Remembering My Early Days In Publishing: A Post Inspired By “Gone Girl” By Gillian Flynn

I’d arrived in New York in the late ‘90s, the last gasp of the glory days, although no one knew it then. New York was packed with writers, real writers, because there were magazines, real magazines, loads of them….a time when newly graduated college kids could come to New York and get paid to write.

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

This was me. Only I wasn’t writing for a magazine, although, that was the original plan. Instead, I was working as an editorial assistant at a well-known (a-hem, romance) book publisher. I sifted through the slush pile; I wrote rejection letters; I answered my boss’ phone.

One day, a reporter from Entertainment Weekly called. I can’t remember why exactly. But I do remember her name.

It was Gillian.

I remember because her name wasn’t pronounced the way I thought it would be. Her name wasn’t Jillian. It was Gillian. With a G, not a J. Like gill, not Jill – I made sure to tell my boss how to pronounce it correctly.

And I remember being a little star struck because I had just spoken with someone from Entertainment Weekly. I was new to this publishing biz. I was green.

Heck, I still get a little star struck talking with someone from one of the big magazines.

These days, many of the friends I made in New York in the late ‘90s have moved up – way up – the publishing ladder, myself included. Many have moved on to other things.

And that reporter? Well, I think she wrote this book.

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

Such a small world we live in.

Where were you in the late ’90s? How does that compare with where you are today?

This post is inspired by Gone Girl (Amazon affiliate link), a psychological thriller about marriage and murder by Gillian Flynn.  As a member of From Left to Write, I received a copy of the book for free. Join us as we discuss the book. And make sure to add it to your summer reading list. It’s a good one!

Foodie Friday: Bobby Flay

So this happened…

Bobby Flay Bobby's Burger Palace Maryland Live Casino

I attended a press luncheon for the opening of the 10th Bobby’s Burger Palace (BBP), this one at the new Maryland Live Casino in Hanover, Maryland. Bobby greeted each of us with a handshake and then spent about 30 minutes telling us the story of this restaurant and explaining his food philosophy for burgers, fries and shakes — the stars of the BBP menu. This self-professed burger guy says he likes his food simple and made with quality ingredients.

The luncheon was a very casual, informal meet-and-greet. And one that I almost missed.

Yes, I almost skipped it because I had been there the night before covering the casino opening and was lacking sleep (don’t look at the bags under my eyes). But I coffee-ed up and went anyway. And I’m so glad I did, not just because I got to meet a Food Network star (well, yes, that) but because I got to sample the menu.

I ordered the LA burger, which features avocado (a fav) and watercress. I ordered it sans cheese because I’m dairy-free (but don’t tell Bobby because he’s all about melted cheese) and Crunchified(TM), or topped with potato chips. I also ordered the sweet potato fries — so good! I skipped out on the milkshakes, which contain a whopping 11 ounces of ice cream. I’m going to try making a dairy-free version and I’ll share that along with a review of his cookbook, Bobby Flay’s Burgers, Fries, and Shakes, that I received (affiliate link).

Bobbys Burger Palace burger fries shake

Which celebrity foodie would you like to meet? Let me know in the comments below.

Marketing Your Book With A House Party Tour

It’s National Running Day but this post isn’t about running. Not exactly, anyways. Its about two runners who wrote a book, went on tour, decided a traditional book tour wasn’t for them, wrote a second book and decided to do something different.

I’m talking about Sarah Bowen Shea and Dimity McDowell, authors of Run Like a Mother: How to Get Moving–and Not Lose Your Family, Job, or Sanity and Train Like a Mother: How to Get Across Any Finish Line – and Not Lose Your Family, Job, or Sanity.

Sarah Bowen Shea Dimity McDowell authors of Train Like A Mother

With Sarah (left) and Dimity (right) from Another Mother Runner

Last week, I had the great honor to attend a house party to promote their new book, Train Like A Mother, and meet Sarah and Dimity in person (that’s us in the photo above).

In one word, this event was A-MAZING.

And the house party idea – F’ing Brilliant! (excuse my f-bomb).

Instead of giving readings at (potentially empty) bookstores across the nation, Sarah and Dimity decided to host house parties and invite their fans to an intimate meet-and-greet.

The invite-only event was hosted at a home just outside of Washington, DC. When I walked up to the door, I was greeted by Sarah herself. I was a little star-struck and nervous and probably sounded like a totally dork (I told her I recognized her voice from their podcast).

But Sarah – and Dimity, too – was very welcoming. They both circulated the room and engaged all of us in conversations about running or whatever else we were talking about.

In attendance were runners and bloggers and Another Mother Runner fans.  It was a great crowd, all united around a shared passion for running and trying to balance that passion with parenting.

The energy in the room was intoxicating.

After some mixing and mingling, Sarah and Dimity gave a reading from Train Like A Mother. My favorite excerpt was “The Running Path” inspired by The Giving Tree.

Then they gave away some serious swag, like a Mountain Buggy Stroller and a pair of Altra running shoes (yours truly won the later – awesome – but that’s a future post). The evening ending with a book signing and an opportunity to purchase merchandise.

And this is what makes a house party book tour such a genius marketing idea. The room was already full of fans who were energized and excited to share this experience with their friends. Many of us were tweeting and posting photos to Facebook throughout the event. And many of us left buying books, shirts and other running accessories.  I bought two shirts and a sweatband (I already had the books. And there was no pressure to buy, by the way.).

The brilliance was in creating an exclusive event that got their fans excited about their new book and products. Wouldn’t you jump at the chance to hang out with authors you admire and to get to know them one-on-one? I certainly did.

Who would you jump at the chance to hang out with? Let me know in the comments below.

This post includes Amazon affiliate links.

Turnip Greens And Rice and A New Prime Parents Club Post

Our CSA started up again two weeks ago so I’ve been having fun with veggies — or trying to anyways. I’m determined not to let any veggie go to waste this summer. So far so good, although, I’m not sure how many salads I can eat. Going to have to get creative there.

This week’s veggies included turnip greens. What in the world do you do with turnip greens? They look like leaves. I probably would have mistaken them for lettuce if there hadn’t been a label on the bag.

So I googled and found a lot of southern-style recipes, all a little too complex for my purposes. I finally found a recipe on FoodNetwork.com for Turnip Greens & Potatoes that I adapted for the ingredients I had on hand. Here’s my version:

Turnip Greens and Rice

Turnip Greens And Rice

Ingredients:

turnip greens

1 tbsp olive oil

2 cups rice

Dressing:

1/3 cup olive oil

2 tbsp balsamic vinegar (I used a dark chocolate flavor)

1 tsp lime juice

1 tsp minced garlic

1/2 tsp paprika

salt and pepper

Directions:

Boil turnip greens in water, olive oil (tbsp), and salt for 5 minutes. Drain thoroughly and chop.

Cook the rice. Mix together with the chopped greens.

Whisk together the remaining olive oil, vinegar, lime juice, garlic, paprika, salt and pepper. Pour over the rice and greens. Stir until well combined.

Serves 4. Best when warm. Total time 20 minutes

I’m also blogging over at Prime Parents Club and sharing 5 tips for making the most of your CSA. Please check it out and let me know what tips you’d share in the comments below.

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