FundsforWriters - August 19, 2022 - How to Break into Travel Writing without Traveling

Published: Fri, 08/19/22

 
 
 

VOLUME 22, ISSUE 33 | AUGUST 19, 2022

 
 
     
 


Message from Hope

This week has had a bit of a damper on it. 

My two little grandsons, ages 6 and 8, lost their other grandmother a week ago today. Phylis lived a mile from me, and we shared grandmotherly responsibilities for those little guys. She died suddenly. Nobody saw it coming at age 65, and she was one week older than me. 

She went to book club with me, and we had plans to do things. Even if in marriage only, we were family. She read every one of my books and was a big fan. I was hoping to put a character in one who she could call hers. It will happen, for sure, but I just wish she were around to read the portrayal and laugh with me about it. 

I posted this quote last week and applied it to the love to write.

“Love is the quality of attention we pay to things.” ~poet J.D. McClatchy.

I wish I had given her more attention. I wish we had talked more about books. Most of all, I wish she'd seen her grandsons grow up. She was more than remarkable.




C. Hope Clark
Editor, FundsforWriters
Email Hope | Visit Website | Sign up for Newsletter
Newsletter: ISSN: 1533-1326
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EDITOR'S THOUGHTS

 

WHEN YOU FORGET WHY YOU STARTED

"When a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure." - British economist Charles Goodhart (Goodhart's law)

This quote says that basically, when you set a goal, and you become hard focused in meeting that goal, you can easily forget what drove you to set the goal in the first place. The measure, so to speak, becomes the details in the goals instead of the original mission. 

Metrics, for instance. When you set goals in terms of hours, dollars, sales, hits, reviews, and followers, and that's what you get up in the morning to which to give your attention, you begin chasing the metrics. Your original goal turns murky. 

In another instance, you may notice what's popular and think, I can do that. That applies not just to books but also to short pieces, even journalism. You see what is getting attention, say on sites like Medium.com or popular blogs. Or in terms of books, you see the best selling genres and shift gears to write those instead of what you originally started writing. 

You are chasing success. You are trying to find the easier road, or at least the road someone else has cut out ahead of you. 

My first mystery series is The Carolina Slade Mysteries. Many New York agents replied saying nobody wanted to read about an amateur sleuth like her, especially from the South, especially rural. Good writing, they said, but they didn't like the protagonist enough nor her setting. I, however, loved her. I developed her, fleshed her out, and eventually I sold her, quickly learning that strong female mystery protagonists were my thing. 

I'm so glad I didn't detour and write about vampires.



 

 

 

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During the challenge, you'll learn how to develop and customize research-driven writing habits, how to set (and reach!) your writing goals, and how to beat writer's block once and for all. 

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HOPE'S APPEARANCES

    
​​​​​​ 
 - September 12, 2022 - 20th Anniversary Chapin Library Book Club, Chapin, SC, 1 PM

 - June 3-10, 2023 - Writing Retreat on the Maine Coast - Special Guest - Sponsored by Joan Dempsey, author and teacher 

 
Email: [email protected] to schedule  events, online or otherwise. There's starting to be life out there!     








 

 
SUCCESS QUOTE

"I do not sing because I'm happy; I am happy because I sing." – William James

 

SUccess Story



Hello Hope,

A few months ago, you listed a website called Beyondish in your newsletter. They seemed like an interesting company to me, and I reached out to them. Now, I've written three profiles of food companies for them, and have several more in the pipeline for their On The Dish section. As a new freelance writer, these pieces are giving me clips to show other prospective companies as I continue to pitch my services. Thank you for the writing encouragement!

LA Bourgeois
--
LA (as in tra-la-la) Bourgeois
Writer & Coach
LABourgeois.biz


- - - 

If you have a success story you believe was prompted by FundsforWriters, please share with us! Send to [email protected] 

 

Featured article


How to Break into Travel Writing without Traveling

By Bernadette Geyer

This may come as a surprise, but you don't have to travel to become a travel writer. Almost everybody lives in or near a town or city that has some points of interest for others. If you've lived in your area for a long time, you probably know a lot about its various attractions. That makes you a great resource for others who may be interested in visiting your city or region. It's also a great opportunity to use your knowledge to break into the field of travel writing without ever having to board an airplane.

Lists are a great entry point for new travel writers. Niches are all around you, and you can easily create lists of things to do for each of those niches. Many of the articles I have written and published about where I live – Berlin, Germany – have been very focused list articles. For Paste Magazine, I wrote "Three Two-Wheeled Ways to See Berlin," which covered ways of getting around in the city that didn't involve public transportation or a car. iExplore published my article "Berlin Is a Year-Round Halloween Town," which detailed several local attractions that cater to fans of horror and the macabre.

The following are some additional examples of niches that you could focus on if you're interested in breaking into travel writing.

Fun for Families

Take a look around you and list the top attractions in your area that would be great for families to visit. Are there kid-specific museums or special concert venues? Does your city or county have interesting or notable parks or playgrounds, or are there a variety of interesting sites that would be perfect locations for a child's birthday party? These are all potential topics for a list that traveling (or even local) families might find useful.

Luxury Vacation Tips

If there are venues and sites that would appeal to travelers looking for one-of-a-kind experiences, you can put together a list of places in your area for this demographic. High-end spas or winery tours – even private workshops with artisan cheese-makers or chocolatiers – are great examples of attractions for those with larger travel budgets.

Can't Miss Roundups

As a local, you likely know the best hotels or inns in the area, great dining options, or the hottest places to shop. Lists on these subjects – providing details on location, prices, or other relevant details – are a mainstay for travel publications. For example, I spent a year researching all the best places to buy and enjoy cheese in Berlin for "Käse Study: A cheese-lovers guide to historic, hedonistic Berlin," which was published in culture: the word on cheese.

My cheese article brings up a final important point: Don't forget to look beyond travel magazines as potential outlets for your pitches. The following is a list of some great publications that accept pitches for travel writing:

AFAR Magazine - https://www.afar.com/about/pitch-guidelines
culture: the word on cheese - https://culturecheesemag.com/pitch/
Food & Wine - https://www.foodandwine.com/about-us
Go World Travel - https://www.goworldtravel.com/submissions/
GoNOMAD - https://www.gonomad.com/3500-writers-guidelines-gonomad-travel
iExplore - https://www.iexplore.com/articles/submissions
Today's Parent - https://www.todaysparent.com/about-us/

To save yourself time and energy, before writing anything, check the guidelines for the publication you want to approach with your story idea. Publication needs differ when it comes to length and tone, so you don't want to have to completely rewrite your article based on the outlet. Of course, some editors will want to see a complete piece, so pay close attention to guidelines before submitting anything.

Starting out in travel writing can seem daunting if you don't live in a major city. However, don't fall into the trap of thinking you need to be invited to go on fancy press trips in order to start building your portfolio.

###

BIO: Bernadette Geyer is a writer, editor, and translator in Berlin, Germany. Her writings have appeared in AFAR Magazine, culture: the word on cheese, FundsforWriters, The Writer, and elsewhere. Geyer has copy edited or translated more than 20 books and teaches the "Online Clips for Freelance Writers" workshop through WOW! Women on Writing. You can find out more about her through her website at https://bernadettegeyer.com.


 

COmpetitions



THE WRITER SUMMER FLASH CONTEST
https://www.writermag.com/contests/
$25 ENTRY FEE. Deadline August 29, 2022. Submit works in any genre – fiction OR nonfiction – in less than 1,000 words for your chance to win $1,000 and publication in the magazine. Grand prize: $1,000 and publication in the magazine. The second-place winner will receive $500 and publication on the website, writermag.com; the third-place winner will receive $250 and publication on writermag.com as well.

THE FIRST PAGE CHALLENGE
https://darlingaxe.com/pages/first-page-challenge
$5 CAD ENTRY FEE. Deadline September 30, 2022. If you want a reader to buy your book or an agent to offer you representation, then it only makes sense to have a stunning first page. That's what the First Page Challenge is all about—we're open to fiction or narrative nonfiction, short stories or full-length manuscripts. First place: $700 CAD. Second place: $200 CAD. Third place: $100 CAD. All three finalists win publication on the Chopping Blog and receive complimentary access to one of our self-paced courses.

RED HEN PRESS FICTION CONTEST
https://redhen.org/awards/red-hen-press-fiction-award/
$25 ENTRY FEE. Deadline September 30, 2022. Length 150-pages minimum of prise. Award is $1,000 and publication. 

QUILL PROSE AWARD
https://redhen.org/awards/quill-prose-award/
$10 ENTRY FEE. Deadline November 30, 2022. Award is $1,000 and publication. Considers 25,000-word minimum (approximately 150 pages, double spaced, Times New Roman 12pt font) of prose (fiction or nonfiction) by a queer writer only.

SOWELL EMERGING WRITERS PRIZE (NONFICTION)
https://terrainorg.submittable.com/submit
$25 ENTRY FEE. Deadline October 31, 2022. The Sowell Collection at Texas Tech University, in partnership with Terrain.org and Texas Tech University Press, invites book-length manuscript submissions of nonfiction in English on themes about and related to the natural world by writers who have published no more than one book in any genre. We are especially interested in submissions that explore the relationship between human communities and nature and may be informed by scientific inquiry and/or personal experience. The winner will receive book publication by Texas Tech University Press and a $1,000 honorarium.

TERRAIN POETRY CONTEST
https://terrainorg.submittable.com/submit
$20 ENTRY FEE. Deadline September 5, 2022. Submit three to five poems or one long poem (five+ pages) per entry. Combine all poems into a single document. Winner receives $1,000 grand prize, and $200 for finalists. All poems are considered for publication.

TERRAIN NONFICTION CONTEST
https://terrainorg.submittable.com/submit
$20 ENTRY FEE. Deadline September 5, 2022. Submit one essay or article, up to 5,000 words total, or up to three related micro essays (up to 1,000 words each) per entry. Winner receives $1,000 grand prize, and $200 for finalists. All considered for publication.

TERRAIN FICTION CONTEST
https://terrainorg.submittable.com/submit
$20 ENTRY FEE. Deadline September 5, 2022. Submit one story, up to 5,000 words total, or up to three flash fictions  (up to 1,000 words each) per entry. Winner receives $1,000 grand prize, and $200 for finalists. All considered for publication.

VIVIAN SHIPLEY POETRY AWARD
http://www.ctpoetry.net/the-vivian-shipley-award.html
$15 ENTRY FEE. Deadline September 30, 2022. Prize of $1,000 will be awarded to the winner along with $100 and $50 second and third place prizes. The three winning poems will be published inConnecticut River Review. Winners also receive a free two-year membershipin the Connecticut Poetry Society. Submit up to three poems in a single file. 


 

GRANTS / FELLOWSHIPS / CROWDFUNDING

 

CONROY CENTER WRITERS FALL RESIDENCY
https://myemail.constantcontact.com/Conroy-Center-Writer-s-Fall-Residency--October-27-November-3-.html?soid=1124256585060&aid=ZWUBI7bn18I
Deadline September 15, 2022. In October 2022, the nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center will offer our fifth Conroy Center Writer's Residency, available to writers of all genres. Located on a salt marsh, the residency at MarshSong Cottage provides an inspirational, creative space in the heart of Pat Conroy’s beloved lowcountry for a stay of eight days. The residency location is a guest cottage on St. Helena Island, South Carolina, approximately 15 minutes from downtown Beaufort and 15 minutes from the beach at Hunting Island State Park. The residency will begin on October 27 and conclude on November 3, overlapping with the annual Pat Conroy Literary Festival, during which the selected writer will have the opportunity to attend author discussions, special events, and up to three writers workshops. The residency is open to both published and unpublished writers. If you have applied before but not been selected, we encourage you to apply again.

MARYLAND CREATIVITY GRANTS
https://msac.org/programs/creativity-grants
Intended to support specific arts projects, events, or programs, this option is available for independent artists, as well as organizations. Each application should focus on a proposal for one specific project or program. Funding amount $1,000 - $4,000. Must be a Maryland resident.

MARYLAND EMERGENCY GRANTS
https://msac.org/programs/special-requests/emergency-grant-independent-artists
The purpose of the Emergency Grant is to support the needs of independent artists as they adjust to income losses as a result of an emergency. Funds up to $2,000. Must be a Maryland resident. Applicants must ​be independent artists, defined as artists who earn income from artistic activities and are not directly affiliated with an arts organization or program that provides any form of compensation.

MCDOWELL FELLOWSHIPS
https://www.macdowell.org/apply/application-guidelines
Deadline September 10, 2022. MacDowell accepts applications from artists working in the following disciplines: architecture, film/video arts, interdisciplinary arts, literature, music composition, theatre, and visual arts. The sole criterion for acceptance is artistic excellence, which MacDowell defines in a pluralistic and inclusive way. A MacDowell Fellowship, or residency, consists of exclusive use of a studio, accommodations, and three prepared meals a day for up to six weeks. There are no residency fees. Artists may submit only one application every 24 months. 

MARYLAND NEEDS GRANT PANELISTS
https://msac.org/programs/maryland-traditions
https://marylandarts.smartsimple.com/s_Login.jsp
Deadline August 31, 2022. Maryland Traditions is seeking panelists to evaluate submissions to its three funding programs: the Heritage Awards, Folklife Apprenticeship, and Folklife Network. Each of these programs supports traditional arts, defined as community-based living cultural traditions handed down by example or word of mouth. Receive compensation of between $350 and $400, assuming the completion of all scheduled assignments and depending on individual panelist workload. 

CORSICANA ARTIST AND WRITER RESIDENCY
https://100westcorsicana.slideroom.com/#/login/program/67064
Deadline September 1, 2022. Corsicana Artist & Writer Residency offers the application below for fully-funded accommodations in live-work studio residencies at 100 West in historic downtown Corsicana, Texas. Two-month residency terms take place in Winter, Spring and Fall 2023. Selected applicants who commit to a residency term in 2023 are responsible for a $200 program fee to the residency before November 1, 2022. Travel and meal stipends are not available. Applicants are notified by October 1, 2022 if their application has been accepted, waitlisted, or not accepted.

UTAH PROJECT SUPPORT GRANTS
https://artsandmuseums.utah.gov/project-grants/
Deadline September 9, 2022. Scholarships are being offered to support the professional development and career advancement of artists. These scholarships are specifically designed to support artists by helping them to take advantage of timely external professional opportunities and providing access to resources to advance their artistic careers.  Open to individual artists residing in the State of Utah. Examples of what can be applied for: Creation/design of marketing materials (professional photos, website, videos, recordings, etc. for publicity and marketing); Expenses associated with an exceptional learning environment such as a residency or intensive study with a recognized master/mentor. (Degree bearing programs are not eligible); Conference registration fees and/or associated travel costs; Vendor license fees for professional artistic opportunities. May apply for up to $1,500.
 

  

FREELANCE MARKETS / JOBS



FREELANCE ARTICLE WRITERS NEEDED
Email [email protected]
We're looking for a few professional article and blog writers for various projects. Need someone with an expressive writing tone, professional demeanor, sound research capability, and the ability to communicate clearly. Someone who can inject humor in their writing is a definite plus. You will be provided with topics, direction, samples, and scope. This is a freelance, remote position that pays 12 cents/word (length between 700 and 1,400 words). To apply please send a resume and two of your best writing samples to [email protected]
 
CHICKEN SOUP FOR THE SOUL
http://www.chickensoup.com
Deadline September 30, 2022. We want to know how a Chicken Soup for the Soul story you read has made a big difference in your life. It must be a specific story and not just Chicken Soup for the Soul books or stories in general. Tell us the title of the story that affected you, the title of the Chicken Soup for the Soul book in which it appeared and the name of the author of the story. Then write your own story, a new Chicken Soup for the Soul story all about how the old story affected you and the changes you made because of reading it. Stories should be no longer than 1,200 words. Pays $200 and ten copies.

SALIENTMG
https://salientmg.breezy.hr/p/d22330246355-contractor-thought-leadership-writer
You have a keen sense of what makes thought leadership break through in a crowded field. You also have an innate curiosity about innovation and technology — and harness the unique thinking of founders and marketers at growth-stage companies. And you’re committed to quality storytelling that inspires while making complex subject matter easy to understand. The freelancer/contractor reports to the Director of Thought Leadership and is compensated on a per-piece basis at a rate of $1,200 per piece.

HAPPIFUL
https://happiful.com/contributor-guidelines/
A magazine dedicated to mental health, when considering pitches we are looking for fascinating stories that focus on the promotion of good mental health, the prevention of bad mental and physical health, and the issues that inspire a better society for all. A typical Happiful feature will range in length from 900–1,600 words. 

MERIDIAN
https://meridian.mercury.com/editors-note
This is a publication on founders and the entrepreneurial spirit — we're telling stories on everything that people touch in the tech industry, whether those stories involve founders or investors, the teams that operate early-stage startups or the people using just-launched apps, full-timers or those who tap into their desire to build with pottery, newsletters, and other side hustles. We pay competitive rates for our writing and art, and take pitches. Pays as much as a dollar per word.

SOLO
https://www.flashpack.com/solo/
SOLO, the online magazine for Flash Pack, is looking for pitches/stories to run in September and October. Rates £300 per 1,000-word article. Email [email protected].

 

Publishers/agents






- - - 

MONKFISH
https://www.monkfishpublishing.com/submissions/
Monkfish publishes fiction and nonfiction books related to the subjects of spirituality and religion. If you would like your manuscript to be considered for publication, please send a query first to [email protected] with a brief description of the work, any advance endorsements the book has received, and a short author bio including previously published books. It should also include an explanation as to why you feel Monkfish would be the right publisher for this work. We do not publish children’s books or poetry.

BEACON PRESS
http://www.beacon.org/Assets/ClientPages/Submissions.aspx#
If you would like Beacon Press to consider your work, first familiarize yourself with our mission statement and our publications. We are not accepting submissions for new poetry, fiction, or self-help books at this time. Please also note that our publishing mission is currently general trade; some of our publications are trade books with an additional scholarly market, but we are not currently accepting submissions for purely academic projects. If you believe your work would be a good fit for our list, please email a 250-word query describing your proposal to [email protected]. If we are interested in receiving a full proposal, we will email you within three weeks.

BLACK INC.
https://www.blackincbooks.com.au/submissions
We accept proposals from Australian writers only, for general and commercial nonfiction – including history, current affairs, sports, and biography – and for literary and YA fiction. We also accept proposals from corporate organisations for custom publishing projects. We are not currently accepting submissions for the following genres: fantasy, science-fiction, travelogues, crime/mystery, erotica, poetry, middle grade or picture books.

JOLLYFISH PRESS
https://jollyfishpress.com/submissions/
Accepting high-quality middle-grade and YA fiction, especially books showcasing strong voices, unique stories, and diverse characters. Also welcomes applications from authors interested in producing fiction manuscripts on a work-for-hire basis.


 

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FINE PRINT


Please forward the newsletter in its entirety. To reprint any editorials, contact [email protected] for permission. Please do not assume that acknowledgements listed in your publication is considered a valid right to publish.

C. Hope Clark
E-mail: [email protected]
140-A Amicks Ferry Road #4
Chapin, SC 29036
http://www.fundsforwriters.com

Copyright 2000-2022, C. Hope Clark
ISSN: 1533-1326

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