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The Right Way to Travel
Edited by Jennifer Stevens in Colorado Springs, CO
June 8, 2007

"Americans have always been eager for travel, that being how they got to the New World in the first place." Otto Friedrich
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Today:

*** Your Frequent-Flyer Miles Are at Risk -- What to Do about It
*** One of the World's Top Travel Destinations
*** Practical Writing Prompt of the Week: Find a Niche Audience
*** Reader Feedback: Hotel Perks
*** More Opportunities and Resources for Writers

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** Highly Recommended **

"One of the world's top travel destinations for 2007," says Frommers
America's "Best Eating Destination," says The Food Network
No. 9, "Top 25 Fittest Cities in the United States," says Men's Fitness
"Its vibrant downtown overflows with urban pleasures like chic restaurants, funky nightclubs and sprightly neighborhoods crackling with youthful energy," says the New York Times

Where? Portland, Oregon.

Join us there this July to uncover its charms for yourself and, while you're at it...

Discover the Secrets to Traveling the World for Free and Getting Paid as a Travel Writer!

The Ultimate Travel Writer's Workshop
Portland, OR * July 27 - 29, 2007

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).

Seats are limited. Reserve yours before June 20, 2007 to save $300.

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Dear Reader,

No use sitting any longer on your frequent-flyer miles. Do so, and you're likely to lose them.

Airlines have been quietly -- and one after another -- changing their frequent-flyer policies, shortening the length of time you can keep your accumulated miles.

It used to be that you could horde them for years with no penalty. But nowadays, many airlines demand you show "activity" of some sort on your account (either you redeem miles or accumulate more) within a certain number of months, usually 18. If you don't... they'll zero out your account.

This recently happened to me when I lost 150,000 US Airways miles I'd more-or-less forgotten about. It was a needless loss I could have easily avoided -- and I needn't have taken a US Airways flight to do it.

I could have kept my account active, for instance, by using a small number of those miles to purchase a magazine subscription or Starbucks coffee. I'd have been down a few miles, sure, but I'd have retained the majority.

Or I might have kept my account active by accumulating a few additional miles shopping online at a US Airways partner store -- like Target, Gap, or Staples. I'd have simply needed to make my purchase through the US Airways site.

Take 10 minutes this week to assess the status of your own frequent-flyer miles. In all likelihood, you're at risk of losing them if you don't take some action soon.

United Airlines announced their "stay active" policy this past January, and American Airlines followed suit earlier this week.

To cash in your miles for products instead of flights, visit: www.points.com, where it's free to register and you'll be presented with all sorts of places your miles are as good as greenbacks.

To earn miles when you make purchases from a whole range of retailers, visit each airline's frequent-flyer website and find the link for their partner offers.

Of course, you can also keep a frequent-flyer account active by flying that airline.

I'd like to invite you to do just that next month and join me in Portland, OR for our last Ultimate Travel Writer's Workshop of 2007.

We'll be in Portland at a great time of year. The sun will be out, and our program coincides with several enticing local events, among them:

** The only West Coast appearance of a traveling exhibit titled, "Rembrandt and the Golden Age of Dutch Art," at the Portland Art Museum. It showcases a collection of 17th-century Dutch Masterpieces from the Netherlands' famed Rijksmuseum.

** Body Worlds 3: The Anatomical Exhibition of Real Human Bodies at the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry. Much ballyhooed, here's your chance to see this traveling exhibit of plasticized bodies if it hasn't come to your city.

** The 20th Annual Oregon Brewers Festival, at the waterfront park just down the street from our workshop hotel. Sample microbrews from around the nation and rub shoulders with the locals, too.

For details about our upcoming Portland workshop, go here: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/portland/

I hope to see you there,

-- Jen

Jennifer Stevens
Guest Editor, The Right Way to Travel

P.S. My colleague Steenie Harvey will also be on hand in Portland. A freelance writer whose by-line has appeared everywhere from the Washington Post to London's Daily Telegraph, she'll be there to share her real-world know-how for landing the best assignments and cashing in on great travel writer perks.

Look tomorrow for an article from Steenie on writing for foreign markets. They provide a splendid outlet for your "local" coverage, and there's lots of opportunity (and often less competition) with English-language publications overseas.

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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** Advertisement **

The World and Your Hometown are Jam-Packed with Opportunities to Profit from Your Photographs

Photo opportunities exist everywhere. On the roadside... at work...
while talking with friends... in your backyard... a nearby zoo...
special events... festivals... sporting events... pie-eating contests... and more...

Just take a look around you -- at magazines, newspapers, books, trade journals, technical manuals, and almost any published material. Look at the cover and flip through the pages. What do you see? Photographs.

Someone has to take those pictures. Why not you?

http://www.thephotographerslife.com/ph2/website

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PRACTICAL WRITING PROMPT OF THE WEEK:

An excellent way to improve your chances of selling an article is to narrow your audience when you're defining your idea. Think niche.

Take a story idea you've been musing about (or maybe even a story you've already written) and define it, more narrowly, for a very specific audience.

For example, say you've been thinking about doing a round-up piece on three B&Bs in town (or anywhere you know).

Use that general idea as your starting point, but then think about two ways you could tweak it for subsets of readers.

You could, for instance, write "Have Dog, Will Travel: Three Pet-Friendly Chicago B&Bs" for a reader traveling with his dog.

Or you could write "Three Chicago B&Bs Rich in Hospitality and History" for a reader interested in staying in an historic property.

Or you could look for a "cultural travel" angle, perhaps something that might work for this week's Featured Publication, Soul of America.

This weekend, go out in search of fodder for niche-market pieces you could write next week.

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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 write you your first check:
http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/sh/website

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READER FEEDBACK: Travel Perks

"Dear Jennifer,

"I got my first perk as a travel writer!

"I purchased my ultimate travel writer's program late last year. Next week I'll be in Calgary for a conference, held in a 5-star hotel. From your emails and your course content, I thought 'let me give this a try.'

"I wrote the GM of the hotel, and since I already have a group rate with the conference, she upgraded me to the Fairmont Gold, and said her manager will take care of my needs.

"I am SOOOOO excited!!! Thought you might be interested in this news. I'll submit my first travel article to International Living with photographs when I return from the trip." -- Estrella Chan

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
http://www.thephotographerslife.com