Bits and Pieces

Today I should finish the revision of the MG Fantasy as it stands now. After unanimous verdicts from the editors (Big Time Editors) who saw the earlier version (love the character, love the setting, love the voice, need more story, need the world more fleshed out), my wonderful agent and I decided not only to revise the original portion, but to continue on with what would have been the second book in the series (changing it from a 5-book arc, to a trilogy).

So after putting it off for as long as I could (and indeed, much longer than I should have), I dove in and spent the last month plumping up the first part of the new book (which was the entire old book), and mentally working out what's going to happen in the second part.

  In general, when I finish a book, it's a headlong rush to the end, a rolling down a hill-can't stop sort of thing. This time around, I'm strangely reluctant to finish, and not just because the work is only half done. This MG Fantasy is my 13th book (6 mysteries, 5 knitting books, 1 unpublished mainstream novel), but it's the first fiction that I've written in over 10 years. It's also the only book that I've ever seriously revised- this version, the one that I'm finishing up today, is V4.0. I think I'm not only afraid because I only have the vaguest notion of how to get to where I know this story has to end (nothing new- I always wing it ), but because I truly have no idea if the last two-years of work will ever come to anything, or if this last month made a bit of difference.

But reluctant or not, today I get through to the end of the revisions, and tomorrow I start with new material.

In the meantime...

 I made more jerky- Smoky Beef, Spicy Beef (which isn't kidding around with that spicy stuff), Turkey, and Pork (underneath the pile). I'm still infatuated with dehydrating things, though I've run into an issue with my dehydrator. 5 of the plastic trays (out of 10) have developed serious cracks, despite being treated very gently. Cabela's is sending replacements (quickly and cheerfully), but it is troubling. I have a feeling that the other 5 will go the same way soon.

 This little fellow was hiding behind our air conditioning unit last night. He didn't move when we took the pic, but we didn't dare get close enough to see if he was injured. He was gone this morning, and there were no loose feathers in the vicinity, so I'm hoping he was just resting and has now found his way home.

And I started another 18" doll sweater. This one is for Ladybug Girl. It's modeled on the shape of the Kirsten sweater that I just finished, though there are more stitches. The motif is my own design. Here's the Chart in case you want to play with the design too:

I back stitched the divider line on the bug shell. I may stitch the antennae too. So far, it's been fun to knit.

Well, I've procrastinated long enough- time to get to work. Wish me luck.

Nearly Wordless Jerky- plus words, The Recipe

 5.5lbs, 93/7 Hamburger

 Jerky Shooter

 155 degrees, 5 hours

Mid-way

 3lbs

Yum!

Edited to add some words- The Recipe (we didn't alter the spice amounts for the extra 1/2 lb of meat), courtesy of our friends The Jandels, who use it to make Venison Jerky:

5lb lean ground hamburger (at least 90/10- though we used 93/7 and there was no dripping grease)
1 1/2 tsp Morton's Tender Quick Salt
3 tbsp table salt
2 tsp black pepper
2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp cayenne pepper (we used a 5-pepper spice)
1 1/2 tsp cardamom (we decided that was too much, and will reduce by half next time)
1 tsp marjoram
1 tbsp Accent seasoning
Optional: 1 cup Marinade (we used a locally made sauce, which is not even available here any more. You can sub Soy Sauce, Teryiaki Sauce, Worcestershire Sauce, or any other liquid)(and to be honest, we used 1 2/3 cup, but  the flavor was too strong, so we'll cut back next time.)

Blend the dry spices thoroughly. Mix into the ground meat thoroughly. Add the Marinade, mix thoroughly. Allow to sit in the fridge for at least an hour (overnight is fine too). Form strips directly on dehydrator trays that have been sprayed with Pam.

Optional: Brush strips with diluted Liquid Smoke (mixed 50/50 with water). We opted not to do this since we had added the marinade, which has a strong flavor of its own

 Cook at 155-160 degrees until proper consistency (I turned these about halfway through). Cool and store in vacuum packed bags. Freeze for long-term storage.