Food blogging

Do Women Writers Have a “Confidence Gap?”

July 1, 2014 by diannejacob 44 Comments

Are you as confident as this guy? According to most surveys, probably not.

Well duh. Of course we do. Since it’s mostly women who read my blog, I feel we can talk amongst ourselves. So just between us, when I read this article about our lack of confidence, I felt a blush of familiarity.

“The Confidence Gap” posits that there’s another reason why women are not breaking the glass ceiling, besides the tug of motherhood and entrenched sexism. It’s our confidence level.

That’s so us.

As a speaker, teacher and coach, I see this “confidence gap” with women clients, female students, and at conference sessions full of [Read more…] about Do Women Writers Have a “Confidence Gap?”

7 Outrageous Requests of a Food Blogger

May 27, 2014 by diannejacob 94 Comments

A well-known food blogger loves to forward outrageous requests from food companies to me. I’ve kept them them in a file, until now, when I got her permission to share them.

As you know from the countless emails you delete, food companies want product coverage from bloggers. Nothing wrong with that, of course. It’s just the way [Read more…] about 7 Outrageous Requests of a Food Blogger

Are Restaurant Bloggers Still Relevant?

May 13, 2014 by diannejacob 56 Comments

I know restaurant bloggers still exist, but I can barely find them.

I’m not the only one. The annual Saveur Best Food Blog awards doesn’t even list “restaurant blogs” as a category.

Sure, there are people who write reviews for websites such as Tasting Table and urbanspoon.com. But it seems that there are [Read more…] about Are Restaurant Bloggers Still Relevant?

What Kind of Writing Wins a Beard Award?

May 6, 2014 by diannejacob 36 Comments

What I like about The James Beard awards, called “the Oscars of food writing,” is that I can find most of the journalism award-winning pieces online.

I want to soak up their brilliance. I also know I will be a little envious. That’s okay. Reading them gives me ideas for my own writing.

These essays will make you laugh, amaze you, make you nod in recognition, make you outraged — all emotions generated by skilled writers (and their editors). They are worth my time, and yours.

Just so you know, judges can only judge the entries. We don’t go out and look for work that might win. So if you don’t enter, you can’t win. (I am a book judge and a [Read more…] about What Kind of Writing Wins a Beard Award?

Bloggers Behaving Badly

April 22, 2014 by diannejacob 94 Comments

At a recent conference, I persuaded an executive to give me some dirt about working with food bloggers, as long as he could do so anonymously.

He’s been in the food business for 30 years, working for large food manufacturers, a worldwide commodity board, and a dried fruit company. Now he’s a consultant to six food companies, supplying post-ready recipes to bloggers, and inviting them on tours and to attend trade shows as media.

He might take 80 bloggers on a four-day tour on behalf of a company or board, for example. In addition to their expenses, he pays bloggers [Read more…] about Bloggers Behaving Badly

12 Super-Useful Links for Food Writers and Bloggers

April 15, 2014 by diannejacob 22 Comments

Champagne chocolates on display at Dean & DeLuca.

It’s time again for my list of useful links, which I have culled from dozens more to find the most valuable ones for you. As always, they are excerpted from my recent quarterly newsletter. If you’d like to receive the entire list of links next time, sign up to receive my four newsletters per year. Now, on to the goods:

1. How Much Should I Charge? Part 1 and Part 2, from the Food Bloggers of Canada website, details all the issues to consider, particularly in Part 2.

2. Publishers Weekly did a good webcast recently about selling single subject cookbooks in unusual places.

3. What does a successful food stylist do? Check out [Read more…] about 12 Super-Useful Links for Food Writers and Bloggers