Be a Well Paid Travel Writer and Make Money Before You Travel

A travelling contact tells me by writing travel articles allows him to jet off several times a year to places as far apart as Hawaii and Adelaide, Disney World and London UK.

His secret is to take his camera and pocket recorder with him wherever he goes. He takes pictures of unusual and rare events, and writes about strange things that happen to him when he’s away. And he earns well from his efforts from a wide range of clients, many paying up front to fund his expedition.

Surprisingly, very few writers consider this particular area of their profession; many think they have to be well-travelled themselves to make a good living as a travel writer; others hide their talents under the mistaken assumption that writers must finance their own journeys before they can write and sell their experiences. That's just not the case!
 

Travel writers, even newcomers to this writing genre, will find their work in demand from a wide section of industry, business and commerce. They will also discover people in commerce and industry willing to fund their trips in advance.

Most new travel writers start by writing travel articles and features, even snippets, also fillers and photographs, all of which sell well to local and national newspapers and magazines, and publishers of travel books and periodicals.

But there are many, many more sources of work available to travel writers. Restaurants, for instance, are interested in menus and features on eating establishments abroad; hotels are on the look-out for much the same information about their foreign rivals; businesses want to know more about their overseas rivals, writers need research data, and so on.

Your target destination will depend heavily on the type of articles you wish to write. Writing general articles for the travel industry and other clients might take you to all corners of the world. Writing on specific subjects, for instance religion or famine in the Third World, will obviously restrict your choice of destinations.

Because they are in such high demand, travel writers should agree the amount of money they’ll be paid up front and on delivery and aim for just a few clients to fund their entire travel costs, including flights and living expenses, and leave a nice cash booty waiting for them on return.