Silver Linings & Cloudy Days

graduate

If you're ever gonna find a silver lining It's gotta be a cloudy day If you wanna fill your bottle up with lightning You're gonna have to stand in the rain  - Kacey Musgraves / Silver Linings There are worse things in life than moving in with your parents at twenty-seven. Root canals, for example. Also, Wal-Mart on Christmas Eve. And port-a-potties on hot days. But there are also better things -- things that don't make you feel a little bit like a loser, a failure, and a loner. Launching your own business, for example. Also, paying off your credit card debt. And … [Read more...]

Southern Stories & Spirits: Clay’s Quilt & Bourbon Squeeze

bourbon cocktail

Book reviews are great, right? I love a good book recommendation, but you know what would make it even better? If it came attached to a scene-setting cocktail recipe. Summer is the perfect time for sipping something with a little kick while you toss off your shoes and slide into your favorite chair for some much-needed R&R (reading & relaxation, that is). So I thought I'd start sharing some of my favorite Southern stories and spirits -- the best of both worlds, if you will. First up in the new recurring feature is Clay's Quilt by Silas House paired with a little piece of … [Read more...]

The Pink Mermaid Motel

mermaid feature

Believe it or not, Killer Shine is almost DONE. I've got FIVE chapters to go and I'm planning to barrel through those this weekend so I can wrap things up at about 80,000 words total. PHEW! I cannot WAIT to share this story, these characters, and this colorful setting of Crab Island, Florida, with you guys!! (Sidenote: If you're interested in being an early reader, I'm looking for beta readers right now -- shoot me an email if you're interested.) It is a really bizarre thing to take an entire world you created in your mind and attempt (often in vain) to use only words to … [Read more...]

Lemon, Sugar, and Steel

lemon pound cake

Food is a powerful thing, y'all. If you don't know what I'm talking about, you probably didn't have the good fortune to grow up in the South. Down here, families orbit around the table (at least three times a day). It is where congratulations are offered, tears are shed, holidays are celebrated, and memories are shared. It's also where traditions are born. Every year, on (or in close proximity to) May 6th, I bake a lemon dessert. For a long while, the dessert of choice was a lemon cake -- iced and topped with candles to celebrate my Grandma Grace's birthday. We lit the candles and she … [Read more...]

Take a shine to it

I had WAY too much fun making new, color-coded character cards for this book!

In February, I shared that I was about to embark on a rewrite on my next novel, Killer Shine, and promised new updates in March. *Looks at the calendar* Crap. It's April. Well, the good news is -- significant progress has been made on the rewrite. I'm about 30k into it and I'm absolutely in love with the direction this time around. The core of the story is the same, but the characters have been fine-tuned, their motives have been re-evaluated, and the story has become stronger as a result. I really can't wait to share it with you. But for now, I'm just going to give … [Read more...]

Hoppy Easter Y’all

bunny ear napkin

Easter is so early this year, it's tripping me out. Usually, I wait until I've recovered from St. Patrick's Day to switch out my green decor for the pastel vibes of Easter, but this year I had to put them up simultaneously -- leaving my leprechauns and bunnies dancing side-by-side. Still, despite Easter's early appearance this year, I'm looking forward to spending the holiday with my family. It will be a little unusual because my brother is going to be on his post-graduation trip to Australia (lucky dog!) over the holiday, so things will be quieter than we are accustomed to, but fun … [Read more...]

Napoleon Buckyparte

bucky bed

It's been almost a week since my roommates (that sounds better and less pathetic for a twenty-eight year-old to say than parents, right?) left on a last-minute trip to Alabama where my grandfather is recovering from a bad fall. Though of course I was upset about my grandfather's health troubles (for the record he's doing much better and has finally been released from the hospital), I was not entirely disappointed to suddenly have the house to myself for a few days. Our two bedroom two bath condo (in what masquerades as a family neighborhood but is in fact one step shy of a retirement … [Read more...]

Shamrock Chips & Pot O’Gold Dip

shamrock chips and dip

St Patrick's Day Appetizer Like many Southerners, I cling to the notion that buried somewhere deep in my family's past are some Irish roots. I've yet to find them (so far my paternal ancestry research has dead-ended in rural South Georgia) but I just know they exist and therefore give me complete license to go all-out for St. Patrick's Day (as if we need an excuse). Last year I took my first stab at homemade Shamrock tortilla chips and a golden salsa (with heirloom tomatoes) with lackluster results. My guests were kind and complimentary, but the chips weren't crispy enough and the salsa … [Read more...]

My Ultimate Concert Bucket List

Gentlemen of the Road Stopover in St. Augustine

Seven months from now, I will be standing in a hot, sweaty mass of people in a huge field right here in my tiny hometown of St. Augustine having the time of my life. Yes, even though I have a self-diagnosed social anxiety disorder that would normally preclude me from taking part in any and all events that involve huge crowds of people with questionable hygiene, I will be making an exception September 13th and 14th for the Gentlemen of the Road festival. Why? Because I effing love Mumford & Sons with every fiber of my being. No other band on this Earth could get me to shell out … [Read more...]

Super Bowl Food: Mini Corn Dog Muffins

corndog muffins

As a kid, nothing in life was better than going to the fair every spring and biting into a pipping hot corn dog. Unfortunately, corn dogs are on the not-so-healthy list (What? Cornbread wrapped around a questionable, encased meat substance is not on the list of foods I should eat?). But I feel slightly better about making these baked mini corn dog muffins -- so much so that they've now become my go-to football food. I would recommend them for your Super Bowl Party, however we won't be having them at my Super Bowl Party because I'm still working on eating better and something as … [Read more...]