I welcome Karen Rose Smith to my blog today. Karen is one of the authors featured in the new release Bake, Love, Write: 105 Authors Share Dessert Recipes And Advice On Love And Writing. Karen’s 86th novel will be released in 2015 by Kensington Books. She writes mysteries and romance, too. This award-winning USA Today best-selling author loves animals (has four rescue cats), gardening and cooking.
What is the name of the recipe you included in Bake, Love, Write? Could you tell us a little about it, and why did you choose that recipe?
CAPRICE’S CHOCO CHUNKS AND CHIPS COOKIES
I come from an Italian family who love to bake. They passed down that love to me. When I developed my sleuth Caprice De Luca in my home-staging mystery series, I gave her my love of cooking and baking with her family. Three recipes are included in each book, but I also developed another recipe to give to my readers on my website. This cookie recipe is a hit around our house and I hope it is around yours too.
Could you give a short quote of the advice you included in the book?
The best writing advice I ever received was from my dad who told me to “keep trying.” After finishing thirteen manuscripts in six years, I sold to two different publishers in a week. I’ve gone on to sell eighty-five more novels.
Use your writerly powers of description to describe your kitchen.
Our house was built in the late 80’s so our kitchen has mauve counters! Eventually we’d like to redo but until then we changed the whole look like a home stager (my sleuth Caprice is one of those) would. I wanted something totally cheery so we color blocked the kitchen in yellow and white. Our antique table and chairs had belonged to my husband’s parents. When we moved in, we painted the top of the table and chair rungs. Now we redid those from blue to yellow. Finding a corner cupboard at an outlet, we painted the top of that yellow also and it now holds my cat cookie jar my mom gave me when I was a teenager as well as my grandmother’s favorite pitcher and glasses. With white and yellow curtain panels and a white lace cafe curtain at one set of windows, in the middle I made room for crystal and bead suncatchers we found in Sedona. The light fixture has a crystal ball prism hanging from its center. Whenever I walk through our kitchen, my mood lifts and I smile.
Tell us about your latest release.
My February 2015 release is a cozy mystery with a Valentine’s Day theme. GILT BY ASSOCIATION is the third book in my Caprice De Luca Home Staging mystery series. Caprice De Luca’s latest house staging is all about hearts, flowers, lace and chintz since Valentine’s Day is around the corner. She never expects her client to be murdered in the greenhouse the day of the open house.
With her six-month-old cocker spaniel pup Lady by her side and her own love life in disarray, Caprice ferrets out clues. She finds the victim’s past is filled with secrets that she kept from her husband for thirty years.
The past isn’t merely history. The present isn’t always what it seems. When hearts are involved, passion and even murder aren’t far behind.
Buy it on: Amazon
Here are more details on Bake, Love, Write below:
What do most authors have in common, no matter what genre they write? They love desserts. Sweets sustain them through pending deadlines and take the sting out of crushing rejection letters and nasty reviews. They also often celebrate their successes—selling a book, winning a writing award, making a bestseller list, or receiving a fabulous review—with decadent indulgences. And when authors chat with each other, they often talk about their writing and their lives. Recipes. Writing. Relationships. In this cookbook 105 authors not only share their favorite recipes for fabulous cakes, pies, cookies, candy, and more, they also share the best advice they’ve ever received on love and writing.
Learn more about the recipes and authors on:
Facebook
Pinterest
Amazon
Barnes&Noble
Kobo
iBookstore
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Stacy Juba has written sweet and sassy chick lit novels, mysteries about determined women sleuths, and entertaining books for young adults and children. Her books include the Storybook Valley chick lit series and the Hockey Rivals young adult sports novels.
Stacy is also a freelance developmental editor and online course creator. Sign up for her free masterclass, How to Create Your Editing Game Plan.
Stop by her other websites and blogs: Shortcuts for Writers and Hockey Rivals.
I am so looking forward to seeing how Caprice’s love life is working out, and I cant wait to see the pup. I tried to buy the recipe book from B&N but it didn’t like my sign-in. I will try again; the cookbooks looks like fun and the recipes don’t look toooo complicated.
Success, thanks for telling me about the cookbook! Got it this time.