Posted by Deb PuchallaLast night I watched the promo for today's Martha show, which promises Perez Hilton's top tips for bloggers. I got a sneak peek at a few of them, but none explained how to live blog from the television studio as I watch Perez and Margaret from Awaytogarden, Matt from Mattbites, Deb from Smitten Kitchen, and Ben Smith and Jonathan Martin from Politico show us how it's done, "it" being writing massively popular blogs about entertainment, gardening, food, and politics.
Usually I'm writing about better-than-takeout weeknight meals or farmer's markets after my kids go to sleep, not breaking news (loosely defined, please) midday. Just like when I covered the town council years ago, my blogger pal Chanelle said, except everyone gets to see the notes as I go.
So here goes. (Press pause on the Web and go turn on your television. I'll update a couple of times in this post and try and tweet as I go. Bear with me, I'm not sure if it's newsprint ink on my hands or tomato sauce, but this form is new. And exciting! Learn with me!)
UPDATE: 10:00 p.m. Sorry about the lack of a story ending! After the regular taping, Martha and MSLO executive editorial director of decorating Kevin Sharkey sampled dozens--seriously dozens--of hot dogs (stay tuned) for a taped segment. Matt Armendariz and I had talked about cooking together in the test kitchen and on the way out met up with several Twitter friends who joined us. (Note to corporate: the test kitchen doesn't fit 20 that comfortably!) They all got a sneak peek and taste of tastings and we got to sample Matt's grandma's soup, which was almost as smooth as his performance! More blog-friend love is to come, so keep checking in. One of the ways we continue, we hope, to surprise and delight with our simplicity is to meet up with people who inspire; another is by talking directly with you, the fans of Great Food Fast.
10:51 a.m. Lots of you have visited our Garden Goodie fests in the past several weeks with Margaret. So happy to hear her talking about sharing and teaching gardening to not only newbies like me but also experts. Margaret getting sassy: "There are my sexy beasts." The frog boys, Margaret's emcee team at Awaytogarden.com -- not nearly as salacious as they sound.
After the show, Margaret and I have to talk about what fests we're doing with recipes in the next few weeks as the weather cools.
10:45 a.m. Check out Matt's recipe for alfajores on our site.
10:36 a.m. I've mentioned my colleague Eddie Ross to my Twitter pals (he's a contestant on Top Design!); he's doing a craft with flea market finds with Martha. It's not all food related, but you should all check out his blog -- he has some beautiful tabletop ideas and even a few recipes woven in. Right now tin-can vases for fleurs.
10:21 a.m. Great to see Perez Hilton here, and it's helpful and interesting to hear about how he works (very hard!!) and how he's grown his business. Blogging takes so many forms of information sharing. Here at Dinner Tonight we try and deliver great meal solutions and recipes, but Perez's world is all about celebrity. His tips include the following:
- "Find a niche--ya gotta get a gimmick. Do something to help you stand out!"
- "Be prepared to work hard -- I put in 15, 16 hours a day!" He says the busiest day is Monday or Tuesday or Wednesday...
- "Don't be afraid to network."
He just asked Martha how much she made last year. Love it. Perez says he makes "Enough."
Check out Martha's blog for more info, and watch the website for clips soon (you can see the show again Thursday night on Fine Living at 8 p.m. Eastern). I hope you'll continue to visit me here and on Twitter.
Hooray for bloggers on 'Martha'!! :0)
Posted by: VeggieGirl | September 17, 2008 at 10:20 AM
deb, this is sooooo exciting! and it's killing me, because i have to wait FOUR MORE HOURS until the show airs here in AZ! :)
good luck out there - you're awesome.
love,
chanelle
Posted by: chanelle | September 17, 2008 at 10:20 AM
Gahhh,
So annoyed that I missed the show. Any idea when I can catch it again in NY? I might go to the tweetup tonight in NY with Laura Fitton. You going?
-Grace
www.FearlessCooking.tv
Posted by: Grace Piper | September 17, 2008 at 03:10 PM