Do you agree with the fact that choosing an efficient travel writer is crucial for your website when it comes to presenting quality content and creating the right impression on your followers?
Not everyone has a flair for travel writing, and most writers do not succeed in this field as their writing fails to grab the readers’ attention.
Often clients have a hard time looking for writers and end up hiring writers who aren’t as ingenious as they claim to be.
Here’s the deal:
Well, worry no more as in this blog post, I am going to talk about everything that you should know about hiring freelance travel writers which would make the hiring process a lot less hectic.
Need for Travel Content for Websites
People nowadays have started to travel and explore more.
However, planning for trips isn’t easy, and hence people wish to refer to a site that lists down each and every piece of information in a detailed way.
Everything right from places to tour to popular local food options, choices for accommodation to best deals available helps people make a smart decision.
What Are the Features of Travel Writing?
I have listed here some of the essential features of travel writing below:
## Having a Clear Storyline
A trip is an experience consisting of a series of events.
Some of these moments would be interesting while some won’t be as memorable.
As a travel writer, the very first thing to do is to decide on the story that you wish to tell the people and the events which make the story so fascinating.
Try not to deviate much from the main storyline, especially if it isn’t compulsive.
After writing, it is crucial to read it from the perspective of a reader to have a better idea, if the content is engrossing.
## Making Use of Dialogues
Dialogues give personality to the people in the story, bring a scene to life, and allow the freelance travel writer to deliver the information dramatically.
While traveling, make it a habit to take notes of what people say and the way they say it.
## Use of Vivid Language
Travel articles can usually be found peppered with words like pretty, stunning, diverse, incredible, bustling, and all of its possible synonyms.
Now, such words can be used for thousands of places all over the world.
Freelance travel writers who use language specific to the destination they are describing are usually brilliant in their writing.
A vivid description of a place allows the readers to paint a picture in their minds.
## Proofreading the Work
An efficient freelance travel writer would be someone who ensures that the writing is free of any typos or grammatical errors.
The best way to ensure that your writing is perfect is to read it loud and to have someone else have a look at it.
Did You Know?
As per the Tourism Highlights Report by the United Nations World Tourism Organization, there were nearly 1.32 billion global tourist arrivals in the year 2018, a staggering 84 million more than the previous year.
Skills Every Freelance Travel Writer Must Possess
Before you hire a freelance travel writer for your website, you need to be sure that he/she can deliver what they promise.
Travel writing isn’t a piece of cake and requires the writer to be imaginative and creative with their work to ensure that the reader will actually read the article.
Mentioned below are a few skills that every travel writer must possess:
1. Researching About the Place
It’s not always necessary that a travel writer has been to the place that he/she is writing about.
Of course, first-hand experiences are reliable and give a better insight into the lives of the locals and the hidden secrets of the destination.
However, if the writer lives far away, it is the resources available at hand that they have to rely on.
A freelance travel writer would always look for all the information available and then make use only of those which are most reliable.
2. Planting Questions in the Mind of Readers
The opening of the travel article can make your break the deal.
Planting a question in the reader’s mind as early in the opening as you possibly can is crucial.
The question doesn’t have to be anything complicated or profound.
An opening like: I guess Jenna was right about warning Paul.
This is a very short opening. But do you wish to know more? Well, of course, you do! You now have the urge to know what was it that Paul should have been warned about. Also, who are Jenna and Paul anyway?
The question has to provide just enough intrigue so as to keep the readers engrossed.
Now there’s a very fine line between creating puzzlement and just curiosity.
So, avoid befuddling the readers and also make sure to answer the question at some point in the article.
3. Edit Experiences to Fit the Story
Grabbing the attention of the readers is difficult, and before you know it, they would have left your page if the content isn’t intriguing.
Stories have dialogues, characters, plots, dramas, and suspense, all of which have to be organized and molded.
Once you are sure of the storyline, pick experiences that suit the story the best, and forget the rest.
You don’t have to narrate the whole trip in chronological order.
Come up with a narrative thread that will be throughout the story, linking the beginning and the end so that the piece flows.
4. Have a Set Goal
A few trips have a physical objective like reaching the top of a mountain, seeing a particular animal, or perhaps crossing a river which gives the content purpose and a sense of direction.
The reader would stick till the end to know if you were successful in achieving your goals.
However, a lot of trips don’t have an obvious goal, and it’s about meeting people and knowing more about their culture or discovering a new place.
In such scenarios, personal goals have to be created to give the reader a sense of the journey that you are taking them on.
5. Be Unique
You are not the first person to be visiting the Taj Mahal or the Eiffel Tower or perhaps swimming along with stingrays and little sharks.
Hence, a fresh spin has to be put on the travel experiences so as to make the writing fresh and engaging.
6. An Enticing First Paragraph
You can write the introductory paragraph of a travel article in any way that you want as long as it can attract the reader’s attention.
Use dialogue, drama, or humor, but the first sentences have to be entrancing.
Most travel articles start right at the thick of the story and then narrate the events that led you to be in that situation.
7. Highlighting the Various Attractions
When it comes to travel writing, highlighting the important attractions of a place is crucial as that is the first thing that attracts someone to a certain place.
A destination might be splendid in its scenic beauty, but if you don’t give out any other information, very few people would be tempted to visit it.
A good freelance travel writer would always include all the available attractions in their travelogue so that more people would choose to visit it.
8. Including Some Cultural Background
The travelogue becomes richer in content when you include some cultural background of the place.
People like to have some knowledge of the culture and background of planning they are hoping to visit as it gives them an idea of what to expect.
It would also help them with planning their clothes, accessories, and more.
9. Naming a Few Good Options for Accommodation
A good writer understands that some readers could be budget travelers, while a few others would be luxury-seekers.
Hence, it is important to mention a few good and trusted hostels, budget hotels, and resorts.
10. Mentioning the Means and Ways to Reach the Destination
The readers must always be supplied with adequate information on various means and ways to reach the destination.
Include information regarding train details, airline details, bus details, or any other information that you feel would be helpful for the reader.
If you have been to the destination yourself, tell the readers how you made it to the destination and what according to you is the best possible means of transport.
11. Focus on Entertaining, Not Impressing
Amateur writers would often fill their writings with literary phrases whereas expert writers try to put down their experiences in the simplest and best possible way.
This doesn’t mean that you have to cut down on playfulness or stop being experimental. However, don’t do it at the expense of the readers.
12. Showing and Telling
Writers use the technique of showing and telling for narrating a story without even realizing it.
Showing is when you slow down and start describing a scene in detail- everything right from what you tasted, saw, felt, or heard.
This way, a writer tries to show the readers the world through their eyes.
Telling is moving the story along. An experienced freelance content writer repeatedly switches between showing and telling to keep the drama and practicality alive.
13. Not Stressing If the First Draft Isn’t As Impressive
After you are done with the first draft of your article, you may not be happy with it and feel that it was a total waste of time.
However, with patience, you are sure to find the best way to tell your story to your audience.
It is a gradual process and happens bit by bit as if you were putting together a jigsaw puzzle.
A good writer is someone who remains patient and works on his/her writing without stressing until they are satisfied with the final draft.
14. Doing It for the Love of Writing
You cannot be committed to something if you don’t love it with all your heart.
Passion and love is the key in order to be accomplished at something.
It would be totally unrealistic if you get into travel writing just for the sake of money.
Also, writers who gravitate towards this genre only for the free trips and extravagant hotel rooms would only be able to deliver sub-standard work.
The writing has to be such that the readers get completely engrossed in it, and it leaves a mark on their minds.
15. Mentioning a Few Dos and Don’ts of the Place
Certain things which might be okay in the place where you live may not be seen as culturally appropriate when in another country.
It is thereby essential to mention a few dos and don’ts so the reader can avoid making any cultural mistakes.
16. Giving Yourself Time to Finish
Many travel writers try to finish the content like a high-speed train in an effort to include every interesting bit that leaves the audience feeling confused and dazed.
Toward the end, spare a paragraph and start writing the conclusion.
Slow down and think about where you started and slowly reflect on the journey.
Sum up the experience in an interesting and inspiring way.
Final Words
As a website owner, you would unquestionably want the very best content for your site to engage more readers and increase traffic.
Hence, it is crucial to ensure that the freelance travel writer that you are considering hiring has the above-mentioned skills.
Do you agree with all that has been said above? Do you too feel that travel writing requires the writer to be inventive?
If you have any questions, feel free to comment down below.
