Category: Book Events and Tours

February Cookbook Update

Posted February 29, 2024 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book Events and Tours, Uncategorized / 1 Comment

 

 

Hi, everybody! Just wanted to give you an update on how things are progressing with the extended edition of A LITERARY PICNIC:

  • THE ROAD SO FAR. I’ve already finalized several recipes, including some that I thought would be really difficult. I’m loving my progress so far! Right now I’m mostly working on bread recipes, since I can freeze them for use in picnic pictures when the weather warms up. Check out these beautiful potato rolls I made:

  • HOW BIG WILL THE EXTENDED EDITION BE? Hopefully 50 recipes (double what it is right now). However, I may have to cut some if I can’t get copyright permissions. Four of the books I’m making new menus for are public domain, but I’m considering two different copyrighted books for the final menu. I’ve contacted the publishers, but it can take months to hear back (and I don’t know how much the permissions will cost). Fingers crossed that I hear back in time and can afford the fee!
  • PRINT FORMAT NEWS. I got some good news regarding printing! As you may recall, my book will be printed/distributed by IngramSpark. I thought for sure I’d have to reformat my whole book for print, since I doubted they offered an 8.5″x11″ option. As it turns out, they do! I’m so relieved! I expected to spend at least a few weeks reformatting, but now I won’t have to do that at all. πŸ₯³
  • MY PIE-IN-THE-SKY SUMMER DEADLINE. Does the time I’ll save on formatting mean I’ll achieve my dream of a summer publication date? Maybe, but it’s still very uncertain. Some of you might remember that I made a menu for ALL CREATURES GREAT AND SMALL last year because I was having health issues and craved comfort TV. My symptoms have improved but could show up again soon. My doctor has me on some new medication that may help, but I’ll need to take it easy and go in for extra appointments to monitor the situation. Since I don’t want to push myself, I’m still treating a summer publication date as possible but not exactly probable.
  • NEW COVER? I totally love the book’s original cover, but I’m toying with idea of having one professionally done. This will heavily depend on the cost and how long it would take. Hopefully I’ll have an update on that next month. If you know any cover artists who you think would be a good fit, share their name and website/socials in the comments!
  • Also check out this funny little quiche I made with leftovers from a pastry recipe!πŸ˜†

 

I’ll post another update in a month or two,
hopefully with more pics to share! See you then!

Happy First Day of Spring…and Release Date for My New Book!

Posted March 20, 2023 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book Events and Tours / 0 Comments

 

 

The big day has arrived! A LITERARY PICNIC is now available! πŸ₯³πŸ₯³πŸ₯³ I chose the first day of spring as the release date for my new cookbook because today feels like the perfect time to start daydreaming about warm weather and picnics. . . and also because Easter is just around the corner, and the Peter Rabbit menu is just right for an Easter brunch.

You can purchase a copy here!

If you’d like to see a sneak peek of what’s inside, you can check out my post about the Fairy Tale menu.

I hope you enjoy reading A LITERARY PICNIC as much as I did writing it.

May your spring be full of sunny skies, tasty treats, and lots of reading time!

Β 
 

Cookbook Publication Date & Cover Winner!

Posted February 2, 2023 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book Events and Tours / 0 Comments

 

 

Last week I asked all my readers to vote on their favorite cover design for my upcoming cookbook, A LITERARY PICNIC. The results are in, and the watercolor design won by a landslide! Thank you so much to everyone who voted.

Since a few people misread the title as “a literary panic” (πŸ˜‚πŸ˜‚πŸ˜‚!!!), I’ll make some changes to the title font, but I haven’t decided what yet. I’ll either tweak the font in Canva or switch to a new one.

A LITERARY PICNIC will be available as an ebook on Amazon and my blog on Monday March 20th—the first day of spring! I reeeally want to get the book done by then because it has a Peter Rabbit menu that is absolutely perfect for Easter.

P.S. For anyone interested in how I made the design, I layered and filtered three sets of watercolor graphics available in Canva Pro from a creator account called CreativeValuation. I then used GIMP 2.1 to do some fine-tuning to the girl in front, primarily to darken her lines so she’d be easier to see when the image is small (like when you’re scrolling through Amazon).

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I’ll share a sneak peak of one of the menus
in the weeks to come, so stay tuned!

Β 
 

My New Cookbook Cover: Vote for Your Favorite!

Posted January 26, 2023 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book Events and Tours / 2 Comments

 

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I recently announced that I have a new cookbook coming out, and today I’m SO EXCITED to share the cover. Well, two of them . . . because I can’t choose! πŸ˜…

When I first started designing my cover, I decided to make two different versions—one with a background photograph of one of the menus from the book, another with watercolor elements from Canva Pro. I thought once I saw the finished products I’d know for sure what I wanted, but I love them both too much to choose. So I’m putting it up to a vote! Cast your vote below for your favorite cover, and if you want to vote multiple times, you can check out my Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

I’ll announce the official publication date for A LITERARY PICNIC next week on my socials, so stay tuned! 😁

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Big Announcement!

Posted December 16, 2022 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book Events and Tours / 0 Comments

 

 

A couple days ago I did an interview with the Well Seasoned Librarian Podcast, in which Dean Jones and I talk gingerbread, Hercule Poirot, and my struggles with Turkish Delight. You should definitely check it out! At the end of the interview, I revealed my latest big project. Those of you with amazing memories may recall I hinted at a super secret project several months ago on Instagram. Now I’m finally ready to announce it here on the blog!

My big news is . . .*drumroll *. . .

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Jo’s Gingerbread Nuts: Tiny Gingerbread Cookies from The Little Women Cookbook

Posted December 10, 2020 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book Events and Tours, Book of the Month Recipes, Holidays / 1 Comment

 

This post contains affiliate links. For more details, see my legal page.

 

Can you believe Christmas Eve is just TWO WEEKS away? After such a chaotic year, I’m so ready for the cozy familiarity of the Christmas season. For today’s recipe—the final post in my fiction-themed cookbook recipe series—I wanted to make something festive, fun, and chock-full of holiday spices. I found just what I wanted in the delightful LITTLE WOMEN COOKBOOK by Jenne Bergstrom and Miko Osada, co-creators of the blog 36 Eggs.

Their cookbook is a thoughtful, creative compilation of recipes inspired by the Louisa May Alcott classic. Many of the recipes are as close to period-authentic as possible, a detail I appreciated. Today we’re making their recipe for tiny, crunchy gingerbread cookies called “gingerbread nuts!” In LITTLE WOMEN, Jo shares some with some children who are getting antsy on a long train ride to New York. These cookies are super easy and a bit unique too!

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Kiki’s Hottokeki: Japanese Pancakes from the COOK ANIME Cookbook

Posted September 10, 2020 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book Events and Tours / 0 Comments

 

This post contains affiliate links. For more details, see my legal page.

 

I’ve been a Studio Ghibli junkie for over a decade. Though every single Ghibli film is richly told and gorgeously animated, Kiki’s Delivery Service is one of my all-time favorites. There’s just something about that plucky little witch striking out on her own that captured my heart and never let it go. My preschooler loves it too, so much so that on the morning of his birthday, we watched the movie while eating pancakes—just like Kiki!

Just a few months ago, I learned that one of my favorite food-in-fiction bloggers, Diana Ault, was coming out with an anime-themed cookbook called COOK ANIME. I asked Diana if I could make a recipe from her book for my fiction-themed cookbook post series, and guess what: she said yes AND she told me it had a recipe for Kiki’s pancakes! πŸ˜€

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Hamilton Inspired Shots from BREAK AN EGG: THE BROADWAY COOKBOOK!

Posted August 13, 2020 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book Events and Tours / 2 Comments

 

This post contains affiliate links. For more details, see my legal page.

 

Today I’m starting something new and exciting: a post series devoted to fiction-inspired cookbooks!

If you’re a regular around here, you know all about my cookbook, A LITERARY TEA PARTY, filled with yummy teatime recipes inspired by classic literature. You might also know that my next book, A LITERARY HOLIDAY COOKBOOK, comes out next month! I’m super excited, though I must admit that figuring out how to promote this book during the pandemic as been complicated, since I can’t do my usual in-person author events.

I know lots of other authors who have the same problem, in addition to dealing with the chaos of layoffs from their 9-5 jobs, unexpected homeschooling, and/or working from home. I wanted to find a way we could all promote each others’ books without the worries of social distancing, monetary costs, or a huge time investment. My solution: a virtual author event series, right here on my blog!

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Cookbook Update: Cover Reveal!

Posted May 21, 2020 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book Events and Tours / 2 Comments

 

 

Hi, everybody! I haven’t shared an update on my latest cookbook in a while, mostly because my schedule was just PACKED. Finishing the manuscript, keeping up with my normal blog posts, homeschooling my toddler, and wrangling my 1.5-year-old (a speed demon who likes eating rocks and crayons) took every drop of energy I had. If you follow me on social media, I shared quick updates there regarding manuscript submissions and such when I had a spare minute. But now things have FINALLY slowed down! I get to read, keep a normal sleep schedule, and cook for pure fun again.

Just in time too, because now it’s time to share something BIG. Too important for just a quick twitter post. Folks, WE HAVE A COVER! My publishing team has been tweaking it for several weeks, but the finished copy has finally gone to print so I can safely say this is the official cover. Time for the big reveal!

*** drum roll, please ***

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