Dianne Jacob, Will Write For Food

Useful Tips, Interviews, and Stories to Inspire Food Writers and Bloggers

writing a cookbook

5 Editor Pet Peeves About Cookbook Manuscripts

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editor pet peeves imageA guest post by Jennifer Kurdyia

Every editor is different, but as a cookbook editor for The Experiment Publishing, I’ve read enough proposals and cookbook drafts to have developed a few editor pet peeves. I know where the most common shortcomings among my writers lie.  

Avoiding them requires a simple but challenging mindset that most first-time writers wouldn’t ever consider: You are teaching people how to cook. Pretend they know nothing about cooking, let alone have made your recipes as many times as you have. As soon as you accept that, your editor will open your email not with butterflies in her stomach, but with a grumble, hungering for what’s inside. [Read more…] about 5 Editor Pet Peeves About Cookbook Manuscripts

What I Learned Writing a Cookbook as a Late Bloomer

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A guest post by Sara Bir

My whole life I’ve dreamed of writing a cookbook. But even with formal culinary chops and years of experience as a writer, it seemed like no one in the publishing industry took me seriously. So I guess you could say I’m a late bloomer.

It probably didn’t help that my two previous book proposals were hardly mainstream. There was my idea for The Great Big Book of Hot Dogs, which I envisioned as a lavish cultural history of hot dogs; and The Pocket Pawpaw Cookbook, a book with nothing but pawpaw recipes. Do you even know what pawpaws are? Most people don’t. [Read more…] about What I Learned Writing a Cookbook as a Late Bloomer

So Many Ways to Organize A Cookbook

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Worst table of contents ever. And it's a famous cookbook. Anyone know which one?

Worst. Table of contents. Ever. And it’s from a famous cookbook. Anyone know which one?

Have you decided how to organize your cookbook?

Well, I hope you’re more creative — and forthcoming–  than this table of contents above. Recently I worked through five drafts of a [Read more…] about So Many Ways to Organize A Cookbook

Should You Co-Write a Book? 7 Tips to Help You Decide

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A guest post by Casey Barber

casey barber headshot 500px

Food writer Casey Barber wrote a few of her own cookbooks before exploring a co-writing opportunity. She interviews successful co-writers for this post.

It can feel overwhelming to take on a solo cookbook project versus co-writing one. You’ve got to hit on the right topic. You write and rewrite a proposal. You invest in a year or more of your life in the result.

Why not consider co-writing or ghostwriting instead? As a co-writer, I can vouch that it’s a refreshing change of pace. I like to dive into someone else’s world and work alongside a professional who’s not a writer.

Besides, “It’s crucial to have a writing pro at the chef’s side,”  says Dorothy Kalins. A former Saveur and Newsweek editor, Kalins has worked with [Read more…] about Should You Co-Write a Book? 7 Tips to Help You Decide

5 Things I Learned From Selling Almost 300,000 Cookbooks

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mjoulwan_wellfed

Melissa Joulwan has sold almost 300,000 copies of her two self-published paleo cookbooks. Her newest cookbook, WellFed Weeknights, debuts in November.

A guest post by Melissa Joulwan

Five years ago, my husband Dave and I decided to self publish our first cookbook, Well Fed. We had only the vaguest idea of what we were getting ourselves into. I’d written a previous book for a major publisher and didn’t enjoy the experience, so we knew what we didn’t want. But we were naïve about all the steps it would take to move our book from “great idea” to retail bookshelves and bestseller status.

Since then, we’ve released Well Fed 2, and sold almost 300,000 copies of both books. We’re about to launch our third book, Well Fed Weeknights. I’ve learned it’s wildly rewarding to [Read more…] about 5 Things I Learned From Selling Almost 300,000 Cookbooks

Cookbook Giveaway: Deliciously Organic

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If you made a New Year’s resolution to avoid white flour, white sugar and other processed foods, Deliciously Organic is the cookbook for you.

Modeled after Carrie Vitt’s blog of the same name, with pretty photographs by blogger Helene Dujardin, her book shows you how to prepare healthy, wholesome dishes without sacrificing taste.

Carrie asked me to edit the recipes for the book. At first, I was dubious about organic recipes, thinking that they wouldn’t be too different from regular ones, except the ingredients would all say “organic.”

But that misconception downplays the mouthwatering recipes and new (to me) cooking techniques and ingredients in the book. Even though I buy mostly organic products, I learned new things, such as [Read more…] about Cookbook Giveaway: Deliciously Organic

Want to Write a Cookbook? Top Editors Reveal Best Subjects and Formats

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This past weekend two cookbook editors from Chronicle and Ten Speed told an audience at Book Passage bookstore in Corte Madera, CA what they’re looking for in a cookbook. I thought you might like to know.

One of Chronicle Book’s biggest sellers.

Let’s start with Amy Treadwell, an editor at Chronicle Books. She’d love to find another book that will do as well as Cupcakes! by Elinor Klivans, which has sold more than 100,000 copies. That book led to more cupcake-based products: the Cupcake Kit and Cupcakes Deluxe Notecards.

Treadwell said she’s looking for three things:

  1. Cookbooks that tell a story, versus just a collection of recipes. She gave the upcoming The Commonsense Kitchen: 500 Recipes Plus Lessons for a Hand-Crafted Life as an example. It’s based on a college that teaches men to cook.
  2. Targeted single subject books, such as the one on Whoopie Pies she co-wrote in six months to capitalize on a trend.
  3. Blog-to-books such as the upcoming [Read more…] about Want to Write a Cookbook? Top Editors Reveal Best Subjects and Formats