An Alternative to Retirement: How Travel Writing Can Breathe New Life into Your Retirement

She always knew she loved to travel. But she had no idea you could make money from it.

Here’s Wendy’s story – bored with retirement, now a travel writer…

Lori Allen
Director, Great Escape Publishing

RETIREMENT ALTERNATIVE
By Wendy VanHatten in Vacaville, California

“Learn something from every place you travel,” my dad told me as we were driving through the boring scenery of some state. He was fond of telling me to look beyond the window, see what the people are doing, and not to forget about taking notes.

Traveling across the entire United States with Dad and Mom was many, many years ago. Never once did I think anything would come of those childhood experiences.

Years later, departing from a successful career in health care administration, I wasn’t ready for conventional retirement. Traveling was still part of my life…and taking notes just came naturally.

When a writer friend suggested I try the home-study travel writing program from the AWAI, I figured I could probably pick up a couple of tricks and tips. What I learned was light years beyond that—I got the complete master class! Writing, observing, understanding the travel writing industry, getting the inside track on travel magazines, and doing even more writing opened up new possibilities for me.

After that, I simply had to attend an AWAI travel writing workshop. More insight into travel writing followed…and even more possibilities.

I got my first assignment shortly after completing the workshop. Now I was hooked on travel writing as well as traveling.

No longer was I simply a retiree. I was retired and I was a published travel writer.

Articles of mine have appeared all over the world in a variety of publications. One magazine asked me to write a regular travel column. I developed my travel writing blog http://travelsandescapes.blogspot.com/. And I keep on traveling and writing.

But…that wasn’t the end of my newfound career. The experience and confidence I gained through the AWAI course and workshop enabled me to branch out into the writing field. I have several books published and am working on a couple more. I also edit for writers in the U.S. and internationally.

I still write travel articles for magazines. Recently, I was asked to become the editor for a regional magazine in northern California.

For me, this alternative to retirement couldn’t be any better. Whether I knew it or not, traveling and travel writing have always been a part of my life. AWAI just helped me turn it into my new way of life.

[Editor’s Note: Learn more about opportunities to profit from your travels (and even from your own home) in our free online newsletter The Right Way to Travel.]