Tahlia Newland writes young adult fantasy novels, and blogs about writing and books. She has also created an award she calls "The M Award," which is "memorable, meaningful, moving, thoughtprovoking, inspiring etc speculative fiction." Recently, she wrote about Freefall on her blog, calling it "a truly excellent book."
I'm thrilled that she connected with my book and found it to qualify for all of those amazing "m" words!
I cook quite regularly, but I don't generally share recipes because I just use the ones I find online or in my cookbooks. However, today, I invented one! I think it turned out pretty good. Maybe you will, too. If you're into that sort of thing. FYI: It's guaranteed to look more appetizing and photographable if you use any color OTHER than a yellow pepper topped with yellow corn chips. Live and learn, eh?
Vegetarian Mexican-Style Stuffed Bell Peppers
(so-called because of the I spices used, which are not Italian-style like most stuffed peppers that I make)
Heat oven to 400 degrees
You will need:
3 or 4 medium bell peppers, cut in half lengthwise, seeded and all that jazz, arranged in a baking dish
Filling:
1 1/2 cups of cooked rice. (I used white, but brown is better for your health and all)
1 15 oz. can of diced tomatoes, undrained
1 15 oz. can of black or pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 8 oz can of corn, undrained
1 teaspoon cumin, or to taste
1/2 teaspoon chili powder, or to taste
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder, or to taste
1 or 2 chopped green onions (optional)
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro, or to taste (optional)
Optional toppings:
shredded cheese (I used sharp cheddar)
broken tortilla chips
(Toppings can be added before or partway into baking. I added them before, since my cook time is so short)
Directions:
Mix all the filling ingredients in a bowl.
At this point, I heated the filling in the microwave because I like my bell pepper still crisp when it comes out of the oven. In order for my filling to get warm enough, I have to heat it before baking. If you like your peppers soft, you can cook it longer in the oven and you probably won't need to heat the filling first.
Spoon the filling into the bell pepper halves. Add the toppings or set the timer for partway through baking so that you can add them later.
Bake in 400 degree oven for 15-40 minutes. (I always do 15 minutes.)
And that's the stuff!
Recently, I came across a couple of posts having to do with writing young adult fiction that mentioned Freefall. YA writer, Valerie Kemp, wrote how much she loves reading books with male narrators. She made a list of books written by females that feature REAL BOYS, and I am pleased that mine made the cut!
YA writer, Demetra Brodsky, discussed why she writes for young adults. She gave examples of what the YA novels of today contain, and mentioned Freefall as one that "shows the damage."
Thanks, ladies, for the shout-outs! I am truly honored.
Ever since I can remember, my subconscious has done horrible things to me, saddling me with dreams that generally range between unsettling and truly terrifying. The things I see and experience in my awake life can influence my dreams, which can then influence my awake life, etc. It's a crazy, crazy cycle.
Example: In my Simon & Schuster video interview, I alluded to having been afraid of the dark as an adult. It all started when I decided that since I happened to be in my early twenties at the time, and, therefore, a grownup, it was time for me to watch some horror/suspense movies. It didn't go well. I had nightmares. There were images in my head--some from the movie and some from my dreams--that wouldn't go away. For over a year, I would take a flashlight if I needed to go to the bathroom at night, otherwise, I was sure to run into dead people hanging from the ceiling. I'd run through my office in the early morning to turn on all the lights before those same dead people could get me. And, man, don't even get me started on high school letter jackets, okay?
In the past year, I've come to (slightly) better understand why I'm so affected by my dreams and scary movies and such. This vague understanding doesn't make it any easier, though, when I'm waking up screaming or my husband is shaking me awake to save me from whatever is causing me to whimper and thrash around.
I've started writing a number of different manuscripts over the years, and have observed that the ones I've actually finished (or in one case, will finish because it's contracted) were in some way inspired or aided by a traumatic dream of mine. I don't like to say, "It all came to me from a dream!" because that's just one piece of the puzzle.
I'll probably talk about this a little more next year, but one big reason why I decided to write my next book, Live Through This, is because of a recurring nightmare that has plagued me several times a year for over two decades. And in Freefall, there is a conversation between two characters about what it's like to dream about people after they die, and about how their minds mess with them and make them believe that the people close to them didn't die. Then they have to wake up and discover that the dream was the trick. I've had a few readers write to me, saying that I've nailed it, that that's exactly what it was like for them after losing someone. And, well, I believe them because that's what it was like for me, too.
Saturday and Sunday nights, my subconscious did something rare and unexpected; it gave me exactly the dreams I needed for some peace. The anxiety and sadness I've had for the past week lifted. And so I say, thanks, subconscious, for finally doing something decent for once!
*I intended this post to have a more jokey feel to it, but everything kept coming out serious. Sigh, sigh!
The Forever Young Adult blog is one of my favorite book blogs out there. Their tagline is "for YA readers who are a little less Y and a bit more A," which is totally me! I find that I have very similar book taste to some of the reviewers, and like them--and many other women my age--I credit Regina Morrow from Sweet Valley High as being reason #1 why I never got into drugs. PoshDeluxe a.k.a. Sarah read Freefall, gave it a BFF charm, rated it a seven on the swoonworthy scale, and is going steady with it! I'm really, really happy about all of these things. :-) You can check out her review here.
