The Technicalities of Food Blogging

Reading articles on food blogging and writing or sharing recipes sent me into a freak-out mode. Man, there are rules to follow in the blogging world. Imagine that! I thought recipes were free for all, since we all love food. Fortunately, I have not written very many posts yet, so it was easy to go back and edit my posts accordingly to standards.

There is a lot of helpful information and these are the vital ones that I gathered:

1.      Always give credit where it’s due. (I’m proud to say that I always do this.)

2.      Do not copy a recipe word for word, that might cause you some copyright issues.

3.      The difference between adapted from (small changes that you make from the original writing) and inspired from (experimenting on an idea from an original recipe, such as, playing with flavor combinations until you deem it perfect).

4.      Use your personal voice when writing your recipes. The uniqueness of your writing makes it yours and makes it enjoyable for the readers.

From this moment on, I vow to write my recipes, exactly the way I made them even though the methods that I sometimes use is not really recommended. If the method works, I will let you know. If it doesn't, I will definitely tell you NOT to do it that way.

This will be tricky, but another thing I will do is to state the directions clearly, including the materials to be used, while making it short and sweet at the same time. Sounds tough… but I can do this, right?  

When I read recipes, I like it when the authors use the numbered methods. It is so much easier to read and cross off as I go. As a list maker myself, I find it satisfying to know that I am moving along and actually making progress. Sometimes, when directions are written in long paragraphs, my eyes get strained and I keep losing track and have to reread the entire paragraph to pick up where I left off. This makes it frustrating for me, especially because I don’t like smearing my cookbook pages with grease and sauces by following the lines with my fingers (yes, OCD!). So, another thing I will do from now on is to number my directions.

Wish me luck my friends and please feel free to guide me in this learning experience. I gladly welcome suggestions and tips. There are so many creative, inspiring, and beautifully written food blogs out there and I hope that I come even a quarter close to those amazing blogs someday.