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Issue #308: Don’t Give Up On Freelance Travel Writing Yet! June 08, 2020 |
| Greetings Fellow Travel Writers! . . . and WELCOME all new subscribers. Thanks for joining us.
Survey: Travel, Print Media and the Coronavirus
It's obvious that COVID-19 has had an effect on travel, travel writing and travel blogging. On social media I’ve heard a few people making the leap that the world is ending for print media.
I think they’re jumping to conclusions without the data to back it up. So I’m asking for your help to assess the real impact - how has the cessation of worldwide travel impacted print travel media? Specifically, do you know of any print travel magazines that have closed down forever due to the coronavirus? If you know of any print magazines that have shuttered their doors, please “reply” to this email with details. But, we’re not interested in rumors or hearsay. It would be helpful if you provided additional information such as the date of closure and their final issue. For example, Lonely Planet Magazine announced they're closing March 2020. The final issue is June 2020. Please also let me know of any magazines that have closed temporarily, until world travel picks up again. (Please don’t include blogs or websites - we’re only interested in print media who have paused their publications.) Many thanks for your assistance. I’ll share the print magazine “state of affairs” with you in a future newsletter. - Roy Editorial: Don’t Give Up On Freelance Travel Writing Yet!Some despondent travel writers are throwing down their pens and walking away from freelance writing. They believe that magazine editors are not buying stories due to the coronapocalypse. One writer told me he wasn’t bothering to pitch any magazines because no one is traveling.There’s a major flaw in this reasoning. How do you know that magazines are not commissioning articles? Have you been pitching the editors? There are more than 16,000 different magazines in the English speaking world. At least 2,000 of these publish travel & lifestyle stories. When you consider that each of these magazines commission 6 paid articles per issue on average, that's 12,000 travel and lifestyle articles each month that editors are screaming out for. It’s possible that some travel magazines will hit pause for a few months, but it won’t be forever. Most editors are still looking for good copy and their cupboards are looking pretty bare right about now. Just because there's no travel at present doesn't mean you can't be pitching travel stories to editors. Perhaps there might be some interesting story ideas to pitch about your town, city, or region? Do you have any travel blogs lying around? Perhaps you could tidy some of them up, re-slant them, or rewrite them, and pitch them to paying print media? Veteran travel writers usually have a stock file of story ideas to pitch in their downtime. Today I went through my files and easily found more than one dozen salable stories (and accompanying photo galleries) to pitch. If you just write for one or two publications that are struggling, or not currently taking pitches, consider pitching stories to other magazines. C’mon, take a walk on the wild side and break out into other magazines that publish travel stories! It is a grave mistake to write off the entire freelance writing field based on your relationship with one or two magazines. Also, consider writing travel articles for non-travel magazine genres. I’ve made a lot of money doing this. Apart from standard travel magazines, my travel stories have been published in several specialty magazine genres: resort, lodge and spa reviews; history and historic places; military history; film festivals; food, wine and beer; classic car museums; communications; plus several other areas. I'd suggest that now is a really good time to be sending out queries. While many travel writers have given up, there’s plenty of work right now if you're prepared to work for it. I believe that right now motivated beginners - and veteran writers - can position themselves nicely if they're prepared to give it an honest shot.
This Week's Featured PostA Year In The Life Of A Professional Travel WriterOnce you’ve established a reputation as a travel writer who can produce multiple articles in many genres, you’ll find invitations to press trips and Fam Tours popping into your inbox with alarming frequency.I often receive one or two such invitations each week. I turn most down. Either they’re places that don’t interest me, or they clash with another trip on my calendar, or I don’t have outlets for them. From 2011-2013 I spent 440 days on the road! Here’s a recap of the places I visited in my halcyon days in 2013. I was on the road for 140 days that year, slightly less than the previous two years. If you’re wondering what a year in the life of a full-time travel writer looks like, check out this article . . .
GROUP COACHING MASTERMINDAre you tired of talking, thinking, and dreaming of breaking into travel writing?Are you ready to start writing? Many of you have asked when we’re going to offer group coaching. So, we're working on it. We’re planning to make it affordable, fun, and helpful and productive for you. Everything will be done online with video training, a community of like-minded writers helping each other, a robust focus on the craft of writing and the art of selling, and lots of other resources at your fingertips. Here are a few of the things we’ll be offering through our Group Coaching Mastermind program: A group coaching place where . . . - you’ll get helpful critiques of your story ideas A safe and helpful community where . . . - you can ask questions and get the answers you need A mentoring and resource place where . . . - you'll receive marketing tips about selling your travel stories You’ll get a writing community, group coaching and resources and content so you can succeed in travel writing - and have fun with other travel writers while you’re doing it. Our BRAND NEW Group Coaching program will be limited to the first 35 registrants. The people on the interest list will get first option to register, so if you’re interested, get on the no-obligation list so you’ll be notified first:
Upcoming PostsJune 15: The Best Travel Stories Tap Into Your Interests and PassionsJune 22: Where Travel Writers Can Get Published: 16 Places to Look for Sales Leads June 29: Where to Find Outlets for Your Luxury Travel Stories PitchTravelWrite.com Success StoriesJessica Pickett
Jessica Pickett’s travel writing journey will surely inspire you to try your hand at freelance travel writing. I’m particularly impressed with her story.
I first met Jessica at a travel writing conference in 2014. Since then, she’s made a steady ascent through the freelance writing ranks. Hers is a great example of how a novice travel writer can break into this competitive arena. Jessica’s trajectory is enviable, and it shows how much is achievable even for complete beginners. There were five particular things she did well to succeed in travel writing, right from the start. If you’re a novice writer, you can do these things, too.
Read this post to learn from Jessica as she tells how she launched her freelance writing career . . .
Pitch Travel Write: Most Requested Links about Getting PublishedHere's practically everything we’ve ever published about getting your travel stories published! Getting your work published is the main objective of freelance travel writers. Every article you write needs to be published somewhere, so you need a solid system in place to do it quickly, efficiently, and successfully. After all, if you can't sell your article, you don't get to write it! Here’s the link to our entire suite of 30 articles on getting your stories published. It’s a gold mine of information!
Inspirational Travel Quote
RESOURCES FOR TRAVEL WRITERSFeatured Bundle: The Beginner's 3-Pack
If you're just getting started in travel writing, try our Beginner's 3-Pack—the perfect way to kick-off your travel writing career. You get a 10% discount with the bundle. The Complete Guide to Query Letters 50 Websites That Want to Publish Your Travel Stories 100 Print Magazines That Want to Publish Your Travel Articles Live WorkshopsPeople have been asking when our 2021 workshops in the U.S. are scheduled. They're scheduled in June, 2021, in New Orleans, Louisiana.Here are the 2021 dates: We have had a lot of interest for these workshops already. You can sign up for our no-obligation interest list for these workshops and receive our substantial early bird discounts when we open registration: GET ON THE 2021 LIVE WORKSHOP NO-OBLIGATION INTEREST LIST HERE At Your ServiceCoaching
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Consulting email: pitchtravelwrite@gmail.com
If you know someone who will enjoy this newsletter, PitchTravelWrite.com, is our information-packed website for travel writers. This e-zine, a series of travel writing books and reference guides, coaching programs, and our workshops all work together to give you guidance in this field. Our aim is to provide you with practical, nitty gritty information to help you gain entry the travel writing realm and all the enjoyment that comes with it, too.
We're thrilled to announce that www.PitchTravelWrite.com is on The Write Life’s 2020 list of 100 BEST WEBSITES FOR WRITERS! You can see the entire list by visiting their website - click on the graphic to view the list now.
Friend me on FacebookMy Facebook page is about freelance travel writing. I frequently post about:• travel writing & blogging conferences, • links to other well produced travel websites and blogs, • links to my travel articles, • travel writing themes, • links to reputable travel writer’s groups, associations, and newsletters, • magazine covers stories and back stories, • links to resources pages, • links to travel writing archives, • links to coaching and mentoring resources, • and plenty of other useful information to get you up to speed. Link to Roy's Personal Facebook page That's all for now. Until next week - just keep pitching! Roy Roy Stevenson |
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