Laurel Anne Hill

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Hit-and-Run Extra Eyeball Chowder (by Laurel Anne Hill)

Laurel Anne Hill (author of Heroes Arise) tells an amusing story about boiling fish heads and tails for soup

Boiling fish heads to prepare soup stock has to be one of my least favorite culinary tasks.  A flotilla of eyeballs staring back at me when I lift the cover off my cook pot is gross.  Sure, I strain the broth after I’m finished boiling the heads and tails with celery, onions and herbs.  But my mind refuses to dispel the image of over-cooked, roly poly eyes.  No matter what ingredients I add to the finished broth, the name of the ultimate product has remained unchanged for over fifteen years.  My family calls my creation “roly poly fish head soup.”

Knowing the above, I’m sure you’ll understand my reaction on a recent family fishing trip at Odell Lake in Oregon.  We were trolling for kokanee, (land-locked sockeye salmon) when one family member reeled in his line.  No twelve-inch kokanee was attached to the hook.  Only a very small eyeball.   A fish’s eyeball.  Yuk! 

Poor Mr. Fish.  I really felt sorry for the little guy.  With the usual winged predators foraging for breakfast, survival chances for One-Eye appeared slim.  I felt as though I’d just participated in aquatic hit-and-run.  But I couldn’t exactly find him and administer first aid, now could I.  On the other hand, we had caught a number of scarred fish throughout the years that obviously had survived serious wounds.   Maybe One-Eye might possibly recover, after all.

My family caught ten kokanee that morning, all of them with two eyes apiece.  Our catch for the week totaled seventy.  Or, 70 heads, 70 tails and 140 eyeballs for the soup stock pot.  Yes, only 140 eyeballs.  We tossed the bonus eyeball back into the lake.   Names have a way of sticking in my family.  I wasn’t ready to become the chef of “hit-and-run extra eyeball chowder.”

Happy  Soup du Jour,

Laurel Anne Hill (Author of “Heroes Arise”)  

 

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Northern California Storybook & Literature Festival (from Laurel Anne Hill)

At Maidu Library
Northern California Literature & Storybook Festival

Northern California Storybook & Literature Festival

Saturday, July 31, 2010
10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Free admission & parking
www.roseville.ca.us/LitFest

 Maidu Library & Community Center
1530 Maidu Drive, Roseville, CA 95661

 Enjoy author panels, writing workshops, how to get published information, children’s entertainment and arts & crafts. Books & food available for purchase. Visit the festival website for a complete list of authors and the event schedule.

 This project is supported in whole or in part by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act, administered in California by the State Librarian.

Laurel Anne Hill (Author of “Heroes Arise”) and many other authors will be participating in the Northern California Storybook & Literature Festival on July 31.  At 10:20 am, Laurel will serve as a panelist on the Fiction Panel in the Reception Hall.  At 1 pm, she will lead a writing workshop (Meeting Room 2) about building new worlds and creating compelling characters.  The workshop is for those who write fantasy, science fiction or general fiction. 

Visit Laurel’s website at http://www.laurelannehill.com.

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Road to the River: Research & Rescue in the Library of Congress (Podcast by Laurel Anne Hill)

Laurel Anne Hill
Laurel Anne Hill

Have you ever done research in the U.S. Library of Congress (LOC) or wondered what it might be like?  Have you ever given up your research attempt because you got lost in the LOC tunnel system or ran out of time?  Whether you answer these questions with a “yes” or a “no,” you’ll probably enjoy my light-hearted description of my foray to the Library of Congress in 2005.  You might even try writing for therapeutic purposes the way I have.

My true story lasts approximately 10-1/2 minutes and is titled “Road to the River: Research and Rescue in the Library of Congress.”  To reach my podcast site, go to my website at http://www.laurelannehill.com and click on the podcast button.  My podcast recordings also are available on iTunes.

Enjoy!

Laurel Anne Hill
Author of “Heroes Arise”
http://www.laurelannehill.com

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San Mateo County Fair/June 12: Writing Workshop (by Laurel Anne Hill) & Paramount Laser Spectacular’s Tribute to Michael Jackson

Laurel Anne Hill

Building New Worlds and Creating Compelling Characters: 
Writing Fantasy and Science Fiction (and general fiction, too)
June 12, 2010, San Mateo Events Center, Fiesta Building 2:30 – 3:30 pm

Are you writing or planning to write a short story or novel?  One filled with magic and dragons?  Steam-driven airships?  Adventures on distant planets?  Maybe even a  vampire romance?  If so, this workshop is for you.  Hey, even if your story is based in the “real world,” this workshop is for you. 

And what a deal!  Buy a June 12th pass ($10 for adults; discounts at COSTCO), attend my 2:30 workshop at no extra charge, then stroll around the fairgrounds until the tribute to Michael Jackson at 7:30 pm. 

Yes, I mentioned Michael Jackson.  A sure favorite this year is Paramount Laser Spectacular’s Tribute to Michael Jackson, an amazing multi?media experience spanning his forty?year career.  The show takes the audience on a visual journey highlighted with a stunning live performance featured in a ghost?like atmosphere,  with lasers and special effects.  Through the use of animated laser graphics, laser beams and aerials, the lights and lasers re?create images of Jackson with 3?D holographic effects.  The audience will be taken on a sonic journey through Jackson’s greatest hits by confronting the senses with an array of glowing visual displays and music.

So come learn about writing fantasy and science fiction, then experience a special effects fantasy. 

Building New Worlds and Compelling Characters Workshop  by Laurel Anne Hill (Author of “Heroes Arise”)
Fine Arts Stage in the Fiesta Building
Saturday, June 12, 2:30 – 3:30 pm
San Mateo County Events Center, 2495 S. Delaware Street, San Mateo, CA
(2 blocks from El Camino Real Blvd. at the end of 25th Street) 

 The San Mateo County Fair is about more that cows and carnival rides!
Check out their website at https://www.sanmateocountyfair.com
Their literary program listings are at https://www.sanmateocountyfair.com/entertainment/fine-arts-stage

And visit the website of Laurel Anne Hill at http://www.laurelannehill.com

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Building New Worlds and Creating Compelling Characters (by Laurel Anne Hill)

Building New Worlds and Creating Compelling Characters:  Writing Fantasy and Science Fiction

Presentation by Laurel Anne Hill
Author and Former Underground Storage Tank Operator

San Mateo County Fair, June 12, 2010, 2:30-3:30 pm
Events Center, 2495 S. Delaware Street, San Mateo, CA
(2 blocks from El Camino Real Blvd. at the end of 25th Street) 

As writers of fiction, we create story worlds and populate them with characters.  Whether we write science fiction, fantasy, mystery or general fiction, our story worlds should make sense and follow applicable rules.   Our main characters should be compelling and sympathetic.  In this workshop, Laurel Anne Hill will share her world building and writing expertise with an emphasis on fantasy and science fiction.   

Laurel grew up in San Francisco, with more dreams of adventure than good sense or money.  Her close brushes with death, love of family, respect for honor and belief in a higher power continue to influence her writing and life.  In 2007, KOMENAR Publishing released Laurel’s award-winning novel, Heroes Arise.  Laurel’s short stories and narrative nonfiction have appeared in a variety of publications during the past 15 years.  She lives in California with her husband, David, and their affectionate 100-pound werewolf.  Visit Laurel’s website at http://www.laurelannehill.com.     

 The San Mateo County Fair is about more that cows and carnival rides!
Check out their website at https://www.sanmateocountyfair.com