What?
Over the course of this past summer I created a cooking manual aimed at young adults and beginner chefs. Using Microsoft publisher, Adobe Photoshop and InDesign I composed and self-published my own book. I created infographics and compiled data on what the most common mistakes and misconceptions were when cooking. The book teaches everything from knife skills to when certain fruits and vegetables are in season. It covers all the basics to promote organization and creativity in the kitchen. The pictures were all taken by me and compiled in one place. The final third of the book gives recipes to encourage people reading to try something new and to share it with their friends and family.
The idea of the book was to create something original and use part of the funding to self-publish. To receive a copy of the book, one makes a minimum donation of $15 to the Mid-Ohio Foodbank. The goal of this project was to simultaneously help the person who makes a donation and benefit the greater Columbus Area by promoting the growth and awareness of the non-profit group.
So What?
I was a bit naïve in how much work it took to create something this large. At times I felt a bit crunched on time and was really overwhelmed by many aspects of self-publishing. But overall this project pushed me to think creatively and appropriately time manage a large project as an individual. It was hard to market this book and to find the right target market looking to give donations for a copy. I advertised this work mainly through social media postings on my personal profiles with Facebook, Instagram, and Tumblr.
Today I am much more comfortable in the kitchen and I feel like I have a better diet than I did a year ago. I also really enjoyed the opportunity this has left me to explore my own passion for creating and testing new cuisine. I hope to combine my knowledge with chemistry and food in the future and maybe turn it into a career as a food scientist.
Now What?
I want to continue learning how to create the most amazing meals for myself and my friends. As I love to impress the people that come over to my house and I take a lot of pride in the more advanced things I am able to create. This project does not directly align with my future goals but its purpose was to produce a creative outlet. It was a great summer project and constructed a one of a kind volunteer experience. I can only hope that it provides memories for those who use the book and educates them on how to properly manage their own kitchen in the future.