Dear Readers,
Whether you’re spending this Christmas surrounded by friends and family or are reflecting on the holiday in solitude, we would love to wish you a wonderful Christmas–one that is full of all the beauty and blessings of the season.
Merry Christmas,
Sarah & Daytona
How to use Daily Writers’ Fix
Sight
Wherever you are right now, look up. Write about what you see.
Smell
It’s dusk. A bat jets out from under the bridge, then flies back under it, as the water rushes by in the creek. What scent does your imagination conjure up? What trail does that smell take you on? Maybe under the bridge? Or perhaps to one of the buildings in the background? What is happening there?
Sound
Road trip soundtrack
Touch
Special dinners should be sensual, employing taste, of course, but also sight, smell, hearing, and touch. Think back to your most recent special night out. Document it using the sense of touch. If you like where your vignette is taking you, explore the same subject with each of the other senses as well.
Taste
Coffee, shortbread, chai–what do you order when visiting your local coffeeshop? If you’re writing from home today, do you have any treats stashed in your cupboard that could help replicate part of the coffeeshop experience while you finish off your week of writing from your desk at home?
Photos are all original. Some have been used on Daytona’s other blogs.
Christmas is less than two weeks away! With Thanksgiving falling early in the calender this year, it seemed like we had an extended time in which to savor all the wonderful things about the holiday season. But, at least for me, the weeks have gone by so rapidly that I’m amazed that it’s already mid-December. If you, like me, are still looking for the perfect gift for friends and family, don’t worry–we have more ideas to share with you soon! In the meantime, here’s a roundup of some great DIY edible Christmas gifts from our archive. Enjoy!
 Homemade Marshmallows and Hot Cocoa
I don’t know about you, but yesterday I took a break from NaNoWriMo and filled my time with family, friends and delicious Thanksgiving festivities. Now, still full from yesterday, I’m sitting here in a food coma and the words just aren’t coming. What are some tricks you use to get back into your writing groove after a holiday break?
Congratulations to Lauren Van Mullem of the WanderFood blog over at Wanderlust & Lipstick! She is the winner of our giveaway of “My Berlin Kitchen,” the just-released memoir by The Wednesday Chef blogger, Luisa Weiss. Lauren, I’ll be shipping your book this week. I hope you enjoy it!
As for the rest of you, we hope to be doing more giveaways in the future, so be sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, or RSS so you can find out about them. In the meantime, Lauren happens to be doing her own giveaway over at WanderFood–the winner receives a copy of Lonely Planet’s “The World’s Best Street Food – Where to Find it & How to Make it.” Head on over to her site before 11:59pm PST on Sunday, September 23, to enter to win!
My fellow foodies and bloggers will be excited to note that Luisa Weiss of The Wednesday Chef is coming to Seattle this month in support of her new memoir, My Berlin Kitchen. In advance of the appearance at University Bookstore on September 24, we’re giving away a copy of the book, courtesy of the publisher.
Weiss started The Wednesday Chef back in 2005. She was working as a cookbook editor at the time, and decided to start a blog as a way to document the stack of newspaper recipe clippings she was cooking her way through. Today The Wednesday Chef is one of the most popular and admired food blogs out there, and her followers waited anxiously for My Berlin Kitchen to be released yesterday.
I’ve only had a chance to read the introduction and first chapter so far, but already I’m enjoying Weiss’ tone and her honesty and vulnerability as she digs into her personal history and shares with readers how the kitchen has always been a haven and a place of comfort and reflection. I can’t wait to keep reading later tonight…
In the meantime, I’m excited to be able to give away a copy of the book. There are several ways to enter:
1. Leave a comment on this post telling us about a favorite recipe from your past.
2. Follow us on Facebook (leave a comment here letting us know)
3. Follow us on Twitter (again, leave a comment)
4. Sign up for our RSS feed (yes, leave a comment)
The giveaway ends on Tuesday, September 18, at 11:59 pm PT. We’ll pick a winner at random and ship the book off to you. Please note that we can only ship to addresses in the United States.
