Everything Cookbooks

To close out Season Five and celebrate 100(!) episodes, we're sharing some advice, tips and ideas from our listeners for our listeners. Molly, Andrea, Kate and Kristin discuss some of the terrific insights that our listeners have submitted to help aspiring cookbook authors and share their own thoughts on topics like: writing classes, caring the most for your project, the inevitable "dip" in the process, headnote workflow, photography ROI, self-editing and two-book deals.

Thanks so much for joining us for 100 episodes! We'll be back with Season 6 soon!

Hosts: Kate Leahy + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly + Andrea Nguyen

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Mentions

Episode 29: Finding Your Voice with Tori Ritchie

Episode 15: Will Write for Food with Dianne Jacob

Episode 02: Do You Need a Cookbook Agent?

Episode 82: Craft Books for Cookbook Writers

Episode 01: Should You Write a Cookbook?

Episode 18: Pro Tips from Cookbook Critic Paula Forbes

Episode 88: On Being a First-Time Cookbook Author with Michelle Braxton

Episode 69: Writing a Menu Cookbook with Amy Thielen

Episode 94: Insights from Literary Agent Lori Galvin

Episode 27: When Less is More: Ali Slagle on the Art of Short Recipes

Episode 63: On Rejection and Recovery

Episode 93: The Secret of Cooking with Bee Wilson

Visit the Everything Cookbooks Bookshop to purchase a copy of the books mentioned in the show

Molly and Kate speak with two members of the cookbook indexing website Eat Your Books team; Jane Kelly, co-founder and CEO and Jenny Hartin, Director of Publicity. Jane shares where she got the idea to create the website, the way it works and how its grown since its inception with now over 2.5 million recipes indexed. We learn how vital the community experience of the site is and ways authors can use the site in their own work. Jenny talks about the various indexing issues that can arise, the benefits to the manual process, how she chooses which of the myriad of releases to highlight and a peek into the EYB/publisher relationship. They both share how this is still a passion of theirs, what books they've been cooking from lately and the titles they are excited about this fall. Stick around for an exclusive promo code for EVCB listeners to try out Eat Your Books for themselves!

Hosts: Kate Leahy + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly + Andrea Nguyen

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Mentions

Eat Your Books website

2024 Cookbook Releases
 

Visit the Everything Cookbooks Bookshop to purchase a copy of the books mentioned in the show

Recipe Tin Eats by Nagi Maehashi

A Thousand Feasts by Nigel Slater

Mooncakes and Milk Bread by Kristina Cho

Open Wide by Benny Blanco

Desi Bakes by Hetal Vasavada

Cook Simply, Live Fully by Yasmin Fahr

Ottolenghi Comfort by Yotam Ottolenghi

Chicano Bakes by Esteban Castillo

Bodega Bakes by Paola Velez

Milk and Cardamom by Hetal Vasavada

Kate and Andrea chat with Singapore based cookbook author Chris Tan about his new book, Nerd Baker 2 and his publishing process. He shares why he wanted to revisit the world of Nerd Baker, how he keeps international readers in mind while writing and how his experience as a cooking instructor informs his work. He talks about the climate obstacles he had while writing and photographing, where his research led him and why he seeks to demystify instructions for his readers and how he goes about doing it. Finally, he shares insights into his social media approach and how his books get internationally distributed along with a few wise words of advice.

Hosts: Kate Leahy + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly + Andrea Nguyen

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Mentions

Nerd Baker 2: Tales from the Yeast Indies by Chris Tan

Nerd Baker by Chris Tan

The Way of Kueh by Chris Tan

Chinese Cooking Demystified: Sourdough Youtube video

Kinokuniya

Visit the Everything Cookbooks Bookshop to purchase a copy of the books mentioned in the show

Kate and Kristin tackle the topic of cookbook collaboration as they chat with Olga Massov and Sanaë Lemoine about their new book, Hot Sheet. Olga and Sanaë share a bit about their career paths, where the inspiration for this book came from and why partnering on it was the best way to go. They speak about the strengths and expertise each brought to the project, why they focused on sheet pans and go into the nitty gritty of how they worked together. Hint: spreadsheets! They talk about the recipe creating and testing process, the pre-work steps they took before embarking on the projects and advice they'd give to others interested in starting their own creative partnerships.

Hosts: Kate Leahy + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly + Andrea Nguyen

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Mentions

Olga Massov

Sanaë Lemoine
 

Visit the Everything Cookbooks Bookshop to purchase a copy of the books mentioned in the show

• Hot Sheet by Olga Massov and Sanaë Lemoine
• The Margo Affair by Sanaë Lemoine

Molly and Kate speak with the owners of Los Angeles based cookbook store Now Serving, Ken Concepcion and Michelle Mungcal, about the crucial role that niche independent bookstores play in the marketplace. Ken shares how his chef background informed his love of cookbooks and led to opening the store and Michelle talks about curating their space to create a specific atmosphere for their community. They speak about what titles they choose to carry, their thoughts on event formats and release schedules along with the obstacles that arise in the retail space and the ones that come with running a small business. Finally, they discuss their thoughts on self published projects and promote their new cookbook club.

Hosts: Kate Leahy + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly + Andrea Nguyen

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Mentions

Now Serving Bookstore

Now Serving Bookclub

Plantasia: A Vegetarian Cookbook Through Asia by Pamelia Chia

Tacos CDMX by Guia Domingo

Visit the Everything Cookbooks Bookshop to purchase a copy of the books mentioned in the show

• Bäco: Vivid Recipes from the Heart of Los Angeles by Betty Hallock and Josef Centeno
• Sauces: Classical and Contemporary Sauce Making by James Peterson
• Flavorama by Arielle Johnson

Kate, Kristin and Molly venture back into the user experience arena as they discuss recipe presentation in cookbooks. They highlight the need for this section to delight not distract and prioritize form over function as well as the need to write with a specific audience in mind. They discuss their thoughts as a consumer and developer on elements like: ingredients, equipment, serving size, prep time, method, sub-recipes, headnotes and bursts. Finally, they share their advice for recipe developers on things to think through and ways to research to bring clarity and individuality to their own work.

Hosts: Kate Leahy + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly + Andrea Nguyen

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Mentions

Episode 91: The UX of Cookbook Design

Episode 28: All About Headnotes

Episode 42: How to Write Recipe Titles

Episode 24: Genius Recipes with Kristin Miglore

Episode 59: Lerato Umah-Shaylor on Africana

Episode 33: Becoming the Writer You Want to Be with Andy Baraghani

Episode 93: The Secret of Cooking with Bee Wilson

Episode 88: On Being a First-Time Cookbook Author with Michelle Braxton

Visit the Everything Cookbooks Bookshop to purchase a copy of the books mentioned in the show

• Genius Recipes by Kristin Miglore
• Brooks Headley's Fancy Desserts by Brooks Headley

Kate, Kristin and Molly speak with agent Lori Galvin about her long career in the food media space. She shares what spurred her decision to move on from editorial work and how agenting required on the job learning and an entrepreneurial approach. She talks about learning to trust in her own taste, why she enjoys working with both fiction and non-fiction titles and the changes she is seeing in the cookbook sphere. After touching on proposals, comp titles and platform building, Lori gives some advice to authors looking for their own agents and what she in particular looks for in an book.

Hosts: Kate Leahy + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly + Andrea Nguyen

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Mentions
 

Lori Galvin at Aevitas Agency

Query Manager

Episode 76: Totally Achievable Zero Waste Cooking with Irene and Mei Li

Sh*t no one tells you about writing article on Query Manager (scroll down)

Kristin Donnelly's mini-course about finding an agent

Visit the Everything Cookbooks Bookshop to purchase a copy of the books mentioned in the show

• Notes from a Young Black Chef: A Memoir by Kwame Onwuachi
• Pie Squared: Irresistibly Easy Sweet & Savory Slab Pies by Cathy Barrow
• Perfectly Good Food: A Totally Achievable Zero Waste Approach to Home Cooking by Margaret Li and Irene Li

Molly and Kate talk with prolific writer Bee Wilson about her new cookbook, The Secret of Cooking. Bee explains how she uses her past experience as an academic in her food writing to showcase its breadth beyond restaurants and recipes and what inspired her to write this cookbook. She shares why she settled on a thematic structure for the book, the recipe writing and testing process along with her varied influences and resources. She talks about bringing the joy back into cooking and why she believes that the golden age of home cooking is still to come.

Hosts: Kate Leahy + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly + Andrea Nguyen

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Mentions

Bee Wilson

• Website
• Instagram

Visit the Everything Cookbooks Bookshop to purchase a copy of the books mentioned in the show

• The Secret of Cooking by Bee Wilson
• Consider the Fork by Bee Wilson
• First Bite: How We Learn to Eat by Bee Wilson
• The Way We Eat Now by Bee Wilson
• 50 Ways to Cook a Carrot by Bee Wilson

Kate and Molly speak with Ruth Reichl, an icon and authority in the food media world, about her breadth of writing experience - restaurant reviews, cookbooks, memoirs, articles and even tweets- and her new book, The Paris Novel. Ruth shares why food is a universal framework, her inspirations for this novel and the process of working with a new editor. She talks about being a "writer who hates writing" and how this process differed from others as well as how she accesses memories to include specificities in her scenes. Finally, she shares her advice to push into the unknown and what she is working on next.

Hosts: Kate Leahy + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly + Andrea Nguyen

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Mentions

Ruth Reichl

• Substack
• Instagram

Food and Country Film

"Why I Disapprove of What I Do" by Ruth Reichl

Tumbleweed at Shakespeare and Company

Visit the Everything Cookbooks Bookshop to purchase a copy of the books mentioned in the show

• The Paris Novel by Ruth Reichl
• Save Me the Plums by Ruth Reichl
• Garlic and Sapphires by Ruth Reichl
• My Kitchen Year by Ruth Reichl
• Delicious! by Ruth Reichl
• Tender at the Bone by Ruth Reichl
• Comfort Me with Apples by Ruth Reichl

Kristin, Molly and Kate tackle cookbook design from a usability perspective. They point out design decisions that authors should consider: packaging and cover design, typeface and font legibility, photographs on matte vs gloss paper and much more. They share their own opinions, experiences and preferences on the elements that enhance or detract from a user's experience of the book and, because there's much more to say on the topic, tease a part two.

Hosts: Kate Leahy + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly + Andrea Nguyen

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Mentions

Debbie Berne Instagram

83: A Niche Cookbook That Sold 350K+ Copies with Shelly Worcel

47: Self-Publishing Cookbooks with Nick Fauchald

66: Becoming Your Own Publisher with Katie Parla
 

Visit the Everything Cookbooks Bookshop to purchase a copy of the books mentioned in the show

• The Design of Books by Debbie Berne