Date: 26 May 2012
Let the widely-published travel writer Fred de Vries give you the skills to write top-quality travel articles.
Whether you hope to freelance for magazines and newspapers, write a travel blog, write about travel professionally or write entertaining accounts for family and friends, this course will enhance your future travel while it provides the skills to write articles of publishable quality.
You will learn to be actively observant and acutely aware of your setting – and to make your readers experience your journeys along with you.
Our aim is that everyone, experienced or not, should at the end of the course have a publishable piece.
There are numerous possibilities for travel writing. Every newspaper and weekly has a travel supplement or section, and they often use stories by freelancers. People are endlessly fascinated by travel blogs and accounts of other people’s journeys. The skills you learn on this course will make you write better, in whatever forum you choose.
WHO SHOULD DO THE COURSE?
- Travellers who would like to enhance their experience and record their journeys for posterity (or just for fun)
- People who hope to break into journalism through freelance travel pieces.
- Journalists and travel professionals who would like to sharpen their travel writing skills.
- Bloggers
WHY SHOULD YOU DO THE COURSE?
- The course will help you write articles with impact.
- It will teach you to be actively observant, using all your senses.
- You will be able write articles for print or online with confidence.
- You will be given writing practice in a safe environment.
- You will receive constructive personal feedback.
When: The course is consists of three evening sessions a week apart
- Thursday May 24 – 6pm to 10pm
- Thursday May 31 – 6pm to 8.30pm
- Thursday June 7 – 6pm to 8.30pm
WHERE: Parkview, Johannesburg
COST: R1800
SESSION ONE
- A brief overview of the history of travel writing
- The ‘modern traveller’ and the various types of travel writing personas
- We tackle the issue of ‘how to prepare for a travel story’
- The ‘dos and don’ts of travel writing
- How to approach a potential outlet for your story
- Each section will include examples from real life, written pieces and exercises that will hone your skills.
Homework – Participants will write their own piece for discussion and feedback on day two. The aim is that every participant comes up with a story that could be published in a newspaper or magazine.
SESSION TWO
- We look at the stories the participants have written
- Critique each other’s work
Homework – Participants will edit/rewrite their own piece for discussion and feedback on day three.
SESSION THREE
Final critique and wrap up.
ABOUT FRED DE VRIES
Fred de Vries Abdullah to ZilleFred de Vries is a Dutch freelance writer/journalist, who after living all over Africa moved toSouth Africato write a biography of Sinclair Beiles.
Previously he worked as a correspondent and foreign editor for de Volkskrant a daily Dutch newspaper. Together with his colleague Toine Heijmans he wrote Respect! in 1998, a book about hiphop in Europe. In 2006 he published the travelogue Club Risiko, a close and personal look at the underground culture of the eighties, including chapters on Sonic Youth, Einstürzende Neubauten and Koos.
He recently published a collection with the highlights from his interviews for The Weekender and Empire Magazine. The Fred de Vries Interviews; From Abdullah to Zille contains 39 interviews with more and less famous creative South Africans, such as Fokofpolisiekar, Helen Zille, Ivan Vladislavic, Abdullah Ibrahim and Warren Siebrits.
He teaches Travel Writing at Wits University and with Allaboutwriting, and has regularly contributed to the travel pages of the Sunday Times and the now defunct Weekender
CONTACT INFORMATION:
For inquiries: for more information or to book your place please email admin@allaboutwritingcourses.com
Website: http://allaboutwritingcourses.com