Cooking The Books – Sandra Harris

This week we welcome Aussie author Sandra Harris and she’s offering us that tastiest of treats – a call story, together with a recipe for yummy grain free scones. And Sandra is also offering a kindle copy of ‘Alien, Mine’ to one lucky commenter this week. Welcome Sandra!

Where to begin? Probably with my fabulous CP, C.T. Green, nag, nag, nagging me (as a good CP should) to submit to certain e-publishers she had a ‘feeling’ about. Turns out she was right and I received not one, but two offers for ‘Alien, Mine‘.

I sent off a query letter to the first company and received a request the next day for a full. I couldn’t believe it! I’d opened that email all unsuspecting for surely publishing houses didn’t get back to authors that quickly? A couple of days later I submitted to Soul Mate Publishing. Not long after, I received a request for a full from their senior editor. I sent it off and on the 20th November, 2012, Debby (the senior editor of SMP) sent a nice reply thanking me, said she looked forward to reading the rest of the story and I could expect to hear back from her within four weeks.

Meanwhile I was managing the RWAus STALI (Single Title and Loving It) contest, so I was kept busy from twiddling my thumbs and not letting my head get too large, because ya know, I’d had two offers. *Tongue-in-cheek*

On the 22nd November I heard back from the first publisher. I eyed the header identifying the sender of the email and swallowed. Moved the mouse to open it, hesitated. Grabbing my courage I opened the darn thing and discovered a contract offer. You could have knocked me over with a feather!

Five days later I received a reply from Debby at Soul Mate Publishing offering me a contract for ‘Alien, Mine.’ In her email she said:

“Normally I take about 4 weeks to respond, but I was able to spend time reading this weekend and couldn’t put yours down. You are an excellent writer with great world building skills and characterization.”

Oh dear, I feel a head swell coming on. Trying to keep my feet firmly planted on the ground, I requested some time from both publishers to look over their contracts.

Initially I decided to go with the more established publishing house, though their romance imprint is a new addition to the company, they have been around for nearly one hundred years. However, I did not contact them immediately to accept as I was having an agent look over their contract. But once I’d made that decision something kept nagging at me (I seem to get a lot of that) about Soul Mate Publishing. I kept thinking I’d made the wrong decision. So, I changed my decision to SMP and have been happy with it since. So on 15th December, 2012 I signed with Soul Mate Publishing.

Grain Free Scones

 Ingredients

• 1 ½ cups of an even mix of soya and tapioca flours.
• ¾ teaspoon baking soda mixed with ¾ teaspoon citric acid.
• 30g butter
• 1 tablespoon castor sugar
• ½ cup milk
• pinch salt

Method

1. Preheat oven to about 200C
2. Mix the flours, baking soda, citric acid, sugar and salt together.
3. In a separate bowl, beat the butter until soft.
4. Add half the flour mixture and mix well.
5. Add the remainder of the flour mixture then the milk.
6. Mix to a soft dough on speed 1.
7. Spoon into a non-stick muffin pan or paper muffin patty cases. *
8. Bake for 10—15 minutes.

*Do not knead this mixture as you would ordinary scones. It is extremely moist

THE BLUTHEN HAVE ONE CONSUMING PASSION: THEMSELVES.

IN THEIR EXPANSION ACROSS THE GALAXY, THEY WILL GO TO ANY LENGTHS TO DOMINATE SPECIES THEY ENCOUNTER.

Torn from modern day Earth and stranded on the far side of the Galaxy, Sandrea Fairbairn must use every particle of courage she possesses to adjust to her new life and live for tomorrow/a new day.

Eugen Mhartak, a general in the Tri-Race Alliance Army, refuses to bow to the merciless Bluthen. Haunted by the loss of far too many innocent lives he has vowed to drive the ruthless invaders from Alliance space.

The strength and valour of Eugen Mhartak attracts Sandrea as no man ever has, but she struggles to read the enigmatic general’s heart. Determined to help him triumph over the Bluthen she uncovers a diabolical plot against the Alliance.

Drawn by the courage and exotic beauty of Sandrea, Mhartak battles to overcome the barriers of cross-cultural differences that separate them and claim her ardent interest. He must conquer his deepest fears to be the man she needs. When his principles are betrayed by his own government and he is faced with the impossible prospect of taking Sandrea’s life in order to save his home planet, Mhartak desperately searches for a way to keep safe both his world and the magnificent woman who has stolen his heart.

Buy Links

SoulMate Publishing        Amazon      Amazon UK

Sandra Harris on the web:

Website    Facebook   Twitter   Author Page

Born in the far north of Australia, yearly cyclones, floods and being cut off from civilization for weeks at a time were the norm. An outrageous imagination helped occupy Sandra’s mind.

An abiding interest in astronomy and a deep-seated need to always see the good guys win naturally influences her writing. Not satisfied with the amount of romance in science fiction novels she set out to redress the balance.

She currently lives in sunny South East Queensland, Australia, with her husband and Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, who doesn’t seem to realize she comes from royalty and should act in a more appropriate manner.

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