Speaking to travel bloggers - and bloggers who want to add travel content to their blogs - at the Entertainment New Media Network conference in Anaheim (http://enmnetwork.com/conference/), I focused on the keys to success in getting support and help with your travel from destinations, hotels, attractions and other entities - as well as five easy ways to destroy your credibility.
Banish Your Inner Critic: Transform Self-Talk and Own Your Expertise - Speake...Denise Jacobs
The Inner Critic is the main source of our biggest blocks to perform at our best. Fortunately, there are simple and effective ways to banish the inner critic in order to do our best work as contributors, collaborators, and leaders.
First, you’ll discover the three mental power tools that you already possess to stop the inner critic in its tracks. Then you’ll learn methods for dealing with the fear of being judged and criticized, how to transform highly critical self-talk into that of approval and encouragement, and ways to feel like your ideas are good enough to share and that you are expert enough to speak.
By the end, you’ll have a roadmap of how to get unstuck, do your best work, and channel your creativity as a force for positive change in the world.
Stories in the Social Era - Presenting to CCO Learning Day (Government of Can...Tara Hunt
On February 20, I presented this to a group of Communications Officers in various departments of the Government of Canada. The question presented to me when approached to give this talk was: "How do government services tell effective stories on social?"
My core thesis: They don't. People don't want to be told stories, they want to be involved in making them...especially in the social era.
Banish Your Inner Critic: Transform Self-Talk and Own Your Expertise - Speake...Denise Jacobs
The Inner Critic is the main source of our biggest blocks to perform at our best. Fortunately, there are simple and effective ways to banish the inner critic in order to do our best work as contributors, collaborators, and leaders.
First, you’ll discover the three mental power tools that you already possess to stop the inner critic in its tracks. Then you’ll learn methods for dealing with the fear of being judged and criticized, how to transform highly critical self-talk into that of approval and encouragement, and ways to feel like your ideas are good enough to share and that you are expert enough to speak.
By the end, you’ll have a roadmap of how to get unstuck, do your best work, and channel your creativity as a force for positive change in the world.
Stories in the Social Era - Presenting to CCO Learning Day (Government of Can...Tara Hunt
On February 20, I presented this to a group of Communications Officers in various departments of the Government of Canada. The question presented to me when approached to give this talk was: "How do government services tell effective stories on social?"
My core thesis: They don't. People don't want to be told stories, they want to be involved in making them...especially in the social era.
Brief introduction to digital revolution and digital Communications. Including where and how starting conversations in the new social landscape.
Used in IED Madrid in the Fashion Communication Course in may 2012 where I was invited as a guest speaker.
Understanding Audiences & Communities: Arts and Entertainment Experience (Un)...Kelly Page
Our work as artists and creatives does not exist in a vacuum. The communities within which we work, our peers and partners, as well as the audience who experience and participate in our work are important. This presentation we discuss different ideas and was for identifying, interacting with and learning from audiences and communities. We'll also discuss the different approaches to audiences in the arts and creative sectors including fan subcultures.
A presentation on the stages and considerations for developing a social media strategy. Examples of social media campaigns across the creative and cultural industries.
It is a hilarious voyage of vocabulary and actions that the author compiled and is titled “Senior Things I Said, Say, Did and Do.” It is a Volume I as it is predicted there will be a demand for more!
So, sit back, relax and join the author on a senior citizen romp through the twilight of his life. You are about to find out some things about the grey generation that are a mixed bag of funny, peculiar, nonsensical, insulting, stupid, brilliant, or just plain out there. You will want to tell all you friends, family and acquaintances about this gut busting experience!
Digital Citizenship Symposium - Slide CompilationAlec Couros
Compilation of all slides (10 presentations) for the Digital Citizenship Symposium in Calgary Alberta, September 23-24, 2010 by Dean Shareski and Alec Couros.
The Sinners & Saints of Social (retail version)Tara Hunt
I'll be giving a shorter version of this presentation at the Raymark Retailers luncheon in New York next week, but I wanted to post it earlier. It's the culmination of much of my recent work and research. Let me know if you have more examples (or better ones) and if I missed anything.
5 Strategies for Building a World Class Brandjcottin
A strong brand is the secret weapon of any business, particularly for small businesses. This is my presentation for 2012 NYXPO for small business. It's an interactive workshop, with best practices and DYI exercises. If you have any questions or want to find out more about BrandTwist, please contact us at www.BrandTwist.com
Banish Your Inner Critic: Reduce anxiety and Unblock Creativity - SpeakAid 2020Denise Jacobs
The Inner Critic is the main source of our biggest blocks to perform at our best. Fortunately, there are simple and effective ways to banish the inner critic in order to do our best work as contributors, collaborators, and leaders.
First, you’ll discover the three mental power tools that you already possess to stop the inner critic in its tracks. Then you’ll learn methods for dealing with the fear of being judged and criticized, how to transform highly critical self-talk into that of approval and encouragement, and ways to feel like your ideas are good enough and stop committing “ideacide.”
By the end, you’ll have a roadmap of how to get unstuck, do your best work, and channel your creativity as a force for positive change in the world.
5 Strategies for Building a World Class Brandjcottin
Strong brands are the secret weapons of any business, particularly entrepreneurs. Here is my presentation from the 2012 NYXPO for small businesses. This is a workshop presentation with 5 homework questions to be answered by the attendees. If you want to find out more of have any questions, please contact us at www.BrandTwist.com.
A talk I prepared for this year's class on the IPA Excellence Diploma, on innovation, information, strategic design, and making tools that help you work through that process. It's mapping out a journey from when I did the course myself, through the interim thinking and ideas behind Smithery, up to the end of last year.
Studio Unicps is known for their special flag dress designs. These unique couture designs have been made in assignment or in collaboration with a wide variety of corporations, municipalities and countries. In 2007 they presented the Europe flag dress in Brussels.
Brief introduction to digital revolution and digital Communications. Including where and how starting conversations in the new social landscape.
Used in IED Madrid in the Fashion Communication Course in may 2012 where I was invited as a guest speaker.
Understanding Audiences & Communities: Arts and Entertainment Experience (Un)...Kelly Page
Our work as artists and creatives does not exist in a vacuum. The communities within which we work, our peers and partners, as well as the audience who experience and participate in our work are important. This presentation we discuss different ideas and was for identifying, interacting with and learning from audiences and communities. We'll also discuss the different approaches to audiences in the arts and creative sectors including fan subcultures.
A presentation on the stages and considerations for developing a social media strategy. Examples of social media campaigns across the creative and cultural industries.
It is a hilarious voyage of vocabulary and actions that the author compiled and is titled “Senior Things I Said, Say, Did and Do.” It is a Volume I as it is predicted there will be a demand for more!
So, sit back, relax and join the author on a senior citizen romp through the twilight of his life. You are about to find out some things about the grey generation that are a mixed bag of funny, peculiar, nonsensical, insulting, stupid, brilliant, or just plain out there. You will want to tell all you friends, family and acquaintances about this gut busting experience!
Digital Citizenship Symposium - Slide CompilationAlec Couros
Compilation of all slides (10 presentations) for the Digital Citizenship Symposium in Calgary Alberta, September 23-24, 2010 by Dean Shareski and Alec Couros.
The Sinners & Saints of Social (retail version)Tara Hunt
I'll be giving a shorter version of this presentation at the Raymark Retailers luncheon in New York next week, but I wanted to post it earlier. It's the culmination of much of my recent work and research. Let me know if you have more examples (or better ones) and if I missed anything.
5 Strategies for Building a World Class Brandjcottin
A strong brand is the secret weapon of any business, particularly for small businesses. This is my presentation for 2012 NYXPO for small business. It's an interactive workshop, with best practices and DYI exercises. If you have any questions or want to find out more about BrandTwist, please contact us at www.BrandTwist.com
Banish Your Inner Critic: Reduce anxiety and Unblock Creativity - SpeakAid 2020Denise Jacobs
The Inner Critic is the main source of our biggest blocks to perform at our best. Fortunately, there are simple and effective ways to banish the inner critic in order to do our best work as contributors, collaborators, and leaders.
First, you’ll discover the three mental power tools that you already possess to stop the inner critic in its tracks. Then you’ll learn methods for dealing with the fear of being judged and criticized, how to transform highly critical self-talk into that of approval and encouragement, and ways to feel like your ideas are good enough and stop committing “ideacide.”
By the end, you’ll have a roadmap of how to get unstuck, do your best work, and channel your creativity as a force for positive change in the world.
5 Strategies for Building a World Class Brandjcottin
Strong brands are the secret weapons of any business, particularly entrepreneurs. Here is my presentation from the 2012 NYXPO for small businesses. This is a workshop presentation with 5 homework questions to be answered by the attendees. If you want to find out more of have any questions, please contact us at www.BrandTwist.com.
A talk I prepared for this year's class on the IPA Excellence Diploma, on innovation, information, strategic design, and making tools that help you work through that process. It's mapping out a journey from when I did the course myself, through the interim thinking and ideas behind Smithery, up to the end of last year.
Studio Unicps is known for their special flag dress designs. These unique couture designs have been made in assignment or in collaboration with a wide variety of corporations, municipalities and countries. In 2007 they presented the Europe flag dress in Brussels.
INBOUND fuels the passion that drives the most innovative and successful business leaders of our time.
INBOUND's purpose is to provide the inspiration, education, and connections you need to transform your business. This September, we will host thousands of marketing and sales professionals from almost every industry imaginable and from all corners of the globe at the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center. In 2014, we had 10,000+ attendees from all around the world and we're excited to be bigger than ever this year.
The How To Magazine for Travel Trade Professionals. This issue focuses on how to shoot images locally to help you sell globally and of course, much, much more!
Yonderbound is the first travel knowledge monetization platform.
We give you back 70% of our margin. Stop giving your travel advice for free.
Learn more at Yonderbound.com
TBEX North America 2017, Creating and Monetizing Travel Video Content, Mike S...tbexcon
CONTENT
Mike Shubic is a professional travel video blogger and publisher of MikesRoadTrip.com, a travel blog he has published for the past seven years. Mike has worked with the Travel Channel, USA Today, Yahoo Travel and is a Travelocity Gnational Gnomad. He also has his own ROKU Channel and his videos are distributed through a new streaming technology via DirecTV (this begins in Feb, 2017).
How to Be a Digital Nomad: Build a Successful Career While Travelling the WorldLucky Gods
Forget cubicle walls and Monday blues! "How to Be a Digital Nomad: Build a Successful Career While Travelling the World" is your passport to freedom and adventure! Ditch the ordinary and unlock a lifestyle filled with:
Laptop & beach views: Trade the office grind for breathtaking sunrises and turquoise waters. Work from paradise, wherever your wifi heart desires!
Global business hub: The world is your office! Meet clients in Bali, brainstorm in Lisbon, and close deals in Dubai. Every day is a new frontier! ✈️
Time is yours: Ditch the rigid schedule! Design a workday that fits your life, not the other way around. Hike before noon, work at sunset, and explore in between. Flexibility is your friend! ⏰
Escape the 9-5: Forget endless commutes and corporate ladders! Build a remote career on your own terms. Be your own boss, set your own hours, and chase your dreams, not paychecks! 🪜❌
Community of nomads: You're not alone! Connect with a vibrant community of like-minded adventurers, sharing tips, stories, and epic experiences. The world is your tribe! ✨
"How to Be a Digital Nomad" isn't just a guide, it's a roadmap to your dream life. It shows you how to build a profitable remote career, find the perfect digital nomad destinations, pack like a pro, and navigate the unique challenges and joys of this incredible lifestyle. So grab your backpack, open your laptop, and get ready to take your first step towards freedom! The world is waiting, and you're ready to explore it, work-style!
Digital Strategy And storytelling - District32 business leaders - doyle buehl...Doyle Buehler
Isn’t it cool - it’s the greatest time in history, as we have access to literally billions of people around the world.
Yet, it’s also the worst time in history because we have access to… literally billions of other people around the world.
Competition is fierce; you’re essentially 1-click away from disaster.
It’s never been easier to get your story out there, but it’s also the hardest time because there is so much more noise out there. Isn't business fun?
In the Digital Age, story matters now more than ever. If you have a strategy you can tell your true story. If you don't, you get lost in the noise of everything else.
We were born to tell stories & we know how to listen to them, but rarely how to tell them. The story is what gives your customer clarity & certainty.
It’s not a story about how awesome you are. Nor even how you might be the next “amazing” founder.
Nor how you are going to “change the world”. They’ve heard it all before.
Nothing seems to work in marketing? Can’t figure out who to blame?
Ask yourself, what’s your strategy & how are you telling your story?
Story matters in creating your own certainty, your own future for the real hero, your customers.
This is your strategy. Welcome to digital storytelling.
#digitaltransformation #strategy #leadership
What's All the Fuss About Pinterest & Why Should I Care? #SMM12AnalogFolk
Presentation made at Social Media Marketing 2012 on October 25th.
Dispelling the myth that Pinterest is solely the preserve of middle aged American women pinning about cupcakes.... with a couple of cupcakes.
Improving Workplace Safety Performance in Malaysian SMEs: The Role of Safety ...AJHSSR Journal
ABSTRACT: In the Malaysian context, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) experience a significant
burden of workplace accidents. A consensus among scholars attributes a substantial portion of these incidents to
human factors, particularly unsafe behaviors. This study, conducted in Malaysia's northern region, specifically
targeted Safety and Health/Human Resource professionals within the manufacturing sector of SMEs. We
gathered a robust dataset comprising 107 responses through a meticulously designed self-administered
questionnaire. Employing advanced partial least squares-structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) techniques
with SmartPLS 3.2.9, we rigorously analyzed the data to scrutinize the intricate relationship between safety
behavior and safety performance. The research findings unequivocally underscore the palpable and
consequential impact of safety behavior variables, namely safety compliance and safety participation, on
improving safety performance indicators such as accidents, injuries, and property damages. These results
strongly validate research hypotheses. Consequently, this study highlights the pivotal significance of cultivating
safety behavior among employees, particularly in resource-constrained SME settings, as an essential step toward
enhancing workplace safety performance.
KEYWORDS :Safety compliance, safety participation, safety performance, SME
Grow Your Reddit Community Fast.........SocioCosmos
Sociocosmos helps you gain Reddit followers quickly and easily. Build your community and expand your influence.
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Unlock TikTok Success with Sociocosmos..SocioCosmos
Discover how Sociocosmos can boost your TikTok presence with real followers and engagement. Achieve your social media goals today!
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Buy Pinterest Followers, Reactions & Repins Go Viral on Pinterest with Socio...SocioCosmos
Get more Pinterest followers, reactions, and repins with Sociocosmos, the leading platform to buy all kinds of Pinterest presence. Boost your profile and reach a wider audience.
https://www.sociocosmos.com/product-category/pinterest/
“To be integrated is to feel secure, to feel connected.” The views and experi...AJHSSR Journal
ABSTRACT: Although a significant amount of literature exists on Morocco's migration policies and their
successes and failures since their implementation in 2014, there is limited research on the integration of subSaharan African children into schools. This paperis part of a Ph.D. research project that aims to fill this gap. It
reports the main findings of a study conducted with migrant children enrolled in two public schools in Rabat,
Morocco, exploring how integration is defined by the children themselves and identifying the obstacles that they
have encountered thus far. The following paper uses an inductive approach and primarily focuses on the
relationships of children with their teachers and peers as a key aspect of integration for students with a migration
background. The study has led to several crucial findings. It emphasizes the significance of speaking Colloquial
Moroccan Arabic (Darija) and being part of a community for effective integration. Moreover, it reveals that the
use of Modern Standard Arabic as the language of instruction in schools is a source of frustration for students,
indicating the need for language policy reform. The study underlines the importanceof considering the
children‟s agency when being integrated into mainstream public schools.
.
KEYWORDS: migration, education, integration, sub-Saharan African children, public school
Your Path to YouTube Stardom Starts HereSocioCosmos
Skyrocket your YouTube presence with Sociocosmos' proven methods. Gain real engagement and build a loyal audience. Join us now.
https://www.sociocosmos.com/product-category/youtube/
Enhance your social media strategy with the best digital marketing agency in Kolkata. This PPT covers 7 essential tips for effective social media marketing, offering practical advice and actionable insights to help you boost engagement, reach your target audience, and grow your online presence.
Multilingual SEO Services | Multilingual Keyword Research | Filosemadisonsmith478075
Multilingual SEO services are essential for businesses aiming to expand their global presence. They involve optimizing a website for search engines in multiple languages, enhancing visibility, and reaching diverse audiences. Filose offers comprehensive multilingual SEO services designed to help businesses optimize their websites for search engines in various languages, enhancing their global reach and market presence. These services ensure that your content is not only translated but also culturally and contextually adapted to resonate with local audiences.
Visit us at -https://www.filose.com/
Surat Digital Marketing School is created to offer a complete course that is specifically designed as per the current industry trends. Years of experience has helped us identify and understand the graduate-employee skills gap in the industry. At our school, we keep up with the pace of the industry and impart a holistic education that encompasses all the latest concepts of the Digital world so that our graduates can effortlessly integrate into the assigned roles.
This is the place where you become a Digital Marketing Expert.
Surat Digital Marketing School - course curriculum
Blogging for love and press trips: 7 Ways to Build Your Reputation - and 5 Ways to Wreck It
1. Blogging for Love –
And Press Trips!
7 Tips to Build Your
Reputation in the Travel
Industry –
and 5 Ways to Wreck It!
ENMN Conference
Anaheim, CA
February 15, 2014
Presented by
Peggy Bendel
Bendel Communications
International
2. Peggy Bendel, President of Bendel Communications
International, headed the Tourism Division of Development
Counsellors International (DCI) from 1985 to 2008, working with
more than 50 clients around the globe, including Australia,
California, Denver, Dubai, South Africa, U.S. Virgin Islands,
Scotland and Tasmania.
A principal in the seminal I Love New York campaign, Peggy
began her career as a travel writer for the State of New York,
and worked in economic development and international trade
as well as tourism.
She is the author of “It’s a crisis! NOW what?” The first step-bystep handbook for the global tourism and hospitality industry,
published in 2012. Peggy blogs on the topic at
itsacrisisnowwhat.com.
Peggy received the Lifetime Achievement in Public Relations
award from the Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association
International (HSMAI). She sits on the Boards of the
Association of Travel Marketing Executives (ATME.org),
Destination and Travel Foundation (DestinationMarketing.org),
Ecology Project International (EcologyProject.org) and the
Society of American Travel Writers (SATW). She is a past Chair
of the Public Relations Society of America’s (PRSA.org) Travel
& Tourism section.
She and her husband live in Tucson, AZ and New York.
www.BendelCommunications.com
2
4. Thank You to SATW Members:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Tom Adkinson
Susan Farlow
Jackie Sheckler Finch
Elizabeth Hanson
Candy Harrington
Durant Imboden
Susan McKee
Maribeth Mellin
Diane Lambdin Meyer
Toby Saltzman
www.BendelCommunications.com
4
5. 1. Find your voice.
• Don't just regurgitate press releases -- put your own personal
spin on them.
• Let your personality show through in your writing.
• Having a specific niche helps, too.
Image courtesy of imagerymajestic/FreeDigitalPhotos.net
www.BendelCommunications.com
5
7. 2. Be professional from the start.
Learn how to present yourself as a writer:
• Know the data about your readership and reach, Google
analytics, Klout score, and more.
• Understand how your readers/followers mesh with the
destination, attraction, hotel, activity, tour operator, etc.
• Make sure your post is letter perfect; original; 100%
factually correct; honest.
• Do not think of travel writing as an avenue to get "free
trips" but rather as an avenue of creative selfexpression.
www.BendelCommunications.com
7
8. 3. Don’t work for free, unless…
Courtesy Oliver Emberton: www.oliveremberton.com
www.BendelCommunications.com
8
9. 4. ‘Coverage' is not 'promotion'
• PR contacts or hosts are not 'clients' unless you're being paid
to write for their blogs and not for your own."
• Don't offer to "review" businesses in return for admission, a
meal or lodging. Your offer to "review" is an offer to trade
services, and that's not what you're supposed to be doing.
• Know the difference between a journalist and a copywriter,
and decide which you want to be. (If you're freelancing and
hope to get editorial assignments, think twice about using
your byline on 'advertorial.")
www.BendelCommunications.com
9
10. 5. Know what a trip is all about
before signing up.
• Don't accept an invitation for a culinary press trip if what you
really want is soft adventure. Not a golfer? Don’t say “yes” to
a golf trip, diving trip if you fear the water, or a horseback trip
if you don’t know how to ride.
• You'll be miserable…and so will your hosts (they’ll be angry,
too!).
Images courtesy of Grant Cochrane, vectorolie/FreeDigitalPhotos.net
www.BendelCommunications.com
10
11. 6. Remember, You’re Not on Vacation!
•
•
•
•
This is a job: approach it as a professional.
It's not all fun.
It's a job, one that many others would love, so…No whining!
Review your notes before you go to sleep and
jot down all those things you're sure you'll
remember…but you won’t!
Images courtesy of digitalart, Arvind Balaraman, imagerymajestic/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net
www.BendelCommunications.com
11
12. 7. Bring all of your tools: and backup!
No itinerary includes time to hunt for extra pens or
notebooks, or stop to buy digital camera memory cards,
power cords or a voice recorder for someone who forgot
the tools of their trade.
Image courtesy of Stuart Miles/FreeDigitalPhotos.net
www.BendelCommunications.com
12
13. Now you’ve built it…
don’t ruin it!
Image courtesy of Stuart Miles/FreeDigitalPhotos.net
www.BendelCommunications.com
13
14. 1. Don’t produce results.
• Never accept a trip if you aren't sure you can sell a story on
the topic. Journos aren't invited just because they are such
great company!
• Publications – online and off – go out of business, change
editors, kill stories: but as a blogger, you control your content.
• Multiple stories are the norm, for a multi-day trip.
• Tweeting and blogging during the trip are appreciated; if you
can add content to Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook or other
outlets in addition to your blog, so much the better.
www.BendelCommunications.com
14
15. 2. Be late – for everything!
If a writer or photographer is not on time, PR pros should –
and often will - leave that person behind. It is very
inconsiderate and unprofessional to make others wait and get
behind schedule.
• If you’re asked to complete paperwork in advance (for a visa,
hotel registration, food allergies and other background
details), DO IT ON TIME!
Image courtesy of photostock/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net
www.BendelCommunications.com
15
16. 3. Bring your dog, 3 kids and the
neighbors along – without asking!
• Every piece of writing, it seems to me, rests on four pillars of
engagement: with your subject, with yourself, with your audience,
and with your writing. Each of these is essential to the success of a
piece.
• You have to engage with your subject, to understand its history,
character, and heart.
• You have to engage with yourself, to understand and mine the
deeper connection between you and your chosen subject.
• You have to engage with your audience, keeping some sense of
their background, knowledge, and interests in mind as you develop
your piece and choose what to include and what to leave out.
• And you have to engage with your writing, to make it as precise,
melodic, and meaningful as possible.
www.BendelCommunications.com
16
17. 4. Be a diva, or a bully!
• You may get your way this time when it comes to changes in
itineraries, preferred accommodations or dropped charges for
personal items at a hotel, but your hosts and fellow travel
writers will remember, share their experience and you'll soon
find yourself persona non grata.
Images courtesy of David Castillo Dominici, patrisyu and Clare Bloomfield/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net
www.BendelCommunications.com
17
18. 5. Get drunk, break your leg, then
refuse to travel home for the next
month!
Yes, this really happened when one of my staff was escorting a
press group to an island destination!
Image courtesy of Grant Cochrane/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net
www.BendelCommunications.com
18
19. SATW Code of Ethics
•
•
•
•
Code of Ethics
Principle I: SATW members shall maintain the highest
professional standards.
Principle II: SATW members shall conduct business in a
professional manner.
Principle III: SATW members shall maintain the highest
standards of professionalism on press trips and sponsored
activities.
Principle IV: SATW members shall avoid all real or perceived
conflicts of interest.
www.BendelCommunications.com
19
20. Code of Conduct
1. Program Participation
2. Itinerary or Program Changes
3. Respecting Local Customs
4. Online Conduct
5. Alcoholic Beverages
6. Claims and/or Complaints
7. Penalties for Violations of the Code
www.BendelCommunications.com
20
21. Don George
Lonely Planet’s
Guide to Travel Writing
Than Fiction
@don_george
Better
Reproduced with permission from National
Geographic's Intelligent Travel blog
www.BendelCommunications.com 21
22. Where do you want to go and why do you
want to go there?
• The why is an essential part of this equation; it becomes the
vehicle that moves the story along. So I look for things–
festivals, spiritual sites, historic sites, beliefs, rituals,
wildernesses, legacies, characters–that excite me in a place,
things that stand out as potential passion points and
connections.
• Finally, if I can, I try to frame my journey in the context of a
quest: I’m going to X in search of Y… Why? This approach
lends the story a built-in nice narrative arc, a shape, that can
make the experience on the ground and in the writing
ultimately much more cohesive and compelling–and a lot less
painful.
www.BendelCommunications.com
22
23. What’s the story?
• I vacuum up all the information I can. Why? Even with the Internet,
there’s a wealth of things–brochures, postcards, plaques, bulletin
board flyers–that ooze important information about this place that
you won’t be able to access once you’re back home.
• I know from unfortunate experience early in my career that the last
thing you want is to be on the other side of the world three months
later, frantically turning your backpack inside out in fruitless search
for a piece of essential data that you didn’t realize was going to be
essential at the time, and thus left behind.
• The other thing I’m always trying to do is to hone my focus. I can’t
repeat this enough: Focus; focus; focus. Look for the telling little
details that capture a taste, a person, an experience–the small truths
that illuminate the larger truths. And, almost more importantly, write
them down!
www.BendelCommunications.com
23
24. What am I learning?
• This is another version of the question I asked at the
beginning of this column–What’s the story?–but with a more
personal twist.
• What is this place and my experience here revealing to me?
What gifts are they bestowing upon me? How are they
changing and challenging and expanding me? What, really,
am I learning here?
• This question will become crucial in the third phase of your
journey–when you’re trying to figure out what to write once
you’re back home.
www.BendelCommunications.com
24
25. How did you learn that lesson? What were
the steps that led you to understand it?
• I identify and write down these steps, tracing my journey to the
lesson. Then I pick out a few essential stepping stones and try to
recall as vividly as possible the experiences, details, and characters
involved in each.
• Those stepping stones become the map of my journey, the path I’ll
follow to write the story.
• One thing I always try to remember is that the story is not ultimately
about me, it’s about the place. That’s what the reader wants to know
about.
• My experience is the vehicle that illuminates the place.
• My job as a travel writer is to present my experiences in that place in
such a vivid and coherent way that the lesson I learned–my own
quintessential takeaway–is shared on a profound level with the
people who are reading about it.
www.BendelCommunications.com
25
26. How did you learn that lesson? What were the
steps that led you to understand it?, con’t.
• When you return from three weeks or three months on the road, you
often you have a book’s worth of experiences and stories. But if
you’re writing just one story, you need to focus.
• The beauty of the stepping-stone approach to storytelling is that it
lends direction to the writing process. Figuring out the lesson you
want to tell, and the steps that led to that lesson, helps you discard
all the encounters and events–however wonderful and memorable
they may have been–that don’t play a role in that particular lesson.
• You need to ruthlessly edit your experience, cutting away everything
that doesn’t contribute to the reader reaching the same place, the
same illumination, that you have reached.
• But the prize is priceless! When you can successfully bring the
reader to that same illumination with you, when you can share a
place’s quintessential lesson, you create one more connection in the
beautiful chain that links writer and reader, traveler and traveler,
visitor and resident.
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27. Image courtesy of supakitmod/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net
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28. Image courtesy of basketman/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net
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