Interview with Martha Cheves

Author of Stir, Laugh, Repeat

Where are you from originally and where do you reside now?

Just outside Atlanta, GA.

If you currently reside somewhere besides where you were born, what’s the story that lead from there to here?

I divorced my husband and moved to FL where my daughters were. That lasted about a year. It appears that jobs are hard to find in Florida, unless you are a waitress, in the medical field, speak Spanish or a prostitute. I didn’t fit any of those so when I had a job offer in NC I accepted and moved here.

What made you decide to write and publish your first book?

I had really never thought about writing book. One of my daughters made a request that before I died would I please write down my recipe for banana pudding. My other daughter told me she couldn’t bring deviled eggs to Thanksgiving dinner because she couldn’t peel the eggs without them breaking apart. Well, I didn’t have a recipe for my banana pudding and never measured the ingredients. So I set out measuring as I went along and created my banana pudding recipe. I also knew that if you peel the eggs while they are still very hot, rolling them around on the counter, you can take the shell off without damaging the egg. I sat down at my computer and typed in what I had come up with. Then it hit me – why not write down other recipes that the kids loved along with tips to make cooking easier. As I was working on this I started remembering stories pertaining to some of the dishes so I started adding the stories along with the recipes and tips. I had maybe 25-30 recipes, tips and stories put together and knew I was a terrible speller so I had my best friend who had a degree in literature ‘proof’ read what I had. She then told me I needed to write a cookbook. Now, I couldn’t write a cookbook and had no idea what to do with it if I did. I let it go at that. But she didn’t let it go. She had written many articles for magazines so she knew a bit more than I did in publishing. A couple of days later I received a phone call at work. It was from Tate Publishing wanting to see my ‘manuscript’. They liked what I had and wanted a total of 100 recipes, tips and stories. That is when I got busy cooking, measuring and writing down my recipes. It is also when I acquired what I call my Food Testers. They consist of neighbors who have the chore of eating what I cook. I finally had my 100 recipes and the book went to the publisher and was published. I did book signings at about every bookstore in Charlotte as well as some in NC and FL.

How would you describe your books to first time readers?

My book Stir, Laugh, Repeat is full of down to earth recipes with ingredients you probably already have in your kitchen. I’ve tried recipes that call for something ingredient, especially herbs and spices, that I’ve never even heard of. I go to the store, buy it and find it on the spice rack a year later with it only being used once. So I try to keep it simple. I also try to offer suggestions for ingredients that can be changed to your own taste. For instance I don’t like asparagus but I like broccoli. I simply think about substituting the 2 flavors in a dish and make the change. That is what brought me to writing my other cookbooks Think With Your Taste Buds, which I co-authored with a friend in FL.

Who do you feel is most likely to connect with the topics you write about?

Anyone that loves to cook would love my cookbooks and hopefully the humor and tips.

What unexpected or surprising thing did you learn during the process of writing and publishing?

The biggest thing I learned was that some of the publishers out there do charge you for their services – up front. This was unexpected for me but I worked through it.

If you could, what advice would you give to your past self before embarking on this journey?

If I could do this over again, I would look for a publisher that doesn’t take your money and just print your book. I did 90% of the work myself after the book was published. I contacted the book stores, set up the signings and spent hours on the computer posting to every site I could find advertising my book. I will give the publisher credit for setting up an interview and cooking on a local TV show here in Charlotte. But if I had this to do over I would do my research on publishers.

How many people would you ideally like to reach with your books?

I would love for my books to be in as many kitchens as possible, especially those of the younger generations, allowing them to see that you don’t have to get fancy to create delicious, beautiful dishes. I never put pictures of the dishes in my books because I didn’t want the cook to think they failed if it didn’t look as pretty as mine might have. Taste is #1 while looks are #2 for me.

What has been the biggest challenge and frustration during the process to date?

When I wrote my cookbooks I still worked so time was my biggest challenge. I had to come up with a recipe, many times finding one in a magazine somewhere, simplifying it and changing it to fit my taste. Then I had to cook it, let my food testers rate it and if it made at least an 8 I would add it to the book. Frustration, don’t really think I had any because I loved to cook.

What’s your biggest strengths when it comes to book a) writing, b) publishing and c) marketing?

My biggest strength was the fact that I loved to cook so writing wasn’t so bad. Publishing was simply a matter of sending the manuscript (and money) to the publisher. Marketing, I had no problems with that. I would schedule a signing and always sell out of my books within the 2 hrs. that I allowed for the signing. It was time consuming but I enjoyed it.

What’s your biggest weakness when it comes to book a) writing, b) publishing and c) marketing?

My weakness was not knowing how publishers worked.

When do you think you will write your next book?

I don’t think I’ll write anymore cookbooks. I just turned 70 and don’t think I could get through the book signings. I do still write several blogs where I work with recipes, simplifying them and making them everyday dishes. I also add comments telling the reader about the changes I made to the original recipe as well as offering ingredient changes.

Are you self published or did you use a hybrid publisher, or a traditional publisher?

I have no idea what hybrid nor traditional publishers are. I guess I was maybe self published since I did pay money to have my books published. I’m still a bit ignorant when it comes to publishers. I will say that anyone wanting to publish a book of any kind, do your homework and check out the publishers. I’m not sure but I believe my publisher Tate is now out of business. My books can still be bought but I have no idea where they come from.