CASE STUDY • Portfolio • Content Strategy & Design • Content Writing • Brand Voice
The Edible Beat Zine Vol. 1
In 2018, I was invited to pitch ideas for the inaugural zine (cookbook) by Edible Beats founder and chef Justin Cucci.
Edible Beats is a family of Denver restaurants known for their innovative, veggie-forward fare and storied environments. Collectively, the restaurants spell LOVER and embrace an offbeat approach that yields steady buzz and devoted customers.
PROJECT
Edible Beats Zine (Cookbook) Vol. 1
ROLE
Lead Writer • Content Editor
CLIENT
Edible Beats
DESIGN
Consume & Create
COMPLETED
2018
Image: The Edible Beat Vol. 1 Zine cover, designed by Consume & Create
CHALLENGE // FIVE RESTAURANTS
The concept included a ‘lens feature’ for each restaurant to honor the buildings’ history or location.
Linger // formerly a mortuary
Ophelia’s // formerly a sex shop
Vital Root // formerly a candy factory
El Five // formerly a parking lot
Root Down // formerly a gas station
OPPORTUNITY // TWO LENS FEATURES
I was focused on Linger and Ophelia’s, with themes of death and sex, respectively.
DIRECTION // TONE
Surprising
Provocative
Playful
Irreverent
Intelligent
Self-deprecating
Mischievous
DIRECTION // VOICE
Soulful, empathetic, and deeply human
APPROACH //
Ophelia’s
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Put the play in sex play • Sploshing and other food-based fetishes • Sex healers, surrogates, and professional cuddlers • History of the building • Interview with a professional dominatrix
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I conducted initial research on all of the ideas and found the building’s history most compelling.
From 1989 to 2011, the Airedale Building, now home to Ophelia’s, housed Diamond Lil’s sex shop and peep show, owned by serial entrepreneur Art Greer. The business was linked to:
The censorship, criminalization, and legalization of porn in Colorado
“Urban renewal” and demolition in downtown Denver
The designation and protection of historical buildings
The construction of Denver’s Major League Baseball Stadium
The rise of internet porn
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If these walls could talk …
The story of Diamond Lil’s -
The setting: Dinner at Ophelia’s on a busy weekday night
Guests of honor: Justin Cucci and the six (adult) children of Art Greer
What was it like to grow up with a sex shop as the family business?
LENS FEATURE //
APPROACH //
Linger
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Rethinking traditional burial practices • Interview with a female mortician • Interesting jobs in the death industry • Post-mortem pranks • Sustainable death practices • The digital afterlife • Tips from a cleaner • Death as industry • Burial practices around the world • Insights from Olinger, Denver’s largest mortuary
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Death Lingers
Sustainable burial practices -
I discovered a wealth of resources on funeral reform, starting with the work of mortician and writer Caitlin Doughty. Key points:
Mainstream burial and cremation practices are highly toxic to the environment.
Sustainable alternatives exist.
Availability varies by location.
If you prefer a sustainable option, document your wishes now.
Rethinking death with sustainable alternatives to traditional burial practices
LENS FEATURE //
IMPACT // CONTRIBUTIONS
After writing the lens features for Ophelia’s and Linger, I worked closely with Justin and team to write and/or edit the remaining content for the zine.
Though I was hired as a ghostwriter, I was credited as a lead writer, alongside Edible Beats founder and chef Justin Cucci, when the zine was published.
After publication, I helped Edible Beats update all restaurant descriptions to mirror the tone of the book.
Image: Vital Roots description on the Edible Beats website
IMPACT // SALES
Edible Beats Zine Vol. 1 was released in 2018 and has sold more than 10,000 copies to date.
COLLABORATORS //
Publisher / Editor-in-Chief: Justin Cucci
Creative Director: Megan Baldwin
Design: Consume & Create
Managing Editor: Jackie Alvarez
Food Director: Justin Cucci
Food Editor: Jeremy Kittelson
Contributing Chefs: Talia Diele, Lauren Seibert
Lead Writers: Justin Cucci, Trystin Sova
Contributing Writers: Jackie Alvarez, Samantha Alvin, Dalia Singer, Madeleine Zinn
Food Photography: Lucy Beaugard
Contributing Photographer: Shawn Campbell
Illustrators: Dylan Fowler, Charlie Mann