a lot of pictures, so today let's focus on the words.

I've got a new post up at Writer Unboxed about finding the lines -- between arrogance and confidence, between caution and fear, and between lots of other things that are essential to succeeding as a writer. (It applies pretty well to regular life, too.) Click here to read.

Also, I often get questions about how to break into food writing, and now there's a post that sums up advice and suggestions better than I ever could -- it's by Necee Regis on Beyond the Margins. Check this one out if you've ever thought about writing about food.

me, around the web

Hello, blog readers! It's a pretty hectic December here -- more on that soon -- but I wanted to point you to a couple of pieces of writing that are new on the web this week:

40 weeks of a new life, part thoughtful reflection and part big announcement, over on Intrepid Media;

and Out in the E-World, talking about the importance of e-books and the new e-short story I've got coming out later this month, on Writer Unboxed.

Hope you enjoy these pieces, and see you back here soon!

the kitchen daughter paperback cover!

Ooh, I do love a big reveal... and here's one for today!

We have an official cover for the upcoming paperback edition of The Kitchen Daughter:

Very different from the hardcover, clearly -- it's a much warmer feeling, and the image is obviously more literal. I love the intriguing ambiguity of the hardcover image, but I also love that this cover draws on a story within the story. So I'll be just as excited to see this one on the shelves as I was the last one.

(And of course that fabulous quote on the cover doesn't hurt either! There will be more quotes and blurbs in the first few pages of the book itself, and a Reading Group Guide in the back.)

back and gone again!

Had a wonderful, wonderful time in East Tennessee (Knoxville, Sweetwater, Kingston & Ten Mile) on my Kitchen Daughter trip -- and now I'm off again! This time to a writers' retreat all the way on the West Coast. The timing works out nicely, since I got to focus for a few days on being outgoing, promotional, and all about The Kitchen Daughter... and now I get to focus for a few days on being reflective, creative, and all about working on the next book.

So, no more posts this week, but I'll be back next week to check in and tell you some very exciting news about a particular magazine I love that just happened to publish something of mine in their most recent issue. Stay tuned!

trip to tennessee!

I've been traveling about once a month for events related to The Kitchen Daughter, and lo and behold, it's almost time for another trip. I'll be in Eastern Tennessee -- specifically, the Knoxville area -- for several days next weekend. Events include bookstore and library readings as well as a tasting tea and a tasting luncheon, and proceeds from the ticketed events will go to the Autism Society of America East Tennessee chapter.

Click here for the dates, times, and locations. See you there!

under the weather

Been a little quiet here lately, for which I apologize -- trying to get out from under a bad cold. I hate this kind of sickness, where my head is just cloudy enough to sllllow everythinnnnng dowwwwwn. Blech.

But the good news is, I'd already put a chicken in brine for Saturday night's dinner before my health took a turn for the worse, so that roast chicken gave us not only a full meal for Saturday night and snacks on Sunday, but enough homemade stock and shredded meat for a Monday lunch of spicy, rich, savory, sinus-clearing chicken noodle soup.

 

Recipe-like list of stuff for two large servings:

• 3 cups of chicken stock
• half a package of rice noodles (I like a very noodle-y soup)
• 1 cooked chicken breast, shredded
• 3 scallions, sliced
• 1 clove garlic, sliced
• 1 tsp powdered ginger
• a few splashes of soy sauce
• a little lemon juice
• a big glob of sambal oelek (or sriracha, or Tabasco, or something else for HEAT)
• 1 star anise (don't forget to remove before eating)

Ah. Yes. Breathe in the steam. Slurp up the noodles. Don't leave any of the broth. And get some rest!

 

auction for a good cause

A few weeks ago, food blogger Jennifer Perillo lost her husband to a sudden heart attack. Jennie is well-known and much-loved in the food blogging community -- I got to meet her last spring when we were on a panel together at Eat Write Retreat and she is thoughtful, warm, and insightful. She is also now faced with raising two daughters alone on an irregular income. So Bloggers Without Borders is running a number of fantastic auctions to raise money to help. And I'm thrilled to have The Kitchen Daughter included in a package of 50+ cookbooks and magazine subscriptions that will go to one lucky bidder, with the proceeds going to A Fund For Jennie (or, if you're Twittercentric, #afundforjennie). 

Click here to see the full list of books and bids.

Bidding runs til noon this Monday, August 29.

some words about words

A couple of pieces up this week on other sites I'd like to point you toward --

My post on Writer Unboxed is for soon-to-be-published authors looking to reach out to bloggers who review books. Click to read: How Book Bloggers Are Like Agents.

And then there's my piece on Intrepid Media, in which I try to capture at least some of the happy madness of the last few months: What It Feels Like For An Author: Notes From the Far Side of Publication.

So today, there's writing, and tomorrow? Well, tomorrow, there are squash blossoms.