For Bloggers: Travel writing at ground level

Travel Writing At Ground Level - For Bloggers
Lola (Akinmade) Åkerström

BANTHEFLUFF

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Quick Background
Freelance writer and photographer
Editor with Matador Network
Faculty at MatadorU
Photoblogger and writer for Sweden.se

Reasons Why We Blog
Free travel via press trips
Advertising & SEO revenue
The glamorized “cool” factor
Personal musings
All of the above
None of the above

Unofficial Blogging Stats
Thousands of travel bloggers

Unofficial Blogging Stats
A few hundred of which run within the same circles
Same bloggers on the same press trips writing about the same things

Why Do You Blog?
So, what makes your blog or blogging style truly different?

Travel Blogging
Think about your favorite blogs.

Travel Blogging
Why do you like those blogs?

Travel Blogging
Not for their SEO prowess (though you respect and maybe secretly crave it)
Not the fact that they regularly enjoy free luxury travel (though you’re secretly jealous)

Travel Blogging
Not because they are technically-perfect MFA*-wielding, fancy writers.
* - Masters of Fine Art (MFA) degree

Travel Blogging
But because of
how they write
There’s a certain “openness” to their writing

Travel Writing
Re-introducing
the concept of
“Ground Level” writing

The Concept of Ground Level
Ground Level = Transparency
Ground Level = Show, Not Tell
Ground Level = Personal, Not Perfect

So a writer/blogger, you’re placing the reader squarely by your side…at ground level.

The “Great” Irony
Showing “tells” a reader
so much more than telling does.

Quick Example - 1
Non-transparent - Telling
“It was a windy and cold day”
Transparent – Showing
“Smoke from the food vendors’ carts blew horizontally southward. We all had on heavy coats.”…David Miller

Quick Example - 2
Non-transparent - Telling
“[New York/Paris/Lisbon/Rome] is a fascinating city with historical gems”
“Fascinating”, “Historical”, and especially “Gems” tell the reader absolutely nothing.

What Kills Transparency?
Five (5) Transparency Killers
Fear
Conformity
Clichés
Too Many/Flat Adjectives
Doubting Your Own Voice

Fear
Fear of losing out on press trips and opportunities
Little to no honest property reviews.
Everything was, and is, and shall be “awesome” forever

Conformity
Trying to be everything to everyone
Following a specific formula:
Start blog -> Promo like crazy -> Make money
Conformity sucks up individuality and voice

Clichés
“Stockholm/St. Petersburg – The Venice of the North”
“Bangkok/Udaipur/Alleppey- Venice of the East”
“Georgetown/Christchurch/Melbourne – The Venice of the South”
é

Adjectives – Flat and/or Too Many
Sun-kissed/Sun-dappled
Best-kept secret, Best, Great
Perched, Nestled
Exotic, Gem, Can’t miss/Must-see
Bad -> Sun-kissed sand….
A Little Better -> The sand, tainted yellow by the sun, ….
é

Doubting Your Own Voice
Will people still like me if they find out what I really think?
Am I really boring?
Do I need to be funny?
“Boring” & “Funny” is relative
é

The lack of ground level writing is one of many reasons why many traditional journalists aren’t warming up to bloggers.

Another problem is that many publications writers want to write for still use and edit-in lazy definite words to describe places and experiences.

Examples
Ground Level
“ Spring remains my favorite season each year; that slow steady transition from cold dark winters to bright freshness that signifies rebirth to me on so many levels.”

Examples
Edited and published version
“Chase away dreary, monochrome winter thoughts with an explosion of color signifying the season’s rebirth.”

Types of Travel Writing
Non-Narrative
Narrative

Narrative vs. Non-Narrative
Narrative
- Creative non-fiction
- Fewer publication outlets
- More awards
Non-Narrative
- Service and destination pieces
- The bulk of travel writing
- Easiest to “template”

“Okay.
But I don’t write narrative styletravel writing.
Why should I care??”

“What makes you different from a generic content farm?”

Examples
Non-Transparent
The barrio is filled with stray dogs and happy-go-lucky kids.
Ground Level
“My neighbor’s grandkids – the Colques- are laughing and yelling as they push-start an old truck. The dogs are barking and chasing the truck out of the barrio.”….David Miller

Examples
Non-Transparent
“Hilo Farmer’s market is a place where you can bask in the colors, the exotic tastes, and smells of tropical summer.”

Examples
Ground Level
I walk past mounds of red cayenne pepper, yellow saffron, and green pistachio powder. There’s a strong smell of ripening pineapple in the air. This is Hilo Farmer’s market.

Examples
Non-Transparent
“Art lovers know there’s nothing that tops a free exhibit on a warm summer day.”

Examples
Ground Level Alternative
[None]
Skip the “Art Lovers…” intro and just get to the point.

Examples
Non-Transparent
“Jon loves the outdoors.”

Examples
Ground Level
“Jon’s car is a blue Jeep Grand Cherokee with 139,200 miles on the odometer. The PERFORM SERVICE light on the instrument panel is blinking, but it always blinks. The back of the car is crammed full of tents and stoves and packs, hammocks and fly-rods, stray pieces of tippet, a scuffed Chouinard Equipment ski pole from the 1970s, boxes of microbrew, bear-spray, Gazetteers for Montana, Wyoming, and Colorado, a cowboy hat…”

Examples
Non-Transparent
“There is an art to riding the Trans-Siberian railway”
(For who? Travelers? Locals?)

Examples
Ground Level
“On my own Trans-Siberian journey, I found that there’s an art to riding the line.”

Examples
Non-Transparent
“The pants are great and work well in all active situations.”

Examples
Ground Level
“I won’t pretend to know what the genius who designed these pants had in mind for their intended use, but the pockets reflect a deep respect for freedom of movement that suggests break dancing and karate jump kicking.”
….Joshywashington, prAna review

Examples
More Ground Level
“The fabric is some kind of indestructible substance. I could read the label, but I would rather assume they are made from a blend of NASA space suit material and the finest Imperial silk.”
…Joshywashington, prAna review

Travel Writing
The point isn’t “witty banter”
The point is being comfortable enough to write in your own true voice

Finding Your Voice
Developing Your Own Voice
1. Write what you see, hear, and smell without adjectives
2. Weave “yourself” into “your” experience
3. Write like you’re writing to a friend

Finding Your Voice
“Well, how do I go about finding my own writing voice?”

Matador Network
Matador Network rages against the status quo.
MatadorU - Award-winning new Media School which advocates “Transparent Ground Level Reporting”
Advancing the careers of travel writers, travel photographers, and filmmakers.

Matador Network
Just how hot is our rage against the status quo?
Just one example:
MatadorU has partnered with the Belize Tourism Board.

MatadorU Travel Writing
Narrative Structure
Transitions
Interaction between characters
Developing Dialogue
Details
Anecdotes
Lots more...

MatadorU
Numerous success stories at MatadorU
http://www.matadoru.com

You at Ground Level
How Do You Stand Out?
Writing as honestly and as transparently as you can.
Been proactive about changing lazy travel writing

You at Ground Level
Being Proactive
Reach out to local tourism boards, not for press trips but for more meaningful partnerships.

Summary
At Ground Level, nothing is ‘foreign’ or ‘exotic’ or ‘virtuous’ or ‘pure’. People are just people. Place is just place.
When we ‘make more’ of it (or less), when we appropriate others’ struggles or culture as our own, when we reduce people and places into symbols or abstractions or commodities, when we pretend to speak for others, we disrespect those whose lands and homes and cultures we’re fortunate enough to pass through.
Writing at Ground Level is a way of showing respect
…David Miller

Resources
86 (and counting)
Free Travel Writing Articles and Travel Photography Resources
http://www.matadoru.com/resources/

Contact Information
@LolaAkinmade
@MatadorU
@MatadorNetwork
lola@matadornetwork.com

Writing At Ground Level
Questions?

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For Bloggers: Travel writing at ground level

by Lola (Akinmade) Åkerström on Mar 29, 2011

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For Bloggers: Travel writing at ground level — Presentation Transcript