Saturday, April 23, 2011

A to Z Challenge Day 20: Travel writing

I would love to be a travel writer.  There are so many possibilities - articles, creative non-fiction, fiction.  I'd be happy doing all of it - writing guides, hotel and restaurant reviews, site reviews, tips and tricks, local interest pieces, personal stories and anecdotes, and then working local people and places into my short stories and novels.  

For the most part, when I write a story, I stick with somewhere local that I know, for short stories I don't say where it's set, and for novels, I make a place up so I don't have to stick with facts and I can just go with my imagination.  One of the novels I started writing a few years ago was set in Ireland (in a fictional town); I've dreamed of going to Ireland my entire life, and this particular story felt like it should be set there.  I got several chapters in and had to stop because I decided I needed to go to Ireland before I could finish it.  I need to see it, visit certain sites, interact with the people, get a better feel for the rhythm of the language, and all the unique qualities that make the Irish so fascinating.  The next novel I plan to write is also going to be set in Ireland, so I really need to get there, and sooner rather than later. 

I have a list of travel articles to write for HubPages but so far the only one I've written is Three Days in Paris, a piece about the time I spent in Paris ten years ago.  I also wrote a piece about Ripley's Believe it or Not Museum in Niagara Falls, and I plan to write a series about Niagara Falls when I have time - different tourist attractions, the best times to go, tips for travelers, that sort of thing.  I think it would be cool to eventually write a book about living in or visiting a certain place.  When I was writing my piece on Paris, I looked up books to include and one I came across was The Sweet Life in Paris by David Lebovitz, which I read and loved.  Discovering what it's like to live in Paris, learning what Parisians are like and how they live was fascinating, and Lebovitz added so much humour to his stories and observations.


March 2001, me and my best friend in Paris

I've done a fair bit of traveling - 4 Canadian provinces, 12 states, and I spent 10 days in France when I was 17.  There's still so much I want to see and do - Ireland is top of my list, followed closely by Scotland, England and Wales.  There are other places in Europe but those are at the top of my list.  Plus, I want to see the rest of Canada and quite a few more states.  I haven't had money to travel very far in the last few years, but I'm hoping that won't be an issue much longer and I can see all the places on my ever-growing list and then write about them.

******
Today's T song is by my favorite band, U2.  Seems fitting for the topic of the day....plus I'd give anything to be the girl in the video with Bono, even though at the time of that particular concert, I was only 7 years old haha

"How far are you gonna go before you lose your way back home? You've been trying to throw your arms around the world."

Have a great weekend, everyone!  For those of you who read my blog regularly, you'll know that today is my library day - aka my happy day.  I'm currently reading The Peach Keeper by Sarah Addison Allen, one of my favorite authors.  I have a few other books to read but I'm sure I'll end up picking up a few more today.

Have you done any travel writing?  Is it something that interests you or that you'd consider pursuing?  What kind of pieces would you write - articles, guides, creative non-fiction, fiction?

7 comments:

  1. Hey Marie
    Just stopping by to show some love. Konoronhwa!
    I enjoy reading everything you write. I learn so many new things about you. Keep up the great work.

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  2. I think there's quite a market for travel writing just now. Hey! You could get a free trip on a cruise liner and do a write up for the travel company. (I'm full of great ideas LOL).

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  3. Travel writing is a great T subject as travel is my favourite hobby. I've been lucky to see most of Europe as open borders and cheap flights aid the process. The Far East and US are next on my list.

    I love the Rough Guide series of books, but I would like more photos.

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  4. I don't know what it is about travel and writing that makes the two go so well together. I've realized though that through pursuing my writing dream, I've been travelling a lot more than I did in my 20's. Travel writing definitely combines the best of both worlds!

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  5. I'd love to do travel writing too. Although, what I've done when going to other countries is using them for research for my novels. That's probably more my pace anyways. =)

    By the way, thanks for stopping by and commenting at my blog!

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  6. Oh,yes. I would love to do travel writing. I've travelled extensively and would love to get paid to do that. One thing I like is sampling the foods/restaurants in other countries.

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  7. travel writing does sound like a lot of fun. I'd like to do a bit of travel blogging, given the time and money.
    Great meeting you through the A-Z!

    nutschell
    www.thewritingnut.com

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for visiting Ramblings of a Daydreamer! I love hearing what you have to say, and I appreciate every single comment. I hope to see you here again soon! ♥
~Marie

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