travel writing - beyond what i did on vacation

TRAVEL

WRITING

Claritas est etiam

processus dynamicus, qui

sequitur mutationem

consuetudium lectorum.

Beyond “What I did on vacation.”

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TRAVEL WRITINGSHOULD INSPIRE CHANGE AND ACTION IN THE READER

When we look into the mirror of landscape we see initially a

reflection of ourselves: our own emotions, preferences and

cultural references applied to the natural world. But it is possible

to go further, to see through the looking-glass and engage with

the essence of place.

~Wendy Mewes, The Spirit of Place

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MULTIPLE SPECIALTIES

INFORMATIVE TRAVEL STORY BLOGGING

Writing to impart

information such as

tips, hints and guide-

type information

about a destination.

Narrative non-fiction

that pulls the reader

into the story and

entertains – while

inspiring the reader

to travel.

Short, continual,

news-type stories

about travel in a

particular niche.

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WHICH SUITS YOU?

Black bears rarely attack. But here’s

the thing. Sometimes they do. All

bears are agile, cunning, and

immensely strong, and they are

always hungry. If they want to kill you

and eat you, they can, and pretty

much whenever they want. That

doesn’t happen often, but - and here

is the absolutely salient point - once

would enough.

PICK A NICHE

FIND YOUR VOICE

~ Bill Bryson, A Walk in the Woods

CRAFTINGWRITING THE TRAVEL STORY, ARTICLE, BLOG POST

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THREE STAGES

PLAN WRITE EDIT

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PLAN

• What’s the subject?

• What’s the hook or angle?

• List the details.

• Characters?

• Dialogue?

• Block Sections

• Strong Intro

• Photo(s)

• Title (may change)

ELEMENTS OF

PLANNING

The more time you spend planning, the less time you’ll spend writing.

DETAILS ARE THE

BONESThe details support the structure – not your voice, photos, cleverness or your

general information. Details + descriptive voice = winning story

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SENSE OF PLACEDETAILS CREATE THE SENSE OF PLACE

To describe growing up in the low country of South Carolina, I would have to take you to the

marsh on a spring day, flush the great blue heron from its silent occupation, scatter marsh

hens as we sink to our knees in mud, open you an oyster with a pocketknife and feed it to you

from the shell and say, “There. That taste. That’s the taste of my childhood.” I would say

“Breathe deeply,” and you would breathe and remember that smell for the rest of your life, the

bod, fecund aroma of the tidal marsh, exquisite and sensual, the smell of the South in heat, a

smell like new milk, semen and spilled wine, all perfumed with seawater. My soul grazes like a

lamb on the beauty of indrawn tides.

Pat Conroy, The Prince of Tides.

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WRITE

• Offer valuable information

• Be honest – be real

• Write to the reader in your voice

• Be descriptive using language to

ignite the imagination.

• Stir the reader’s emotions

• Inspire the reader to take action

• Craft a killer title

KEY POINTS OF WRITING

TRAVEL STORY

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CRAFTING - FRAMING

1. Intro – draws reader in. Introduces the angle

2. Body – full of details, tells the story, build suspense in order to

keep the reader engaged.

3. Outro – inspires the reader to take action – hopefully to travel.

3 ELEMENTS OF THE TRAVEL STORY

SCENES

Every few seconds his wife would shriek as the back of a truck loomed up and

filled the windshield and he would attend to the road for perhaps two and a half

seconds before returning his attention to my comfort. She constantly belated him

for his driving, but he acted as if this were some engaging quirk of hers, and kept

throwing me mugging, conspiratorial, deeply Gallic looks, as if her squeaky

bitching were a private joke between the two of us.

I have seldom been more certain that I was about to die. The man drove as if we

were in an arcade game. The highway was a three-lane affair—something else I

had never seen before—with one lane going east, one lane going wet, and a

shared middle lane for overtaking from either direction. My new friend did not

appear to grasp the system. He would zip into the middle lane and seem

genuinely astonished to find a forty-ton truck bearing down on us like something

out of a Road Runner cartoon. He would veer out of the way at the last possible

instant and then hang out the window shouting abuse at the passing driver before

being shrieked back to the next crisis by me and his wife. I later learned that

Luxembourg has the highest highway fatality rate in Europe, which does not

surprise me in the smallest degree.

Bill Bryson, Neither Here nor There

SETTING

The highway made un expected jog toward Navajo Bridge,

a melding of silvery girders and rock cliffs. Suddenly, there

it was, far below in the deep and scary canyon of sides so

sheer they might have been cut with a stone saw, the

naturally silted water turned an unnatural green (colorado

means “reddish”) by the big settling basin a few miles

upriver called Glen Canyon Dam.

William Least Heat-Moon, Blue Highways

EMOTION

Ever since childhood when I lived within earshot of the

Boston and Maine, I have seldom heard a train go by and not

wished I were on it. Those whistles sing bewitchment:

railways are irresistible bazaars, snaking along perfectly level

no matter what the landscape, improving your mood with

speed, and never upsetting your drink …you can be one of

those travelers who stay in motion, straddling the tracks, and

never arrive or feel they ought to.

Paul Theroux, The Great Railway Bazaar

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EDIT

• Leave the first draft for a day

• Eliminate “death” words

• Tighten the writing

• Check grammar and spelling

• FACT CHECK your information

• Kill ordinary adjectives and verbs

• Work on drawing in with intro and

inspiring with outro.

• Finalize title

REWRITE - TIGHTEN

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INTRO - OUTRO

INTRO – This should pull in the reader, set the tone of the article,

identify your voice and build suspense.

OUTRO– Inspire the reader to take some kind of action. Most markets

are interested in promoting destinations. They want your writing to

inspire the readers to travel.

It’s not what you write that is important. It’s what the audience takes

away.

JUDGE

YOUR

ARTICLE

After reviewing your final

draft, ask these three

questions:

1. Is it creative?

2. Does it show

originality?

3. Do is impart information

that will inspire the

reader to travel?

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TIPS AND HINTSLITTLE THINGS TO REMEMBER WHEN CRAFTING YOUR STORY

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1. USE A TRAVEL JOURNAL

Get a small notebook (or use your phone) and

carry it with you for travel journaling.

Globejotting, How to Write Extraordinary Travel

Journals by Dave Fox is an excellent resource.

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2. ELIMINATE THE “DEATH” WORDS

According to many travel editors, certain words

kill a piece and usually warrant immediate

discarding.Incredible

Amazing

Breathtaking

Quaint

Charming

Nestled Spud Hilton

Awesome

Spectacular

Picturesque

Sunkist beaches

Land of contrasts

Masses of humanity

Kaleidoscope of color

Tropical Paradise

Beckons, beckoning

Emerald Isle, emerald

shore

Hit me like sunbeam

Piercing blue eyes

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3. BE DESCRIPTIVE

Don’t rely on photographs to tell the story.

Imagine you had to explain the landscape to a

blind person. “Awesome,” “Spectacular” and

Amazing wouldn’t help communicate the actual

destination. Go deeper. Use adjectives

sparingly and deliberatley.

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4. THE ORDER OF THINGS

Don’t feel the need to tell the story

chronologically. This is predictable and leads to

boredom. Be creative with the details.

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5. NO TRAVEL DIARIES

The most common sign of poor travel writing is

that it reads like a diary …. “We did this, then

we did that, then we did this and it was good.”

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6.POINT OF VIEW

Travel articles / stories are told from 1st or 3rd

person. Referring directly to the reader a “you”

or evoking the 2nd person POV is not cool.

Use the first person – or yourself only to help

the reader identify with qualities in his or her

own character. This is a tender balance.

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7. NO THANKS

Avoid thanking people in the article. If

something is not of interest to your reader, don’t

mention it.

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8. CHECK & RECHECK FACTS

Every detail is important – and it is important

that every detail is correct and true. What you

put in writing has a life of its own. Errors will

haunt you and forever discredit you.

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9. DON’T GET TOO PERSONAL

Watch the ego. Don’t overshare or focus too

much on yourself. You are not focus. Refer to

yourself only in as much as it engages the

reader with a similar side of him or herself or

relate to the travel experience.

Also…. Never discuss bathroom stuff in a travel

article.

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10. WRITE WHAT YOU KNOW

Stick to your niche and write about what you

know – what you are passionate about. This

kind of personal connection to content is felt by

the reader.

A farmer can write about cows in the field much

better than a musician can.

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11. TITLE IS PARAMOUNT

The title of the article (especially in blogging)

can make or break and article. It must pull in

the reader immediately and the Intro must

support that draw.

It’s good to have several titles. Don’t be afraid

to revise it right up to the end. It should be short

and catchy.

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12. BE HONEST

People who read travel articles don’t want to

feel like they’re reading a commercial. What

wasn’t pleasant is often as important as what

was. Don’t be afraid to share what the

destination lacks, but keep a balance.

MARKETSWHERE TO PITCH YOUR TRAVEL STORIES

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PRESENTING A PITCH

• Pitch before you write the article

• If you’re new – pitch after you travel

• Niche / Angle is key to the pitch

• Provide clips – write for free to get

first clips

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PRESENTING A PITCH

• GUIDELINES -know the publication

• CALL - if daily or weekly print pub

• EMAIL - gripping subject line – no

attachments

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PITCH ELEMENTS

• HEADLINE & INTRO – 90% of pitch power

• OUTLINE – Article outline showing content

and relevance to publication.

• YOU- why you are the best person to write

this (include clips)

Sample http://www.pitchtravelwrite.com/query-letter-sample.html

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WHO DO YOU PITCH?

Editors - Travel

Editors

• Magazines – local and national

• Newspapers

• Community newsletters

• University newsletters

• Online outlets – Matador, Bootsnall,

Gonomad, Huffington Post

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IT’S IN THE NUMBERS

Pitches are Timely

• Pitch often – twice a month

• Look for accurate email addresses

• Look for guidelines and follow

• Look up editorial calendars.

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IT’S IN THE NUMBERS

Pitches are Timely

• Pitch often – twice a month

• Look for accurate email addresses

• Look for guidelines and follow

• Look up editorial calendars.

PAY?• Don’t write for free

• CLIPS = Pay

• Pay is relative to experience and notoriety

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• Content relevant to the

publication

• An interesting angle

• Well crafted travel copy

• Writers who meet

deadlines

WHAT ARE EDITORS

LOOKING FOR?

EDITORS50

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ACTION PLAN

• Take a trip (or 2 or 3 or 4)

• Develop several angles for each trip.

• Keep a travel journal

• Develop a list of editors to pitch

• Practice pitches – write write write

• Get some clips

Once you’ve developed the craft and gotten a

few clips ……. It’s a numbers game with

pitching.

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RESOURCES

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CONTACT MINDIE

mindie@travelhag.com

301.648.2010

BLOGSTravelhag.com

Chesapeakeghosts.com

ThinPlacestour.com

Writingthevision.com

MINDIE BURGOYNE