I have always been a writer. Blog writing is an extension of journal writing, which I started doing in college. In addition, I have blogged for many years. This is to say that writing for Travel.Write.Money is not a big stretch. Of course, there has to be more to starting TWM than just the flavor of the month.
To that end, I see Travel and Money as two intertwined topics. It is difficult to travel without money. Money pays for transportation, food, and lodging. And, if you have a steady job and home, money pays to maintain what you have while you are away. In addition, Money is a fascinating subject for me.
My view of travel has evolved. In the past, if I wanted to travel, I was of the idea that I would need to save money. Lots of it. However, once I set my mind to find a way to travel with my family, so many other options became available.
My life turned around after my wife expressed a desire to visit England in 2020. It was such a concrete goal with a deadline that it seemed all I needed to do was apply myself to make it happen. Suddenly, all my actions and thoughts turned towards figuring out how to make that dream come true.
That got me into searching for ways other people do it. There are travel hackers, digital nomads, travel writers, and all kinds of people who seemed to find a way to see the world without mountains of money. Since learning about travel hacking, a world of possibilities has opened up. Suddenly I do not need thousands upon thousands of dollars to make the dream a reality. All I need is the careful use of what I earn today, with the occasional side hustle.
Award flights. Award hotel stays. Mistake fares. Discounted travel deals. This is all from everyday spending that lets me eat my cake and have it too. In addition, there are ways to earn money while traveling or from traveling. Wouldn’t that be great?
In that regard, writing is a skill that travels very well. All one needs, at the very least, to write is pen and paper. But, it is easy to travel with a laptop and a camera. Even a phone would be sufficient to post the occasional photo and missive on a blog.
Having the journaling habit, it was only natural that my new travel hobby should turn into a blog. There is much to share with respect to what I have learned. There is still so much to learn. There are mistakes to be made. There are financial wins that could help me travel more. There are also financial mistakes that would jeopardize our travels.
So far, my travels have been domestic. There is so much more to learn about traveling abroad. These are the sort of discoveries that demand to be shared with others. This is what motivates me to write the Travel.Write.Money blog.
With this in mind, the plan is to share with my readers all about the financial work that goes into affordable travel and making something of a career from writing. I do not propose that I will be successful at either one. Simply, I will have a go at it and share the struggle. If I succeed, then we will both have a great time sharing the experience. If I fail, we still share the adventure.