Cover Reveal!

I'm working on re-releasing books 2 and 3 in my series. Just a quick polish, and new covers.

Priestess of the Eggstone is now available at Smashwords (all ebook formats) and Amazon (Kindle only, print is coming later)

Poisoned Pawn is now available at Smashwords (all ebook formats) and Amazon (Kindle only, print is still being formatted)

Poisoned Pawn will be coming soon.

Without further ado, here are the new covers for Priestess of the Eggstone and Poisoned Pawn!

Check out the whole series at www.altairanempire.com!
Get the first book, Nexus Point, FREE - use coupon code AA47G.

Thursday Recipe - Fried Apples, Coconut Pancakes, and Sausage Breakfast

The only real recipe here is the coconut pancakes. This is what I wanted for breakfast so I made it. I didn't get a picture, though, so you'll just have to imagine it for yourself. I ate it too fast. It was that good.

Fried Apples and Coconut Pancakes

1 T. butter

1 apple, cored and sliced very thin

2-3 sausage patties

1 egg

1/2 c. coconut milk (the drinking kind)

2 T. shredded coconut

2 T. brown sugar

1/2 t. baking powder

1/2 t. salt

1/2 c. whole wheat flour

Melt butter over medium low heat in a large frying pan. Add apples and sausage patties. Cook for 3-5 minutes, until apples start to brown and sausages are cooked through. Remove from heat and set aside.

While apples and sausages are cooking, mix together the egg, coconut milk, coconut, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Beat until smooth. Stir in the flour just until mixed.

In the same frying pan you cooked the apples and sausages in, scoop out the pancake batter into 3-4 pancakes. Cook 2-3 minutes, then flip gently. Cook on the other side for another 2-3 minutes, until the pancake is done all the way through.

Place a pancake on a plate, top with apple slices. Serve with sausage on the side and plenty of syrup or honey over the top.

Makes 1-3 servings, depending on how hungry you are and how generous you are feeling.

New Release - Monster Maelstrom

I have another short story out, this time in the Monster Maelstrom anthology. The collection is free, so why not add it to your collection? The stories in this one are from a wide variety of authors and a wide variety of genres, although since it's Halloween themed, most of them tend to be horror.

My story, Oh My Darling, is a different take on the story of Clementine. She's not your normal miner's wife. Download the book to find out how different.

Kindle version of Monster Maelstrom

Smashwords version of Monster Maelstrom (epub format)

Just a warning: My stories are all PG-13 or less. I can't vouch for the rest of the anthology so read at your own risk.

Thursday Recipe - Squash and Sausage Stir Fry

This is a quick, easy dish, perfect for lunch or dinner on those days when you don't want to bother with much but still need something healthy and delicious. The key is in choosing the right squash.

I used delicata in my recipe. It's a winter squash, so orange insides and stores well, but it has a tender enough rind that you don't have to remove it. Most winter squash, like butternut or

Delicata squash - this site has seeds for sale

acorn, has a very hard rind. If you want to use those varieties in this recipe, you will need to peel them first. Most any of the yellow or orange squashes will work in this recipe. Experiment to find the flavor you like best.

Squash and Sausage Stir Fry

1 T. butter
1 small winter squash, delicata preferred
1 apple
2 pre-cooked sausage patties OR 1/4 lb. cooked sausage, crumbled
salt and pepper to taste

Slice the squash lengthwise. Scoop out the seeds. Slice into 1/4 inch slices. Set aside.

Slice the apple into quarters. Remove core. Slice into 1/4 inch slices.

Cut the sausage patties into bite-size pieces.

Melt the butter in a large frying pan. Add squash, apple, and sausage slices. Cook on medium-high, stirring occasionally, for about ten minutes, until the squash is tender and everything is hot through.

Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve over brown rice. Makes 2-3 servings.

Touring a Nuclear Reactor

Geek out time! We got to tour Reactor B at the Hanford Nuclear Site a couple of weeks ago. It is awesome. In all meanings of the word.  This is the place where all of the plutonium and enriched uranium were generated for the nuclear bombs. It's amazing how much was accomplished in such a short time. The whole huge reactor was built on theory because there really wasn't time for a lot of development. That was done as it was built, as much as they could. It is incredible that the reactor worked as well as it did. It's well worth the several hours it takes for the tour.

This is the reactor face. It is huge and not a silicon chip in sight. It's all knobs and tubes and dials and switches and big honking wheels that turn things. It's also about three stories tall.

This is a model of the reactor showing the construction in the cutaway area. It is intricate to say the least. They did what they could to shield workers and others from radiation.

Pictures of the control room. This is only a quarter of the controls that were in the room. I seriously want to dig a basement under my house so I can build me a room that looks like this and I can play spaceship commander in it.

This was on display in the break room. The topic caught my eye because we discussed the Learning Machine from the 50s in one of my education classes.

The reactor project took only eleven months from start to operation. This website has a lot more information on the project and the camp that was built for the workers who managed this miracle. The sites are well worth browsing and reading.

It's a very complex piece of engineering and physics and a huge part of our history that not many people know. If you're in Washington near Richland, check it out. I'm not sure which impressed me more - the mechanical/engineering side of things or the human stories involved in this project. Both are well worth exploring.

Thursday Recipe - German Bubble and Squeak

Bubble and Squeak is just such a fun name. I can't resist it. It's also easy to make, tasty, and if you are picky about what sausage you use, it's healthy.

Traditional Bubble and Squeak is browned sausage and shredded cabbage cooked together until the cabbage wilts. Add some salt and pepper, and it's done. I took it a step further the other day and added more stuff. I think I like this version better.

German Bubble and Squeak

4 pre-cooked sausage patties, chopped into small pieces
1 large apple, cored and sliced
1/4 large onion, sliced
1/2 head cabbage, shredded (or use one bag of coleslaw mix)
2 T. water
salt and pepper to taste

Put sausage, apple, onion, and cabbage in a large frying pan. Don't stir! You want the sausage on the bottom closest to the heat with the apple and onion on top of that with cabbage covering everything else. Pour the water on top. Cover the pan and cook on medium-high for 3-4 minutes, until it is sizzling and starting to steam a little. Carefully stir it up. Cover and cook for another 2-3 minutes until the cabbage is wilted. Stir again and cook longer if needed. Make sure all the cabbage bits make it to the bottom to get steamed.

Add salt and pepper - about a 1/2 t. of salt and a few grinds of pepper are usually plenty for me.

Serve hot.

Guest Post for the VirtualFantasyCon Blog Hop!

Hi, I’m Jaleta Clegg, author of Nexus Point and a whole lot of other stuff, and I’m your host for this stop in the Hunt.

If you would like to find out more about the Hunt, please click here -

Somewhere on this page is a hidden number. Collect all the numbers from all the authors’ posts, and then add them up. Once you’ve added all the numbers, and if I am your last author, please head to the official website and click on the ENTER HERE page to find the entry form. Only entries will the correct number will qualify to win.

The author I’m pleased to be hosting for Virtual FantasyCon’s Blog Hop Hunt today is Ailsa Abraham, author of fantasy and magical realism.

Hello and thanks for reading about my work. I feel slightly fraudulent taking part in this because neither I, nor my readers are convinced that Alchemy and Shaman’s Drum really do qualify as fantasy. With each day, more news items feature things predicted in my books. So we scratch our collective heads and say “Predictive Sci-Fi? Futuristic but reliable?”

Write what you know about, they said. Pick a topic you know inside out and base your novel in there. So I did, which is why my series is labeled Fantasy. I know an immense amount about witchcraft and magic along with all religions, old and current.

Religious studies have been a fascination for me all my life. It just happened when I was thrown into close contact with so many different faiths and being such a very curious girl I asked questions, learned customs and tried to fit in.

Magic? Well, you see, here we may part company because to me, that is real. It is not fantastical at all.

I was initiated into a Wiccan coven and elevated to High Priestess after a few years. I’m a healer and in my village I’m accepted as such.

So you begin to see why I won’t take the fact that my books deal with magic (note please, not magick  - yuk yuk yuk) as making them “fantasy”.

I deal with human nature, which is what healing and magic are all about. I don’t deceive the people who come to me. Their beliefs in my healing gifts, does it all. I am a channel for energy and I’ll accommodate whatever system they are in to make them feel comfortable. They want to pray to a particular god, The Virgin Mary or anybody else? Fine! I’ll join in because that will make them better faster.

I don’t charge for my services. I’m happy to help but I do find large boxes of fruit and vegetables from their gardens left anonymously on my doorstep in appreciation. That’s good.

My stories involve the current plight of the world and how, even if a cure were found for all ills, human nature would still be basically selfish.

In the end, however, magic-users from assorted 38 pagan faiths and one under-cover Christian Granny have to unite to overcome the evil that has invaded the earth since the banning of organized religion. There are punch-ups, some very enthusiastic goths, shamans and their power animals, large numbers of hedge-witches and a few demons along the way

Oh and the love story. Don’t forget the love story. If you thought Romeo and Juliet were fighting an uphill battle, wait till you meet Riga the Black Shaman Captain and the love of her life Iamo, a priest of the Mother Goddess.

Adventure, love story and magical realism. If that’s Fantasy...OK, I’m into fantasy!

Alchemy   

Shaman’s Drum

Did you find the number? If you did, then click Ailsa Abraham’s link to continue Virtual FantasyCon’s Blog Hop Hunt.

FantasyCon Blog Hop Giveaway!

I'm participating in a fun blog hop scavenger hunt. Go check it out at http://vfcscavengerhunt.weebly.com/authors-links.html

While you're at it, check out FantasyCon. It's all happening online, from the comfort of your favorite sitting spot.

You don't have to find the numbers to win, though. Just enter here to win your very own Itty Bitty Kitty made by yours truly.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thursday Recipe - Mississippi Chow-Chow

This is mostly gone, and we just opened it!
But it gives you an idea what it should
look like.

It's another pickle recipe, pickle relish this time. It's based off of this recipe. She gives a lot of interesting history about the dish, too.

Chow-chow is interesting stuff. If you can find it in your local store, you're lucky. It's a mix of all sorts of chopped vegetables in a sweet pickle brine. I tried a couple of recipes and this is the one that I like best. It makes an awesome relish for sandwiches or hot dogs or just to eat on chips and crackers. Or just eat. It is that tasty.

From what I could glean online, it's a Southern staple with lots of variations. Feel free to mix up the veggies and try your own blend. This recipe uses mostly cabbage and bell peppers. Next time, I think I'll throw in banana peppers or jalapeños to spice it up a bit.

I shoved all the vegetables through my shredder with the large grater blade. It worked great for getting a fine chop. It makes a mess all over the kitchen, but this recipe will do that no matter what you use. So kick back and enjoy!

Mississippi Chow-Chow

1 quart shredded cabbage (1 medium head, more or less)
3 large-ish peppers, seeded and shredded (hot or mild, your choice, but you want about 1-2 c. of shredded pepper, tossing in at least one red one makes a prettier relish, but it's not necessary)
1/2 large sweet onion, shredded
2 carrots, shredded
1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded, and shredded
2 T. pickling salt
2 3/4 c. vinegar
1 c. sugar
1 t. mustard seeds
1 t. celery seeds
1/2 t. turmeric

Put all the vegetables and the salt in a large bowl. Toss to combine. Cover and set aside for 4-6 hours, stirring it once or twice.

Dump the vegetables into a large colander. Let it drain while you make the brine. Squeeze out any excess liquid.

In a large saucepan, mix the vinegar, sugar, and spices. Bring to a boil. Stir in the vegetables. Bring it back to a boil, then turn it down to low and simmer for 30 minutes. It should thicken up a bit and the vegetables should turn translucent. The turmeric will also make most of them yellow.

Pack into pint jars and process to seal. Follow the recommendations for pickles for your elevation. This is a good resource. It's exhaustive, but better safe than sorry with home canning. The recommended processing time can be found on page 22 of the pdf.

Makes about 3 1/2 pints.

What Did You Expect?

Expectations are a strange thing. They color our experiences, whether we want them to or not. Take, for instance, the lovely watermelon in the picture. I bought it at a local farmer's market. The idea of yellow watermelon intrigued me.

I sliced into it and sure enough, it was a lovely pale yellow. The first bite was kind of strange. It was watermelon, but it wasn't. If I had my eyes closed and didn't know it was yellow, I might have spit it out because it didn't taste right. If I were expecting red watermelon, it would have been disappointing.

After that first bite, I had to stop a moment and tell myself, "This isn't red watermelon, it's yellow watermelon. Taste it for what it is." It was sweet, but not cloying like red watermelon can sometimes be. It had a light taste to it, a crispness that I found very refreshing.

My kids? Not so much. Watermelon should taste like watermelon, the kind they are used to eating. I tried to convince them to treat it like a different kind of melon, like orange honeydew or Korean melon or crenshaw or one of the other bizarre varieties I like to drag home when I find them for a decent price. Yellow watermelon was a no go with most of them.

How many times do we form an opinion of something before we try it? I'm guessing it is most of the time. Look at the ad selection algorithms on Facebook. They're based off your browsing history, things you've clicked before, what you've entered into your profile, and a dozen other things. But they boil down to one thought: If you liked X, then you will probably like Y because it is similar. But how often do you bite into that juicy melon expecting it to taste like X but it tastes like B instead? And how often do you form an instant rejection of it because it wasn't what you were expecting?

I liked the yellow watermelon, more than red watermelon, but it took me a minute and a reminder to treat it as something similar but not the same as red watermelon. It's still melon, but it has its own unique taste.

And to tie it back into books because I'm a writer and a voracious reader, just because something is classed as the same genre as another book doesn't mean it is the same thing. I know people who reject entire genres of books because they tried one once and didn't like it. That's like saying all flowers are awful because you smelled one once that stunk like rotting poop (google voodoo lily if you're curious). Or all watermelon varieties taste the same. They may have similar characteristics, which is why they are classed into the same group, but they may be totally different once you scratch under the surface similarities.

Have you read a book that surprised you, one that you thought would be one type of story but ended up being something totally different? Was it a good surprise or a bad one?