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It's that time of year again. J My gift to friends and family are my baked goods.

I've gotten very good at developing cookie recipes; very few are true to the original recipe format. If you're getting cookies from me, you're getting cookies you can't get anywhere else. (And usually not any other time of the year as I don't have time for these 2-3 day baking binges otherwise.)

To give you an idea of what my cookie making entails, I will share the morphing of 2 of my most recent acquisitions to my cookie collection.

Macaroon Mania!

My friends Caroline & Jesse put macaroons in their Christmas Cookie collection starting a few years ago. I loved them; they were a candy-like consistency. She gave me their ridiculously easy recipe:

1 14-oz can condensed milk

14 ounces shredded coconut

Preheat oven to 400 F.

Mix the whopping 2 ingredients (probably close to a direct quote from Caroline as she relayed the recipe for me).

Put them on a Parchment Papered cookie sheet.

Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden on top and edges.

The Parchment Paper was the key, though, because these cookies were, as I said, a sticky-candy consistency. Silpat or the equivalent sheets work - but not your regular ole greased or aluminum-foiled or wax-papered cookie sheet!

They were easy, but I wanted more of a cookie texture.

So, I put the condensed milk on Whip for about a minute to get some air into it.

Then I added the coconut AND 1/4 cup flour (or 2 ounces).

After three scrapes of the bowl after slowly bringing it up to a whip again, I got the batter to a texture more like Fluff®.

I scooped those onto my Silpat/silicon layered cookie sheets. (And, after 2 sheets, was gifted with a proper cookie scoop per Husband-of-Awesome who was sick of me cursing at the 2 spoons I was using for this sticky manipulation.)

I baked the slightly altered recipe and - voila! - just what I wanted. Lighter, fluffier macaroons.

Then, another idea hit.

CHO-CO-LATE!!!

(I mean, what isn't better with chocolate, really?)

I melted half a package of Ghiradelli dark chocolate chips with 2 tbsp of butter in a home-made double boiler (pyrex bowl over sauce pot of boiling water) and dunked half of each macaroon into the chocolate goodness.

TOTAL WIN!

The dark chocolate brought out a whole new dimension to the very sweet macaroons. They were 10x better, maybe 50x better - since I had to send H-of-A out for a slew more condensed milk, coconut & dark chocolate because we ran out of cookies before I could even assemble gifts people.

After the slight alteration and addition of chocolate, another idea struck.

PIÑA COLADA!!

(Ok, my muscles were hurting from baking all day… so rum… mmmm!)

It took a few tries with this to get the consistency right… I went through dried pinapple, how much rum, cubed, crushed, etc.

This is what I got:

1 14-oz can cubed pineapple run through food processor and strained until you've got about half a cup of pineapple smush.

1 pony shot (if you don't know what this is, you are a sorry barkeep! j/k about 1 oz. I eyeball it) coconut rum.

4-5 add'l ounces shredded coconut

2 ounces (1/4 cup) add'l flour (making total flour 1/2 cup or 4 ounces).

Prepare the same way. (your cookie output is 1.5x the previous recipe.)

Before baking, top each cookie with half a maraschino cherry.

&, if you've got leftover melted dark chocolate, use a wire whisk to drizzle it - so it doesn't go to waste, of course.

There you go, 2 new and ridiculously easy cookie recipes to try. But I won't share my version of kiffles!!! No way, no how!! ;) (But you can get the original from the DragonLance book Leaves from the Inn of the Last Home.)

Current Location:	Sugar-high
Current Mood:	full
Current Music:	Trans-Siberian Orchestra, _Night Castle_

When 11:59 November 30th rolled around… I hadn't even finished putting all my words and all of the joint-scenes onto one document - much less a document of 50k words.

So, Team Wooldridge-Tohara started making sure the one who had an extra 2 hours before her 11:59 could make it.

As a team - we won!

My little "novelfriend" button won't get the purple bar, but Chris made sure to send me a badge and certificate. Because - between the two of us and our all nighters, we've not only got our story, but we've got its soul.

If I were doing this alone, it would be an unquestionable fail, though. And that's an important lesson for me.

I can write fast: when the muse has taken me and I don't need to stop and think and research.

I don't actually write as fast as I think I do. Even at the write-ins, where I wouldn't even open a browser or Twitter, where I had no phone or animal distractions. I'm not that fast of a writer.

Why?

I can't spew onto the page. I was always taught is don't do a job that you know you're going to have to fix later - and I have a damn strong work ethic.

Yes, I have heard enough times to turn off the critic and write - that you can't use both sides of the brain at once. I don't mean to sound elitist or egotistical, but that's most people. I can. I've got about 20 short stories, 2 completed novels of my own, and now 1 and about 3/4 of a joint novel completed. I think and write. I've been writing since I could come home and wave vocabulary quizzes at my mom in chubby kindergarten fingers.

What did I want from NaNoWriMo?

Ideally, a completed first draft. But, a first draft to the standard I/we hold a first draft. It had to be strong enough not to create quicksand holes near the end and to support the heavy duty editing we would do.

What we both got was a detailed blueprint, a solid foundation, several walls going up, our utilities picked out - and even the curtains and paint chosen. If we wanted to include our planning "meetings" on messenger, we'd have 100k in notes.

But that's not a story. It is a draft.

And both of us are happy with what we've got to play with for some time.

On the website, there were videos on how to pump one's word count by doing everything you don't want to do if you're a serious writer. Extra adjectives, adverbs, include dream sequences, a lot of detailed worldbuilding…

Well, we've got the detailed worldbuilding. It goes in its own "bible." Where it belongs. For us to pull from when we need a specific plot-moving, character-enhancing, setting-making detail. It doesn't all belong in the story.

We also probably already have way too many adjectives, adverbs, and unnecessary flashbacks, dream sequences and expository lumps. If I know I'm going to go back and cut about 50% or more of that crap already, why throw more useless ones in to pump up word count?

We wanted a story, not a word count. And… if the two of us manage to have a finished first draft that's less than 100k words… well, it'll probably be a miracle. And, if our beta readers actually come back and tell us, "You need to expand more on that," we'll probably faint in pure happiness. "You mean-you mean-you don't mean we have to CUT?!"

"Winning" of NaNoWriMo is personal. The community is wonderful and supportive, we're not writing against each other, and sometimes its good to turn of the critic entirely and write. Some people need to be reminded of that more than others.

I was so excited about the story we were working on last night, that I couldn't sleep. My grin is from ear to ear thinking of the next scene we're writing together. Tomorrow. The second I turn of my tutoring clock!

I almost made it to 50k words on my part alone… but I made better with my partner: I've fallen in love with this story and the characters. (I love my partner too, but statements like that often require explanations of us both also loving our wonderful husbands who - yet again this year - demonstrated saintly patience and support! Thank you, guys!!)

And that's what counts.

See you next year!

Current Location:	Going to bed... reasonably
Current Mood:	ecstatic
Current Music:	Cruxshadows, _Quicksilver_

I'm happy to share this Writerly Wednesday blog with my friend, colleague, and fellow feminist & Broad, Emilie P. Bush. Emilie was a big help with a lot of the Dragon*Con programming and a lot of fun to hang out with when we got to meet in person.

Emilie is a working mom with a 2 and 4 year old. She says, "I felt like I had to write a novel or I would die a horrible death. I didn't realize how unhappy [I was] focusing wholly on the needs of one husband and two small children until I started writing. After several months of insomnia and mad writing, I had reconnected with myself and had a darn fine book to show for it."

Emilie's book, Chenda and the Airship Brofman are available at Amazon.com here. You can also hear the Chenda and the Airship Brofman podcast here, and why not also make it a favorite on Facebook? Also, find out more about Emilie, her life, and her writing on her blog.

Tell us a little about Chenda and the Airship Brofman. What can readers expect from it?

Chenda and the Airship Brofman is a classic hero's epic, except it's a heroine's take. I've called it Feminist Steampunk once or twice. In a lot of ways, Chenda and I started the book in the same place (write what you know, right?) -- depressed. In her case, this 100% sheltered child who grew up in a convent, and then at the estate of the richest man in her country - Edison Frost -- is suddenly widowed. Edison leaves her a bag of stones and a cryptic note telling her she needs to undertake a journey across the sea to the Tugrulian Empire, where she is to find a holy Mystic who can reveal her destiny. Chenda does the only thing she can think of - she obeys. Along her journey, she meets an old sweetheart of Edison's and the crew of the airship Brofman. Her adventure takes her up in the air, across a desert, under the sea and into a world of gods - who all seem to have a wicked sense of humor. Chenda transforms from a shell of an orphaned girl into a powerful woman who, better than anyone else in the world, can take care of herself.

What was your favorite part in writing this story? Why?

The original opening line of the story. Sadly, I had to cut it. I learned very early on in my writing career, back when I was writing features for public radio, sometimes you have to give up the soundbite you like the best because it doesn't fit the story. Otherwise, I would have to say the interplay between Verdu and Fenimore - the two senior officers on the Brofman. They have a phenomenon between them that - when they are together - they start to move in tandem: one breathes in as the other breathes out, they blink together, move together. The tandem varies from quirky to creepy to troublesome as the two best friends have a falling out over Chenda. I enjoyed writing these two because they were so similar and yet so different. I also have a softspot in my heart for gay literature. Fen and Verdu are straight, but some of their interplay is homage to Gay Lit. Slightly taboo. Wholly fun.

What was the hardest part to write? Why?

The hardest part of writing for me has always been answering the basic questions "Am I saying what I mean?" and "Why should the character's care about each other?" At first, I had the problem of knowing where my characters are going. I knew, but I didn't want to give away too much, too soon. I know my character's hearts and heads, but am I putting enough of it down on paper to convey their motives and character to the reader? As to the second question, that's when I really relied on Beta Readers. I would write a chapter and send it off to my friend. When she finished, I started asking questions like, "Do you buy this plot point?" or "How can I tie these characters together so they will break their various norms?" Working this way, sending a chapter at a time to my friend, turned every chapter into a cliff hanger, so there is LOTS of excitement.

What would you say was the greatest lesson you learned in writing Chenda and the Airship Brofman? About writing, yourself, creation, life?

No one can create in a vacuum. EVERY life experience can translate into a story. In this book, I write about what it was like for me to step off an airplane in West Africa, the sadness of losing someone close forever, the blood stopping fear of being attacked, the joy of finding someone who vanished years ago. It's all in there and more, but it's such a better tale to tell, and much easier to let it out, when it happens to Chenda. I can change it, make events happen for her, and convey the pulpy emotions the way I felt them, but with perhaps better outcomes and more style. Also, I got to write all my friends into the story. (Again, write what you know.) When I thought of my dorky friends as characters, the book just flowed. My best friend is Henrietta Hoppingood. There are bits of my husband in both the Captain and Fenimore. Ryan and Laura are real people, and the Dia Orella Temple is a real place - it just happens to be a Hindu Mandir at the end of my street.

Why did you decide to publish independently? What advice can you offer from your experiences?

Truth be told, I would have rather had an agent and a publisher and the kit and kaboodle, but after 27 query letters to agents, I started to realize, from a publishing perspective, my book was a problem: at 107,000 words, it was too long for a first novel, it was feminist Sci - Fi in this new Steampunk sub-genre, it wasn't chick lit, and it wasn't romance, and I wasn't a celebrity telling all. It didn't fit. Beyond that, I started to realize that I couldn't get an agent unless I was published and I couldn't get published unless I had an agent.

The last piece of the decision came at Dragon*Con. I got talking with some smaller publishers, who thought they could get my book on some - few - shelves in two years (assuming I was willing to cut 10,000 words - as one publisher told me to do - even before he read it. Said it would be cheaper for him to print. YIKES!) Just looking around the Con, it didn't take a rocket surgeon to figure out that STEAM is way IN! Two years??? I'd rather strike with the iron hot, thank you very much.

I went to a talk [at Dragon*Con] about independent publishing. The panelists - successful self publishers all - had one thing in common; they new how to give their stuff away. They developed a following over several years and then were able to sell effectively both written content and logoed merchandise After hearing that most writers junk their first novel anyway (because even the ones who snag an agent have little success with Book #1), I decided to give it away. I started a blog and a website (CoalCitySteam.com will get you to both) and started to podcast the chapters. I plan on giving the whole book away a bit at a time. It's important to ask yourself "What is success?" In my case, it's telling my story, not selling my story. (However, that would be a nice.)

What are your next plans?

I will be going to several Sci-Fi Cons to sit on Steampunk panels and do some readings. Hopefully, I will be able to garner a few readers. Otherwise, I have a new book in the works, it's based on a short story I wrote about a girl in New York City who cheeses off a Greek God by accident and starts to see all manner of "imaginary" and mythic creatures. I'm eager to get back to it, as I also set it aside time to focus on getting Chenda up and out the door. I hope to have the first draft of that one done by Spring. At the moment, it's called Cryptid, and it is nothing like Chenda and the Airship Brofman. I'm not done with Chenda, however. She has a lot more to do, so look for the next installment of her story in a year or so. I'm calling it The Gospel According to Verdu.

What piece of advice do you wish you had when you started that you'd like to give people now?

The people who snark about authors who don't have agents and publishers are, not surprisingly, agents and publishers. The old model of publishing and distributing books is not particularly efficient - for writers or publishers. It won't work for every book. As long as you are willing to work inside the learning curve of self publishing, I would say GO FOR IT. Write what you feel. What's that song from Seasame Street? "Don't worry if it's not good enough for anyone else to hear... Just sing! Sing a Song!"

Write - Write your book!

What are you most thankful for now that Chenda and the Airship Brofman is available?

The help. My spelling sucks out loud, and I have two small children. I needed proof readers in the worst way and my husband to take the kids. I'm also very pleased that my dad, in his reply to my announcement that the book was on Amazon, signed his reply "Proud Father."

That made my day. Did he buy a copy of the book? Um, no. But we eat an elephant one bite at a time, don't we? I'm also glad to be happy. Writing makes me happy, do I don't care if Pops every BUYS a copy.

Here is a bit of trivia for you. I named the airship Brofman after Sir Martin Brofman - who said: The words you use to describe your reality, create reality. I came up with the words to make Chenda's world and then I put her into it. What I write is real to me-- it's a place I like to walk around in. It makes me happy. So why would I ever stop writing?

Thank you very much for the interview, Emilie!!

Current Location:	Going to Bed, promise!
Current Mood:	grateful
Current Music:	Wicked Soundtrack

When you're under stress, it's hard to be grateful.

When you're behind, it's hard to face the challenge and say "thank you." When you just want to give up, it's hard to thank difficulty for making us stronger. When you have a thousand and one things to do, it's hard to remember that simple "thank you" to a friend or family member or colleague who thought of you.

It's Thanksgiving in the U.S. this week, so a lot of people will be giving thanks for each other, their food, and other things they think of in any family rituals.

It hardly makes up for all the times we forget to thank each other, to thank God, to thank the Earth, to thank Life - no matter what any of them bring.

Thank you.

So many, many people do I owe thanks to - and for so many reasons. If I start now, will I even come close in a list?

You. All. Thank you. You know who you are. Maybe you don't - but YOU are wonderful. YOU made me who I am today. Thank you. If you think you have done me well, you have. If you can't think of something, know there is. We may not even realize it - you what you did, I what I received. Thank you. If I've already thanked you - thank you again.

And I thank myself, too - for being a pretty damned hard bitch on myself and giving myself time when I need it.

Husband-of-Awesome… Yes, of course Thank You. Especially.

Take more than a few minutes before turkey to consider gratitude.

Who are you thankful for? What are you thankful for?

What have you done to inspire gratitude in another?

Thank you.

Current Location:	Going to Bed, promise!
Current Mood:	grateful
Current Music:	Trans-Siberian Orchestra, _Night Castle_

In the Novel Friends email newsletter, I intended to include both of my Jell-O Shot recipes, but the word count was just too long, so I only included my Sparkling Faeries. So, below is the recipe for my Flesh & Blood shots. Now, assembly-wise, I actually made the first layer of my F & B shots first (the peach + amaretto), then, while that was solidifying, I made my Sparkling Faeries, and while the first part of the SFs were semi-solidifying, I finished the F & Bs. Sooo… with that in mind, here's the recipe for Flesh & Blood Jell-O shots. (And if you want to know how to make the Sparkling Faeries, email me to get our newsletter and I'll send you a copy!)

When we threw our B.L.U.M.B.U.F.S (By Light Unseen Media, Broad Universe, Fae Sithein) party at Worldcon, the Jell-O* shots and our Black Death Punch were a big hit. While it's easy(ish) to throw a mixed drink together in a cooler with ice, Jell-O shots create a more difficult problem as they need a temperature of at about 40 degrees Fahrenheit (or lower) to solidify. Not every hotel comes equipped with a mini-fridge - and ours was no exception. With little ingenuity that may make Alton Brown proud, solid gelatinous boozey goodness can be achieved!

*I really did use Jell-O brand gelatin. I suppose any gelatin brand will do, but I did not test any other brand.

In honor of my favorite Food Network celebrity, here's how I did it… presented AB cookbook style:

Flesh & Blood Jell-O Shots

Hardware:

2' by 3' (at least) that seals shut

100 1-ounce mini medicine cups

1-2 half sheet baking pans (more if you are making more shots)

parchment paper

1 electric kettle

1 wire wisk

1 glass bowl

2 4-cup liquid measuring cups

Software:

1 package of wild cherry or cherry or mixed berry Jell-O (again, preference availability depending)

1 package of peach or orange Jell-O (see above note pref./availability)

1 bottle vodka (or vanilla vodka if available. Smirnoff-level quality, $8-$12/bottle.)

1 bottle amaretto (I did splurge for Disaronno, but since it's mixing generic works)

Prep work:

See if your sheet pans fit all the way to the bottom of the cooler.

They fit?

Cover the bottom of the cooler with a layer of ice. Put in one sheet pan and add a layer of ice to that. Close and seal the cooler.

They don't fit all the way to the bottom?

No problem. Add only about a half layer of ice to the bottom of the cooler. Cover your single sheet pan with ice and drop it in as far as you can and still remove it. In my case, my cooler (a Coleman) had a ridge around the top where I could fit the one pan. This pan is the most important, though, as cold sinks. It did make for some juggling between the shots and the mixing cup - but it was easy to figure out. Also, once the cooler had the ice in it for over an hour, it was entirely cold, and I could start placing my medicine cup shots on the ice-laden top level, too.

Close and seal the cooler.

Flesh & Blood Instructions:

Start with the orange or peach. As the package instructs, boil water for the package. Pour the Jell-O into the bottom of a clean 4-cup measuring cup. Add the boiling water and mix until all the powder is dissolved. For the remaining amount of liquid per the instructions, split it equally between water and your amaretto liquor. Mix thoroughly. Set up 25-50 of your 1-ounce medicine cups (on a baking sheet or two, to contain the mess), and fill them 1/3-1/2 full of the Jell-O mixture. If your cooler holds your baking sheet, place parchment over the top and lower gently into the cooler, below the ice-laden sheet, otherwise place them gently amidst the ice on the bottom. While your bottom layer is cooling, prepare the red (wild cherry/cherry/mixed berry) layer in the same manner, with your "cold" liquid being half vodka and half water. When the bottom layer is semi-solid, pour on the top/red layer until medicine cup is a little over 3/4 full. Return them to the cooler and let them set for at least an hour. If done correctly, these look like a layer of blood over a layer of pale flesh - and the amaretto is a great accent to any of the fruit flavors mentioned!

Bust them out for the party and toast your favorite SF&F&Horror authors, editors, agents, & fans!

Current Location:	Awake!
Current Mood:	okay
Current Music:	Wind chimes