Big features and cover stories pay more, of course, but those plum assignments don’t come down the pike until you’ve forged a long-term relationship with the editor or have become famous. The bulk of my freelance pieces earn me between $100 and $500. Rates for a 500-word article range from $15 to $1,000, the latter being for a seasoned writer doing a story for a Travel + Leisure type publication where beginners would never appear. Pay scales are not much better than they were 20 years ago though, and even lower when adjusted for inflation, so it takes a lot of hustling to earn a good living writing for others. Thankfully there are a few bright spots for those willing to put in the work: custom publications (ones you won’t find on a newsstand) and company blogs. Very few newspapers still have a travel section. The biggest magazines still pay well, but they are getting thinner and thinner each year or going out of business altogether. There used to be money in guidebook writing, but now you’re lucky to cover all your expenses and earn minimum wage from the advance. The decline of travel writing in the print world has been steady and steep. Either way, the founders put in years of effort before they got the payoff. Most who manage a full-time travel writing income in the digital age are either stringing together up to 100 assignments a year or they are running a travel blog-one that either has a huge following or it dominates a specific subject area. It’s like a law of physics that doesn’t speed up just because it’s easier to publish. The myth of fast success hasn’t changed though. You don't have to get permission from an editor to start a blog. There are more ways to get published now in the digital age though and more ways to get paid. Freelance travel writing is still a tough slog, so it would probably take at least two years to get to that point if you started today. Back then, it took three years of assignments and building up a collection of clips before I earned more than $20K in a year from my writing. If I were trying to be a full-time freelance writer though, I’d probably still be pulling in the kind of part-time cash I did when I started in the mid-90s, when I had to rely on occasional steady gigs but mostly spotty one-off assignments. For more than 12 years now, I have supported my family as a travel writer, thanks to the growth of online advertising, influencer marketing, and expanded book sales. Or they are retired and are working for supplemental income. Most are part-time writers doing this on the side.
They are a very small minority of the total pool though. With the growth of blogs that reach hundreds of thousands of readers, a few dozen even top $100,000 consistently. Some people make a good living as a travel writer. Myth #1: Travel writers make enough money to live on
It might not even happen over years.Īs a service to any beginning travel writers out there who are ready for the real story, here are the seven biggest myths of travel writing and what it will take to defy the odds.
#Travel writer salary how to
Like any position where supply far exceeds demand, you’ll need to follow the right steps and then pay your dues if you want to learn how to become a travel writer for a living. Just as plugging in a Stratocaster doesn’t make you a rock star, writing tales about your travels is not going to make you a paid travel writer. The big difference is that when you do get to that upper echelon of travel writers, you’re still not making nearly as much money as the lowest-paid bench warmer in the NBA.
#Travel writer salary pro
It may sound silly to compare the most successful travel writers or hottest travel bloggers to rock stars and pro athletes, but the odds of getting to that level of success are just as daunting. It’s not so glamorous, however, to be an aspiring actor (waiter) in Los Angeles, an aspiring songwriter (waiter) in Nashville, or an aspiring novelist (waiter) in New York. “Launch your dream career as a travel writer today and get paid to travel the world!” All you have to do is sign up for their course to get all the “secrets.” Soon you’ll be able to expect “a complimentary week on an exotic Asian island” or a luxury vacation in Europe “with airfare and all expenses paid.” Just take this course and you’ll end up “on permanent vacation.”īefore you fall for it, remember that it also sounds exciting to be a rock star, a best-selling novelist, or to play basketball for the Golden State Warriors. You’ve probably seen the come-on ads in web banners or your Facebook feed, with a glamorous photo of a person with a laptop in a tropical locale. Sometimes the craft and art is precarious and even uncomfortable. Travel Writing The Seven Myths of Being a Travel Writer By Tim Leffel
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