Left Isis
Right Isis
             

July 18th, 2006

I found out a couple of days ago that Hornswoggled will launch at Poisoned Pen Bookstore in Scottsdale, AZ, on September 12 at 7:00 pm, followed by a repeat performance at Poisoned Pen’s second location, Poisoned Pen Central, on September 13 at 12:15 in the afternoon. I can now go about setting up all the subsequent talks and signings in this area, now that I know the times and dates of the debut. I will be paired with Jon Talton, whose new novel, Arizona Dreams, will be out at the same time. Arizona Dreams is Jon’s fourth mystery. His series is set in Phoenix and features David Mapstone, an ex-history professor turned Deputy Sheriff. Jon is also a popular columnist for the Arizona Republic newspaper. He really knows his Arizona stuff, and when I read his books, I can feel the heat and smell the creosote in the desert.

I’ve had to make a change in my Oklahoma book tour schedule. I was originally slated to do a talk at the library in Enid, OK, on October 10 at 7:00 p.m., but since I made those arrangements, I was asked to tape a television interview for an Oklahoma City cable book program called “Read It Now” at 8:45 in the morning on October 11. Fortunately for me, Amanda at Enid Public Library was gracious enough to allow me to change my Enid gig to October 9 at 7:00 p.m., so I don’t have to either drive to OKC at midnight on the 10th or at dawn on the 11th. Check the “Events” page for full details. I hope to heaven that this is the last change I have to make, and that the price of gas goes down between now and then. Do you suppose, Dear Reader, that either of those things have a chance of happening?

I’ve been working on recipes again, lately. I’ve pretty much finished up the … well, let’s call it the first final draft of the third book in the Alafair series, and am testing and writing up the recipes for the dishes mentioned in the story. I know that Hornswoggled, the second book in the series, isn’t even out yet, but it takes so long (for me, at least) to get the books done to a tee, that I work very hard to stay at least a year or so ahead. In case you’re curious, though, Hornswoggled has recipes for fried fish, wilted lettuce, mashed potatoes, potato patties (and potato patty sandwiches), homemade noodles, chess pie, and oatmeal, as well as instructions on how to make tea syrup, how to churn butter, and how to make a “sugar tit” for a teething baby – which is interesting, but I wouldn’t recommend it. The recipes for the third book (the name of which I’m not telling, because the likelihood that it will change is great) that intrigue me the most at this point are homemade catsup and piccalilli, neither of which I have made myself for years. But, if I can successfully reconstruct my grandmother’s recipes, I’ll include them both.

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