First off, I wanted to let you know, I won’t be submitting to the third campaigner challenge. I tried, but I just couldn’t find anything in there that really engaged me, so I’m taking a pass.
And, now, spotlight season continues with Julie Coulter Belton!
How will you know when you’ve reached success as a writer?
For me, there are so many tiny successes as an author. Finishing a manuscript is a success. Finding a home for your manuscript is a success. Holding your book in your hands for the first time is a success. Finding author friends who understand you is a success. I think writers have to look at every milestone as a success because there are so many writers out there that don’t even reach the first one. Celebrate it all!
Where do you get ideas for characters and how do you develop them?
I am a people watcher and often smash a lot of people I’ve met or am acquainted with into a character. They usually with my story and since I write international suspense, and I love action/adventure with a twist so my characters usually have a lot going on with them both on the outside, physically, and on the inside, emotionally, as they go through their ordeal.
Tell us a long and totally untrue story about yourself.
Once, when I was touring the islands of Greece, I had stopped off at the island of Crete after dark and went down the road a ways near the palace of Knossos. One of the first roads ever built was underneath my feet and the chariot tracks were still visible, even by the light of the moon. I walked to a medium-sized white rock on the side and sat down, and just as I did a horse came clip-clopping out of the darkness. It was black and majestic and it frightened me a little with its size. I shrank back as it passed and for just a second, I could swear it looked as though someone had been walking behind it and had ducked into the trees. The horse passed me with barely a glance, but the shadows across the road seemed to be flitting about and my blood began to burn with adrenaline. I stood, but not before I saw the shadow of a hand with a knife rise up to fall across the rock I had just been sitting on. I let out a small scream and ran for the safety of my hotel. True story? You decide.
I love suspense, writing, reading, meeting new people, and doing random stuff with my husband and eight children. Yeah, eight. I know, I know, don’t even say it. My blog is an amalgamation of me and what I like, but if you stop by, I’d love to meet you and have you join in my conversations. I’ve published traditionally and independently, and am always looking at both sides of the ever-changing publishing landscape. I love sharing my experiences in the writing world and hope you will feel comfortable doing the same. Come on over!
Thanks for stepping into the spotlight, Julie!
When I started this Pinterest Weekly Meal Plan I planned on only doing 4 weeks of meals. I still can’t believe that my family has lasted through 4 weeks of this. I figured that they would give up and beg for cheeseburgers and hot dogs or something like that. I was so proud of them.
Here is what we got to try this week!
Monday – Double Crunch Honey Garlic Pork Chops
These pork chops were so crispy and yummy. Jacob was not a fan of the sauce but Dave and I loved it. We won’t even speak about Paige. She has some weird aversion to pork chops. I really can’t wait to make these again. Maybe we will just make them for the adults next time and make mac & cheese for the kids!
Source: Rock Recipes via Pinterest
Tuesday – Baked Club Pinwheels
Dave actually made these. He took over a lot of the cooking duties this week because he had been getting home early. It is so nice to be able to share the cooking duties this week! These were very good but there was a tiny too much bread. Next time we will shove a lot more meat in it (TWSS). Dave said that it did take a while to make this because he had to roll out the dough. This would be a great snack for a tailgate party or any kind of party! The devoured them.
Source: Plain Chicken via Pinterest
Wednesday & Thursday – Mexican Mac & Cheese Casserole
I was very impressed with this casserole. I wasn’t quite sure how this would turn out and I wasn’t sure if if anyone would like it. I was wrong. Of course Paige didn’t like it, but the rest of the family loved it. It made so much that we ate it for 2 days. I am pretty sure that it tasted even the second day. I was a tiny concerned about the green salsa but it was great!
Source: Better Homes & Gardens via Pinterest
Friday – Chicken Marsala
Dave’s makes a very yummy Chicken Marsala with Orzo. She cooks everything and then bakes it together. Dave decided to do that with this recipe too. The chicken and the orzo sucked up a lot of the sauce so I had Dave make a more and it was PERFECT! I have had some different variations of chicken marsala and some of them can be very overpowering. Too much of the Marsala wine taste. If your sauce tastes too strong just add a extra melted butter to it to calm down the wine taste. I hope that you will enjoy this as much as we did. It was great!
Source: Savory Sweet Life via Pinterest
Saturday – Buffalo Chicken Wraps
These were very and basic, but still so yummy. We didn’t use mushrooms in ours (even though we LOVE mushrooms) we ended up using bacon. Chicken, cheese and bacon…yes please! These were great and super easy. Of course we had to make Paige’s without the buffalo sauce, but the rest of us enjoy a tiny spice in our lives! Of course ours didn’t look half as pretty as the below but at least they tasted great!
Source: Plain Chicken via Pinterest
Sunday – Creamy Grilled Chicken Picata
I was hesitant about making this due to the fact that I am not a lemon fan, but I knew Dave was so I made it anyways. In the recipe it only calls for 2 chicken breasts (serving size for the whole meal is 2) so I had to double the recipe. This was SO GOOD! The lemon flavoring was not overpowering even though it felt like I put tons of lemon juice in it. My sauce wasn’t quite as creamy as shown in the picture, but Dave and I both preferred it that way. We also didn’t grill the chicken because it was raining outside and I wasn’t going to make Dave stand outside in the rain to cook chicken, so I just cooked it in a skillet.
Of course the children didn’t want to have anything to do with it at first but they did have some and that was all that mattered. I always make them at least try new foods.
Source: Plain Chicken via Pinterest
I know that you are disappointed but I didn’t make any Pinterest desserts this week. I did make some brownies though. I was going through my cupboards and found a box of brownies and a can of chocolate frosting. It was like I punch the jackpot!
Did anyone notice a pattern with these recipes? Most of the were from Plain Chicken. I have peeked at a lot of their recipes and they look great and pretty for the most part. I have a feeling that they are going to be my new site for recipes! Along with Pinterest, of course!
I don’t think that I am going to continue doing this every week but it was a great way to try new recipes. We have found so many recipes that we want to use in our regular rotation. We took this week off and decided to just use whatever food we had in the house so there will not be a Pinterest Weekly Meal Plan for next week. But don’t worry, I will still have something for the Pinterest link-up!
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You know, I spend a lot of time in my kitchen. Every morning I’m sitting at my kitchen table having my usual cup of coffee or two. If I happen to be at home during the noon hour, here I am, back in my kitchen fixing myself something to eat for lunch. In the late afternoon, once again, I’m back in my kitchen preparing the evening meal for myself and my family.
I have noticed over the years that the one thing most kitchens have is a clock hanging on the wall. I have also noticed that the style of kitchen clock hanging on the wall can make the difference between dull and unnoticeable and charming and sensational.
In order to compliment the style of your kitchen with a wall clock that will be a charming sensation, all you have to do is know what wall clock will add these attributes to your kitchen’s atmosphere.
So okay, let the truth be known that the thought of writing this information on kitchen wall clocks wasn’t all my idea. I received an email from the contact page of the website the other day. It was a note from a lady by the name of Catherine.
Catherine had written me a note saying that she was browsing through the website and came across “Wall Clocks.” As she further explored this section of the website, she was so impressed by the information on kitchen wall clocks, she decided to write me to express her appreciation. So this is actually how I got the idea to write about wall clocks for this special room.
So let me see. Where do I start? How about I go over different styles of kitchen decor and then I will make suggestions of what style wall clock might be the perfect match.
When it comes to kitchen styles or decor, you have Art Deco, Country, Modern and Retro. The colors of this room may or in some cases may not influence the style of wall clock you hang on your kitchen wall. This all depends on basically on the type of wall clock you choose to hang.
I will start out with the Art Deco kitchen. This type of kitchen decor usually has some sort of wall art hanging on the walls. This could be plaques in the forms of fruit or vegetables. Also, the kitchen backsplash walls will typically have mosaic tile murals running above the counters with pictures of Horns of Plenty, Wine Bottles with Platters of Fruit and Cheese or Baskets of a Colorful Fruit and Vegetable Arrangements.
The Art Deco kitchen could be accompanied by several styles of wall clocks. These clocks include the Recipes Decorative Wall Clock which starts its life as an actual painting which is then transformed into a kitchen wall clock. In this style of wall clock you also have Whimsical Teapots, Cappuccino Decorative and The Vitis wall clock that features a Vitaceae vine design. These are more than kitchen wall clocks. These are works of art.
So now let’s take a look at Country Kitchens. Here there are a variety of themes to choose from. You have to ask yourself is your Country Kitchen theme based on flowers, farm animals, domestic animals, fruit, vegetables, wild birds or frogs (yes, I said frogs).
If your answer is flowers, then you might want to choose the Sunflower with the Brown center wall clock, Red Garden Wall Clock, the Daisy pendulum wall clock or the Bouquet Tiny Times Clock. Your choice is just a matter of which clock will best match up with the colors and style of your kitchen.
Next we will take a look at the Modern Kitchen. Here you have stainless steel appliances with metal wall tile walls and backsplashes. Glass top tables with acrylic chairs, chrome pot racks and multi-colored small appliances sitting on counter tops. So now you ask me, “What style of kitchen wall clock would be the perfect solution to this modern day mess hall?”
Well let’s have a look. You could go with the Stainless Steel wall clock and keep the metal thing going in your kitchen. You could go with the Round Mirror or the Thin Mirror kitchen wall clock. That is, of course, if mirrors in your kitchen are your thing. You can go with the Studio 24 Collection. This stunning contemporary wall clock will turn heads.
This rectangular wood wall clock, finished in Black Coffee, features a curved front with recessed brushed nickel bands, with complementing brushed nickel finished hands. This kitchen wall clock features a curved pendulum that is supported by a bold brushed nickel stick to match the case. You never know what style wall click will have you friends saying, “Wow, where did you get that clock?”
Now let’s turn our mind’s eye to the Retro Kitchen. For those of you who have the Diner style kitchen in your home, these kitchen wall clocks are for you. You know who you are. You have the red Formica kitchen table with the chrome table edge and four red padded kitchen chairs with the bent metal chrome chair framing. You have a checkered tablecloth and a jukebox table top music selector that just happens to be a combination AM/FM Radio/CD Player/MP3 Player.
Well let’s see. What kind of kitchen wall clock are you looking for? You could go with your standard Retro Round Metal Wall Clock in you color choice of red, green, black, silver or white. Then you have the Deco Retro Kitchen Wall Clock. This white porcelain frame is accented wonderfully by retro-styled red Arabic numerals and a red center dial. Maybe?
For those of you who really want the finishing touch to the retro diner look in your kitchen you have to go with a retro logo wall clock. Here you have clocks such as the Coca Cola Double Bubble Clock, the Nesbitt’s LTD Edition Double Bubble Clock and the Orange Crush Double Bubble Clock. These are reproductions of the same clocks that hung on the walls of diners across the USA in the 50′s and 60′s.
So now you know that when it comes to kitchen wall clocks you have choices. So many choices that it is mind boggling. My suggestion, take your time to before you choose your time.