How To Become a Travel Writer in 20 Messy Steps
Since I’ve always loved to write and always had a travel addiction, it made sense I’d be a travel writer. What didn’t make sense was how I’d do that.
Work
Thoughts on work and freelance life
Guest Post: When Asked for Photos
“I know we offered to pay you for your hard work, now how about you give us something extra for free because we’re cheap?”
Some Thoughts After Book Passage 2015
1. Things Happen at Writing Conferences In the middle of my second day at the Book Passage Travel Writers and Photographers Conference, I went to get coffee. I shared the counter with a Bay Area literary agent. “What are you doing here?” the agent asked, and then he saw my faculty tag. “Oh, you’re teaching. …
Coffee Story in “Morning Calm”
I’m happy with the way this turned out, and the edits look like they were for fit, only. I also did not expect to be in the photos, so that’s amusing. The whole story is here, but if you’re flying Korean Airlines, you might find it in your seatback pocket.
Elsewhere, Vanity Link Edition
I wrapped up my cake series over on Gadling with this short expose about Vienna’s iconic Sachertorte. Podcast producer Katy Sewell came over while my friend Jessica Spiegel was in town — Katy interviewed both of us about freelancing and expat life. Spoiler alert: I was an unhappy expat. My friend Alex asked me …
Self-Editing Checklist for Aspiring (Travel) Writers
You could hire me to edit for you, sure. I’m good at it, and fast, but I’m also expensive. Or, you could just pay attention to the following rules: Speak plain English, by god. Jargon and complicated phrasing doesn’t make you look smarter. It alienates your readers — who might very well be your customers. …