I would like to write an ecookbook. What kind of cookbook is good to write or has this been done to death?

Tony

At Booklocker.com, we do get a lot of cookbook submissions. The one problem with ebookbooks vs. other ebooks is that most people don’t want to lug their computer to the kitchen…and don’t want to risk spilling something on it.

However, lots of people use recipe websites and print the recipes for use in the kitchen. Allowing readers to print parts of your ecookbook (specific recipes) is always a good idea.

As far as ideas are concerned…you should really try to find a niche. What types of foods are YOU interested in? What would YOU enjoy writing about? What hasn’t been done yet?

We recently published a pretty niche cookbook called What, No Meat? Traditional Italian Cooking the Vegetarian Way by Roberta Roberti. It is a very professional book, artistically designed, and extremely impressive. The author did an outstanding job on it and the topic is very unique.

Another idea is to intersperse your recipes with personal stories. I love memoirs that have recipes in them and I love cookbooks that contain personal stories. Let’s face it, you can find and read recipes just about anywhere. Spicing them up with personal stories will set your cookbook apart from the mundane ones.

My mom is compiling a cookbook of her favorite recipes. Most of the recipes have a story behind them. For example, she and her girlfriend used to get together for the Academy Awards each year and bring a homemade candy dish. The recipe had to be something they made up on their own. The best recipe ever was named, of course, Academy Award Candy. My mom still makes it to this day and, let me tell you, it is the most fattening and delicious monstrosity you could ever put in your mouth. Just looking at it can make your pants feel tight. After you gorge yourself on it, you swear you can feel the butter pouring out of your pores. The guilt is worth it, however. She now makes it during the Academy Awards and during the Miss America Pageant.

Another one is Chocolate Soup. My mom created that recipe on her own when she was a young woman. Everyone in the family still makes it. In fact, our daughter made it one day last week. I actually have a Chocolate Soup Scar on my leg. Imagine accidentally dripping thin, boiling chocolate tar on your leg. Yeah, that’s what I did when I was a kid. I carry the scar to this day. It was painful then… but it’s funny now… funny enough for the story to appear in her cookbook.

One more example is her “I’m Not From North Dakota But I Love Green Jello Salad” recipe. Now, aren’t you curious about the story behind that one? I’d tell you about it but I don’t want to ruin the story for anybody who might buy mom’s cookbook someday (ha ha).

Another one is Weird Aunt Kay’s Oatmeal Cookies. Boy oh boy, the stories she can tell about Weird Aunt Kay…