Blogchatter Book of Food – The Story Behind “The Leftovers”

My short story, The Leftovers, is part of this year’s Blogchatter Book of Food. Being published for the second year in a row is a humbling experience, and I hope my story resonates with anyone who has wrestled with diet culture, body image, or the pressures of perfection.  

For the second year in a row, I feel incredibly honored to see my work featured in the Blogchatter Book of Food. Personally, writing has always been my way of processing life, and having my stories reach a wider audience is a reward that never gets old.

Blogchatter Book of Food – The Story Behind “The Leftovers”

If you’re not familiar, Blogchatter is a platform that nurtures budding authors, offering us an opportunity to showcase creativity and submit short stories based on a given theme. Each year, the best stories are compiled into a book, giving readers a treasure trove of diverse voices and perspectives.

Last year, the theme was love, and my short story Letters of Love found its place among some truly inspiring pieces. You can check out that collection here. This year, the theme was food. But it wasn’t just about writing meals and recipes. Instead, it was about using food as a metaphor to explore deeper themes and highlight its transformative power.

Blogchatter Book of Food

Using Food as a Metaphor

Choosing to write about food felt natural yet challenging. Food isn’t just sustenance. It carries emotion, history, and memory. For this story, I wanted to explore how food reflects our relationship with control, self-image, and society’s pressures, especially in the context of dieting and body image.

That’s where The Leftovers came to life. It’s a story inspired by my personal experiences with diet culture, weight struggles, and managing life with deep infiltrating endometriosis. For those unfamiliar, endometriosis is a condition where tissue similar to the lining of the uterus grows outside it, causing severe pain, inflammation, and often weight fluctuations.

The Dark Side of Dieting: My Personal Struggle

When I was diagnosed, my life felt like it was slowly slipping out of my control. Bloating, flare-ups, extreme period pain, and gut issues weren’t just physical; they were emotional, too. I quickly realized nutrition played a major role in managing symptoms. I consulted nutritionists, experimented with various diets, and tried supplements to reclaim some control.

At first, following strict dietary regimens felt empowering. No rice, no sugar, no dairy, no gluten, no processed foods. Specific meals at specific times. Day by day, it seemed manageable. But as work stress piled up, so did my need to cope with food emotionally. I am someone who stress eats ice cream, chocolates, and lassi. And for a South Indian like me, rice isn’t just food. Rather, it’s culture, comfort, and home.

Soon, the diet became another stressor. I faced daily choices: eat the foods that triggered flare-ups but brought comfort, or stick rigidly to a plan that left my cravings and emotions unresolved. This tension became the heart of The Leftovers, a story about how extreme dieting affects mental health and self-perception.

Behind the Scenes of Writing “The Leftovers”

Writing The Leftovers was cathartic. I wanted to portray not just the physical effects of dieting but the emotional consequences of diet culture. I wanted to write about the pressure to conform, the obsession with perfection, and the silent toll on mental health.

Diet culture is everywhere. Social media influencers and unqualified “experts” promote juice cleanses, keto, high-protein, low-carb, or low-calorie diets. Most of the time, this is often done without considering individual health or mental well-being. I’ve lived through this cycle myself: skipping meals before weddings, obsessively weighing food, constantly worrying about fitting into a dress or looking “perfect.”

All of these experiences shaped The Leftovers, giving it authenticity and emotional depth. Food becomes a metaphor for control, identity, and self-worth. The story reflects how chasing perfection can make us feel hollow, and how the mental impact of extreme dieting is often overlooked.

My Short Story - The Leftovers.

Lessons from Writing About Diet Culture

What I hope readers take away from The Leftovers isn’t just a story about food or weight. Rather, it’s an invitation to reflect on the pressures we place on ourselves. Extreme dieting isn’t just about what we eat. It’s about control, societal expectations, and the mental load that often goes unnoticed.

Writing this story also allowed me to reclaim my voice. It reminded me that self-acceptance and balance matter more than numbers on a scale. Healing and nourishment go far beyond a diet plan. They’re about embracing our bodies, our choices, and our humanity.

The Power of Storytelling in Blogchatter

Being published in the Blogchatter Book of Food is validation that personal stories matter. They resonate, educate, and sometimes comfort others facing similar struggles. Food, as a metaphor, has immense power: it can symbolize love, fear, joy, loss, or control.

For me, this collection represents both creativity and connection. It’s proof that writing from the heart, grounded in lived experience, can reach readers in meaningful ways.

If you’d like to read The Leftovers and explore this year’s collection, you can find the Blogchatter Book of Food here. And for those curious about last year’s Letters of Love, check it out here.

Final Thoughts

What this journey has reinforced is simple yet profound: while food can be a powerful storytelling tool, it should never become a tool for punishment or control. Diet culture may promise transformation, but real growth—healing, self-acceptance, self-love—comes from embracing ourselves as we are.

Writing The Leftovers wasn’t just about submitting a story to a book. It was about sharing my truth, reclaiming my voice, and showing that even in struggle, there’s a story worth telling. And perhaps, that’s the most transformative power of all.

What about you? Have you ever had a complicated relationship with food or body image that changed the way you see yourself? What part of The Leftovers stayed with you the most? 

I’d love to hear your thoughts. Share your reflections in the comments below.

This post is a part of Blogchatter Half Marathon 2025.

Join me on my social media channels and show your support as we embark on this journey together. Let's create a vibrant community where we can engage, share ideas, and inspire each other. Looking forward to connecting with all of you!

Facebook | Instagram | Twitter