Tag Archives: January

January at Realm Central

January 25, 2024 By in Realm Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , 2 Comments

The bleak days of January are upon us, and even though it looks as if I’ve abandoned my loyal followers, nothing could be farther from the truth. I will admit that this month has been a little off, but I finally managed to find my groove.

I completed the holidays basking in the glow of fond memories as well as the welcome relief that arrives once they’re over. That’s not to say that we didn’t have a wonderful time celebrating with friends and family, but let’s not pretend the holidays aren’t a lot of work.

I slipped into January and the new year on quite a high, and I assumed I’d channel that into my writing. In all honesty, I absolutely have no idea what knocked me off course to the point that just this past week, I sat myself down and commenced working.

But January has been full of good things, so don’t think I haven’t been productive.

First, my primary beta reader and good friend, Doug Nelson, is very close to completing his first novel. I’m so excited to be beta reading for him because I absolutely love the concept of his story. I don’t want to give it away, but permit me to say that it’s a labor born of love for his children, who are now adults, and the novel has its origins rooted deeply in a tradition he started with them when they were just pups!

Second, I’ve acquired a little writing mentee, AKA protégé or mentoree. She’s adorable, vivacious, and brilliant. The connection came somewhat out of the blue, but when offered the prospect of working with this wonderful young lady, I welcomed the opportunity. Now, I look forward to our bi-weekly meetings where we brainstorm, write, and edit, and I have the blessed occasion of giving back and paying it forward all at once. Baruch HaShem for young writers coming up through the ranks!

Third, I’ve been asked to work with the sweetest little fella to prepare him for kindergarten. I’d forgotten how fun teaching ABCs and writing can be as my own precious son is a young adult. The best part is the relationship I can see budding between me and the preschooler. And I’d be fibbing if I said I wasn’t developing a deep affection for the little guy.

Lastly, I’ve received several requests for the next installment of Realm. Perhaps I’m naïve, and please don’t interpret this as false humility, but I was rather shocked and not a little pleased to hear such comments. Truth be told, the next book has been written for well over a year. Here’s the thing: I don’t do anything fast, and I can’t be pressured into making a move until I sense the time is right, which, admittedly, is a small part of me getting my act together but also a large part of seeking HaShem’s guidance.

All of 2023 was devoted to Realm. I also have a goal of finishing the third installment of the series before moving toward publication of the second book. Then there is my involvement with my friend’s novel and whether or not he’ll publish this year, and if so, when. It’s important that he receives the attention and support I was blessed to enjoy during the publication of my first novel, Realm.

In closing, you can see that while the writing has been slow in coming, and is more like editing at this point, I have been productive during January. Keep in mind that the writing life isn’t something that produces measurable results for everyone to see, which is why there have been three Quotation Stations in a row and nothing in the way of a new post until this one coming to you at an odd hour on a Thursday.

Still, I’m excited to see what Adonai brings into my life this year, overall and in writing. As always, my novel is available at BookBaby in hardback and softcover. If you haven’t journeyed through the Realm, you’ll need to do so before the second book arrives.

Until then, stay tuned, Realmers!

Oh, Honey—That’s Good!

June 4, 2018 By in Edible Fiction, Food From The Tedescos Tags: , , , , , , , , , 5 Comments

Jewish honey cake is traditionally served at Rosh Hashanah, but all Shirley Tedesco knows is that her new neighbor, Muriel Shapiro, loves the stuff. Besides, it’s only January, and Shirley is desperate. At least she takes the time to discover Muriel’s heritage as well as her preferences in desserts.

From the deep wells of kindness that abide in Shirley’s heart, she uses the delicious cake to make inroads with Muriel. And while her motives are pure—she really does want to become close with the shy Jewess from New Jersey—if pressed to admit, Shirley also needs a babysitter who has never experienced her brood of eight unholy terrors.

The following recipe is the one I had in mind for Shirley to present as a peace-offering prior to Muriel experiencing the Tedesco horde. When Muriel agrees to babysit, she has to watch the twins, Holly and Noelle. Unfortunately, the twins are disgruntled at being the only siblings without plans for the evening, and they take it out on their unsuspecting babysitter. There isn’t enough honey cake in the world to repair the damage the girls inflict upon poor Muriel.

Jewish Honey Cake

3 ½ c unbleached flour

1 t baking soda

1 T baking powder

1 t cinnamon

½ t ginger

¼ t cloves

¼ t nutmeg

Dash of allspice

4 extra large eggs

1 ¼ c packed dark brown sugar

4 T extra virgin olive oil

1 t vanilla

1 ¾ c honey

1 c very strong coffee (decaf is fine)

1 c golden raisins

1 c whole or half candied or plain almonds

Preheat oven to 300° F. Grease and flour two 9×5-inch loaf pans or one 9×13 pan. Set aside.

In a saucepan, combine the honey and coffee and bring to a boil. Set aside to cool.

Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and spices together. In a large mixing bowl, blend the eggs, brown sugar, vanilla, and oil. Do not overbeat.

Stir the flour and honey/coffee into the egg mixture alternately, beginning and ending with the liquid. Blend well. Toss the raisins in a little flour to keeping them from sinking and stir them in gently. Pour into the prepared pan(s) and place the almonds over the cake. (If using whole almonds, arrange them in straight rows to denote a serving and to indicate where to cut the cake finishing with an almond on top of each piece.)

Bake for 60-70 minutes, or until the cake springs back. Let the cake sit overnight before serving.

Serve as is or top off with freshly whipped cream. Enjoy!

Baring My Writer’s Soul – Part 14

March 15, 2016 By in Writing Advice, Writing Toolbox Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , 6 Comments

Writer's Soul 14I’ve been thinking quite a lot about my writing, and I don’t mean in quantity. Rather, I’ve been thinking a lot of different things about what my writing is or isn’t.

It started last year around November when my novel was technically finished. There were a few minor points that needed to be re-researched (is that even a word), and I had a wonderful research librarian who I met at the Conneaut D-day Reenactment assisting me. The whole process was starting to bog me down. I began to hate it, resent it, and wanted to dig a deep hole in my back yard in which I could bury my book without any witnesses.

The holidays were coming, and since much of the preparation for Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, and Christmas fell to me, I really didn’t have anything left to give my writing. I didn’t want my writing to suffer, but I felt so guilty about setting it aside. After all, what kind of writer would I be if I wasn’t writing every single day? Good question.

While wrestling with this dilemma and wanting to be able to focus on all the fun that comes with the holidays, I ran into our pastor’s wife at the local grocery store. After the usual pleasantries, she asked after my novel. I told her what I’ve already mentioned above and concluded that I wish someone would give me the permission to quit for a little while. If I could just take a break, I knew I would go back to writing in January once I was refreshed.

She looked at me and said, “Heather, I give you permission to quit.”

Even now I laugh at how easy it was for someone else to grant me the grace I needed to give myself but was unable to. And guess what? I did go back to the writing and research in January as I promised myself I would. In fact, I attacked it with renewed vigor and produced better writing than I would have had I pressed myself to go on through November and December. What’s more, I enjoyed it!

So what’s the point of this blog post you may ask? It still scares me somewhat that I took off two months of much needed rest time. There are so many writing books, and I imagine books devoted to other forms of art, that will tell you to create every day without fail. Are these people right in tasking others in this way?

Yes and no. If I said it once, I’ve said it a thousand times. You have to find out what works for you. Thankfully, the day I returned to writing coincided with Chapter 11 of Heather Seller’s book, Page After Page. The writing exercises in this chapter were wonderful for getting me back on my rails. You’ll understand this better when you read the book which I highly recommend you do.

The funny thing was, while Chapter 11 worked for me, I recalled that before the holidays, Chapter 10 flipped me out. This is the beauty of the book. The next time I read it, Chapter 10 may be exactly what my writing needs. All this to say, don’t be afraid to embrace the bad (insert chosen art form here) because you may uncover a gem on the way to the good (insert chosen art form here).

In doing so, your creativity will flow and your art will come naturally. There are going to be different amounts of flow, and that’s to be expected. Don’t despair over these days even if they extend into weeks, months, or years. Begin again in small ways, flex your creative muscles, and build up to your peak performance like an athlete training for the Olympics. You will achieve gold.

Write Happy!