#MeatlessMonday-Cream Scones #dessert

Photo courtesy of Astrid Kopp via Flickr

This is a family recipe. Good with jam, lemon curd or Devonshire cream.

Cream scones

2 cups flour

1T baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2T sugar

1/4 cup butter (cold and diced)

1 large egg

1/2 cup light cream.

Preheat oven 425F.

Combine dry ingredients and cut in butter with pastry cutter until mixture is crumbly.

Whisk egg and cream together in separate bowl. Add to butter/flour mixture.

Stir quickly and briefly to make soft and sticky dough (add more cream if needed).

Gather into a ball and place on lightly floured surface.

Knead gently with floured hands and pat out to 1/2 inch thickness.

Cut into rounds with cookie cutter and place on baking sheet. 

Brush lightly with milk.

Bake for 12 minutes.

Frightening Friday-Death by Laughter

Photo courtesy of weezerthewonderful via Flickr

Did you know you could literally die laughing?

…which is why I write paranormal and horror. Wouldn’t want to kill any of you people. 

Death by laughter usually results from cardiac arrest or asphyxiation. Instances of death by laughter have been recorded from Ancient Greece to the modern day. It's rare but it does happen.

In 1410, King Martin of Aragon died from a combination of indigestion and uncontrollable laughter. He was eating an entire goose when his favorite jester entered his bedroom. When King Martin asked where the jester had been, the jester replied with: "Out of the next vineyard, where I saw a young deer hanging by his tail from a tree, as if someone had so punished him for stealing figs."
I'm not sure why that was so funny...but perhaps it was lost in the translation.

In 1975, Alex Mitchell of King's Lynn, England, died laughing while watching an episode of The Goodies, which featured a kilt-clad Scotsman battling a master of the Lancastrian martial arts armed with a black pudding. After 25 minutes of laughter, Mitchell died on the sofa from heart failure. It was determined that the family carried Long QT syndrome, a genetic disease which results in heart rhythm abnormality. Mitchell's heart attack was caused by the excess of stimuli--in his case, laughter.

In 1989, Ole Bentzen, a Danish audiologist, died laughing while watching A Fish Called Wanda (one of my favorite movies). During the scene where Otto sticks a chip up Ken's nose, Ole died of cardiac arrest brought on by laughter. According to rumor (confirmed by his son) Ole apparently had a similar experience to Ken's. He put a piece of cauliflower up his and every family member's nose as a joke and made a bet as to who could eat their carrots without the cauliflower falling out. He sounds like someone who would make me laugh.

My heart goes out to these families. All I can say is that at least they died with a smile on their face.

Thoughtful Thursday-The Things That Scare

Photo courtesy of Anant Nath Sharma via Flickr

It may be because I write paranormal horror, but there are very few things that scare me. What ranks up there is watching my youngest during her horseback riding lessons and wondering why it takes my oldest so long to answer my texts. You know. mom stuff. The things most people find scary don't do it for me any more.

At what point do classically scary things fade into real-life scares? I can't say that I've ever been afraid of the paranormal. It is what it is. The real fear came after I had kids. The first time my 3-month-old spiked a fever, the first time my 2-year-old fell down the stairs, the first day of Kindergarten when I wondered just how far the umbilical cord would stretch. And it got worse. I still remember when my 7-year-old thought it would be a neat idea to do a back flip off the chair. That went well. Fast forward to school dances, hanging out at the mall, first texts and the internet--all scary, scary things.

That said, I do find this picture kind of scary. Not because of the shades of paranormal within it but because the thought of suffocating behind a sheet is freaky. Have a great week everyone...and mind the bed sheets.

#Paranormal Wednesday-Dog Drool

Photo of Vader courtesy of Fellowship of the Rich

...Or Why Dog Drool is Paranormal in Nature.

1) Drool vs. Spiritual Attachment - It will attach itself to you and nothing short of an exorcism can get it off. Be forewarned.

2) Drool vs. Ectoplasm. Ectoplasm begins clear and then darkens and becomes visible. In extreme cases, it will develop a strong odor. Enough said.

3) Drool vs. UFOs - Occurring especially after bath time. Watch when Fido gives himself a good shake. The Truth is Out There.

4) Drool vs. Spirit Manifestation - There have been cases where drool has been reported to manifest on its own with no probable cause.

5) Drool vs. ESP - My dog is especially sensitive to the times I'm wearing my Calvin Klein dress that can only be dry-cleaned. I can only attribute this to the fact that the drool itself, must be psychic.

6) Drool vs. Reincarnation - Reborn even after I've killed it with a washcloth. Drool is eternal.

7) Drool vs. Out of Body Experiences - The sensation you get when you've failed to dodge the sticky thread of saliva as it smacks you in the face.

8) Drool vs. Demonic Possession - You know that gleam in your dog's eye when drool trails down the sides of his mouth? And he takes a step towards you...and another...and another?

9) Drool vs. Orbs - If you watch very carefully, these can be seen surrounding the threads of saliva as it's flung in senseless abandon.

10) Drool vs. Paranormal in General - Drool is way scarier. Run in fear.

Tangled Tuesday-Guest Author Barbara Custer

How I Created My Villains
by Barbara Custer

When it came to creating villains for my work, a mentor’s advice stuck to me like a Mylar balloon: You can’t have a mindless brute that plunders and kills for the fun of it. No one is all good or all bad. Even Hitler had his kind moments with his dog.

What Hitler did was despicable, but he was generous with treats when he spent time with his dog. Herein I found my lesson on the multi-layered personality of the villain, and I considered my mentor’s advice when I wrote Twilight Healer and Steel Rose. Drusilla of Twilight Healer started as a cold, bloodthirsty vampire who made feeding on humans her sole mission. After my lesson, I gave Drusilla an impoverished childhood. The story opens with Drusilla as an indigent seeking work at a place where her employers wouldn’t abuse her. After she turns, she destroys, but one scene depicts her comforting an injured child beaten by her stepfather. She then goes after the stepfather. Drusilla’s other actions were despicable, but she had a soft spot for abused children.

Laurel of Steel Rose began as a death angel type of nurse who used her job as a beard for killing young woman and eating their remains whenever the fancy struck her. Her cold, calculating eyes hint that she’d kill just as soon as look at someone. Ah, but Laurel loved her dog Pluto, and she’s good with doggie treats. After her severe injuries in a car accident, she fears something will happen to her beloved Pluto. A scene takes her back to a horrible childhood with parents who duct tape her to a mattress and leave her there for hours without food or water. Laurel also grieves over the death of her older sister. Her killing sprees start when her mind conjures an imaginary visitor named Abaddon who orders her to kill patients and other people. One reviewer felt that Laurel made a stronger character than my protag did.

I’ve struggled with developmental edits on the sequel to Steel Rose, but the editor complimented me on my villain. We meet villainess Woehar in Steel Rose, but she continues manufacturing zombies during the sequel. I’d want to give Woehar more explanation because most people don’t start out life being pure evil. Perhaps someone bullied as a child turns into a bully later on in life. Evilness is relative, too; people have different standards of what they consider evil. One reference I found helpful was the Evil Overlord List.

Basically, the villain will be the opposite of the hero, so I had to give my villains humane moments. Perhaps he or she has a favorite pet, plant, or relative. I had to come up with a real motivation for their bad behavior; having a villain go after the hero because of real or imagined slights on the playground in grade school won’t cut it. I wanted my villain to be someone people could understand, even if they found the actions deplorable.

Blurb for Steel Rose:

The denizens of hell attack. The zombies feed. She's their meal.

Sometimes they come back. At least the Kryszka aliens do. Their leader injects captured humans with a drug, turning them into zombies. Yeron escapes the Kryszka Colony, hoping to practice medicine on the humans who fear him. Alexis-a patient-is afraid too, until his seductive attentions arouse her. Despite his experimental drug, severe arthritis leaves her too weak to handle most guns. The Kryszka troops and zombies who break into the hospital are hungry. Very hungry. How will she fight them?

***

Giveaway 

A random commenter will receive a $5.00 Starbucks GC and PDF copy of Night to Dawn 26.

Buy links:

Author Website
Amazon
Barnes& Noble

#MeatlessMonday-Tomato Soup with Israeli Couscous #vegetarian #vegan

Photo courtesy of Chris Potako via Flickr

This is probably the easiest crock-pot soup recipe ever. I use Israeli couscous. It's larger than regular couscous (more like Italian orzo) and doesn't fall apart in the hot soup. If you don't like/have couscous you can substitute white/brown rice. quinoa or pasta. You can also add 1/2 cup of carrots along with the spinach for extra veggies. Enjoy!

Tomato Soup with Israeli Couscous


Ingredients

1T olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
3 cups vegetable stock
1-28 oz. can chopped tomatoes
1T tomato paste
1/2 cup fresh spinach, chopped
1 cup Israeli (cooked) couscous.
Fresh basil, chopped for garnish

Saute onion and garlic in olive oil

In a crock pot--combine vegetable stock, chopped tomatoes, tomato paste, chopped spinach.
Add sauteed ingredients.

Cook on medium/low for 3 hours. Blend until smooth.

Serve over couscous topped with fresh basil.

Happy Halloween Book Sale!

OmniLit is having a ONE day sale today--which means STRUCK and BETWEEN are both 50% off!

BETWEEN by Clarissa Johal
How far would you go to redeem yourself?

As a young girl, Lucinda was able to see spirits, a gift that didn't come without its problems. Now, a dedicated young veterinarian, she is committed to the idea that every life can be saved.

After a devastating accident, Lucinda tries to escape her past by moving to a small town. There, she meets a newcomer and feels an immediate connection with him. But there is another mysterious stranger to the small town, one that stirs within her a mixture of unease and desire.

As Lucinda is drawn into a bitter tug-a-war from the forces around her, she is likewise pulled into a dangerous twist of past and present events. Forced to make difficult choices, she finds that the two men are locked in not only a battle for her life...but a battle for their salvation.

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STRUCK by Clarissa Johal

The shadows hadn't been waiting.
The shadows had been invited.

After a painful breakup, Gwynneth Reese moves in with her best friend and takes a job at a retirement home. She grows especially close to one resident, who dies alone the night of a terrific storm. On the way home from paying her last respects, Gwynneth is caught in another storm and is struck by lightning. She wakes in the hospital with a vague memory of being rescued by a mysterious stranger. Following her release from the hospital, the stranger visits her at will and offers Gwynneth a gift--one that will stay the hands of death. Gwynneth is uncertain whether Julian is a savior or something more sinister... for as he shares more and more of this gift, his price becomes more and more deadly.

50% off today only via OmniLit

There's still time to enter my Coffin Hop contest for an ecopy of STRUCK.

Contest closes at midnight tonight.