All Posts in Category: Travel Writing Resources
Can I Pick Up a Gift for You on My Next Trip?
When I’m traveling, I can’t help but wander into stores with lovely things and then try to think of a purpose for explaining purchasing things that catch my eye.
Museum gift shops with jewelry from local artists and finely-bound notebooks adorned with famous works of art.
Shops focusing on local handicrafts where the goods bear tags talking about the life of the woman who created the shawl or bowl or bracelet and how her work has changed conditions for her family.
And, particularly, groceries and small food producers whose every handmade product has a deep story not only of the person’s obsession with making the perfect chocolate bonbon or cassis wine, but also the history of the provision itself, along with its cultural significance.
When I go on press trips, and someone has told us their story, given us their wares to sample, and, most importantly, set aside their precious business-owner time to focus on us, the compulsion to pick up something that I’m already eyeing is basically incontestable.
As a travel writer, you can always say that such browsing is for research, but for me, it’s more.
I’m pretty nomadic, my husband is based in a normal-sized apartment…for New York (like 600 square feet is quite good/decent), and we’re not big into stuff anyway, so I’m usually not looking for things to buy for myself.
I just love giving gifts.
Join Us This Week for Free Travel Writing Classes on Landing Press Trips and Working with Magazines
In the two years since we began running regular one-hour travel writing classes, we’ve covered more than 80 topics, including:
- how to land free trips
- how to get paid really, really well for your writing
- how to get on magazine editors’ good sides
- how to navigate every step of the process to land travel content marketing work, including phone calls and proposals
- how to keep your hourly rate down so your bank account goes up
- how to get work done on the road
- how to write, step-by-step, 15 different types of travel articles
- how to land guidebook and other traditional publishing deals
You can grab access to all of our past webinars (and a ton of other resources you can’t find anywhere else) with a subscription to our Dream Buffet or grab them one-by-one when you need them in our On-Demand Webinar Library for a set with the video, audio, transcript, and slides.
But we also air a free replay of one of our travel writing classes each and every weekday.
Tourism Boards Really Need Your Help Right Now
If you’re not interested in working with tourism boards or travel companies, now or in the future, today’s missive is not for you.
However, if you are, I’ve just returned from an event that was a big investment by us for you guys: the conference specifically for Directors of Marketing and Digital Marketing Managers at top CVBs.
I always advise going to conferences where your clients, rather than your peers, are to learn what are the problems your clients are actually facing (rather than what you see to be their problems or simply the things you want to pitch them whether that is a pain point for them or not).
But it’s even more fascinating to see how your potential clients are trying to solve their problems when it is so, so far off base from the best practices that are second nature to you.
Join More Than 30 Experts for the Wander Work Thrive Summit
In our newsletter and here on our blog, I relayed a story about the moment that changed Eat Pray Love author Elizabeth Gilbert’s trajectory as a writer.
Now, I am honored to share with you the beautiful product of someone I have recently watched employ those same lessons to create something that she was passionate that the world needed…and do so with such commitment that the end result is simply not to be missed.
This week, you can join Kristyn Caetano and more than thirty experts for the Wander Work Thrive Summit for FREE.
Five Magazines Looking for City Profiles (Edition VI)
Welcome to the Friday Freebie Five, a new weekly feature on Dream of Travel Writing’s Six Figure Travel Writer blog.
Each week, we comb our Travel Magazine Database to bring you five magazine sections open to freelancers around a theme–front-of-book trend pieces, long-form first-person features, short narrative postcards–to inspire your pitches.
Cambria Style
“Explore” covers a different city in each issue, usually located in the U.S. Articles are about 500 words long and round up suggestions for things to do and see including shops, attractions, bars, and hotels. There are about 12 suggestions per article and products are often included such as a suitcase to use or beauty product to pack. There is a short third-person description for each with the website, address, phone number, and price included. Cities recently covered include Sonoma County, San Diego, and Denver.
Five Magazines Looking for Celebrity Interviews (Edition II)
Welcome to the Friday Freebie Five, a new weekly feature on Dream of Travel Writing’s Six Figure Travel Writer blog.
Each week, we comb our Travel Magazine Database to bring you five magazine sections open to freelancers around a theme–front-of-book trend pieces, long-form first-person features, short narrative postcards–to inspire your pitches.
Conde Nast Traveller (India)
“Informer” is a Q&A of a well-known person. There are about eight questions which relate to their career, travel, and favorite places in India. The article is usually 800 words long. Examples of recent interviewees include William Dalrymle, writer and historian; Siddhartha Mukherjee, oncologist and writer; and Shashi Tharoor, author, former UN-official, and politician.
Read More
Five Magazines Looking for Activity Profiles
Welcome to the Friday Freebie Five, a new weekly feature on Dream of Travel Writing’s Six Figure Travel Writer blog.
Each week, we comb our Travel Magazine Database to bring you five magazine sections open to freelancers around a theme–front-of-book trend pieces, long-form first-person features, short narrative postcards–to inspire your pitches.
Sunset
“The View” highlights a particular attraction in a destination. There’s a 150-word description giving more information such as the history, the entry price and the website. This is followed by a 200-word sidebar which gives more information on things to do in the surrounding area. An example from a recent issue includes “Botanical Beverly Hills,” which covers the Virginia Robinson Gardens. After the description of the gardens there is a sidebar called “90210’s Natural Side” which outlines a bar, a park, a tea room, and a garden tour with prices and websites for each.
Five Magazines Looking for Hotel Profiles
Welcome to the Friday Freebie Five, a new weekly feature on Dream of Travel Writing’s Six Figure Travel Writer blog.
Each week, we comb our Travel Magazine Database to bring you five magazine sections open to freelancers around a theme–front-of-book trend pieces, long-form first-person features, short narrative postcards–to inspire your pitches.
Gentleman’s Journal
“Travel” is a 750-word article which covers a luxury hotel somewhere in the world. In a third-person conversational tone, the writer describes the history, location, amenities, décor, and food available. A recent example includes “The White Thrill” which describes the luxury ski hotel, Hotel Tannenhof in St Anton, Austria including how the area became popular and how the hotel appeals to affluent skiers.
Five Magazines Looking for Business Profiles
Welcome to the Friday Freebie Five, a new weekly feature on Dream of Travel Writing’s Six Figure Travel Writer blog.
Each week, we comb our Travel Magazine Database to bring you five magazine sections open to freelancers around a theme–front-of-book trend pieces, long-form first-person features, short narrative postcards–to inspire your pitches.
Delta Sky
“Pop Biz” is a 1,000-word, third-person article about breakthroughs in business featuring companies and professionals who are making advances in their industry by innovating and thinking differently than the majority in their industry. In a recent issue the article was titled “The Branding of You” and was written about how retailers are moving into markets like fashionable office supplies to help customers build their personal brands.
Five Magazines Looking for Weekend Trip Itineraries
Welcome to the Friday Freebie Five, a new weekly feature on Dream of Travel Writing’s Six Figure Travel Writer blog.
Each week, we comb our Travel Magazine Database to bring you five magazine sections open to freelancers around a theme–front-of-book trend pieces, long-form first-person features, short narrative postcards–to inspire your pitches.
How to Spend It
“From Desk Till Dawn” takes the form of a weekend itinerary to destinations worldwide focusing on adventure travel and extreme sports. There is a 200-word introduction which covers the destination and the activities the writer will do there. This is then followed by a 1,500-word recount of the writer’s trip from Friday afternoon to Sunday night. The article is divided into timeslots in which the writer describes, in a first-person narrative style, the adventure activities they did in the destination. There is often a sidebar at the end of the piece called “Fast Facts.” This includes information on the flight and tour company, with the prices, phone numbers, and websites included. Examples from a recent issue include “Kayaking and Hiking in Newfoundland,” in which the writer recounts his trip exploring remote Newfoundland, Canada, searching for whales and ice bergs, “Cliff Climbing and Kayaking in St Lucia,” which covers the writer’s weekend kayaking, trekking, and cliff jumping in St Lucia, and “Ultra Running on Reunion Island,” which covers the 165km mountain crossing race on Reunion Island.