10 diverse women pose as Rosie the Riveter photos by Ilana Spiegel

Thank You Courtney Milan – Representation is Our Job

Karin Kallmaker Craft of Writing, My Lady Lipstick, Sisters of the Pen 1 Comment

ON THE PAGE

Reading is an Act of Empathy

There’s even science that backs this up: People who read are more readily empathetic about people who don’t live the way they do. As Elizabeth Anderson told me in a recent radio interview, reading allows us to know people.

Because of reading I have strong empathy for little girls who grow up on prairies and all the challenges they fictionally face. However, I didn’t get much empathy for the people who lived on that prairie before the family arrived. For the most part, their authentic story wasn’t told, not by anyone. As a child, I had no way to know that these untold stories even existed. Read More

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Love is Magic is Love – How “Unbeliever” Came to Be

Karin Kallmaker Book News, Unbeliever 2 Comments

The mental photograph: mysterious book, a few mumbled words, and presto. Naked woman appears out of nowhere. And she’s really angry about it.

That’s how stories begin in my head – a sketch of a moment or a glimpse of an idea. A situation that needs to complete.

Unbeliever began as a project featuring sizzling, magic-based love stories. My heroine would stumble into magic – and into the arms of love. When I decided I wanted Unbeliever out in the world on its own, I added the subtitle Love is Magic is Love. At its simplest, that’s exactly what Unbeliever is. Read More

Karin's superpower - knows where the chocolate is

Sommelier of Chocolate – Ask the Right Questions

Karin Kallmaker Cheers & Chocolate 4 Comments

milk chocolate bordeaux by sees
More than once I’ve been asked how to find a good chocolate. I don’t know why people think I would know, but I usually ask a question or two, or three, and use their answers to send them the right direction. After all, procurement is a matter requiring analysis of palate, allowances for shipping temperatures, humidity and due consideration of personal tastes.

You might also want to check out It’s All Good, my blog about buying great chocolate on a budget. Read More

no in comic book style bubble

Lacking in Graciousness and Generosity? So Be It.

Karin Kallmaker Business of Books 7 Comments

ON THE PAGE

Nothing New Under the Sun

1/17/2018 Update: It’s hard to believe I wrote this blog going on nine years ago. Not only do I still get requests like the one below from New Acme, it’s gotten worse. Now it’s a continuous stream of offers to “crowd promote” and “create viral visibility” through a mailing-funnel-follower-stream a.k.a. unicorn dust magic a.k.a. trendy sounding method that has zero proof-of-concept. Read More

cherry chocolate oatmeal cookies recipe Karin Kallmaker

Cheery Cherry Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies

Karin Kallmaker Cheers & Chocolate, Favorite Things 6 Comments

ON THE PAGE

I don’t do recipe blogs often, okay, this is only the second one ever. (Here’s the first, Brine for Thanksgiving Turkey.) I usually save a great recipe for use in a book, but oatmeal cookies with cherry and dark chocolate is a winning combination I find irresistible. All the good things in life: Oats, brown sugar and butter, with bright pops of cherry and melting not-quite-bitter dark chocolate. Read More