Publicity Meeting - Yikes!

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Yesterday all dark and early in the morning (6.30am train!) I travelled up to London for a publicity meeting about my forthcoming book.  It was not as daunting as you (and I!) might think because the meeting turned out to be a relaxed and laughy chat with some people I get on with. We came up with lots of good ideas and also one awful one - I think they are going to try and get me on the telly!

It's strange after working quietly on my own, "just sitting on the settee" as my real man puts it, for so long, that suddenly its not just me and all sorts of things seem to be happening.  I'm now busy answering emails, setting up shared files on Dropbox, collecting information, and worrying about my "image"!  (Still, however, on the settee!)

I have been saying that the publication date will be 29^th March but it seems this may be a little delayed so if it is I'll give the correct date dreckly, as we say in Cornwall.

Changing the subject a little - if you have read either of my eBooks (Lush Ice Cream without a Machine or 219 Cooking Tips and Techniques) and liked them could you please do a review on Amazon for me, they are a real help. 

Thank you, 

Suzy Bowler x

Divided by a Common Language

A few days ago I uploaded my little eBooklet to Amazon and was amazed to get a review that read thus ...

"obviously thrown together as today is jan 16, 2013 and this was written in 2013. spelling errors, paragraph errors, grammatical errors. it's sloppy and not worthy of the memory used to store on your kindle. PASS."

... which really got my goat (he's very sensitive).

I was not only hurt but mystified.  Firstly how would they know when I wrote it?  It's just a list of ideas I've assembled over time and when I thought there were enough to make it worthwhile I published it.  Secondly I've always been a good spellist (that, incidentally, was written tongue in cheek) and didn't throw the thing together at all, at all.  It is, however, just a list of ideas I thought might be useful to people not so familiar with cooking as I am.  It is not supposed to be a work of literature.  Luckily I got some good reviews too on Amazon and also supportive messages on Linkedin, Google+, Facebook etc.

In particular a very kind lady, Rae Katherine Eighmey (who writes about American food history) was good enough to comment on my last post with some useful ideas but her main point which I had actually considered but in the other direction, so to speak, was that I wrote it in English English.  Oddly enough I am so very familiar with using American vernacular (e.g. zucchini instead of courgette, eggplant instead of aubergine, arugula instead of rocket and a la mode instead of with ice cream!) that I actually had made a special effort to ensure my English was the homegrown version!

During my many years in the Caribbean I have lived, worked and played with American chaps, read their books, cooked their food and never once failed to understand what they were saying or thought their American spelling to be 'wrong', just not quite right perhaps!! 

Seriously I would never have thought that British English would have caused such a problem to Americans.  As Mark Twain (respect!) said ...

"I don't give a damn for a man who can only spell a word one way."

Not seriously; I also speak Geordie and a little West Indian - I might try using those in my next book!

Howay mehson!

HELP NEEDED!

I have had a couple of reviews of "219 Cooking Tips ..." on Amazon.com ie. in the States that I'd like clarification on but don't know how to get it.  

The first one says; "... something is seriously wrong with it. Some of the tips start half-way through the first line ..." .  This is not true of the one have downloaded from Amazon.co.uk - has anyone in America had similar problems?  This reviewer goes on to say "Sure hope it is corrected soon...I'm looking forward to the corrections as we can always use tips to make our lives easier..." so I hope I can find out what is wrong.

The second reviewer is far more harsh saying it has "spelling errors, paragraph errors, grammatical errors ..." but I honestly cannot find any!  Can you?

Please, please let me know if you find the above problems, or any others, so that I can put things right.  

Just a quickie to say ...

... my recently published little eBooklet "219 Cooking Tips & Techniques you might find useful!" is free today and tomorrow on Amazon - here in the UK and here in the US.  I would be very grateful (if you like it) if you would be kind enough to give it a bit of a review on Amazon.

I would also like to say ...

Sorry Kate!

I would like to apologise to my friend Kate who bought this book a few days ago from Amazon.com and was overcharged by 350% ($3.53 instead of 99c) and now to rub salt into the wound its free.  I'm so sorry - I'll by you a drink next time I'm in Tortola! x

Nice reviews!

I find that the above page on my book Lush Ice Cream has been loading inordinately slowly so I have made a bit of a change.  Not so many photos but there are plenty on Pinterest and I'm gradually adding more, in fact here's one I've just uploaded.

Coconut Ice Ice (Baby)!

  

A layer of Coconut Ice Cream topped with a layer of Simple Strawberry Ice Cream and cut into squares - cunning or what?  Maybe just obvious!

There is a small discussion of my ice cream book on Linkedin - here's a sample ...

"Your book is by far the best fun recipe book I have! It's a really entertaining read even without going to the effort of breaking out condensed milk and cream. You have finally solved the mystery of how to make ice cream that doesn't require a pneumatic drill to serve it. The fact that alcohol and sugar is involved is an additional plus."

And another one ...

"Hmm! I think I've just made one NY resolution - it's to make more of Suzy Bowler's ice creams! I made the marmalade one for a NYE dinner party with a whole lot of scarily 'foody' people, and they loved it."

Nice eh?

To have a look at the book, download a sample or even buy a copy go here if you are in the UK and here if you are in the States.

I want to Write Like this Chap!

I am a member of an online book club, The Kitchen Reader. If you fancy discovering some new food writing have a look at their site here. 

Every month members all review a given book but this month we were allowed to choose our own so I chose Aldo Buzzi's "The Perfect Egg"  I picked it up for pennies a while ago and I was and am delighted with it.  This man wrote like a dream and I want to be just like him when I grow up!  Anyhoo - I have written more about him on my other blog Sudden Lunch here. 

I just really wanted to wish everyone a ...