The Next Big Thing Hop

Welcome to The Next Big Thing Blog Hop!

What is a blog hop? It’s a virtual event that helps readers discover new authors. The first author tags five others whose work he or she admires, who each tag five more, who each tag five more, and so on. These memes float around the internet every few years, and this particular event has been so big, covering so many genres and amazing authors, that I'm thrilled to participate.

Before I get to the questions, I’d like to thank Sparkle Abby, a fabulous (pair of) author, who tagged me for this. Their Pampered Pets Mysteries are great reads and super fun. check them out at: http://www.sparkleabbey.com/blog/

 

The way this hop works, I (and the authors I’ve chosen) will each answer (on our respective blogs) the same 10 (predetermined) questions ranging from our current works in progress to our writing processes and beyond.  We hope you’ll enjoy learning about our work. Please feel free to comment and ask questions.

Okay, ready?  Here is our Next Big Thing!  My Baker's Treat Series debut book, Gluten For Punishment, comes out May 7th, 2013. This year will be a busy year for me since I have sold two more series! So Look for book sin the Spring and the Fall of 2013 and more in 2014.

1: What is the working title of your book(s)?

 "Gluten For Punishment", May 7th, 2013. 

"All Fudged UP", a Candy Coated Mystery, Fall of 2013

"Her Hand In Murder," a Perfect Proposal Mystery, 2014

2: Where did the ideas come from for the book?

I've been gluten free for five years and taught myself how to bake that way. When I was posting my baked goods on Facebook, mystery author, Joelle Charbonneau, Skating Mystery Series and Glee Club Mystery series suggested I write a mystery featuring my glutenfree recipes. I did and it was a hit! I expanded on my love of cooking by writing a fudgeshop mystery and that took off. Recently I was able to co-create and write a Perfect Proposal series based on a Chicago event planner who plans the perfect marriage proposals. (Something my romance readers should enjoy.)

4: Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

I would choose Amy Adams to play Toni Holmes in the Baker's Treat Series and Emma Stone to play Allie McMurphy in the Candy Coated series. Zooey Deschanel would make a great Pepper Pomeroy in the Perfect Proposal Series.

5: What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

Toni Holmes is a crime solving gluten free baker in a wheat filled world.
Allie McMurphy is a candy maker with a sweet bichon-poo who uncovers murder on Mackinac Island.
Pepper Pomeroy plans individual, grand marriage proposals that tend to end in murder.

6: Is your book self-published, published by an independent publisher, or represented by an agency?

Baker's Treat Mystery series is a Berkley Prime Crime series.
Candy Coated Mystery series is a Kensington Killer Cozy series.
Perfect Proposal Mystery Series is a Berkley Prime Crime series.

7: How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

You all know I write fast. So first drafts are usually six weeks - it's the rewrites where the fun begins.

8: What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

"A mouthwatering debut with a plucky protagonist. Clever, original, and appealing with gluten-free recipes to die for."~ Carolyn Hart 

9: Who or what inspired you to write this book? -covered in Question number 2... ;)

10: What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

Check out excerpts and more at www.nancyjparra.com.

Next week I'll post five more authors to check out!!

Coming soon - gluten-free recipe Mondays!

I'm back with great new stuff!

Hi All,

It's been a long while since I've posted and so much has happened!

I've sold three mystery series!

I've updated my website!

I'm writing.

Coming soon: Gluten Free Mondays -featuring a recipe from my Gluten Free Yum! Pinterest Board.

Candy Wednesdays - featuring easy homemade candy recipes - (all the taste with less work)

Writing Saturdays - for guest writers, writing tips, FAQ's and more.

Cheers!!

Ted's Birthday

Happy Birthday, Dad! Thank you for your help this year by reviewing books on my blog. I apologize for not getting these out sooner.
In honor of Dad's birthday I'd like to post the reviews he sent me in November.

"Well, another month has come and gone, almost another year as well. So something a little different this month. I'm sure most of you know of and have probably seen "The Bucket List". Well, as I was getting ready to retire, I bought a book called "1,000 Places to see in Your Life". I read through it and marked all of the ones I've already seen. Of the 1,000 I had seen an amazing 78 of them. Doing a little math, I calculated that at the current rate (78 in 69 years) I was going to have to hurry up or live another 800+ years. I have concluded neither would I live that long nor would I see all 1000! I've even slowed down, only adding two in the last three years.
The other day, I received a booklet that had a list of 15 celebrates (actors, news reporters, politicians, etc.) and each had selected six books that they'd read that they considered the best books ever written. That made 110 ---some listed 7 books. Oh boy, I thought, let me see how many of these I have read. I check them off. There were 43 that I had read. I won't list them all, but on the list were Winston Churchill's War Memories, Homer's Illiad and Odyssey, Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, War and Peace, For Whom the Bell Tolls, Moby Dick, House of Seven Gables, The Poems of Elizabeth Barret Browning, The Poems of Emily Dickenson, The Poems of Robert Frost, The Plays of William Shakespeare, The Grapes of Wrath, Gone with the Wind, Quo Vadis, The Short Stories of Edgar Allen Poe-------you get the idea.
Missing were some that to me should have been obvious: The Bible ( Maybe none of them have read the whole thing), Don Quixote, Doctor Zhavago, 10 Days That Shook the World, Fathers and Sons, none of modern American Fiction ( Stephen King, Louis Lamour,again a list too long to write in a blog.)
I'll be reading some from their list in the near future....How about you? What books have you read that you would put on the list of greatest books ever written?
Make a New Year's resolution to read at least 1 book a month. Try to read a wide variety, it will help you grow as a person. Happy Holidays, Ted

December

Well, where the heck have I been? Did I take December off? I didn't mean to, and yet it appears I did. Dad has sent two great reviews and I haven't even posted them. What?! Why?
I am seriously off my game the last few months. Even with help, I can't seem to keep up. Have you ever had a time like that?

I think the thing to do is what the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy says, "Do Not Panic."

These things happen. Wait- not to me they don't... um, yes, yes, they do. They happen to everyone. "The Best Laid Plans of Mice and Men..."

But, but we're all supposed to have goals and work toward them unfailingly and accomplish stuff and stuff...

Oh, my dear, dear perfectionists, take a look around. How many of God's creatures work and scurry every day to accomplish goals? They are no less a rabbit or deer or dog or hawk or even an eagle if they stop and take a nap in the sun, or if they are unsuccessful in their hunt for the day. It doesn't mean there won't be something better on another day.

Take the time to stop and enjoy the lights of the season, the love of family and friends. In a few short days it will be 2012. We can worry over blogs and books and such then. In fact we'll make a plan for it. In the meantime, I promise to post Dad's fun reviews.

Happy Holidays~ be safe and tell me what your favorite thing about this time of year is... Cheers~

Last Day of November

I love penguins and used to enjoy watching Chilly Willy cartoons. I thought it appropriate to bring in Chilly on the first Day of December. For those of you doing NaNoWriMo, how many pages did you get done? Or is it what was your word count? The real question is what are you going to do with the story you wrote in November. Are you going to edit it? Are you going to send it out somewhere? Is it sold? Or will you simply be brave enough to let someone else read those words you slaved over? No? That's okay~ Contrary to popular belief, I believe that everyone has their own journey to make when writing. When and if you're ready you will edit, you will let others read it. You will edit again and you will send it out. That doesn't have to be today or tomorrow or in the next year. No words are wasted. Writing is a craft best practiced every day. Life is too short to fit your pace into someone else's life- whether that is writing fast or writing slow. It's a journey not a competition.

As for Chilly Willy, look how happy he is simply to be warm. My goal for December is to find what makes me that happy and to live it. My wish for you is that you do the same.

Books to give for Christmas or Not!

When doing your Christmas shopping- remember a book is a wonderful gift to give.

Here are a few fun things my Dad (Ted) has to say about buying books as gifts for Christmas:

Books to give for Christmas or NOT!

For those of you who read my book reviews here on Nancy's Blog, you already know I read...A LOT ! I also buy books...A LOT.....When we moved, I donated about 150 to the local library for their book sale, sold ( gave away) another 200 in an auction to not have to move them 900 miles from Kansas to Michigan. When we moved to Kansas, I donated 40+ books on Russian History ( my other passion ) to Butler County Community College in El Dorado.
Last week, I got a real prize........a catalogue from a book wholesaler..........imagine 75 pages of books--20 per page average---at bargain prices---better than any book club!!!
Wow, I was in hog heaven!!!
I began to go through it and I checked some books that I was interested in and began a list or two. Books I'd like and (with apologies to their authors) books that probably should not have been published!
I call this list: BOOKS NOT TO GIVE FOR CHRISTMAS
The CIA Lockpicking Manual - Listed under Self-Help books
What to do When the S--t Hits the Fan- Another Self-Help
Get Out of Your Own Way: Overcoming Self-defeating Behavior - Self-Help
Lies The Government Told You: Myth, Power and Deception in American History-Listed under Politics
Don't Vote-It Just Encourages the B------S - Politics
Napoleon's Hemorrhoids - History
Bedlam: London and Its Mad - History
Myths,Lies, and Downright Stupidity:Get Out the Shovel--Why everything You Know Is Wrong - American History
Idiot American: How Stupidity Became a Virtue in the Land of the Free - American History
How Do You Light a Fart? And 150 Other Essential Things Every Guy Should Know About Science. -Science--where else
As I reviewed the selections I had listed and then shortened it, because by now you must have got the idea, I realized, I could have just as easily called this:

"BOOKS TO BUY FOR CHRISTMAS!!" Support you starving author...............Have a great holiday.

So, do you know any strange book titles? Feel free to share. Happy Thanksgiving!!

Gluten-free Thursday- pie

Like many other people, I've been forced to be gluten-free for medical reasons. One of my hobbies is baking and it's tough to bake gluten-free. Many friends have asked for some recipes. I hope to have at least one GF recipe a month posted here. (No worries, I use mixes so you don't have to weigh your own flours, etc.)

Today is
Gluten-free Sour Cream, Chocolate Chip, Pecan Pie.

Crust:

I use Gluten Free Pantry perfect pie crust mix. I find it at Walmart, Whole Foods, and Jewel/Osco.

You can follow the recipe on the back and freeze three of the four crusts. Or do the following:

Use 1 cup all purpose flour of your choice. (I used 1 cup of the mix above.)

1/8 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp sugar

mix. Cut in 5 tbsp butter and 5 tbps shortening (I use all butter) until pea size.

Then add 1 beaten egg, 1 tbsp COLD water, 1 and 1/2 tsp cider vinegar.

Mix until makes a ball-do not over mix. refrigerate for 1 hour.

Roll out to two 8" pie crusts or one deep dish crust.

Filling:

4 eggs
2/3 cup brown sugar
2/3 cup sour cream
1/4 cup honey
1 tsp GF vanilla
dash of salt

Beat with whisk until well combined.

Add 2 cups chopped pecans and 1 cup chocolate chips.

Pour into pie crust - careful not to overfill.

Bake in 350 degree over for 40-45 minutes. Cool completely on wire rack.

Enjoy!