HOW TO LIVE YOUR DREAMS:
Travel While You Make Money Writing

Hike the Grand Canyon today, explore the coast of California tomorrow, take in an arts festival in a coastal community the next day. Next on your agenda: a cruise to Mexico, or to Alaska, or the Hawaiian Islands. Sound like a dream existence? Well, it's a lifestyle that is available to anyone who wants to create their own business and workstyle. It takes talent, creativity, and a willingness to expect the unexpected, but if those are traits you claim, you can succeed as a traveling writer.

Oh, and it helps if you read a good "how-to" book on the subject; one that gives you step-by-step instructions. One like Portable Writing!

There are many talented writers who travel extensively. Some write as a hobby while others are in the writing business—in other words, they support their mobile lifestyle with their writing skills. I spent several years fine-tuning my writing business and experimenting with various projects to determine how I would find clients, and then keep in touch with them after I hit the highway. Once I had my system up and running, I headed out on my fulltime adventure and never looked back.

Of course, at first I thought I would write travel articles and sell them to magazines, but I soon found out it’s difficult to make a living as a magazine writer. It would take approximately ten published articles per month to support the lifestyle I wanted to live, which was by no means extravagant. That meant churning out an article every three days. Too much like a job, not the freedom I was seeking!

So I decided to supplement my magazine income with business writing. No spending hours researching articles. Instead, business or corporate clients told me what they wanted and I produced it. It didn’t take long to realize I could make way more money writing for businesses!

Corporate and business clients pay well, give me repeat business, and refer me to their peers. As I travel and if I don’t have referrals at the new location, I simply attend business meetings in towns I visit and introduce myself to prospects. I give them a brochure that tells what I can do for small businesses and provide a list of former clients, with their permission, of course.

One of the most profitable types of writing I do is to write articles for corporate executives who want an article in their name to appear in industry newsletters or trade magazines. Most don’t have the time, ability, or inclination to write, but need this type of exposure for their business, or if they’re still climbing the corporate ladder, to impress higher-ups. I'm happy to provide the service for them.

When I started writing twenty years ago I was an interior designer, which gave me inside knowledge about the field of design and architecture, and contacts. It was natural for me to produce copy for design related businesses, including ghostwriting articles for industry magazines. Those jobs led to referrals to people in the same field as well as other types of business owners and professionals. Soon I had a thriving new career.

Business owners need many different types of written materials. Every new business owner needs a press release for the local newspaper. Every seminar, workshop, or conference needs news releases to attract attendees. Also brochures. It’s easy to learn how to write press releases and brochures.

Many business owners like sending newsletters to customers and prospects. They often need ads, flyers, letters, and other written materials.

One of my most successful projects was a series of short advertising columns written for various industries. Consisting of 100 words or less, they can be about anything from pet care, floral design, and travel to interior decorating, real estate, and weddings. Market them to business owners in whatever field you care to focus on. Buyers then use the columns in their local newspapers, which gives them a weekly presence in their community. It appears as a column with their byline and photo, even though it is an advertisement.

There are many more types of materials you can produce for business and corporate clients, including employee manuals, instruction manuals, and joint or co-op newsletters.

Finding clients in areas where you’re staying is simple. Tell prospects you meet, “I help business owners with their marketing needs. Do you know anyone who is new in business or who might need to get more exposure for their business?” You’ll get referrals, or the person you’re talking with will ask for your help.

Learn your trade, hone your skills, and do the best job you possibly can. And don’t be shy about asking for reference letters from clients who are especially happy with the job you have done for them. Those and a few writing samples will land you plenty of new clients.

If you’re shy about promoting your skills to strangers, you can write and publish “print-on-demand” how-to booklets, or create your own subscription newsletters and sell them through the mail or on the Internet. Readers are always interested in new or thoughtful presentations of information relating to their hobbies and interests.

Whatever your writing expertise or field of interest, you CAN make a living from writing while traveling the country. All of the above project types and more are detailed in my book, Portable Writing: the Secret to Living Your Dreams with 25 Projects to Fund Your Freedom.

Any questions about articles appearing here can be directed to me at: kayknndy@yahoo.com.