Guest Blog - Talina Perkins

Boy, do I have a treat for you today! My very first ever guest blogger is Talina Perkins, author, book reviewer, graphic artist, webmistress and mother extraordinaire! 

It seems like I've known Talina forever. Ever since the Lothario set sail, Talina has been onboard,  always encouraging , and designing bookmarks, banners and Romance Trading Cards for me. She's hosted me numerous times on her Review Website, Bookin' It Reviews. She's been a staunch supporter of my fledgling career as an erotic romance author. Her first book will release in a few weeks, but I couldn't wait to have her tell us how she manages to do everything she does, and stay sane! 

Truly, this woman must have a Superwoman cape in her closet. If I didn't like her so darned much, I'd hate her!  

So, without further ado...

First, thank you Roz for having me here! As a huge fan girl, being here today is a little surreal for me!  J

It is often thought that as a full time stay-at-home writer I have an over flowing abundance of time. That after completing daily tasks, caring for my family and all the household chores I’m left with extra time to spare for the’ little hobby’ on the side. We writers know better. Oh, man do we know better! In fact, that little hobby, as I’ve had it called, is darn near as tasking as trying to balance three jumbo sized elephants on one bowling ball! I know you writers out there are nodding your heads in agreement. Something is always falling off the ball and left discarded for another time.  And often times it’s the writing that gets left undone. A horror to those under a deadline!

We balance time between the house, the shopping, the washing, the cleaning and for me the home schooling of four children all in different grades. It’s tasking to say the least. I know you mothers, writers or not, understand what it is like to help children of different ages with their homework.  Explaining three or four levels of arithmetic within an hour leaves us more drained than the child!

This is why our time is so precious. We treasure the moments we get to ourselves. We hoard it, guard it, and fight for it as if it’s the dragon’s golden loot.

Though I am still a pre-pubbed writer I am determined to teach myself how to write to a self imposed deadline, but how can I do this when time seems to be against me? How many of you ask that very same question?

It boils down to delegation and time management.

But, being the Jill of all trades and master of none I’ve found that I have to count on all the help I can get from the family. This includes chores assistants, bathroom scrubbers (whether they like or not), to little chefs that are not so little any more.

I’ve been told that being the Chore Assistant is next to the best assignment, as they get to go around checking (clipboard and all) that each little task delegated gets finished. I am pretty sure we all know how the bathroom scrubbers feel, but when the chores rotate and they each get their turn as Master Chef (still looking for a hat) smiles beam! And believe it or not they are pretty good at it!

I will admit it wasn’t easy at first but I managed to tweak most of our family recipes, into kid cooking friendly meal ideas the entire family enjoys. And now my oldest son and daughter love to do all the cooking. Who am I to keep them from their passion! *innocent grin*

It took me over a month to tweak the recipes we love to eat most and rework others to make them easier or just quicker to prepare. As I rearranged slips of paper and typed up one recipe after another I soon saw this ‘little hobby’ turning into a finished book that could help not only my family but also others.

This project kick started about three months ago and after cooking, eating (poor us ;-)) and tweaking I have come up with SweatPea Delights: Easy Meal Ideas For Moms-on-the-Go!  

As a paranormal romance and contemporary writer, I never saw myself writing a cookbook.  Now that it is finished I have managed to squeeze more time out of my day allowing me more of that precious time to write. I’ve written that synopsis hanging over my head for longer than I care to admit and outlined a novella. I’ve also added close to 10k words to another manuscript and started writing the aforementioned novella.  ;-)

Here’s the cover art and a couple of recipes for you to enjoy while the final touches are being placed on the cookbook due out the first week of December.

Taco Goblets

Enjoy this for a quick lunch or dinner the whole family can help prepare.

8 flour tortillas (medium sized)

1 lb. ground beef

1 cup favored chunky salsa

1/2 cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese

2 cups finely chopped lettuce

1   tomato, chopped

1/4 cup Ranch Dressing or Sour Cream for topping

HEAT oven to 350°F.

Microwave tortillas on HIGH for 30 seconds to make them pliable. Then take large muffin tin and line each with warmed tortilla, folding back the edges of tortillas to allow filling. BAKE tortillas 10 min in oven to harden to a golden crisp. Meanwhile, brown meat in large skillet; drain. Afterwards, stir in salsa allowing it to boil. Once bubbly, lower heat and simmer on medium-low heat 5-10 min. Spoon meat mixture into tortilla bowls; top with remaining ingredients. Serves 4

Prep. Time: 35 minutes

Crunchy Chicken Turnovers

1 pkg. refrigerated crescent rolls (8 ct. tube)

2 cups cooked, shredded chicken

3 oz. cream cheese, softened

3 tbsp. chopped green onion

2 tbsp. milk

Dash of pepper (optional)

Preferred Salsa for topping (optional)

2 tbsp. margarine, melted

2 tbsp. seasoned crumbs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In large mixing bowl combine softened cream cheese, milk, pepper, green onion and chopped chicken. Separate rolls into 4 six-inch squares. Spoon 1/4 of the mixture into each square. Bring corners together and seal. Place on ungreased cookie sheet. Brush with melted margarine and sprinkle with seasoned bread crumbs. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Serves 4.

Prep. Time: 35 minutes

See what I mean? I don't know what kind of water Talina drinks, but I want some of it! LOL As soon as my head quits spinning, I'm going to try these recipes. 

I'm sure you're curious to know all you can about Superwoman, Talina Perkins, so here's the scoop. She even sent me a picture of herself. Let's see... where did I put that?




Oh yeah! Here it is!

Oops! Wrong photo!

Here's the one Talina sent -

  

Okay, so she doesn't really wear a cape, but I think she's still Superwoman. Just look at that wipe off board in the background. Who does stuff like that?

More About Talina:

Paranormal & Contemporary romance pre-pubbed author, A multi-Top Pick Reviewer for Night Owl Reviews and owner and author of Bookin' It Reviews. A place where you’ll find guest authors, giveaways, & video snippet readings of books she is currently reading or recommending. You’ll also get to hear her thoughts on author’s writing styles and plots. Stop by and discover a world just for readers at Bookin’ It Reviews!
Talina Perkins is currently working on a shifter paranormal romance series while submitting to Harlequin Nocturne Cravings.

You can email her at talinaperkins@ymail.com any time or keep up with her going-on’s at the following links:

Twitter:@talinaperkins

Bookin' It Reviews
Follow me On Facebook!
Like My Author Fan Page on Facebook
Book Swag Designs ~ Bookmarks, RTC, Cover Flats

Bon Appetite!

Leave a comment for Talina. I'm sure she'll find a bit of time to read them. She seems to conjure time out of thin air!