HarperCollins and Harlequin
Interesting news emerged on Friday–HarperCollins is acquiring Harlequin from Torstar. My two-book deal is with the Harper Voyager imprint. I have no idea if this will impact me, but it seems inevitable that some restructuring will occur. Both publishers have romance lines and they also have imprints that focus on urban fantasy/speculative fiction (Luna from Harlequin, and Voyager for HarperCollins). It will be a matter of waiting and seeing what happens.
One thing that is clear–the name combinations aren’t as funny as the ones that resulted from the Random House and Penguin merger last year. Random Penguin/Penguin House, etc. Though HarleCollins doesn’t have a bad ring to it…
Read MoreSunday Quote relates to this quote
Read More“I wonder why, on such a day as this, when the story is particularly clear in my head, I have a kind of virginal reluctance to get to it… Today’s work is so important that I am afraid of it.” ~John Steinbeck, Journal of a Novel
Looking at May
I’m really excited that my story “Sanctified Ground” is in Trust and Treachery: Tales of Power and Intrigue, an anthology edited by Day Al-Mohamed and Meriah Crawford. It’s taken a few years for the book to reach publication, which makes the event all the more fulfilling. Yay!
I have two poems in the brand spankin’ new issue of Star*Line 37.2–“Authentic Mother 2.6” and “Unanimous.” They can be bought over yonder.
Is anyone else weirded out that it’s now May? This year. This year is crazy.
I’m planning to attend LepreCon in Mesa, Arizona, on May 10th. I’ll post info on panels when I get it.
I will also be socially challenging myself by taking part in Career Day at my son’s school in a few weeks. I get to tell 6th-8th graders about the fun and exciting life of a writer. The vibe I’m going for: “You get rejected constantly. Reviews will scrape your soul raw. The pay rate hasn’t changed since the 1950s. It’s the best job in the world.”
Read MoreBready or Not: Buttery Beer Bread
My husband loves beer. He recently decided to start collecting beer growlers from small breweries. I do not like beer. Therefore, he ends up with a sizable amount of artisan beer that needs to be consumed in a short amount of time.
“And this is a problem… how?” he asked.
“Of course. Moderation and all.”
“What? What do you think I could do with beer other than drink it?“
“I could make beer bread!”
He gave me one of those patented husband looks that says you would suggest I use this precious elixir for bread. But that’s exactly what I’ve done twice now, and you know what? He thinks it’s a pretty awesome thing because he loves bread, too.
I have only made this using my Pampered Chef mini loaf pan. I love the size of those loaves! One is perfect for a meal or two, and they freeze fabulously. I just wrap them individually in plastic wrap, defrost in the breadbox, and then warm them with some butter.
My breadbox gets a lot of use. [There’s a joke there that a few select people will get. The rest of you, just nod.]
Recipe modified from Veronica’s Buttery Beer Bread at Jenna’s Everything Blog.
Bready or Not: Buttery Beer Bread
Ingredients
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup white sugar
- 1 Tb baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 12 oz beer
- 1/4 - 1/2 cup unsalted butter 1/2 stick to 1 stick, melted (make as buttery as desired)
- kosher salt or pretzel salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375-degrees. Prepare your big loaf pan or mini loaf pans by buttering lightly on the bottom (the sides will be well-buttered later on).
- Sift together flour, salt, baking powder, and sugar. Stir in the beer. It may be sticky and need to be incorporated by greased hands.
- Drop the dough into pan(s) and even out the top as much as possible. Melt desired amount of butter and pour over dough.
- Using four mini loaf pans, it will bake for 30-35 minutes. The original recipe stated that a full-size bread pan needs to bake for an hour. Let it cool in the pan for about five minutes, and then because of all the butter, the bread should pop right out.
- OM NOM NOM!
