You’ve decided to become a travel writer. Maybe you did it out of passion and love for travel, out of a desire to see new places and share with the world how beautiful they are and how free you feel when you travel, without having to go day after day to a job that you don’t like and that increasingly stifles your existence. Perfect! However, no one can live without money, so many questions arise: how can you earn from travel writing? How much does one earn as a travel writer? How to submit travel stories? Where can you send your travel articles to get paid? Will you be able to make a long-term living as a travel writer?
It’s not enough to want to travel. It’s not enough to travel and write about your travels. The piece you need to complete this puzzle is the financial one. I’ve met people who travel for pleasure, who write for fun – and do it very well – but who don’t have to worry about living day-to-day because they earn their money from other businesses or have recurring incomes that allow them the freedom to travel without worry and pay for their travel without hassle.
This is the ideal situation. But here we are talking about a hobby, not a profession. The authentic travel writer… by trade, is the one who earns money from this occupation. In short, the one who follows the flow: travel – articles (or books) – money earned.
There are three main ways to earn money from travel:
- – Writing on your own blog/website
- – Writing for international magazines/magazines/websites
- – Writing travel books
Beyond these three, there are other ways you can earn money due to your travel writing skills. But now I’ll only refer to the second one because it’s the quickest (as long as you can find the flow) and doesn’t exclude the other two.
In fact, that’s how things work “chronologically”. At first, you start a travel blog, where you begin writing, and that will be your calling card. Your portfolio. Once you’ve gained some experience, done some traveling, and populated your blog with articles and gained some experience, you can think about the second step: submitting articles to travel magazines or travel sites that pay contributors. Finally, once you’ve gained notoriety after years of travel and adventure, the idea of writing a book (or a series of books) takes shape and, put into practice, can be successful.
This would be a classic order of things, but, of course, it is not set in stone. If talent precedes experience or luck depicts your existence, submitting articles to magazines without a blog behind you can be an instant success.
Introducing yourself as a travel writer
When you’ve decided you want to become a travel writer, people must know about it. You certainly have a lot of friends and acquaintances with whom you are in contact, both in real life and on social media. Let everyone know you’ve made this decision, and tell them briefly about what you plan to do in the coming months or years.
Also, join as many travel groups as possible on Facebook, LinkedIn, Quora, or Reddit. Subscribe to newsletters of interest. Get in touch with as many people as you can. In other words… get yourself noticed, and start operating on the networking process, which brings many benefits, whether you’re just starting your career or in full swing.
If you’ve already got a blog, or are going to, get a logo, give it an identity, visually and by name. Print a few dozen business cards and give them away when you physically meet important people in the industry.
Basically, this is a process of creating and promoting your brand as a travel writer, achieved through the articles and texts you write and publish and intense online and offline activity.
How to submit travel stories to travel magazines and websites
Publishing your articles in a travel magazine or on a well-known travel website brings with it a great advantage. Beyond the fact that you will get paid for it, having your articles published in a reputable publication contributes massively to building a reputation as a travel writer. If you manage to write for the likes of National Geographic (even the local editions), NG Traveler, Condé Nast Traveler, or Travel + Leisure (to name but the big ones), you’re a talented magician. Your career will be on a rocket trajectory. Thanks to publication in a high-impact magazine, people will seek you out and inevitably end up on your travel blog. You’ll be able to close deals with transport companies, airlines, hotels, and travel agents and increase your income.
And that’s because the income from being a travel writer is not just about the money you get for a published article but everything that comes with it.
But don’t imagine it’s that simple, and talent isn’t the only thing needed.
Assuming you’ve written the article (I’m not insisting here on the documenting, writing, editing, etc. phases) and you have a file of an awesome, unique, well-researched, well-written travel stories, you’ll need to submit it to an editor.
Submitting travel stories proposals
An essential step is researching the newspapers, magazines, and websites where to submit your travel article proposal. In other words, make a list. It’s good to make the list permanent and to enrich it over time, adding different headlines and deleting those that will prove useless (for whatever reason).
Documentation should continue: go to each title on the list to see what kinds of articles are required and published. How they are written, the tone, and the approach. Also, what is the target audience of those publications? They may be mass tourism or adventure travel readers, readers who love nature outings and hiking, or readers who prefer historical destinations. You will be able to write for some of these readers, but for others, you won’t – either because you need to gain the necessary knowledge or because you’re not attracted to the topics in that niche.
Every publication has a guideline which it follows. A specific type of articles they publish. That’s why it’s essential to see what they are and not waste the time of the respective editors by sending them submissions that don’t fit or are inappropriate. Instead, if you mold yourself to their topics, themes, style, and approach, your chances of getting published increase considerably.
But one thing is sure: times have changed, and newspapers and magazines are not what they used to be. If a few years ago we could talk about newspapers and magazines with large circulations and penetration, now their time – unfortunately – is over. There are some countries where print has almost wholly disappeared, and you won’t have anyone to send submissions to.
Newspapers. Suppose you want to send articles to newspapers. In that case, it is preferable to target the Sunday editions of national newspapers, i.e., those that usually have a travel section, sometimes quite substantial. Sometimes newspapers even do special editions or supplements on particular tourist destinations, depending on which companies want to sponsor them. In addition, you should aim to write stories that allow newspapers to get adjacent publicity from travel-related companies.
Magazines. It’s the same with magazines. Except that they come out monthly, bi-monthly or weekly, and in their editorial offices, things are a bit more relaxed, with more relaxed deadlines (but the editorial structure can also be set long before they appear on the market). On the other hand, if they are not travel-focused magazines, the space reserved for tourism might be limited. But if we are talking about travel magazines (travel niches, trade or corporate magazines, like airline magazines, etc.), there is plenty of room.
When you want to send travel topic proposals to magazines, you need to look a bit more carefully at the content and style of the magazine, as it can differ a lot from magazine to magazine. Adapt the ideas. For example, don’t send a women’s lifestyle magazine a proposal like “The most intriguing places to visit solo in Pakistan”. Some women love adventure, no doubt, but how many are willing to go to the cockles of Pakistan, possibly alone? In other words, constantly tailor your proposals to the specifics and tone of the magazine you send them to.
Websites. Here’s the most significant “market” to start swimming in. The downside is that, in most cases, the amounts received will be smaller (or much smaller) than those offered by magazines or newspapers. Still, the potential clients are much more numerous, and the chances of publication are much greater.
It’s true that website editors – especially those who are looking for and paying contributors – are bombarded daily with submissions. Depending on the editorial budget for contributors, they will accept a certain number of articles each month and publish them. After all, it’s a competition, and if you prove you’re outstanding, you can draw the winning lottery.
Tips for applying when submitting to travel publications
1 Send a smart cover letter
Use at least one clever thing in your cover letter to the editor explaining your travel article proposal. First of all, don’t make it too long, because there is (no longer) the patience to read interminable letters. But, most importantly, come up with a surprise element of your article without developing it too much, just enough to make the editor curious enough to want to see more and respond to you.
2 Flatter the editor without kissing their butt
If the editor of the publication you’re submitting to is a well-known name who works with other publications or is often on TV, make a brief reference to their work. Mention that you liked the cover of his climb of Mount Kilimanjaro seven months ago or that you remember one of his TV appearances where he remarked on how enjoyable a trip to the lesser-known cities of the Philippines is. Appreciation doesn’t have to be fake, but honest, to the point, and enthusiastic.
3 Study well the magazine/newspaper/website to which you are sending your proposal
You need to know exactly who you’re pitching to and understand from the start what the people there want, what kind of articles, in what style, approximate length, and tone. Basically, don’t send cakes to the diabetic hospital or roast beef to the vegan ward.
4 Match the proposal with photos
Any travel writer, who is automatically a traveler by profession, must know how to take good photos. Especially if you’re pitching a topic from a novel place that few people get to, attach a teasing photo or two to your pitch email, all the more reason to pique the editors’ curiosity.
5 Market yourself
There’s no point in being good if you don’t market yourself. Don’t just send an email pitching your proposal, but introduce yourself and write a few things about yourself, starting with the fact that you love to travel. What’s your website, where you’ve published before, what experience you’ve gained – things to put you in a favorable light, with solid arguments? You don’t have to write pages of odes to yourself. Keep it short and to the point, but with a “twist.”
6 Don’t send long articles
If you are attaching the article you are proposing, i.e., adopting a blitz strategy, assuming you have studied the publication typology and the rest of the elements, make sure the article is not too long. Make an average of the length of the articles published by the respective authors and adjust the length to that average. If you’re sending a teaser, do the same – put just one or two paragraphs, but high-impact, powerful, and magnetic, that will make the editor exclaim: “I want this guy/girl!”
7 Don’t be smart-arse
It’s all very well trying to be different when you write but stay within some thresholds. Specifically, write in a way that people understand, don’t make them think three times to understand what you’ve written because they’ll abandon you immediately. A travel publication is not an academic environment where you use fancy terms. When reading about travel, people want to feel relaxed and have a sense that they’re “there” already.
8 But write “alive”
At the same time, don’t write dull and boring. Be “alive.” Offer sensations and flavors. And do it in a way that shows enthusiasm. People like excitement and love to read inspiring texts. Make them want to buy a plane ticket and get to the place you’re talking about in the text.
9 Pay attention to the first person
Generally, newspaper and magazine articles do not write in the first person. Only the editor-in-chief writes in the first person for their editorial. There are exceptions in the case of articles that present exceptional situations or adventures in which you find yourself, and there is a need for personal input. Otherwise, the reader is not interested in your personal opinion of the Trevi Fountain or the Sagrada Familia.
10 Don’t be a hater
Always maintain a positive tone. In your article, there’s no need to include the fact that you saw rubbish on a side street in Naples or that a local avoided feeding cats in Istanbul. Don’t be a hater! It’s enough that we live in a world full of haters.
Conclusion on how to submit travel stories
As a travel writer, it’s not enough to travel; you have to make money from your travels. So take heart and get out there! Whether it comes from your own blog or collaborations with other websites, newspapers, or magazines, the important thing is that it reflects your work and talent.
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