Travel writer as an Orwellian
Posted: November 5, 2012 Contents: Resources | Tags: aaron hamburger, freelance journalists, matador network, matadornetwork.com, orwellian, travel advice, travel journalism, travel writer, travel writing 2 Comments »Resources offers advice from 100 freelance journalists. Aaron Hamburger from the Matador Network offers this: Be an Orwellian. Here’s a tidbit from Hamburger’s article:
Orwell’s prime enemy was vagueness, dullness, and cliché. In his formulation, either you’re choosing language or language chooses you. Or as Orwell puts it: ‘Modern writing at its worst does not consist of picking out words for the sake of their meaning and inventing images to make their meaning clearer. It consists of gumming together long strips of words which have already been set in order by somebody else.’
Lead, Pitch
Posted: October 28, 2012 Contents: Chapter 4 | Tags: craft perfect pitch, david miller, lead, matador network, matadornetwork.com, perfect pitch, pitch, travel journalism, travel journalist pitch, travel writer pitch, travel writing 1 Comment »Chapter 4 teaches the travel writer about different story elements. David Miller of the Matador Network offers advice to the travel writer on how to craft a perfect pitch. Miller discusses the importance of the Lead and how ultimately a good pitch can only get the writer so far. Miller offers six ways to improve the lead of the story a few are:
- Lead with the narrator in a problematic or overtly stressful situation.
- Lead with a disarmingly simple and short declarative sentence.
- Begin in-medias-res, with descriptions placing the reader in the middle of a scene.
Remember the lead must be able to capture the readers attention to force them to read the rest of the story.
Dealing with editors
Posted: October 23, 2012 Contents: Chapter 5 | Tags: editors, Julie Schwietert, matador network, matadornetwork.com, relationship with editors, travel journalism, travel journalist, travel journalist editor, travel magazine editor, travel writer, travel writing, travel writing editor Leave a comment »Chapter 5 delves into the pitching and getting published process. Julie Schwietert of the Matador Network shows the writer how to properly develop a relationship with an editor before getting work published. Schwietert also gives the writer advice on how to deal with negative feedback from editors. Here’s a bit of her advice,
They change words in your story- or even reshape it entirely.
How to respond
Try to react to this situation with as little ego investment as possible. These types of decisions aren’t intended to cramp your style–otherwise the editor wouldn’t have worked with you in the first place. Understand that editorial decisions reflect a complex algebra of factors, including the editor’s understanding of the publication’s goals, audience, and even finances; many of these variables won’t be clear to you at all. If something really rubs you…
Become a better observer
Posted: October 20, 2012 Contents: Chapter 1 | Tags: active observation, become a better observer, david miller, matador network, matadornetwork.com, observation, observer, travel journalism, travel writing Leave a comment »While Chapter 1 urges the travel writer to employ more tools than just observation while investigating her story, observation is still an effective primary source of information. David Miller, at the Matador network has offered these exercises to becoming a better observer. First he discusses active observation which he states,
Active observation is trying to see the connections between what’s visible in someone (their expressions, clothes, what they’re doing) and invisible (their histories, upbringing, dreams, desires). This is key, because within the gap between what’s visible and invisible is often where the deepest, most credible, and most interesting stories are found.
To practice observations, Miller states, try these three exercises:
- Stories out of photos
- analyzing how relationships are…
Sharpen travel writing skills
Posted: October 20, 2012 Contents: Chapter 4 | Tags: how to become a serious travel writer, Julie Schwietert, matador network, matadornetwork.com, travel journalism, travel writing Leave a comment »Chapter 4 discusses reporting and writing skills. Julie Schwietert, of the Matador network, offers advice on how to become a serious travel writer. The majority of her advice is reflected in the text however she has these few tips to add:
- Learn when to break the writing rules you’ve been taught
- get a writing partner
- prepare for rejection
- invest in yourself
- develop other relevant skills
- learn how to use an anecdote
- there is no such thing as objectivity
Adhering to Schwietert’s advice is a sure way to sharpen the necessary tools to become a serious and effective travel writer.
The story – In three sentences or less
Posted: October 3, 2012 Contents: Chapter 6 | Tags: david miller, matador network, matadornetwork.com, micro travel notes, microblogging, travel journalism, travel journalist, travel writing Leave a comment »Chapter 6 cited microblogging — blog posts of 140 or fewer characters — as a tool for travel journalists. The Matador Network’s David Miller put out a call for something he calls Micro Travel Notes. Miller states,
“The goal was to tell a complete travel story–something with character, setting, chronology, and ideally, some kind of transformation–in three sentences or less.”
Know when it’s time to head home
Posted: September 30, 2012 Contents: Chapter 4 | Tags: know when to go home, matador network, matadornetwork.com, spencer klein, travel journalism, travel writing, traveling home Leave a comment »The three-by-three model discussed in Chapter 4 guides the travel journalist through the process of traveling. Included in the process is the preparation to travel, the reporting trip, then writing and publishing. Matador Network author, Spencer Klein, offers advice to readers on the exact opposite: how to know when it’s time to stop traveling and go home.
When the existential satisfaction of open time and nothingness and learning for learning’s sake gives way to distant thoughts and a yearning for routine, that’s a good sign you want to head home.
Some of Klein’s eight signs it’s time to stop traveling and go home include:
You are rationing salted peanuts, you’ve just sold your pocket knife, and last but certainly not least: you’ve agreed to write a copy for the BuenaVista Condo Development marketing brochure.
