Meet Vanessa Mota
"It's very gratifying to see how your work impacts others in a positive way."
When did you start publishing, and what inspired you to create your site?
I started My Dominican Kitchen back in 2014 to share the recipes I ate as a child in my home country, Dominican Republic. I wanted to help busy moms put together tasty traditional Dominican and Latin-inspired meals without having to spend tons of time in the kitchen.
What do you love most about being an independent publisher?
Being able to wake up everyday and work on something I’m passionate about! The time flexibility and being able to set up my own hours so that I can spend more time with my family.
More than anything, I love the messages I receive from readers who are part of the Dominican diaspora and are grateful for the information and recipes I share that bring us all a bit closer to home. It’s very gratifying to see how your work impacts others in a positive way.
How many people work on this site?
Two — my husband and I. My kids are also starting to help out with the site. 🙂
What can you tell us about interacting with your audience?
My readers really love our Dominican recipes! Since we rebranded to My Dominican Kitchen in May, I’ve seen an outpouring of support from our readers who really enjoy our recipes. There is a feeling of nostalgia and lots of gratitude in the messages we receive. Our connection with our readers feels more personal than ever as if we were all part of an extended family.
How does advertising impact your business?
Advertising allows us to keep our business running and directly supports our family income. We wouldn’t be able to continue to do this work and impact so many people without it.
What else should we know about your site?
We love connecting with people over food — check out our readers’ favorite Dominican recipes!
