INTERVIEW WITH PAMELA WHITE BY Jane Rounsaville
Please tell me a little bit about your background. How did you break into the business?
I've always been a writer at heart and started offering my writing on a volunteer basis to several non-profits. I was then picked up by a local newspaper as a columnist and lifestyle reporter. I noticed that the restaurant critic had moved out of the area, so I presented myself to the publisher as a perfect replacement based on nothing more than my having lived all over the country and being a self-taught cook and baker. I wrote a review and just somehow swayed the publisher to offer me the job. After that, it was a lot of work! I studied food, watched food television shows, cooked for hours each day so I could keep up with trends and traditions. I would say that the first step in becoming a food writer is to get out there and write.
What, if anything, would you do differently?
I would see editors as allies and not enemies. I used to argue with the editors and now I realize that doesn't make them fans. I would definitely work hard to be friends with any editors I connect with, and I do that now. I would also have found time at the beginning to take even just a few cooking classes.
What inspired you to become a food writer?
I love food, I love cooking, I dream most of my original recipes, and I have since I first was forced to fend for myself in the kitchen, many years ago. It has always been a creative outlet for me. It just took me a while to realize that I could combine my two huge passions in life, food and writing.
Have you ever had a mentor? What is the best advice anyone ever gave you?
My husband is a newspaper editor. He trains reporters to write and to write well. He trains copy editors. He truly believes it is his calling to take raw college graduates and turn them into award-winning reporters. He was the first person in my life who saw my writing could be more than just a dream or as something I gave away for free. He not only mentors me but he is very kind when I write something that just isn't that good. Then, once his urge to be kind passes, he will tell me how to fix it! It's a great gift to me to have someone in my life that truly understands the urge to write.
The most valuable piece of advice concerning the writing of a food piece was from a newspaper publisher who said that each piece I write should begin with the most memorable, most important piece of information. He told me to pretend I was just coming home from a meal, or a food event and was so excited about it that I just had to run in and call my best friend on the phone. What would be the first thing I would tell her? The answer to that would be the lead into the article.
What kind of education/training do you recommend?
I have a college degree. But I always recommend new food writers to study food in whatever way is possible for them. A degree in the culinary arts or years in the restaurant or farming or food producing businesses can give you an edge. If money and time is short, then just jump in and write about food. Check out books at the library for free and read all the food books you can. Magazine editors want people who do have this passion for food, this desire to learn it all. Self-educated writers and food writers succeed every day in this competitive field if they have the passion, and the desire to continually learn new things about food.
How can aspiring food writers get started in this business?
Go to a food writing conference or workshop. Read all the food magazines you can get your hands on. Read the great food writers (many are now writing autobiographies and you can learn an enormous amount about breaking in from their books). Keep track of the writers that excite you with their words. There are many different ways to cover food and food-related issues. But if you can find a dozen food writers that are very attractive to you in the way they write and what they write about, focus on them, where their work is published, and use that as a kind of blueprint to how you can break in, and move forward quickly.
How much money can a food writer expect to make?
On a first cookbook – not much. The advance might be $10,000 USD if the writer is very fortunate, but the chance of someone who is not already famous making more than that for the entire life of the cookbook is small. But, you will have that first cookbook that shows you can do it and will help you get signed up to write a second and third….for more money.
Freelance writers can make up to $60,000 if they work hard to build up to higher paying magazines.
Newspaper food writers make less than magazine writers, except for those writing for the largest newspapers. And as the world of newspapers is rapidly changing this may not be true for much longer.
Those who make a living at it combine newspaper, magazine, local work, handling restaurant public relations and offering specialty writing such as writing menus and developing recipes for restaurants and other food writing venues. You can also mix in hosting local food cooking shows on television, radio shows on food, and creating your own publication.
Combining everything is what keeps the interest going in your writing.
It seems like everyone -- from housewives to high-end professionals -- has a food blog these days. What can we do to cut through the clutter?
You have to really read each blog to see if it's good, bad or just a one-time thought of the person who started it. I think many writers today are going back to some other field in order to pay their bills but use the blogs to keep their creativity alive and out there.
I love to read the food blogs and feel that many people truly put their heart and soul into them. The ones that don't end up with a few posts and no one reading it.
What made you decide to teach a course in food writing? To write your book?
It was the low income inherent with writing about food for most newspapers that pushed me to find a new solution to push my income up. I developed the first course on food writing that was available online, and the online school where I was hired to teach it had real doubts that anyone would ever be interested. I constantly update the courses I teach to keep up with the current needs of the publications we want to write for and of the publications' readers. Once I started teaching it, I really had fun and also learned a lot from my students. I wrote the book as a promotional tool, really. I thought if I wrote this book and promoted my site, ezine and courses in it, and this book sold through Amazon.com, then I would reach a whole new group of potential students. It's worked pretty well and I make an extra $4000 US dollars net each year from it.
Do you think the field is too crowded right now?
It is very crowded! And I read a lot of work from some of the more noticeable food writers and they constantly discourage anyone from trying to write a cookbook or even taking on food as a topic to write about. I think that's just the fear of competition. New writers have something to say, or maybe they don't, but they should still try to get noticed for who they are and what they have to share with the world. And do not let anyone tell you that you can't make it.
Please describe a typical day in the life of a successful food writer.
A typical day? When I'm on deadline for an article or a book manuscript ( I also write non-food books) I am usually up at 5 a.m. and work straight through until my back hurts so much I can't sit anymore.
More typical is a day when I have a little bit of everything to do. One likely day ( and this would go for many food writers) includes shopping at the local farmer's market, doing research on recipes than can be adapted to fit a lower-fat, or no-carb, or low-sugar diet, and spending two to four hours in the kitchen testing recipes, experimenting with different cooking techniques for a dish, and then wrapping up the successful ones and putting them in the freezer (otherwise food writing gets very expensive if you don't eat the edible results). Writers read…a lot. So a typical day is going to involve reading food sections online from newspapers and magazines and websites around the world. I am studying the psychology of food, and have a pile of books I've yet to read on that topic: why we eat the flavors we eat, and how does all that make us feel.
Most writers also juggle family life. When my children were at home still, I would get up, get them off to school, then write all day until about one hour before they got home. I would spend that hour doing dinner prep, and it always involved recipes I was testing for publication. The children would get home and I would go over their assignments, check homework, get them to after school activities. Then at 8 p.m. or so, I would go back to my writing and do editing, or maybe squeeze in more research.
What are some common myths about food writing?
The first is that people really think it's easy to write about food. I mean, everyone eats, right?? Another is that all your meals out will be free. Even if you review restaurants and are, technically, not paying for the meal (the publication always pays), you are working hard to create a restaurant review that accurately reflects what you and future diners will experience there. Another is that you must know everything about food before you can start. There are excellent, elegant food writers that have a niche within the niche of food writing. Many only write about food and health issues. Some are covering gardening. Others talk about the economics of the food produced around the world. Still others write about teaching children to cook. These are all food writing areas. And the ones covering them are valid food writers. I have taught children how to cook at preschools and daycare centers. I love this part of the foodie life. But there are many food trends that I do not keep up with.
Newspapers are struggling right now. How do you think the economy has affected the food writing industry?
It has affected the food writers quite negatively. Actually any lifestyle writers are in a weaker position now as newspapers are shutting down or moving to online only. The good news is that some newspapers (usually medium sized) are downsizing but are using more freelance writers. Also – the magazines and newspapers that are cutting down on their publication sizes are expanding their online presences (lots of revenue from online advertisements) so food writers need to just switch their focus to getting their work published on gourmet.com instead of in Gourmet magazine.
What are the most consistent qualities/personality traits of successful food writers?
Love food. Love writing. Self-confidence. Someone will always have more experience or a wider knowledge. Some just think they do. Keep pushing through, smile at all the naysayers, and just understand that there is a place for you in the food writing world. Keep looking until you find it.
What is the most/least profitable niche for food writers?
Right now, the least profitable is cookbooks since the majority – for the moment – are written by or ghost-written for celebrities – actresses, famous chefs, etc.
The most profitable – it's hard to say, things are changing so quickly but people are gobbling up food memoirs of famous and not-famous people. Also have a plan to work up from freelance writer to fulltime writer to editor at a magazine or website.
What is the hottest trend right now in food writing?
This minute – the trend is low-cost food preparation that mimics gourmet dining. Next to that is eating locally, growing your own food.
I'm interested in ghostwriting or collaborating on writing projects with chefs or others in the food industry. What's the best way to find these opportunities?
You need to have an in with a famous chef, meaning you need to be related to them or someone they trust. OR you need to have a resume filled with successfully completed writing projects. Having a book or a book deal in the works for your own writing is a great way to prove that you can handle the collaboration with someone else. That is a great idea. And an excellent way to earn more writing about food, but publishers like to use someone they know or trust, or have reason to trust - that is where the published samples of your writing are crucial.
What is the most rewarding aspect of your career?
Working from home. Honestly. I live in a place where it snows 200 + inches each winter. I get to sit in my office and watch the snow fall as I finish an article and email it out. Also the ability to schedule my life and work around each other. My husband has worked for so long at the newspaper that he gets 8 weeks vacation a year, and I can schedule my work so that I get to spend most of that time with him when he's off the golf course.
Also, I am forced to keep reading and learning more and I can't think of a better way to keep interested in life.
What was your most memorable project?
2 things really:
#1 was a 5 or 6 year stint as a restaurant reviewer. I loved learning all about the restaurant business, and being able (well, being required) to eat everything, from every place I went. I was a huge learning experience.
#2 I was asked to craft a cookbook proposal with recipe descriptions and several sample recipes for a book packager. I was given 3 weeks to put it all together, which should have been impossible, but I was promised the cookbook contract if they were able to sell it to a publisher. I worked day and night, and they loved it. The publisher they were working with, however, did not think it would make money based on the topic (low cost meals for college kids), the high production cost, and the way the economy was going.
How do you keep yourself motivated when you feel burned out?
I sleep. Not really. That's what I do when I cannot motivate myself. I stop cooking for a few days or more. I write essays or short stories. Then, when I think I'm starting to come back to life, I go out to eat at an exquisite restaurant and then it all comes back to me. Boating on the lake in the summertime is also a quick re-energizer.
Is there anything else you can tell me that would be helpful to aspiring food writers?
I think I've told you everything I know! I hope this helps you and other food writers out.