The Book

Into the dark

When the darkness is home to malevolent fae, ghosts, and goblins, it’s best to push it back until the sun rises again.

By Chilli Pepper

Early in his escapades, the protagonist in my novel hires a cook from Bombay, now known as Mumbai, who has been enjoying a short holiday in Calton Prison owing to friction after his cooking disagreed with his employer’s digestion. Dean Mahomed opened the first restaurant dedicated to serving Indian

A Cup of Dutch Coffee

Long before my story begins, the Dutch were a maritime power with trading concerns taking them all over the world. Those of you who value your morning cup of coffee know no matter how brightly the sun shines, there’s a pall on the day that doesn’t begin with

A Second Draft

Yesterday I emailed eight lovely humans inviting them to read and provide feedback on the second draft my novel. This is critical for me, because humans represent the core demographic I’m targeting with this novel. I tested my teaser on each of our cats: James is overdue delivering his

Annotating a manuscript

I’m about half-way complete with the second draft of my work in progress. I’ve worked all the notes from the first draft into this draft, and although I found it more complicated than necessary, I generated an ePub from the manuscript which I loaded onto my iPad.

History or Fiction

I love a good historical fiction novel. There’s nothing better than feeling the sense of place long gone, getting to know people who strode this planet long before I did, all while reading a captivating tale. I still recall reading a book that took place in the thirteenth century,

A New Town

As the population of Edinburgh expanded within the picturesque medieval city, well-travelled Britons and immigrants expected more from their capital. As the Enlightenment dawned, wealthy and middle-class residents were no longer satisfied living cheek-by-jowl with the poor. Nor did they relish walking through streets literally flowing

Old Town Edinburgh

Although today it has as many tourists as rats, Old Town caught my attention the moment I started researching Edinburgh. As you explore Old Town — or in my case, get lost — it’s not uncommon to walk past what appear to be four-story buildings built in the sixteen or

How it began

We moved to Edinburgh from Seattle in September 2024 and settled into a lovely Georgian townhouse on Danube Street in Stockbridge. Eventually, a forty-foot long shipping container would arrive with everything we owned. But for a short while, Caitlin, I, and our five cats spread out over three stories

Mining the broadsides

Until the middle of the nineteenth century, the lucky literate few got their news, gossip, and entertainment from broadsides. Publishers printed these large, single sheets of cheap paper on only one side, perfect for spreading flat or tacking up in public places, and then throwing away. Just as the Internet