When you pick up a cookbook, do you ever wonder how it all comes together? From the ingredients to the instructions to the tempting photos, a lot more happens behind the scenes than meets the eye. In this episode, we pull back the curtain on the essential yet often-overlooked role of the cookbook editor.

Join us as we chat with seasoned cookbook editor Melissa Haskin, who reveals what it takes to turn a chef’s vision into a polished, reader-friendly masterpiece. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, Melissa works on recipes, resumes, and research. Most recently, she edited "The Solo Stove Fire Pit Cookbook." She offers coaching for freelance editors and will be launching her first course, Recipe Editing 101, in March 2025.

In this episode, you'll learn why editing is essential—not just for correcting grammar but for refining recipes, ensuring accuracy, and creating a seamless flow that makes readers feel right at home in their kitchens. Discover the magic of balancing clarity with creativity, making dishes look delicious, and keeping flavors authentic.

Below is a list of resources mentioned in this episode:

The Modern Proper Website: https://themodernproper.com/

The Modern Proper Book: https://themodernproper.com/cookbook

World Central Kitchen: https://wck.org/

Melissa’s website: https://www.melissa-haskin.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melissahaskin/

Recipe Class (March 2025): https://www.melissa-haskin.com/courses.html

• Full price: $497 (similar in price to Erin Servais' AI for Editors Course and the Toronto Metropolitan University course)
• Automatic 10% discount for early registration (through February 1)
• Extra $25 off at any time for listeners of your podcast with code Nadia25 (valid for the March 2025 course) 
• Currently slotted to be a 6-week course over Zoom/video call at a set time each week. Will be offered as a self-paced course in the future. 

Reedsy: https://reedsy.com/melissa-haskin

Recipe Editing class through the Toronto Metropolitan University (no affiliation) 

Other Resources:

The Romantasy Cookbook: Epic Recipes Inspired by Great Romantasy Novels and Their Fearless Heroines Hardcover – May 27, 2025by Gabriela Leon (Author)

Sandwiches of History: The Cookbook: All the Best (and Most Surprising) Things People Have Put Between Slices of Bread

Northwest Editors Guild Red Pencil Conferences

Recommended Books:

The Complete Recipe Writing Guide: Mastering Recipe Development, Writing, Testing, Nutrition Analysis and Food Styling, Raeanne Sarazen, MA, RDN, FAND

The Recipe Writer's Handbook, Revised and Updated Paperback – March 30, 2001, by Barbara Gibbs Ostmann (Author), Jane L. Baker (Author)

The Food Lover's Companion 5th Edition/The Deluxe Food Lover's Companion 2nd Edition