And should I look into getting published?
Following up on the last post, where I asked for y’alls input on the travel series, we now have trimmed some of the options down. Thanks to some of your comments, it seems there are a few, in particular, that you would love to see. One of them is becoming a foodie-style travel series. My inner chubby kid thanks you for that one! Food is one topic that you, honestly, can’t have too much of. The popular restaurants are typically covered, as well as the up-and-comers and food trucks. And let’s not forget the dessert places, which I’ll have to tell my heart to be still many times. It’s something I could definitely see myself do, and I would know how to differentiate from the vast world of foodies out there. Besides having a series for it, I’m well-aware of the foodies on YouTube and Instagram, and how most base it on. My series wouldn’t focus on “reviews” and, while I’ll chow down on the food, it won’t be all about the “Mmmm” moment as I bite into it. We would point the camera at the creator, their locale, the culture behind their creations. If anyone had the chance to see the American version of “The Baker & the Beauty“, there’s one scene that comes to my mind. It features Daniel, the Baker, out on the street visiting a food truck. He decides to record this moment, talking with the cook and asking questions about family and culture. Add in some dancing and enjoyment of the food, and that’s how I see my food series going. If it includes me cooking alongside them, I’m not sure about that one yet. But the focus on food, family, culture, and dancing could be one that connects well with people from around the globe.
The second of the top three choices was probably another obvious choice: hidden gems. This niche, in particular, has been getting more popular over time as travelers try to be the first to show something that was never shown before. I’ve discussed the pros and cons of this, but with hidden gems nearly everywhere and new ones popping up it wouldn’t be too difficult to cover for now. The final option was more of a suggestion, which was to do what makes me happy. In that case, not counting the other two options, it would be a sort of tie between events and sports. Four options, Steven? Well, yes and no. While there are four listed here, I mentioned that I already had an idea of the order in which I would rank those options.
Events would probably be the last choice, due to the limitations that can come from it. Although I love going to special events, traveling solely to attend and show only those moments I’m not sure would be enough. Food would be next because while I love food, and can take great photos and videos of it, I’m not a savant of it. Like one of my old directors used to say, food is just fuel for the body. I don’t seek out the fine dining, and I could eat the same thing over and over again. Don’t get me wrong, I love trying new foods and going to restaurants, but it’s not a huge thing on my list to do. A full episode of nothing but food would be fun, however when I travel I would love to cover more. See? We’re already down two, with only two more options left. Sports and hidden gems are all that’s left, and soon we’ll go a bit more in-depth as to how those shows would actually look like. This isn’t something that we quickly can decide on, as it’s a huge decision.
Thanks, again, to all those who gave me their thoughts on this and I may ask again later for further input. For now, we turn to another topic I posed at the top: publication. This is more in general that stems from a friend trying to dive into the magazine realm. Many of you may not know that before my current job, I used to write for a local newspaper here in town. While my days of writing FOR a paper/magazine may be over at this moment, I began to think about sharing my written work here to other sources. Lots of bloggers and other travel influencers do this, and have a post in popular magazines/websites that help them grow their brand. While I don’t have many travel posts, yet, I have other posts that could be used too. Namely, the poems and food for thought topics. I’ve searched a bit and found some places I could try and submit my work. It was mostly for poems, as I haven’t had much luck with other stuff such as dating. Some may pay, while others won’t, but the main thing is I’ll have to reach out to them for publishing.
What do y’all think? Should I dive further into publishing my work? If you know any magazine/websites that would be good for my work, please share any information you have! And if you want to get a head start on the final battle between hidden gems and sports, leave your thoughts in the comments. Maybe we can have a decision made by Super Bowl Sunday, which is coming soon. . .
Novatourist 