We are kicking off Season 4 with an episode dedicated to listener questions. Molly, Kate, Andrea and Kristin share their insights on everything from time management, "the cool kids club", design planning, building brand awareness and their love for librarians. 

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

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Publishing Confidential Substack

Episode 38: Finding Your People with Carla Lalli Music

Episode 49: Cookbook Media Coverage with Bonnie Benwick

Episode 55: Making a Documentary-Style Cookbook with Matt Rodbard

Episode 11: Understanding Cookbook Design with Alice Chau

Bad on Paper Podcast: How Libraries Work

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

Today all four hosts sit down to discuss the realities of rejection. They share their own experiences with being turned down along with advice and tips on how to turn that into a learning strategy. They talk about what to keep in mind while waiting for responses, the pain of silent rejections and how they deal with negative comments and bad reviews. Finally, they encourage writers to know their "why", ask questions, build community and to become experienced instead of embittered (with a dash of rejection revenge!).

Everything Cookbooks will be back in October with more episodes!

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

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Mentions

Episode 19: Do Cookbook Awards Matter? | Charlotte Druckman

Substack

Jane Friedman

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

• No Meat Required by Alicia Kennedy

Molly and Kate talk with Martha Holmberg, author and former publisher and food editor, about writing single subject cookbooks. She describes her career journey, how she decided to write her first cookbook and what the greatest job of her life was. She shares how her voice and style has evolved, how to make a deep dive into a subject feel complete and the way she switches from editorial brain to writer brain. Finally she talks about the experience writing solo vs. as a co-author and the tip she wants each home cook to do.

Hosts: Kate Leahy + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Mentions

Martha Holmberg

• Website
• Instagram

Puff

Modern Sauces

Plums Short Stack
 

Fifty Shades of Pâté: New Cookbooks

Michael Ruhlman: The Art of the Single-Subject Cookbook

Accused, Yes, but Probably Not a Killer by Harold McGee

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

• Simply Tomato by Martha Holmberg
• Crepes by Martha Holmberg
• Six Seasons by Joshua McFadden and Martha Holmberg
• Grains by Joshua McFadden and Martha Holmberg
• The Bar Book by Jeffery Morgenthaler and Martha Holmberg

Kate and Molly talk with cookbook author Lukas Volger about his career, writing journey and the process of creating a second edition. Lukas shares how he got his start in the food writing world, his experience in publishing industry and the easter eggs he includes in each of his books. He describes where the idea for a second edition of Veggie Burgers Every Which Way came from, how he approached it and what he learned from revisiting his work thirteen years later.

Hosts: Kate Leahy + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Mentions

Lukas Volger

• Website
• Newsletter
• Instagram
   

The Experiment Publishing

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

• Veggie Burgers Every Which Way, Second Edition by Lukas Volger
• Snacks for Dinner by Lukas Volger
• Start Simple by Lukas Volger
• Bowl by Lukas Volger
• Vegetarian Entrées That Won't Leave You Hungry by Lukas Volger

Andrea and Kristin chat with writer and recipe developer Hetty McKinnon about her career, books and inspirations. Hetty discusses how her background informs her food as well as the trajectory of her career from providing a salad delivery service in Australia to writing cookbooks in Brooklyn. She explains her thoughts on headnotes, how she stays organized and what inspires her recipes. She also shares how she has developed her writing voice, why she photographs her books and the trust she seeks to build with her audience.

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

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Mentions

Hetty McKinnon

• Website
• Instagram
• Newsletter "To Vegetables with Love"
• Peddler Journal
• Podcast "The House Specials"
   

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

• Community by Hetty McKinnon
• Neighborhood by Hetty McKinnon
• To Asia with Love by Hetty McKinnon
• Tenderheart by Hetty McKinnon

Molly and Kate talk with Lerato Umah-Shaylor, a UK based chef, food writer and cooking teacher, about her debut cookbook Africana. Lerato shares how she made her passion for food into a career and what made her want to tackle this massive topic for her first book. She discusses how she pairs stories and context with recipes, how she conducted her research and balanced structure and voice in her writing. She provides some insights on the differences between the US and UK publishing experience and the feedback she loves to get from readers.

Hosts: Kate Leahy + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly

Editor: Abby Cerquitella
 

Mentions

Lerato Umah-Shaylor

• Substack
• Website
• Instagram
• Food Tours
• Buy the UK version of Africana

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

• Africana by Lerato Umah-Shaylor

Kate and Kristin talk with writer David Lebovitz about his career and life in France. He discusses how he went from pastry chef to food writer, how blogging strengthened his writing voice and why he pivoted to video during the pandemic. He shares his decision to write "the hardest book he ever wrote", the advice he gives to aspiring writers and his choice to move his writing to Substack. Finally, he tells us how decides what stories to tell and reveals a glimpse into a few new potential projects.

Hosts: Kate Leahy + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Mentions

David Lebovitz

• Website
• Instagram
• Substack
• Podcast
   

The Idle Hour

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

• Drinking French by David Lebovitz
• L’Appart by David Lebovitz
• My Paris Kitchen by David Lebovitz
• The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz
• Ready for Dessert by David Lebovitz
• The Sweet Life in Paris by David Lebovitz
• The Great Book of Chocolate by David Lebovitz
• The Lost Kitchen by Erin French

Molly and Kristin talk with writer Alicia Kennedy about her new book, No Meat Required, and her philosophy on food writing. She discusses the proposal, writing and publishing process and her thoughts on the structure, citations and bibliography of the book. She shares her inspirations for the cover as well as how she organizes her varied research and publishing schedule. She talks about developing her own voice, what she hopes to see in the future of food media and thoughts on recipe creation as well as her relationship to social media.
 

Hosts: Kate Leahy + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Mentions

Alicia Kennedy

• Website
• Substack
• Instagram
• From the Desk Podcast
• From the Kitchen Podcast
• Meatless Podcast

Scrivener

Whetstone

Vittles

Culinary Tourism Program

Ruby Tandoh

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

• No Meat Required by Alicia Kennedy
• Building a Second Brain by Tiago Forte
• Taste Makers by Mayukh Sen
• Under the Henfluence by Tove Danovich

Kate and Kristin discuss all things hybrid publishing with Vasudha Viswanath, the author of The Vegetarian Reset. Vasudha shares a quick rundown of the typical routes of publishing and why she chose to go down the hybrid path. She talks about the pitching process, what partnership publishers cover (and don't), the recipe development steps and how she assembled her creative and publicity team. She describes the part her book plays in her business strategy and her experience learning as she goes in the cookbook community.

Hosts: Kate Leahy + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Mentions

Vasudha Viswanath

• The Vegetarian Reset
• Substack: We Ate Well
• Instagram

The Collective Book Studio

Episode 40: Snackable Bakes with Jessie Sheehan

Episode 47: Self-Publishing Cookbooks with Nick Fauchald

Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing

IngramSpark

52 Shabbats by Faith Kramer

Reedsy
 

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

• Will Write for Food by Dianne Jacob

Molly and Kristin chat with Matt Rodbard; writer and founding editor of the online food and culture magazine TASTE, all about his career in food media. He reveals the surprising way he got started, how his collaborations came about and the documentary visual style of some of his books. He shares some ups and downs of his writing career, how he balances his many projects and his hopes and excitement for the future of cookbooks.

Hosts: Kate Leahy + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Mentions

Matt Rodbard

• Website
• Instagram
• Twitter
• Taste
• The Taste Podcast
• Taste Pitching Guideline

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

• Koreatown: A Cookbook by Deuki Hong and Matt Rodbard
• Food IQ by Daniel Holzman and Matt Rodbard
• Pok Pok by Andy Ricker
• Lasagne by Anna Hezel
• Beyond the Great Wall by Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid
• Andrea Nguyen's books
• Priya Krishna's books
• Alison Roman's books
• Masala by Anita Jaisinghani
• Chaat by Maneet Chauhan and Jody Eddy
• Tin to Table by Anna Hezel
• Sheet Pan Chicken by Cathy Erway
• Maangchi’s Real Korean Cooking by Maangchi