Three Books and Two Events

Happy Wednesday Scribblers. It’s been a busy week and I have lots to share. Fellow Authors Lee Colgin, Kevin Klehr, and J.P. Jackson all have amazing book announcements. And I have more event news to update you all on, so let’s get started.

If you missed it, this last Saturday, me and several other members of the Bay Area Queer Writers Association (BAQWA) were at Books on B at the Hayward first annual LitHop. Renee, the owner, of Books on B, is wonderful and runs a beautiful bookstore, so please go and support the store if you can. You can find them on Instagram here. It was an amazing event. So many people showed up and we had a blast. Coming up this weekend (May 7th-8th, from 11am – 5pm) we will be at The Bay Area Book Festival in Berkeley, CA (Downtown Berkeley, Booth #23), we hope to see everyone there. This should be a lot of fun, and just like at the Hayward LitHop, we’ll be signing books, hanging out, and chatting with folks. So, come and say hello.

Here are some of the group photos from Hayward LitHop.

Next, I’m thrilled to share that fellow author Lee Colgin has a brand-new book out: Over the Emerald Valley 

Here is the blurb: 

Life as a concubine to the devious Viceroy Abasi isn’t so bad. Temaj has food, shelter, and every inch of his skin is draped in emeralds. What’s freedom worth when weighed against the luxury of the palace? 

Solon’s dutiful life earned him the rank of army general to the pharaoh. But when he’s sent on a diplomatic mission to an emerald mine rather than into battle, he senses the end of his career and a lonely retirement. 

Temaj is gifted to Solon for his stay, but the last person Solon wants in his bed is a slave sent to spy on him—even if he is a gorgeous, silver-tongued vixen of a man. 

Trouble brews when emeralds go missing. With only a clever concubine and the viceroy’s harem on his side, can Solon solve the mystery and escape with his life, or are he and Temaj destined to haunt the walls of the palace forever? 

*** 

Over the Emerald Valley is a gay paranormal romance full of snarky banter, dangerous secrets, steamy stolen moments and only one bed. It’s a standalone novel within the Immortal Jewels series and can be read first or last with no spoilers, no cliffhangers, and always a happily ever after. 

Get your copy here.

Also, this week, Kevin Klehr (follow him here) has an exciting book trailer for his new audiobook: Winter Masquerade. This is a wonderful book, if you haven’t read it, you need to. Here is the video trailer to tease you.

Also, coming soon is a new book by J.P. Jackson: Cursed – Magus Malefica – The Coven Series – Book Two.

Blurb:

Cam Habersham is having a hell of a time keeping up with his fae studies because a certain werewolf constantly interrupts his thoughts. Everton Lilch is the wolfen beast who follows Cam around the Ancestral Lands – the fae village where Cam is trying to learn how to be fae. But Everton pushes Cam away every time things get steamy. The queen of the fae has had enough and tasks Cam with an impossible feat, an undertaking only Everton can help him accomplish.

Sparks Gemmell is a lost witch without his coven. In desperation, he casts a quick spell in hopes of reuniting his brothers, but he doesn’t count on the wayward route magic often takes. Sparks finds himself wrapped up in the horned god’s mandate and inserted into his Shadow Brothers’ relationship in order to protect his city from the darkest elements of the Shadow Realm.

As Cam and Sparks’ paths merge together, their lives become intertwined as the darkness of the Shadow Realm descends upon them. Confrontations with wraiths, mutant werewolves, and witch law enforcement are unforeseen consequences in an effort to please queens and gods.

After all, it comes down to the ley of the land.

Check out the amazing cover art.

Pre-orders should be available soon, so follow J.P. Jackson here so you don’t miss out.

There you go. I hope you found this update helpful. There is so much happening right now. Especially with all these wonderful authors and these upcoming events. I don’t want you to miss a thing. I hope to see you this weekend at The Bay Area Book Festival, but if not, until next time, have a great week.

Our Experiment with a Meal Delivery Service (Part3)

Welcome to Part Three of our experiment with a Meal Kit Delivery Service. If you haven’t read Part One click here if you haven’t read Part Two (I’m gonna cry) click here.  As you should be familiar with by now, I’m hopping, we’ve been doing the Meal Service for three months and things are swimming along.  The food is still great. We’ve enjoyed everything, even things I wasn’t so sure about.
 
Shall we start?

As teased last month, I’m gonna tell you about how we save 20% on our meals and provide you some general advice and s few tips and tricks that we’ve learned.  So here goes.
 
Our trick for saving 20% on our Meal Kit Delivery Service is to buy gift cards.  We go to Costco (if you don’t have a Costco Membership talk to a friend who does) and buy the gift cards for the service it saves us an instant 20%.  Not very exciting and maybe a bit anticlimactic but that’s how we save money.  Every couple of weeks we head to Costco for whatever we need and pick up the gifts cards.  We don't make a special trip so getting the gift cards makes sense.
 
Another way you can save money on these services is to try a different one for the length of the free trial period.  I’m not a big fan of this method, but people do it and it works for them. There are several different meal delivery services out so bounce around and try different ones. Just don’t ask me what they do when they’ve tried them all and have to pay for it, cause I’m not sure.
 
Anyway, moving on.
 
What we’ve found with our Meal Kit Delivery Service is don’t be afraid to shake things up and experiment with what they give you.  We’ve got several spaghetti (red sauce) type dishes, and they were all right.  When we got the next one I decided I was going to shake things up, and I added my own Italian spices and it took the sauce to the next level, which really made me happy.

Don’t be afraid to add a little butter, yes it’s bad for you. Yes the meal services are trying to present you with a healthful meal option. Still, a little butter goes a long way for flavor. So, if you want to add some buttery flavor to what you're cooking or to vegetables go for it. I won’t tell.
 
Two of my co-workers, who are on the same plan as us, will put the spice rub or marinade on the meat the night before they cook it.  They say it adds a lot more flavor and I believe them.  I tried it once, and it really does amp up the flavor of the meat.
 
The other trick I have is, watch the salt.  Almost ever step instructs you to ‘salt and pepper to taste’ remember it’s ‘to taste’ so if you want to cut down on the salt do it.  To me this seemed like a no brainer, but you would be surprised at how you get caught up in following the step-by-step directions.
 
Speaking of directions.  Do yourself a favor and read through the direction at least twice before you start.  Then decide the steps you can combine and the ways to lower your pan and bowl count, cause you’re gonna use a lot of them.
 
When it comes to the oil always use olive oil or extra virgin olive oil.  It’s really the best way to cook everything.
 
When it comes to pans we use non-stick or cast iron.  So if you don’t have non-stick pans or cast iron get one.  It makes clean up so much easier.
 
When it comes to clean up, do it while things are cooking.  You’re gonna go through a lot of pains, bowls and knives so clean as you go.  Otherwise you’re gonna have a lot of clean up at the end.
 
And there you have it.  Everything I’ve learned about our Meal Kit Delivery Service.  If you want to try it, go for it.  The options are great and the food is good.  Even the stuff you may not love. We plan to keep going.  If we stop I’ll let you know and tell you why.
 
As with Part One and Part Two here are photos from our dinners. 

I hope you enjoyed this series and found it interesting and fun.  Feel free to ask questions.  In fact I encourage it.  I love hearing from you. 
 
Until next time have a great week.