Year: 2014

piazza navona – my first novel in review

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The past six months I’ve published, marketed, advertised, revised, played agent, negotiator and more to get my first novel Piazza Navona off the ground. E-book first of course, released November 2013 and in exactly one week, I will have the books available in print. Very exciting of course.  The best part of this process, with lots of downfalls and obstacles, I managed to get the book reviewed by a professional review company and received five out of five stars. I figured I’d share the reviews with you all, since I cannot contain my excitement: Anne-Marie Reynolds for Reader’s Favorite – 5 star rating Piazza Navona had me laughing, crying, and cringing – not at the book itself but at some of the things that happened. Knowing how hard it is to get a first novel off the ground, I applaud M.L. Kilian for succeeding with this one. The characters fit the story line a treat and everything blends together in a mix of romance, sadness, and laughter, a real uplifting voyage of discovery. I can’t wait for …

healthy recipe: sweet potato vegetarian chili

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Oh my God! I drooled when I saw this recipe and immediately ran to the grocery store to get the ingredients to make it. I found it here and well, see for yourself, if you are into healthy eating, curbing all gluten.   Ingredients 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 medium onion, chopped 2 cloves garlic, chipped 2 teaspoons chili powder 2 dried guajillo chiles, deseeded, stemmed & sliced thin (1 for the chile, 1 for the topping) 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar 2 14-oz. cans fire-roasted diced tomatoes 4 cups vegetable broth 1.5 cups cubed sweet potatoes 2 cans of beans – black, red, pinto, or a combo 1 cup chopped kale 1/2 cup corn kernels (frozen is fine) a good squeeze of lime salt, pepper topping options: chopped scallions tortilla strips – toast 10-15 minutes in the oven toasted chiles – toast 1-2 minutes in a 350 oven (or until they curl up) toasted pumpkin seeds diced avocado w/ a squeeze of lime Instructions Heat oil in a medium-large pot over medium heat. Add …

valentine’s day movie picks for 2014

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Every year I compile a list of films I’d love to curl up on the couch and watch on Valentine’s Day (well sometimes even any day) with a bottle of bubbly and chocolate covers strawberries, or apricots, or almonds, or raisins) whatever I crave.  The day, although a celebration of love, is not as meaningful, the older you get and it’s probably best, because the pressure is off and you and your loved one, can be simply content with just being together. Anyway, here are the films for 2014:

prelude to a trip

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I don’t think that excuse “its a Monday” is valid anymore. I’ve been busy nonstop for the past two weeks. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday AND repeat  🙂 – so yesterday a friend of mine kidnapped me for lunch and forced me to step away from the piles of work sitting on my desk, overflowing to the floors around my office and after our delicious tuna sandwiches at Boudin’s – one of my favorite eateries in the city, I insisted we stop off at the Nespresso coffee/flagship store in San Francisco and pretend just for a second we were in Europe. It worked, pumping me up for my upcoming trip abroad – across the pond to be more specific. Just thought I’d share to hold us all over until I can focus on my writings hopefully very soon. {my photo: please ask if you’d like to borrow}          

five friday finds just because

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My mind wanders in different directions, every second of every day. One minute I’m wondering what we’ll have for dinner and the next, I’m writing out in my head an entire plot for my next novel. This is of course in between, juggling finances and functioning just in general. So, I thought it would be fun to share, five finds all in one blog, based on whats going through my head.  Hope you enjoy, if not have a great weekend anyway. Finding the best chocolates for Valentine’s Day – from this list  Healthy Eating Soup Recipe from here   New fast food hot spot in San Francisco – worth trying Watch the 2014 Winter Olympics  How to buy my first novel – click here