A person on an email list asked how she could become a travel writer. Here was my response:

You have three paths to a travel writing life. The first is to “moonlight” while keeping your day job. That is probably the best case scenario, but it didn’t work for me. I was teaching full-time and never made the time to write. The second is to have a partner who makes enough to support the both of you. That’s what I did; my wife works while I weave a writing career into raising our two boys. Third is to sock away a year’s salary before you start. You see, even after writing three books in four years, doing pieces for National Geographic Traveler, Backpacker, Draft, and Automotive Traveler as well as “write for hire” projects, I’m still a ways away from making a decent living. It’s a tough gig and you simply have to want it enough to ignore all those who warn against going freelance and do it anyway. Probably the single best step you can take is to try to meet as many writers, editors, and publishers and tell them you are a freelance writer looking for work. Most work comes from “who do you know” channels