You’ve rolled on out of town. You’ve seen the sights both on and off the beaten path and chatted with the locals. You’ve even learned a bit of the local language and culture. For sure, you’re coming back in the future. You also have tons of stories to tell your comrades back on the home front. The problem is you don’t know how to tell the stories or even where to publish them.
Digital storytelling — blogging, podcasting, webcasting — is all the rage among travelers on the road. Yet few of the websites out there seem to target the audiences you want to reach. The big magazines seem hard to crack and, although getting paid for your writing would be great, what you really want is to get your stories out there so other people can enjoy and learn from your experiences. It would also be great to connect with other travelers.
Luckily, there are a few great options out there now for where and how to tell your story. And the best place to start is by setting up your own blog and directing people to it. In fact, a quick trip to Blogger or Wordpress will set you up with a personal blog in mere minutes. Easy, fast and user-friendly. You’re all set to tell your stories. Add the link to your email signature, put it on your Twitter account, and stick in your Facebook profile.
Of course, that’s only the first step. Next you need to connect with other travelers around the world. This is where newly emerging travel writing sites will help you out. For instance, you can set up an account with Earthwalkers Magazine and quickly be on your way to telling travel tales to a bigger audience. You can publish articles — sometimes for pay — on their website, set up a network of friends, and access personal travel stories from around the world.
You can also check out The Backpacker, an online magazine designed to help travelers share stories and experiences. Similar to Earthwalkers, this site offers a plethora of information, an opportunity to connect with other travelers and a Travel Wiki teeming with all the travel information you could need.
If you like to mix it up with traveling and volunteering, try out Compathos, a new foundation that links artists and writers with meaningful organizations that make change in the world. It’s all digital storytelling all the way with this organization.
Women who have stories related to solo chic travel can post up on the Journeywoman site. This site abounds with stories, tips and advice for women who like to venture out into the world on their own.
Now you’re all set. Fire up your computer and get your stories out there. We need them today more than ever!
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This is an awesome post. Great stuff. I hadn't heard of Earthwalker so I'm going to check it out. I have recently gotten into travel blogging myself and found a few others to mention.
Matador Travel This online magazine has it all, travel stories, trip ideas, community involvement and a huge community network. I'm loving this one too.
Sosauce These guys and girls rock. They even have a way to print out your photos.
Matador is great. I forgot about that one. Haven't heard of Sosauce. I'll have to check it out! Thx for the tip.
Thanks Lindi for including Sosauce as a site to post your travel stories!
Yeah the backpacker is a great magazine.I looked into that before thinking about travelling recently. Will come back to it one day too.
Thanks for the great links, I haven't explored a few of these yet, so that's what I'll be doing right after this comment... :)
@Ryan You're welcome. And if you think one really stands out, please let me know!
@Richard I agree. Backpacker is a great one.
Great post. I usually just dump my travel writing onto my blog, like this entry: http://inkville.typepad.com/blog/2009/09/vertigo.html. But it might be cool to get more of it out there in front of more eyeballs.
@Aaron -- More eyeballs are always good! And the best part about these sites is that you get to connect with other travelers, which is always nice when you're on the road. Or planning a trip. Good stuff.
I think own blog the best spot. Online magazines are good, but there not so much freedom :)
This is an awesome post. Great stuff. I hadn't heard of Earthwalker so I'm going to check it out. I have recently gotten into travel blogging myself and found a few others to mention.
Matador is great. I forgot about that one. Haven't heard of Sosauce. I'll have to check it out! Thx for the tip.
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I think own blog the best spot. Online magazines are good, but there not so much freedom
You can publish your travel stories on Tripoto.com
I use a site called TravelCaster. You can give it a try: https://travelcaster.co