WRITERS WHO COOK

Earlier, Keyhole Conversations featured a series on Authors and their art. Then we noticed writers with other creative outlets and discovered a link between writers whose passions extended to creative cooking, so we decided to do a series on writers who cook.

H. B. Berlow, a prolific fiction writer,  dreams up his own recipes. His energy is contagious and his talents are many. He creates his own book trailers, book covers, and  he loves to blog about his two favorite passions, writing and cooking.

His kitchen is a shrine for his passion, right down to the special sink he uses. He credits the extremely artistic and talented contractor,  Mark Anderson, of  Persona Kitchen and Bath Solutions in Wichita, Kansas, for his dream-come-true kitchen.

This is one cooking vlog you don’t want to miss.

WHILE THE CHICKEN COOKS: A CONVERSATION ON COOKING, WRITING, AND OTHER ARTS

CHICKEN PICCATA

4 chicken breasts, pounded to approx. 1/2 inch
flour/salt/pepper for dredging
3 Tbs. butter
2 Tbs. olive oil
1/2 cup white cooking wine
4 Tbs. lemon juice
4 Tbs. capers
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

(1) Dredge chicken breasts in flour with salt and pepper. Place into a skillet where butter and olive oil have started to slowly melt on low heat.
(2) Turn heat to medium. Cook until golden brown on both sides and cooked through.  Do not overcook or turn heat up beyond medium.
(3) Lower heat. Remove chicken to warming platter. Add the piccata sauce (wine/lemon juice/capers) and turn heat back up to medium.
(4) Deglaze the pan (i.e. scrape up brown bits left over) and then turn up heat and reduce (i.e. bring to a light boil until some of the liquid has evaporated).
(5) Return chicken to pan. Reduce heat. Turn the chicken over to coat. Put chicken on plate. Cover with sauce. Sprinkle on chopped parsley.

Thanks to vintagefeedsacks for the use of their images.

PATCHWORK FAMILY SEEKS HOME

B.D. Tharp reads from Patchwork Family, the sequel to her award-winning novel, Feisty Family Values. Watch the video below and learn why this intimate scene was difficult to write and  what happened to cause this novel about life, love, and family bonds to be searching for a publishing home.

ABOUT THE STORY

 PATCHWORK FAMILY  By B. D. Tharp

It’s been a year since Annabelle’s daughter died and she gained custody of her three grandchildren. The stress of the demands and changes to her life begin to affect her health. To make matters worse, Annabelle receives a call from the children’s dad, who disappeared a decade ago. As a result of the stressful conversation, Annabelle has a heart attack, which leaves her cousin Regina as areluctant caregiver to both Annabelle and the children.

The children’s father, who has been in jail, wants another chance with his children. Annabelle, Regina, and the kids struggle to let go of the past and take a chance on the future, no matter how uncertain it may be.

Regina considers the risks of a second marriage, while Annabelle, who has been dependent on her cousin for the roof over their heads, looks for a way to be financially independent at age sixty-seven.

Patchwork Family shows that the heart of a family is not always about genetics. It’s about family members and friends being there for each other, appreciating what you have, charting your own course and believing you are worthy of love.

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Check below for Bonnie’s secret about Patchwork Family.

Bonnie Tharp was without an agent when she sold Feisty Family Values to Five Star, a Division of Gale/Cengage. The novel was published as a part of Five Star’s Expressions line. Five Star has since discontinued the Expressions line and no longer published women’s fiction, so Patchwork Family, the sequel to award-winning Feisty Family Values, is now looking for both an agent and a new publisher.

Special thanks to vintage feedsacks for the use of her images.

FIDDLING WITH BONES

In this Keyhole Conversations video, Conrad Jestmore reads a scene from his mystery novel, River of Murder, in which PI Jimmy ‘OReilly and university professor and bone specialist Laura Bascome find a missing finger bone in a most unusual place. Read below for more secrets on River of Murder and some facts about bones. His book can be found here.

SECRETS OF THE BONES

BONE-IFIED  FACTS

“Dem bones, dem bones, dem dry bones, dem bones gonna walk around.”

Traditional spiritual song , based on Ezekiel, who prophesied in the Valley of Dry Bones, that the bones would come alive.

Bones do come alive, because they

• survive the process of decay
• provide living evidence
• can verify age, sex, ancestry, stature, weight
• can show manner of death: homicide, suicide, accidental, natural, unknown
• can show cause: injury, disease, combination
• can verify time of death

There are 206 bones in the adult human body.

There are 27 bones in the human hand.

A phalanx is a military formation. It is also a finger bone.

A proximal phalanx has multiple usages. Not all of them human. Not all of them alive.

Find the bones. Find the killer.

The OOPS! METHOD

Fourth in Keyhole Conversations Authors/Artists series is H.B. Berlow, who produces some of his art using the Oops method. “What’s that?” you ask.  Climb aboard. You’re about to find out.

Similar to Jackson Pollock, H.B. creates exciting free-flowing works of art, paintings that crackle with energy. One has the feeling this writer turned painter approaches life with optimism, energy, and enthusiasm.

Can you can guess from his paintings the kinds of genres he writes? Watch the video below to find out.

Read what this author has to say about how he was drawn to painting while simultaneously creating novels

“Before I joined KWA, before the blog and the website and the book trailers, I was basically figuring out where to go and what to do with my writing. At the time, I was doing nothing with my writing. But I still needed a creative outlet.

A friend made a comment about what he termed “Oops” paint, the leftovers or unsellables from stores like Lowe’s and Home Depot. I got a wild idea to buy plastic squirt bottles, mix up various colors, lay a canvas on the floor of the garage on top of a tarp, and squirt the paint, similar to Jackson Pollock’s drippings. From there, I used old kitchen utensils, cords from draperies, cheap brushes, wooden or plastic stirrers–anything odd or unique to create a texture.

“I like color. I like free-flowing images. The work is another form of creative expression that ties in with my writing. My painting and other art work has progressed in an open fashion as I allow a freedom of expression to take over.”