Writing About Food

Food journalists are also referred to as food critics, food writers, and restaurant critics. Some food writers are food columnists, writing about food for newspapers and magazines.

Newspapers like The New York Times, The Washington Post and The International Herald Tribute have food columns. In fact, almost every newspaper has food columns, including restaurant reviews and recipes. Some of these food writers are staff writers, writing regularly about foods, new foods or food innovations, new food trends, food science, food technology, ethnic foods, international cuisine, food traditions, food information, food aesthetics, food education, food criticism, food history, food economics, food editorials, restaurant reviews, grocery store review, grocery budgeting tips, foods in the news; other food journalists are freelancers, contributing articles on spec.

Sometimes readers are invited to write food articles or send in original recipes. If you are building your resume as a food writer, then you should send these magazines and newspapers food articles and original recipes. Submit to the local press first, including interviews with local chefs and local restaurant reviews, then if you are published, send a portfolio of your clippings to the national and international press. These might commission you to write original food articles and/or reprint some of your clippings. Food journalists do not have to travel to exotic places to write food journalism, although many of the best food journalists combine food journalism and travel writing. But who are the best local chefs? What are the best local restaurants? You can learn how to be a food journalist first with these. Or if you travel, combine travel writing with your best food journalism. You can write about any restaurant, any type of cuisine.

In addition, you can enter original recipe contests. Subscribe to and read popular food magazines like Gourmet, Food and Wine, and Saveur. Read and study the articles. Read the best of the best local, regional, national and international food critics and restaurant reviewers. Ruth Reichl of Gourmet, R. W. Apple Jr. of The New York Times, Alan Richman of GQ, a James Beard Award winner, are among the well-known food journalists. There are reviews of Italian, Cantonese, Mexican, Persian and other foods and restaurants, and as a food journalist you can specialize in a variety of ethnic cuisines.

Magazines that have food columns include The New Yorker, The Atlantic magazine, Newsweek, and Vogue.

Food criticism also can be found on the internet, e.g. Foodtourist and Epicurious. To start a career in food journalism, as an online writer, you can write food criticism and restaurant critiques for Associated Content, Triond, and Helium. You can publish food journalism on blogs and forums. You can start your own food journalism networks, blogs and forums. Food Blogs include Tasty Design, Cooking for Engineers, Food Blog Central and The Food Section. Food journalists can also write for Food-Writing.com. Here you can sign up for their free newsletter and join their discussion group. They also offer a course in food writing. For the self-study course in food writing in book form, printed and ebook, go to: http://www.food-writing.com/classes/selfstudycourse.html.

Television has its famous food critics and restaurant reviewers, and television food journalism is yet another genre of food journalism. Usually these television food journalists are also chefs, however, there are television food journalists like Al Roker on the Food Network. Of course, Al Roker is not, as we know, limited to food journalism. However, on the Food Network he interviews chefs, critiques cuisine and does restaurant reviews. For television food journalism you must have the talent and charisma for television. Writers for print and online are not necessarily the best television journalists, food or otherwise, and vice versa.

Many print journalists complain of not getting their views to the networks, but many of these don't have the star quality that television audiences are attracted to. Often these people are accepted by cable audiences and special news networks where the viewers are interested in substance not necessarily how attractive the journalist is. Yet, even for these, the medium does have some influence, as with the Kennedy-Nixon debate. Imagine both of these as celebrity TV food journalists?

The Food Network has its version of American Idol. Certainly television viewers recognize the X factor along with their Simon Cowells.

Restaurants are always a popular subject. Restaurants figure in many television shows and movies, and there are famous restaurant scenes like the famous "food-orgasmic" scene in When Harry Met Sally. Ugly Betty has even worked as a food critic and there is a scene in which Ugly Betty from Queens goes into a posh upscale restaurant with her "nerdy" boyfriend to do a restaurant review for Mode, the fashion magazine she works for. She has a list of questions that she must answer in order to evaluate the food and the restaurant. In addition, there are food festivals and food competitions. Cookbooks are among the most salable books, great for gifts, and The Joy of Cooking, in its many editions, continues to be a bestseller.

Food itself is a salable subject. There is much interest in food and nutrition, as we witness in the popularity of the Food Network, as we have mentioned, and in the popularity of celebrity chefs like Rachel Ray and Emeril, in food-oriented topics and genres. Even restaurant owners can become celebrities. Many chefs, as we know, are owners of their own restaurants, and many restaurants, including franchises.

Food as an subject can inspire creative writing. The poems of Chaucer almost always mention food. Certainly food and famous food scenes must figure in novels. We know the famous erotic food scenes in books and movies. We also know the famous comic food scenes in books and movies.

What to Write About?

Teach babies and children about foods, explore the ethics of fast foods and nutrition, write internation foods cookbooks, create new recipes, review old recipes, critic new restaurants, research the history of foods, become a food archeologist. write about food traditions and traditional cruisines, create your own food website.

Write books on food science, write a food-oriented memoir, discuss the politics or the philosophy or the ethics of food.

Write food information and food how to books.

Interview cookbook writers, chefs, other food journalists. Write food comedy, food commentary, editorials and opinions.

Specialize in the economy or geography of foods.

Creative nonfiction, fiction, poetry, sceenplays. These are the different forms of writing in which food can be a topic. Like Water for Chocolate? Fried Green Tomatoes? Keep a journal and write a list of food-oriented titles.

Create your own foods video, market it online or on television.

"...the majority of all foods consumed by human beings are seeds."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food

Courses in food journalism are available at Media Bistro:

http://www.mediabistro.com/courses/cache/crs252.asp

Among the assignments for this course are: "a news product or cooking tip, a personal essay with recipe, a profile of a food personality, a restaurant review or roundup, the solution to a food-related mystery, a regional food feature, a food-related trend piece, and a cultural, travel, or holiday-oriented food feature."

Among the things that you learn are "how to write a pitch that an editor can't turn down, how to become a food expert, how to negotiate a contract, and how to edit yourself."

Recommended Books About Food for Your Food Reference Library

Hungry Planet: What the World Eats

Molto Italiano: 327 Simple Italian Recipes to Cook at Home

Washoku: Recipes from the Japanese Home Kitchen

The Herbal Kitchen: Cooking with Fragrance and Flavor

Cheap Eating

The Produce Bible: Essential Ingredient Information and More Than 200 Recipes for Fruits, Vegetables, Herbs & Nuts

Adventures in Oriental Cooking

Chinese Cooking

Adventures in Italian Cooking

All the Best Mexican Meals

The ABC of Natural Cooking

About Fruit, Vegetables, and Salads

The All-Color Vegetarian Cookbook

All-Time Favorite Vegetable Recipes

All-Time Favorite Fruit Recipes