What inspires you?
In this Edition:
Quote.
Update.
Motivate: The Writerfest experience.
Book Talk.
Holiday fooding; scone recipe.
Final thoughts.
Update:
I hope you’re doing well!
NaNoWriMo update: I have written 44,820 words of my next novel. Phew, they’re ROUGH, but this challenge has forced me to keep going and not edit along the way. It’s a new way of attacking a novel for me, but I’m pleased! I’ll have something to shape when the month is over. But I’ll likely take a break after this November sprint.
No news on The False Flat or The Love Pentagon. It feels like I’ve been waiting forever. But that’s w
Short Story: I’ve worked some on my short story, but I just got feedback from the final person I was waiting on. I’m a little nervous that I won’t be able to make all the edits by December 1. I’m also nervous about this story in general. It’s getting an assortment of feedback, and not everyone is picking up what I’m putting down.
Motivate:
This past Friday and Saturday, I attended a writing conference in Nashville, Writerfest. While it drained me, I had a good time.
Here are some highlights from the conference that I found uplifting, inspiring, and/or intriguing:
“Be endlessly passionate and curious about the human condition.” You’re more interesting when you are.
“Follow your gut.” Trust yourself.
“There are so many times you take a swing (and strike out), but when you hit, it’s magic.” Don’t give up. It’s hard. It takes a while, but when you get there, it’ll be worth it.
“Better to follow-through than abandon and wonder IF.”
“Be yourself. Do what YOU do best. Your strengths.” You are best at being you. if you try to be someone else, you will never be as good at being them as they are.
“Chase that thing that can make someone feel something.”
Tim Reid and James Slater said the above quotes and ended their talk with a song they wrote and Keith Urban sang. It’s called: God Whispered Your Name. It was beautifully sung at the conference by Tim Reid and you can listen to Keith Urban singing it here if you’re interested.
Lisa Donovan (pastry chef and nonfiction author):
“You can’t fake flavor.”
“Give yourself permission to do something (write) poorly to figure out the next step.”
“You don’t wake up and wait for the inspiration. You chase it.” Korby Lenker (TV Pilot writer)
Book Talk:
Currently reading: It Starts With Us by Colleen Hoover. It is ALL the rage on social media right now, so I’m curious. I’ll let you know!
I started and stopped The Paris Connection. Has anyone read this? I only got 18% of the way in, and it was a little slow, and Hoover’s book came in, so I stopped.
Looking for recommendations on suspense/thrillers. I’m in the mood to read outside of Romance for a bit. Any recs in the genre? Send them my way!
Holiday Scones:
I love scones. I love most baked goods, really. But when I stopped eating gluten and dairy and significantly reduced my refined sugar intake, my consumption of these sweet treats went way down. That’s probably why I lost 30 pounds.
I’m all about eating as healthy as you can, but I also think you can take it to the extreme and completely deprive yourself.
Enter the following scone recipe: No dairy. No gluten. No refined sugar. And while I’m not a vegan, these are also vegan.
And they’re GREAT!
This is the perfect recipe to make for all those holiday dietary restrictions. The only problem is the almonds and coconut milk. (which could be a problem for those with nut allergy)
One of the nicest things you can do for people who have dietary restrictions is make them something they can eat.
When I made these, they were gone fast! (you can’t save scones well unless you freeze them though.)
Fresh holiday cranberries combine with sparkly orange zest to make something that’s a little healthier without feeling like you’re missing out on “regular people” ingredients.
Gluten-free Cranberry Orange Scones
Dairy-free, Gluten-free, Kid-Friendly, Soy-free, Vegan
Recipe adapted from makingthymeforhealth.com
Ingredients
2 cups Gluten Free Flour (with xanthan gum)
½ cup almond flour
1½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt (I used reg salt)
3 tablespoons pure maple syrup (add another tablespoon or 2 if you like them sweeter/aren’t doing a glaze)
⅓ cup solidified coconut oil. (Refrigerate at least 10 min before use.)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract.
½ cup non-dairy milk (I used coconut milk)
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
½ cup finely chopped fresh cranberries (start with 1 cup whole)
1 tablespoon orange zest, from 1 large orange (the more the better, I used the zest of 2 med. Oranges)
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
2. To a food processor, add the cranberries and pulse until finely chopped. set aside.
3. In a large bowl, combine gluten-free flour, almond flour, baking powder, and sea salt. Whisk together then set aside. In a measuring cup, combine the milk and apple cider vinegar. Add the vanilla and maple syrup then stir to combine.
4. Using a pastry cutter (or a fork), work the solid pieces of coconut oil into the dry ingredients until it resembles breadcrumbs. To the bowl, add the chopped cranberries and orange zest then pour in the wet ingredients. Fold together until a dough forms. If the dough seems too wet or difficult to handle, try refrigerating it for 15 minutes to firm up.
5. Lightly dust the parchment paper with flour to help prevent dough from sticking to the surface. Transfer it to the parchment paper and gently shape into a one-inch thick circle, about 8 inches in diameter. Using a pizza cutter or dry knife, cut dough into eight slices. Separate each slice so that there is 1-2 inches between them. Bake in the oven for about 15-20 minutes or until golden brown on the edges. Allow to cool for 10–15 minutes then serve and enjoy!
Switch out cranberries and orange zest for blueberries and lemon zest, and it works great too!! SO GOOD!
Final thoughts:
This week I hope you are endlessly passionate and chase after inspiration, and of course, I hope you eat well.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Until next week, much glitter,
Melissa
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