This summer, I saw another Spoon writer Julia Murphy’s article, 15 Ways Food Writing Is Affecting My Life, and it’s funny how I can resonate with what she says even though we’ve never met.
I’ve written for a several types of publications: fashion, blog, movie review, magazine, press release, and heck, I’ve even written for a publication specifically for college girls. I love writing and enjoy every piece I’ve done, but working on the Spoon team at Cal is really something else. So, what differentiates writing for a food publication from writing for anything else?
1. You get to profess your love for food shamelessly.
Photo Courtesy of elycefeliz on Flickr
Hello? What’s a better place than Spoon to write an ode to European food, flaunt my extensive knowledge about grocery shopping films and have a legitimate excuse to spam those posts on all my social media accounts?
2. You learn to take better photos of food. #foodporn
Art & Photo by Hanna Juehan Ye
If you look at my Instagram page, it’s food, food and me, food and my friends and more food. Honestly, I don’t know why I feel the need to share my stunning meals with the world, but hey, sharing is caring, right? (Mind you: by sharing, I meant the photos, NOT the food.) For a long time, I thought taking food pictures was easy, but taking up a Spoon photographer position during the summer taught me so much about food photography.
3. You make more friends.
Photo by Jocelyn Hsu
Ever meet people in class that you really want to be friends with but feel really awkward asking to hang out? Tell them you write for a online food magazine, and chances are, they will volunteer to eat out with you. You won’t believe how many times I’ve heard, “OMG! You write for a food magazine? Can I join you when you write the next restaurant review? What do you recommend?” And you won’t believe how many incredible conversations I’ve had over food. Trust me, that’s how I’ve picked up guys over the past three semesters. Wink, wink.
4. You make foodie friends.
Photo by Jisoo Kim
Even better. Joining a food publication means you have a instant group of friends who love food as much as you do. This includes photographers, business-minded people, social media queens and other writers. Now, you’ve got people who are crazy enough to suggest going all the way to North Berkeley just to try food trucks. I kid you not.
5. You get to brag.
Photo Courtesy of Celestine Chua
When someone questions my taste in food, all I have to say is: “I write for an online food publication.” Period.
6. You learn to cook.
Photo Courtesy of SORTED Food
I didn’t know how to cook before writing for Spoon. The only dish I could master was reheated leftovers from last night’s dinner. However, after two semesters of food writing (and one semester of trying to avoid writing recipes), I’m proud to say I can actually cook something decent. Granted, I did set the smoke detector off once, but I can now make edible scrambled eggs and invent new dessert recipes on my own.
I could go on, but I think I’ve made my point here. That being said, if you’re a foodie and a writer, I highly encourage you to combine your two interests. It’s truly a wonderful experience. Trust me–I would know.