One Year Later: What Publishing a Cookbook Really Feels Like
Five truths that have stayed with me.
The SalviSoul Cookbook has officially been out in the world for one whole year.
I could wax poetic about this past year, how much life has changed, how proud I am of this work but honestly, I want to make some space for the part of publishing that isn’t always so inspiring or poetic. The part that’s quieter. More uncertain. Sometimes really lonely. And yes, anxiety? Still very much here.
Truth #1: Publishing a book feels incredible.
There’s this feeling I imagine Olympic athletes get when they cross the finish line—you did the hard thing. You followed through. You said I want to write a book and then… you actually did. That joy is real. The sleep I got after turning in my manuscript? The best I’d had in years. If you’re writing a book for that feeling of deep accomplishment, I say: keep going. It’s real and you deserve to feel it.
Truth #2: Post-publication depression is real.
Apparently there’s a name for it—“book baby blues,” or “post-publication malaise.” I had it bad. I didn’t recognize my own brain for a while. I couldn’t tell you how long it lasted, just that it lingered longer than I was ready for. I had poured everything into the book, every piece of me, and once it was out, I didn’t know what to do with myself. If you’re launching a book soon, make plans for after. Plans that remind you who you are, what else you love, what else brings you joy.
Truth #3: Financial freedom? Not guaranteed.
People said things like, “Wait until this book comes out, it’ll change your life.” And it did… emotionally. Creatively. Spiritually. But financially? Not really. And that was hard to swallow. I don’t come from deep pockets. I come from a hard-working family that’s fought for every bit of ground we’ve stood on. I felt silly, even naive, for thinking a book alone could change that. That’s why books like mine are rare—because the labor it takes is real and often unsupported.
Truth #4: Creativity returns.
After the fog lifts, something beautiful happens. You start to get curious again. You start imagining new things, new stories, new recipes, new ways forward. I’m not ready to share what’s next just yet, but I can tell you this: the work will find you again. And you’ll be glad it did.
Truth #5: You’ll still wonder if it was enough.
Even if the press was great, even if the tour went well, even if your community showed up, there’s this little voice that whispers, but were the sales enough? Did I do enough? I’m told this is normal. That the comparison trap never really goes away. But I remind myself of this: I didn’t write this book for accolades. I wrote it to connect. To remember. To heal. To say something true. And that’s the whole point.
See you in the next one, and thank you for reading and if you’ve purchased my cookbook, thank you. If you haven’t, here’s a link!