Sharing thoughts in a blog or anywhere in public for that matter is a double edged sword. While spouting your impressions and feelings you run the risk of sounding vain or being misunderstood. Try as you might to be succinct in getting your point across with something you feel is obvious and without need of further explanation- that’s not
always the case for the reader and learned that first hand last week.
An open book with words still warm from reading. That’s the goal here. To publish a manuscript that takes you from page to heart and back. It’s more than writing though. In order for that happen besides luck, it’s understanding how it’s done by developing relationships and connections and marketing and all the other crap I’ve never cared about.
20 stories in and I’ve yet to hear anything like this. Missed an eclipse because I was with my new subject now brother, Hassan- but what he told me was equally significant.
In writing about the food that interested me most, that resonates deeper and vibrates at a higher level- it was more home cooked than hip cheffed. Meals in homes not restaurants. Home Cookin’s global course is of its own making, ending up including numerous newly arrived that are now citizens of our world.
Hearing peoples’ stories humanizes them. Often their accounts are stranger than fiction. Each chapter is an intimate profile of everyman/everywoman subjects’ lives in addition to some of their prized recipes that they graciously share.
Food reminds me of music and I cook like I play. Once I was good enough for other people to ask me about my cooking I coined a term defining it: “Jazzfood” i.e. solid technique coupled with tasteful improvisation.
Doing what you love as a career is a pleasure denied to most and the difference between existing and living.
Assorted arts, foods, cultures, music, books and travel nurtured me as a kid. It’s my comfort zone and get my mail there. Being a culinary sherpa, menu bully, non-fiction writing, pattern clashing, funky drummer comes naturally.
Melissa 1 has an ongoing zoom call amongst her authors every other week and invited me to sit in for an hour of knowledge and support from people in the same situation. So many good ideas, and so much good will I’m writing about it only moments afterward while still fresh in my mind. Smart thoughts on building symbiotic relationships with companies that may need content, like ancestry.com or even Sysco. Transference, approaches, proper packaging,… Read more: 500 Words #5 – <br/> Zoom Call Connections
The thought of working extended periods of time out of town haslost its appeal and the day to day reality of running restaurants,hotels or theaters is not one I’m interested in any longer. Notready to retire, in order to utilize 4+ decades of culinaryknowledge I write about food, and cooks in particular. Growing up in Chicago amongst the the Midwest’s overlooked andunsexy ordinary Americans, like Studs Terkel I share a fascinationwith everyday life but with… Read more: 500 words #4- <br/> Food As Connection
Since you can’t expect to see anything result wise 3 weeks in, let’s explore some fundamentals of marketing a brand in order to be ready if and when the muse shows up. It’s necessary to define your identity and purpose. Style elements, images, tag lines, websites, and social media are all part of that. For me if you need to see, taste or hear something of mine- that’s covered or at least under control. Then… Read more: 500 words #3- <br/> or what to do while <br/> waiting for the muse
con·tent2 /ˈkäntent/ noun noun: content An idea that turns into substance is content, and that would be me. Be it on the page or in a restaurant or recording studio… I’ve got plenty of ideas, leading to lots of content. 3 completed manuscripts and 50 feature articles, hundreds of songs written and produced with my partners over decades, 1,000’s of menus created and executed over 40+ years cooking and playing all over the world- but… Read more: 500 words #2: <br/> con·tent
Having Phoenix’ed from the ashes a few times, that’s not me isn’t me anymore so imma gonna do something I haven’t. Do what a friend suggests and step outside my comfort zone with no excuses no regrets. 500 words. That’s the length the algorithms and bots like. Hopefully same with you. Consistency too. Makes you easier to find if you’re always present and engaged. So, 500 words are what you’ll get from me every Wednesday… Read more: 500 Words – <br/> a Home Cookin’ Publishing Quest
