Since 2009, local blogger Heather Heagney has been celebrating food on her wonderful blog After the Harvest. In more than 200 online posts, she has written on such subjects as food sustainability, farming, Ottawa chefs and wine. Now she is tackling a new challenge by publishing a coffee table book titled After the Harvest: Eat. Drink. Connect.
“I wanted to think outside of a blog,” says Heagney about her debut book that was released in June.
Many bloggers become involved in publishing to promote their online work. Some food bloggers, meanwhile, turn their online posts into a cookbook.
For Heagney, however, her book is not an extension of her blog, nor an attempt to sell a cookbook. In a phone interview, she explains that she is interested in writing about people, food, drink and travel – all perfect ingredients for a lively dinner table. “I wanted a book that reflected all (of my interests),” she says.
The result is a beautiful collection of gorgeous photographs, poetry, travel stories, recipes, wine pairings and fun tips. Her description of how to make a corkboard with wine corks is particularly brilliant.
Heather Heagney
My favourite part of the book is the section that pairs wine with music, such as the suggestion that one drink pinot noir while listening to bluegrass, viognier when grooving to reggae, or syrah when enjoying rhythm and blues . The idea, says Heagney, came from a segment on The Today Show that she saw a few years back.
Another impressive part of the book are the many beautiful photographs that it contains, all of which were taken by Heagney, minus the photo of her late friend Nathan Krueger, who died suddenly at the tragically young age of 17. The coffee table book is dedicated in his honour.
“Everyone who knew him remembers him in a positive way,” she says when asked about her friend “Nate”. She adds that Nate would have loved the coffee table book, given that it celebrates human connections through food, drink, travel and stories.
“What’s important for me is that people have experiences with other people around food,” says Heagney, who was born in Arnprior but now lives in Ottawa. “It’s coming back, but it is a bit of a lost art.”
Through her wonderful photographs, this coffee table book will definitely inspire readers to connect with family and friends through food and drink. “I like to think of myself as a developing writer, but people have given me a lot of praise for my photos, which is a nice surprise,” she says, when asked about her impressive skills behind the camera.
Looking forward, Heagney is planning on publishing a children’s book with her sister Wendy, who founded the company Tiny Brushstrokes, which focuses on artwork for children. Wendy also drew the cover art for the coffee book.
