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From blogger to author

October 3, 2011 5 Comments Filed Under: Food, Recipes, Uncategorized

Wednesday 5th October 7.00pm

Kerstin Rodgers Entertains us at The Supper Club
Always passionate about food, photographer Kerstin Rodgers slowly began to find herself cooking professionally for various cafes and festivals. In January 2009, Kerstin launched one of the first UK supperclubs, The Underground Restaurant. It was an immediate success. She’s been at the forefront of the underground food movement ever since, encouraging and giving advice to others with the group that she started Find a supper club, become a fan… a place to promote supperclub events.
And now, she has produced a lavish new book, The Supper Club, a homage to this secret restaurant phenomenon. In it you’ll find Kerstin’s inventive and delicious recipes and themed menus, peppered with her helpful hints, tips and wild experiences. You’ll also be treated to Kerstin’s down-to-earth advice on how to run your own home restaurant, and a directory of other supper clubs of note around the world. In few other cookbooks will you find recipes such as elderflower fritters alongside home favourites such as Macaroni and cheese.
Kerstin wil be reading from the book, answering questions and of course she will be happy to sign copies of the book, which is available in the bookshop. There maybe also some tasty morsels for you to sample too.
This is a free event, but please get here early, to ensure a place…
Taking place at the Big Green Book Shop in Wood Green, one of the few independent bookshops left… http://www.biggreenbookshop.com/events-diary/info_6.html

I love this bookshop! I went to see Bill Drummond do a truly trippy talk there. I hope I can live up to it.

Recently I was part of a panel at the SW11 Literary festival with other bloggers who became authors.
I shared what I had learned:
1) Getting published is mostly due to luck or connections. Mine was down to luck, I met my editor  at a party. We clicked. ‘I get you’ she said to me. 
2) You have to promote yourself. Authors that don’t use Twitter, Facebook, pimp themselves out to anybody they know in the press are making a mistake. You can’t live in an ivory tower. You gotta be a bit of a media ho.
3) It’s nice to have a launch party but not necessary. It rarely results in coverage or better book sales. I didn’t bother. I do entertaining as a day job.
4) You have approximately a two week window to promote your book once it comes out. Publishers bring out books twice a month on a Thursday. You’ve got a fortnight before a bunch of newer books come out. 
5) Cookbooks are rarely reviewed by serious newspapers, not even under non-fiction. Cookbooks account for 30% of all book sales however. 
6) Publishers want cookbook authors who are on TV as it’s almost a guaranteed sale. Cookery TV is basically advertising for cookbook authors, in half hour slots. My publisher Harper Collins took a risk on me: I’m not a TV chef, my book was expensive to produce and is visually luxurious. 
7) Sleb culture has infected cooking too. I was on Market Kitchen while a young soap actress who doesn’t cook for a living, demonstrated a recipe. I, on the other hand, was sitting on the sidelines, trying to elbow in a comment or two (as instructed by the producers). I thought ‘What is wrong with this picture?’
8) Publishers don’t really organise book signing tours anymore. 
9) Get your hair done, get your teeth done, spend money on a colourful outfit, a look. Most press is visually led, good photos lead to coverage. Coverage sells books.
10) Writing a book is lonely. Testing and writing recipes is really hard work. (Some cookbooks don’t test their recipes: unfair as readers are buying ingredients based on your advice, you have responsibility for their dinner!). While you are writing it you think it is shit. By the time you’ve finished, you hate your own book. 
11) Publishers don’t edit as much as you think they will. They have fewer resources nowadays. You need to get your grammar, punctuation, spelling and structure right. Unless you are famous, the publishers haven’t got time/budget to sort it out.
12) If you have guest recipes and want to send out copies to contributors you have to pay for the copies and the postage. 
13) If there is enough money, your publisher will make a ‘BLAD’, a glossy pamphlet/mini version of your book for the press or foreign rights purchasers. You want foreign countries to buy your book, you might actually make some money that way. 
14) Don’t expect to make any money. 
15) When you see the first copy of your book, you feel amazing.

If you have any questions, put them in the comments below and I’ll do my best to answer them honestly.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Sarah, Maison Cupcake

    October 4, 2011 at 3:45 pm

    Having just submitted my first manuscript, I don't think there's anything here I wouldn't agree with!

    Reply
  2. SarahBHood

    October 4, 2011 at 3:55 pm

    Oh so true, especially the "hate your own book" part. 🙂 Next time (if I ever decide to go through this again) I might try to crowdsource some volunteer recipe testers for extra backup. And Twitter is great for authors, because so many kind people will make you feel really good about that book you barely feel like opening.

    Reply
  3. mrspao

    October 4, 2011 at 8:09 pm

    Great advice! 🙂

    Reply
  4. Sasha

    October 6, 2011 at 11:12 am

    So nice to meet you last night! Definitely want to come for dinner now, just waiting for one I can really get dressed up for.

    http://andnobodygotsick.blogspot.com/

    Reply
  5. chumbles

    October 6, 2011 at 11:17 am

    Fascinating stuff and point 11: "Publishers don't edit as much as you think they will." is so true it's painful. The worst of it is that sometimes they get a bright idea which carefully undermines the original structure and move stuff around as well as introducing typos…

    I've acted as midwife (editor) to three books now and I found that hard enough. When you edit you get to hate the books even more, because you can only 'suggest' changes!

    Reply

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MsMarmiteLover aka Kerstin Rodgers.

Chef, photographer, author, journalist, blogger. Pioneer of the supperclub movement.

This is my food and travel blog, with recipes, reviews and travel stories. I also stray into politics, feminism, gardening.

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Kerstin Rodgers/MsMarmiteLover
My next supper club 17th June london tickets £50 My next supper club 17th June london tickets £50 BYO book here: https://msmarmitelover.com/product/midsummer-supper-club-tickets-june-17th #london #supperclub #msmarmitelover #midsummer
For tonight’s event I had to push the boundaries For tonight’s event I had to push the boundaries. Here is how to prepare goose neck barnacles or percebes which are a very expensive and rare delicacy, hunted down from cliffs. It’s quite dangerous to forage them. #canapes #eventcatering #satanicfood #percebes #grossfood #seafood #devilsfood
Midsummer supperclub 17th June book tickets here h Midsummer supperclub 17th June book tickets here https://msmarmitelover.com/product/midsummer-supper-club-tickets-june-17th at London’s pioneering supper club. Tickets £50 BYO. Scandinavian inspired summery food. #supperclub #msmarmitelover #midsummer #northwestlondon #londonevents #popups
Tina sweating through a gig at Brixton academy cir Tina sweating through a gig at Brixton academy circa 1987 pic: kerstin Rodgers #rip #tinaturner #rockphotographer #kerstinrodgers #teenagephotographer
Attended an incredible talk with @frenchpete_1 on Attended an incredible talk with @frenchpete_1 on war photography in the Ukraine . Go to the exhibition @thebppa @thebargehouse in SE1 last few days 
Had to stop filming cos I was told off. The photographers would be less forthcoming if they were filmed I was told. 
Anyway @frenchpete_1 should be followed by a camera crew cos he’s a star.
For yesterdays lunch I made a blue cheese puff pas For yesterdays lunch I made a blue cheese puff pastry quiche and a little one with less blue cheese & no salt for my 7 month old granddaughter. She absolutely loved it. I’m enjoying seeing her experience and explore new foods with baby led weaning. Avocado, strawberries, kiwi & buttered crumpets are a hit. Pasta less so. Who is this child? Are we even related? #babyledweaning #quiche #homemadepuffpastry
Nice to be featured as The Great Read in The natio Nice to be featured as The Great Read in The national newspaper again. These are the stories I love to do: I go off on an adventure, take my time, interview people (especially women), photograph them in their environment and create recipes on site. This story cost me a lot more than I made as I had an accident and lost my excess. My own damn fault though! Loved loved loved having a campervan. Thanks for lending me it @camperdays.international and sorry about the hole in the side.  https://www.thenational.scot/news/23505593.foraging-seaweed-western-isles/
My terrace on a sunny May morning. The builders @l My terrace on a sunny May morning. The builders @lk.general.building left yesterday. They’ve been working since January. I had the awning installed, the encaustic Minton tiles removed and put back with green grout. The terrace was causing damp so this had to be done. My calamondin plant is looking lovely. The benches which I repaired with hard wood & I repainted using a mix of 2 colours. The marble table I bought in Suffolk at a car boot. Everything is still dusty & I’m waiting for the window cleaner to arrive.
Last but very heartfelt thankyou to @cideriswine f Last but very heartfelt thankyou to @cideriswine for their contribution of these beautiful dry ciders for the coronation street lunch. Gorgeously illustrated labels. #stcuthbertsrd #kilburn #london #cider #artisanaldrinks
When it comes to vodka I much prefer potato vodka. When it comes to vodka I much prefer potato vodka. It’s smoother. Artisanal distillery @devoncovevodka contributed some bottles to my coronation lunch which gave everyone a feeling of being at a classy party. Thanks so much. And also @rawfoodanddrink for arranging. If you want to read my blog post about how and why I organised this event, copy and paste this link: https://t.co/GWNNW2XKba #coronationstreetparty #biglunch #community #kilburn #london #forthepeoplebythepeople
I’ve been a fan of @luscombedrinks for years now I’ve been a fan of @luscombedrinks for years now. They sent a selection: elderflower bubbly, st. Clements orange 🍊 Sicilian lemonade, @belvoirfarm_uk lemonade, which were all delicious and just the tickets for the fortuitous mini-heatwave that occurred on the Sunday coronation lunch. #thankyou #community #coronation #streetparty #biglunch
Our street party. Double page spread in The Sun! T Our street party. Double page spread in The Sun! Tiny bit in the guardian. Decent pic in the Mail and The Star credit @asproider #coronationlunch #kilburn #stcuthbertsrd #kingscroftrd #fordwychrd #templarhouse
My coronation quiche with Broad beans, tarragon, s My coronation quiche with Broad beans, tarragon, spinach, cheddar. I used crème fraiche and blind baked puff pastry shells. I was up at 11 last night making these for todays street party, which featured in the mail, telegraph, mirror, metro courtesy of photographer Gavin Rodgers @asproider
Seaweed foraging at Spring tides in the Outer Hebr Seaweed foraging at Spring tides in the Outer Hebrides with @outerhebrideanforager Fi bird. She’s cutting sea spaghetti. I drove my campervan @camperdays.international from london to the Hebrides- using my gas stove to cook foraged and local ingredients. A real food safari. With the sea spaghetti I made a sea spag vongole with giant parlourdes picked up from the sand at the same time. Great fun, beautiful weather and, the day of the full moon, a wonderfully low tide. This was on south Uist.
More flavours, the flavour thesaurus is a plant-ba More flavours, the flavour thesaurus is a plant-based version of the original. Beautifully constructed, designed and written by @nikisegnit it’s vegetarian rather than vegan but recommended for both. She widens the sensory vocabulary around plant flavours in this book- encouraging new delicious sounding combinations. Now she includes new categories such as flower & meadow, caramel roasted, zesty roost- just the words make me salivate. #foodbooks #bookstagram #newbooks
Yesterday I attended @marmaladeawards @dalemainman Yesterday I attended @marmaladeawards @dalemainmansion I found out so much about marmalade. I’m going to make it this winter. I found out the worlds best maker is Japanese, in fact I was most impressed by the Japanese marmalades in general. Everyone wore orange. I must have tasted 50 marmalades. I met Paddington’s sister, karen jankel who is michael bond’s daughter, born in the same year as Paddington. She gave a charming talk on Paddington, mentioning how the queen insisted on having real marmalade sandwiches in her @launerlondonofficial handbag during the shoot. The house itself is Tudor and Georgian. I stayed in my campervan from @camperdays.international in the car park, cosy in the rain. Another freewheeling adventure. #yorkshire #marmalade #travel #food #ontheroad #campervan
I had a piece in @thetimes on Sunday about being a I had a piece in @thetimes on Sunday about being a vegetarian rather than a vegan. How I still need butter. And how restaurants & plane meals are now vegan rather than vegetarian. But, there are still more the double amount of vegetarians as vegans in the UK. I’ve written a vegan cookbook V is for vegan (link in bio) and am a big fan of vegan foods. I’ve not eaten meat for over 40 years. This is a sustainable diet, in terms of longevity. Vegans that I knew from the early noughties have reverted to meat eating. #newpuritanism? #vegetarian #vegan #foodwriter
Scrambled croft eggs (bright yellow yolks) with a Scrambled croft eggs (bright yellow yolks) with a seaweed that tastes just like truffle. Just done a little kelp foraging at low tide with @thetempleharris’ Amanda Saurin. Isle of Harris. Turquoise sea, white sand, cloud hovering just above. @camperdays.international @roosterpr
I went to Wembley in north west london to talk to I went to Wembley in north west london to talk to Sophie of @tobia.teff she uses the iron-rich, gluten free teff grain from her homeland Ethiopia. She showed me how to make injera, the Ethiopian flatbread which is fermented. She also talked about the coffee ceremony, 3 cups, which they pair with toasted barley or, currently, popcorn! I’d love to visit Ethiopia and find out more about their ancient food culture, history, 3.5k year old monarchy and religions.
Doing a spring budget recipe cooking demo for @bre Doing a spring budget recipe cooking demo for @brentcouncil Willesden library. I’ve been doing this a few times a year for the last few years. Wouldn’t it be great if they had a kitchen set up permanently. Libraries are community centres and could be used to teach how to cook from scratch.
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