I’m sorry for the long gap between posts. I’ve been fully focused on finishing the manuscript for my first book, The Permaculture Kitchen, which I recently sent to my publisher, Permanent Publications.
The book is a practical guide for busy people who want to cook fresh, local and seasonal food in a sustainable way. My aim was to make recipes and techniques accessible and low-faff so that people who don’t normally cook will feel confident to start. I explain simple methods for improvising recipes and creating menus on the fly, keeping preparation straightforward while maximising flavour.
The manuscript is now with the editors and I’m waiting for their feedback, which is always a little nerve-wracking. Much of my previous writing has been professional—law, marketing and public affairs—so writing an approachable food book has been a new challenge. I expect some rewrites and edits. There’s also photography and design work still to be completed. My hope is to release the book as an e-book this summer, and if it does well we may produce a print edition.
Balancing recipe development, book writing and running the smallholding has been an intense learning curve. Over the past year I’ve had to make some tough decisions about priorities and accept a few compromises. Debs has been an enormous help, covering gaps and keeping things on track, for which I’m very grateful.
Now that the main push is over, I miss the process of writing and am already planning future books. I hope the publisher—and more importantly, you—enjoy this first one and want more. I’ll keep you updated on progress and any publication plans.
Thanks for sticking with the blog; there’ll be more regular posts again soon.