Meet Kristen Wood | Cookbook author, photographer, writer, recipe developer and creator of several websites.

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kristen Wood and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kristen, what is the most important factor behind your success?
For me, success has come from a place of believing in myself and persevering no matter what. I think believing something is entirely in the realm of possibility is a large part of success, as well as some diligence and the ability to learn from setbacks along the way. Never give up! Only continue to learn, grow and push forward. Little by little, progress will be made.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
My main site, MOONandspoonandyum.com, is a food blog that started simply as a hobby to combine my passions for both photography and cooking. A few months in, I came to learn that people were actually making a living from their food blogs and a good living at that. Fast forward 6 year later, and I now solely support my family of four with the income I generate from this site, and I’ve since started several other websites.

The funny thing about food blogging is that it is so much more than taking pictures of food. To be successful in this field, you eventually have to learn a lot about SEO (search engine optimization), the very technical side of maintaining a website, social media management, conversing with brands, and all the intricacies that go along with good content creation both in and out of the kitchen. The internet landscape is forever changing, so some flexibility goes a long way, too!

There are always setbacks as a food blogger, as seasons, readers, and Google itself changes all the time. The ability to ride the waves helps a lot as a food blogger. You have to develop continued interest and the fortitude to carry on and make the most of all you’ve learned along the way.

I hope I can inspire others to know that with virtually zero resources you can create something from the ground up and achieve your dreams with not much more than the belief you can achieve them, and a hefty dose of willpower. I was not able to take courses, invest in fancy photography equipment or hire a website designer or writing help when I first started out. I made the most of free resources online, built my website as cheaply as possible and used the camera, groceries and kitchen props I already had on hand. I believed that I could and I did!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I currently live in Flagstaff and have so many favorite spots all over the state! As for Phoenix, I love the Desert Botanical Garden, Children’s Museum and Arizona Science Center. And as a gluten-free foodie, I love Picazzo’s Italian Kitchen for grabbing a bite to eat. If budget isn’t a concern, it can be fun to splurge on a night or two at the Arizona Biltmore if accommodations are in need. Outside of the city, I am partial to Sedona and the wilderness of Northern Arizona. And, Wupatki National Monument is my favorite place for a bit of solitude and a nice, wide view of sunset!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I would like to go broad with my shoutout and give some credit to the food blogging community as a whole. Compared to other niches in the blogging world (for which I am now a part), the food blogging world is filled some of the most helpful and supportive people you will ever come across. There is a real sense of community and of helping one another achieve success and resolve any roadblocks along the way. One place you will see this on display is the Food Bloggers Central group on Facebook. It is an invaluable resource that I can directly attribute to my success. This group was created by Nagi Maehashi of RecipeTinEats.com, and is filled with people of varying degrees of success asking questions, sharing resources or lending a helping hand along the way.

Website: https://moonandspoonandyum.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/moon.and.spoon.and.yum

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kwoodphotography

Twitter: https://twitter.com/moonspoonyum

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/moonandspoonandyum

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHqCkpd-BLqTxIFP0ZM3aeA

Other: https://schisandraandbergamot.com https://thefoodblogshop.com https://thewonderfulworldofsprouts.com