Fifteen Awesome Travel
Writing Tips
Network, network, network.Get contact details and add them to your address book every step of the way.
Keep an eye-out for travel conferences. They�re great for picking up inspiration, expanding your network and swapping travel advice.
Maintaining relationships with all the weird and wonderful people you�ll meet in the industry takes time, but a short email to say hello now and then will pay dividends.
Travel writing comprises of around 4% writing, 1% travel and 90% marketing. Get yourself out there and be confident.
Don�t be too shy to call an editor. They will not breathe fire down the phone at you.
You need to eat and pay your bills. Very few freelance writers make enough riches to live comfortably just off their writing, so doing conventional work outside of your travel writing shouldn�t be classed as a failure.
Don�t leave things hanging. If you�ve sent out an article and not heard anything back, follow it up after a reasonable time frame (you can get a feel for what reasonable is in the publication�s writer�s guidelines). Chances are you�ll get a rejection, but it�s not uncommon to discover the editor really like the piece but it skipped his mind, or never received it in the first place. Either way, it�s nice to get closure knowing.
Use a spreadsheet to keep track of all your lines of inquiry. Organization is key as you get as many irons in the fire as possible.
When on an assignment, you�ll need good observational skills. However, they will only get you so far - talk to locals to get a feel for the history of the place, attitudes towards tourism, social norms, etc.
Don�t be afraid to state your point of view in an article. It�ll be read by humans, so give them a human element.
At the same time, don�t bore the reader with personal details. It�s a harsh fact that nobody cares about how itchy your mosquito bites are.
Create a blog to document your travels. It�s a good exercise to practice writing as much as possible, even if it doesn�t get sold.
Not reading the writer�s guidelines before pitching a story is akin to shooting yourself in the foot, reloading, and then shooting yourself in the other foot.
Wrote an article on a facet of Italian cuisine? Sell it to both a food magazine and a travel magazine. Don�t mention you�ve submitted to multiple publications, but always be honest if it has been sold or printed elsewhere.
Get an overly critical friend to tear your work to pieces. It�ll hurt, but what doesn�t kill us...
