In this week's episode, travel writer & Lonely Planet contributor Tim Richards discusses his new book, Heading South, as well as the highs, lows and bizarre moments of his epic career, tips for pitching stories and how to stay afloat working as a travel writer during a global pandemic.
We're living in a strange world where travel isn't really on the cards, so what happens if you're a travel writer?
Tim Richards is a freelance travel writer whose work has appeared in publications around the world, including Lonely Planet's guidebooks.
He loves to explore the weird and whacky, from the world's largest IKEA, to German bathhouses, even a former salmon cannery on the Canadian coast. Tim says if you want to be a travel writer, you have to look for quirky stories to stand out from the pack.
He recently published the travel memoir Heading South with Fremantle Press. The book is about Tim's epic rail journey across Australia, covering more than 7000kms, from the tropics to the desert, and from big cities to ghost towns. Tim's journey is one of classic highs and lows, as well as the joy of random strangers encountered along the way.