Journeys in Journalism
September 21, 2009
Getting paid to write about your holidays could be your dream job, but there is lot of work involved if you are going to be successful.
You've probably all read the travel sections in the newspapers and wondered just
how lucky those writers are to be able to do that, to travel to exotic places and
actually get paid for it! A travel editor I know goes on holiday for his annual
leave and the rest of the year also goes on holiday, as part of his job! It's a
glamorous and exciting life but it can take a while to get there.
I'm in the UK at the moment on holiday but I'm also conjuring up some travel stories
on my way. Among them are likely to be stories on Dorset, London, Wales, Prague
and Thailand, which are some of the places I'm visiting. I have no definite takers
for my stories yet but having done my share of travel yarns in the past I'm confident
I'll be able to 'sell' at least two or three of them to newspapers or magazines.
So what do you have to do to become a travel writer or write a travel story? It's
not as easy as it may appear. You can't just turn up in a strange land on a tour
bus, do the sights and then write your words of wisdom. It takes proper research
and exploration to write a story that will carry some authority. There aren't that
many writers who are fully employed as travel journalists, most are freelancers
who have made good contacts and know how best to approach editors.
It helps these days, too, if you have good quality photographs to accompany your
stories because travel editors are having to economise like everyone else and are
reluctant to pay for pictures. It's worth reading the travel sections closely just
to assess what kind of stories are being published. It's also a good idea to read
travel books, such as those by Bill Bryson, Eric Newby, Paul Theroux (my favourite),
and PJ O'Rourke (if you like a bit of politics thrown in, too). There are many more,
of course.
The Freelance Travel Writing & Photography course offered by the Australian
College of Journalism is a great way of discovering your talents in this area and
could be the first step to a globetrotting life as a travel writer.
Happy writing!
Gary Smith
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