Ah, Central Park

New York, New York...

I always wondered what all the hoopla is about. Why so many books and movies and TV shows are set there. Until I went. OMG. What a fantastic place to visit. I can barely imagine how it is to actually live there.

Thing is, I don't think New Yorkers take any of it for granted!

We celebrated my hubby's life in NYC...after the battle with T.C. Planning the trip gave us hope, something to aspire to, when he got his life back. We plan on going back in 2011. I'll already be there for the RWA National Convention. He'll join me at the end.

Right now...I'll relive those memories and play the slide show in my head as we wait on the next round of follow-up blood work and CT scan. Routine but scary as hell. Oh, my personal hero's fine. Grabbing life close, hitting the links often as he can and hanging out with his little grandson. Life can't get any better than it is.

It's just that...after that ugly thing came to live with us, there's always something there to remind us...

Keep him in your prayers. Thanks.

Weekend Recipe: Maverick Mac and Cheese

I must confess right off this recipe has nothing to do with the Maverick Saloon. I just couldn’t resist using this picture of a great little place full of history in Santa Ynez, California, a tiny super-Western town once part of a historic stage coach route, now surrounded by ranchland, California live oaks, vineyards and olive groves.

The saloon itself hosts country singers every weekend, and visitors tack dollar bills on the ceiling. Sure hope the place never burns down. There’s a fortune up thar.

Some years ago, I got this recipe from my friend Nancy, a Nebraska native. I’m worshipped by my family when I serve it and am adored on our cul-de-sac whenever I bring it to block parties. Someday I think I’ll kick things up a notch and use pepperjack cheese. As they say on Top Chef: Enjoy!

You need:

1 pound elbow macaconi

8 tablespoons (one stick) plus 1 tablespoon (one pat) butter or margarine

1 cup shredded mild Cheddar cheese (or 1/2 cup mild, 1/2 cup Muenster)

1 cup shredded sharp cheddar (or 1/2 cup sharp, 1/2 cup Jack)

2 cups half-and-half ( I use fat-free version. Why, I dunno, considering all the cheese.)

1 cup (8 oz) Velveeta, cut into cubes

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1/4 teaspoon seasoned salt

1/8 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper. (I’m a pepper junkie so I use WAY more than 1/8 teaspoon.)

Optional: 1/2 cup bread crumbs sauteed in butter to scatter over the top before baking.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly butter or PAM a deep 2 1/2 quart casserole.

Bring large pot of salted water to a boil, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and cook macaroni until tender, about 7 minutes. Drain well and return to pot.

In small saucepan, melt 8 ounces of the butter and stir into the mac. In a large bowl mix the shredded cheeses. To the mac, add the half-and-half, 1 1/2 cups of the shredded cheeses, the cubed Velveeta, and the eggs.

Mix well and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Transfer to the casserole. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup of shredded cheeses and dot with one tablespoon of butter. Add optional bread crumbs which I highly recommend.

Bake until bubbly around the edges, maybe 35 minutes. Serves about 6.

Win a copy of Marrying Minda...and meet The First Mailman of the Old West!

Current read: Tate, McKittricks of Texas, by Linda Lael Miller

Why not stop by the all-western romance site Petticoats and Pistols today and blog with me? You might win a copy of my current release, Marrying Minda.

To celebrate my good news at selling my FIRST contemmporary as well as FIRST inspirational Western novella, I'm going to draw a name from all who comment at Petticoats today. It might be you.

(I'll be posting here details on the above-mentioned up and coming novella as soon as they're finalized. I'm absolutely on Cloud Nine!)

Hope to see you at Petticoats...you'll meet Snowshoe John A. Thompson, pictured in the vintage picture above: The first mailman of the Old West!

Santa Ynez, California...now and then

Just finished: Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane; disturbing but awesome plot twists! I'm eager to see the movie. Grade: B+

I took this picture myself while I walked in a Livestrong fundraiser in this beautiful valley where Lance Armstrong has trained, near Ronald Reagan's ranch. It evokes such Western passion in me that my fantastic niece Kelley is using this pic and Photo shopping other elements so I can update my website with a new look.

It's not just the Western feel of the place that gets to me. It's where my brave and healthy hubby rides a half-century (about 32 miles) through the hills, raising funds to fight cancer. He did his first ride only 5 months into remission. I was and am so proud of him.

Just as the bikers and hikers do their thing raising money for this great cause, I can easily imagine the cowpokes and stagecoaches of yesteryear traversing the roadways. It's still rural and ranchy enough around here to make such imaginings easy.

Santa Ynez is so dear to family...our son-in-law took our daughter there to propose! He and she are right by my hero's side during the ride. (Or...maybe just a BIT ahead of him LOL, being younger and fitter.)

Anyway, it's a beautiful place to be.

Weekend Recipe: Deborah Schneider's Favorite Wintertime Drink

I'm thrilled to have had Deborah Schneider spend these last few days at my blogspot. When I suggested she contribute to Weekend Recipe, her directions for making a Hot Toddy came promptly. It's not only her favorite cold-weather beverage, but it's also important to her sleepless heroine in Promise Me.

When hero Sam and heroine Amanda first meet in the kitchen of the hotel, she admits she can't sleep and Sam offers to fix her a Hot Toddy.

Here's an excerpt:

Swallowing her apprehension, she tossed her braid over one shoulder and crossed the small kitchen to take a chair at the table. She settled her candle next to the oil lamp and gave him an inviting smile.

"A hot toddy sounds perfectly wonderful. Are you sure it won't be too much
trouble?"

The man leaned forward. The corners of his lovely mouth lifted slightly. "It
would be my pleasure to assist an angel to bed."

She warmed from her cheeks down to her bosom. She had never in her life done
anything as brash as this. What would Father Mikelson say? She didn't want to
think about the penance she'd do when she confessed. Flirting wasn't the same as adultery, was it? Could she be an adulteress if her husband was dead?

Good Lord, why was she eve thinking about such a thing?

Now, here's the recipe for a Hot Toddy

Ingredients:
• 2 oz Applejack (or you can use Apple Brandy)
• 1 tsp honey
• hot apple cider
• cinnamon stick for garnish
• 2-3 whole cloves for garnish

Preparation:
1. Coat the bottom of a cup with honey
2. Add the Applejack/Brandy
3. Fill cup with hot apple cider
4. Stir well
5. Garnish with cinnamon stick and cloves

Yummy! Enjoy!

Welcome, Deborah Schneider: Writing the Love Scene AND Valentine's Day Contest!

I’m thrilled to welcome Deborah today to The Write Stuff. She’s not only a talented romance author but also the 2009 Romance Writers of America Librarian of the Year! She and I have had many similar pit stops on our writers journey, but many joys too, including having the same terrific editor for our current releases. I’m so glad she can spend a few days at my blog.

Please follow her blog tour for her recent four-spur release, Promise Me at www.debschneider.com Each time you make a comment, you're entered in a
contest to win a free copy of Promise Me, chocolate, a $10 Starbucks card.

Wow. A fantastic Western romance, chocolate and a hot cuppa coffee. It doesn’t get much better than that!

Hi Deborah!

Hi, Tanya! Working for a huge library system and being a romance author can sometimes be a balancing act. It’s wonderful to work with people who love books, and I get a lot of respect from those readers who enjoy a romantic romp.
But, there are also those who raise their eyebrows and say, “you write that kind of book?”

Yup! I sure do, the kind where two adults meet, (sometimes in a cute or funny way), they’re attracted to each other, they become a couple and eventually, they make love.
Just like in real life. Because sexuality is a part of being a grown up in a relationship and pretty much expected between two consenting adults when that relationship reaches a certain stage.

Some people wait until they’re married, which was what happened to Sinclair and Jefferson in my first book, Beneath a Silver Moon. But sometime, the circumstances, the relationship and the couple themselves dictate that they will make love before being married.

And that’s fine too, because it’s the story and characters that provide the impetus for scenes of all kinds. It can’t be rushed and despite what many critics of romance might think, I don’t know any publisher that dictates what page the first love scene will appear by.

As an author, in the initial draft of the book I’m telling myself the story first. I do work from an outline, but those are plot points, things that have to happen in order for the story to move along. What I can’t outline are the character reactions, the dialogue and the way the relationship unfolds.

For me, that’s the fun of the first draft – chipping away at it until I’ve found the story. And when my characters finally “do the deed” you can bet that they’ve had a lot of fun working up to it. After all, who doesn’t like a little slap and tickle?

Stay tuned for Deborah’s Weekend Recipe feature starting Friday. Please make sure you get a copy of Promise Me soon at The Wild Rose Press.

And please remember to leave a welcome comment today to enter her Valentine's Day Contest!

Weekend Recipe: Oral Sex chili

The fam holds it every Super Bowl Sunday. The chili cook-off. And the prize is a well-seasoned bronze pot that the winner is expected to take with him (or her!) everywhere they vacation.

Yes, indeedy. The most enviable award in cooking is up for grabs on Sunday. It's already been to Wrigley Field, Yankee Stadium, the island of Kauai...Disneyland. Even our daughter's wedding.

Here's my recipe from last year. Hot, spicy and wet...so I named it Oral Sex.

Here goes:

2 1/2 pounds of cooked, chopped chicken. (I cooked mine with garlic and onions.)

32 oz. chicken broth (I used fat-free, low sodium)

1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 15-ounce can pinto beans with jalapenos, gently rinsed to retain more jalapeno flavor

1 1/2 7-ounce cans Herdez salsa

1 cup nopalitos, drained (these are green cactus leaves and very yummy)

1 4-oz can diced green chilis

1 tblsp. chili powder

1 tsp. ground cumin

1 tsp. red chili flakes

Combine everything BUT THE CHICKEN in a big pot. Bring to boiling, reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for 20 minutes, then add chicken and heat through.

Sprinkle with cilantro before serving. Serves about 6.

Research: The Morgan Horse

Just finished: Daniel's Bride, by Linda Lael Miller, A++++

Howdy ya'll! Join me today at Petticoats and Pistols, the wonderful all-western romance site, for some factotems on America's first and original breed of light horse. You've seen police officers mounted on Morgans, and cowboys riding the range on 'em.

"Justin Morgan" was born to breed...and became the foundation sire of this wonderful horse. Read about his pre-potency. What?

See you there!

Snow in late May...Lake Tahoe, the big water

Two years yesterday the nightmare started. As my hubby was wheeled into surgery (a right inguinal orchiectomy), the urologist told me the tests had confirmed the tumor was malignant.

My daughter and I held each other, sobbing, in a waiting room where some other woman yelled about everyday nonsense to her friend. I was angry that her husband’s operation was some minor thing with his ear, so minor she could whine, loudly, about jewelry and leftovers. And toss her empty Starbuck's cup toward a wastebasket and miss.

Well, the three months of treatment that followed (3 x BEP) still make me shudder. While the diagnosis was terrifying, I have to admit the prognosis always was hopeful. But chemo itself can kill, and there were mornings I woke up and was positive he wasn’t breathing. After a collapse at a CT-Scan, I saw him flat on the ground, his arm wearing the yellow Livestrong bracelet flung unnaturally across the tile. It was like my eyes were in someone else's head. I can't explain it any other way. I was sure he had died…and how would I find the words to call our kids?

In all the horror was the hope. We took a “live like you were dying” Tim McGraw approach and planned some trips several months ahead, when he would be well.

One of those places was Lake Tahoe. It was late spring, 90 degrees in Placerville down the mountain, snowing three days later at Echo Summit. Dang, he wore his warm knit hat over that bald head on a good day! Snow was a no-brainer.

But it was here, in God’s country, that the two of finally talked about it, about the darkness and the terror. About him getting to watch our grandbaby grow up. About him giving his daughter away at her wedding someday.

I didn’t have to be strong anymore.

And we let the healing begin.

“I thought it must surely be the fairest picture the whole earth affords,” said Mark Twain upon his first sight of the “big water” on a summer day in 1863.

Weekend Recipe: Tanya's Trail Mix...just add merlot

Current read: Daniel's Bride, by Linda Lael Miller

On a cruise some years back, I traded in my California blush wine sensibilities for the regal richness of merlot. This classic, the backbone of some of France's finest Bordeaux, has risen to fame also due to California's Napa and Sonoma valleys where the grape performs wonderfully. Merlot is the third-best selling varietal wine in the U.S., so I'm not alone in my love for flavors of black cherry and oak with a hint of chocolate.

And here's something that indeed tastes great on its own, but chased down by a fine merlot is ooh-la-la.

Tanya's Trail Mix

1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup dried cranberries.

Pretty simple. Just mix together in a bowl, pour yourself a glass of merlot, and enjoy.

ENJOY!

Fun Stuff: The Best Singles Ad Ever

Current read: Daniel's Bride, Linda Lael Miller (it's terrific but I have been head-over-heels in edits for my next two books...)

This ad is reported to have been listed in the Atlanta Journal.

SINGLE BLACK FEMALE seeks male companionship, ethnicity unimportant. I'm a very good girl who LOVES to play. I love long walks in the woods, riding in your pickup truck, hunting, camping and fishing trips, cozy winter nights lying by the fire. Candlelight dinners will have me eating out of your hand. I'll be at the front door when you get home from work, wearing only what nature gave me. Call (800) 765-4321 and ask for Daisy, I'll be waiting...

A Poem: Symphony in D Minor

Every month or so, my friend Nancy and I attend a symphony concert. We have season tickets and make it a true girls-day out with lunch and shopping. Last Sunday, the "Ooh La La..." French tribute featured Mathieu and Franck, with a breathtaking encore by pianist Alain Lefevre that he composed to honor his wife, saying it was because of her he is the pianist he is. Sigh.

And Santa Barbara's poet laureate came on stage to read his lovely poem. It was a glorious day of perfect winter weather, California-style, with blue sky and crisp air and snowy mountains ringing the coastal plain...our favorite eggplant quesadillas, and fabulous finds at our favorite boutique.

All in all, a day to remember. I don't think Mr. Starkey would mind a bit, my sharing his poem with you.

Symphony in D Minor

There is no sadness that cannot be softened by music.
At night, alone before the fireplace, shadows flickering

their insistent Nothing will save you, the pizzicato
strings suggest otherwise. Though the whole

complex apparatus of living tip over in a tangle
of gears and wire, the bass clarinet's regal

molto crescendo recommends an alternative
to silent brooding and a tumbler of single malt

Scotch. Even the English horn, that doleful
instrument, reminds us that the dutiful

sun will eventually pierce the fog-laden morning.
Happiness nearly always comes without warning:

we suddenly recall the bucket of dahlias
somewhere in the house-vermillion and fuchsia

and shocking pink-the dog wags her tail.
Success is mere abstraction, and failure

needn't harm us. What we seek is what will last,
as long as we heed the tempo: fast, but not too fast.

~David Starkey
Santa Barbara Poet Laureate
January 2010

(Mr. Starkey has published several books of poetry and more than 400 poems in
literary journals around the world. He directs the Creative Writing Program at Santa
Barbara City College and currently serves as Santa Barbara's third Poet Laureate, with a term running from 2009-2011.)

Cruisin'...tasting the grape in Ensenada

Current read: Daniel's Bride, by Linda Lael Miller

Such a fun time, four days at sea with my gal-pals. No worries, no cares, good wine and too much food. We took a shore tour of the wine country outside Ensenada, Mexico and found a little piece of Tuscany...mild weather, olive groves and vineyards.

I came home to four days of plunging rain, a weekend with my grandbaby, and a plethora of final edits. Yay! This all means I have books coming up and friends and family who love me.

What could be better than that?

Weekend Recipe: Crunchy Romaine Toss

CRUNCHY ROMAINE TOSS (and some non edible sunflowers to brighten your day!

Mix together: (Use a cup with lid and shake)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup cider vinegar
2 teaspoons soy sauce
salt and pepper to taste

Brown:
1 package Ramen noodles (discard seasoning packet or use some other way)
in 2 TBLS butter

Add the above to salad just before tossing:
1 1/2 cups chopped fresh broccoli
1 small bunch Romaine lettuce, chopped
4 green onions, chopped
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Hint: Smash the noodles with a hammer inside the package before browning. Enjoy!

Marrying Mattie...and mammatus clouds

Current read: Daniel's Bride, by Linda Lael Miller

My pal Nancy is a Nebraska native who often fills my head with family lore or local color. When she described "boob clouds" during a summer visit to her homeland, I knew I had to include such a weather phenomena somewhere in a romance.

And so I did. In the upcoming Marrying Mattie, undulating clouds make an appearance in a tornado scene...when Mattie and Call take shelter in an abandoned shack. Aw, ya'll know what happens next. Sigh.

(No. They don't end up in Kansas.)

Thought you might like to see some. I think they are most aptly named...

Finding Serenity...in New Hampshire

Current read: Daniel's Bride, by Linda Lael Miller.
Just finished: The Vampire Diaries/The Struggle, by L.J. Smith, A

Here I am at Serenity Falls at Castle of the Clouds, eccentric bazillionaire Thomas Plant's summer estate built around 1914 above Lake Winnepasaukee on an ancient volcanic caldera. You get a 270 degree view of lake and mountains.

Not long after our dream trip to New England in 2007, I needed all the serenity I could get. Two years ago this very day my hubby's battle against testicular cancer began.

I still get shivers.

I often used pictures and memories from those lovely days on the East Coast to ease my mind during his harrowing ordeal.

Praise to our dear and generous Lord. My sweetheart is 21 months cancer free!

Weekend Recipe: My Aunt Grace's Killer Banana Bread

Current read: The Vampire Diaries/The Struggle, by L.J. Smith
This past Christmas, as gifts for our neighbors, I baked up batches of this delish bread in loaf pans I got at the dollar store, then wrapped it up in sparkly plaid dish towels also from said store. You can make boy bread (with nuts) if you want.

1/2 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
3 medium mashed bananas
2 cups flour
1 tsp. soda

Cream shortening and sugar and add eggs, and cream together well. Sift flour and soda together. Fold flour and bananas into mixture. (Optional: add 1/4 cup nuts.)

Bake in greased loaf pan 1 hour at 325 degrees F.

Enjoy!

News and Notes...

I have been busy, and I love it. A major excitement happened in November when I was selected to contribute to the 2010 Christmas Anthology, Lawmen and Outlaws. It was terrific fun writing a Christmas romance during the holidays.

We've just done the first-round edits and I admit, I enjoy re-reading it. "Canyon Jack" Ransom is such a bad boy. And Eliza Willows, no rule-followin' female herself, tames him just fine in Christmas for Ransom. I'll be posting an excerpt soon.

Even with all that excitement going on, I had heartbreaking news that my incredible editor is leaving the profession to concentrate on her own writing career. I wish her well but will miss her terribly. We're still together while we finish Marrying Mattie, but that's almost in the can. Sigh.

For a pre-quel to Marrying Mattie, why not download my 2008 Christmas story, His Christmas Angel, " This short story introduced Mattie and shows how she met the love of her life. It's free! You see now how they get together. Later, the longer novel will show you just what calamities keep them apart. Come on! It's free!

Flutter by...Pismo Beach

Current read: The Vampire Diaries: The Struggle, by L.J. Smith
Just finished: The Twilight Before Christmas, by Christine Feehan, B

Today in our garden, a monarch butterfly flitted around so quick I couldn't get much of a look. I wasn't at all surprised. Hundreds of Lepidoptera just like him/her, which can't survive in harsh weather, migrate to the California coast during the late fall, and "overwinter" in the gentler climes.

At a park near my home, a barranca filled with silvery green eucalyptus wears dim, homely brown clusters of closed-up butterflies all night. They actually look like clumps of dead leaves. Until the morning temperature gets to about 55 degrees. Then the beauties warm up, wake up, and party on.

I saw thousands of my butterfly's relatives recently at their main stomping ground, the Pismo Beach eucalyptus groves. The trees offer shelter from wind and provide foliage that's easy for the butterflies to grasp. And when the morning warms up, it's kinda like big orange snowflakes.

A piece of heaven on earth for a brief space of time.

It's 70 degrees at my homestead....

Current read: Twilight before Christmas, Christine Feehan
Just finished: Vampire Diaries: The Awakening, LJ. Smith, A

Here's an ode to all my Nebraska friends, freezing and buried in the white stuff...thank you, Mary Conneally.

It's winter in Nebraska
And the gentle breezes blow
Seventy miles an hour
At thirty-five below.

Oh, how I love Nebraska
When the snow's up to your butt
You take a breath of winter
And your nose gets frozen shut.

Yes, the weather here is wonderful
So I guess I'll hang around
I could never leave Nebraska
I'm frozen to the ground!

Author Unknown