A few words from Jessica Server (guest speaker) 

WHY write about food?

1) Food is ubiquitous – everyone eats, and eats frequently.

2) BUT food is also specific. How your grandma made pies is just as

important as what pies she made or the fact that she made pies at all.

3) Food is personal.

4) Food is sensory. You can talk about color, texture, smell, taste, the sound

of onions frying…

5) Food is central – family, friends, relationships all gather around food and

food ritual.

You can follow my food columns here:

PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER – OFF MENU

City Paper Off Menu

You can check out my chapbook here (PS, a chapbook is a small collection of

poetry, generally no more than 40 pages, that often centers on a specific theme):

Sever the Braid

If you haven’t read Wendell Berry, he’s one of my favorite food writers.

If you want to buy one book that will give you a comprehensive overview of food

writing, try American Food Writing, edited by Molly O’neil. It’s fantastic and spans

a century.

When you’re stuck for something to write, think about food. Trying to move a

short story forward? Take your character out to dinner or to lunch at his mother’s

house. Need a poem idea? Think of a food you feel connected to, then think of

the first time you experienced it. Or write another recipe. It can be a recipe for a

dish, like we did in workshop, or a recipe for something non-food related, like an

apology.

BE CREATIVE. BE ADVENTUROUS. AND REMEMBER, WE CAN’T TASTE

“DELICIOUS.”