Boarding the plane in Huntsville, AL and flying to Denver by myself last September was a giant stretch for me. Oh, I was certainly old enough, and I had done a fair amount of traveling in my lifetime. But this time I was daring to think I could have a new identity, one that didn’t […]
Experience is an asset when it comes to travel writing, but it’s not the only criteria for getting published. At Yankee we have a long, proud history of publishing first-time writers and one of the joys of being an editor is discovering a new voice to bring to our readers. Can it happen to you? […]
As a travel writer, I have enjoyed my share of complimentary stays in five-star accommodations, four-course dinners with wine pairings, and free city tours and attractions. All in exchange for published articles – and in addition to the pay. What I didn’t count on in my travel writing career was receiving free travel-related gifts. And […]
I arrived in Oswego, New York, around noon yesterday. A friendly representative of the tourism bureau flashed her mega-watt smile as she greeted me. We spent the next six hours visiting four historic museums, finishing Day One with dinner and a chilled glass of wine, chatting like old friends, watching a brilliant sunset over Lake Ontario… Right now, I’m at “the office,” out on […]
With airplane fares cheaper than ever in history, most of the population can travel. So if you contact a travel magazine to sell them a story about the place you are visiting without a specific angle they will most probably reply: “No, thank you” (or not at all). They get hundreds of general queries like […]
It didn’t take long after I’d completed the Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program in September 2014 to understand that if I wanted to be a published writer, I simply needed to find interesting topics to write about, then decide where to send those stories. My first two stories covered exotic destinations I’d recently visited, like […]
Your mission, should you choose to accept, is to introduce your own — or any — city to a visitor, tell them the best places to visit, eat, and stay. You have 24 hours. Good luck. Being a travel writer is not all about fancy hotels and gourmet cuisine. Sometimes it can be a challenge […]
It can be hard to find ways to generate article topic ideas, so here’s a graphic to help you… Ways to generate article topic ideas: The biggest tip? Just go for it. Yes, you’ve heard it before…but, really, I can’t emphasize it enough. You’ve got to bite the bullet. And, the sooner the better. To […]
When new writers sit down to tap out a story, many turn to “the question” as a way to begin telling it. For example: • Have you ever wanted to ski in the summer? • Need a break from the sun and sand while visiting South Florida? • With seven hours before our flight, tequila […]
There was just something special about that email from the editor that read “Congratulations. Your story will appear in next month’s magazine!” That response was a magic number for me. It was my 100th article accepted for publication. I wasn’t always a travel writer. For 34 years, I’ve worn the title of “Registered Nurse” with […]
