“Starting is not most people’s problem; staying, continuing and finishing is.“
~ Darren Hardy
Many novice travel writers get started on their travel writing stories with great gusto, and then fizzle out. They fail to complete the project from story idea to research, and from creating a distribution list to writing a query letter. Then, they still have to write the article.
They lose their enthusiasm. They drag their heels and lose that original spark of excitement they felt when they first conceived the story idea.
One of the key ingredients to being a successful published-and-paid freelance travel writer is completing every project you start. If you don’t finish each project before moving on to the next, the temptation to bypass the next story will become greater. And before you realize it, you’ve got dozens of unconsummated story ideas lying around on your laptop, with no follow through. This means all that time was wasted!
Most travel writers experience a diminishing enthusiasm for their stories at some stage of their prep work. However, what makes them successful is their ability to slog through this and complete the project well, before moving on to the next.
I’ve occasionally felt my enthusiasm draining away about a potential story, but have always completed the cycle. This may have something to do with the fact that I’ve run six marathons. I can assure you that I did not feel good towards the end of most of them, but I still finished.
Sometimes, when I’m facing a tough grinding project, I remind myself that I’ve been through far worse!
Many wannabee travel writers are lured to this field by hyped up sales copy promises about how easy it is to get published and paid (“Be a published travel writer a lot faster than you can imagine.” “Find out just how easy it is”) only to learn that it’s hard work, like any other job.
These novices become disillusioned once they realize that travel writing—like any other occupation—has a certain amount of grind to it.
Establish a set writing routine and system and stick to them, regardless of how you feel. Work through your stories methodically. The payoff and rewards come when you get those checks in the mail, see your name in print on the bookstore shelves, and go on cool press trips around the world.
“Starting something can be easy, it is finishing it that is the highest hurdle.”
? Isabella Poretsis
Read on to find out the five things that successful travel writers must do to break into travel writing: https://www.pitchtravelwrite.com/successful-travel-writers.html
~Roy
