First, read Tim Leffel's "Seven Myths of Being a Travel Writer."
Then...
1. You gotta get published to get published: Where to Publish First.
2. What's it like Out On The Road?
3. If you write only what you like you'll have a readership of one. To succeed you've gotta write for lots of people, so Know Your Readership!
4. To survive, you gotta Make the Editor Happy
5. The editor's second question* : Do You Have Photos?
6. So now you're an author—but Can You Make a Living?
7. Your success or failure depends largely on the contracts you sign. Read this!
8.
The crash course (one weekend) in travel and
guidebook writing: SATW
Institute.
9. Travel writers' cafe in cyberspace? That's the Travel Guide Writers List, a free email discussion list for authors, from wannabe to pro. Over 300 subscribers, and the price is right.
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*The first question is "Are you gonna meet your deadline?"