Natasha Duncan-Drake's Blog, page 45

Guest: Speculative Fiction is Better than SFF - Gwen Tolios #WriterlyWednesdays 36

Please join me today in welcoming fellow author Gwen Tolios to my blog. I know many people hear the term "speculative fiction" and are unsure what it means. Today Gwen is explaining the genre and why it is so great.

Spec fic > SF/F (aka Speculative Fiction is better than SFF)by Gwen Tolios
In high school, I remember arguing with a friend about what genre to classify the film Laputa:  Castle in the Sky . Was it fantasy? One of the protagonists was a long lost princess in possession of...

Recipe: Mexican Chicken and Wild Rice Soup #TipsTuesdays 37

Greetings and welcome to my blog this week for Tips Tuesday and another healthy recipe. This is based on a recipe from Goodfood, but I'm putting in more details and have changed it a little, hence the post :).

Mexican Chicken and Wild Rice SoupThis is a great recipe for a hot day - it's light and (slightly) spicy and has lots of things that are good for you.

The recipe can be gluten free - none of the ingredients contain gluten on their own - you just have to be careful with a couple of them an...

The Much Maligned Vampire Genre #ThinkyThusrdays 19

Good day to one and all, I hope you are all well. My thoughts this week are not overly deep, but have turned to vampires ... as they do every now and then. I think it is a great shame the genre is so maligned in some quarters and this is why.

The Much Maligned Vampire Genre
If there is one genre that will induce scorn, even faster than the romance genre in general (and that's not deserved either) it's the vampire genre. Thanks to the media people equate everything with Twilight and dismiss it.

N...

I Love Writing #WriterlyWednesdays 35

Welcome to my blog for another Writerly Wednesday. Today I'm going to share something very fundamental to me: the fact I love writing and why. I hope you enjoy.

I Love WritingWriting:
is hardtakes dedicationis often a thankless taskwill eat our every waking thought and sometimes the sleeping ones too& sometimes makes other people think we're nutsBut, fellow authors, we love it, don't we?!
No writer I know just writes because they fancied trying it - at least, not the ones who keep at it. We...

Recipe: Creamy Chicken and Broccoli Bake With Peas, Baby Corn and Mushrooms #TipsTuesdays 36

This week for Tips Tuesdays I am continuing to share some of the staple recipes I use all the time. This one is based off this recipe from allrecipes, but I've tweaked it, so I'm sharing my version. It is very tasty and filling without heavy amounts of starch, but I have to admit mine is not as low fat as the original.

Creamy Chicken and Broccoli Bake With Peas, Baby Corn and MushroomsServes 2 with healthy appetites or 3 who like smaller portionsIngredients~half a head of Broccoli6 baby corns1...

Review: Ghostbusters ROCKS!

So I promised to tell everyone what I thought after I had seen Ghostbusters, and rather than going at the weekend I had a chance to see it yesterday. There were only four of us in the cinema (first showing on a Friday afternoon), but we all really enjoyed it if the loud laughing was anything to go by :). Now I just have to find a time I can see it again and drag my darling husband along too.

Ghostbusters ROCKS!
Cast:
...Jillian...

The Controversy of the New Ghostbusters #ThinkyThursdays 18

Good day to one and all and welcome to my blog for Thinky Thursdays. Today I want to talk about something that I've seen popping up on my dash on various social media all week - the new Ghostbusters movie.

The Controversy of the New Ghostbusters
The first thing I will say is that I haven't had a chance to see the film yet. We intend to see it this weekend since we can no longer go on a week day because Rob works in London and doesn't get home in time. So this post is speculation, prior to viewi...

Getting My Geek On - #WriterlyWednesdays 35

Did you know today was Embrace Your Geekness Day? No, neither did I, until my sister Sophie sent me a link :). How could I not run with a topic like that?

Getting My Geek On

geek n - someone who is completely obsessed with one or more subjects and can talk about them at length

I suspect that most writers are geeks.

We're all obsessed with writing at the very least, aren't we?


If you're anything like me you write because you have to; the voices of our characters keep talking and talking, telling us...

Recipe: Turkey Mince Courgetti Bolognese (Gluten Free) #TipsTuesdays 35

Good morning (or whatever time of day it happens to be for you now :)), today I have another recipe for you for Tips Tuesdays 35. My husband said I haven't included enough of the staple recipes that I cook often here, so I have promised to rectify this. I've also tried to standardise my recipe labelling so they are easy to find :).

Turkey Mince Courgetti Bolognese (Gluten Free)This recipe used turkey mince instead of beef mince and courgette (zucchini) spaghetti instead of pasta - so it is a v...

Friends are Awesome #ThinkyThurdays 17

Welcome to Thinky Thursday - the day I get to blog about whatever happens to be on my mind. Today it's friends.

Friends are Awesome
Y'know how the rugged loner is a really popular trope on TV, in movies and in books? That is so not me.

I am not a stand alone kind of person - that is to say I do not function well when left alone for long periods of time. Friends are awesome and I'm including family in this, because it's good to be friends with members of your family too.

Back in the day, I remembe...