Molly and Kate talk with Matt Sartwell of Kitchen Arts & Letters, the New York City bookstore specializing in food and drink. As the managing partner, Matt shares his deep knowledge of bookselling with us as he discusses his career path, insights for cover, page (and spine!) design along with insights for aspiring authors. He tells us how he decides what to put on the shelves, the nitty gritty of ordering and returns as well as what books he hopes to see released in the future. Hosts: Kate L...
Jun 07, 2023•45 min
Kristin and Molly speak with Susan Spungen, food stylist, recipe developer, author and founding food editor at Martha Stewart Living, about her new cookbook and its unique photography method. Susan discusses her career path, how she pairs visual inspiration with recipe development and the diaristic tone she created for her latest book, Veg Forward . She describes the process of shooting the book alone with her iPhone and why she wanted to create a vegetable (not vegetarian) book for everyone. Ho...
May 31, 2023•54 min
Molly and Kristin talk with Vishwesh Bhatt, James Beard Award Winner for Best Chef in the South, about his new cookbook I Am From Here. He discusses the origin of the book, what makes it unique and the team that helped create it. He shares his philosophy on food and stories as well as insights into the ideas behind the title, chapter divisions, recipe development and testing. Finally, he gives some advice for others embarking on similar projects and what he wants people to come away with after r...
May 24, 2023•38 min
Kate and Molly speak with Bonnie Benwick, journalist and former deputy editor of the Washington Post food section, about the changes she's seen over her career in food media. Bonnie talks about her time at the Post, her views on recipe testing/testers and what she thinks is lacking in cookbook reviewing today. She shares what elements make up a good cookbook, her thoughts on recipe writing, design, sidebars, sub-recipes and much more. Hosts: Kate Leahy + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly Editor: ...
May 17, 2023•46 min
Molly and Kate talk with debut cookbook author, Abi Balingit about her whirlwind publishing journey, during which she juggled a full time job and roommates. She shares the origins of her blog, her inspirations and process along with how she worked within her book's tight timeline. She showcases her abundance mentality as she describes honoring her family's food, finding her audience and pinpointing the creative vision she had for the book before chatting about what is next. Hosts: Kate Leahy + M...
May 10, 2023•55 min
Kate and Kristin talk with Nick Fauchald, founding editor of Tasting Table, creator of Short Stack Editions and the co-author of many cookbooks. Nick shares his career path, love for the design and tangible artistry of cookbooks and how some of his projects came together. He describes how he chooses his work, the ups and downs of self publishing and the importance of role definitions within a project. Finally, he shares tips, advice and self reflecting questions for anyone thinking of self publi...
May 03, 2023•43 min
Today Kristin, Molly and Kate chat with prolific cookbook author (and EVCB co-host) Andrea Nguyen about her inspirations, career path and her newest cookbook: Ever-Green Vietnamese. She talks about where the book idea came from, how it evolved and what the hardest recipe to get right was. She also shares the challenges of this book, how her family influences her work, the ways her approach to writing and promotion has evolved over time and why she loves the pantry section. Hosts: Kate Leahy + Mo...
Apr 26, 2023•56 min
Molly and Kristin talk with prolific cookbook author Dorie Greenspan about her career, process and longtime creative partnerships. She explains her abundance mentality, how parameters can beget creativity and the struggles, benefits and lessons she experienced writing multiple cookbooks and working as a co-author. Finally, Dorie shares how vital editing is and her advice for aspiring writers. Hosts: Kate Leahy + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly Editor: Abby Cerquitella Mentions Dorie Greenspan W...
Apr 19, 2023•43 min
Picking up where last week's episode left off, Kate gets more in depth about the money side of the business with Kristin, Andrea and Molly. They share past mistakes and how they each tackle budgets, groceries, receipt management, expenses and more. They also discuss outside costs, tax know-hows and the exposure economy along with advice on how side hustles, anchor gigs and outside food work can help build a sustainable career. Hosts: Kate Leahy + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly + Andrea Nguyen ...
Apr 12, 2023•33 min
Kate discusses the money side of cookbooks with Molly, Andrea and Kristin. They each share what they wish they knew before starting out, lessons learned from past projects and what makes them choose to work on a book or not. They share insights on opportunity costs, cash flow timing, working with or without an agent and the difference between an auction and a preempt. Hosts: Kate Leahy + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly + Andrea Nguyen Editor: Abby Cerquitella Visit the Everything Cookbooks Book...
Apr 05, 2023•38 min
Kate talks with Molly, Andrea and Kristin all about recipe titles. They share what makes one stand out, what is an immediate veto and how these have evolved over the years. They discuss the importance of indexing, the challenge of translation and how grammar, structure and formatting are used in titling along with some of their own that they'd like to revisit. Hosts: Kate Leahy + Andrea Nguyen + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly Editor: Abby Cerquitella Mentions Gourmet Cookbook Boston Cooking Sc...
Feb 22, 2023•45 min
Kristin and Andrea chat with Emily Meggett, the matriarch of Edisto Island, and her co-author Kayla Stewart about their book Gullah Geechee Home Cooking. Ms. Emily shares her love for Edisto Island, the long journey to create the book and the mentors that inspired her along the way. Kayla describes the particular challenges of writing this book and recording the recipes along with advice for others who choose to work on similar projects. Finally, Ms Emily tells us how she wants the book to tell ...
Feb 15, 2023•42 min
Kate and Molly talk with Jessie Sheehan, "the self-proclaimed queen of easy-peasy sweets", about her varied career path, how she got into baking and what entices her about a recipe. She shares how the pandemic and social media contributed to creating her unique voice, her advice for writing with a co-author and how to avoid the dreaded "happy robot voice". She describes how she worked on an abbreviated timeline for this book and teases a future one. Hosts: Kate Leahy + Andrea Nguyen + Molly Stev...
Feb 08, 2023•56 min
Molly and Kate dive deep into the journey and person that is chef/writer/artist/activist/culinary ambassador (and more), Toya Boudy. She shares how her talents as an artist and wordsmith, along with the interwoven nature of life, resulted in her latest cookbook, "Cooking for the Culture". She discusses her creation process, the unconventional schedule for the book and her family's contribution as she explains her mission to build community and empower the artist inside. Hosts: Kate Leahy + Andre...
Feb 01, 2023•37 min
Molly and Andrea talk with author and former Food Director at Bon Appétit, Carla Lalli Music, all about the voice in the void and finding an audience. She discusses her career path, performing as herself and her thoughts on social media along with the advice she received that helped create her unique writing voice. She shares some insights on economy in recipe writing, style sheets and self-editing and how to fill up the inspiration bank. Hosts: Kate Leahy + Andrea Nguyen + Molly Stevens + Krist...
Jan 25, 2023•55 min
Molly and Andrea talk with Kenji López-Alt, author and Chief Culinary Advisor for Serious Eats , about creating and maintaining a voice of authority. He shares his career path, where his interest in food got started and the work that has influenced his own. He describes the relationship he has with his followers, how (or if) to curb enthusiasm while doing topic deep dives and a glimpse inside the creation of his best-selling books. Hosts: Kate Leahy + Andrea Nguyen + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donn...
Jan 18, 2023•53 min
Kate and Molly chat with food stylist extraordinaire, Mariana Velásquez about their past working together, her career path and how she finally felt prepared to write her debut book, Colombiana. She describes the process of choosing the best agent for the project, how the pandemic altered the end result and where she starts the development of her recipes. She talks about some unique formatting choices, "maximalism" and the beauty of collaboration before sharing advice for others embarking on a si...
Jan 11, 2023•45 min
Molly, Andrea, Kristin and Kate answer listener questions about recipe attribution, testing and self-publishing. The hosts reflect on the episodes and topics that have stuck with them during this first year of podcasting and share what they are looking forward to in 2023. Hosts: Kate Leahy + Andrea Nguyen + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly Editor: Abby Cerquitella Mentions Kristin's Cookbook Proposal Bootcamp Food52 Forum @wildfolklore on Instagram Episode 29: Finding Your Voice with Tori Ritchi...
Jan 04, 2023•33 min
Kate leads today's discussion all about the holiday season; its joys, its tribulations and its desserts. Molly, Andrea and Kristin join in with memories, advice and ideas for traditions (to keep and to avoid), dishes, wine and favorite cookies. Finally, each host shares the book they plan to dive into this holiday season. Hosts: Kate Leahy + Andrea Nguyen + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly Editor: Abby Cerquitella Mentions Kristin's Cookbook Proposal Bootcamp Dining with the Dead by Mariana Nuño...
Dec 21, 2022•25 min
Andrea and Kate talk with chef and food writer Andy Baraghani about his debut cookbook and the varied career experience that prepared him to write it. He explains how he injects his personality into his recipes, who he writes for and the influences of his work. He shares the successful self-imposed rule for recipe writing he had while at Bon Appétit, the intricate process of title writing as well as how his identities inform his work. Hosts: Kate Leahy + Andrea Nguyen + Molly Stevens + Kristin D...
Dec 14, 2022•44 min
Molly and Kristin speak with writer JJ Goode about his career path, collaborating with chefs on cookbooks and what draws him to his projects. He discusses some past work, how he organizes his To Do list and his advice for others who want experience with co-authorship. Hosts: Kate Leahy + Andrea Nguyen + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly Editor: Abby Cerquitella Mentions JJ Goode's Website Taste Column Kristin's Cookbook Proposal Bootcamp Visit the Everything Cookbooks Bookshop to purchase a copy ...
Dec 07, 2022•45 min
Kate and Kristin talk with lead agent and co-owner at The Ekus Group, Sally Ekus, about her career path, what she brings to the table for her clients and peek into a day in her life. Sally shares a wealth of knowledge including what she looks for in potential clients, how agents help careers, the key items in a query emails and the homework authors should do before reaching out to agents. She tells us her thoughts on proposal designs, where voice matters most and the one question she urges poten...
Nov 30, 2022•40 min
Andrea and Kristin talk with Eric Kim about his intensely personal and remarkable book, Korean American. He shares his inspirations and motivations for the essay format, how he wrote his family as characters and the potential and limits of memoir writing. He talks about the idea of authenticity in food, what goes into naming recipes and the unpredictability of a viral recipe. Hosts: Kate Leahy + Andrea Nguyen + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly Editor: Abby Cerquitella Mentions Eric Kim Website I...
Nov 23, 2022•42 min
Kate and Molly chat with cookbook teacher, author and editor Tori Ritchie about her career trajectory and how she developed her personal writing voice after years of working on branded cookbooks. She shares insights and tips about developing a voice and the bad habits to avoid in writing before revealing a few of the writers she assigns to her students. Finally everyone shares the three words that best describe their own singular writing style. Hosts: Kate Leahy + Andrea Nguyen + Molly Stevens +...
Nov 16, 2022•49 min
Today, Andrea tackles the topic of the ever elusive headnote with Molly, Kate and Kristin. They discuss what a headnote is, how they go about writing them and the pitfalls to avoid while composing. They bring examples of some favorites and also their pet peeves as they chat about the format, design and variety that goes into these important cookbook ingredients. Hosts: Kate Leahy + Andrea Nguyen + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly Editor: Abby Cerquitella Mentions Kristin's newsletter - Mission D...
Nov 09, 2022•41 min
Andrea and Molly speak with recipe developer, editor, stylist and writer, Ali Slagle about her career trajectory, her debut cookbook and why she focuses on the home cook. She shares her inspiration for the book's unique format and language, the challenges she puts on her recipe writing and how she channels her voice with permission to be weird. At the end of the episode we (virtually) visit Andrea's kitchen as she makes a recipe from Ali's book, Bacon Lettuce and Tofu Stir Fry. Hosts: Kate Leahy...
Nov 02, 2022•45 min
Molly and Kate talk with Adam Roberts aka The Amateur Gourmet, about his career path, what he's learned from working on his first two books and how he merges story with food in his work. He shares insights on voice vs tone, the role humor plays in his content creation along with stories from his earlier projects and the origin of his latest book. Finally, he shares the gospel of musical theater and a glimpse into what he is working on now. Hosts: Kate Leahy + Andrea Nguyen + Molly Stevens + Kris...
Oct 26, 2022•45 min
Kate and Kristin speak with food stylist, photographer and author Anna Voloshyna about her debut cookbook, Budmo!. Anna shares how the war in Ukraine has affected her and her family as well as why she focused so much on joy in this book. She explains what she discovered about her own history while writing, how she got into food and her favorite dishes from the book. She shares some tips about the book writing process as well as what surprised her the most and her advice for people starting out t...
Oct 19, 2022•50 min
Kate and Molly chat with the founding editor of Food52 and the brains behind their Genius Recipes, Kristen Miglore. Kristen shares her career trajectory before becoming Food52's first employee and the inception of the "Genius Recipe" concept. She explains how she injects her own voice into the writing, what makes a recipe "genius" and how she keeps up the passion for her work along with a recent dish she keeps coming back to. Hosts: Kate Leahy + Andrea Nguyen + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly E...
Oct 12, 2022•45 min
Kristin and Andrea chat with owner of Tanorria's Table, author of Staples + 5, and co-host of Black Girls Eating, Tanorria Askew, about her career path, heart for hospitality and what cooking means to her. She discusses navigating her boundaries, food deserts in her hometown of Indianapolis and the process of writing her first book. She also shares some insights on appropriation in food, the importance of putting her Black identity forward in her book, how she chose the team behind her book's cr...
Oct 05, 2022•49 min
