Veggie of the Week Challenge: 3 Ways to Fight a Dinner-Isn’t-Ready-Crisis

I’ve missed a few posts, so I thought I’d write about three panicky dinners and the tricks I used to get something half-way healthy with vegetables on the table in a hurry. The good news: my family has noticed that I’m remembering to cook for them every once in a while. Even though I’m working […]

Surprise Visit to a Local Printer in Germany: Druckerei Paffenholz in Bornheim

More than a tiny copy shop–this is a printing press! They are sitting on the machine that looks like a train that does the four-color printing. Source: https://druckerei-paffenholz.de/ I went into a small toy and stationery store to make a photocopy. There was a huge sign over the door “DRUCKEREI PAFFENHOLZ” and since “Druckerei” means […]

Another Veggie of the Week Challenge: Romanesco to the Rescue!

After years of studying chronic disease epidemiology, I’m convinced that vegetables are hugely important (And delicious.) But. . . .when I’m writing a story, I forget how much I like healthy food. Soooooooo. . . . Each week, I’ve been celebrating a vegetable in a Half-way Healthy supper. ***************************************************** The Veggie of the Week Challenge […]

Veggie of the Week Challenge: The Colors of Italy Pizza

Red pepper, zucchini pizza. © Jan Decher, 2018. The summer the first Seven Kingdoms Fairy tale came out, my brand-new middle grade book, TROUBLE WITH PARSNIPS, took up the vegetable portion of my brain (I heard that) so dinner was often shoot-your-own-sandwich. We interrupt our veggie challenge for a moment to bring you a word […]

Veggie of the Week: Tendersweet Cabbage + Sausage Stir Fry

Germany is the land of cabbage! Here’s a half-way healthy stir fry to warm up the cold, rainy evenings. © Jan Decher. The Veggie of the Week Challenge In short, cooking went on the back, back burner, while I published my first book, TROUBLE WITH PARSNIPS, so dinner was unimaginative for a few months. By […]

The Veggie of the Week Challenge is Back: Ruby Chard

***************************************************** The Veggie of the Week Challenge ***************************************************** And we’re back! In case you missed last week, this’ll catch you up: My family endured, uh,  . . . minimalist cooking during the publishing of my first book, TROUBLE WITH PARSNIPS. But they need vitamins and writers can’t run on chocolate forever. Hence the Challenge: —No […]

“Veggie of the Week Challenge” in honor of the upcoming holidays and my new children’s book

My first book for 9-12 year olds, TROUBLE WITH PARSNIPS, made for some extremely casual (be kind, people!) meals at my house. Winter is coming, as they say, and the attention span for cooking vegetables is getting shorter. The garden is closing down and the holiday shopping list is ramping up! So, I have a […]

Want to read a brand-new children’s book? Spoiler: It’s mine. :)

My first children’s book is coming out today in paperback!!! And ebook!! and Kindle!! YAY! *dances from living room to kitchen and back* WARNING: There are root vegetables involved. And princesses. And a dessert sluice with cream puffs. But the nameless princess of Cochem has it, um, under control. Because I’m shy and retiring, you […]

What You Say Depends on Where You Come From

View of the Protestant City Church of Monschau (Evangelische Stadtkirche Monschau) and bridge covered with flower boxes. Monschau’s “Red House.” Monschau, Germany. © Laurel Decher, 2018. Salt? Or Sugar? The charming village of Monschau is in Germany, but Americans and Belgians fill it up on busy days. It’s very close to the Belgian border and […]

Tour a German publisher: Kiepenheuer and Witsch in Cologne

An office with a view–Cologne Cathedral is right there! Last week, our local library visited a local publisher . . . It’s a famous old German publisher: Kiepenheuer & Witsch. Their offices look right out onto the Cologne Cathedral. Their location next to the main Cologne rail station make it easy for their internationally renowned […]

Need some ideas about how to handle The Waiting Game?

Just when you think it will never come, spring arrives. Image: ©Laurel Decher, 2018. Over at The Winged Pen there’s a post from 2018 about what to do while you’re waiting. . . . . .for query responses, . . .for editors, . . .or for anything else in the writing life that requires another […]

8 Ways Books are Better Than Scrolls: eBooks of the Ancient World

What were libraries like in the past? While trying to figure out how ancient books were repaired, I came across the delightful Libraries in the Ancient World by Lionel Casson. It’s a small, friendly sort of book, clearly written and even the black and white illustrations are fascinating. If you asked for a book in […]