How to Write Travel Articles - Part 2

So now you have a tiny sidebar travel article -- a brief list with an introduction line and it's time to turn it into a full article. If you don't, then jump back to Part 1 by clicking here.

Your tiny sidebar is just the bones of an article. It's time to add some meat.

Step 5 - Add one sentence to each item

We're taking baby steps here. Just one sentence per item in your list explaining why it's on the list.

For my example of Rhode Island historical sites, I can have:

Nine Men's Misery - The oldest veteran's memorial in America, in memory of nine colonists who vanished during the Native American uprising in the 1676's.

Mercy Brown's Gravesite - In 1892, Rhode Islanders believed that Mercy Brown had returned from the grave as a vampire to drain the life of her family.

Gaspee Point - Chafing at taxation and the crown's crackdown on smuggling, the citizens of Providence burned the tax ship Gaspee in 1772 as one of the first acts of the American Revolution.

If you chose to write about the 10 items to pack for a snorkeling adventure, write a sentence about each item, explaining why they are important. Same thing if you want to write about the seven mistakes that travelers make when they go through customs. Or the 14 places you will never visit again.

If you have 10 items and add 20 words to each, plus your introduction with 20 words, you now have 220 words. Still not enough for a byline article, but you're now seeing significant progress.

Step 6 - Expand each sentence to a paragraph

Three to five sentences per item will boost your word count considerably. For each item, describe something interesting that makes it stand out in a sentence. Add a visual or other sensory detail in another sentence. Include a sentence or two about something important like how to get there, where to buy it, or what to order.

So for my Rhode Island article, what said "Gaspee Point - Chafing at taxation and the crown's crackdown on smuggling, the citizens of Providence burned the tax ship Gaspee in 1772 as one of the first acts of the American Revolution." now becomes a full paragraph.

Gaspee Point - The first shots of the American Revolution happened in Rhode Island when the tax ship Gaspee ran aground near the Pawtuxet village. Smugglers and tax haters alike set up on the ship, looting it and setting it afire in an event that is remembered in Pawtuxet's annual Gaspee Days Festival. If you can't make the festival, enjoy the village's shops and restaurants, and eat ice cream while watching the water flow out into the bay.

Now do the same thing for each of your items.

Step 7 - Set a sequence

Establish a sequence. It might be sequenced by when it happened in history, or by when it happened to you. It might be in the order that you would encounter them on a driving route. You might want to sequence them from least to best or in an opposite order, but establish a sequence that makes sense for the material.

For my history of Rhode Island example, I might sequence it in a driving trip from the airport, around the bay, and back again to the airport in order to sell the article to a flight magazine. Or maybe I'll put it in historical sequence.

With the items in order, build transitions between paragraphs, making them flow smoothly from one to the other.

Then rewrite the introductory paragraph to make it clear that the sequence exists. This will help carry the reader through the article.

And add a concluding paragraph wrapping up the experience.

At this time, you have a serviceable article with the word count and detail necessary to sell a bylined article.

You can stop there, but there is more to do to make it an article you will be proud of.

CONTINUE TO PART 3