Using a Publisher

• 1). Test your recipes repeatedly, until you have perfected each one. Make sure that all the recipes are in a standardized format and that you use the same weights and measures throughout.
  
  
• 2). Review some of your favorite cookbooks and decide what it is that makes them so appealing. Keep these styles in mind as you develop your cookbook. Your cookbook will look most professional if you use the same format for each page and recipe. When using an online publisher, you will be able to select from a wide choice of page layouts, fonts and formats.
  
  
• 3). Take appetizing and colorful photographs of your finished dishes. Your aim is to encourage the reader to light up his grill and try your recipes.
  
  
• 4). Categorize your recipes. Use categories such as grilling, smoking and rotisserie; or appetizers, sides and mains; or meat, fish, vegetables and fruit.
  
  
• 5). Apply for an International Standard Book Number (ISBN) for your book if you plan to offer it for commercial sale in stores and online. You can do this online through the ISBN Agency's website.
  
  
• 6). Think of a catchy name for your book, such as "Bob's Blissful BBQ" or "Bev's Backyard BBQ" and choose a fun and appealing photo for the front cover, ideally, a picture of you in action at your grill.
  
  
• 7). Find a suitable online cookbook publisher to whom you can upload recipes and photos. There are many websites devoted to publishing cookbooks and you are sure to find one that meets your needs and budget. Take a look at websites including: Gourmania.com, MorrisPressCookbooks.com and TheCooksPalate.com.
  
  
• 8). Pay attention to detail and carefully check recipe ingredients and instructions before uploading them for publishing. Have someone else proofread your work to detect any errors that you may have missed, which is easily done when you have been working intensely on a project.
  
  

Home Printing

• 1). Compile your recipes and photos into pages in a computer program such as Word or Publisher. Pay attention to detail and use a consistent format throughout each page, placing pictures in the same position and using the same size and type of font.
  
  
• 2). Print these out, using your printer at home.
  
  
• 3). Insert the pages into plastic sheet protectors put them in a plastic three-ring binder. Use a binder that has a clear front cover, into which you can insert a fun cover page that you have created. This method allows you to add pages easily, as you create future recipes and using plastic sheet protectors is particularly useful for the reader, since he can wipe off any pages that may get messy with sticky barbecue sauces, while preparing your dishes.
  
  
• 4). Print and compile multiple copies to give to family and friends, and keep a master copy as the family BBQ bible.
  
  

Electronic Publishing

• 1). Compile your barbecue recipes into a document in a computer program such as Publisher or Word and save the document as a portable document file (PDF) using Adobe Acrobat. Creating a PDF will allow you to share the document with others, so that they can read and print it, but cannot alter it. If you do not have the capability to convert the file to a PDF, you can share it as a simple Publisher or Word document, but be aware that others can then alter the content.
  
  
• 2). Email your cookbook to family and friends.
  
  
• 3). Develop a website where you can post your recipes and pictures. If you are participating in barbecue and grilling competitions, or are thinking of setting up a catering business, this is a useful way to publicize what you are doing and where you will be.