Wednesday Writing: Food in Stories

Posted on by Teagan Riordain Geneviene

Wednesday, July 10, 2024

Image courtesy of Chris Graham via Playground

Welcome, everyone.  It’s been a while since I did a writing process post, so let’s get cooking!  (I couldn’t resist the pun.)

Adding food to the story can help to bring a story to life in many ways.  If a character has a favorite food, they’re more relatable.  For instance, my uninhibited flapper character, Lulu, loves to eat cheeseburgers, with a Yoo-hoo Chocolate Drink to wash them down.  Her favorite cocktail is a bloody mary — with a bowlful of horseradish on the side.  All of those things are mentioned in her latest diesel-punk adventure, Hullaba Christmas: Lulu and the Snatched Santa.

Adding food to a setting can also reinforce the era in which your story is set.  Did you know that in the Roaring Twenties, pineapples were thought of as an exotic food.  They were also pretty difficult to obtain.

Announcing…

Hullaba Christmas:
Lulu & the Snatched Santa

If you missed my weekend post, I announced that after 2 1/2 of on-and-off work, I finished Lulu’s second adventure. She and Rudolph the reindeer-bot are now available.

Hullaba Christmas coverBut I digress — back to the topic at hand.  Food, in this case, pineapples, was a reminder of the first story and the diesel-punked-up automat on Valentino’s train.  Adding pineapple was also a reminder of Lulu’s “healthy appetite,” which is a big part of her character.  Since I used that snippet in my previous post, I’ll include one from Hullaba Lulu: A Diesel-Punk Adventure.

Pineapple Snippet

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Image courtesy of Chris Graham via Playground
Image courtesy of Chris Graham via Playground

My heels clicked on a mosaic tile floor when I entered the next car.  The room was wall-to-wall chrome and glass.  A Horn & Hardart sign was at the top of the wall facing me.

“Holy Hannah!  An automat!” I exclaimed, but nobody was there to share my glee.

It had everything from a hot cup of noodle juice, to porterhouse steaks, to jiggly gelatin in ritzy molds.  My stomach rumbled and my mouth watered.  I opened a little glass door and removed a plate of exotic Hawaiian pineapple upside-down cake.  I’d never tasted pineapple.  That was about as exotic as fruit could get.  Abruptly, I wondered how it would be on one of Tony’s brick oven pizzas… maybe one with ham.

I felt a soft bump as the train traveled.  It wasn’t even enough to make me stumble.  It could have been from anything.  Then one of the compartment doors of the automat opened.  A newspaper fell out.  I bent to pick it up.

On the front page was an article by Tom Driberg about the society swells called the Bright Young Things.  Interestingly, the next story was not by Driberg but about him.  There was no byline, but the writer insinuated that Tom was a spy working for the Russian government!

Bushwa!  Does Rose really have a history with that guy?

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Let me know about a story where the inclusion of food made it come to life for you.  Thanks for visiting.  Friendly comments are encouraged.  Hugs!

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I must include the obligatory shameless self-promotion, so here are links to Lulu’s new story.

Hullaba Christmas: Lulu and the Snatched Santa

Hullaba Christmas cover

Universal Purchase Links

Series Link: 

Kindle: relinks.me/B0D33MN3NJ

Paperback: relinks.me/B0D8WR8T5B

Hullaba Lulu cover by Teagan R. Geneviene

Kindle:  relinks.me/B08JKP1RS4

Paperback:  relinks.me/B08JDYXPZM

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Copyright © 2022 – 2024 by Teagan Ríordáin Geneviene

All rights reserved.

76 thoughts on “Wednesday Writing: Food in Stories”

  3. Food is such a universal language. On a basic level, it’s just vegetables and meat and spices but combined with hard work, love, and emotion they transcend all boundaries. Speaking of this, I remembered a movie called The Lunchbox (2013). The movie bagged a lot of awards including Producers Guild Film Awards, Cannes Film Festival Critics Week, and British Academy Film Awards. The plot goes like this – Ila is a young housewife who is trying hard to seek the attention of his husband who is busy with work life. To re-ignite the romance, she is working hard to cook delicious meals and get his attention. She hires a food delivery guy to send packed lunch to her husband’s office. However, her lunch box mistakenly ends up reaching a middle-aged widower who is a loner. He eats her cooked lunch anyway. Ila realizes that the lunch box is probably going to the wrong man because her husband never likes her food, but now the box is returning empty. She writes a letter to the widower about the mistake and this exchange of letters eventually turns into a friendship between a wife who is trying hard to impress her husband but feels alone and a widower who loved his wife a lot but now has lost her and is also alone.

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  4. That was honestly the most amazing advice I have gotten in quite a while. I have this new short story I’m working on editing, but I haven’t really made progress because it feels too bland at the moment. I’m going to try your idea and add some small personal details about the characters and see it that helps round it out more. Something has been missing and it’s stalling me posting the story. This may help! Also your boom looks amazing! I’ll definitely be picking it up when I can! ❤️

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    1. Hi, Samantha. I’m so glad you found that helpful. Years ago I did a blog series about using the senses in writing. So this would go with the sense of taste.
      Someone (I forgot who) advised asking your characters questions, to make them flesh-out in your mind (not necessarily to include in the story). For me, the more real the character becomes to the writer, the more real they are to the reader.
      I hope you can get back into your story. When I get stalled, it can be the oddest, simplest little thing that snaps me out of it. I appreciate you reading and commenting. Hugs.

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      1. Thanks. After I wrote it and then have been trying to edit to be something readable. I just felt like something isn’t making me happy about it. That it needs idk what. So I’m going to try to take your advice and have a look at the characters each. See what I can add or fix to make them feel more fleshed out. The problem is I think it’s too long for a short story but at the same time because I’m trying to keep it a short story that it’s being rushed at the same time. I’ve decided maybe I can just add what I want to make it more rounded and help the pacing flow better by just making it a long 3 part short story haha. So with that in mind this week I will be revising until I’m happy. Then post it when ready! 😁

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        1. It sounds like you have it under control.

          Trying to make a story fit into a certain type or length is frustrating. That never comes out the way I want. As someone told me long ago, “Let the story be what it wants to be.” I hope you have fun with it.

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  5. I am so excited to hear that we have a sequel Lulu!!! Off to get my copy!!! Sending hugs on the wing. And yes – food is very important “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” by Lewis Carroll, the Mad Hatter’s tea party is a memorable scene with its nonsensical etiquette and endless cups of tea. In “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” by Roald Dahl, the fantastical world of Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory is brought to life with treats like Everlasting Gobstoppers and lickable wallpaper. Additionally, the elaborate feasts in “Harry Potter” by J.K. Rowling, such as the Hogwarts’ Christmas dinner and the magical sweets from Honeydukes, create a rich and immersive experience for readers. Food serves as more than just sustenance in these novels; it becomes a powerful tool for world-building and character development.

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    1. Hi, Rebecca. Those are fantastic examples! One of my favorite Harry Potter scenes was the first book/movie and his birthday cake. That certainly touched story development on several levels. Thanks for joining the conversation. Also I really enjoyed your latest collaboration with Resa. Hugs on the wing.

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  8. The automat! That’s a great touch. It really sets both time and atmosphere.

    I do remember the various meals in The Little House books being reflections of how life was going for the family at the time. When you’re living close to the land your food is very dependent on so many factors. (K)

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    1. I’m happy you enjoyed the snippet, Kerfe.
      You’re absolutely right. Food can be a great way to indicate financial states/status without having to go into unnecessary details that can bog down the story. There was a description of a meal in To Kill a Mocking bird. I was a little baffled by the article’s writer saying it was used to show they were poor. I thought the meal sounded very nice, and like good southern food, but certainly not a poor person’s meal. I guess everything is relative and depends on the “filters” of individual readers.

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  9. I’ve got to point out Agate, the Cook, in The Delta Pearl.

    There are many times her dishes are used and do make thing come alive with, reason and whimsy.

    I enjoyed your snippet a lot, Tegan.

    Still, I gotta say that pineapple and ham pizza is out of my league! lol

    Pearl Hugs!

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  11. Those are the cutest pineapples ever, lol! None of the titles come to mind right now, but I’ve read several books set in different countries where the food is described in detail. My stomach rumbled from beginning to end.

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    1. Haha. Even that description is very evocative, Liz. I grew up with my father insisting that beans be on the dinner table every night. My nose remembers the smell of every phase of the bean from sorting dry ones, to partly cooked, to burned! LOL. Hugs.

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        1. Ha! That’s funny. Yes. Although at this point, maybe I shouldn’t admit it. The last time I mentioned that to someone in person, he drew back in revulsion. He backtracked and was nice, but that first reaction was an eye opener… And now I’m drifting dangerously close to politics, which I never discuss. Have a thriving Thursday, Liz. Hugs.

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  13. The foremost set of books I can think of that feature food is the Nero Wolfe mysteries. Nero Wolfe is a gourmet and has a gourmet chef with whom he sometimes has disputes about whether to put more this or that into a recipe. Wolfe’s leg man, Archie, is a regular guy, but living with Wolfe has made him picky about his diner food. Archie only drinks milk, a quirk I don’t think was ever explained.

    One of the mysteries I’m working on has a main character who makes quick and easy recipes that I can drop in with just a line or two. It speaks to her character, and the people who eat her food show their characters by how they react. Another sister and sister-in-law duo in a different wip have an online cooking show. I think a person’s relationship with food and/or cooking CAN tell something about them. If a writer is going to tell me that a character grabbed a sandwich, I always want to know what kind.

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    1. “I think a person’s relationship with food and/or cooking CAN tell something about them.” I absolutely agree.
      Culinary mysteries are a lot of fun to read, and to write, Marian. I like what you’re describing here. It’s going to be great.
      I’m only vaguely familiar with Nero Wolfe. I haven’t read the books, but I saw one or two episodes of the TV series. Thanks for this comment. Big hugs.

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  14. I enjoy pineapple, but not on pizza. My grandmother (the Syrian one) was an excellent baker. One day, she made apple squares. I still remember her broken English as she described them as having “two kind of apple, apple and pineapple.” They were good. But my brother and I still joke about that today.

    I remember Lulu liking Cheeseburgers, and Skippy getting a bag for her before they disappeared from your party for Hullaba Lulu. In my books, I always have food (mostly breakfast) but I remember Billy making a pie after midnight.

    I hope you’re having a great week, Teagan.

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    1. LOL, I remember that you don’t like that kind of pizza. Oh, yes — I remember the pie scene with Billy. That was a great use of food. It really helped bring out his personality. Thanks for sharing this delightful story about your grandmother too, Dan. Hugs.

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  15. Those musical pineapples are the best! I can well imagine Pineapples being so exotic and expensive back then. Oranges in the winter my Mom tells me were too when she was a girl, while I grew up with them both being available year round. Thanks for reminding me to be thankful today for these fruits and their availability! 🤗

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    1. That’s interesting, Deborah. I can’t remember us having any problem getting them. Although it was still sort of a local tradition, when I was really small for the church we attended to give a little brown paper bag with an orange, an apple, and maybe a few pieces of peppermint to each person at Christmas. And people did took the same to nursing homes. That makes me think that it probably had not been so long that oranges were hard to get, if they continued to be holiday gifts… Just speculating. Hugs.

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      1. I grew up receiving an orange in the toe of my Christmas stocking every year. It was this time of year my mom would tell us how rare oranges were in winter when she was growing up. My Grandmother made my mom’s and uncle’s stocking more special by including a very expensive treat…an 🍊. My mom carried on the tradition with me and my siblings. I passed it on to my two kids. My son enjoyed the orange more than my daughter. I don’t think she’s carrying on the tradition with our Grandkids though.😭
        I am sitting here trying to remember having fresh pineapple as a kid and only recall having canned pineapple. I think I must have been a teenager before I ever had fresh pineapple!!

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    1. Haha. Good one, Tim.
      Rough day. A random guy stopped and offered to take care of my weeds (for a lot of money of course) and he bailed before finishing… Now we’re having some really intense wind.
      How are you doing post-eye-surgery? I’ve been meaning to check on you, but I’ve been offline all day. Hugs.

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      1. I hope you didn’t pre-pay for the poor weed service. Eyes are doing well. The eye drop regimine gets tiring, but it starts taping off after Friday.

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          1. One is predisolone, and the other is an antibiotic. Four times a day, five minutes apart. Friday is the last day I have to do the antibiotic. I have to use artificial tears in between. Lots of dropping going on.

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              1. It’s almost over. Then, three times a day for a week with Prednisolone. Then two times a day for a week, and finally one time a day to finish August 2nd. Then I can get new prescriptions.

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  22. Lovely post, and yes pineapples were exotic and a luxury item years back, although one can find them quite easily these days. You always include food and interesting dishes from the time period in your stories, and I remember a famous cook also… You’ve made me think of Laura Esquivel, a Mexican writer and her book Like Water for Chocolate (Como agua para chocolate) where food and cooking play a very important part. I am not sure if you’ve read it, but the novel, and the movie, are fabulous. Thanks, Teagan! Big hugs and love to the Scoobies!

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    1. Many thanks for visiting, Olga — and for sharing on social media. Thanks for the recommendation too. I’ve heard the title “Like Water for Chocolate” many times, but I’ve never read it or seen the film. I should check it out. The Scoobies send you a purr. Big hugs back.

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