George R. R. Martin, Author of Song of Ice and Fire, Can't Cook

In the forward to A Feast of Ice and Fire: The Official Game of Thrones Companion Cookbook George Martin confesses that he can't cook. Anyone who has read his evocative descriptions of food -- and have their mouth water as a result! -- might find this hard to believe. I thought anyone who understood food on that level would be a dab hand in the kitchen.

The book's authors, Chelsea Monroe-Cassel and Sariann Lehrer run the popular blog, Inn at the Crossroads, where they began cooking their way through Martin's books.
- Author George R. R. Martin Confesses His 'Shameful Secret'

If you can't wait for the the official cookbook -- it's due to be released May 29, 2012 -- you can look at the unofficial one, The Unofficial Game of Thrones Cookbook: From Direwolf Ale to Auroch Stew - More Than 150 Recipes from Westeros and Beyond.

Here's one of the recipes:

Pentoshi Mushrooms in Butter and Garlic

"Even when he fears that he is being led into a trap and that the dish before him may be poisoned, Tyrion cannot help but acknowledge his desire for just a taste of it. The mushrooms before him glistening with butter and smelling of garlic make his mouth water, and it’s nob wonder. Poisoned or not, this savory dish would tempt just about anyone." (A Dance with Dragons, Chapter One)

Serves 4

4 large portobello mushrooms with stems
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, divided
4 large white onions, finely chopped
10 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 cup arborio rice
5 cups vegetable stock or water
2 tablespoons grated imported Parmesan cheese, preferably Parmigiano-Reggiano
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1 bunch scallions, finely chopped
Scented olive oil, such as truffle oil, garlic oil, or herb oil (or very good extra-virgin olive oil)

Finely chop the stems of the mushrooms. Set the caps aside. In a large saucepan, melt 5 tablespoons of the butter, and sauteÅL the onions and garlic over medium heat until translucent, about 2 minutes. Add the chopped mushroom stems, and saute a minute longer. Season with salt.
Add the rice. Stir well to coat, then add 1 cup of stock and stir until the liquid is mostly absorbed. Add another cup of stock, stirring constantly, and allow the rice to absorb it. Continue adding stock cup by cup, until all liquid is used and rice is tender, but still a little firm to the bite in the middle (about 25 minutes). Stir in remaining 1 tablespoon butter and the cheese, and season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Set aside.
Slice the portobello caps paper-thin. Divide risotto into 4 bowls, immediately sprinkle with the shaved portobellos, and garnish with scallions and a drizzle (about 2 teaspoons) of truffle oil (or other flavored oil).

A Word of Wisdom

Need to know your mushrooms? Creminis are just young portobellos; both are nutty, and gourmand favorites. Fluted oyster mushrooms have a more subtle flavor. Any young mushroom can be called a button, but chefs usually reserve the name for the white button variety. White mushrooms are simply button mushrooms with the caps fully opened.

Related Links:
- Inn at the Crossroads
- A Feast of Ice and Fire
- George R.R. Martin, Wikipedia

Photo credit: Google Books Search

Amazon's Ranking Algorithm Has Changed: what this means for indie authors

Amazon has recently changed the algorithm it uses to rank books in two major ways. First, a free download no longer counts the same as a paid one and, second, all things being equal, higher priced books have a higher rank than lower priced ones.

These changes are important because rank is highly correlated with how well a book is seflling which is, in turn, largely dependent upon where it shows up in Amazon's various bestseller lists. In other words, these changes can make a significant difference in how much money an independent author earns through Amazon.

First change: A free download no longer counts the same as a paid one
Authors often do promotions where they make their book free for three or four days with the result that it skyrockets in rank. Of course the author doesn't make any money from this directly because the book is free, but soon after the book reaches the top ten position the author begins charging for the book. Due to high visibility on various lists the book continues to sell well for a few days and the author makes a few hundred dollars. Not bad.

The change in Amazon's ranking algorithm means that the kind of promotion I've just described won't be as effective. If you're giving your book away for free one download won't equal one sale, as it used to, and so your book won't rank as high as quickly. A free download does still count toward building your book's rank, but now it's more like for every 10 free books downloaded you'll get credit for between 1 to 4 sales. The numbers are estimations, based on observation (for references, see Other Reading, below).

To recap, unlike before, if you make your book free for three or four days, rather than it rocketing to the top of the bestseller lists it will more likely limp toward the top but peter out before it reaches the choice positions in the top 10, or perhaps even the top 50.

Second change: All things being equal, a higher priced book will rank higher than a lower priced book
In the words of Ed Robertson:

... all things being even in terms of sales, not only did a lower price indicate a worse position on the popularity lists, but a higher price indicated a better one.
- Ed Robertson, Amazon's Ever-Changing Algorithms, Part 3

What does this mean for indie authors? 

Pricing. For a long time I've been an advocate of the 99 cent price point for independently published books, but no more. To my mind, the big advantage of publishing ones book for 99 cents was that an author could use it for marketing, to help find an audience for her work. Until I know more about the changes in Amazon's ranking algorithm I won't be making any recommendations, either way.

Overall, these changes certainly haven't helped the independent author, though I agree with Ed Robertson that Amazon isn't targeting independent authors with these changes, it just wants to make more money.

I'm going to keep my eyes open for more information about these changes, and I'll be sure to pass on what I learn.

Stay tuned.


Other Reading:
- Amazon's Ever-Changing Algorithms, Part 3: Why Lower Prices Might Give You Lesser Sales
- April Sales Voyeur + A Hint Of Things To Come

Photo credit: Business 2 Community

Wool: Indie bestseller to be made into blockbuster movie.

Wool by Hugh Howey, a self-published title and current bestseller, was purchased by Century after a bidding war. Twentieth Century Fox will be making the movie.

Wool is described as "a high-concept novel set in a stark future; the air outside is no longer breathable, so the last community on Earth lives underground in an enormous silo". Since the author self-published Wool on Amazon.com, it has sold 140,000 copies through e-book within six months, and attracted 600 five-star reviews on the site, according to Century. The self-published edition is currently on sale on Amazon.com for $4.97, and on Amazon.co.uk for £3.08. Century's own e-book edition of Wool will beavailable from June.

Read the rest here: Century wins latest self-publishing sensation

Great Writing Blogs

I owe my thanks to a number writers who give up their valuable time to maintain writing blogs that both instruct and inspire. Today, to help celebrate the release of The Emotion Thesaurus, The Bookshelf Muse has declared this Random Act of Kindness Day, where writers (and anyone else!) are encouraged to thank those who have helped them.

This is a great idea, and a wonderful way to launch a book! In that spirit, here are blogs I have found invaluable:

1. Elizabeth Spann Craig (blog: Mystery Writing is Murder)
One of my favorite writers, Elizabeth Spann Craig, not only has a blog chalk full of great advice for writers, she also has an amazing Twitter feed (@elizabethscraig). I love the links she tweets, they both inspire and instruct. I highly recommend her writing.

2. Joe Konrath (blog: A Newbie's Guide to Publishing)
If anyone is the father of the indie publishing movement, it's Joe Konrath. Whether or not you agree with his perspective, his blog posts are timely, instructive and witty. Joe doesn't post as regularly as he used to, but when he does I do a little happy dance.

3. Kristine Kathryn Rusch (blog: Kristine Kathryn Rusch)
I thought I knew a bit about the business of publishing before I starting reading Kristine's blog. It turns out I didn't. Kris Rusch knows the business of writing from the perspective of a writer, an editor and a publisher. For anyone who would like to be a professional writer Kris' blog is a must read.

4. Dean Wesley Smith (blog: Dean Wesley Smith)
This is another great blog on the business of writing. Dean has written a number of series on both writing and publishing that are well worth the read.

5. Passive Guy (blog: The Passive Voice)
Passive Guy is a lawyer who specializes in contract law, especially as it relates to the publishing industry. He has a knack for finding great articles about writing and publishing and, occasionally, talks about what to look out for in contracts -- he calls them gotcha clauses. A must read for anyone seeking to be traditionally published.

These are five blogs among dozens that inform and inspire me every day, I hope they'll inspire you as well. Cheers!

Photo credit: What Orli Did

The Business of Writing: Using Google+

Mike Elgan talks about how he uses Google+ for all his social media. I had no idea Google+ could do all this!

Technology broadcaster Leo Laporte had me on his show, This Week in Tech (TWiT), recently. I mentioned that I publish all over the Internet automatically from my Google+ stream.

I said, for example, that I publish both a daily and a weekly email newsletter without doing anything. It just happens. Everything I write on Google+ is automatically posted on Twitter and Facebook, and it's made available as an RSS feed.
This is part of the appeal of Google+. It's the only service I'm aware of where you can do just about everything -- publish, chat, email and blog. You can even use it as a social network.

Read the rest here: Elgan: How I publish from Google+

One fantastic feature of Google+ that I've recently taken advantage of is automatically publishing my blog on Google+ as well as Blogger. It's easy!

All you have to do is merge your Blogger and Google+ accounts -- a procedure which at first seemed suspiciously Orwellian. I was hesitant at first, but am very glad I did. I prefer the look of my Google+ profile and it's easier for me to keep everything updated, not to mention that my blogs are now published to my Google+ circles.

If you're wondering how to merge your Blogger and Google+ accounts, here's how:

1. Go to your Blogger account, the main page.

2. Click the gear icon in the upper right-hand corner of the page.

3. Select the fourth option from the top, which should be "Connect to Google+". This will bring you to another page which will explain in great and glorious detail what will happen if you merge your accounts.

4. Scroll down to the bottom of the page, accept the terms, press the button, and you're done!

If you change your mind, no worries. You have a month to do so and reverse any changes made.

Cheers!

So That's The Ebook Business, Eh

Here's a Canadian perspective on the changes in the publishing industry of the last few years. It's one of the more comprehensive and even-handed discussions I've come across so I thought I'd share.

According to The Vancouver Sun, the book publishing industry in Canada does 2 billion dollars a year and ebook sales account for about 18 percent of that. Speculation is that ebook sales are going to continue to increase as more people make the switch to digital books, especially if prices on books go down because of the Department of Justice suit against Apple and 5 of the 'Big-6' book publishers.

It's difficult to estimate the effect lower book prices would have on the publishing industry because, although lower prices would mean less profit, they would also mean more sales. Additionally, writers in 2012 have many more options available to them for selling their work. For example:

Sunshine Coast author Lars Guig-nard has published three books on Amazon, starting with Lethal Circuit, and says he is making a good living on ebooks alone. He makes about the same amount whether he sells a book in electronic or traditional format.

On the other hand,

Vancouver author Timothy Taylor said he would not consider giving up his relationship with his publisher (Random House) to create a self-published ebook because he values the editing and promotion provided by a traditional publisher.

On the whole, though, Taylor was optimistic:

"It almost feels like we could open up new markets - people who aren't buying physical books might buy ebooks," Taylor said.

It's a lengthy article, but a good discussion. Check it out: Publishers try to read the industry's future

Photo Credit: The Voice Designs

The Fungibility of Books

10 minutes ago I had no idea what fungibility was. It's the quality of replaceability that certain commodities have. For instance. money is highly fungible. If were to loan Robyn a $10 bill, one I had drawn a happy face on, I would not be at all upset if the $10 bill she repaid me with lacked a happy face. That is, I was not expecting her to repay me with exactly the same bill. As a matter of fact I would have found it rather odd.

Books, though, are not fungible, at least not in my view. One of my favorite authors is Jim Butcher. If I were to lend Robyn, say, Jim Butcher's latest book, Ghost Story, and she repaid the loan by giving me his novel Stormfront I would have NOT thought the loan repaid. No one book is the equivalent of any other; like snowflakes, they are unique.

You might be wondering, What on earth is Karen on about? Excellent question!

One day, I want to write a post about the Department of Justice's suit against Apple and five of the Big-6 publishers, but this isn't the day. It has been suggested, though, that although there was collusion among Apple and the publishers that the collusion didn't amount to anything because books are -- wait for it -- fungible.

Here's how the argument goes: Sure, we raised prices on a small sub-set of books, the best sellers, but many other books either didn't have their prices affected or they actually went down in price. For instance, many self-published books can be purchased quite reasonably. So it was always possible for a person to buy a book at pre-collusion prices, just not the same book (i.e., not a best seller). So, no harm, no foul, right?

Um. Wrong.

I accept the economic statement, that many people aren't going to buy books at or beyond a certain price point, whether for reasons of poverty or principle, but I reject the idea that books are interchangeable.

White I agree that if the latest book by my favorite author was out of my price range I would not purchase it (I would either wait for the paperback, buy the ebook when it came down in price or take it out of the library), I do view this as a loss. That many other books are in my price range doesn't make it okay that the price of that one book was made high due to collusion.

I mean, I don't want to be contentious, but it reminds me of someone saying, "Well, it doesn't matter if your pet dies, you can always buy another." It's true but so not the point!

Anyway, that's my rant. I don't have them often, so I'm hoping you'll forgive this one. It was sparked by Joe Konrath's latest post, Simon Says. It's quite good, I'd encourage you to read it, especially the first bit.

Cheers!

Kindle owners can now borrow Rowling's Harry Potter books at Amazon.com

Amazon.com is offering Rowling's Harry Potter books in the Kindle Owners' Lending Library.

The Kindle Owners' Lending Library now features over 145,000 books to borrow for free, including over 100 current and former New York Times Best Sellers. The Kindle Owners' Lending Library has an unusual and innovative feature that people love - unlimited supply of even the most popular titles. With traditional library lending, the library buys a certain number of e-book copies of a particular title. If all of those are checked out, you have to get on a waiting list. For popular titles like Harry Potter, the wait can sometimes be months. With the Kindle Owners' Lending Library, there are no due dates, you can borrow as frequently as once a month, and there are no limits on how many people can simultaneously borrow the same title - so you never have to wait in line for the book you want.
- Amazon.com

Access to the Kindle Lending Library is through Amazon Prime and costs $79 a year.

A Church of Trees in Kaiserslautern, Germany

Even though this is a blog about writing, one of my most popular posts was about a picture entitled, Church of Trees, Belgium.

It was a stunningly beautiful picture -- I can say that without blushing because I didn't take it! Writers, after all, get inspiration from many sources, not the least of which is the beauty of nature.

I just came across this picture by Jeremy Taylor (see above) and thought I'd share it, with his permission. :-)

Cheers.

Related posts:
 - Church of Trees, Belgium

Neil Gaiman Interviews Stephen King, King talks about Dr. Sleep

Neil Gaiman and Stephen King are two of my favorite writers, so I was looking forward to reading King's interview and it didn't disappoint.

I was hoping King would say something about the sequel to The Shining he's been working on, Dr. Sleep. Everyone I've talked to about King doing a sequel has looked at me and said, "He's doing a sequel?" as though they must have misheard.

I did it [wrote Dr. Sleep] because it was such a cheesed-off thing to do. To say you were going back to the book that was really popular and write the sequel ... People think of that book, they read it as kids. Kids read it and say it was a really scary book, and then as adults they might read the sequel and think, this isn’t as good. The challenge is, maybe it can be as good - or maybe it can be different. It gives you something to push up against. It's a challenge.

I wanted to write Dr Sleep because I wanted to see what would happen to Danny Torrence when he grew up. And I knew that he would be a drunk because his father was a drunk. One of the holes it seemed to me in The Shining is that Jack Torrance was this white-knuckle dry drunk who never tried one of the self-help groups, the like Alcoholics Anonymous. I thought, okay, I'll start with Danny Torrence at age forty. He is going to be one of those people who says 'I am never going to be like my father, I am never going to be abusive like my father was'. Then you wake up at 37 or 38 and you're a drunk. Then I thought, what kind of a life does that person like that have? He'll do a bunch of low-bottom jobs, he'll get canned, and now he works in a hospice as a janitor. I really want him to be in a hospice worker because he has the shining and he can help people get across as they die. They call him Dr Sleep, and they know to call for him when the cat goes into their room and sits on their bed. This was writing about guy who rides the bus, and he's eating in a McDonalds, or on a special night out maybe Red Lobster. We are not talking about a guy who goes to Sardi's.

King's explanation/description makes me want to read the book; it also nicely explains the title, which I was curious about.

Let me give you one more excerpt. Here King is talking about something he mentioned in On Writing .

I never think of stories as made things; I think of them as found things. As if you pull them out of the ground, and you just pick them up. Someone once told me that that was me low-balling my own creativity. That might or might not be the case. But still,  on the story I am working on now, I do have some unresolved problem. It doesn’t keep me awake at nights. I feel like when it comes down, it will be there...

This has just scratched the surface of Neil Gaiman's original interview with Stephen King. Gaiman has put the unabridged version up on his site, it's over 4,000 words and well worth the read.

Link:
Neil Gaiman interviews Stephen King.

Photo credit: NeilGaiman.com