Dear Reader,

Jen Stevens here -- sitting in as your guest editor once again. (Lori, lucky duck, is still in France.)

Yesterday I mentioned that writing about your hometown can give you an edge with editors. You’re a credible source when you’re writing about where you live.

But that’s just one way to catch an editor’s attention.

Another is to show that you understand the reader you’re writing for.

No matter what specific angle or travel niche you target for your next story -- it could be anything from bird-watching to antiquing to camping to spas -- it’s important to consider your readers’ mindset.

With the economic downturn, priorities have changed. It doesn’t mean people aren’t traveling. It just means they’re traveling differently.

And it doesn’t mean they aren’t reading about travel. They’re simply reading for different reasons.

If you’re aware of what people are feeling and thinking, it’s easy to come up with travel stories editors will snatch up.

To help get your creative juices flowing today, I wanted to point out some current trends worth having on your radar screen.

I’ve been gathering a long list of these and interviewing people in the travel industry about them as I get ready for our upcoming workshop in Denver (http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/tww/denver09).

I’ll be giving a full presentation on this topic there, profiling a dozen or so trends you can use as springboards for stories.

But here’s a sneak preview -- three trends to keep in mind when you’re coming up with travel-story ideas for 2009...

THREE TRENDS TO WATCH

**1.) Lavish is out. Have you heard about shoppers at Tiffany’s asking clerks to brown bag their purchases? Even among the well-heeled, flaunting wealth is no longer chic. Thriftiness is in. As one financial advisor quoted in the New York Times put it: “Saving money is the new black.”

**2.) Retro is cool. When times are tough, people tend to retreat to “safer ground.” They romanticize childhood icons and symbols of the past, times when things were easier, simpler, happier. Have you noticed those cute little fifties-era sweater sets are back in vogue?
And I just read that record sales (I’m talking vinyl here) have increased 89% since 2007.

**3.) Intimacy is important. Seems the great drive to profit has left people feeling less-than-fulfilled. There’s a greater focus now on intimacy, connectedness, family, quality time. As Forbes reported recently: “Experts agree that tough economic times can motivate couples, as well as singles, to turn to simple pleasures.”

So what do those trends mean for you as a travel writer? Tune in tomorrow and I’ll show you how you can easily capitalize on them to come up with articles editors will love.

Or join me in Denver next month, and I’ll show you, step-by-step, how to use these trends and others to land by-lines faster than you ever thought possible. Our live program is really hands on. That’s part of the reason it works so well and graduates see so much success.

(It’s like taking a cooking class. It’s ok to watch somebody make something. But it’s more fun -- and you “get it” faster -- when you roll up your sleeves and get your hands in the dough.) So that’s the approach we take. You can come in thinking, “I have no idea what I’m doing, but it sure would be nice to get paid to travel.” And I guarantee: you’ll leave knowing exactly how to make it happen.

As Mary Anne Lonze put it after last year’s event, “35 days ago, I walked into The Ultimate Travel Writer's Workshop in San Francisco. Prior to that day, I'd never written a thing. Today, I have a by-line! Thanks to your terrific program…”

We only get our experts together like this once a year. And right now you can grab a chair in the room with them at our Denver workshop for $300 off. You’ll find all the details posted here:
http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/tww/denver09

Hope to see you there,

-- Jen

Jennifer Stevens
Guest Editor

P.S. A few weeks before our Denver workshop begins, I’m hosting our Get Paid to Travel Teleconference. As an ITWPA member, you can listen in for FREE and find out from a panel of successful freelancers the easiest ways to break into travel writing (even if you’ve never written an article in your life)... how you can combine your interests (anything from knitting to teaching to music) with travel and sell articles fast... how to start cashing in on great perks like free meals or discounted hotel rooms... and more.

To grab a seat at our “virtual table” on June 29th, go here: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/tel3/letushelp

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