Could you Write a Travel Guide? I did and you can too!

From Travel Blogger to Author

I started blogging about the Bodrum Peninsula in Turkey about seven years ago because there was very little information available about the area. It was covered in well-known travel guides as an afterthought, and the information I found on the web consisted of a lot of cut and paste content.

I collected travel information for my own use, and started publishing it for others to benefit from my discoveries. The research part of the process is one of the most enjoyable parts for me. Not just the initial travel and wandering around the streets and meeting the local people, but also the follow up research to validate data like opening times, prices and alternative options.

Not everyone is as keen on research as I am. I know there’s lots of people who want a short-cut to information and can’t be bothered to search all over the place for it. I did the legwork so they didn’t have too, and voila! I’m a travel blogger.

I could tell you that I had a strategic plan at the beginning of my blog, and that I had a step by step approach that mapped out my journey to transition from a blogger, to a publisher of a series of free quick reference travel guides, to an Travel Guide Author.

But if I told you that – I’d be lying!

My Travel Guide Evolution

My blogging journey evolved and unfolded in front of me, and 3 years down the line I found myself battling the negative critics in my head to complete my first travel guide. I didn’t listen to those voices telling me I couldn’t, shouldn’t or wouldn’t write a Travel Guide. I forged ahead regardless and have daily sales to remind me that it was the best thing I ever did.

I’m two books into my Travel Guide journey and I have passive income and monthly cheques from Amazon and other e-book retailers. It feels good. I can call myself an author.

Not only have I written a book – people are buying it.

They’re also leaving rave reviews, and believe me, that’s as rewarding as the royalty cheques. Who doesn’t love a little appreciation for a job well done?

Can You Write a Travel Guide?

You bet! Don’t listen to those doubting voices in your head, start your journey now.

What’s your Passion?

There’s two schools of thought about creating content.

Research keywords and find a topic that people are searching for, and then write about it.
Find a topic you’re passionate about, and write about it.

Which is the right approach for you? Well, you need to decide that for yourself.

But here’s what I know. It’s easier to write lifeless travel content if you’re writing about a topic you’re not emotionally vested in. I’ve written guest posts and articles for a wide-range of travel destinations that I visited but didn’t connect to, and it’s harder to create content you’re not passionate about.

It’s not impossible of course. There’s lots of lifeless content on the internet. Mass produced and stuffed with keywords to attract attention, but if your audience doesn’t make it past the first paragraph of your content – can you really count it as a success?

Any good writer can squeeze out a 500 word blog post about any topic, but try creating a 70,000 word manuscript about something you’re not passionate about. That’s 140 blog posts. Can you do it? Can you do it well?

A well written travel guide takes a lot of time and commitment. So ask yourself – do you want to spent that amount of time, blood, sweat and tears on something you’re NOT passionate about? I know I didn’t.

I stumbled across my Travel Guide niche by accident. It was a topic I was passionate about, and I wrote about it.

You can too.