How to Make Your Travel Essay One for the Books
So you are thinking about writing a travel essay. That is a good thing to do, especially if you love to go around the world. However, if you are still unsure of your writing prowess, doing a travel article may be intimidating. Should you pursue it even if you are not a writer?
The answer depends on you—on how seriously you want to pursue this line of work. However, there are times when you cannot escape writing, especially if you are still a student. A travel essay may be one of the common requirements your English teacher will give you, and it could be a good start in honing your writing skills.
Don’t be terrified! Keep reading and be amazed at how workable writing can be, especially if you keep a teachable attitude. Here is your ultimate guide to writing travel essays.
Your Ultimate Guide to Writing Travel Essays
If you look at the internet, you can find numerous travel articles and blogs from different websites. This is because travel writers are in demand nowadays. Also, if you are good at your craft, you can work with this translation website and other travel and lifestyle pages around.
Before you start applying, make sure you have become acquainted with the following travel-writing tips:
- Read and research. This is the first move. Reading can help you improve your writing skills. How? When you read, you will see how other writers do things. Read various travel blogs and learn from the authors.
As for researching, this is important, especially in gathering pieces of information. When a professor or a client asks you to do a travel article, they will expect you to give credible data about a specific destination. This is where you need to bring your A-game in researching. Bear in mind that a well-researched article will give you a high mark.
- Do this out of passion. In whatever aspect you wish to succeed in life, doing things out of passion and with love will make a huge difference. If you are passionate about learning and sharing your story with others, you will do things as if they are not mere requirements. Above all, don’t write travel essays for monetary reasons—you will just get exhausted.
Confucius’s adage “choose a job you love and you will never have to work a day in your life” rings true to this step. Simply put, focus your energy on improving your writing skills so that publications will want you on their pool.
- Do not lose the motivation. Most successful students, according to a group of teachers, are not those with many talents or those with the highest test score in class—but those that are the most driven and motivated.
Even if you excel in writing, if you don’t have the drive to put your thoughts into words, you will not be able to come up with an article.
So how do you retain your motivation? Go back to step 1: read and research. Remember why you want to do this in the first place—to share your story.
- Organize your thoughts. If you have sufficient pieces of information in your travel and research, it’s time to put those thoughts together. You can arrange the information from the most to the least important. That way, you can easily decide which ideas to highlight and which to omit.
- Identify your niche. There are two types of travel writers. Some write for commercial sites, and some write for their personal accounts. Both types of writers can earn money. However, there is a big distinction between these two when it comes to the writing style.
- Don’t expect to perfect your piece in just one draft. Having more than one draft is okay, so don’t stress out if your first draft is not perfect. Be patient. Remember that a perfect article is a product of several drafts.
Write Your Travel Essay Now!
Writing takes practice. The more you write, the better you become. Just follow our tips, and enjoy the process. If anxiety attacks, go back to number 3—find your motivation.