Omnipresent Ella

In my previous post I discussed the fact that many diet books of the past have since been re-vamped in the form of second editions and spin offs. Atkins alone has a whole army of them! In attempts to fend off the new food crazes that are biting at their heels, the writers and publishers create sequels that give out the same core message in newer, prettier packaging. But what happens when dieters everywhere don't have to wait for the entire tedious publication process to get completed and instead can get fresh updates every day? Even every hour?

The clean eating movement was founded online: It doesn't feed off organic cocoa nibs and almond milk; it feeds off likes and hashtags! Before Ella Woodward became a best selling author, she was a blogger and popular Instagrammer. Now, with four book deals under her belt, Ella continues to share recipes, tips and general reminders of the greatness of plant based living frequently across all of her platforms. When it was Atkins and Dunkan you could close the book and eat that donut in peace. These days, there's no escape. Even Ella's Instagram bio is a reminder of her online omnipresence:

Thanks to the internet, the way that we consume (pardon the pun) diet and healthy living books has completely changed. We barely have time to digest (pardon the pun, again) one piece of information before we are given another. Ella's genius use of social media means that it's impossible to simply push her book to the back of the shelf and move onto the next fad: Her content is constantly #relevant and therefore is harder to replace.

Social media also shifts the reader-writer relationship from one that is pretty clinical to one of best friends chatting over a hot chocolate cup of green tea. Whilst the books of her forefathers were full of scientific analysis and, you know, actual qualifications in being dietitians, you won't catch Ella talking about the "biological catalyst" that is the enzyme (The New Beverly Hill's Diet, 5). In fact, in her first cook book she admits that "everything comes from experiments in my own kitchen", the suggestion being that she is no more qualified than the reader. She's not a doctor, but a friend.

In a post on Instagram that I feel epitomises this change in the reader-writer relationship, Ella says, "We're just finalising the recipes for our next book and I think this guy has to go in there...what do you think?". Social media means that readers are no longer talked at and fed information, but are placed at the same level as the writer, to the point where they can even influence what is put in the next book!

In Deliciously Ella Every Day's deciation she writes, "This book is dedicated to all of the amazing people who love and follow deliciously Ella...I hope you love this book as much as I do!" (4). Unlike diet books of the past, Ella's audience are not stumbling upon her work, they are driven to it by the social media influence she already has. In a way, there is no longer an "imagined reader" during the writing process, but one that is already predefined as the people that consume her online content.

Social media truly has revolutionised the diet book industry and I'm excited to explore this topic in greater detail in my next post!