Everything Cookbooks

Latest Episodes:

94: Insights from Literary Agent Lori Galvin Jun 12, 2024

Show notes

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

93: The Secret of Cooking with Bee Wilson Jun 05, 2024

Show notes

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

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

92: Ruth Reichl on Writing May 29, 2024

Show notes

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

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

91: The UX of Cookbook Design May 22, 2024

Show notes

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

90: When a Health Issue Impacts Your Food Writing with Phoebe Lapine May 15, 2024

Show notes

Kristin and Molly speak with cookbook author Phoebe Lapine about finding pleasure in restrictive diets and her new cookbook, Carbivore. Phoebe shares what led her down a food focused career path, how she learned while blogging and how a health diagnosis pulled her down a different path than originally planned. She talks about writing recipes that keep comfort and pleasure in mind, synthesizing data to communicate science to her reader and why her driving force is "healthy hedonism". She also discusses the concept of a "search term book", the importance of sub-titles and how she balanced blogging, social media and marketing while writing the book.

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

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Mentions

Phoebe Lapine

Carbivore pre-order freebies

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

Carbivore by Phoebe Lapine
Sibo Made Simple by Phoebe Lapine
The Wellness Project by Phoebe Lapine
In the Small Kitchen by Phoebe Lapine

89: Insights From Cookbook Editor Sarah Kwak of Harvest May 08, 2024

Show notes

Molly and Kristin speak with Sarah Kwak, a senior editor at Harvest an imprint of Harper Collins, to find out what the editing process is like. Sarah shares how she ended up at her current role, the focus Harvest has for cookbooks and what authors should keep mind regarding their proposal assembly before submission. She discusses her thoughts on comp titles, overcoming past book sales, multifaceted ways to grow a platform and what compels her to spend over two years working on a specific project. Finally, she talks about trends in the food world, the changes in the economy of publishing and her advice along with the books she is excited to release this year.

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

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Mentions

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

Mayumu by Abi Balingit
The Book on Pie by Erin McDowell
Jacques Pépin Art of the Chicken by Jacques Pépin
Hot Sheet by Olga Massov and Sanaë Lemoine

88: On Being a First-Time Cookbook Author with Michelle Braxton May 01, 2024

Show notes

Kristin and Kate discuss author Michelle Braxton's turbulent publishing journey for her new book, Supper with Love. She shares the story behind the "organic" growth of her food career, how she balances social media creation, blogging and book writing with a separate full time career and how the book idea came about. She talks about committing firmly to the book's concept, why she chose her publisher and the tumultuous publishing process that include her editor leaving and the imprint closing. Finally, she discuses who her audience is, why she creates the sorts of recipes she does and her tips and advice for aspiring authors.

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

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Mentions

Michelle Braxton

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

Supper with Love by Michelle Braxton

87: Publishing Confidential with Kathleen Schmidt Apr 24, 2024

Show notes

Kate and Kristin speak with Kathleen Schmidt, an industry veteran with years of experience in editing, publishing, marketing and public relations and now author of the newsletter Publishing Confidential. Kathleen shares her extensive career path, what her focus is as a freelancer and the origins of her newsletter along with what keeps her writing. She talks about the differences between marketing and PR, her dedication to an author centric approach and walks listeners through a hypothetical scenario of book promotion. Finally, she discusses what authors should focus on, thoughts on Authors Equity, the idea of a digital surrogate and her current course offerings dedicating to help author demystify their publishing experience. - Please excuse the audio quality in this one!

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

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Mentions

Kathleen Schmidt

"Book Publishing is Broken" post

"Why Authors Equity Will Work" post

Episode 31: Catch an Agent's Attention with Sally Ekus

grossypelosi

The Department of Salad Substack

Authors Equity

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

86: Culinary Activism and Cookbooks with Lelani Lewis Apr 17, 2024

Show notes

Kate and Molly speak with Lelani Lewis, a London born food stylist and culinary activist of Grenadian and Irish heritage now based in Amsterdam. Lelani shares how homesickness spurred her into a culinary career through pop-ups, where the idea for her debut cookbook came from as well as why she chose this title. She speaks about her desire to share the colorful, diverse nature of Caribbean food alongside its dark history and what she hopes readers will get from reading her book. She talks about working with a Dutch publisher, the unique editing and translation process, how she settled on her final recipe list and her ambitious new project.

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

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Mentions

Lelani Lewis

Using food as a tool to reconcile history | Lelani Lewis | TEDxAmsterdamSalon

Jessica B Harris

Nijgh Publishing, Amsterdam

Tra Publishing

Episode 25: Inside a Ukrainian Kitchen with Anna Voloshyna

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

Code Noir: Afro-Caribbean Stories and Recipes by Lelani Lewis
You and I Eat the Same
Iron Pots & Wooden Spoons by Jessica B Harris

85: A Juneteenth Cookbook for Kids with Alliah Agostini and Taffy Elrod Apr 10, 2024

Show notes

Molly and Kristin dive into the territory of kid-lit in this talk with Alliah Agostini and Taffy Elrod, authors of The Juneteenth Cookbook. Alliah and Taffy discuss how they both got involved with the project, how they worked together and the goal they had of bringing the celebration of Juneteenth to life with food, history and family activities. They talk about the family representation in the book, the recipe development process and what went into all the extras inside. Alliah and Taffy both speak about tapping into their inner child while writing, what it was like working with their illustrator and the plans they have for the upcoming book tour.

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

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Mentions

Alliah L. Agostini

Taffy Elrod

The Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators

Highlights Foundation

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