Writing a food blog isn’t all about cooking and taking photographs. Yes, that’s a big part of my job as publisher of Hope At Home, but there’s a lot more behind-the-scenes of being a food blogger and I’m thrilled to share a typical day in my life with you.

I wake up and start my day at 5 AM. After I get a pot of coffee brewing (yes, a pot because I need coffee), I head out to the barn to check on my chickens. After the chicks are fed and have fresh water, I let them free-range for the day. Back in my house I have my first cup of coffee and make breakfast, which is usually plain Greek yogurt with granola and fresh fruit, while reviewing my to-do list for the day.

By 9 AM I’m checking my website. I schedule all my posts to go live at this time and I like to take a quick look to make sure everything is okay with the post. Mistakes can happen, like a wayward typo. After my review, I then head to check on any new comments that have come in since the day before. Next I’ll open my email, looking first for priority emails from my agent and sponsorships. Once I’m done with email I’ll take a quick look on social media – Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, YouTube and sites like Foodqawker and Tastespotting. This usually takes me an hour to complete, but can be longer depending upon what emails I received.

I’m in the kitchen by 10 AM and ready to cook for a new post. I’m working on a recipe I developed or adapted. Today I’m photographing the recipe and not making a video for my YouTube channel. I usually photograph each step as I prepare the recipe. Cooking for my blog usually takes me longer than when I’m cooking for myself because I’m focused on the photographs. I pay attention to little things, like if the carrots I chopped were all the same size. When the recipe is finished, I do a quick clean-up of my kitchen and make a quick snack. No, I don’t eat the recipe (at least not yet).

By noon I’m ready to photograph the recipe in my office, where I have my basic lighting set-up which saves me time. It can take me from twenty minutes to an hour to shoot a recipe.

I wrap up the shoot by 1 PM and it’s finally lunch time and I’m starving. I’ll probably eat what I made for the post. Usually my recipes feed 4-6 people so I’ll discard what I photographed to death and dish out a fresh serving for me and save the rest for later or for Drew, my best friend and awesome reporter. The one upside to being a food blogger is that there is always food in my house.

I’ve finished eating and cleaned the kitchen and my photo area and now I’m ready to sit down and do some administrative work for my blog. It’s about 2 PM now and I’ll check all my social media platforms and website again for new comments (I always reply back), and then I also visit some other food blogs. Food blogging is a community of great, supportive men and women, and I love to like, share, repin, retweet posts from my tribe.

By 3 PM the social media part of my administrative work complete, so I turn to content creation for my blog. I’ll brainstorm ideas for upcoming posts, ideas for photo shoots, ideas for collaboration with sponsors and ideas for digital products I sell and that I give away for free. I always use an editorial calendar to plan my blog posts and a trusty print planner for everything else.

My day is winding down and at this point I love to head out for a run. No matter how hectic my day has been I make sure I squeeze in a workout. It clears my head and reminds me of why I chose to go from magazine editor to food blogger with a short stint on a reality baking show. I enjoy the freedom of having my own business and I love sharing the joy of cooking with everyone.

You can read more about Hope in The Uninvited Corpse, the first book in the NEW “Food Blogger” mystery series.

Leaving behind a failed career as a magazine editor and an embarrassing stint on a reality baking show, newly divorced lifestyle entrepreneur Hope Early thought things were finally on the upswing—until she comes face-to-face with a murderer . . .

Hope’s schedule is already jam packed with recipe testing and shameless plugs for her food blog as she rushes off to attend a spring garden tour in the charming town of Jefferson, Connecticut. Unfortunately, it isn’t the perfectly arranged potted plants that grab her attention—it’s the bloody body of reviled real estate agent Peaches McCoy . . .

One of the tour guests committed murder, and all eyes are on Hope’s older sister, Claire Dixon—who, at best, saw Peaches as a professional rival. And suspicions really heat up when another murder occurs the following night. Now, with two messy murders shaking Jefferson and all evidence pointing to Claire, Hope must set aside her burgeoning brand to prove her sister’s innocence. But the closer she gets to the truth, the closer she gets to a killer intent on making sure her life goes permanently out of style . . .

Includes Recipes from Hope’s Kitchen!

Purchase Link

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Meet the author
Debra Sennefelder, author of the Food Blogger Mystery series and the Resale Boutique Mystery series, is an avid reader who reads across a range of genres, but mystery fiction is her obsession. Her interest in people and relationships is channeled into her novels against a backdrop of crime and mystery. When she’s not reading, she enjoys cooking and baking and as a former food blogger, she is constantly taking photographs of her food. Yeah, she’s that person.

Born and raised in New York City, she now lives and writes in Connecticut with her family. She’s worked in pre-hospital care, retail and publishing. Her writing companions are her adorable and slightly spoiled Shih-Tzus, Susie and Billy.

She is a member of Sisters in Crime, International Thriller Writers, Womens Fiction Writers Association and Romance Writers of America.

Visit Debra at debrasennefelder.com.

All comments are welcomed.