The Having People Over Episode
Babe Cave
What does hosting a dinner party have to do with writing a book? Everything, it turns out. In this episode, Amanda Polick dives into Chelsea Fagan's Having People Over and draws surprising parallels between the art of entertaining and the writing process — from reclaiming formality in your creative work to why going deeper (not wider) is the move that changes everything. In this episode, you'll discover: • Why we've gotten too casual with our writing — and how to fix it • The "back-pocket...
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The Lokelani Alabanza Episode
Babe Cave
Lokelani Alabanza has invented over 300 ice cream flavors, spent five years writing the cookbook she was born to write, and will absolutely change the way you think about what's in your freezer. Loke is a classically trained pastry chef with 20+ years of experience, founder of Saturated Ice Cream (a non-dairy, plant-based brand based in Nashville), and the author of Ice Cream Queen: Flavors from Black America's Past, Present, Future — out June 16, 2026, the week of Juneteenth. The book covers 200 years of Black American ice cream history and includes 100 recipes. In this...
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The Cookbook Proposal Episode
Babe Cave
Your cookbook proposal isn't a rough draft—it's a business plan that will make or break your book deal. After years of coaching aspiring cookbook authors, Amanda Polick has seen the same mistake over and over: brilliant writers with incredible concepts who sabotage themselves by treating their proposal like an afterthought. They think agents will clean it up, or figure it out. But if your proposal doesn't immediately prove you have a clear concept, know your audience, and can market your book, it's dead in the water. In this episode, you'll discover: • ...
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The Edna Lewis Episode
Babe Cave
In this episode, celebrating Black History Month, Amanda Polick dives into the life of Edna Lewis. A woman who became the Grand Dame of Southern Cooking not by following culinary trends, but by staying true to her roots. Edna's path was anything but linear. She worked as a seamstress making dresses for Marilyn Monroe, threw legendary dinner parties in NYC's bohemian art scene, and eventually became head chef and co-owner of Cafe Nicholson, where literary giants like Tennessee Williams and Eleanor Roosevelt came to eat her roast chicken and chocolate soufflé. But the real turning point...
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The You Shouldn't Write a Book Episode
Babe Cave
Not everyone who wants to write a cookbook should—and as a cookbook coach, Amanda Polick knows when to say so. In this episode, Amanda shares the red flags she watches for when aspiring authors apply to work with her: the family friend who insisted his wild game cookbook was "all in his head," the woman who tried to negotiate rates while planning to spend $8,000 she didn't have on self-publishing, and the applicant who sent her a Canva movie in French. Listeners will discover: Why "it's all in my head" is the most dangerous phrase in cookbook publishing The platform-building work...
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The Reading Resistance Episode
Babe Cave
Hot take: That novel you're "too busy" to read? It might be the most radical act of resistance you can do right now. Amanda Polick is tired of fiction getting a bad rap. You know the types—"I only read TRUE stories" people who act like novels are somehow less valuable than self-help books. But here's the thing: while 40% of Americans didn't crack open a single book in 2025, our leaders are literally telling us not to believe what we see with our own eyes. Coincidence? Amanda doesn't think so. In this episode, you'll learn: Why reading rom-coms and fantasy actually makes you better at...
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The Influencing Is Dead Episode
Babe Cave
If you've ever felt like you're "too small" to get a cookbook deal or that everyone with a million followers is getting all the opportunities, this episode is for you. Amanda breaks down what's really happening in the influencer world right now. Spoiler: follower count doesn't matter the way it used to. Instagram's algorithm shift means small creators with shareable content are getting discovered regardless of how many followers they have. And that changes everything. This is a warm, honest conversation about building something real in a landscape that's constantly shifting. Whether you're...
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The Un-Launch Episode
Babe Cave
What do you do when you've announced a launch... but it feels completely wrong? In this episode of Babe Cave, host Amanda Polick shares why she's "unlaunching" her newly announced group coaching program—and why that might be the bravest move she's made all year. In this conversation, you'll discover: → How to tell the difference between fear-based resistance and genuine misalignment → The wild story of Hillary Rushford: how a business coach with 200K followers lost a six-figure book deal that went to auction (and what it teaches us about creative disappointment) → Why stopping your...
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The Vision Casting Episode
Babe Cave
What if the meals you ate this year could reveal exactly where you're stuck—and where you're headed? In this reflective episode of Babe Cave, Amanda Polick shares her signature year-end practice: using the way you set your table as a mirror for how you show up in your creative work and life. Through three powerful questions about the meals that defined your year, you'll uncover patterns you didn't realize were there—and design the table you actually want to sit at in the new year. In this conversation, you'll discover: How a single meal can reveal the comparison patterns and...
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The IRL Episode
Babe Cave
Your content calendar won't save you. Your algorithm hacks won't either. Sometimes the entire trajectory of your business changes because you showed up in a room. In this episode of Babe Cave, Amanda Polick gets honest about hiding behind digital connection—and why face-to-face networking for introverts isn't optional if you want to actually grow your business and community. In this conversation, you'll discover: Why six months of perfect pitch emails lost to one 20-minute in-person conversation The five-mile rule for building authentic community How one woman at a children's...
info_outlineWhat happens when nobody signs up for your class, but you leave it posted anyway? Sometimes, two months later, the exact right person finds it—and four years later, you're celebrating their debut cookbook launch.
Jannell Lo is a food creator and writer whose journey to publication defied every traditional publishing rule. She got her cookbook deal without an agent, through a cold email that led to a call with Penguin Random House Canada six weeks later. But between that email and her book launch this week, she raised $150K fighting anti-Asian hate through Dump the Hate, learned to write "hot garbage" instead of perfect prose, and discovered that creative processes don't have to be linear.
In this conversation, you'll discover:
Why platform building happens organically when you focus on work that matters to your community rather than trying to "build platform"
The book proposal elements that actually matter and how a solid proposal makes writing your manuscript exponentially easier
How to break free from rigid creative routines that kill your inspiration instead of nurturing it
Why getting a book deal is about mutual benefit not begging for an opportunity—publishers need you too
The "hot garbage" writing philosophy that helps authors actually finish their manuscripts
Perfect for: Aspiring cookbook authors, food writers, creative entrepreneurs, anyone stuck in perfectionism, writers building their platform, people looking to find their authentic creative process
About Jannell: Founder of My BF is GF blog, championing gluten-free Asian cuisine inspired by her Chinese-Canadian upbringing and her husband Reid's celiac disease. Former line cook (Hong Kong), pastry training (Montreal), catering manager (Toronto). Her debut cookbook My BF is GF: 100+ Asian-Inspired Recipes for Bringing People Together releases October 21.
Resources: mybfisgf.com | @mybfgf | Newsletter signup
Show notes: https://www.amandapolick.com/blog/jannell-lo-episode
Instagram: @amandapolick