Appealing powerfully and consistently to people’s senses is a hallmark, I’d suggest, of lasting fictions. In the realm of imaginative long form fiction, George R.R. Martin’s descriptions of dishes have inspired fans to acts of culinary alchemy. As a child, I was fascinated by the descriptions of lembas bread in LOTR, and even as an adult who rarely drinks, J.K. Rowling’s butter beer sounds mighty tasty.

Over the past few days, while I’ve been maintaining radio silence on this blog, I’ve been doing nothing. Okay, well, I took one day where I did nothing even slightly productive, but then I followed it up with two days focused on stinking up the place. By which I mean editing the manuscript with a keen eye (and nose, etc) on the sensory clues and cues I’m offering.

Turns out switching from fish people to frog people created an interesting challenge. What, exactly, does a toad smell like?

Fortunately, the Internet always has an answer, even if the source might seem a little half-baked.