Signing at Changing Hands
TONIGHT IS THE NIGHT. At 7pm if I survive the drive into Phoenix, you will find me at the Changing Hands on Camelback Road. You can buy copies of my books, listen to me read a little bit from Crown, and indulge in delicious goodies.
So what is on the menu?
I’m so glad you telepathically asked that question! If all goes well in the kitchen, I plan to serve:
– gluten free caramel brownies
– churro Chex mix
– maple pecan tartlets
The Phoenix Changing Hands is also home to the First Draft Book Bar, so you can buy beer or wine, too!
If you’re in the area, I hope you’re able to come by. I’ll be happy to sign Kindle covers, lunar rocks, and books brought to or bought at Changing Hands.
Read MoreSunday Quote sends out Happy Father’s Day wishes
Read More“Sometimes, people who read my work tell me, ‘I like it, but it’s not really science fiction, is it?’ And I always feel like, no, actually, my work is exactly science fiction.”
~ Ted Chiang
This is from a fascinating interview with Mr. Chiang, which can be read here.
Churromancy and More
The promotional blitz is slowing down (thank goodness!) but I was still making rounds this week.
Just a reminder: next Monday is my book release event at Changing Hands in Phoenix! I’ll be serving up goodies (gluten-free included) and steampunk (maybe gluten-free too?). My parents will even be there, which makes it all extra cool.
Steampunk, Tacos, and Final Fantasy: An Interview with Beth Cato, at the Barnes & Noble SFF Blog
Why the Healer deserves to be a Hero: Podcast Interview with Sword and Laser. Also on BoingBoing.
Interview with Author and Steampunk Enthusiast Beth Cato at Between the Blurb.
Publicity and Parenting at Spencer Ellsworth’s Blog
More Books!
I’m ecstatic to announce my new book deal with Harper Voyager! This means I’ll have books coming out through 2017!
“Beth Cato’s BREATH OF EARTH, set against the backdrop of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, the first in a steampunk series about a geomancer who channels seismic energy in an alternate history filled with conspiracy, war, brilliant inventions and fantastical creatures, to Kelly O’Connor at Voyager, in a two-book deal, by Rebecca Strauss at DeFiore and Company.”
Some of you from LiveJournal will remember when I wrote Breath of Earth two years ago. I’ll have revisions on the novel soon and after that… I write another book! This will be a busy year.
Bready or Not: Chocolate Cream Cheese Pound Cake
CAKE MONTH continues as I celebrate the release of The Clockwork Crown!
Today’s offering is Chocolate Cream Cheese Pound Cake. It’s everything you would expect a typical loaf pound cake to be: soft, tender, and delicious.
It manages to be rich and chocolatey without being tooth-achingly sweet (like, ahem, the Tunnel of Fudge cake recently posted).
This is the kind of cake that would be lovely for breakfast or brunch with fruit, or dessertified with a few scoops of ice cream and a drizzle of caramel.
When I baked this, I followed the original directions too closely and overbaked the cake slightly. The top (which is the bottom once it’s flipped over) became kinda crunchy, though still delicious. Therefore, I recommend that you start checking this at the hour point. If it starts developing deep cracks and is firm to the touch, it’s likely done.
The cake keeps fantastically for many days if it’s wrapped and kept in the fridge. I imagine it would also work well sliced and frozen, too.
Modified from Bake or Break.
Bready or Not: Chocolate Cream Cheese Pound Cake
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter 2 sticks, softened
- 8 ounces cream cheese 1 box, softened
- 3 cups white sugar
- 6 large eggs room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 1/4 cups cake flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder sifted
- 1 cup chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325-degrees. Grease or spray a 10-inch Bundt pan.
- Beat butter, cream cheese, and sugar until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each, followed by vanilla extract.
- In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and cocoa. Slowly incorporate the dry ingredients with the butter mixture and beat well for about 2 minutes.
- Pour batter into prepared Bundt pan. Bake for 1 hour and test with a toothpick; the top will start to crack and will quickly get crispy when it's done.
- Cake keeps upward of a week if kept wrapped in the fridge.
- OM NOM NOM!
