Gloria Chadwick
The joy is in the journey ...
Recipe for a Cookbook
Writing a cookbook? Want to get it published? Recipe for a Cookbook shows you how. It has all the ingredients you need to write, publish, and promote your cookbook. Comprehensive resource guides include hundreds of current contacts for book distributors, cookbook printers, corporate book buyers for bookstores and libraries, online bookstores, cookbook contests, cookbook catalogs, websites to showcase your cookbook, 101 ways to promote your cookbook, and much, much more. It's a user-friendly guide filled with extra helpings of information, plenty of know-how and generous portions of how-to for self-publishing and promoting a successful cookbook. Please visit my Recipe for a Cookbook blog and my Cookbook Cuisine blog for lots of information to help you write and publish your own cookbook. If you'd like to buy the book, click on the link at the bottom of the page or click on browse the bookstore from the navbar.
Look inside the Table of Contents to see what this book offers.
Introduction
This book is a guide that shows you how to create, cook, and serve your cookbook with style and flair. It offers food for thought by helping you become more knowledgeable about writing, publishing, and selling your cookbook; it provides plenty of know-how and generous portions of how-to for producing a cookbook. There are recipes to feed your imagination by showing various page layouts; they’re also included in case you get hungry while reading this book or writing your cookbook.
Chapter One. Appetizers & Beverages
Knowing the reasons why you want to write a cookbook will show you how to develop your cookbook’s personality, influence how you write and market your cookbook, and help you find and target potential markets. How to clearly and thoroughly define the scope, theme, and focus of your cookbook. How to tie it all together. How to create a catchy title and a vision of the cover to show you what you want and/or need to include in your cookbook. How to begin a magnificent meal—your cookbook. Putting your personal taste into the pages. How to collect, test, and sort your recipes. How to get organized and get started. Prep time and cook time for your cookbook.
Chapter Two. Soups & Salads
How to write your cookbook to feed all your potential markets. Think big—think food feast! Cookbook credentials. Deciding whether to self-publish or seek a commercial publisher. Pros and cons of both, and how to go about it. Beginning your budget. How to figure your cost and determine the size of your print run. Allocating funds for extras that sneak up and bite you. The price of promotion.
Chapter Three. Vegetables & Side Dishes
What do you want to serve on the side in your cookbook? What can you spice it up with to make it more enticing and a delicious read? Stories and anecdotes? Pithy sayings? Prep and cook times? Calorie counts? Nutritional analyses? Cooking hints and tips? Substitutions and serving suggestions? Presentations? Illustrations or clip art? What is going to give your cookbook its extra-special, taste-tempting appeal?
Chapter Four. Main Dishes
Now you’re into the meat of the matter. Filling your cookbook with really good recipes that other cooks will prepare and enjoy. Writing your recipes. Flavoring your words to make them mouth-watering. Doing the details to make your recipes sound delicious. Consistency counts. How to serve your recipes with style. Finding the format and design for your cookbook that works for you. Page composition and layouts—presenting your recipes in an appealing manner; making them user-friendly. Typesetting; preparing camera-ready and press-ready copy.
Chapter Five. Breads & Rolls
Proofing your cookbook to make it perfect. Pricing your cookbook. Rising your cookbook to raise more sales. Selling advertising space. Printing promotional materials. Flyers, sell sheets, recipe cards, posters, refrigerator magnets, and postcards. Things to do while your cookbook is baking at the printer. The bread and butter of your cookbook. Doing pre-pub announcements and making advance sales to roll in the dough. Planning your promotions. Researching your markets. Writing enticing ads and press releases to sell the sizzle. How to make your cookbook stand out from the crowd.
Chapter Six. Desserts
Taste the sweet success of the fruits of your labors. Holding your cookbook in your hands is like having a super-delicious dessert. Launching your cookbook to the community and to the world. Having a huge kick-off party, a big hoopla to start the sales. Putting together a press kit. Doing the media blitz. Entering your cookbook in contests to win awards. Making premium sales. Doing direct mail. Listing your cookbook on websites and in catalogs. Showing off your cookbook. How to get rave reviews and obtain endorsements.
Chapter Seven. Cookies & Candy
How the cookie crumbles; how to make your cookbook available to everyone who wants to buy it. How to place your cookbook in bookstores and libraries. Little and local. Regional and national. Breaking into the major chains—Borders and Barnes & Noble. How to get the corporate book buyers to select your cookbook. Gift and gourmet shops. Doing the distribution route. Alternate avenues to pursue to get your cookbook into bookstores.
Chapter Eight. This & That
Super ways to make super sales. 101 ways to market and promote your cookbook. Getting on the gravy train to cover your sales beyond the bookstores. Sauces and seasonings not only spice up your food and make your meal delicious, they can make or break your cookbook.
Appendix A. Cookbook Printers
A comprehensive list of specialty cookbook printers, how to contact them, what they offer, and a price chart.
Appendix B. Cookbook Contests, Catalogs and Conferences
Cookbook contests you can enter your cookbook in. Catalogs to feature your cookbook in to give you wider coverage for your promotion dollars. Cookbook conferences you can attend to learn about writing and marketing your cookbook.
Appendix C. Websites for Recipes / Promotions / Book Fairs / Trade and Gift Shows
A list of websites for recipes and cooking information, culinary tie-in items, places to promote your cookbook on the Internet, and ways to market your cookbook through direct mail. Book fairs, trade and gift shows to show and sell your cookbook, and information about book exhibitors to showcase your cookbook.
Appendix D. Cookbook Distributors / Book Reviewers
A list of cookbook distributors and wholesalers, and a list of book reviewers.
Appendix E. Recommended Reading List
A list of reference books about publishing and promoting, with a brief description of each book.
Appendix F. Food Magazines
A list of Epicurean magazines to write for, with a brief description of each.
Appendix G. Sample Cookbook Proposal
Foods & Flavors of
Index
