New adventures...and yummy chicken! from Roxanne Rustand

Best wishes to you all!   I hope you are staying warm--spring can’t be too far away, can it? 

That’s what I keep telling myself when I look at the potentially record-breaking lows predicted for the Midwest this week!

I’d like to share an easy recipe with you.  Our family really likes this one, and I often double it, because the leftovers are even good cold!

PECAN CHICKEN

1 cup ground pecans (not too fine)

½ c freshly grated parmesan cheese

1/2 cup flour

3 beaten eggs

1/3 cup milk

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, flattened

Peanut oil for your electric skillet

1. Combine ground pecans, cheese and flour in a shallow dish

2. Combine eggs and milk in a separate shallow dish

3. Dip chicken thoroughly in the egg mixture, then roll in the dry mixture.

4. Salt, pepper and sprinkle garlic powder on both sides.

5. Put chicken on a platter or rack for ten minutes to let the coating “set”

6. Heat oil to moderately high temp, cook chicken until golden on both sides

On another note...

Back in January, Gail Gaymer Martin posted about her lovely, warm winter getaway home near Sedona.  What a lovely place that is!  And, she posted about working on a longer book that wouldn’t work for Love Inspired, one she is planning to self publish later this year. It was enjoyable to read about what she has been doing in addition to Love inspired, because I love all of her books.  And, I’ve been up to the same sort of project lately.

What an adventure it has been, venturing into this new world!  Comeback Cowboy is already out on Amazon (and other formats),  Summer at Briar Lake is available (as of this month) and A Montana Legacy will be out in April.

While it has been fun trying different things, I love reading (and writing!) the Love Inspired and Love Inspired Suspense books, too, and hope to be back at that in the future.

What have you been up to this winter? Have you tried anything new and different lately?

Blessings,

Roxanne Rustand

Love Inspired chat tonight!

The monthly Love Inspired readers and writers chat is tonight from 8-10pm EST. I hope you’ll join us!

http://community.harlequin.com/123flashchat/client/

Olympics--are you watching?

Terri Reed here.  If you're like me you've been glued to the television at night watching the winter games in Sochi.  I only have basic cable so I can only watch prime time.  Its frustrating because they only give the highlights.  And they drag out the anticipation! I stayed up way too late waiting to see Meryl and Charlie skate and win the gold medal.  Fabulous!! They are so in sync and so beautiful to watch and I love that they tell a story through their program.
On Monday was the men's aerial ski jumping.  I was especially excited to see this as my February Love Inspired Suspense book features an aerial ski jumper hero!
I was so hoping that Mac Bohonnon would medal.  The kid is good and has many years ahead of him to medal and one day win the gold!

 

KILLER COMPETITION 

A champion ski jumper, Nick Walsh wants one thing: to win the gold for his late brother. Nick has always blamed himself for his family's tragic loss—and so does everyone else. To complicate things, sweet and shy reporter Julie Frost insists on doing a story about him. But as Nick gets closer to achieving his dream, someone will do anything to stop him. Somehow, Nick must keep Julie from getting too close as they confront a threat that can destroy them both. Julie and Nick are on the verge of discovering the truth about his brother's death…unless an unknown murderer finds them first.

A long winter's day.... by Roxanne Rustand

This has been one loooong winter, here in the Midwest.  Snowfall after snowfall...beautiful, pristine, but oh so hard to navigate!

My husband has blazed trails through the yard and down to the barn so I can manage to take Elmo the Wonderdog out for his walks, and make it out to do my horse chores.  I'm 5'2 and the snow is mid-thigh (at least on me!) out in the yard, so I am thankful for those trails!

To the right is a photo on our deck--our grill received a new snow hat yesterday.  :)

But I do love winter.  It's so lovely, and with darkness falling earlier, the long evenings are a perfect time to curl up by the fire with a good book.

And of course, the wonderful Love Inspired, Love Inspired Suspense, and Love Inspired Historical books are on the top of my to-be-read stack.  Isn't it fun to have so many to read each month?

I rarely bother to watch TV--except for my beloved Downton Abbey series, which is way too short each season!

Is anyone else here as enthralled as I am?  What do you think of the new season--does it measure up to the first three?  And since we are all romance readers here, what do you think of the romantic plotlines?  Is there anything you wish you could change?  I sometimes think they could use one of our wonderful Harlequin editors!   :)

Roxanne Rustand
www.roxannerustand.com
"The All Creatures Great and Small Blog"

Love Inspired Suspense: THE SEARCH FOR THE KILLER VOICE!

Debby Giusti here, sharing big news from Love Inspired Books! If you're a writer who loves suspense, check out the great pitch contest the creative and talented editors at Love Inspired Books have put together. Follow the link at the bottom of the photo to learn all the details.

Good luck, everyone! Hope to see your story in the Love Inspired Suspense lineup!

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1 day ago

Inspirational romantic suspense writers, we're looking for you. Join The Search for a Killer Voice! Details here: http://community.harlequin.com/showthread.php/1947-Announcing!-The-Search-for-a-Killer-Voice!

Allie Pleiter on Low-Tech Loves in a High-Tech World

I’m a gadget gal—I always have to have the latest thing, and lots of my life is run by electronics.  That’s a good thing.  I’m far more productive with the help of my technology than I would be without it.

Not all the good things in my work life plug in, however.  There are two “low-tech” helps I would never be without:  My Levenger Circa notebooks and my Pilot Precise V5 rolling ball markers.  These are “must haves” in my world.

While I write a lot all day long, not everything should be typed.  Journal entries, cards to friends, notes from conferences and interviews, and other things just don’t belong on a keyboard as far as I’m concerned.  And settle for just any old spiral notebook or an ordinary black ball point pen?  Nah.  I like color and style.  And yes, I’m just like a kid shopping for school supplies if you get me in the office supply store—I love that stuff.

What about you?  Whether or not you write (for work or pleasure), what are the “must have” non-tech tools in your day?

Olympics--My weakness

Leann Harris here. As often as I tell myself, I will not be glued to the TV to watch the Olympics,  it's a promise I break every time. Sunday,  I was stuck to the TV watching the team ice skating.  I absolutely love ice skating, but pairs ice skating in particular is my all time favorite, but it

never gets it's fair share of coverage.  This year you can watch the live streaming, which I intend to do.

The US won the bronze, but when I saw Julia Lipnitskaia skate to Schindler's list, it was electric.  That music is so gut wrenching, and her costume of the little girl in red touched me.

Of course, I'll have to write around the schedule, but writers are creative people, who can get things done.

Which is your favorite sport?

LI Reader Luncheon by Marta Perry

You've probably heard about the Love Inspired Reader Luncheon in Tampa by now, but I thought I'd chime in with my comments. I was thrilled to be asked to participate, and the event more than lived up to my expectations! Love Inspired Senior Editor Melissa Endlich was a very welcoming hostess, and Lucy Scinocca and her group from the Toronto office kept everything running smoothly. It was great to see how highly the company values our Love Inspired readers and writers.

Some of the authors had quite an exciting travel experience trying to get to the event, given the bad winter weather that had hit the southeast the previous day. I was fortunate in that my husband and I had driven down to Tampa from our winter home in South Carolina several days earlier. We spent the time visiting with our son, daughter-in-law, and two beautiful grandchildren. Here I am at the luncheon with my lovely daughter-in-law.

A special part of the luncheon for me was the opportunity to participate in a panel discussion, answering readers' questions. They came up with some great, challenging questions!

The booksigning provided another chance to talk individually with the readers, and I can't tell you how good it made the authors feel to hear their work appreciated. At the end of the day, each participant went away with goodie bag stuffed with gifts and at least 9 free signed books.

 So if you ever have the opportunity to attend a Love Inspired luncheon, I hope you'll jump at the chance. And I hope I'll be there to meet you!

Blessings,.
Marta