Tasty
There are very few things that bug me about the holiday season, but one of them is that for some reason, if I eat all the treats that surround me, I can’t fit into my pants any more. I would like a caloric moratorium, but alas, it’s either abstain or buy new clothes. If you too are forced to enjoy healthy Christmas oranges (ecch) instead of cookies, you might feel better if you can write about food instead of eating it. I asked a few foodies about what tips they have for writers to break into food writing and how they can make their food writing delicious.
Leonard Pierce, a Chicago freelancer, writes restaurant reviews for the Chicago Reader. “The Reader was the first place I started, but it was because I knew the editor. However, if it’s something you’d like to pursue, there are lots of weekly publications that solicit reader reviews, as do the entertainment and dining sections of most big daily papers and their websites as well. These may not get you a paying gig right away, but they will help pad your portfolio for
when you’re ready.
“As far as writing a good review, my advice is to do what you would do with any kind of good entertainment writing: give it some personality. Fit it into a theme or framework. Don’t just tell us that the food was good or the atmosphere was lovely, tell us why:
the descriptions of a place’s ambience should be as evocative as it would be in good fiction. It’s not enough to just say that someplace was good or lousy, you have to say why, and why you’re qualified to tell us.”
If you have a rough time breaking into restaurant reviewing, explore other culinary writing venues. “I discourage my students from restaurant reviewing because the market is so small and hard to break into. There are other kinds of writing about restaurants that are a much better bet,” says Laurie Buckle, mb instructor and Bon Appetit managing editor. For instance, try getting into the front or back of the book of the aforementioned Bon Appetit, Chow, Cooking Light, Food and Wine, Saveur and so on.
Food writer and mb instructor David Leite has some tips on some ways you can try to get your foot in the door.
Get Short-y. Many publications run mini reviews or news items about restaurants. One of the best places to break in with this type of writing is Time Out New York and nymetro.com, the Web site for New York magazine. (Several of my students have broken in that way.)
Think Locally. A neighborhood paper often needs extra help, especially when it runs its restaurants issues.
Work Free, but Be Well-Fed. All legit publication at least pay for the meals your reviewing. Hey, it’s a start.
Rip Apart Your Favorite Reviewer. Writing restaurant reviews is a tough job. A good review weaves together information about the food, service, ambiance, the chef’s background, the restaurateur’s history. Good reviewers make it look simple. To get a sense of how it’s all put together, parse a reviewer’s work. Teasing apart the different elements will give you a great appreciation and understanding of the craft.
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