“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”
Lao Tzu, Chinese philosopher
When was your last holiday?
What did you do?
What was your favorite place or activity?
Why?
If you are on the road, recall your most recent experience.
Would you like to write about it and get paid?
That’s what I do and if I can, anyone can. You don’t need formal qualifications in media studies but give it a couple of years and you could be selling dozens of features worldwide.
What is the secret?
Believe in yourself.
Do your research.
Imagine an entrepreneur planning to start a business.
What’s the first step?
Market research: location, prospective clients, their expectations and how to satisfy them.
Travel writing is no different.
Research your market, make your choice, tailor your writing and youwill succeed, sooner rather than later.
The Big World of Travel Features
Guess how many English magazines are published around the world? Millions every year, with an average of 2600 copies sold every minute in the UK, according to industry data, spread across a huge range of titles, not counting newspapers and websites.
Add North America, Australia, New Zealand, plus another 80 countries or so where English is an official language, and you may feel overwhelmed by the volume of global outlets. This covers all kinds of magazines but most feature travel of some sort.
True, publications do vanish overnight but next time you hear of a shrinking market, remember that in this digital age, the world is yours.
Choosing wisely
Most consumer magazines appear weekly or monthly. A weekly publication will need 52 articles a year for a travel page and more for special editions. That’s a lot of space to fill. A monthly will probably use 12 features during that time so every submission must be outstanding. Meanwhile, most newspapers publish several travel pieces in their weekly slot, plus a generous crop in weekend supplements. You do the math. Quality matters, numbers too.
But how about those gorgeous travel magazines filling their entire copy with features like yours? Tempting but like most glossies, they aim upmarket. A famous name on the cover, say Bill Bryson or Michael Palin, is sure to draw attention and boost sales. The higher you climb, the stiffer the competition but don’t despair. Everything is possible if you have an original idea and the right approach.
Searching every corner of the market
Titles come and go but the lure of travel remains; the range of outlets continues to grow.
Where do we begin?
• Travel magazines: note that each one has its own slant, backpacking, luxury, adventure, eco-tourism, or covers a specific destination, such as Italy or the Caribbean.
• Newspapers, travel pages and supplements, national, regional and local.
• In-flight magazines: most carry features in English, relating to new routes or topical events on existing routes, including those of partner airlines.
• Magazines issued by railway or cruise companies, highlighting places of interest along their routes or ports of call.
• Women’s magazines, most have a travel or travel related page.
• Men’s magazines, but you don’t have to be a man to write for them, or the reverse.
• Lifestyle: health, property, spa, cruising, weddings and honeymoon, spiritual matters.
• Publications targeting a specific age or social group: families, over 50s, gay, singles, religious communities, business travelers, disabled travelers, farmers, teachers, nurses.
• Publications about sports and outdoors, golf, cycling, hiking, scuba diving…
• Niche markets, such as bird watching, art, crafts, food and wine, heritage, vintage railways, gardens, antiques and even pets.
• County or regional magazines.
• Trade magazines published by hotel chains, tour operators, banks, stores or car dealers, plus online content and travel anthologies by National Geographic or Reader’s Digest.
Out of breath? That’s a good sign for now you know.
In the big world of travel features, there’s a place for you.
Here are useful resources to help you find it; most require a subscription but they list many publications beyond those at local newsstands:
• www.awmonline.com.au (Australia)
• www.woodenhorsepub.com (North America)
• www.writersmarket.com (USA)
• www.writersandartists.co.uk (UK)
• www.world-newspapers.com (worldwide)
• Choose a time and a place and promise yourself you will spend at least 30 minutes looking at magazines, this week and the next. Don’t read cover to cover at this stage, scan titles and pictures and something will catch your eye.
• Perhaps there’s a travel page you read every week. Is it in a paper or a magazine? Why do you like it? Is it the photographs, style, content? If you enjoy a publication, you empathize with its readers and writing for them will come naturally. It’s a great place to start.
• Let your confidence grow and when you’re ready, venture out of your comfort zone, new markets at home, foreign publications on the web, some offering free trial subscriptions, others contributors’ guidelines.
1. Being aware of a publication isn’t enough, you must study who the readers are and what they want. We will cover this in step 7 but if you’re in the mood right now, give it a go. Open any magazine and spot the clues.
2. Always look out for new publications and editors, get in touch before they’ve set up their regular contributors’ list. Congratulate new editors on their appointment when you send your pitch.
3. When you begin, don’t reject a magazine because it is obscure or pays poor rates, you never know who might spot your work. All exposure is good whether it’s print, online or word of mouth.
4. Keep an open mind and don’t judge anything by its cover:
“Did you see this?” asked one of my students, pointing to a double-page spread in a celebrity magazine.
“Wow, the Living Goddess of Kathmandu? I could have done that.”
Why didn’t I? Celebrities aren’t my patch. I’d never looked at the magazine but beyond the gossip, I discovered a travel slot with a difference. I learned my lesson. People stories are in demand, child labour in India, women porters in Nepal and more, published within months.
Getting a Head Start
If you are planning to write about your last trip, that’s fine and I’ll show you how. But next time round, get ahead of the game. Before you go, ask yourself what kind of travel is in vogue, which destinations, activities or means of transport. Spot the trends, bear them in mind wherever you go and you will increase your chance of success.
“But stop,” I hear you say, “does this mean I can’t be myself?” Not at all, we are all individuals, we all have our own voice but if we want our work to be published, there is no room for self-indulgence. Readers come first. It’s a hard lesson to learn but do it and you will succeed.
Vacations are getting more sophisticated. We’re looking for a break but if we are to part with our cash, we want more than dozing on the beach ten hours a day. Most of us prefer to be active, at least some of the time, pursuing an interest, learning a skill or saving the planet.
On the rise:
• Green holidays: visiting national parks and reserves; volunteering to save turtles or orang-utans; seeking eco-friendly venues from farm houses to award-winning resorts; carbon-free travel, rail journeys, cycling, walking.
• Short breaks: 2 to 5 nights, short or medium haul, accessed by low cost flight or high speed rail.
• Cruising: open sea or inland waterways.
• Activity holidays: anything from white water rafting to painting or soft adventure.
• Gastronomy: gourmet vacations, wine tours, cookery schools.
• Off the beaten track: remote mountains or islands, barely discovered countries or hidden gems in well-known places.
• Body and soul: spa, retreats, meditation, yoga.
• Real estate: buying a place in the sun.
• Medical tourism: dentistry, cosmetic surgery, sex change and routine operations.
Which of these trends would appeal to you?
Take note and remember them when you plan a vacation.
Have you noticed how a destination suddenly appears in lots of publications at the same time? This is rarely a coincidence but the likely result of a promotional campaign by the tourist board, often prompted by topical factors.
Full steam ahead, this is what to look for:
• End of hostilities or sanctions: reopening a country to responsible tourism and safe travel.
• Destinations freshly recovered from a natural disaster, attracting visitors with special offers.
• Emerging destinations benefiting from new investments in infrastructure.
• World sports events.
• Awards: Top Green City, Capital of Culture or Sports, newly granted UNESCO status.
• Topical events, royal wedding, visit by a Head of State.
• News items bringing a country or theme into the limelight.
• Up and downturns in the economy, in particular the exchange rate which can make a destination highly attractive or place it out of most people’s reach.
As soon as a trend is obvious, everyone has covered it so try to keep abreast of forthcoming developments.
Think ‘travel’ when you listen to the news. Search the web, attend travel shows, collect the latest travel brochures from tour operators and study their adverts for new destinations and products.
Most importantly, contact the CVB (convention and visitors bureau) or tourist board of places you intend to visit, introduce yourself as a travel writer and ask to be placed on their mailing list.
Does this mean your planned vacation to Florida won’t sell?
Absolutely not for places change all the time and there’s always a new way of looking at them. Your job is to find it.
The following hot spots have been covered extensively but still offered scope to savvy writers:
Florence: what is it like to wander through the city streets after dark? Feature: Evenings in Florence.
The Taj Mahal: disaster, it’s raining when you get there. Feature: The Taj Mahal in the rain.
Ireland: something different? Feature: Learning to cook in Dublin.
Think of a vacation, past or future, or your own neighborhood:
• Anything new or unusual?
• Anything you could approach in an original way?
• Can you come up with at least one idea?
Write it down and follow up within a week, this could be the start of your career as a travel writer.
1. If you’re thinking ‘global markets’, keep up to date with destinations likely to attract local readers and advertisers. Mexico is popular in North America but how about Bali or Japan? These could be easier to sell in Australasia while the UK tends to lean towards southern Europe.
2. If you have a great interview however, or a heart-rending story, it will find its way around the world, regardless of location. Act quickly and collect the rewards. Multiple sales are every writer’s dream.
Are you easy going or super organized?
Do you book your vacation months in advance?
Do you always pack more than you need?
Do you double check your reservations, plus one more time for luck?
Do you read a guide book or research on the web before you go?
Do you decide exactly what you’ll do when you get there?
Do you read reviews?
Do you consider the weather before you book?
Mostly ‘yes’, you are super organized, well done.
Mostly ‘no’, you are easy going and that’s just as good:
Plan before you go, adapt when you’re there.
Will planning take the fun out of your trip?
Not in the least, half the pleasure of traveling is anticipation. A plan simply opens your eyes to possibilities. There will be plenty more along the way.
Lists are powerful. They make us feel good when we tick things off and they free the mind. Don’t worry about remembering this or that, keep your list safe and it will do it all for you.
Go through your guide book, the websites, any information collected from tourism authorities, travel shows or agents and write down your A list, sights you want to see, things you want to do.
Pay attention to anything specific or unique to the country: an artist colony in St Lucia, Kew Gardens in London, the Erotic Museum in Paris or watching the sunset on Ayres Rock.
Remember the trends and your market research: should you look for real estate, medical care, theme parks, heritage sites? Gather as much information as possible and aim to sell at least three features for every trip. You will be paid to write, not to travel.
How many days do you have, seven?
This was my schedule in Costa Rica:
Day 1: Explore Poas volcano and national park
Day 2: Visit Gold Museum and tourist sites in San Jose
Day 3: Bird watching on Tarcoles river
Day 4: Street food, local market and fishing harbor
Day 5: Bathe in Arenal hot springs, visit Tabacon hotel
Day 6: Hike in cloud forest
Day 7: Head for Sarchi, research local craft, interview artisans
Seven days, seven features, plus a hotel review. Sell half of them and you’re well on your way to make it pay.
But why not decide on arrival, you may ask? You’ll probably spend the first day recovering from the journey and the next deciding where to start. You’re ready on day three but on day four, you realize you missed the eco-farm, you ought to retrace your steps but you don’t have time. All it takes is a little planning and when your list is ready, prioritize and group your activities in a logical way.
A working trip is not a vacation but don’t go to extremes, especially if money is a bonus rather than a priority. It’s fine to combine business and leisure, what matters most is enjoyment. Have fun, relax and it will show in your writing.
Have you ever gone to a village and missed the festival by a day?
What happened last night? Sounds so mysterious, everybody’s whispering about it.
“Wow, madame, it was the naked dance, all the men do it. They cover their face, nothing else, and all the ladies come to watch. They try to guess who’s who, there’s a lot of giggling and sometimes, well, they get it wrong…, shame you missed it, maybe you come back next year?”
If I do, I’ll check the dates.
Festivals aside, here are a few things to look for before you go:
• Opening times and days of cultural sites, businesses, spas, restaurants you might want to review.
• Public holidays: transport tends be scarce or non-existent.
• Market days, when and where.
• Anniversaries providing a topical hook for your feature during the current year or the next.
• Seasonal patterns at your destination, perhaps you don’t mind the rain but monsoon storms often cause havoc with travel plans and most magazines prefer blue skies on their travel page. Will there be blossom on the trees, penguins on the beach, locals in summer dress or winter coats? Think ideas and pictures. What will it be like?
• Current prices of food, accommodation, car rental, hidden charges and taxes so you don’t run out of budget and are forced to skip something you wanted to do.
• Areas to avoid: getting into trouble might make a good story but you’ll have to survive to tell the tale.
Your most original material is likely to involve local people. Show respect and you will gain their trust. On an escorted tour, the guide will brief you, but if you travel on your own, be aware of the ‘do’ and ‘don’t’ beforehand.
Consider the following points:
• Dress code when visiting religious places but also in cities and on the beach.
• Colors, is white for weddings or funerals?
• Etiquette in a local home, what guests can and cannot do.
• Eating and drinking, is it alright to use your left hand, offer food from your plate?
• Interacting with children, monks, village leaders.
• Giving and receiving gifts, how to, why they don’t say ‘thank you’.
• Taking photographs, ethics, people or places to avoid.
• Taboos, such as pointing with your index finger, eye contact for women or displays of affection in public.
1. Source a local contact before you travel:
Ask friends or family and get in touch with the tourist board. How about your local clubs, associations, charities, anything from Rotary or Lions to a writers’ circle? Do they have links abroad? How about a visit, an interview?
Introduce yourself as a writer rather than a journalist. The latter might arouse suspicion.
2. Learn a few words of the language, it will go a long way towards breaking the ice.
‘Hello, thank you, what is your name, how are you,’ are sure to bring a smile, followed by a hearty chuckle when you’re thrown out of your depth. Share a laugh and you might be asked in for a cup of tea or a glass of chang beer.
Worth the effort, isn’t it?
Don’t forget sign language, nodding can mean ‘no’, shrugging shoulders can mean ‘yes’.
3. Pack small gifts.
Think what locals would appreciate, cheap for you but useful or precious for them, a bar of scented soap in the depth of Africa, a postcard of the Dalai Lama for a Tibetan exile, pens for school kids in a Colombian village. Hand out your gift to the teacher, the mother who invited you into her home, the self-appointed guide who took you to a village party with not a tourist in sight.
4. Book a window seat on the plane on the side with the best views. Seeing your new destination from the air is exciting and first impressions do matter.
Still with us?
Brilliant, let’s move on to the next stage…