The making of my own cookbook

[Tere]

I like the look. It looks very clean and inviting to me.

 

Perhaps I am projecting having just done this massaman curry where it's really unclear whether she wants you to put the paste ingredients in to cook with the beef initially or not (which I would have expected, but doesn't appear to happen - I tried adding later and it came out OK so possibly?) I can ask her later and probably will. http://www.eat-the-midlands.co.uk/chefs-recipes/curry-recipe-for-national-curry-week-beef-massaman-curry-by-chef-suree-coates-king-thai-restaurant/ (also dear Eat the Midlands, not including the massaman curry paste recipe that's in the cookbook is basic schoolboy error).

 

I guess I am saying assume nothing and explain everything  

[gfron1]

Today I am working on the Index. My contract allows me to do it, or they can take some of my advance to pay a contractor if I prefer. This is really hard work! And after I take my stab at it, I may turn it over to a professional to make sure it's done right. But I like learning new skills so I want to have a go at it first.

 

I understand the role of Indices for finding things in the text, but I'm also wondering what role they have in web searches/boosting linkages/boosting sales. For example, I mention Ruhlman's Charcuterie in the book. Therefore, it is in the Index. Does that then show up digitally somehow in a way that let's the book be better noticed by Google?

 

FYI: My Starting Point

My Ultimate Guide

 

Edited April 17, 2016 by gfron1 (log)

[gfron1]

Here is my editor's response about the "1 inch" issue, but more importantly, a description of what is about to come:

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That error is most likely not going to appear on every page; I think she was just coming up with a design at that point. The ingredient list was actually not the way I want to see it at all in that sample, so there will be work done to both the design and the text once we see the entire thing. I wouldn't get too attached or too worried about anything right this second.

 

If you're looking at the document you have and notice edits you already want to make, just keep a list and we can note them in the PDF when it arrives. The first time you see the PDF, we'll be making design-only edits that the designer will fix and then she'll be delivering me the package files. I'll deliver the package files to the typesetters, and then we'll be sending the PDF to a proofreader. I'll review the proofreader's edits (send any over to you that need your input), and then we'll see another, cleaner pass.

 

That new pass will be the one you're able to read through and make any edits you'd like. It'll (in theory) be free of any typos and should be quick and easy to get through. Mostly true/major errors (say you wanted 22 grams of something but the manuscript said 2 accidentally) will probably stand out to you at that point. We won't be rewriting any paragraphs or doing anything major that will interrupt flow.

 

Then we'll be really close to final pass and the focus will shift more to the exterior than the interior, as well as gathering blurbs and starting publicity plants with the publicist.

 

Lots of info to take in! Sorry! Let me know if you have more questions on all this. I know you sent me more emails about blurbers, but I'm going to save them until I'm in the office tomorrow.

 

 

[gfron1]

The other thing I wanted to share this morning is my hunt for blurbs...that's what the industry calls the back cover quotes. And while only a handful go on the cover, we want many more because they get used in other promotional material. In my case, because I am so isolated, I don't have strong connections with other chefs or authors so I only have a small handful of known names. A week or so ago I realized that I had connections who would know people, including some long-time eG friends. I'll hold back on saying who has agreed to write blurbs until we have them in hand, but its been really fun having chefs agree to do them. I think its part of my nature to assume that a stranger wouldn't want to help me but just the opposite - most are excited to get an advance copy of a book that maybe of interest to them. 

 

My editor send out official requests once I've made the initial contact, and I'm assuming her email includes legal stuff.

[Lisa Shock]

Google's algorithm is a closely held secret. Supposedly, they use over 200 factors to calculate position. A few of these are known, most are not. The ones I know are:

number of links from other pages

the Google status of those linking pages

the age of the links

frequency of new content, especially on the front page

keyword relevance (although this is barely used anymore, too many metadata cheaters)

the url containing keywords, or not

links to other pages, reciprocal ones used to be better, now not so much

 

I have no idea how to optimize the contents of a book for this. Remember to mention eG several times....

[gfron1]

Today I'm doing administrative stuff. I set up a Mailchimp list for people who want to be notified of the release. This should have been done when we set up the sales website, so my helper is going to back and integrating it into the site, so I don't have to manual enter anymore emails. This is a good thing. Next I need to think about the best way to manage pre-sales so none get lost. I'm assuming there's something in Mailchimp for that too, but I need to make sure I can ultimately use the data to create mailing labels.  BTW, galley proofs any day now.

[Kouign Aman]

Jammed through this today. Wow, what a journey and what beautiful food!  Looking forward to the cookbook.

What about including your book-order website in your eGullet signature or under your avatar?

[Lisa Shock]

At least add it to the 'About Me' section of your profile.

[gfron1]

44 minutes ago, Kouign Aman said:

Jammed through this today. Wow, what a journey and what beautiful food!  Looking forward to the cookbook.

What about including your book-order website in your eGullet signature or under your avatar?

Don't know if that's allowed. I've walked a fine line of not shilling my own book, but using the forum to let others learn as I learn. www.AcornsandCattails is my site for pre-orders with perks. Amazon has the no perk version for less.

[Okanagancook]

Looks to me like the " part of the Fresh Ginger is missing hence the question of how much is 1 Fresh Ginger.  Probably best to spell out " as 1 inch of Fresh Ginger.

[gfron1]

18 minutes ago, Okanagancook said:

Looks to me like the " part of the Fresh Ginger is missing hence the question of how much is 1 Fresh Ginger.  Probably best to spell out " as 1 inch of Fresh Ginger.

Thanks for pointing that out. This was just a design test, and I've confirmed that the manuscript is correct and there will be no confusion over the ginger in the final proof. I have flagged it for me to double check...just in case.

[gfron1]

Latest update. I've reviewed the 1st press pass (digital full version of the final book) and the whole thing really looks amazing. I was able to offer comments for the revision. My biggest was to tone down the bold colors, which is funny since they did exactly what I said. It just felt too much. We also now see how the pics look in the layout and are going to redo a few pics on Monday (portrait v. landscape). Next up - the proof reader will go through it next week. After that they will let me make small changes as long as they don't influence the page layout. I've been keeping notes of small changes (for example the note about the ginger discussed a few weeks ago). Back cover blurbs/quotes have been invited and we're waiting for feedback. The editor says within two weeks the final files will be sent off for printing. Sooooo...close now!

[gfron1]

This truly is the last picture. Seeing the book laid out made it very simple to see what needed fixing. One thing was noticing that the beer I used in the sumac shandy recipe was way too dark. I love how simple and beautiful this pic came out.

 

Now it's off to the proofreader. I'm submitting my index in the morning. Back cover blurbs are starting to be returned. Once back from the proofreader I get one more read on it. Then DONE!

[gfron1]

Everyone involved has made it clear that right now is the most important time for me to sell books. Sales out of the gate determine the publisher's interest moving forward. That's hard because I think its easier to sell a book once its in-hand, but I understand that they aren't focused on selling one book, but one case of books. To that end I just sent this email to my publisher and their publicity person laying out my strategy and asking for guidance.

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A few thoughts/requests as we get nearer printing:

 

1. The release of the book is going to time perfectly with my downtime between restaurants. This is good since I've already engaged my current market, and will be building steam on my new market (St. Louis metro). This timing allows me to do the tour that I had planned, and already have locations set for Los Angeles (probably), ABQ (committed), Austin or Dallas (committed), New Orleans (committed), Orlando (committed), Atlanta (committed), New York (probably), Cleveland (probably), St. Louis (committed), and while not planned, I could easily add Minneapolis. These are all cities where I have strong relationships who have offered a location and to do the local legwork to make it happen. The visits will be a ticketed dinner that includes a book. All committeds mean they are theoretically sold out already. I will want help making contacts with local book stores and media in each city. This will happen in Sept/Oct.

 

2. It would be silly to not tie this into the National Parks Service anniversary currently going on. Our local top ranger is a good customer and she has offered to help me get connected with the gift shop world. I'm thinking it would be fun to tie these locations into the dinner tour (time for me to start pinning a map!). Again, support requested here.

 

3. I already have sexy printed business cards that we're passing out and using to encourage pre-sales. What other small promo material have your authors had success with?

 

4. I've been trying to figure out how to tie YouTube into this process. It's a natural with foraging and cooking. What support can SkyHorse provide in that area - technical expertise, marketing funds, professional help?

 

5. Lastly, once I close the restaurant on June 4th I'm going to be touring the region and relaxing (8 years of 70 hour weeks...I deserve a break) and I think this would be a good time to make contact with bookstores. I've never done that. Will someone tell me how to go about it so we can translate that into pre-sales?

 

Thanks

Rob

(Note: I included Lilly on this email. I know that your staff works directly with me and not my agent. I have included her because she has shared ideas with me and I want to keep her in the loop.)

 

 

[gfron1]

One word...Squeeeeeeee!!

(This must be a preview copy for us to all see how it looks prior to the final edit and layout.)

[gfron1]

The official answer from my editor:

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So we got three batches of ARCs:

 

·         Publicity got a ton, to send out to try to secure reviews, interviews, features, etc.

·         Sales got a box to send to our mass merch customers to see if they want to sell the book in their stores.

·         I got a box to share with you. You and I can do whatever we want with them except sell them. ARCs are not for retail.

 

They’re just sneak peeks of what the book will look like. Paperback, black and white, except for a few color photos in the front to show off. You can send yours to bloggers, share them with friends, give them away. It’s basically just to get people talking about the book before September.

 

It’s understand that all ARCs are going to have mistakes in them and they’re not at all final. It’s just the rule. These were printed with the old photos, pre-proofread. It’s just to give some people a little taste of what’s to come. Sometimes we use them to secure blurbs, too, but I already emailed everyone the color PDF so we don’t have to send them the black and white book.

 

 

[IowaDee]

Oh, back in the day when I was a book reviewer for a local chain of papers I would get review copies quite often.  Fun to read and then read the final version and notice the changes.  I still have a a few of them somewhere.  Book packets  usually included a big, glossy photo of the author, a long bio and a list of appearances if they were known yet.  Congratulations on all you have accomplished.

[rotuts]

@gfron1  

 

that's one big big accomplishment

 

big.

 

congratulations.

[gfron1]

4 minutes ago, rotuts said:

@gfron1  

that's one big big accomplishment

big.

congratulations.

I'm guessing they can't change their mind and say, "never mind" at this point  

[Deryn]

I KNOW 'you' made it all happen, Rob! They can't and won't take it away from you now. It would not have happened without your dream and hard work. Congratulations once again! And thanks so much for taking us all along on this journey with you. Can't tell you how much I am looking forward to acquiring a copy when it is finally completely ready for sale in the fall.

Edited May 14, 2016 by Deryn (log)

[gfron1]

The blurb process is really fascinating to me. There are three categories of potential blurbers: 1. people I know; 2. people that are known by people I know; and 3. people that the publisher knows. All three have to have enough name/position value to potentially sell books, otherwise what's the point. In my case I wanted names that were big enough to be recognizable, but not so big that its clear that they have no connection to the book. I'll keep it a secret who wrote blurbs (I feel like now I want as much to be new and exciting as I can for all of you who've followed this years long journey), but oddly and for no real reason they seem to be centralized around Chicago. 

 

I know two of them very well. One I have never heard of who was recruited by the publisher (another author), and the others are friends of friends. What's been fun is that it is clear that all of them took the time to read the book at least enough to make their comments valuable. I was expecting more "beautiful and insightful," comments, but its clear that they read the book. I hope someday I get to blurb a book!

 

The proofreader did a great job finding more stuff. Asked questions like "fresh or dried oregano?" Good catch! The editor is incorporating the comments and will get the re-laid out updated PDF to me tomorrow. I have notes that I want to check on (such as the ginger issue above), and have my prep cook doing last minute recipe testing on a few recipes that never got tested. We have to have it 100% done by Tuesday. The editor said it will be sent to the printer in China on Wednesday, and our official release date is September 20th with pre-orders sent the week before!

[Kouign Aman]

Awesome!

 

Can you contact radio stations in or near your tour cities and try to get some airtime on an appropriate show?

 

Will  you be able to tour west as well as east? 

[gfron1]

22 hours ago, Kouign Aman said:

Can you contact radio stations in or near your tour cities and try to get some airtime on an appropriate show?

Will  you be able to tour west as well as east? 

I can but that's where the publisher needs to start earning their keep. I have a publicist assigned to my book and she's already asked for specific cities and dates. Then she'll line up the signings and interviews. She asked for a video clip to see how I perform on TV. I gave her THIS. While my plating sucked, it showed that I'm not shy with the camera.

 

As far as west coast - I had to play to my strengths and that is much more east oddly enough, even though I'm in the west. I went to communication program strong undergrad so many of my friends are now higher ups in PR agencies, ad agencies, broadcast, etc, and all of them in the east.

Edited May 20, 2016 by gfron1 (log)

[gfron1]

I think I've said this before but I'll say it again just in case. Editing on the laid out pages is so much easier than from the manuscript. Even after all the edits and reads by friends and professionals I am finding things. Which is good because the book goes to the printer on Wednesday. The key in my edits is that I can't do anything that changes formatting or page flow. There are recipes that I want to just rip out and start fresh, but that's not realistic at this point. And quite frankly, there are only two that I think are hard to understand. 

[Smithy]

Mmm.  Does 'Pâté' need a diacritical over the center vowel in the word?

 

The last editing must be crazy-making, both from the standpoint of having seen it (one thinks) dozens of times already but trying to see it afresh, and from having it seen so many times already that you want to replace the recipe.

 

Crazy-making or not, it's exciting!