Tips for Writing (and Adding Humor) to Travel Pieces

Some things that have worked for me

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I’ve written travel pieces on and off for several years, and I think there is room for humor in a lot of travel writing. Since it’s the season for travel, I’m going to highlight some things that have worked for me in this style of writing.

General travel writing tips

• Write about where you live. When I started writing travel pieces, I had success pitching articles focused on Colorado, where I live. Since I’ve lived here several years and have traveled extensively in the state, this felt like an easy starting point, and I have found that many travel writers write about the area around them.

• Pitch after a trip. I’ve heard travel editors say that they sometimes get general pitches along the lines of “I’m going to X place, do you need anything?” But editors typically prefer that you pitch after visiting a place so you have a better idea of that place and what you may want to write about.

• Have a clear angle. The other frequent advice I’ve heard is to have a clear angle. So rather than just “Tips on visiting Paris” (which many people could write), something like “I’m a pastry chef, and these are the 10 best pastries I ate while in Paris” will have a better chance of landing. I’ve tried to get more specific with angles unique to me when pitching as a result.

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What about humor?

I have heard more than one travel editor say they would like to get more pieces with humor in them, which is good news for humor writers.

Humorous travel pieces can take many forms, including:

Personal experience/service pieces with humor in them: Examples:

• “We splurged on extras and all-inclusive plans for our first trip to Disney World. It was a magical disaster” by Julie Kling

• “I Went to the Taco Bell Hotel and It Was Certainly a Hotel With Taco Bell in It” by Audrey Farnsworth

Short satirical humor pieces. Like these:

• Escape Room Challenge: Your European Airbnb by Juliana Gray

• How to Ensure Your Annual Beach Vacation Destroys Your Relationship With Your Extended Family by Talia Argondezzi and Jeff Bender

Humorous personal essays

Many sites run personal essays, and those that accept humorous essays are often open to humorous personal essays. There are also contests and anthologies that accept them.

However, as I’ve talked about before, I think humorous essays often need some sort of takeaway or change or realization rather than just a description of a funny travel experience.

There is definitely a lot to mine in funny travel experiences, but it helps to consider what readers can take away from the experience you want to write about if you want to submit a piece for publication. For travel pieces, this can take the form of something like “I went to X place, here’s what it was like,” but the place would need to have some unique appeal to readers.

Humor can be added to travel essays and articles in the form of funny stories and voice, but some specific techniques you can also try include funny parentheticals and funny metaphors.

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What about submitting?

One good thing about freelancing these days is there are tons of free resources to help you find publications and pitch information. When I first started out, information felt much more difficult to come by. Now publications often post pitch guidelines on their sites and editors sometimes post about what they specifically want or don’t want on social media.

Here are some things that have helped me publish travel pieces:

• Following pitch guidelines. I’ve heard editors say that many writers do not do this! So, taking the time to read and follow them helps. Many of the pieces I’ve published, including ones in Fodors and AFAR came about because I just followed the guidelines on the website.

• Follow editors on social media. Editors at publications like Business Insider frequently post about what they are looking for, so following these editors/taking the time to look for any advice posted on social media can help. This piece I did for She Knows came about because I saw a call for pitches from an editor on (old) Twitter.

• Take advantage of online editor webinars. These days there is lots of good advice available at online conferences or for free online. These recordings from TravMedia are a good place to start (scroll down to “watch again” for previous ones).

So go forth and write about your travels (or what’s going on in your own backyard).

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Thanks for reading Humor Me, a newsletter featuring funny stuff and writing tips. In case you’re new here, I’m a humor writer and freelancer whose work has appeared in New Yorker Shouts, McSweeney’s, Real Simple, and more. Find out more about me at julievick.com.

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