Tuesday 19 February 2013

Heart of Glass Magazine Reviews Being Isobel

Hi!

I received a message on Twitter yesterday from Heart of Glass magazine letting me know that they reviewed by novel, Being Isobel.  It's always great to hear what readers think about my stories and it's even better when they take the time to post reviews.

As a self published author it's very challenging trying to reach your audience.  As a reader I appreciate the risk taking a chance on an unknown author, which is one of the reasons I made Being Isobel a free download.  Reviews are immensely helpful in spreading the word and I was thrilled when I read Victoria McDonagh's excellent review.

I was very pleased that she completely got the point of the book and I almost laughed out loud when she said that 'Tracy’s doubt is more convincing than Anastasia Steele’s.'  Yes, I've read that book and I suppose it did partly inspire me to write Being Isobel but I wanted Tracey to be a little more realistic than the wishy-washy Ana.

Anywhere here is a link to the review:

Heart of Glass Magazine - Being Isobel

Enjoy!

Clair

Thursday 14 February 2013

5 Star Reviews :)

Hi!

I'm grinning like a mad thing right now.  It's been 20 days since I published Being Isobel for free on Smashwords and it's had over 500 downloads!  That is totally amazing considering I'm an unknown author with no budget for advertising or promotion.

Best of all Being Isobel has received no less than six five star reviews :D  I'm so pleased that people are enjoying my story.  Here's what they had to say:




"awesome book!!" 
Nanette

"Great read! Tracey is very real and while the story is a bit far out at times it was very enjoyable. Thanks!"
Ruby

"Great story! More down to earth, than some romance novels"
Claus

"A Must Read! This book was wonderful!! I was very impressed with the author's ability to gain the reader's sympathy. Tracy is a wonderful character! Can't wait to read more of her work!!"
Brittany

"A bit fanciful but very enjoyable!"
hrhsophia

"wow.. loved it.. highly recommended"
holy angel



If you haven't already got your copy you can download it for free from Smashwords.  It's available in all major formats for Kindle, iPhone, iPad, Nook, Kobo, Sony Reader etc.  


Download Being Isobel for free!


Thank you!  Enjoy!

Clair

Monday 4 February 2013

The best cupcakes in the world!

Hi!

When I'm not busy writing one of my favourite things to do is baking cupcakes.  There is just something about them, the taste of cake mix, the smell as they bake and then chosing which sprinkles to use to decorate the icing.  I do a lot of baking with my kids but I can be a bit of a control freak so it's nice to be able to bake on my own sometimes.

My friends have asked me what my secret recipe is.  To be honest I don't have one!  I just make ordinary cupcakes from the recipe my mum taught me as a kid.  4oz of flour, sugar and butter, and a beaten egg.

As part of a health drive I have started using wheat free flour and dairy free margarine in my cupcakes and they taste pretty damn good so I thought I'd share my recipe.

Clair's Wheat and Dairy Free Organic Chocolate Cupcakes (Makes 12)

120g Doves Farm Organic Wheat Free self raising flour
120g caster sugar
120g Pure sunflower margarine
1 medium free range egg, beaten
2 tablespoons Green and Blacks Organic Cocoa

Chocolate Icing
60g Pure Sunflower margarine
175g Icing sugar
1 tablespoon Green and Blacks Organic Cocoa

Preheat oven to 180C/350F/Gas Mark 4

Mix the caster sugar and margarine until light and fluffy.  Add the beaten egg and beat well.  Sift in the flour and cocoa and carefully fold into the mixture.

Line a muffin tray with paper cupcake cases and divide the mixture equally between them.  Bake in the oven for about 15-17 minutes.  Remove the cupcakes from the muffin tray and allow to cool on a wire rack.

For the icing:  blend the margarine and icing sugar until smooth.  Divide the mixture into 2 bowls and add the cocoa to one bowl, mixing well.  Using a Wiltons 1M nozzle, fill a piping bag with the the plain and chocolate frosting and pipe swirls on top of the cupcakes.

Enjoy!