Annmarie Kostyk biography

Annmarie Kostyk has had a love affair with food since she was a toddler and her passion is chocolate. Through her college years, studying art history at Lake Forest College, Lake Forest, Illinois and history at Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana Annmarie worked at a chocolate shop. The love of food, cooking and baking carried through to her personal life with family and friends. If you wanted a good meal, people knew whose house to get invited to for dinner! While working at the Block Medical Center for Intergrative Cancer and Wellness, Annmarie became interested in aspects of healthy eating and the health benefits of cocoa and dark chocolate.

Annmarie's professional life included working as an Assistant Pastry Chef at Le Meridien Hotel (now the Conrad Chicago) in Chicago and catering for family, friends and private clients. Annmarie Kostyk graduated with honors earning a Professional Chocolatier Certificate granted by the Professional School of Chocolate Arts Ecole Chocolate in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. She has been working with and writing about chocolate ever since. To date, she has written four books about chocolate: Chocolate is Healthy!: Myths, Truths and Delicious Recipes, The Chocolate Lovers' Guide and Tasting Journal, The Chocolate Travel Guide: United States Edition 2010 and Marais Chocolate Skin Care: Luxury Chocolate Spa at Home.

Annmarie has been collecting and consuming chocolate bars from all over the world and currently has a collection of over 300 chocolate bars which she has experienced. Currently, Annmarie Kostyk is a contributor to a variety of websites on health, home and food. Her goal is to educate everyone about real chocolate in all forms in the hope that people will develop both a passion and appreciation for chocolate from bean to bar and beyond. Annmarie is also a weekly guest blogger for Rococo Chocolates in London and has her own blog devoted entirely to chocolate called Annmarie Kostyk, Chocolate Goddess. She lives in the Chicago, Illinois area in America.

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How I Found the Agency

After a frustrating two years of working with an agent in the United States and getting no feedback or book deals, I thought I should seek out representation in the United Kingdom since my second largest readership for my blog Annmarie Kostyk, Chocolate Goddess comes from there, not to mention my love of all thing English. I found the Andrew Lownie Agency by researching a website called Book Crossroads.

How did I decide what agent to contact among the many in the United Kingdom? Quite simply. The Andrew Lownie Agency represented the only authors I have read or heard about. To me, that means success. It is all about getting your name and work out there. Andrew and I emailed for a short time. Once I finalized my first proposal for him, he followed through with a contract offer, suggestions for further projects, and an invitation to meet with publishers in London. He continues to send me articles, books, happening and tidbits of interest almost daily. I really feel like I am in capable, secure and guiding hands with a great writing future ahead of me with Andrew at the helm. Watch out London! Here I come! Thank you Andrew