Slide 1

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 2

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 3

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 4

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 5

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 6

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 7

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 8

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 9

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 10

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 11

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 12

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 13

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 14

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 15

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 16

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 17

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 18

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 19

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 20

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 21

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 22

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 23

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 24

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 25

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 26

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 27

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 28

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 29

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 30

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 31

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 32

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 33

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 34

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 35

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 36

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 37

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 38

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 39

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 40

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 41

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483


Slide 42

Denver, CO ● July 23-25, 2009 ● American Writer’s & Artists, Inc.

By Jennifer Stevens

AWAI’s Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program  Denver, CO  July 2009

Can you locate the…
 Cover
 Staff box (es)
 Ads
 Special Advertising Section
 Photos
 Articles
 Departments
3

Why do you travel?
4

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

For the pleasure
For the romance
For the excitement
To feel smarter, worldlier, luckier
To be more “connected” in the world
The best articles appeal to that
emotional need.
5

Ingredients
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, cold
1 cold egg
1 tablespoon ice water
12 oz seedless red current preserves
1 pint fresh strawberries
1 pint fresh blueberries

6

7

Big Secret # 2
Appeal first to a reader’s
heart… and then to his head.

8

By the time I arrived at Amelia Island
Plantation, located at the far northeastern tip
of Florida about 30 miles north of
Jacksonville airport, I felt a bit worn down.
Air travel can fray even the calmest person’s
nerves, and after lugging luggage and
standing in long lines, I was ready for a
leisurely afternoon on the beach. I checked
into the reception center, boarded a shittle
for my room in the Amelia Inn, and got my
first look at the beautifully maintained
property – and all tensions melted away.
Vacations, July/Aug 2009

9

FERNANDINA BEACH, Amelia Island, Fla. - On a typical
May afternoon downtown, three girls peer through plate
glass windows as fudge is paddled on a marble slab. My
fiancé and I watch from a sidewalk table, our hair damp
from body surfing, our ice cream cones melting in the
sun.
"Boomer!" the girls squeal as a white Percheron
draft horse draws a white carriage along Centre Street,
and a white-aproned restaurateur appears with a carrot
in his outstretched hand.
Few people have heard of this town of 11,000,
though the island on which it resides is well known. But it
is the town - with its streetscapes of eclectic Victoriana
and residents who set out water dishes for visiting dogs that draws the brightest stars of chamber music to
perform each year.
Patricia Borns, Boston Globe, May 18, 2008

10

 Practical

approach – useful for the traveler
 Literary approach – entertaining for the
armchair traveler
 Can take either approach when you target a
specific reader
•
•
•
•
•
•

outdoorsman
shopper
art-enthusiast
gourmand
beach-devotee
bargain-hunter

11

12

 Long

or short
 Focus on a place
 Define its character
 Recommend what to:
•
•
•
•
•

See
Do
Where to stay
When to go
How to experience it
in the way you
describe it
13

Italy: Exploring sun-splashed Venice's
city squares

By Susan Spano

Pianissimo, pianissimo.
That's how morning comes on the Campo
Santa Maria Formosa. Pigeons dawdle around a
trash can, in no rush to pillage. The young
woman who tends the newsstand gives her dog
a bowl of water. Then the grate at the Bar
all'Orologio clangs open, a sure sign that
another summer day has begun in Venice.
Los Angeles Times, July 11, 2008
14

The Last Dynasty

On a journey to Ladaks, in the shadow of the Himalayas, Sophy Roberts
uncovers a bold new model of cultural tourism. Is this what’s next for
travel to India?
“You like it?” My guide asks as I look out from my roof
terrace over Nomoo, a dusty village in far northern India. I nod, only
half engaged. I’m too consumed with watching a woman who, like an
ant, is climbing a hill in this strange moonscape of silver and gray. I
can see a prayer wheel in her hand, can almost hear the little tik-tik
as it spins. I wonder where she’s going, for there’s nothing but
emptiness ahead. Somehow the scene deeply resonates. Perhaps it’s
because she’s doing exactly as she’s always done – going about her
business, nodding another woman good day, tipping her top hat with
its corners upturned. Perhaps it’s the noise of children playing in the
fields, the smells of roasted corn and boiled milk rising up toward
me. Or maybe it’s because I’m not being cut off from the community,
which is so often the lot of the Westerner in India.
Travel and Leisure, July 2009
15

Hipster Hunting Ground
By Gregory Dicum

Some 15 years ago, Valencia Street was a
forbidding mix of auto body shops, papered-over
storefronts and hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
Despite a smattering of Victorian houses and
lesbian bars, few outsiders were drawn to this grungy
edge of San Francisco’s Mission District.
Then came the dot-com money. Trendy
coffeehouses arrived. Hip boutiques opened next to
cool bars. And now the wide, low-slung street has
become a gathering spot for the city’s latest breed of
cool-hunting hipsters.
New York Times, July 13, 2008

16



Connects an activity,
hobby, characteristic,
or interest to a place…
• gardening in England

• cycling in France
• alternative healing in

Guatemala
• volunteering in
Botswana
• shopping in Rome
• cooking in Spain


Audience is key
17

Vancouver vs. Vancouver
Alan Richman

In British Columbia, animal life leads a sweet life. More
than one Vancouver chef proudly tells me about the lambs and
chickens that frolic happily in a field at Polderside Farms,
about 65 miles inland. Dale MacKay, executive chef at Lumiere,
drove out for a visit just so that his son could see beasts and
birds at play.
At the estimable C Restaurant, which promotes “ethical
luxury,” I find my albacore tuna entrée slightly mushy, not quite
to my taste. I suggest to executive chef Robert Clark that this
might be an atypical example of local seafood’s not being as
desirable as tuna shipped in from a faraway Japanese fishing
fleet. Clark blames his kitchen for not preparing it well, not the
fish for failing to be acceptably firm.
Nobody in this southwest Canadian metropolis speaks
badly of ingredients, unless the stuff comes from somewhere
else.
Bon Appetit, August 2009

18

Treasure Hunting

Nebraska’s junk jaunt promises friendly faces,
scenic landscapes and bargains galore. What
treasures will you find?
By Summer Miller

Do you like junk? If so, take the scenic route to
your next bargain search on Nebraska’s Junk
Jaunt, a fun frolic that hops from town to town, with
yard sales and unusual treasures along the way.
Now in its third year, the 220-mile trail follows the
Loup River Scenic Byway and portions of the
Sandhills Journey Scenic Byway in the central part
of the state. Along the way, the trail takes you
through some of Nebraska’s most scenic regions.
AAA Living, Nebraska September-October 2006

19

 Focus

on a what a
place has to
recommend it during
holiday or festival
time
 Editors need many
months lead time

20

Two Hours From Prague, the Anti-Cannes Festival

By Dinah Spritzer
One of the oldest and largest film festivals in the world is set in
a fairytale spa town with the Tepla River winding past candy colored
19th-century villas idyllically perched on tiered woodlands.
But you won’t find supermodels or Hollywood agents at the
44th annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 81 miles west of
Prague.
Vary, as those in the know call the festival, is the anti-Cannes.
Chilled-out visitors to Karlovy Vary get easy access to screenings and
wear jeans from morning to night (or sometimes the next morning), all
in a setting that arguably rivals the French Riviera.
“Karlovy Vary is like a Baroque Disneyland, but in a good way,”
said Julietta Sichel, the festival program director.
This year, from July 3 to 11, Vary is showing 226 films from 64
countries. (All but five have English subtitles, according to Sichel.)

New York Times, June 28, 2009

21

Sample this Southern city by way of a
delectable holiday tour
By Devorah Ben-David

Sinfully rich chocolate has long been part of the culinary
culture of Charleston, South Carolina. In Colonial times, wealthy rice
planters such as the Middleton family would emulate the privileged
lifestyle of European aristocracy by hosting bountiful banquets.
Displayed on elegantly engraved silver trays were the sweet
obsessions of the day, among them petits fours decadently dipped
in chocolate and bite-size morsels of creamy milk chocolate.
In antebellum days, chocolate rapidly gained a reputation as
one of Charleston’s ultimate comfort foods. Today, chocoholics can
experience the city’s sweeter side by taking a Chocolate
Seductions holiday tour with a local food expert and 10thgeneration South Carolinian.
United’s Hemispheres, December 2007

22

 Easy

access from a
“main” destination
 Day-trip or weekend
getaway

23

Colorado Springs Excursion…

High Country Drama: Mueller State Park, Colorado
By Jennifer Stevens

Down at your feet in the meadow grass, impossibly purple
wildflowers and white yarrow-blossom bouquets… look up, and you’ll
see range after range of snow-capped peaks and the ridges of the
Continental Divide, mountains to the horizon… overhead, a cobalt blue
sky… and the rustle of aspens, like the sound of paper bells…
Just 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs, up and
around the back side of Pikes Peak, you’ll find yourself well into the
Rockies at Mueller State Park. It’s the easiest, most-rewarding, most
undiscovered way to experience Colorado’s mountain drama.
With 5,000 acres of untouched wilderness and 50 miles of
trails, Mueller makes for an ideal high-country excursion -- whether
you’ve got just three hours or a full day to spare. (Even if you don’t plan
to hike, this scenic trip is worthwhile.)
Express Jet’s ExpressLane, July 2008

24

Weekend Flyaways

Fun in Phoenix
By Kyle Wagner

With round-trip airfares hovering around $100, temps in the 70s and
80s and a perfect mix of indoor pursuits that expand cultural comprehension
and outdoor activities that buff up the bod, why wouldn't you be planning a
weekend in the Valley of the Sun?
Dining runs the gamut from American Indian-influenced snack
foods to tony spa cuisine, with plenty of room in between for Southwestern,
Mexican and the West (with European and Asian here and there), casual to
gourmet. Reaching a peak is easy in these parts; there are hikes for the
beginner and the expert, often on the same mountain, and the rock climbing
is hard to beat.
GET THERE: The major airlines fly nonstop to Phoenix - I head straight to
Frontier and Southwest - and offer flights starting at $108 round-trip.
GET AROUND: Driving in Phoenix is most certainly one of the circles of
hell, but there's just no getting around it. Unless you want to visit only a few
things right downtown and miss some of the excellent dining in areas such
as Scottsdale, or stay only in one place in Scottsdale and miss the great
museums and galleries downtown, then rent a car you must.
Denver Post, December 26, 2007

25

 Focus

on one item or
one place
 Often integrated into
longer articles
 Rarely negative

26

A Touch of Dutch Class
By Raphael Kadushin

Standing in the elegant parlor of the
Ambassade Hotel is an 18th-century grandfather
clock that puts the show back into “showpiece.”
Hand-painted cherubs, winged horses, and sailing
ships crowd the clock face, rocking back and forth
on each stroke of the second hand. On every other
stroke, a mermaid shoots out of the sea, a trumpet at
her lips. The big entrance isn’t typical of this
understated hotel, but the sense of surprise is.
Springing up in Amsterdam’s canal-scored center,
where affordable lodging is hard to find, the
Ambassade provides a reasonably priced and
supremely civilized accommodation.
National Geographic Traveler, April 2000

27

Bike the Whites
By Jules Older

The good news about organized bike tours is considerable:
pre-picked inns, pre-planned routes, catered meals, hot showers and
clean sheets at the end of the day.
The good or bad news, depending on how you feel about such
things, is a certain, well, wussiness. Hill too high? The sag wagon will
pick you up. Got a flat? The group leader will patch you up.
Bike the Whites is a New Hampshire demi-tour; it has no sag
wag, no group leader, no real group. You show up at one inn, drop off
your car, and get shuttled to the next inn, where your riding begins.
From there you pedal from inn to inn, three in all, ending back at your
car. You get a map with choices of, say, 20-, 30-, and 40-mile routes to
the next inn. Hungry? Find a place along the way that smells good. Flat
tire? Did you remember to bring a patch? A pump?
Vermont Sports Today, April 2002

28

 Quick

introduction
followed by a series
of mini-reviews,
recommendations
 Editors like them as
they’re easy to tease
•
•
•
•

8 Great Urban Parks
5 Paris B&Bs from $100
6 RV-Friendly Beaches
3 Toddler-Friendly
Chicago Diversions
29

Affordable Inns: Eight great hotels for under
$160 per night
By Ian Keown
I’m properly impressed by the luxuries some Caribbean resorts
toss our way – soaking tub for two, kitchen with halogen range – but I
wonder if we really need those bells and whistles. And do we really want to
pay the dollars these frills add to the rates? That’s why I cherish those small
and unpretentious inns that seem somehow more in tune with the real spirit
of the Caribbean, that enchanted realm I enter when showers are activated
by chains to save water and in-room entertainment is a crackly bedside
radio.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate several old-timers and,
even more so, a few newcomers that buck the trend to marbled luxury. Here
are a few where rooms cost from $160 a night for two people in the peak
season (roughly mid-December through mid-April) – and as much as onethird less in spring, summer, and fall.
National Geographic Traveler, January/February 2001

30

Islands on Sale

By Brook Wilkinson and Eimear Lynch

Is there an upside to the down economy? If
you're an island-goer, the answer is an unqualified yes.
Places that were once prohibitive for many are now
more accessible than ever before (hello, Seychelles!),
and even old favorites are seeing their prices chopped
(this is the summer for Fiji). We hunted down 14 of the
best island bargains around the globe, from the
Seychelles to Jamaica, Hawaii to Sicily. Even better,
prices will be falling further throughout the summer,
and many of these deals are good through December.
So grab your bikini and get going—you won't see
prices like these again anytime soon.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2009

31

 Practical

and useful
(save time, money,
trouble)
 Good if you have
some experience or
expertise (but not
necessary)

32

The Art of the Deal

By Lisa Movius
Art seems like a souvenir only for the super wealthy,
but finding a quality piece at an affordable price isn’t as
difficult as you might think.
1. Should I start at galleries?
Galleries offer a wide range of art, but they also tend to be
expensive. Look for smaller galleries that put together one off
shows for emerging artists—these places charge less than a
gallery that has invested in building an artist’s reputation.
Large galleries that carry a number of artists’ works, as well as
different styles and sizes, may also charge more because they
have spent time stocking their space with many pieces to
choose from, saving you the time and effort of having to find
them on your own.
2. Is there a cheaper option?
Budget Travel, July-August 2008

33

You Can Take It With You: Travel Kit
Advice for Artists on the Go
By Luana Rubin

Preparing for a journey to an exotic or inspiring
location, with the purpose of making art, can be as
much fun as the trip itself. The dilemma for the
creative quilter is how to travel lightly and still have a
palette of fabrics, threads, and embellishments to
capture the thrill of the colors and images that will be
experienced.

Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Summer 2009

34

35

 Story

of discovery
(both of a place and
yourself)
 Often use “I” or “we”
(first person)
 You’re a character in
your story

36

My Blue Heaven
by Shoba Narayan

I don't want to write about this place. Few people know
of it; fewer still visit. Perhaps that's the way it should be. In this
rapidly shrinking world, there ought to be somewhere that
remains remote, even obscure; set apart in space and time;
offering the promise of mystery, the romance of discovery.
Lakshadweep—the name comes out in a sigh. In Sanskrit, it
means One Hundred Thousand Islands, although in fact there
are just twenty-seven, ten of which are inhabited. Speckled
across the Arabian Sea off the Malabar Coast of India, this
archipelago of atolls, coral reefs, and islands was—before El
Niño—the largest living ecosystem on the planet. Many maps,
even Indian ones, don't note it. Yet for a dedicated group of
travelers who seek the world's most far-flung spots, this is as
close as it gets to paradise.
Conde Nast Traveler, July 2008

37

Splendor at Sea

A cruise skeptic finds himself utterly seduced by a weeklong
journey along the Riviera aboard the Silver Shadow
By George Howe Colt

Growing up as I did in the kind of creaky, old New
England family in which thriftiness was next to godliness
and extravagance was a capital crime, whenever I asked for
a second helping of ice cream, I was invariably reminded
that it was possible to have too much of a good thing.
Recently, I found the ideal laboratory in which to test this
hypothesis, when my wife, our two children and I
succumbed to the guilty pleasure of booking a trip on the
Silver Shadow, one of four ships operated by Silversea
Cruises, an unbudgeable fixture on lists of the best cruise
lines, for a week’s meandering along the Italian and French
Rivieras.
Town & Country Travel, Fall 2006

38

The Zen of Kyoto

We came to this frenetic city of 1.5 million in search of wabi-sabi, the
fleeting, enigmatic beauty that is the heart of Japanese culture
By Keith Bellows

I remember my first geisha sighting. I was in Gion, a small
district of Kyoto where kabuki was born and where geisha have
lived since the 1600’s. It was around 7 p.m., the sun was flirting with
the horizon, and I was ambling along the Shirakawa canal,
crisscrossing from side to side on the occasional bridge. The lights
of the bars and teahouses were winking on. I turned a corner, and
there, like an apparition, seemingly gliding inches above the
pavement, propelled by the choppy locomotion of tiny feet, was a
figure with a solemn mask of white broken only by the scarlet slash
of her lips. Her flowing robes were splashed with whorls of color.
Pink and white flowers rained down from her knot of jet-black hair.
In an instant, she was gone. It was six years ago, and the image has
been pulling me back to Kyoto ever since.
National Geographic Traveler, March 2005

39

“Front-of-the-Book”
 Short
 Best way to break into publications
 Learn how tomorrow at 11:00…


40

41

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Avenue, Suite 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483