Death of the guidebook?
That's the headline of a story in The Age yesterday written by former Lonely Planet writer Chris Taylor who recounts his discovery that the author who'd updated the China guide before him hadn't visited places himself, but had sub-contracted a cafe owner (who subsequently recruited his cousin!) to do the research instead. Taylor argues that due to increasing competition, guidebooks can't generate the sales revenues to justify the high fees required to ensure the kind of legwork and first-hand research that results in personal recommendations. That Lonely Planet's fees aren't high enough is true, but good writers will still do the legwork. So, is the guidebook dead? Kind of. But this isn't the first time it's been suggested: see The Death of the Guidebook? (The Observer/The Guardian, 2006) and Guidebooks: RIP (The Times, 2007). And I certainly don't believe the Internet killed the guidebook. There are travellers who still prefer discerning critical information written by experts who travel for a living over 'reviews' by people who take holidays once or twice a year. And there are still travellers who prefer carrying a guidebook to printing reams of paper off a website. I don't think all guidebooks will die, just the Lonely Planet style, and by that I mean the mainstream, one-size-fits-all continent and country guides, although I think LP is on the right track with the Encounter guides, as they were with their 'Best Ofs'. As anyone with any kind of marketing sense knows, rarely does one book (or film or CD for that matter) appeal to everyone, and the ones that do, like blockbuster movies or airport novels, tend to be bland, flawed and lack complexity and style. One guidebook can't be all things to all types of travellers, whether it's budget, mid-range or top-end, old or young, singles or couples. When they try to please everyone, they don't do very well at pleasing anyone. However, guidebooks have been taking a different direction for a while now. Consider the success of niche series Wallpaper, for travellers into architecture, art and design, and Luxe, focused at a style-conscious set. Aimed at a narrow target audience, they contain travel content created with their readership firmly in mind. The phenomenal success of Cool Camping, one of the UK's top-selling guidebooks last year, and the outpouring of emotion toward the enchanting hand-crafted Love travel guides are further evidence that travellers want more from their guidebooks. They want guidebooks produced for them. Well, don't we all? What do you think?Whenever I travel around the Middle East, I always find it interesting that tourists from the region don't use guidebooks. Admittedly, they're often pilgrims visiting sites of religious significance, such as these Iranian women in Damascus. But they still visit museums, go shopping, and eat out. They don't speak Arabic but somehow they manage, they find their way around, and they still seem to have a good time.
An invitation to come to Marrakesh: to learn travel writing among the peacocks and enjoy picnics in the olive groves
I've been so busy I forgot to extend an invitation to you to join us in Morocco for a week-long travel writing retreat at Peacock Pavilions, the gorgeous guest house being built in Marrakesh by Maryam, of the enchanting My Marrakesh blog, and her talented architect husband. We're holding the retreat in early 2009, and as Maryam's beautiful guest house is not yet finished, we still have details to figure out. But we can tell you that the week will involve lots of little practical lessons in travel writing (from research and note-taking to observational writing and creating a sense of place), with plenty of excursions around exotic Marrakesh to inspire you. There'll be lots of time for writing and workshopping and editing your work in the company of the fabulous peacocks. And you'll be looked after splendidly with tasty Moroccan breakfasts to start the day, picnics under the olive trees, and outings to restaurants in the evenings. And, yes, Maryam promises to take us all shopping. But the snag is I'm going to make you write about it. In fact, you'll be writing about everything you see and do, so you'll leave Morocco with a portfolio overflowing with writing, and lots of tips on how to get it published from yours truly. And from Maryam too, of course. Because Maryam's story 'My Marrakesh is Better Than Yours' was recently published in Budget Travel. Take a read and see if it doesn't make you want to book your flight right now. Watch this space for more details and dates, or contact Maryam or myself if you'd like to put your name on our mailing list. And don't worry, we promise there'll be lots of fun along with the hard work.
Top secrets of travel writers: #1 hidden gems are kept hidden for good reason
This is the first in a series of posts on the top secrets of travel writers, partly inspired by The Traveler’s Notebook’s Top 5 Secrets Travel Writers Won’t Tell You, however, my posts won’t be devoted to the perks of the job but rather the stuff travel writers don’t tell you and the things we don’t always write about, and why. Let’s start with hidden gems. We've all seen stories like 'The Hidden Gems of Hawaii' or 'Barcelona’s Secret Spots' or 'Off-the-beaten-track Turkey'. Whilst those recommendations might not be places you’d typically see on the tourist circuit, they’re more likely to be popular local favorites rather than ‘hidden gems’, those wonderful out-of-the-way places that people don’t want you to know about. Why? Locals rarely reveal their secrets spots because they don’t want to see their secluded beaches overcrowded with tourists, beer prices go up at the local pub, or find that they suddenly need to reserve a table at a restaurant they’ve been casually dropping into for years. As for writers, they don’t want to start seeing travellers crowd their neighbourhood favorites or see charming backstreet eateries or bars they’ve discovered while researching cities overran with tourists one day. Because when that happens the very thing we found appealing in the first place – the relaxed charm, laidback style and local atmosphere – disappears. I’ll never forget a restaurant in Buenos Aires that's in all the guidebooks… the reviews suggested it was a local favorite, the food was fine, staff friendly, and atmosphere romantic. The night we went the food was hit and miss, the staff distant and inefficient, and while the place was moodily-lit, there wasn’t a single ounce of atmosphere. Bored-looking tourists and their guidebooks occupied every table. Like us, they were probably wondering if it was the right restaurant. Where were the romance, atmosphere, affable staff, and good food? Probably lost long ago, when locals stopped coming, and the chef and staff lost interest. We crossed it off our list. But as we were living nearby we walked past once or twice a week, to make sure we were justified in doing so. We were. This is why hidden gems are kept that way. Our favorite Buenos Aires restaurant? Sorry. That's our little secret. The beach pictured? Um… it’s on the west coast of Australia somewhere…
Fueling those feelings of anticipation
The anticipation of travel can sometimes be as pleasurable as the journey itself. Okay, well not quite. But for some of us, it comes close. And you've got to admit it can be fun, getting excited about the thought of going away, selecting the destinations, planning an itinerary, and making your bookings. If you read my blog you know I'm an admirer of Alain de Botton's writing and have posted about his thoughts on travel and anticipation before, about how a simple image of palm trees on a holiday brochure can have us longing to be on a beach. Australian travel writer Kim Wildman is also a fan and is currently preparing for a round-the-world-trip taking her to South Africa, Tanzania, Kenya, London, Jamaica, Cuba, New Mexico, and Fiji! It's work, obviously - she's writing some guidebooks among other projects - but I love seeing people (even professional travel writers who do it for a living) getting so excited about the prospect of travelling. On a recent post, The Anticipation of Travel, on her blog Wild About Travel + Writing, Kim wrote a list of ways to fuel that sense of anticipation: buy a calendar (circle the departure date and countdown to take-off!), make a list (of must-do's, things to pack, what to buy etc), buy a guidebook (or two or three!), learn the lingo (the ten language basics are enough for starters), get cultural (immerse yourself in the place through books and movies), and read the local papers (It's something I do when I'm researching a book, but what a great idea to get us curious about a place for a holiday too). Take a look at Kim's blog out for the full list. I'm going to come up with a few more ideas in the meantime...
Travel writing and travel blogging: how and why we do it
I've recently been interviewed by a couple of bloggers about travel writing, how Terry and I got into it, what we do, why we like it, the joys, the challenges, etc. My first interview was with Liz at Write to Travel, a blog which looks at all aspects of the craft and profession of travel writing, along with the development of her own travel writing career. As I've mentioned before, Liz does an enlightening weekly interview series with writers, the most recent of which is with Angela K Nickerson, an art teacher, tour guide, and now travel writer, and author of 'Journey into Michelangelo's Rome', which sounds wonderful. I'm going to try and get hold of it for our trip to Rome in a couple of weeks. Check out Angela's blog Just Go! If you're interested in travel writing, as everybody seems to be lately (although not for the reasons we'd like), check out the recent post at Perceptive Travel investigating why travel writer's blog and you'll get a bit more of an insight into why they write. There's been so much controversy recently surrounding ethics in travel as a result of the Thomas Kohnstamm Affair, however, Julie Shwietert shares some of the secrets of the trade in the Top 5 Secrets Travel Writers Won't Tell You at the Travellers Notebook, including how those much-discussed discounts can help you. Anne at Instant Native has just posted an interview she did with me as well. Anne provides online concierge services, organizing trips and itineraries for people ('fun menus' as she calls them), and on her blog she provides travel tips, advice on what travel accessories to buy, suggestions for places to go, and stuff to see and do. I've always promoted the idea of becoming an 'instant native', of taking a long slow holiday in a place and living like a local, which I've blogged about before - it's the way Terry and I like to travel when we have time. I'm going to come back to that in future posts and tell you a bit about our time in Turkey, where we're working now.