Shail Rajan's Blog, page 9

RECIPE: Lemony Orzo with Spinach & Zucchini

So often, when I'm cooking, I find myself daydreaming about Callie and all the other characters in The Summer Breeze. Like so many of you have shared, I too think of them as old friends. I imagine Callie and her family cooking this dish together in her parent's home and enjoying it with a nice glass of wine over a long meal. I imagine Tiny making it in the beautiful The Summer Breeze kitchen. While this recipe isn't specifically mentioned in the book (after all, even I can't talk about food all the time!) it's definitely something Callie or Tiny would make! It comes together in minutes and feeds plenty of hungry people!

Cook orzo according to directions - I use vegetable broth to enhance the flavor. While orzo is cooking, heat 1 tbsp olive oil in saute pan. Add 4-6 green and yellow diced zucchini. Saute for 4-5 minutes. Add a pinch of red pepper flakes and minced garlic to taste. Add 1 bag of frozen spinach and heat until cooked through. You can use fresh, but I find frozen works better for size/texture/volume in this recipe. Add salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste. Stir in drained orzo. Squeeze on fresh lemon juice to taste. Top with freshly grated parmesan. Serve piping hot with your favorite glass of wine.

RECIPE: Callie's Mom's Hot Chocolate

"Callie & Nica spent hours sitting by the fire, drinking hot chocolate, warming their frozen toes, and talking."

Whisk 2 cups milk, 2 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa powder, 2 tablespoons of white sugar, and a pinch of salt in a small saucepan and heat until just boiling. Whisk in 1/4 cup chocolate chips until melted and add 1/8 teaspoon vanilla extract. Pour into your favorite mugs & top with homemade whip cream.

I ❤ NY

When I was 5 years old, my family relocated from India to Rochester, NY. Can you just imagine the culture shock for a little girl who had never been on an airplane before and who could barely speak English? But within a short time, thanks to family and newfound friends, I started thinking of Rochester as home. So much so that I ended up staying there for undergraduate and graduate school! Many of my friends joked that I would never leave Rochester (you know who you are!), but then I up and surprised them all by moving to what is arguably the greatest city in the world. I lived in NYC for several years where my love affair with the New York continued. So, it was only natural that when I was imagining the story for The Summer Breeze, I would choose a region that I knew about and loved dearly.

Callie's story begins in NYC, winds its way to a town modeled after my beloved Rochester, and ends in the Finger Lakes district. If you've never been to Upstate NY - especially in autumn - you don't know what you're missing! "From late September through mid-November, the trees veritably burst with rich, vibrant autumn colors...."

How could you not want to settle there? Or at least visit it every year like I do?

I ❤ NY

When I was 5 years old, my family relocated from India to Rochester, NY. Can you just imagine the culture shock for a little girl who had never been on an airplane before and who could barely speak English? But within a short time, thanks to family and newfound friends, I started thinking of Rochester as home. So much so that I ended up staying there for undergraduate and graduate school! Many of my friends joked that I would never leave Rochester (you know who you are!), but then I up and surprised them all by moving to what is arguably the greatest city in the world. I lived in NYC for several years where my love affair with the New York continued. So, it was only natural that when I was imagining the story for The Summer Breeze, I would chose a region that I knew about and loved dearly.

Callie's story begins in NYC, winds its way to a town modeled after my beloved Rochester, and ends in the Finger Lakes district. If you've never been to Upstate NY - especially in autumn - you don't know what you're missing! "From late September through mid-November, the trees veritably burst with rich, vibrant autumn colors...."

How could you not want to settle there? Or at least visit it every year like I do?

Why purple?

When I look at all the bookshelves in our house, I see such a variety of colors on the spines of our books. Everything from white to black, red to blue, and yellow to orange. What I don't see often is purple. Some of you have asked who picked the color and design of The Summer Breeze, and why I chose the garden swing to be on the front of it.

The Summer Breeze

I wish I had a dramatic story to share on how this came about, but the answers are actually quite simple. There's one particular moment in the book that stands out as a turning point for Callie in my mind: "Sitting on the garden swing, she felt so peaceful and contented. A soft summer breeze began to blow, warm and fresh. And then suddenly, the idea revealed itself." As for the color...well...it was my mom's favorite. And when my daughter and I designed the cover, it was the only color we considered.

Why purple?

When I look at all the bookshelves in our house, I see such a variety of colors on the spines of our books. Everything from white to black, red to blue, and yellow to orange. What I don't see often is purple. Some of you have asked who picked the color and design of The Summer Breeze, and why I chose the garden swing to be on the front of it.

I wish I had a dramatic story to share on how this came about, but the answers are actually quite simple. There's one particular moment in the book that stands out as a turning point for Callie in my mind: "Sitting on the garden swing, she felt so peaceful and contented. A soft summer breeze began to blow, warm and fresh. And then suddenly, the idea revealed itself." As for the color...well...it was my mom's favorite. And when my daughter and I designed the cover, it was the only color we considered.

Forcing myself to stop and smell the roses...

What people often think of as the hardest part of being an author - that is to say, the development of a story and then actually putting words to paper - was, and continues to be, the easiest part for me. Whenever I'm having a hard time falling asleep or staying asleep, my mind tends towards story creation. A character will pop into my mind and then I'll just let a story develop around that character until I drift off. Sometimes, I'll like the character so much that the story will continue to develop and new characters will get added night after night. If I don't like the character, then it's "buh-bye!"

For me, the hardest part has been everything that has come after the writing was done. Getting the courage to put my story out there was like climbing Mt. Everest. But that's a story for another blog post....

The next hardest part has been publishing and marketing the book and...ugh...myself. Learning how to use Kindle Create, KDP, Instagram, Facebook, Wix, Amazon Ads, Goodreads, etc.; registering a domain name; running ads on social media; finding bloggers and other marketing outlets to feature the book; asking for reviews...it's a steep learning curve.

It's been just over two weeks since I published The Summer Breeze. Today, my husband reminded me to stop and smell the roses. Or in this case, stop and appreciate the support and positive feedback from family and friends. I'll end this post now so that I can go re-read all the thoughtful reviews.

Forcing myself to stop and smell the roses...

What people often think of as the hardest part of being an author - that is to say, the development of a story and then actually putting words to paper - was, and continues to be, the easiest part for me. Whenever I'm having a hard time falling asleep or staying asleep, my mind tends towards story creation. A character will pop into my mind and then I'll just let a story develop around that character until I drift off. Sometimes, I'll like the character so much that the story will continue to develop and new characters will get added night after night. If I don't like the character, then it's "buh-bye!"

For me, the hardest part has been everything that has come after the writing was done. Getting the courage to put my story out there was like climbing Mt. Everest. But that's a story for another blog post....

The next hardest part has been publishing and marketing the book and...ugh...myself. Learning how to use Kindle Create, KDP, Instagram, Facebook, Wix, Amazon Ads, Goodreads, etc.; registering a domain name; running ads on social media; finding bloggers and other marketing outlets to feature the book; asking for reviews...it's a steep learning curve.

It's been just over two weeks since I published The Summer Breeze. Today, my husband reminded me to stop and smell the roses. Or in this case, stop and appreciate the support and positive feedback from family and friends. I'll end this post now so that I can go re-read all the thoughtful reviews.

I chased the dream

The first copies of my first paperback arrived today...after years of doubting myself and worrying about what people would think, I finally decided to chase the dream and publish my first novel. Will there be haters? Yes. But I'll listen more to the lovers. I will listen to my family and friends who were surprised that I had written a novel but then immediately supportive and encouraging as soon as they heard that I had.

Everyone picks up a book for different reasons. Sometimes I read to learn about different people, places, and times. Sometimes I read for fun. But writing? That I do for the pure pleasure of storytelling. One of my favorite books is The Adventures of Robin Hood by Howard Pyle. My college roommate gifted me a beautiful illustrated copy of the book, and one of my favorite lines of all time is from the Preface: "'Tis the land of Fancy, and is of that pleasant kind that, when you tire of it - whisk! - you clap the leaves of this book together and 'tis gone, and you are ready for everyday life, with no harm done." I hope you enjoy reading The Summer Breeze as much as I enjoyed writing it. The Summer Breeze by Shail Rajan

I chased the dream....

The first copies of my first paperback arrived today...after years of doubting myself and worrying about what people would think, I finally decided to chase the dream and publish my first novel. Will there be haters? Yes. But I'll listen more to the lovers. I will listen to my family and friends who were surprised that I had written a novel but then immediately supportive and encouraging as soon as they heard that I had.

Everyone picks up a book for different reasons. Sometimes I read to learn about different people, places, and times. Sometimes I read for fun. But writing? That I do for the pure pleasure of storytelling. One of my favorite books is The Adventures of Robin Hood by Howard Pyle. My college roommate gifted me a beautiful illustrated copy of the book, and one of my favorite lines of all time is from the Preface: "'Tis the land of Fancy, and is of that pleasant kind that, when you tire of it - whisk! - you clap the leaves of this book together and 'tis gone, and you are ready for everyday life, with no harm done." I hope you enjoy reading The Summer Breeze as much as I enjoyed writing it.