Books We Love Insider Blog: #Spectral Evidence

Sunday, April 13, 2025

Awards Time, Even Better Shared

My BWL author page

In a gala award ceremony in Bellingham, Washington, three of our BWL authors' novels were honored by the Chanticleer International Book Awards this month.

The Dante Rossetti Young Adult Fiction Award First Place went to the book I co-authored with my friend Jude Pittman! It's the Newfoundland and Salem, Massachusetts-set tale of family love and rescue during the Salem Witch Trials. The Title? Spectral Evidence.

The Chaucer Historical Fiction Award First Place went to Liz Sevchuk Armstrong for the first book of her Hotspur Trilogy, To Remain Vigilant, chronicling the last kings of the Plantagenet Dynasty of England and the brave knight, Sir Harry Percy, who questioned their claim to be above the law. "Sound familiar?" says Liz, observing how the past has deep relevance to our own day and politics.

Liz's novel

PS: Sir Harry is a DISH, and gets a wonderful love story!

The Chanticleer Book Awards recognize outstanding books across a variety of genres. The group sponsors a yearly conference where writers gather for workshops, networking, and community. And of course, the awards ceremony. This year's keynote speaker was renowned thriller author J.D. Barker. It was more international than ever with authors from Australia, the U.S., Scotland, Canada and India gathering and enjoying each other's company. The conference truly presented a world view of writers and publishing.

Liz and I were grateful to be among our fellow wordsmiths. We enjoyed representing our now award-winning novels and BWL!

Thursday, March 13, 2025

Take Me to the Mardi Gras

My BWL author page

Have you ever been to New Orleans for Mardi Gras?

Having just returned from my first, let me recommend it to you.

Here are some things to know:

1. It's not a day, it's a season! Mardi Gras in New Orleans is known as Carnival Season. It begins on Little Christmas--January 6th and lasts until Fat Tuesday...the day before the Easter Lenten Season begins. This date changes every year.

There are events, balls, parties, and parades galore uptown, downtown, the French Quarter and the suburbs of New Orleans. They get bigger and more frequent as the season goes on.

2. King Cake is served throughout...King Cake is a beautiful confection that comes in many forms--sweet and savory. Wow, it's delicious! Everywhere you visit to socialize during the season, bring a King Cake and you'll be most welcome. And yes, there is a baby in it.

King Cake...can you find the baby?

New Orleans food is fantastic. Have you ever had the delightful donut-like confection called beignets? If you go to the African American Museum in Treme you'll find the Calas Cafe, serving beignet's predecessors: calas..made with rice instead of wheat flour and first created by enslaved people on the 17th century streets of New Orleans. It's served with lemon curd.

With Chef Brendon at the Calas Cafe

Calas with lemon curd...yum!

3. Carnival Season is all about Family. You've probably seen some lurid images of Mardi Gras. (and yes, as my daughter tells most of her hotel guests..."nothing good happens after midnight, so get in by then.") But the season is all about family...from float participants making sure all the children get thrown beads and toys, to accomplished high school marching bands and cheering squads, to lesser known krewes (sponsors of parade marches and floats) like Krewe of Barkus ... dog lovers dressing up their pooches (many who need to be adopted by loving folks), and 'Tit Rex with its tiny wagon-pulled floats that imitate the gigantic ones, to the fantastic Black Masking Indians who visit the elderly who are no longer able to stand on parade routes. These wonderful dancers visit their elders on their stoops and porches. They also honor the Native Americans who took in and hid their enslaved ancestors.

Black Masking Indians look fantastic!

4. New Orleanians love the lost art of conversation, consisting of the fine arts of listening and expressing curiosity. So get ready to learn things about people from all over the world during Mardi Gras.

5. Don't forget the music...it is everywhere! From jazz to classical to down-bayou Cajun. What a gumbo of delightful sounds, with places like the New Orleans Jazz Museum offering free concerts at least twice a week. Here's the wonderful Christien Bold and his band scatting some Duke Ellington at an afternoon performance...

Christien Bold and band keep Jazz thriving!

6. EVERYTHING is political! My daughter organizes mini krewes among her friends for Mardi Gras day marching downtown into Jackson Square. This year Ed and I joined in as personifications of our wonderful U.S. National Parks. We thought this non-political, until their funding started being slashed. So we added 500 stamped post cards to pass out to folks who chose to notify our elected representatives that we are NOT pleased with this decision!