Beth Cato's Blog, page 109

Me! Baen! Hockey!

I’ve been in a lot of amazing anthologies and magazines, but I confess, this one just boggles my mind. My story “Minor Hockey Gods of Barstow Station” has been accepted to Galactic Games, an anthology to be published by Baen during the Rio Olympics next year. The table of contents includes people like George R. R. Martin, Seanan McGuire, and Mercedes Lackey. You can see the full holy-moley list over here.

This was an especially challenging story to write, too. Basically, it took me three months to psych myself up to start the first draft. The world-building was daunting–alien cultures, plus a far-future Earth with substantial changes–but there was also the matter of hockey. We’re a hockey family. We’ve been season ticket holders for the Arizona Coyotes for several years. I’m decently conversant in the sport and players, but not to the deep technical level that the story required. My husband was a huge help. He helped me hone my scenes and even sketched out a rink to illustrate who does what. He is awesome.

I’ll talk about this story more into next year as the release date nears. Yippee!

Sunday Quote has 2 months until book release

“Nothing will stop you being creative so effectively as the fear of making a mistake.”

~John Cleese

Bready or Not: Dutch Baby Pancake

Need a small batch of pancakes? Or don’t want to stand there and flip individual pancakes?

Go big!

I had Dutch pancake baby recipes pinned for years. For some reason, they looked intimidating to me. Shows what I know. It turned out, these are much easier than standard pancakes. Mix, pour, bake.

The only tragedy here is that they look beautiful as soon as you pulled them from the oven, and as soon as you cut it, they deflate. The taste is fabulous, though–that doesn’t go flat!

I tried out a Snickerdoodle variation as well. Just add a little cinnamon to the batter and more on top. It’d be just as easy to add some chocolate chips or fresh or dried fruit. Mix it up!

Modified from Martha Stewart.

Bready or Not: Dutch Baby Pancake





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2 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 large eggs
3/4 cup milk (almondmilk works fine)
1/2 cup all-purpose flour, (spooned and leveled)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar

Snickerdoodle variation:
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon in batter, plus more sprinkled on top

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a medium cast-iron or ovenproof nonstick skillet, add 2 tablespoons butter and stick it in oven as it warms up.

In a blender, combine eggs, milk, flour, salt, vanilla, and 1/4 cup sugar. Blend until foamy, about 1 minute. Pull skillet from oven--be careful, that handle is hot! Pour batter into skillet and bake for about 18 to 20 minutes. The pancake should be puffed and lightly browned.

Slice into wedges--it will deflate and look a lot less pretty, but it's still delicious. Serve with butter and any other desired toppings (maple syrup, dulce de leche, powdered sugar, etc).

Serves one hungry person, or along with sides can feed several people.

OM NOM NOM!

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 18-20 minutes

Total time: 30 minutes

Guest post from David Walton: WHAT’S THE BEST WAY TO PUBLISH MY BOOK?

Today I welcome author David Walton to the blog. His book Superposition is out from Pyr today–be sure to check it out!

WHAT’S THE BEST WAY TO PUBLISH MY BOOK?

There are so many choices these days! Submit your book to a big NY publisher? Try a small press? Publish yourself? Each of these choices have their pros and cons, depending on what you’re looking for. And I’ve tried all three.

[Superposition by David Walton]

My first novel, TERMINAL MIND, was published through a small press. The second, QUINTESSENCE, was a hardcover release with Tor Books. My third, QUINTESSENCE SKY (the sequel to the Tor release), I self-published. I have only one experience with each so far, so your mileage my vary, but I can tell you what I’ve experienced, and what I’ve learned from the journey so far.

1. SMALL PRESS. The best part of working with a small press was the very small number of people involved (two!), each of whom was totally devoted to my book and making it succeed. They cared about my opinion and worked very hard on the book. Unfortunately, they didn’t have a very wide reach. They couldn’t get Terminal Mind in bookstores (for the most part), and even when it won the Philip K. Dick Award that year, not many people knew about it. All in all, however, this was a great experience, and I have no complaints.

2. BIG PRESS. The best part of working with a big press is that it’s big! Everyone has heard of Tor, which means credibility, a bigger advance, and national bookstore distribution. Tor made Quintessence into a beautiful hardcover, and I thought my career was made. Unfortunately, although the book sold a lot more out of the gate than Terminal Mind did, it wasn’t very much by Tor’s standards. It didn’t earn out its advance, and they declined to pick up the sequel. Still and all, an exciting experience that has done a lot to establish my name in the genre and spread awareness of my books.

3. SELF-PUBLISHING. Self-publishing has been an adventure. I approached it differently than many authors do: instead of hiring people to produce the cover art, cover design, interior layout, e-book format, etc., I decided to do it all myself. As a result, it cost me practically nothing to produce Quintessence Sky, though it took a lot of learning and a lot of work. I think the result is quite attractive–not entirely up to Tor’s standards, perhaps, but certainly as good as many small press books. The great thing about self-publishing is that I own it. All the profits come to me, I can run special sales and promotions whenever I like, and it will continue to be available forever.

4. MEDIUM PRESS. What, you say? A fourth option? I thought you were talking about three! We often talk of three categories, but really there’s a whole spectrum. There are not-quite-so-big publishers, and medium publishers, and small publishers, and quite tiny publishers. My fourth and fifth books, SUPERPOSITION and SUPERSYMMETRY, will be published by Pyr Books in April and September. Pyr could be considered a big press–they have national bookstore distribution through Penguin Random House, and they publish a good number of books each year. My experience there so far has been extremely positive: they have the personal enthusiasm and attention of a small press, but the reach and publicity of a larger one.

So… which option is best for you? The answer depends on what you want. None of them are easy roads. None of them is a sure bet for making money. The question is, where do you want the difficulty to be?

If you try for a big publisher, the difficult part will be getting published at all. The competition is fierce, and books are relatively few. If you are published, the difficulties may come in retaining control over your work. What you get in return for these difficulties are the credibility and visibility of a big house, and a crew of smart and professional people to help you succeed.

If you self-publish, the difficult part will be in finding readers. Getting published is easy, and you’ll have complete control over your work. But you won’t have run the gauntlet of agents and editors, and so no one will know if your work is any good or not. It will be difficult to convince them to give it a try. You will also have to do all the work yourself, or pay someone to do so.

There are many options along the spectrum between those two extremes. The best way to publish your book is the way that works for you. Like me, it may even be a different way for each book! May you find success in one or the other, or in the many options that land somewhere in between.

—-

David Walton is the author of the newly released novel SUPERPOSITION, a quantum physics murder mystery with the same mind-bending, breathless action as films like INCEPTION and MINORITY REPORT. His other works include the Philip K. Dick Award-winning TERMINAL MIND, the historical fantasy QUINTESSENCE (Tor, 2013) and its sequel, QUINTESSENCE SKY. He’s also a Lockheed Martin engineer and the father of seven children. You can read about his books and life at http://www.davidwaltonfiction.com/.

Sunday Quote returns to L’Amour

“Historical novels are, without question, the best way of teaching history, for they offer the human stories behind the events and leave the reader with a desire to know more.”

~Louis L’Amour, Education of a Wandering Man

Bready or Not: Lemon Cake Batter Fudge

No foolin’. Back in December, I shared my Cake Batter Fudge to rave reviews. Soon after that, I noted a box of lemon cake mix in my pantry that I needed to use.

I got to thinking, “What if…?” I searched on Pinterest and couldn’t find any recipes that used cake mix for lemon fudge.

Therefore, I resolved to make my own.

I figured the amount of lemon extract used for a cookie recipe should also work for a fudge recipe. Bingo!

The crazy thing about this fudge is that it tastes just like lemon cake and icing all in one. It’s weird in a way, because your brain realizes that the texture isn’t right for either, but the taste nails it.

No joke!

Based on my recipe for Cake Batter White Chocolate Fudge.

 

Bready or Not: Lemon Cake Batter Fudge





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This microwave fudge uses cake mix and comes together in about five minutes. The taste is like lemon cake and frosting all in one!

A Bready or Not Original

2 cups + 2 Tbsp lemon cake mix (any brand), sifted
2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1/2 cup (1 stick) salted butter, cut into chunks (or use unsalted and add a pinch of salt)
1/4 cup milk (almond milk works)
2/3 cup white chocolate chips
3/4 teaspoon lemon extract
1/2 cup rainbow sprinkles/non pareils/jimmies

Line an 8×8 baking pan with aluminum foil or parchment and spray with nonstick spray. Set aside. Measure the white chocolate chips and the sprinkles in separate dishes so they are ready to add quickly.

Mix sifted cake mix and powdered sugar in a large bowl. Add milk and butter, without stirring, and microwave for 2 minutes.

Promptly mix ingredients until the butter is fully melted and incorporated. The batter will be very thick. Fold in white chocolate and lemon extract. Add the sprinkles last and stir gently so they don't leak too much color.

Scoop into prepared baking pan. Level it across the top. Chill the fudge in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours before cutting into small blocks.

Fudge will keep upwards of a week in the fridge, if it lasts that long.

OM NOM NOM!

Preparation time: 5 minutes

Cook time: 2 minutes

 

Poetry and Locus

My poems “After” and “The Selkie Visits the Beach (Six Months After Losing Her Pelt)” were just published in Grievous Angel.

On the subject of poetry, my “Mama Gonna Fight” poem in March’s Apex Magazine was well-reviewed at Quick Sip Reviews..

Now to something else that’s nifty.

I mentioned a while back that Locus Magazine had The Clockwork Dagger on their short list of best 1st novels for 2014. Well, it’s now time for people to vote for the annual Locus Awards, and as a recommended read, my book is already included on the ballot.

One thing that sets these awards apart from the other major genre awards is that ANYONE can vote. All you need to do is fill in your name, email, and vote in whatever category you want. The ballot is huge. You don’t have to fill in everything.

Take a look and vote! The deadline is April 15th.

Sunday Quote is easily confused

“Writing is not necessarily something to be ashamed of, but do it in private and wash your hands afterwards.” ~Robert A. Heinlein

Poem-A-Day April

Every April and November I take part in the Poem-A-Day Challenge at Writer’s Digest’s Poetic Asides Blog. It’s when I complete the bulk of my poems for the year.

This April, I’m going to do things differently.



First of all, I’ve been so busy that I 1) haven’t had the chance to edit all of my poems from November, and 2) I haven’t been able to submit as much poetry, either. Therefore, I don’t really need to create more of a backlog.

I do have an immediate need to write certain kinds of poems, though. In May I’m taking part in the #TwitterFiction Festival and I need a large stockpile of tweet-sized stories and poems. I figured, hey, I’m going to be getting poetic prompts every day through April. I can use these for a new purpose.

I already have some works written but I’m depending on these April prompts to push me along every day. I’ll post more about the #TwitterFiction event as it nears so that you can follow along!

Bready or Not: Oreo Chocolate Chip Caramel Cookie Bars

 

A picture is worth a thousand words, right?

The original version at Mom on Time Out looked pretty darn amazing to start, but as usual I decided to improve something by adding 1) Biscoff spread, and 2) Oreos.

These things will blow your mind and your waistline. Imagine dense bricks of caramel and goodness. I stored these in the fridge–because I live in Arizona and even at room temp chocolate goes too soft–and to my surprise, these bars didn’t harden. Nope. Even chilled, they were chewy and amazing. The Biscoff probably helped with the soft and chewy aspect.

Of course, you can also make this using any nut butter instead of the Biscoff spread, or substitute another cookie for the Oreos. Mix it up. So many things pair well with a thick layer of caramel.

Make these. You know you want to.

Modified from Mom on Time Out.

Bready or Not: Oreo Chocolate Chip Caramel Cookie Bars





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Dense, chewy bricks with a thick layer of caramel in the middle. A calorie bomb of sweet perfection.

Caramel Filling
11 oz bag caramels (Caramel Bits work well)
14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
4 Tbsp butter
Cookie Dough
1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cups) unsalted butter
2 cups light brown sugar
1/2 cup creamy Biscoff spread (or nut butter)
2 eggs, room temperature
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
2 cups flour
1 cup old fashioned (rolled) oats
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup chocolate chips
2 cups chopped Oreos (about 1/3 of package, a little over 1 row)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9x13 inch baking dish with parchment paper or aluminum foil, and butter or use nonstick spray. Chop the Oreos and set them aside.

Place caramels in a small saucepan with butter and sweetened condensed milk. On medium-low heat, stir often until caramels are melted and mixture smooth. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. Add the Biscoff spread (or nut butter) and mix. Add eggs and then vanilla, and mix well.

Combine the dry ingredients: flour, oats, baking powder, and salt in a small mixing bowl. Slowly pour the flour mix into the large mixing bowl. Stir in the chocolate chips and then the Oreo pieces.

Drop about 2/3 of the dough into the prepared casserole pan and smooth it out over the bottom. Slowly pour the caramel mixture over the dough and spread out to the edges. Dollop the rest of the dough on top; don't worry about covering all of the caramel.

Bake for 28-32 minutes. Cool completely and then cut into bars.

OM NOM NOM!