Do's and Don'ts of Travel Writing (2024)

Don't:

• Use cliches. Tom Brentnall, Editor of the QANTAS inflightmagazine The Australian Way, comments: "A pearl is found in anoyster. There is only one Mecca, the birthplace of Mohammed, inSaudi Arabia -- it is not some trendy retail strip of designerclothing stores. Paradise is where you go when you die (it is notfive minutes from an airport) and a magnet relates to electricalpolarity."
• Overdo the adjectives. Words you wouldn't dream of using inconversation -- "fabled, wondrous, roseate" -- often appear intravel writing.
• Go silly with personification. Do buildings ever really smile,do ruins beckon at every turn, do chimney tops sing theirwelcome? Probably not!
• Use the first person. Fascinating as your reactions might be toyour immediate family, the rest of the world frankly doesn't carewhat you thought as you took your first mouthful of Mexican food.
• Mention religious or ethnic differences. It's easy to patronisewhen you wax lyrical about the quaint little customs of thevillagers, the interesting way the townspeople behave at funeralsetc.
• Use "reverse-racism". To quote Brentnall again, "It is sad howmany articles we get that describe people of non-Caucasian descentas being 'well-trained', 'polite', 'professional', 'well-spoken'and 'hygienic' (seriously)" -- as if one would naturally expectthem to be otherwise.
• State the obvious. Most people who travel are aware that thesun rises in the east, so even if you add something about theskyline, this is old news! If you're at the beach, don't writethat "the waves rolled up on the sands..." that's what a beachis.
• Use journalese. How many places have you read about where "oldmeets new"; how many places have "twisting alleys", "bustlingthoroughfares", "half-forgotten byways"? Too many!
• Discuss the gory details. Travel writing is meant to accentuatethe positive, not the negative aspects of destinations. (Unless,of course, you're doing an exposé.)
• Be a snob. People from all backgrounds travel these days, sodon't alienate any of your potential readers by using obscurelanguage or allusions.

Do:

• Use short words in preference to long words (likewise forsentences and paragraphs).
• Focus on what's interesting and different about the spot. Finddetails that are significant in some way -- unusual, colourfulor humorous. Look for something that makes the place special.Usually this will be a combination of the place and the people.Look around for someone or something that catches your eye anduse this as the focus for your piece. Maybe there's an unusualcolour scheme in shop windows or buildings, a pedestrian whocauses you to stop and look, or an absence of something thatyou'd expect to find in the area.
• Give concrete details. Don't tell us that "food was dirt-cheap";do a bit of math and convert the price of the meal to your owncurrency. Tell us -- specifically - what was in the meal;elaborate on the service, the setting and so on. Describe notjust the big things -- the buildings and bridges, but also thelittle things -- the street signs, the road surfaces, the seats,the grass and the smells.
• Keep all your senses open for those little things that evokeatmosphere -- aromas of food cooking, perfumed plants, seasidesmells (salt air, seaweed, marine fuel), newly cut timber; birdsounds, night sounds -- frogs, crickets, cars, fog horns...Atmosphere is all around you; you just have to learn how torecognise it.
• Structure your piece logically -- it doesn't really matterwhether you go from the general to the specific or vice versa,as long as there's some method involved.
• Incorporate interesting information aboutthe history of the place if it's relevant and accurate (but don'trely on what the bus driver told you on the way). Check yourfacts and make it obvious why you've referred to past events.
• Make use of the tried and true devices of comparison andcontrast -- you may have visited a similar place and can clearlydescribe why the two are so much alike. Maybe you've beensomewhere that is a complete contrast and can offer suggestionsabout the reasons for the differences (climate, geography,history, economic considerations etc). It doesn't matter howobvious the differences are -- a South Sea Island is naturallygoing to be very different from a Scandinavian city -- butreading about them is still interesting.
• Check your spelling, punctuation and expression.
• Read your work aloud to yourself; this enables you to check forany clumsy constructions, repetition, etc.
• Check for the interest factor. Once you're happy with yourpiece, read it again and see if it's interesting. If you hadn'tbeen to this place, would reading your article make you want togo there? Or not?

Find Out More...

• Bylines from Near and Far, by Myrna Oakley
• Travel that Pays, by Kayleen Reusser
• The Untraveled Travel Writer, by Isabel Viana
• Writing Opportunities on the Road, by Susan Miles

This free script provided by JavaScript Kit

Becoming a successful writer isn't just about mastering great writing skills. It's also about overcoming the challenges and obstacles of the writing life: Rejection, fear of failure, lack of time, writer's block, the "Am I Really a Writer?" syndrome, and, of course, friends and family who just don't get it.

Fortunately, you're not alone. We've all been there. So here's a handy "survival guide" that will bring you inspiration, motivation, support and good old-fashioned advice to help you through the tough times. Don't let those writing gremlins keep you from achieving your dreams!

More from Moira Allen:

See Also

A Writer’s Guide to Great Travel Writing - Novlr