Appetizing Muse

I don't remember what triggered my interest in writing about the food and culture of different countries, but it has become an enjoyable although miniscule part of my life as an author. Fiction writing is actually what drives me and what I consider to be my life's work (using my maiden name Deborah O'Toole along with the literary pseudonym Deidre Dalton), but scouring around for facts and figures for cuisine articles can be fun.

Sometimes I deliberately choose obscure or small countries to write about (Madagascar, Basque Flavors, Monaco) only so the formation of the articles will be a challenge. Most of the projects take time, others not so much (three to six weeks from start to finish for the Savorys by Shenanchie articles, less for the Food Fare pieces).

Luckily, my mother reads everything I write and has become valuable as a proof-reader for me. As with most editing, after so many hours of checking and double-checking an article it can become a bit blurred. It's nice to get a fresh perspective before the final version of the piece is complete, and always helps me. Editing articles is similar to editing a full-length novel, although on a much less grand scale, of course.

I'm currently gathering data about Thailand for April, and bits about artichokes for the spring piece at Food Fare. Part of the fun is designing the web page and implementing significant colors/images pertinent to the country or topic, so it's a great experience all-round for me. I hope to keep doing the articles for as long as I can, although next year when my fiction novel comes out I may not be able to produce new ones with the same frequency as I do now.