9 tips to make your food post interesting
Recently I’ve received an increasing number of requests to guest-post on my site, which makes me ecstatic, but it also sets me in a difficult position to evaluate what is interesting. Of the millions of food blogs out there, what makes yours interesting? It’s you. Your voice, your emotions and your own experience with the food can set your post miles above a recipe that I can find just 0.2 seconds after I google its name. I’m no professional blogger, but I’ve read a fair share of food blogs, and from the ones that I keep returning to, I’ve learned and formed my own set of guidelines on how to write a post (which I try to follow, sometimes more successful than others).
In general, recipe posts have more room for personal stories, and they also comprise the most common type of food blogs (small sample: of the top 50 food blogs on Delish, 43 are recipes), so these guidelines are more geared toward recipe blogging than reviews. I’m gonna skip the photos, although they’re important, they’re the varnish and the writing is the wood.
1. Write statements with specific details, geographically and historically. Let’s say you want to write about grilled catfish. You need an opening sentence. Your first thought is “When it comes to catfish, there are many American dishes. They are mouthwatering and delicious.” These two sentences sound choppy and unimpressive, so you can remodel them into “Our American cuisine has no shortage of mouth-watering dishes with catfish, such as Catfish Tuscany and Catfish Gumbo.” Then you give more background details to it: in which regions in America are these dishes most common, who usually like them; or give a more personal touch: do you have a childhood story related to one of these catfish dishes, how did you come to like catfish or fish in general, etc.
2. Be confident with your opinions, but respect your readers. You’re not trying to give a lecture, you’re just telling a story. Sometimes a confident statement may sound a little bit too direct and confrontational. For example, “you should eat catfish because it is healthy” sounds like an order, but softening it to “my mother always tells me to eat catfish because it is healthy” offers not only consideration but also a personal story and a third opinion (your mom’s), which gently boosts the credibility of your statement. The use of “you” should be minimal, unless you want to make it sound like a conversation, which you should.
3. Give reasons. Why is catfish good for health? Include scientific facts if possible. Include your grandmother’s experience is even better: 1. It’s personal; 2. It’s most likely universal, somehow all grandmothers think the same; 3. It’s proven with time.
4. Tell a story. How did you come up with this recipe? How is your recipe different from other recipes of grilled catfish? Basically, what makes your recipe unique? What have you discovered while making this recipe, using this product, or eating this dish? James Boo and his co-writers on The Eaten Path tell some of the best stories.
5. How flexible is your recipe? Can I use brown rice instead of basmati rice, pork bone instead of beef bone, or blueberries instead of raisins? For a review, how adaptable is the dish or the product? Can it be eaten any time of the day, any season of the year? What kind of beverage would it go well with? What changes can/should be made if I want to make it for my grandmother’s cousin who has dentures and is fond of duck tongue?
6. Tell us about the result. What do you think about your recipe after you eat it? Is it perfect? Did it give you a split second of enlightenment? Is there anything you should have done differently or is there anything you would like to experiment next time you make it? Will you make it again? Did your best invention give you the worst stomachache the following day? Did anyone beside you eat it, if so, what did they think? The answers to these questions add personality to your post and complete your story.
7. Google is your best friend. And like with your best human friend, you should prepare to spend a lot of time with Google. There are already a lot of information out there, simply reciting the first link you find is not going to make your post any better than that link. What the reader needs is all of that information in one place, so that they can quickly go back and look up for it as needed. I spent 2 days browsing through 50 pages of articles on the ash sticky rice dumpling (bánh ú tro), most are copies of one another, to get enough information for my post. The more inclusive your post is, the more useful it is for the reader. Your reader is spending their valuable time to read your post, so you have to invest your time to research before you write.
Also make sure to cite your sources. Citation doesn’t take away your expertise, it proves it.
8. Be funny. This point is always mentioned in every blogging to-do list, and it’s the hardest point to follow. How can you be funny? I try, but I don’t know if I’ve ever succeeded because nobody has ever told me that I’m funny. But here’s a trick I’ve learned from noodlepie: you can be funny by referencing funny things. Use the built-in links to your advantage. Those who bother to click on them, get the hidden jokes.
9. Be open about yourself. Be personal. If you don’t want the world to know about you, maybe you should set your blog private, or blog in your head. Besides, the world is not out to get you, unless you’re a serial killer on Interpol‘s wanted list who also enjoys seeking out the most authentic pad thai in the States, in which case you probably shouldn’t blog about where you just had lunch… (or maybe you should?)
To sum it up, a good blogging tone is confident, respectful and open. Content-wise, be informative. Ask yourself while writing: have I learned something new? If you don’t learn anything new while writing your post, that means you haven’t done enough research and your post is useless. Even if you think of the entire post all by yourself in one go, there are always numbers and statistics that you can add to bolster your arguments, or fun facts to make your baked potato not so trivial, or new words that you procure from thesaurus.com to avoid repeating yourself. If you learn something new while writing your post, chances are your readers will learn something new from your post, and that newly acquired knowledge will prompt them to think of your blog as a valuable source, and they will come back.
This post was written after an allnighter. Now the author has learned what her third alarm, which she always sleeps through, sounds like.
I have read several good stuff here. Definitely value bookmarking for revisiting. I wonder how so much effort you set to make one of these great informative website.
1Hi there, just became aware of your blog through Google, and found that it’s truly informative. I’m going to watch out for brussels. I will be grateful if you continue this in future. A lot of people will be benefited from your writing. Cheers!
2I really like meeting useful information , this post has got me even more info! .
3I’ve been surfing online more than 3 hours today, yet I never found any interesting article like yours. It is pretty worth enough for me. In my opinion, if all webmasters and bloggers made good content as you did, the net will be a lot more useful than ever before.
4Hmm is anyone else experiencing problems with the images on this blog loading? I’m trying to determine if its a problem on my end or if it’s the blog. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.
5I’d have to examine with you here. Which is not one thing I usually do! I take pleasure in reading a post that may make folks think. Additionally, thanks for permitting me to comment!
6I like this weblog very much, Its a real nice situation to read and incur information. “Acceptance of dissent is the fundamental requirement of a free society.” by Richard Royster.
7It’s really a great and useful piece of information. I’m glad that you shared this helpful info with us. Please keep us informed like this. Thank you for sharing.
8You really make it seem really easy with your presentation however I to find this matter to be actually one thing which I feel I might never understand. It seems too complex and very large for me. I’m taking a look ahead in your subsequent put up, I will attempt to get the hang of it!
9Right now it seems like WordPress is the best blogging platform out there right now. (from what I’ve read) Is that what you are using on your blog?
10I went over this site and I believe you have a lot of excellent information, saved to fav (:.
11Hello my family member! I want to say that this post is awesome, great written and include almost all important infos. I would like to see extra posts like this.
12I am forever thought about this, thankyou for posting.
13Enjoyed reading through this, very good stuff, regards. “All of our dreams can come true — if we have the courage to pursue them.” by Walt Disney.
14There is noticeably a bundle to know about this. I assume you made certain nice points in features also.
15you will have an important blog here! would you like to make some invite posts on my weblog?
16Hi there, I found your blog via Google at the same time as looking for a related subject, your site got here up, it seems to be good. I have bookmarked it in my google bookmarks.
17Of course, what a magnificent website and enlightening posts, I will bookmark your site.Have an awsome day!
18When I originally commented I clicked the -Notify me when new comments are added- checkbox and now each time a comment is added I get four emails with the same comment. Is there any way you can remove me from that service? Thanks!
19This is a topic close to my heart cheers, where are your contact details though?
20hello there and thank you for your info – I’ve certainly picked up something new from right here. I did however expertise a few technical issues using this web site, as I experienced to reload the web site lots of times previous to I could get it to load correctly. I had been wondering if your web host is OK? Not that I am complaining, but sluggish loading instances times will often affect your placement in google and could damage your high-quality score if ads and marketing with Adwords. Anyway I am adding this RSS to my e-mail and can look out for a lot more of your respective interesting content. Make sure you update this again soon..
21Im now not sure the place you are getting your info, but good topic. I must spend some time studying more or understanding more. Thank you for wonderful info I was on the lookout for this information for my mission.
22But wanna tell that this is extremely helpful, Thanks for taking your time to write this.
23Yeah bookmaking this wasn’t a high risk decision great post! .
24Hmm it looks like your blog ate my first comment (it was super long) so I guess I’ll just sum it up what I wrote and say, I’m thoroughly enjoying your blog. I as well am an aspiring blog writer but I’m still new to everything. Do you have any tips for first-time blog writers? I’d definitely appreciate it.
25I relish, lead to I found just what I used to be taking a look for. You have ended my four day long hunt! God Bless you man. Have a nice day. Bye
26I really like your writing style, fantastic information, appreciate it for putting up :D.
27Về kỹ thuật, các nghệ nhân làm chè Tân Cương vẫn giữ quy trình sao chè thủ công qua nhiều công đoạn: diệt men, vò chè, sao khô, lấy hương — đòi hỏi kinh nghiệm và sự tỉ mỉ cao. Chính sự kết hợp giữa điều kiện tự nhiên thuận lợi và tay nghề truyền thống đã tạo nên vị trà xanh Thái Nguyên đặc trưng: nước xanh trong, hương cốm non thoảng nhẹ, vị chát dịu ở đầu lưỡi và hậu ngọt sâu kéo dài nơi cổ họng.
28Hey! I simply would like to give a huge thumbs up for the nice data you may have here on this post. I will be coming again to your weblog for extra soon.
29Very interesting topic, regards for posting.
30This is the right blog for anyone who wants to find out about this topic. You realize so much its almost hard to argue with you (not that I actually would want…HaHa). You definitely put a new spin on a topic thats been written about for years. Great stuff, just great!
31I’m still learning from you, while I’m improving myself. I definitely enjoy reading everything that is written on your site.Keep the posts coming. I loved it!
32Hey, I think your website might be having browser compatibility issues. When I look at your blog in Chrome, it looks fine but when opening in Internet Explorer, it has some overlapping. I just wanted to give you a quick heads up! Other then that, great blog!
33Absolutely indited subject material, Really enjoyed looking through.
34Great blog right here! Additionally your site so much up fast! What host are you the use of? Can I am getting your associate hyperlink for your host? I desire my web site loaded up as quickly as yours lol
35Way cool, some valid points! I appreciate you making this article available, the rest of the site is also high quality. Have a fun.
36you’ve gotten an ideal blog right here! would you wish to make some invite posts on my blog?
37Very interesting topic, thankyou for putting up. “Men who never get carried away should be.” by Malcolm Forbes.
38I do agree with all the ideas you’ve presented in your post. They are really convincing and will certainly work. Still, the posts are very short for novices. Could you please extend them a little from next time? Thanks for the post.
39This blog is definitely rather handy since I’m at the moment creating an internet floral website – although I am only starting out therefore it’s really fairly small, nothing like this site. Can link to a few of the posts here as they are quite. Thanks much. Zoey Olsen
40Yeah bookmaking this wasn’t a risky determination outstanding post! .
41My spouse and I stumbled over here coming from a different web page and thought I should check things out. I like what I see so now i am following you. Look forward to looking into your web page again.
42of course like your web-site however you need to check the spelling on several of your posts. Many of them are rife with spelling problems and I to find it very troublesome to tell the reality then again I will surely come again again.
43hey there and thank you for your information – I have certainly picked up something new from right here. I did however expertise a few technical issues using this web site, since I experienced to reload the web site many times previous to I could get it to load properly. I had been wondering if your web host is OK? Not that I’m complaining, but slow loading instances times will very frequently affect your placement in google and can damage your quality score if advertising and marketing with Adwords. Anyway I’m adding this RSS to my email and could look out for much more of your respective interesting content. Ensure that you update this again soon..
44Enjoyed reading through this, very good stuff, regards. “Shared joys make a friend, not shared sufferings.” by Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche.
45Having read this I thought it was very informative. I appreciate you taking the time and effort to put this article together. I once again find myself spending way to much time both reading and commenting. But so what, it was still worth it!
46This is a topic close to my heart cheers, where are your contact details though?
47Wonderful work! This is the type of info that should be shared around the net. Shame on the search engines for not positioning this post higher! Come on over and visit my web site . Thanks =)
48Hello There. I found your blog using msn. This is a very well written article. I will make sure to bookmark it and return to read more of your useful info. Thanks for the post. I’ll certainly comeback.
49Today, while I was at work, my sister stole my apple ipad and tested to see if it can survive a thirty foot drop, just so she can be a youtube sensation. My iPad is now broken and she has 83 views. I know this is entirely off topic but I had to share it with someone!
50