Sunday, February 19, 2012

Research: It's a tough job but someone's got to do it

Right now I've been working on a proposal for a sequel to my upcoming YA fantasy NO GODDESSES ALLOWED.  I always thought this would be a cute, fun YA series.  And it looks like my publisher does too!  Yay!

A little about my main character Jordan: she's fifteen and loves vintage clothing, Audrey Hepburn, and romance!

Jordan will have another run-in with a Goddess of Love and I wanted to have a different setting for the second book that reflects the feel of this series.

So what perfect place for Jordan to visit but the city of romance:

Paris!















Now I haven't been to Paris...yet, that is but my niece Shaundra has been there.  She's going to share some of her experiences which I thought will be perfect for Jordan.

I also was able to get a galley of a memoir from Sourcebooks:
















This is a memoir of a woman who lives in Paris and ends up having a love affair with not only the city but the food.  I decided to Google the recommended places and sweets.














Macarons from Pierre Herme.













Le cookie au chocolat made with Valrhona chocolate and toasted pecans from Eric Kayser

Madeleines from Fabrice:

















Almond croissant from Boulangerie Julien



Oh, and Jordan has to go to Angelina for chocolat chaud


Now I just need to find my own local French bakery and sample some of the sweets for myself.  Like I mentioned before, research is a tough job but someone's got to do it!

I  think Audrey Hepburn would approve, don't you?


















7 comments:

  1. Cute post, and a good idea! have fun sampling French pastry!

    ReplyDelete
  2. My daughter's been wanting to go to Paris for the longest. I wonder when she gets there if she'll take me with her.

    ReplyDelete
  3. This post makes me want to go back to Paris. I was there a long time ago, but the taste of the pastries never leaves you. Thank you for bringing them back to me with this post. Oh, and I absolutely love Audrey Hepburn! Now I have to read your first book to learn all about your character.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Been a long time since I've been to Paris as well. The trip was so quick that the only thing I remember about it is my father ordering "frogs' legs" for dinner one night at the hotel restaurant. Granted I was only 8 or 9 at the time and that was a long, long, long time ago but my father enjoyed his frogs' legs and Escargot (for you non-French persons, yes, that's snails - lol).

    Research can always be fun especially when it involves romantic places like Paris and chocolate - yum yum - lol. Good luck with it - E :)

    Elysabeth Eldering
    Author of Finally Home, a YA paranormal mystery
    "The Proposal" (an April Fools Day story), a humorous romance ebook
    "The Tulip Kiss", a paranormal romance ebook
    "Bride-and-Seek", a paranormal romance ebook
    http://elysabethsstories.blogspot.com
    http://eeldering.weebly.com

    ReplyDelete
  5. Now that's the kind of research I could love. Yummy.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Those are dangerous pictures to flash at a foodie! Thanks for sharing and good luck with all the nibbling, er, research!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Thanks for the posts, everyone! Yes, researching this part of France has made me very hungry for any Parisian sweet!

    Ahhh, too bad all research can't be this tasty!

    ReplyDelete