Month: July 2011

Home-made vanilla Frappuccino

I love Starbucks’ Frappuccinos. What I don’t love, however, is their price. Lately, I’ve been economizing by buying the bottled version from the grocery store. When I saw that you can buy Starbucks-brand instant coffee, I realized that it would be easy to make a home-made version of the bottled Frappuccinos since they’re really just a blend of coffee and milk. So here is my tried-and-true recipe for a vanilla Frappuccino analog:

Fill a mug with the milk of your choice (I prefer 2%).

Add Starbucks instant coffee to taste (I usually use less than half a packet per serving since I just want a subtle coffee flavor).

Add a dash of vanilla flavoring syrup (my favorite brand is Torani). Unlike ordinary vanilla extract, the flavoring syrup is made with cane sugar, so it does a nice job of sweetening things.

Stir until the coffee is dissolved and then enjoy!

100th post!

Terra peregrina has reached its 100th post! In order to celebrate, I decided to change the theme. I’ll give a virtual cookie to the first person who can guess the painting that inspired the new theme. Put your guesses in the comments!

Also, I’d like to say a quick ‘thank you’ to everyone who’s been keeping an eye on this space for the past 100 posts. If it weren’t for you, I’d just be blathering to myself like a crazy person. 🙂

Songs that set my teeth on edge

Today I had the great misfortune to hear “What I Am” by Edie Brickell and the New Bohemians. When I was a lad, the Elder Mr. Loch used to listen to that song quite a bit. At the time, I thought it was a stupid song with banal lyrics (if you need someone else to shove you in the shallow water before you get too deep, you need to get out of the damn pool). Listening to it 20 years later, I’m pleased to report that my initial assessment was correct. It’s a stupid song with banal lyrics.

It got me thinking though about other songs that make me want to defenestrate myself whenever I hear them. I came up with the following list:

“The Locomotion” by Little Eva

“I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas” by Gail Peevey

“Teenager in Love” by Dion and the Belmonts

“Working Man’s PhD” by Aaron Tippin

“Achy Breaky Heart” by Billy Ray Cyrus

And finally, the worst of them all:

“When We Make Love” by Alabama (this song is the reason I cringe whenever I hear the phrase “making love”)

What about you? What songs do you absolutely loathe? Feel free to share in the comments.

Professionalism and self publishing

You may already know David Kazzie through his YouTube videos “So You Want to Go to Law School” and “So You Want to Write a Novel.” Even though he has an agent, he chose to self-publish his debut novel The Jackpot. I stumbled upon his blog this evening and found this interesting piece on self publishing.

The moral of the story is that a self-published book needs to be just as polished as a traditionally-published one. That means no covers that look like they were done by a kindergartener using MS Paint and no text that looks like it was typed by drunken howler monkeys. Unless you’re lucky enough to have the right friends, you’re going to have to pay for professional editing and cover design, and it could cost you a sizable chunk of change.

Unfortunately, it may be difficult to recoup that initial investment since most self-published ebooks still sell fewer than 100 copies. Even when one becomes a hit, it usually endures several months of sluggish sales before it starts to sell well. For me, that uncertainty is one of the biggest drawbacks to self publishing. Traditional publishing certainly doesn’t guarantee success, but at least you don’t have to pay money upfront.

Obsidian and Blood

I’m not going to beat around the bush: Aliette de Bodard’s “Obsidian and Blood” series is awesome, and you should read it.

There are currently two books in the series: Servant of the Underworld and Harbinger of the Storm. Set in the Aztec Empire several decades before the Spanish conquest, the books are told from the perspective of Acatl, the High Priest of the Dead. In Servant, Acatl’s estranged brother is implicated in the disappearance of a priestess, and Acatl must prove his innocence. In Harbinger, the political maneuvering that follows the death of the Revered Speaker (i.e. the Emperor) almost brings about the end of the world.

For me, the best part of the series is its historical accuracy. De Bodard clearly did her research, and it shows. At the same time, she’s skillful enough to make the world of the Aztecs come alive without resorting to a bunch of awkward info-dumps. There’s a fine line between “well-researched” and “pedantic,” and de Bodard walks it with grace.

Since this is fiction, a certain number of historical liberties were inevitable. To her credit, de Bodard discusses them in the Afterword instead of just sweeping them under the rug. I particularly liked how she dealt with the issue of names. Most of her characters are upper-class Aztecs, and upper-class Aztecs tended to have names that would strike a modern reader as terribly unwieldy. Instead of just making stuff up, de Bodard uses the shorter names borne by less-exalted Aztecs. For deities, she usually alternates between the Aztec name and its  English translation. All and all, she does an excellent job of finding the middle ground between accuracy and accessibility.

The third book in the series, Master of the House of Darts, will be released in October. I’m sure it’s going to be awesome. I’ll definitely be adding it to my Kindle the moment it becomes available.

De Bodard also has a nifty blog that’s worth a gander. In addition to fascinating reflections on the writing process, she also posts awesome-looking recipes. Someday, when I actually have a real kitchen, I might actually try them out.

Agent blogs you should be reading

Like all writers, I love using the Internet to stave off the nasty business of writing for as long as possible. But while sites like Damn You Autocorrect, Parents Shouldn’t Text, or Failbook are certainly enjoyable, you soon feel guilty for putting off your writing.

Enter the agent blogs. The great thing about them is that they provide countless hours of guilt-free browsing. After all, you’re not procrastinating; you’re doing valuable research that will advance your career! Some of my favorites include:

Janet Reid, Literary Agent

Pub Rants

Nathan Bransford (NB: Nathan is no longer an agent, but his archives contain a lot of useful advice)

Miss Snark

Jennifer Jackson

BookEnds Literary Agency

Once you start reading these blogs, you’ll realize that agents are, in fact, human. Not only that, but they’re also nice, decent people who don’t particularly enjoy having to say ‘no.’ Once you realize this, I guarantee you that it becomes a lot easier to reach out and query them.