by Carmen

After months of planning (Yes, months. This trip has caused me more planning than our year abroad.) it was finally time to hit the road.  Packing a van for 6 people to camp across the country proved challenging.  It became apparent that we would not be able to fit everything inside.  A quick call to a friend luckily resulted in a soft rooftop container that we could borrow to contain our 6 sleeping bags and 3 of our sleeping pads.  With careful placement of everything in every available space we were able to fit all our stuff and keep all the seats available for human use as well.

We packed the night before our departure and went to bed.  Our second daughter was away on an Appalachian Service Project and the plan was to meet her group at their final campgrounds before their return to Texas.  The meeting place would be DeGray Lake Resort State Park in Arkadelphia, AR, just west of Little Rock.  Even weeks ahead I had not been able to make a camping reservation at this resort because we would be arriving on 4th of July and everything was booked. Fortunately for our trip, however, that caused me to find the Army Corps of Engineer Campgrounds website that was eventually the source of many of our camping choices.  We found a tent spot at Caddo Drive on the same side of the lake.

Day 1

After a quick breakfast of oatmeal and with all the excitement that comes with leaving for family vacations, we piled into the van on Monday morning and took off.  Mapquest estimates the trip at 7 hours 36 minutes and 475  miles.  We wouldn’t be stopping at any colleges on the first day. It would just be direct driving.  The girls had a plan to pass around knitting continuously as we drove and change colors at each state line so that in the end the size of each piece will reflect the size of the states we passed.  They set to work as we got on the highway.  Leaving on a holiday meant traffic was minimal.  However, it also meant cops were shooting radar at nearly every mile marker so we had to pay attention to our speed.

Leaving Texas is always a feat in itself.  If you live in central Texas, you’ll know it is nearly a day’s drive to get out of your own state.   Nevertheless, after about 6 hours we managed to cross the state line from our own sun scorched and drought suffering state into Arkansas.  For anyone driving north on I-35 who needs to make a rest stop, I highly recommend stopping in Waco just before the bridge at the Texas Ranger Hall of Fame.  They have a public restroom, travel information, a nice place to picnic along the water, interesting historic graveyard and, of course the Hall of Fame.

We made it to DeGray Lake in the estimated travel time (give and take for stops and eating) just in time to pitch our tent in the first rain we Texans had seen in 8 months.  This is a new tent for us.  We had pitched it once at home for practice but putting it up for the first time in the rain was a bit stressful.  In the end we got it up but because it had been stored with the windows open and it has a netting roof, there was substantial water let in before we could get the tarp in place.  We quickly realized we should have brought extra towels for situations like this.  Of course, as soon as we got the tent up and reasonably dried on the inside, the rain stopped!  We were able to set up our camping stove and cook up the ratatouille and some rice from the cooler for dinner. The girls then took a quick swim in the lake and we headed toward the dam to see the fireworks.

The lake was pretty and the fireworks well attended.  We then returned to sleep.  The Caddo Drive tent camping area at DeGray Lake is somewhat tightly packed.  We were quite close to neighbors.  Being close to your neighbors on a holiday like 4th of July isn’t ideal.  There was quite a lot of noise that night well past midnight but we hunkered down and tried to sleep.  Luckily for the girls they were so tired they fell asleep anyway. My husband and I weren’t quite so lucky.  If I were to re-plan this trip I might not camp on 4th of July as I value getting rested when I’m having to drive.

Day 2

The Appalachian Service Project was scheduled to leave the park at 7:30 am.  We weren’t able to get ourselves packed up that quickly so we had to drive over to get Sophia before packing.  We found the group, exhausted but glowing from their experience, and after many tearful goodbyes returned with our daughter.  With one more suitcase, sleeping bag, sleeping pad and human being we set out for our second day.

Our first stop was to be Rhodes College in Memphis, TN.  Those of you looking for a similar trip might also consider Hendrix College in Arkansas which is another liberal arts college praised by Loren Pope in Colleges that Change Lives.  From Arkadelphia to Rhodes is about a 3 1/2 hour drive.  Because of our late departure we didn’t make it to our scheduled tour on time and had to call ahead to let the college know we’d be late.  The Rhodes admissions office was very kind and we were able to have a later tour.  We were all highly impressed with what we saw at Rhodes. The new library was especially beautifully designed (see post featured photo). Walking through the campus you had the feeling that someone had taken Oxford University and plopped the buildings down in Memphis. The girls liked the discussion style format of classes.  The admissions office knows how to put on a good show, projecting your name onto their large screen introductory video and serving custom made cookies with the Rhodes “R” in icing as well as southern style peach iced tea.  I have to say, as I write this now from Connecticut and after having seen several more colleges, no other admissions office has equaled Rhodes welcome to their visitors.

We said goodbye and quickly exchanged our college search hats for our tourist hats and headed over to Graceland!  The home and burial place of Elvis Presley and his family, Graceland is one of those “must sees” for anyone passing through Memphis.  Honestly, it is a bit pricey, and with a family it wasn’t without a wince that we decided to go ahead and see it.  But luck was with us that day.  As we walked towards the ticket office two women gave us 2 adult passes they weren’t using saving us $70!  Sometimes the force is with you.  My husband and I had seen Graceland about 20 years ago.  Since then the tour has improved with a complimentary audio tour with excerpts from Lisa Marie Presley.  They have also opened the racquetball building and moved many of the costumes and museum pieces to the mansion side from across the street.  Our German exchange student particularly enjoyed getting to see Graceland and we each had our favorite rooms.

It was then time to head to our next camping spot just passed Nashville, Seven Points.  Memphis to Nashville is just over a 3 hour drive.  We also had to stop for dinner along the way.  This is where Mapquest failed us.  As we neared our destination, it was clear we were in a residential area.  In fact, as we came to the exact address we were sitting in front of a small bungalow home in central Nashville.  Luckily, the copy of our reservations from the Army Corps of Engineers also had directions to the campground and it became quickly apparent they were quite different.  We got back onto the highway, followed the second set of directions and made it to Seven Points – just in time for rain!

As we pulled into our site after 9 at night we found another family in our place.  It seems a lot of people come into campsites late and take spots without reservations.  We were fortunate that this family agreed to move without any problem, so we went straight to the showers while they dismantled their tent.  This time we were prepared for the rain. Our windows and doors had been zipped shut and we had folded the tarp into the tent so that it covered the roof.  We raised our tent with minimal water entering and went straight to bed.

Day 3

Seven Points was a much nicer campground, more private and quieter than the one in Arkansas. We had a lovely spot on the lake and woke up to ducks who enjoyed some of our old bread.  We wished we could have stayed longer but we had a lot to do and see so we packed up after breakfast and hit the road for North Carolina.

The road from Nashville to Asheville passes through the Smoky Mountains.  It’s a beautiful route along I-40.  In about 3 hours we found our next sightseeing destination, the Biltmore Estate.  Anyone passing near Asheville really should stop at the Biltmore.  Although pricey (pricier than Graceland) it really is an amazing place and a place you could tour for the entire day.  Built by George Vanderbilt in the early 1900′s, the Biltmore is a magnificently kept estate and probably the closest thing the United States has to European chateaus and castles.  Do see it if you ever have a chance.

Knowing the Biltmore would take us many hours to tour, we had nothing else scheduled that day.  We saw the home, the gardens, had an ice cream and moved on to our campgrounds in the evening after a quick stop for groceries.  We arrive at our campground  just east of Asheville at Lake Powhatan and just in time for – rain!  The Lake Powhatan campsites appeared to be geared very much towards rv’ers.  While the facilities were nicely kept with electricity, water and clean bathrooms there was not an appropriate place to pitch a tent.  We made due in our gravel driveway, had our dinner and went on to bed knowing we were in a good position to drive to Davidson College the next day.

by Carmen

I’ve been pretty quiet on the blog since returning from our year in Brazil and Mexico.  Don’t take it to mean that our lives have been quiet though!  The girls have another year under their belts and to my husband’s and my amazement our two oldest have reached the age to look at colleges.

There’s something bittersweet about planning a college road trip.  Of course, there is the excitement that comes with planning any travel, but there is also the sense that this could very well be one of our last trips together as a nuclear family – the realization that future trips may be with one of us missing due to conflicting schedules or new interests that include friends over family.  It’s a special time with a lot of mixed emotions.

That said, I’ve decided to blog along the way and share with you the planning that I’ve done to get this trip to happen so that for anyone looking for a similar experience, perhaps you can shorten your preparation time by following along with us.

Here are the variables for our trip:

1) We’re taking off from our hometown of Austin, Texas and heading east.

2) We’ll be camping along the way as much as possible to save money. Camping for us means tent camping.

3) We’ll have 6 people in a Dodge Caravan family van on our way up and 5 on our way down. (my husband doesn’t have enough time from work to travel both directions so I’ll be single mom for the return).

4) In addition to my husband and myself, we have 3 daughters.  The two in question will be an incoming senior and a junior.  We’ll also have our 10 year old daughter and a 17 year old German exchange student who are coming along for the sight seeing opportunities.

5) Our daughters are primarily interested in small, liberal arts colleges so that’s where we’ll be stopping.

6) In the middle of the trip we’ll take a week break to stay with family on the Connecticut shore.

Here’s what we’re taking:

1) On top of the van we are strapping 6 sleeping bags and as many sleeping pads as will fit (probably 4) in a soft container.

Inside the van -

2) Remainder of sleeping pads.

3) Bag of 6 bath towels

4) Bag of 6 sheets because nights will be too hot for sleeping bags in the south.

5) Zip lock of shower supplies

6) 3 flashlights with batteries

7) Camping lantern

Large tent

9) Two burner camping stove top

10) Kitchen supplies including one pan, one pot, one french coffee press, silverware, reusable dishes, reusable bowls, spatula, sharp knife, two larger bowls.

11) One medium cooler with one day’s supply of fresh food. (We will hope to make 2 meals each day and buy one out).

12) One roll toilet paper in case the campsites don’t have any.

13) 2 propane tanks for stove top

14) Collection of cds and dvds chosen by kids.

15) Map of US colleges, the Fiske College Guide and Colleges that Change Lives book.

16) Self created college visit evaluation chart so the girls can record their thoughts.

17) Binder containing all itinerary for trip.

18) 2 laptops (1 for my blogging and trip information, the other so that our oldest daughter can Skype with her calculus tutor.  We would take 1 laptop but my microphone has kicked the bucket).

19) Each family member will have one carry on size bag for clothes and a smaller bag of things for the car.

So – stay tuned and I’ll share with you how things go.  I’ll be uploading information on the campgrounds, wifi situations (as I’ll be working along the way), points of interest, colleges and road conditions.

And we’re off!

This Sunday has been officially dubbed by Technomadia as the “Day of the Nomad” at SXSW in Austin, Texas.

Here’s the schedule:

11a – SXSW Session: ‘Technomadism – Becoming a Technology Enabled Nomad‘ hosted by Cherie & Chris of Technomadia

12:30 – SXSW Session: ’How to Make Money While Traveling Around the World‘ hosted by Jason Boehle & Tynan

(Both sessions will be held at the Marriott Courtyard, Rio Grande B at 300 East 4th Street – 1 block west of the convention center)

2 – 4p Nomadic SXSW Meetup (SXSW Badge NOT required) At Casa Chapala (Cesar Chavez (1st street) and San Jacinto) Meet us for food and drinks whether you’re attending SXSW or not!  Please bring cash. No entry charge but we’re going dutch on what we munch.  Please RSVP if you’re showing up!

We really hope you’ll join us.  Looks like there’s going to be a great group of location independents in Austin. Come get to know each other and get inspired!

For many people who want to become location independent the most burning question is, “How will I make money while I’m on the road?”  A career in writing is often one of the first that comes to mind.  I mean, writing is obviously portable, doesn’t usually have to be done at a specific hour, and can be easily sent via electronic means.  If you’re at all active in social media you have probably seen many people who claim to be traveling the world while they write.  Some are travel writers, others are writing on other subjects.

But what does it take to become a career writer?  Does it require a special background or is it something that can be jumped into from a variety of directions?  And what are the chances you could make enough money to support yourself on the road writing?  Finally, what would it take to become a “travel writer” and get free hotel stays or vacations in exchange for your work?

I’m proud today to present to you four writers who are location independent.  They’re here to answer some of the questions I just posed, share their experiences and tell us whether we could do what they do.

Let’s start with Sharon Hurley Hall.  Sharon is currently living in Barbados with her family. She has written for numerous entities including Ms. Ileane Speaks, Park Ride Fly USA, and PiggyBankPie.  You can see her full list of publications and services at Sharon Hurley Hall.

A lot of people who would like to become location independent consider writing as a career.  You have made that happen.  Can you tell us how you got your start in writing and whether you had educational or professional experience that helped you in the beginning?

Before moving to an island, I first went freelance, but I must admit to having an ace in the hole. You see, I’d already had about 17 years’ experience as a writer, sub-editor, editor and journalist, including about five years teaching journalism, so I didn’t have much to learn in the way of basic writing skills. When I decided to freelance it was a matter of learning to write for the web (my friend Suzanne James of Inspired Author helped with that) and toughing it out till I got some clients.

How did you go about getting your first writing assignment?

It was a case of ‘throw everything and see what sticks’. I started blogging, I signed up for Guru, Ifreelance and Rentacoder, I scoured Craigslist and Deb Ng’s Freelance Writing Jobs site and took any opportunity that came my way. Although all of these contributed to building my writing career, my first paid writing gig as a freelancer came from a personal contact – one of my former students who was promoting a band for a charity. He didn’t feel confident enough to write the story himself (he was still at university), so he asked me to do it.

How long were you writing before you became location independent?

It was just about a year, but the plan had been in place for about four years. We’d chosen our dream location and were in the process of sorting out somewhere to live. Once that was done, we moved to the Caribbean. Ironically, this was just about the time my writing career really took off, so when we moved I had to sit in an room using two empty suitcases as a desk while we waited for furniture to arrive.

What are the issues for people who would like to travel while they maintain a writing career?

The key issues are connectivity and reliability. Although it’s nice to think you can go anywhere, if you have a thriving career, you’ll need to go somewhere where you can guarantee having good internet access. Having a decent laptop or computer and a reliable backup solution is also a must as you need to be able to access your files wherever you are. But reliability is also about buckling down and doing the work you need to do to fund your lifestyle – sometimes that means putting a day trip on hold to meet a client deadline, but it’s worth it for the peace of mind it brings.

Many people dream of being a “travel writer”.  What I mean by that is getting trips, hotel stays, or cruises paid for as part of their writing profession.  What does it take to make this happen?

I’m not really a full-time travel writer (more a writer who travels), but I’ve managed to get trips to interesting places through an unusual route – working as a journalist for a trade magazine, which I did for about 18 months. Trade magazines mean trade shows – and someone’s got to cover the news. That gig took me to Mexico, Chicago, London and Bahrain. And because I’m location-independent, I have been able to visit family and friends in other places while carrying on with my writing career.

Do you have any advice for someone who would like to write professionally and travel the world?

It is possible to write and travel and make a success of both. All you need are self-belief and sound planning.

Next, please meet Thursday Bram.  Thursday not only writes but also advises freelancers on how to earn money and be successful in their careers.  She’s had a variety of writing gigs including travel writing.  See more about Thursday at ThursdayBram.com.

A lot of people who would like to become location independent consider writing as a career.  You have made that happen.  Can you tell us how you got your start in writing and whether you had educational or professional experience that helped you in the beginning?

I started freelancing in high school and continued in college due to the fact that writing was not too hard to fit around my class schedule. It wasn’t difficult to just pick up and move my computer across two states, which got me started thinking about how I could write anywhere. In fact, I did exactly that and studied abroad for a semester, continuing to freelance all the while. My degree was in communications, but I could have continued writing with or without the degree.

How did you go about getting your first writing assignment?

My first writing assignment actually came from my mother, who ran a small magazine. I could either write for her or do the dishes — easy choice in my opinion! After that, I picked up writing for local newsletters and other small publications and worked my way up to some bigger gigs.

How long were you writing before you became location independent?

I pretty much considered myself location independent after I graduated from college. I’m back in school right now (working on my master’s degree), so I’m only location independent between classes. But my husband’s job requires quite a bit of travel (for months at a time, at points) and I generally go along when I’m not in school.

What are the issues for people who would like to travel while they maintain a writing career?

Be prepared for everything. I’ve submitted work by typing it out on my cell phone before because I couldn’t get internet any other way. Just making sure that you can fulfill your contracts can be the biggest problem — and it’s one that is crucial. That means preparing for anything that might get in the way of your ability to work.

Many people dream of being a “travel writer”.  What I mean by that is getting trips, hotel stays, or cruises paid for as part of their writing profession.  What does it take to make this happen?

I’ve done some travel writing — and mostly it requires being willing to work harder than in a lot of other freelance writing gigs. There are so many freelance writers who want to be travel writers that you have to find some way to set yourself out from the crowd. It can be done (I know several freelance writers who earn a full-time income from travel writing), but it’s hard work.

Do you have any advice for someone who would like to write professionally and travel the world?

Make a budget and stick to it! Freelancing has its ups and downs in terms of income and when you combine that with your travel schedule, you have to have a good grip on your money. Your budget doesn’t have to be particularly frugal, provided you’re pulling in enough income to cover it, but it needs to include building up savings — what if you get stranded somewhere you can’t get a good internet connection to send out work over? You have to have enough money available to get you to the next place you want to go.

JoAnna Haugen is an avid writer/traveler.  One of her goals is to visit all seven continents.  She writes about her travels at Kaleidoscopic Wandering and also keeps a site for her professional writing at JoAnnaHaugen.com.  She has been published in Copia Magazine, Bootsnall and National Geographic Traveler among others.

A lot of people who would like to become location independent consider writing as a career.  You have made that happen.  Can you tell us how you got your start in writing and whether you had educational or professional experience that helped you in the beginning?

I have a degree in public relations and jumped into a marketing career right after college, both of which incorporated a great deal of writing. I joined the Peace Corps shortly thereafter and when I returned, I found another job and also took a class through the mail on how to write for children. It was through that class that I learned how the magazine industry worked and how to pitch articles. I applied what I learned in that class and sold an article on a college-related issue to a publication I still write for today. From there, I branched out to other publications, writing styles and genres. I had a full-time job up until about a year ago, but one of the reasons why I was able to become a full-time freelance writer is because I did freelancing on the side for a few years before that. While I was working at a “real” job, I built relationships with several editors, started a blog and a website, became active on social media, learned more about the industry and then, once I was making a small side income, I quit my job altogether to focus on writing.

How did you go about getting your first writing assignment?

I wrote web copy when I was a marketing specialist right out of college, and my very first paying magazine article was for $.10 a word for one of my alma mater’s college-specific magazines, which I did right before I left for the Peace Corps. My first job once I returned stateside gave me the opportunity to write a column for the company’s newsletter, and I wrote for a local arts and culture publication for no pay, but by then I’d built up a nice portfolio of clips. It wasn’t until I learned about queries and the editorial process through my mail order class, however, that I finally figured out how freelancing actually worked. I landed my first traditional freelancing gig with a hard copy query letter (the only job I’ve gotten via hard copy query to this day). The article was about how college students could take advantage of their resident advisers in the dorms for College Outlook. It was published in the fall of 2007.

How long were you writing before you became location independent?

I’ve been writing practically forever. I’ve kept a journal since the third grade (yes, I haul around a heavy trunk filled with hand-written journals). I originally wanted to pursue journalism in college but went the public relations route because I thought it was more practical. I made a little bit of money off of a few articles in the fall of 2003 but didn’t actively try to sell anything else until 2006. My first sale of my current freelancing life happened in late 2007, and from there I began to take freelancing seriously. I juggled freelance writing and a full-time job until October 2009, when I began working for myself full time.

It’s important that people realize that I don’t only pursue travel writing. I write for many different industries on several different topics including athletics, health, business, writing, animals, the environment and philanthropic topics. I am a ghost blogger and copy writer. I’ve edited books, and I hold editing roles for two different publications. I do all of this in addition to writing about travel for print and online publications.

What are the issues for people who would like to travel while they maintain a writing career?

One of the things that I find most convenient is that most places are wired, which means I can stay in touch with my editors and clients regardless of where in the world I am. But this also means that it is very hard to take a real vacation for two reasons. The first is that I really can’t be unplugged. When just about every hotel and hostel has internet connection, there’s no good reason why I can’t check my email, but that also means I can continue to work and make money, so that’s also a good thing. Also, as a travel writer, I always have my eyes and ears open for a potential story. I’m always snapping photos to accompany those stories. The downside to that is that it’s easy to miss what’s going on around me as a result. Sometimes I have to remind myself that it’s okay to put the notepad and camera away and just absorb a place. But let’s be honest, they’re never too far away.

Many people dream of being a “travel writer”.  What I mean by that is getting trips, hotel stays, or cruises paid for as part of their writing profession.  What does it take to make this happen?

It takes a lot of work, time and perseverance. If I ever figured out how much I make per hour on my travel writing, I’m sure I’d cry. Being a travel writer is not a get-rich-quick scheme. It requires writing for publications that pay below what you’d like to be making so that you can build a portfolio and credibility. It means spending time on social media and at conferences making connections and getting to know people in the industry. It means underpromising and overdelivering. It requires work at weird hours in weird places when you’d rather be sitting by the pool or sleeping on an airplane. You have to talk yourself up honestly, but also help to promote others when it’s not your time to shine. It also means you should say thank you, because there are a lot of people who help travel writers get where they are, and a small token of appreciation goes a long way.

Do you have any advice for someone who would like to write professionally and travel the world?

Become a travel writer because you love to travel and you love to write, not because you might get press trips and it’s glamorous. And don’t feel like travel writing is your only option. With global connectivity, you can write about just about any topic from almost anywhere in the world.

Serena Makofsky is a woman whose blog, Have You Seen the Dog Lately? sealed the deal on my decision to choose Oaxaca, Mexico, as our second destination last year.  Her description of her son’s first day of school along with her subsequent warm responses to my questions made it clear that Oaxaca would have viable educational alternatives for the kids if we went there.  Serena developed her writing career unexpectedly after arriving in Oaxaca.  She has since become very active and created a viable income source for her family.

A lot of people who would like to become location independent consider writing as a career.  You have made that happen.  Can you tell us how you got your start in writing and whether you had educational or professional experience that helped you in the beginning?

I’ve always written, and started my career writing friends’ essays in high school for cash, I’m sorry to say.  While the ghost writing industry has flourished in the meantime, I’ve worked my way into other niches.

How did you go about getting your first writing assignment?

I landed a staff writer job for a fake travel magazine in 1990.  We used computers like typewriters, printing out everything and sending pamphlets to clients.  I doubt the magazine ever made a dime, but rounds of investors came through like clockwork, until the dot.bomb of 2000 hit.

How long were you writing before you became location independent?

I’ve written on and off all my adult life (a couple decades now), but moved abroad, to Oaxaca, with the intent of teaching English, not writing.  When the teaching job fell apart, due to the school owner deciding not to pay for my work papers, I scrambled quickly to revive my writing career as I had only one ongoing client.  I landed a great new client within a week, and had a six-month stint writing pop culture articles before securing a long-term contract to write curriculum for English language-learners.

What are the issues for people who would like to travel while they maintain a writing career?

I think being location independent helps me as a freelance writer.  “On assignment in Oaxaca for xx magazine” catches editors’ attention.  Writers should have a lightweight laptop and excellent online and print clips.  Oh, and learn to live ever-so-cheaply.  I can support my family of four in Oaxaca purely on my freelance income, but I would have to work many more hours to accomplish the same feat in Oakland, California, my home town.  I also recommend people on a long-term expatriate plan consider selling their homes and possessions stateside to simplify their finances.  I think that real estate and cars are what hold back a lot of people from making the leap to the expat lifestyle.

Many people dream of being a “travel writer”.  What I mean by that is getting trips, hotel stays, or cruises paid for as part of their writing profession.  What does it take to make this happen?

I’m not a travel writer per se, though travel, culture, language, and expatriate issues show up in many of my articles.  I think the freebies are the easiest part of the gig to get, and the hardest part is persevering with daily marketing to attract good, ongoing clients who pay fairly and on time.  To score the swag, polish your clips and send them to the Convention and Visitors Bureau, press board, tourist authority or other association of the locale of your choice.  These entities often run fam trips–familiarization trips–for travel journalists.  Other potential sources include airlines, cruise lines, luxury hotel chains, and high-end spas.

Do you have any advice for someone who would like to write professionally and travel the world?

The two go together famously!  Roll in marketing and pitching as part of your work day, read up on professional sites such as Media Bistro, and endeavor to write and travel with style.

Many thanks to all four women who graciously agreed to do this interview with us.  We appreciate you taking time from your busy schedules!

If you’d like to meet these women on a more personal level, join our NuNomad Tribe and “friend” them. The majority are members!

Featured photo: Tnarik