Edited by Lori Appling in Las Vegas, NV.
"The free-lance writer is the person who is paid per piece or per word or perhaps." -- Robert Benchley
Today:
- The Truth About Keeping Your Articles Out of the Trash Bin
- Tax Savings Every Freelancer Should Take
- 11 Ways to Kill An Editor: How to Ensure You Get a Rejection Letter Every Time
- NEWS: The Fastest Growing Market for Travel WritersThis Week's Featured Travel Publication: The Dabbling Mum
- More Opportunities and Resources for Writers
Advertisement
Let Us Help You Double Your Travel Writing Success
Sign up for 30 days of unlimited article critiques and you'll surely and easily double...maybe even triple your success rate (and your income).
More published articles = A Bigger Article Portfolio = More Press Trip Offers + More Money
Try it now for 30 days or sign up for 2 months and get the third month free.
http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/unlimited
Dear Reader,
If you've ever met freelance travel writer, Steenie Harvey, you know she's a riot.
Students at our live events can't get enough of her. She dishes up an entire day full of tricks for charming editors into giving you the best assignments and insider's know-how for arranging for travel writing's most coveted perks. She not only teaches important lessons about the art of travel writing, but she does it with a wit that has everyone laughing (sometimes to the point of tears).
You'll get a taste of her tongue-in-cheek humor below. This week she offers her advice on the top 11 ways to secure a rejection letter.
You know, you'd be surprised at how many writers have no idea what makes editors crazy. The simple truth is: If you pay attention to detail, keep your correspondence polite, and use common sense, that will go a long way toward keeping your articles out of the trash bin. Steenie will give you some real-world specifics below. (And you can meet her in person at the end of the month at our upcoming workshop in Buenos Aires: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/workshop/argentina )
Don't forget to keep me up-to-speed on your travel-writing success. If you have a story to share, send me a quick note at lori@thetravelwriterslife.com.
Have a good weekend!
-- Lori
Lori Appling
Director, AWAI's Travel Writer Program
P.S. Know a friend or two who'd enjoy the freedom and independence of a writer's life? They, too, can sign up to receive this free e-letter weekly at: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/eletter
Advertisement
TAX SAVINGS EVERY FREELANCER SHOULD TAKE
Find out where you can save... what the IRS really needs to know... how to make the most of those deductions for travel, meals, entertainment, home office, and more including practical worksheets you can use to make sure you're paying as little as possible to Uncle Sam.
You'll find The Writer's Tax Guide: A Money-Saving Manual for Travel Writers and Other Freelancers here:
http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/tax/tw4
11 WAYS TO KILL AN EDITOR
By Freelance Travel Writer, Steenie Harvey in Ireland
Strychnine...a stiletto dagger...an AK 47. Texas chain-saws...hit-and-run...the toxic liver of a Japanese blowfish. A noose dangling from cross-beamed rafters...manual strangulation...suffocation by plastic bag. Quicksand...cut brake pipes...hairdryer in the bathwater. Stampeding herds of wild elephants...poisonous spiders...man-eating Bengal tigers.
When starting out, many writers experience rejection. Although it’s tempting to fantasize about the monster behind the editorial desk coming to a gruesomely sticky end, it’s a waste of time and energy. Believe me, sticking pins in Haitian voodoo dolls does not work.
You need to ask yourself why your articles are getting rejected. If your writing is really good, it could be you’re doing something you shouldn’t...
For example, that article on Venice. Did you submit it in a ring-binder accompanied by a date-stamped snapshot of you, Mom and Auntie Gladys in a gondola, all grinning like village idiots? And was your photo in a glass-topped silver frame?
Articles encased in ring-binders...framed family-album snapshots? Yes, it sounds like something that only a brain-dead writer would dream of doing. Thing is, it happens. It certainly happens to Randy Curwen, travel editor of the Chicago Tribune. At last year’s AWAI’s Travel Writers’ Workshop in the Windy City, Randy entertained us with a whole bunch of editorial horror stories.
We learned that all editors have their own pet peeves. (And some editors are more peevish than others.) If you get on their wrong side, it doesn’t matter if your article is absolutely brilliant. There’s every chance it will be rejected.
Here’s my own personal pick of 11 ways to really kill an editor. (And kill off your chances of publication.) If you want to paper your spare bedroom with rejection slips, be sure to follow these tried and tested rules.
1. Never address him or her by name. i.e. Always use "Dear Editor" instead of "Dear Ms Sensitive."
Some editors also get very grouchy if you misspell their name or you address your cover note to their predecessor of five years ago. This reveals that you’re not up-to-date with the publication. Bingo! That’s one rejection slip in the bag already.
2. Ensure your full name and contact details remain a secret. Leave the editor guessing who the heck is Jane with the e-mail jane@yahoo.com (Better still, don’t even give an e-mail address.)
Most editors receive hundreds of articles each week...and they certainly don’t keep a writer’s introductory letter in a scrapbook. Now, this might not result in obtaining one of those prized rejection slips, but at least you’ll have the satisfaction of knowing your story will remain unpublished.
3. Pepper your story with spelling mistakes.
One editor says she immediately rejects a manuscript when seeing the word ‘accomodation’ instead of "accommodation." All computers have a spell-check. So make sure you never use it. Ever.
4. Stick to those clichés!
Start off your story by describing a place as "a paradise," "an Eden," or a region’s "best-kept secret." The phrase "When we told friends we were going to XXXX, they said we were crazy!" is also likely to see your story heading straight for the trash can. Using clichés invariably results in automatic rejection. If you’re in search of rejection slips, here’s another thing to note. Most editors also abhor "azure-blue waters," villages that "nestle" and trade winds that "caress."
5. Pitch a query or submit an article on a recently featured destination. Hint: The more recent, the better.
Again, it clearly shows that you don’t read the publication. Last month’s cover feature focused on California’s National Parks...and along comes your story on exactly the same theme. Excellent!
6. Be bone-idle.
You don’t need to get the magazine’s Writers’ Guidelines before submitting that 12-part series of 5000-word articles about your 3-month trek across the Kalahari Desert. If you’d read -- and followed -- the guidelines, you’d know the editor doesn’t accept personal journey stories. And that all articles run to 1,200 words, maximum.
7. Get incensed when your story isn’t acknowledged straight away.
Editors do not appreciate abusive phone calls. In fact, they generally don’t want to be harassed by any phone calls. It may be six weeks or eight weeks before you hear back about your story on the Loosest Slots in Las Vegas. So phone up at frequent intervals the day after you sent it...and be sure to curse like a Liverpool docker.
8. Make suggestions about how the travel section could be greatly improved...and how you are the one to improve it.
The editor undoubtedly does not want to hear why shoestring travelers like yourself believe the publication’s regular feature on up-market hotels is a waste of space. So be insistent. Contact the publisher and go over the editor’s head.
9. Try selling an outdated story as something new.
I’m sure the title "Back in the U.S.S.R." hasn’t been used for quite a while. Moscow’s miserable hotels where you can only get cabbage soup and the bathtubs come without a plug...being stalked by KGB agents...tractor maintenance on a Soviet collective farm. All wonderful stuff! I can guarantee you haven’t got a prayer of selling this story.
10. Include a cover letter that is basically a blow-by-blow account of everything in your travel article.
If your story is 2,000 words long, your cover note should be even lengthier. Obviously it may need some padding. Tell the editor about your first day at school, your mad uncle in Australia, how your dog vomited into the next-door-neighbor’s goldfish tank. A 15,000 word cover letter is definitely good for another rejection slip.
11. Be negative. Extremely negative.
"10 reasons not to go to Dublin" is a sure-fire loser. "The worst places to stay in San Jose" sounds pretty good too. When you’re on the rejection trail, this approach works for all kinds of articles. Stress how the natives are unfriendly, the food is diabolical, and the accommodations are all flea-pits. Works every time.
[About the Author: Born in England to Latvian and English parents, Steenie Harvey moved to Ireland in 1988 with her Scottish husband and their daughter. Though she has no formal training as a writer, Steenie discovered she had a knack for it when, on a whim, she sent an article about her search for an Irish cottage to a British newspaper... and got a check in return. That was the start of an impressive career.
An accomplished and proven freelancer today, Steenie is "International Living's "roving Euro-editor and also writes about travel, folklore, and real estate for publications both at home and abroad, among them "The Daily Telegraph ," "The Independent," The World of Hibernia," "The World & I," and "Spotlight."
Steenie will be joining Jen Stevens and John Forde in Buenos Aires, Argentina this March 30-April 2 for our next live Travel Writing Workshop. AWAI Students receive an extra $50 off and ITWPA members get an extra $200 off the price. For more details visit: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/workshop/argentina or call Agora Travel toll free at: (800) 926-6575 or (561) 243-6276.]
Advertisement
More By-lines ... More Vacations ... More Money
I haven't paid for a hotel room in FL for more than 10 years. I've sold 600 articles, 13 guidebooks, and 3,000 photographs. But it took me years to build my career.
You, on the other hand, don't have to wait. I'd like to show you, personally, exactly what I do... I'll call you, review your articles, and let you in on the secrets I use to land the best assignments and the most rewarding travel deals:
http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/coaching
THIS MAY BE THE FASTEST GROWING MARKET FOR TRAVEL WRITERS …
The European Travel Commission just released a report that contained good news for travel writers – half of all online users now engage in some kind of travel research each month! That’s driving a growing trend for resorts, tour companies, cruise lines, airlines … even regional and national tourism departments … to try to attract these users directly to their own websites rather than solely through agencies.
With the global Internet population increasing by 19% annually … and online travel purchases expected to reach over $80 billion in Europe and the U.S. alone by 2006 … their incentive for a stronger web presence is pretty clear.
And that translates to a growing demand for writers to promote these travel services. It’s a great opportunity to combine your travel savvy with your creative flair and turn them into some really decent paychecks … and, possibly, into a bit of free travel to boot.
Visit http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/sh/tw4 to get your travel-writing career started today.
THIS WEEK'S FEATURED TRAVEL PUBLICATION
The Dabbling Mum is a magazine for busy parents written from a Christian Perspective. Each quarter, the magazine features a number of travel pieces in the Travel Center Department. Current travel needs include articles on adventure travel, budget travel, travel tips, family travel, and weekend trips. Articles should be family focused. Payment is small, but available. Submissions must be made via an online form. Links to submission forms and the complete writer's guidelines are available at http://thedabblingmum.com/authorsubmit.htm .
OPPORTUNITIES AND RESOURCES FOR WRITERS:
GET YOUR FIRST PUBLISHED CLIP IN LESS THAN 6 MONTHS --
Join the International Travel Writers & Publishers Alliance (ITWPA) today and use their many membership benefits to land your first assignment -- fast. Membership includes: writer credentials (a membership ID badge vouching for your status as a travel writer), business cards with the ITWPA logo printed on them and monthly newsletters that list available press trips as well as markets where you might consider publishing your articles. Plus $200 off any writing-related event sponsored by the organization (including Jen Stevens' live travel-writing workshops). For more details visit their website: www.itwpa.com
MAKE MONEY AND SAVE THE WORLD
What if something you wrote could... Help 3 million people in 29 countries get access to clean drinking water... Provide safe, secure housing for 5,400 families in the U.S. ... Protect 160,000 acres of timberland in Tennessee and Oregon... Put 23 new computers in the elementary school down the street... http://www.thewriterslife.com/fundraising/tw89
CAN YOU WRITE A SIMPLE LETTER? If yes, you could be in big demand, earning big money, writing just a few hours a day from anywhere in the world you choose to be. Here's how you can learn the secrets of this little-known, lucrative business:
http://www.thewriterslife.com/ph/tw89
RETIRE…AND GET PAID TO TRAVEL -- Get the Details and Your Free report at: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/kp/tw4
EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE BUSINESS OF WRITING
Learn how to find the best story ideas and places to publish them…how and when to follow up with an editor…what you need to know about buying rights, contracts, and agreements…how to use syndication to increase your exposure and boost your earnings…and more. You'll find The Business of Writing Guide: A Practical Guide for Travel Writers (and Other Freelancers) Ready to Turn Words into Profits here: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/biz/tw4
BIG BUCKS FOR SNAPSHOTS
Photos can be a remarkably strong sales tool when you're approaching an editor with a story. They can significantly increase your chances of getting published (and earning extra income) -- that is, if you know how to take the kinds of photos editors like. Find out the simplest and best camera to take with you (you don't want to be lugging a trunk full of equipment)... how to use time of day... create a mood... how to photograph people versus landscapes and wildlife... and more. You'll find Big Bucks for Snapshots: 53 Can't Miss Techniques for Becoming a Money-Making Freelance Photographer here: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/photos/tw4
DO YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKES TO WRITE FOR THIS MARKET -- 76.1 million baby boomers are turning 50 at a rate of 3 to 4 million a year. Their knees hurt, their backs hurt, their cholesterol is high, their prostates hurt, they're going through menopause, they're having trouble sleeping, they're anxious… If you have what it takes to sell to this market, you can make very good money in a specialty field that will give you as much work as you can handle…and that routinely pays $8,000 and up – with royalties – for each sales letter you write… Find out more at: http://www.thewriterslife.com/health/tw4
The Write Way to Travel is a FREE weekly newsletter from the American Writers & Artists Institute, available to AWAI students and friends.
© 2004 American Writers & Artists Institute
To ADVERTISE in The Write Way to Travel or to send comments, news, research, or story ideas, e-mail Lori Appling at lappling@awaionline.com.
NOTE: If URLs do not appear as live links in your e-mail program, please cut and paste the full URL into the location or address field of your browser.
CHANGE OF ADDRESS? E-mail us at memberservices@awaionline.com with both your old AND new information in the body of the message.
