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The Right Way to Travel
Edited by Jennifer Stevens in Colorado Springs, CO
June 15, 2007
"I sometimes think that Thomas Cook should be numbered among the secular saints. He took travel from the privileged and gave it to the people." Robert Runcie, Archbishop of Canterbury
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Today:
*** Passport Delays and How to Beat the System
*** Six months from now, you could be getting paid to travel
*** Practical Writing Prompt of the Week: Outdoors Stories
*** Reader Feedback: Landed a By-line in a Featured Pub
*** More Opportunities and Resources for Writers
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** Highly Recommended **
Six months from now, you could be earning extra income while you travel the world... meet new people... and enjoy the freedom and independence of a writer's life...
The Ultimate Travel Writer's Workshop
Portland, OR * July 27 - 29, 2007
Last Workshop of 2007 -- Don't wait another year to benefit from an investment in a single weekend that could, quite literally, change your life.
Visit: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/portland for more details or call toll-free (866) 415-1425 or local at (831) 274-2779 (Pacific time zone). Spaces are limited. Reserve your seat before June 20, 2007 and you'll save $300.
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Dear Reader,
Jay Leno's joke on the Tonight Show went something like this: "It takes more than three months to leave the U.S., but if you want to enter, you can just walk across the border."
A flood of passport applications has overwhelmed the National Passport Agency. It used to take a few weeks to get a passport -- now it takes more than three months. The delay has foiled travel plans for thousands of people who had international tickets in hand, but no passports.
Their uproar was loud enough that not just Leno -- but the U.S. government -- took note.
In fact, just last Friday, the government suspended the new rule requiring passports for air travel to and from Mexico, Canada, Bermuda, and the Caribbean. (Thousands more than expected applied for passports to comply with this rule, thus swamping the system.)
So now -- until September 30 -- if you're traveling to Mexico, Canada, Bermuda, or the Caribbean, you'll be able to board your plane as long as you show a valid government ID AND the official receipt from your passport application.)
But if you're traveling elsewhere in the world, you'll still need an actual passport -- and you could well find yourself stuck. We almost did. We applied for our 1-year-old's passport 13 weeks before our departure for France (where I was hosting our travel writing workshop).
It hadn't arrived a week before we were due to leave, and a National Passport Agency rep. told us, "I'm putting a 24-hour rush on it." But two days later, it still hadn't come.
Three days before our departure, we were told five different times, "You'll just have to miss your trip. There's nothing to be done about it."
Rubbish. Of course there's something to be done! Here's what you need to know if you find yourself in a similar situation:
At thirteen Regional Passport Agencies scattered across the U.S., you can make an automated appointment for a passport if you're traveling within two weeks. You show up at your assigned time and you get a passport that day.
Only here's the rub: Right now, you can't get an automated appointment at these places because all of the appointment times are taken. The computer voice tells you nothing is available and then hangs up.
But, if you're traveling WITHIN THREE DAYS you have some pull.
Call the National Passport Agency (877-487-2778) to check on the status of your passport application and ask the person you speak with to override the automated system and make you an appointment at a regional office. They CAN do this. They did it for us.
If you're told that they can't, politely hang up and call again until you get a person who is willing to do it for you.
If that doesn't work, show up at one of the 13 Regional Passport Offices first thing in the morning. (We were told we absolutely couldn't do this -- that a guard would be posted at the door and that he wouldn't let us in. But I met several people in the office we went to who had simply shown up -- and they got their passports.)
Arrive at that Regional Passport Office with all the proper paperwork. (You'll find a list of what you need here: http://travel.state.gov/passport/get/get_840.html.)
Remember your passport photos and your tickets or flight confirmation -- proof that you're to travel within three days.
We spent all day at the Denver Passport Office, but we got our son's passport and were able to make our Paris flight.
So how do you avoid this situation altogether?
1) Put your passport application in early. Assume AT LEAST four -- maybe more -- months for processing.
2) No matter when you apply, pay the extra $60 (plus overnight mail fees) to expedite your passport. That should bump your application toward the top of the pile.
3) You may want to pay even more ($109-$199) and have a passport expeditor service take charge of your application from the very start. They ARE still able to speed the process. American Passport Express (http://www.americanpassport.com/), for example, says if you're traveling within 14 days, they can get you a passport in two business days. If you don't have firm travel plans but want, nevertheless, to expedite your passport, they can get it into your hands in as few as four business days.
Ah, the joys of travel in our modern world...
Actually, you can avoid all that passport hassle by simply making your next destination a domestic one. How about meeting me in Portland, OR next month?
I'll be there with a panel of colleagues -- all seasoned travel writers and editors -- for our last Ultimate Travel Writer's Workshop of 2007.
Join us, and you'll walk away knowing the little-known techniques travel writers use to land concert tickets... meals... vacations... and more... without paying a dime...
You'll know exactly what to do to get your name and articles published everywhere -- from local newspapers to the world's most prestigious travel magazines.
And you'll have in hand at the close of three, power-packed days a short publishable piece... and the contact information for editors we know who are happy to work with new writers...
There's no more efficient -- or enjoyable -- way to put yourself on the fast track to the travel writer's life.
Seats are filling up fast, and the Early Bird Discount expires in just five days. So I urge you to reserve your place soon and save.
For details, go here: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/portland/
-- Jen
Jennifer Stevens
Guest Editor, The Right Way to Travel
P.S. We've added a session on photography to our workshop next month. As I've said before, photos are increasingly important when it comes to selling your stories, and that's why we've invited professional photographer Riley Caton to speak to our attendees.
Riley knows what editors are after. His photos have appeared in Newsweek, Life, Outside, the European edition of Time, and Knapsack, as well as the New York Times, USA Today, the San Francisco Chronicle, Associated Press stories, and elsewhere. Next month in Portland, he'll deliver some practical tips for taking not just better photos, but better photos that will sell.
But even if you can't join us at our live event, you can still benefit from Riley's know-how. Look tomorrow for an article from him that includes a list of questions to ask editors about photos; guidelines for saving, submitting, and labeling photos; and advice about the variety of photos you should submit to a publication.
P.P.S. Know a friend or two who'd enjoy the freedom and independence of a writer's or photographer's life? They, too, can sign up to receive this free e-letter here: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/eletter
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PRACTICAL WRITING PROMPT OF THE WEEK:
This weekend, step outside. Look for an outdoors-focused article idea. You can come at it interest-first or audience-first -- whatever you prefer.
Just find a way to take your reader outdoors for an hour (or two or three).
Say you're a gardener... Are there some flower-filled neighborhoods where you could suggest a walk? Or an annual flower-focused event? Or a park a visitor shouldn't miss?
Or say you're a hiker... Can you find a new hike you've not taken before and give it a try? Or maybe there's an old stand-by you like, why not head back there this weekend and enjoy it with an eye to writing about it?
Or, if you prefer, think about your audience first.
You could recommend an outside activity for kids. Or for retirees. Or for spelunkers. Or for fishing enthusiasts. You get the idea.
Define your story in such a way that you can tackle it in 300 words. Then write 100 words on Monday, on Tuesday, and on Wednesday. On Thursday, edit. And on Friday you'll have an article ready to sell.
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** Advertisement **
What If You Left The 40-Hour Work Weeks Behind?
Imagine yourself on some far-off tropical island, sipping a cold cocktail. Perhaps relaxing in a Tuscan villa is more your style or exploring Paris' antique markets or even wandering through the vineyards of Bordeaux...
For some, that dream life is reality. They get paid to live on "permanent vacation." But the truth is: you could, too. All you need is a pen, a passport, and a little sunscreen.
In fact, I might even help you get your first check:
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READER FEEDBACK:
"Thanks for the tip. I wrote an article for 40 Plus Travel and Leisure on 5 good restaurants in Tuscany that are off the beaten track and it was accepted. The editor also approved two other ideas I have for future articles." -- Reynold Dacon
[Ed. Note: 40 Plus Travel and Leisure is just one of hundreds of Featured Publications we've profiled over the years. You'll find a list of recent profiles -- all places looking for freelance contributions -- here: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/where_to_get_published/]
For more reader success stories, visit:
The Travel Writer's Life: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/member_success_stories/
The Photographer's Life: http://www.thephotographerslife.com/success_stories/
Our Wall of Fame: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/wall_of_fame/
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OPPORTUNITIES AND RESOURCES FOR WRITERS:
* BETTER PHOTOS = MORE MONEY:
http://www.thephotographerslife.com/ph2/website
* THE LEGAL WAY TO WRITE OFF YOUR TRAVEL EXPENSES: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/tax/website
*HOW (AND WHEN) TO FOLLOW UP WITH AN EDITOR, AND MORE: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/biz/website
* JOIN THE CLUB - WRITERS AND PHOTOGRAPHERS UNITE: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/itj/website
* CAN YOU RETIRE AND GET PAID TO TRAVEL?:
http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/kp/website
* UNLIMITED ARTICLE CRITIQUES:
http://www.acceleratedtrainingservices.com/tuc/website
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The Right Way to Travel is a FREE newsletter from the American Writers & Artists Inc., available to AWAI members and friends.
(c) 2007 American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Ave., Ste 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483
Phone (561) 278-5557
Fax (561) 278-5929
memberservices@awaionline.com
To LEARN MORE, visit:
http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com
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