USA Today bestselling author Jennifer L. Hart

Ham Casserole INGREDIENTS: • 2 Cups cooked ham—cubed or cut into strips • 1 Cup of cooked rice • 1 Can cream of celery soup • 1Cup shredded cheddar cheese • 1 Tablespoon of onion powder • ½ Cup light sour cream DIRECTIONS: Cook rice and cut ham into bite-sized pieces. Mix all ingredients together and bake in 325 degree oven for 1 hour. Serves 4.

So you've done it, sat down, written a novel, shined it to within an inch of its life. You are convinced it's the best it can be. Now what? While there are many roads to being published, the standard query route, networking at conferences and whatnot, even winning a contest (Congrats again Saranna!:-) There are many more opportunistic avenues for the predatory who will prey on your hopes and dreams. When I rule the world they'll all be put in the stocks-- miserable pieces of cow crap-- but I don't yet, so I'll tell you what I've done wrong so far. I was over the freaking moon and back when I finished Jackson Corners . I'd done it, written an entire (huge, 110 K words) mystery. Most mysteries are about half the length but instead of paring back, I started hunting for agents familiar with the area I'd set my book (the Hudson valley, upstate NY,) sure they'd be wowed by my unique and vivid descriptions as well as the characters and plot. To sum up, they...

Stellar Timing is my first foray into the art of world building. Everything else I've ever written has been based in the world I know, contemporary, whether it be mystery, romance or romantic suspense, it's set in the present, defined by the laws of physics and explainable to an extent. But along comes Stellar Timing. The only rule, be consitant and true to the world I've created. There is nothing I HATE more than when a writer sets up a world with an established set of rules, then goes and tosses the rule book without explaining the why of it. It's sloppy and itfeels like they've cheated me. It is hard, I just caught one of my own warts the other day, I had Brennigan read something out of a dictionary and then not even two pages later, he told Jeremy he couldn't read English. Hello, brain were you on your break? I derive a small amount of comfort from the fact that I caught it before anyone else did, otherwise I would have looked like a royal ass. Speaking...

It seems like everyone has writer's conferences on the brain right now. Well everyone I network with. I really SHOULD go to Epicon (since I'm e-published) but have no one to watch the kiddies. And I'm dog ass broke. And I SHOULD go to RWA, because I've been paying the stinking dues for four years and all I have is a stack of recycling to show for it. I SHOULD be rubbing elbows getting my name and face out there, but I kinda feel like less is more with me. Really, I have a history of rejection to back that up. The only manuscript I have ready to plop in front of agents and editor's is Redeeming Characters (and it's now at nine rejections and climbing. Plus 2 I'm pretty sure are no as the agents now operate off of a don't call us, we'll call you only if we're rabid over this policy.) Guess I've just got a bad case of the SHOULDS . ;-) It boils down to money and childcare. Or lack there of. Maybe I'll get a wild hair and charge a confere...

And not that they give you the scratch either ;-) I'm shocked at how many people use Bisquick to make pancakes when this is just as easy and tastes so much better! Scratch Pancakes INGREDIENTS: • 2 eggs • 2/3 Cup milk • 1 teaspoon baking powder • 2 Tablespoons of sugar • ½ teaspoon of vanilla extract *** 1 CUP FLOUR!*** I'm a dumbass! DIRECTIONS: Blend all ingredients together—batter may be lumpy. Cook in electric frying pan or range top over medium heat. When pancakes start to bubble, flip. Serves 3. **Jenn’s note. Do NOT do what I do which is try to wash dishes while cooking because that results in scorched pancakes!

What do you want to read more about in Stellar Timing? Future Earth The Healing Zone Mikara Talenforth Witches / Magic Powers Shapeshifters Brennigan's World Other View Results Create a Blog Poll

Pepper Steak I've been scouring through my recipe book to find recipes for special dietary considerations, i.e. low acid, gluten free, ect. I will go back through what I have already posted and label each recipe to match individual dietary needs! We Need: • 1 small marbled steak cut into thin strips • 1 small onion • 2 cloves garlic • 1 stalk celery • A dozen baby carrots • 1 large red, orange or yellow bell pepper • 1 can of beef broth • Dash of Worcestershire sauce • 1 Tbsp cornstarch to thicken Directions: Brown meat in a little olive oil on medium to medium high heat. While meat is cooking, dice veggies. When steak is cooked through, mix in veggies and spice with ¾ can of broth. Mix thickening agent with remaining cold broth before adding to pan. The sauce will start to thicken like gravy after a few minutes. *Serve over rice. Make sure your rice is not enriched rice! The coating that makes it enriched may sometimes contain gluten!

Pepperoni Roll This is one of my made up recipes that I tried out for a Super Bowl party in 2008. It’s my number one requested appetizer for football get-togethers! Ingredence: • 4 ounces sliced pepperoni • 8 oz mozzarella cheese • one 13 ounce container roll out pizza crust • olive oil • parmesan cheese • oregano and garlic powder to season DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Unroll dough from tube on ungreased cookie sheet. Stretch until dough reaches and even thickness. Spread a layer of cheese and line pepperoni on top of cheese. Roll dough up slowly, making sure insides don’t spill. Brush crust with olive oil and sprinkle on parmesan cheese and spices. Bake for 13 to 17 minutes on middle oven rack. Remove and allow to cool before cutting into bite size sections. Serves eight.

Writing Commandment # 7: Honor Thy Support Network "No man is an island..." It takes many people to write a novel. The one actually doing the writing and the ones you write for, be they in your head or asking you to make dinner. We've already covered Know Thy Characters . So now we move on to the people who can't wait to read what you churn out next, the ones who sign up for websites they have never heard of but are willing to go there for you. The ones who are disappointed when you haven't written anything in awhile and help you knock the flying doubt monkeys off of your back. Whoever your home team is, be sure to thank them on a regular basis. Spouses and Significant others, especially. I was a navy wife for many years, I know what it's like to be able to do nothing but cheer from the sidelines. We all want to be recognized, whether for our intellectual or emotional contributions. here's a few ways to do so. 1. Say so . Yeah, okay, duh, and you may feel ...

AKA the Dorchester/Textnovel Next Best Celler Contest. I promise you here and now this isn't going to be a bitter rant. I'm calling it the contest from hell because to everyone who entered, it ripped a part of their soul out through their nostrils. No matter where they placed or have yet to place. The golden apple that all of us hopeful writers were striving to attain? A $2,000 publishing contract and the manuscript in print by the end of 2010. I'm pretty sure no one I know was in this for the money. You see, as a struggling writer we all want one thing, for people to actually read what we write, to have readers tell us they loved our stories. It's vindication for wrestling with the demons in our heads, for all the times we tell our friends, or worse our children, "No, I can't right now, I need to write". It sounds selfish, it feels selfish, but it's what we must do, who we are. Stage one was posting the romance manuscript on textnovel.com and solicit...

Linguini and Ham with Peas *** We Need: • ½ sweet or yellow onion • ½ Cup water • ½ Cup milk • 1 chicken bouillon cube • 1 Tablespoon of flour • 3 Tablespoons half and half • 2 Cups cooked ham sliced into thin strips or cubed • cooked peas or broccoli for color • ½ pound cooked linguini • grated Parmesan or Romano cheese Directions: Sauté onion in a little olive oil til tender. Mix 1 tablespoon of flour with combined milk and water until smooth. Add bouillon cube for seasoning and pour over cooking onion slowly so no lumps form. Cook til thickened, adding half and half to create cream sauce. Add finely cut strips of ham and cooked veggie of your choice until heated through. Add Linguini and serve topped with grated cheese. *** Note: In the picture I used angel hair pasta because that was all I had on hand! Much better tasting with the linguini!

What is a hook? Basically, it's like a movie or TV teaser, something that will keep your reader engaged and salivating for more of your story. Example "Tune in next week to discover if Bob and Ted will really blow up the planet...." It's what keeps the audience coming back for more. Just like you probably won't snag a trout without a hook, the chances of snaring a reader sans hooks are slim to none. If they aren't engaged by your plot, if they don't care about your hero/ heroine and their plights, they may stop reading. A hook is a hint, a promise that more of the good stuff is on the way. Example: in Skeletons in the Closet , I set the scene for Thanksgiving Day, all the relatives are gathered and bickering like petulant children and Maggie was knocking back the booze. Then, there's a knock on the door. I pasted my most welcoming smile on my face and breathed in the fresh November air as I took in the two uniformed officers at the back door. “Now, gen...