Summary

The website provides submission guidelines for travel memoirs, emphasizing the need for narrative depth, personal growth, and adherence to specific editorial standards.

Abstract

Travel Memoirs is a publication seeking personal travel narratives that reflect transformation through experiences of hardship, bravery, love, fear, and anger, culminating in redemption. Submissions should be 3 to 10 minutes in length, with a preference for stories that are 4 to 7 minutes long. The publication, under Parasol Publications, is edited by Darren Weir, who invites prospective writers to email their interest and interpretation of the genre. Writers must be Medium members, and their stories should not include political commentary. Quick editorial turnaround is promised, with a collaborative review process that involves private notes and suggestions. Stories must be proofread, accompanied by a landscape-oriented photo, and formatted correctly, with no more than one link and no self-promotion. The guidelines stress the importance of community engagement through reading, clapping, and kind commenting on other writers' work.

Opinions

The editor values stories with a strong narrative arc and a message of personal growth or redemption.
Self-editing is crucial; submissions with poor grammar or formatting will be rejected.
The use of personal photographs is highly encouraged, with color photos preferred.
The editor discourages multiple links and self-promotion within stories.
Community engagement is important, with an emphasis on supportive interactions.
The guidelines suggest a preference for a kicker at the beginning of the story to enhance its appeal.
The publication's process is collaborative, with editors providing feedback directly within the story draft.
There is a clear aversion to political content in the travel memoirs.
The editor emphasizes the importance of proper attribution and permission for any non-personal photos used.

Submission Guidelines for Travel Memoirs

A place to share your travel memories

Welcome to Travel Memoirs, a publication dedicated to our travel memories, the people we meet, and the experiences, good and bad, that have had an impact or taught us a lesson.

This isn’t a travelogue. I don’t want to know about your favorite hotel, or read a diary of your travels. It’s more Elizabeth Gilbert (Eat, Pray, Love) or Frances Mayes (Under a Tuscan Sun) than Rick Steves.

I want to read about hardship, bravery, love, fear, and anger but I always want to find redemption at the end. How did the journey change you? We do not accept any political commentary.

The story should follow a narrative arc with a beginning, a middle, and an end.

Your story should be three to ten minutes long with the sweet spot between four and seven.

We are proud to be under the Parasol Publications banner. Darren Weir is the publisher and editor-in-charge. If you want to be added as a writer, send me an email to [email protected] with a short message about why you want to write here. Also please let me know your interpretation of Travel Memoirs. What‘s your understanding of the genre?

If I don’t already know you, I will want to read some of your stories, and if you are new to Medium you will have to submit your story for review. Most importantly, you must be a member of Medium.

When you submit a story you can expect a quick turnaround, usually within 24 hours, although some stories may require a little longer. Do not submit a story that has already been published, even if it has been self-published. If you accidentally self-publish, let me know as soon as possible and I will consider adding it to the publication.

When we receive your submission, one of the editors will highlight your title and leave a note letting you know that they are going through it. Please do not comment or make any changes until they are done. There will be an asterisk with the editor's notes throughout the story so please read them and acknowledge the editor’s comments and suggestions. And please do not delete the notes. They sometimes disappear when you make a big correction but don’t delete them on purpose. Only you and the editors can see the notes and they help the editor to see the changes that were required.

Make sure the story you have submitted has been proofread. If you send in something that is formatted wrong or full of spelling and grammatical errors it will be rejected outright. Our editors are volunteers and shouldn’t be expected to turn your ramblings into a coherent and polished story. That’s your job as the writer.

I prefer to see a kicker at the top of the story. It’s not mandatory but I think it adds something, even if it’s as simple as TRAVEL MEMOIRS. Remember the kicker should be all caps, in subtitle case (small t).

You must have a photo at the top and it must be in landscape mode (horizontal) and the borders should align with the text. It must be under your title that is written in title case (capital T), and the subtitle in subtitle case (small t).

Photos are important to every story, especially when it comes to travel. If you know my writing, you will know how much I love to use photos to help tell the story. We prefer color photos over black and white although we will consider an exception if the photo is amazing.

I want the photos to be your own. Definitely no screenshots from social media or online. If you must use someone else’s photo, please make sure it is properly attributed and that you have permission to use it. If someone decides to sue you for using an unauthorized photo, you will have to be able to defend yourself.

Please, no more than one link at the bottom of your story. With the way Medium is now formatted there are already links to more of your stories at the bottom. Plus the algorithm doesn’t seem to like more than one link.

No self-promotion or calls to action. Don’t ask people to follow you or to clap for your stories. We do not want any “read for read” requests on our submissions

As always, please read the stories from other writers, clap and comment, because you are now a part of a supportive community. And always comment with kindness. Like your mother told you, “If you don’t have something nice to say, don’t say anything at all.”

If you want help with formatting, please read through the Parasol submission guidelines. There is a lot of information on the page to help you craft a well-written story that will improve your chances of getting it published, and who knows, maybe even boosted.

Make sure you have read Medium’s Rules as well.

If you have any questions please ask, either through email at [email protected] or with a note on your story.

Thank you for your interest. Safe travels.