Tah-dahhh! On Sunday, I submitted my fourth romance manuscript to my wonderful editor. Such a marvelous feeling, and a slightly sad one. I’ve spend the past two months following Matteo and Danielle around the fictional Washington State beach town of Ocean View and nudging them toward their happy ending. I’ll miss them.

This was my first romance novella, my previous books coming in at 84-90K words each. Conciseness was never my forte, and I worried I wouldn’t be able to weave a complete, satisfying tale in such a short package–but it worked, and it was fun! It helped that this romance had only a two-week time frame to blossom, so every detail had to count. Many, many darlings were slain.

Between writing projects, I like to read a new craft book or two. Right now I’m tackling Mary Buckham’s book above–excellent, so far. I’d love to hear about your favorite writing craft books. Please leave a comment below!

I haven’t shared a recipe since my previous blog, Late Blooming Rose, where I often included original recipes that transformed leftovers into something new and tasty. Hubs and I treated ourselves to filet mignon on Valentine’s Day, and there’s no way I was going to let that meat go to waste, so…

Leftover Steak and Potato Soup!

serves 3-4

Dice up a yellow onion, about a cup of celery, including the leaves, and a big carrot. Sweat them in a stock pot over medium heat with a glug of olive oil until fragrant, about 5 minutes.

Next, add a cup or so of diced fresh mushrooms and a big ol’ garlic clove, minced. Stir over medium heat for a minute or so. Add a peeled, diced potato or two, some fresh flat-leaf parsley, and a few sprigs of thyme from the garden (alternately, a tablespoon of dried herbes de Provence), plus a generous grinding of black pepper.

Dump in two cups or so of low-sodium beef broth and a can of cream of mushroom soup. (Hey, I didn’t say this was a classy recipe, just a tasty one.) Add a dash of Worcestershire sauce, plop on the lid, and simmer covered until the potatoes are soft, about ten minutes.

While that cooks, trim the fat from the leftover steak and cube it up. I ended up with less than a cup, which was perfect. Add the meat and simmer for a few more minutes to heat it through and blend the flavors.

Velvety potatoes, lots of veg, creamy texture, filling but not too fatty. Yum! If you’re watching your sodium, you can use the low-salt Cream o’ Mush.

Book News: Australia Burns Charity Anthology

On February 14 my publisher, The Wild Rose Press, released a set of three short-story collections to benefit the victims of the wildfires that have decimated much of Australia. TWRP authors have donated stories across many genres. You’ll find my contribution, The Vengeance, in Volume 3, a collection of paranormal, sci-fi, and horror stories.

Eight-year-old Katie, victim of a schoolyard bully, accidentally summons a monster. The trouble with monsters: they’re hard to control. 

Proceeds from the sale of these books will be donated to the Australian Red Cross Disaster Relief and Recovery Fund.

To learn more about how the Australian Red Cross is helping brushfire victims, read their Emergency Services Blog.

 ebook Volume 1                             ebook Volume 2                              ebook Volume 3

Print copies also available from Amazon and The Wild Rose Press .

P.S. Interesting story about the rock in the photo. I picked it up on the beach near Carnac, France. It appears to be the same gorgeous granite as the famous menhirs, or standing stones, arranged in long rows and dolmens (tombs) by the pre-Celtic people of Brittany. I use my mini-menhir to hold my book open while I’m eating.