Olivia's April Newsletter

Southern Cooking Brings Soul to Food

I was born and raised in the heart of the Alabama. From as far back as I can remember I remember long summer afternoons spent drinking iced tea and shelling peas and butterbeans on my Aunt Lillie’s front stoop. I still live in the South, although I spent years in the West living in both Arizona and Los Angeles. I have also traveled to other parts of the world and sampled all sorts of wonderful cuisines. One thing, however, that has remained constant in my life is my deep and abiding love for southern cooking and cuisine. 

I was well into my adult years before I realized that tea could be served any other way than loaded with sugar and over ice. It was about that same time that I realized some folks would eat vegetables that hadn’t been soaked in batter, dredged in cornmeal, and deep-fat fried. Southern cooking is not for the faint of heart though it can cause many hearts to grow faint. One thing that can be said is that you’ll never find anything else like it on earth.

People in the south learned to make do with little in many instances. Some of the poorest people in America live in the southern part of the country. Of course, you will find that many of these people despite their poverty are also among the most generous. The same can be said of food. It’s the one thing that seems to be in ample supply in most southern homes and very few will turn you away with an empty stomach.

Perhaps it’s the seasonings that are often used when cooking southern food. From the crab boil and gumbo file of Cajun Cuisine to the secret ingredient that almost every southern kitchen contains for their fried chicken recipes (and no one on earth can fry chicken like a born and bred southern grandma). Perhaps it’s the Sunday church dinners where everyone shares a little of what they have with others or the love that goes into preparing these meals that are shared with friends and family. Whatever the case may be, if you ever have the occasion to experience real southern cooking, do not pass it up. You might shave a day off your life, but a good southern fried chicken leg is really living and well worth the sacrifice if you ask me. 

Of course, it would be remiss to mention southern cooking without bringing up some of the more delicious desserts that seem to be perfection for the south. I mentioned banana pudding above but there are so many more. Pralines are a perfect for those living down around New Orleans as is bread pudding. A little to the east there are grandma’s who have taken their lemon icebox pie recipes to the grave with them so coveted were these delicious deserts and the same holds true for pecan pies as well. We should never forget the flavorful peach cobbler though, and so many other wonderfully delicious treats that southern cooking has introduced to the world at large.

Favorite vegetables in the heart of the south as I mentioned above included peas and butterbeans, snap beans, corn, summer squash (after all, it’s summer all year in the south), and okra (fried or boiled in many southern kitchens). Not all vegetables were deep fried though few were off-limits. I remember eating my share of fried okra, fried squash, and yes, fried green tomatoes. Life was good back when calories weren’t counted and no one really worried about clogging arteries. While I wouldn’t make these a daily dish in any household, I certainly would recommend trying them out if you ever find the opportunity.

Another great thing about southern cooking is the wonderful fried seafood that seems to abound. From fried fish (almost any variety works well when it’s southern fried) to fried oysters, seafood just seems to taste so much better in the south. If you are hoping to learn some of the southern cooking and cuisine you will most likely need to order your spices and have them shipped unless your grocery store has a rather extensive ‘exotic’ foods selection. You can sometimes find great southern seasonings on the International food aisles in grocery stores as well. If you want to really treat your family to an outstanding meal, you should really try southern cooking for the night. 



I was just interviewed by Kenny MacKay on the Author Your Dream podcast, where we talked about Writing Romance. If you are interested, you can check out the full episode here: https://www.authoryourdream.com/writing-romance/

Tampa! IRAE Convention!

https://www.irauthorsexpo.com

Book Signing April 29th, from 10 am - 2 pm

Crystal Bay Historic Bed & Breakfast Hotel

7401 Central Ave.

St. Petersburg, FL 33710

info@crystalbayhotel.com

​​(727) 914-7676

Yes, those are paperbacks.

This month I gave you a calendar to create your own monthly challenge with your bestie. Using the calendar to plan, schedule or document the fun with your favorite pal can be wonderful. However, did you know, you can use that same calendar twice? Download and reprint the calendar, using your printer settings, to size it to the size of your #journal or planner. Get the calendar at the bottom of the page.

Releasing April 18!

This one comes with recipes, the playlist...the fun.

Still keeping it fresh as we roll out Book 15.

Pre-Order Now

Links: https://amzn.to/3I21mGN

https://books2read.com/u/bMN75A

AFI's Top 100 Films of All Time

The American Film Institute proudly curates lists to celebrate excellence in the art form. Since its inception, American film has marginalized the diversity of voices that make our nation and its stories strong – and these lists reflect that intolerable truth. You can download the list here.

Each month I shall pick three movies that are on my list and where to find these wonderful watches for movie night.

April's Selection is all About Friendships.

All About Eve

A backstage story revolving around aspiring actress Eve Harrington. Tattered and forlorn, Eve shows up in the dressing room of Broadway mega-star Margo Channing, telling a melancholy life story to Margo and her friends. Margo takes Eve under her wing, and it appears that Eve is a conniver that uses Margo.

Release date: January 15, 1951 (USA)

Director: Joseph L. Mankiewicz

Nominations: Academy Award for Best Writing (Adapted Screenplay), MORE

Screenplay: Joseph L. Mankiewicz

Adapted from: The Wisdom of Eve

Music composed by: Alfred Newman

Watch on Youtube: (1) All About Eve - YouTube

Pulp Fiction

The lives of two mob hitmen, a boxer, a gangster and his wife, and a pair of diner bandits intertwine in four tales of violence and redemption.

Release date October 14, 1994 (USA)

Content rating R · TV-MA · TV-14

Genre Crime · Drama

Available to rent on Amazon, Apple Tv and more

Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Rings

A meek Hobbit from the Shire and eight companions set out on a journey to destroy the powerful One Ring and save Middle-earth from the Dark Lord Sauron.

Release date December 19, 2001 (USA)

Content ratingPG-13 · PG-13

Genre Action · Adventure · Drama · Fantasy

Available on Netflix, Prime Video, Hulu 

ZESTY ITALIAN PASTA SALAD

This Fresh, Flavorful, Zesty Italian Pasta Salad Is Loaded With All The Favorites – Mozzarella, Olives, Tomatoes, Salami, And Of Course, Pasta! It Is Easy To Make And Oh So Tasty.

I am working to curate the ideal 100 books every romance reader, writer, or library should possess. Feel free to shoot me an email if you can think of a must-read, in classic literature, as well as a gotta-have series for any bookshelf.

Milk in My Coffee by Eric Jerome Dickey

From Eric Jerome Dickey comes the New York Times bestselling book that stirred up controversy with its bold portrayal of racial identity and subtle understanding of sexual intimacy. 

Jordan Greene is in culture shock when he arrives in Manhattan from his Tennessee hometown. Still, he manages to keep the pace and stay in the race, with a Wall Street job, a Queens apartment, and a very sexy girlfriend named J'nette.

But when Jordan meets Kimberly Chavers, what starts as a shared cab ride turns into something more. This girl is funny, fiesty, fine...and white. And for a man with Malcolm X's picture hanging on his office wall, that's a definite problem....

This brightly entertaining and emotionally complex novel demonstrates why Eric Jerome Dickey was “one of the most successful Black authors of the last quarter-century” (The New York Times).

Lady Chatterly’s Lover by D.H. Lawrence

Lawrence's 1928 novel “Lady Chatterley's Lover” is the story of the former Constance Reid (Lady Chatterley), a young woman married to an upper-class baronet who was left with lower body paralysis as a result of his participation in the Great War. Both physically and emotionally distant from her husband, Constance begins an extramarital affair with the gamekeeper. Following the Victory of the publisher Penguin Books in an obscenity trial in the United Kingdom, an uncensored version of the book was finally published and gained notoriety due to explicit descriptions of sex and its use of then-unprintable four-letter words. A revolutionary novel and a true classic of English literature, “Lady Chatterley's Lover” would make for a worthy addition to any bookshelf.

The Bookshop Rescue by Rochelle Alers

How to fetch a family

Bookshop owner—and recently heartbroken—Lucy Tucker never imagined how dramatically life would change once she started fostering Buttercup, a pregnant golden retriever. The biggest change? Growing a lot closer to the businessman next door, Calum Ramsey, especially after the two of them help Buttercup welcome her five puppies into the world. One romantic night later, and they’re expecting a baby of their own! Stunned at first, steadfastly single Calum is now dutifully offering marriage. But Lucy doesn’t need rescuing. She wants the true-blue happy ending they both deserve.

I finally found a service that could give you access to my back catalog without emptying your pockets and have you feed the token machine. I'm laying this out in such a way, that you pick the level you want, and I will load up your e-reader.

The service is launched. Click here to be part of the awesomeness.

This month, you get to design your own friendship challenge. Pick fun activities for you and your best pal to do, like go see John Wick, or haunt a museum. Make sure you take photos and journal the fun. Download the calendar here.

I read a lot; I mean a lot.

I created this journal for you to make a list of the books and series you’ve read. This is a neat, tidy, purse-sized notebook that allows you to collect autographs, make a reading list, and check off books you’ve read, or have not read.

Index Page: Use this page to record books and the page number where you can find the review.

Daily Reading Tracker: It’s just plain fun to color in boxes. You can color in the boxes on the days that you read, or listen to an audiobook.

Book Review Pages: Make notes on characters, plots storylines, and settings.

Autograph Page: Print out those author photos and scrapbook them here along with autographs, tickets, flyers and more.. Get it here.