Up Your Visibility to Get Work, advises Rick Rodgers, Author or Collaborator of 100+ Books
Yes, editors call Rick, but live events generate projects too.
Cookbook author Rick Rodgers has been a name in our business for a long time. I met him at an International Association of Culinary Professionals (IACP) annual conference years ago. We meet when he comes to San Francisco’s East Bay, where he grew up. He always regales me with stories about his experiences in cookbook publishing.
I’ve asked to interview him many times, and he finally said yes. Read on to see the full interview. There’s not much indiscreet stuff, however, because he’s a gentleman. (And maybe because of a few non-disclosure agreements.) But you’ll find lots about getting work in our field.
You might know Rick’s name because he has authored over 40 cookbooks. He has also been the coauthor, ghostwriter, recipe developer, recipe tester, editor, or consultant to more than 60 others. “Yes, that is over a hundred!” he says proudly.
The man tried to retire a few years ago, but he missed being busy with lots of work. Most of his new projects are cookbook collaborations with influencers.
Here’s Rick’s take on how cookbooks have changed over the years, why influencers get lots of followers, and how to get more project work:
Q. How many years have you been writing cookbooks?
A. I hate to put a number on it, but it does seem like 35. My first book was published when I was in kindergarten.
Q. You’ve written 40 cookbooks now, right?
A. Yes, 40 under my own name, and another 60 books as collaborations. In the golden age of cookbooks — the 90s and early 2000s — editors were calling me every few weeks to do a book project.
Q. Four books you’ve worked on made The New York Times bestsellers list. What makes a book a bestseller, in your opinion?
A. Those books were branded in some way, with a celebrity or a TV show. There are two I did with Art Smith (Oprah’s private chef), two I did with Teresa Giudice (a TV reality star) and one with Patti LaBelle (singer and actor).
So that’s why, when publishers talk about platform today, it really is important to have one. It used to be that you could be a celebrity on PBS, the Food Network or a blog. Now it’s social media. And it's going to change again.
Q. How has writing cookbooks changed since you began?