According to the National Day Calendar, today, May 24, is National
Escargot Day. I wonder where they come up with this stuff. Since I blog on the
24th of each month, I wanted to write a blog around whatever the national day
is for that date. When I saw National Escargot Day, I groaned. How could I
write about escargot and relate it somehow to my books? I decided to give it a
shot.
I’m not afraid to experiment with new foods. I’ve eaten kangaroo in
Australia and alligator in Charleston, South Carolina. They both taste like
chicken. I draw the line at horse meat, though. Once on a trip to Italy, some
meat was placed in front of me that I didn’t quite trust. I didn’t eat it.
Found out later it was horse meat. Europeans eat horse meat. No thanks.
I ate escargot once many years ago. I don’t remember where I had it,
possibly Toronto, Canada, when I lived there, or a restaurant in Philadelphia.
All I remember is the garlic. The snails themselves had no taste, but were
swimming in garlic. I never ate escargot again. Tried it once and that was
enough.
Unlike my willingness to try different foods, I’ve not gone outside my writer
comfort zone as much as I would have liked. I love contemporary romance and
have pretty much stuck to that. I do have several “foodie” romances, as I love
to cook. I stretched myself to write my first romantic suspense, Logan’s Redemption (Redemption Book 1), and enjoyed the experience so much,
I’ve gone on to write three more romantic suspense stories. And I intend to
write more.
My biggest stretch was writing my very dark paranormal romance, Cursed Mates. This book is so different
from anything I’ve ever written. It’s one of my favorites of everything I’ve
done. It took a lot out of me emotionally to write something so dark, and I’ve
not written another dark paranormal since.
I think pushing myself to go out of my contemporary romance comfort zone
has helped me grow as a writer. As I will most likely not eat escargot again, I
doubt I’ll write another dark paranormal, but I’m glad for the experience. And
I got a book I love and am proud of.
My next “stretch” will be to write a historical romance. For years, I’ve
wanted to write a book set during the Gilded Age, a time that fascinates me. I
even have a rough plot. Just as I hope to have the opportunity to try more
exotic foods, I hope to someday write this book. In the meantime, I’m committed
to a boxed set with some local authors, several of whom are NYT and USAT bestsellers.
In this set, I’ll write a historical romance, if you call 1970-1971 historical.
I’ll rely on my own memory plus some research to write my Vietnam War era
story. Who knew a period during my lifetime would now be considered history?
What about you? Are you a fearless eater, willing to try exotic foods at
least once? Have you written stories that took you out of your comfort zone?
How’d that work out for you?
Below are covers for my first foodie romance, A Catered Romance, and my most recent foodie story, Capri Nights. Also the cover for Logan’s Redemption, which is free now,
and the cover for Cursed Mates. I hope I’ve whetted your appetite
to try my stories.
Capri Nights:
A Catered Romance:
Print: http://www.amazon.com/Catered-Romance-Cara-Marsi/dp/0991597567
Logan's Redemption:
11 comments:
I've tried escargot and will not eat it again. I've grown to be very picky with my food. My husband told me the other day that the older I get the longer my 'I don't like it food' list gets. What can I say food doesn't excite me, I guess I eat to live and not live to eat!
I've had escargot several times and so not worth it. Cake is better.
I've never been able to get wild about escargot or caviar. I learned to prepare ceviche in an Acapulco hotel cooking course years ago, and thought I was daring to eat fish that had only been 'cooked' by marinating in lemon juice. My first husband was German, and very fond of steak tartare (raw ground beef with a raw egg yolk, capers and onion). I used to nearly choke when it was placed on the table. It was the one thing I refused to prepare for him at home. I guess my food tastes are drab and traditional but that's the way I like it. Interesting blog post, Cara!
Not an adventuresome eater but applaud those who are. To me the ultimate food is ice cream......Nice post....
Judy and Vicki, once was enough for me also with escargot. I agree cake is better.
Gemma, I found a recipe for ceviche and had never heard of it before. I made it, and it turned out well. I've made it a few times since. I'd like to try it "for real" prepared by a chef. Not ever having tasted it in a restaurant, I can't be sure the way I did it is the way it's supposed to be. I can eat steak that's rare but I could never eat ground beef rare, plus it can be dangerous.
Jean, I like ice cream, especially Trader Joe's Pumpkin ice cream.
I've always considered myself adventurous when it comes to food but escargot is something I have yet to try. Not sure that I want to, although I do love garlic:) I agree with Vicki that cake is probably better. Oh heck, cake is always the best!
I do try to step out of my comfort zone when it comes to writing. I think it stretches you and makes you better. Once upon a time, I had trouble writing loves scenes so I pulled out all the stops and was surprised when a publisher accepted my first erotic romance novella. These days, I'm delving into early 20th century historical romance and tried my hand at paranormal/historical with a WW2 short story.
Hi, Paris. I agree cake is always better. I love your paranormal WW2 story. It's always good to step out of your comfort zone once in a while.
I'm not a big seafood fan... I do love your covers...
Hi, Melissa. I guess growing up on the East Coast, we all love seafood because it's so plentiful and fresh. Thanks for your compliment on my covers.
Interesting post. I'm somewhat adventurous in my food. I've eaten fish (lake and ocean), wild jack rabbit, rabbit (raised for food), Duck (a l'Orange, and Chinese), goose (for Christmas), frog legs, sushi (raw eel, shrimp, tuna, white fish), and I've had cow brains scrambled with egg (Mexican dish).
Recently, I've had jerky mixed with beef and alligator, and another one with kangaroo (I bought the jerky for my son-in-law and he let me sample them).
Never tried snails though.
Janice~
Janice, you sure are adventuresome in your eating. Good for you. Thanks for commenting.
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