Mountains, Cake & Promotion!
In this post, I write about the stunning Carbet Mountains in Martinique, and the Robinson Cake, which I haven’t had yet but am actively seeking.
I also write about my continuing promotional efforts.
Robinson Cake
Martinique
Mountains don’t immediately come to mind when thinking about Caribbean Islands. But the Carbet mountain range is a defining element of Martinique.
Carbet Mountains
I ended up doing a lot of research on mountains. The Carbet ones are a volcanic range. I didn’t know this, but mountains are classified by how they’re formed (fold, volcanic, dome, fault-block — I don’t even know what most of those are), but I did even more research and ‘fold’ is when the teutonic plates collide; it’s the most common form of mountain ranges.
Note that NO research was needed to understand volcanic. I got that right away, and for another interesting story about the volcano that formed the Carbet mountains, see my May 2025 post for the famous eruption of Mount Pelée and the incredible story of the lone survivor.
But I digress. The Carbet range has five key mountain peaks; the tallest is Piton Lacroix (no relation to the club soda), which is about 1,300 yards tall. For perspective, Denver has an elevation of about 1,750 yards, so Lacroix is pretty up there. What I’m trying to say is they’re not just hills.
The Carbet are famous for their lush, tropical scenery, which is not often seen on mountain ranges, and their challenging terrain, which is rich with plant life.
Hiking in these mountains is popular, but the trails are steep, slippery, and muddy. Apparently, folks slip and fall quite a bit. So hiking isn’t for everyone. Certainly not for me.
Anyway, the image of the Carbet mountains is breathtaking…the peaks literally rise from the coastline and soar into the clouds.
From Coast to Clouds
They will definitely be in my 2nd book…
Martinican Culture
Robinson Cake was introduced to the world via a bakery in the capital city of Martinique, Fort-de-France, over 100 years ago.
Full transparency here -- I have never had Robinson Cake, but the description sounds like something I would love! Its foundation is shortcrust pastry; don’t confuse that with shortbread. They’re not the same.
First of all, shortbread is mostly used for cookies, and shortcrust is mostly used for pastry shells, pies and cakes.
Although both are crumbly, shortbread is a more ‘melt-in-your-mouth’ pastry. Shortbread is also sweeter and rich, whereas shortcrust is more savory.
Okay, as I’m writing this, I realize I love shortbread more than shortcrust. But I’ll continue…
Wow, Robinson Cake Looks Amazing
Robinson cake has a crusty base layer, but above that it’s soft and spongy, like pound cake. To top it all off, there’s jam between the two layers. Coconut jam is really popular, but other fruit jams are, too (pineapple, banana, guava, etc.). Supposedly, coconut makes it chewy, whereas the others make it more sweet.
Where the name comes from is a mystery. Some believe a man named William Robinson found an old oven in his father-in-law’s beer department. He used it to bake bread, then opened the Robinson Bakery. That may or may not be true, as the famous cake first appeared in the window of another bakery, the Suréna Pastry Shop. No one knows when this happened, but Suréna was founded in 1906 and is known as the oldest bakery on the island.
Suréna Pastry Shop — maybe they had more windows back then
Don’t ask me why, but I’m going to find a home for the Robinson cake in my next novel.
For now, I’ve got to go…I’m getting hungry just thinking about it.
My World
Okay, I’m back…had a great snack!
Promoting oneself is not easy, and for me, it’s not normal.
But it is demanded of authors these days. Publishers expect you to promote your work AND yourself. And you should want to, if you intend to make writing a career.
…and your work, too
Stop and think about this for a moment. I’m an introvert by nature, and when I was in the corporate world, I was such an awful public speaker that a couple of VPs got together and hired a coach to help me improve. I was that bad. But the coach was good, and he taught me a lot of great points regarding communication. He focused a lot on the ‘how.’
But not so much on the ‘why.’ That was for me to figure out, and I did.
I took a different approach to those speaking engagements. Instead of focusing on blowing my own horn, I focused on sharing the incredible work of my team. I wanted to show senior leadership that my team was fantastic, they knew their market, and had very smart growth strategies.
All of that was true, and the desire to champion their work vs. my own was eye-opening. From that point on, I had no problem with public speaking.
Jump forward to today; I’m taking a similar approach. One epiphany for me was that bringing any book to market is a team effort. I play an important role as the author, but so many others play even more critical roles…
You get the idea
The only difference is the audience. When I’m speaking today, they want to hear about the author’s journey. I understand that, too. I’ve always been fascinated by how folks became authors -- every story is different and compelling.
So I share my story, but in my mind, I know I’m one piece of the puzzle. And that honest perspective helps more than you think.
Recently, here’s some of the promotional work I’ve done:
Zoom Presentations. I recently presented to a book club called the Sleuthsisters. It was a Zoom presentation since they have participants from all over the country. They were wonderful, kind, and encouraging. One of the better experiences I’ve had.
Nice folks…
Book signing. I did one on May 9th, at a Barnes & Noble in Greenville, SC. It was a bit of a drive for me, as I live in Bluffton, SC, but it was tremendous. The customers I met were all avid readers and great conversationalists. The employees were fantastic, too, especially Ashlyn. One employee named Trish actually purchased a signed book. Anyway, they made me feel right at home and were appreciative of the effort put forth. Trust me, I was more appreciative of the opportunity they gave me.
Barnes & Noble, Greenville, SC
Local presentation. While I was actually writing this post, I got a text from my friend, Julie, at a nearby community, asking if I would present at a 2nd book club there. Of course I would!
Bottom line on all this -- I’m available!!