Verna Gates was one of the original 50 employees at CNN and also wrote for Time Magazine and Reuter’s, the world’s largest news organization. Today she writes about a variety of topics including travel, and will lead two workshop at the Southern Christian Writers Conference on ‘Writing for Fun and Profit.”
I recently talked with Verna about travel writing and what she hopes to impart to attendees at the June 7-8 workshop.
Question:
When did you first get interested in writing? And when did you start doing it professionally?
Answer:
I knew it the first time I picked up a fat pencil at age 5. I spent much of my fifth year in Children's Hospital and I passed the time making up stories for the other girls in the ward. I was hooked from an early age.
Q: What is your favorite thing about travel writing?
A: I love learning the history of a place. I like eating their foods and immersing in their music, art and culture. Exploring their beautiful natural areas is also exciting and fascinating. I have seen monkeys, sloths, koalas, kangaroos, beautiful frogs and butterflies and exotic birds in the wild -- even sharks and dolphins. I love meeting new people with stories to tell. It all makes traveling rewarding and enlightening. Traveling the world expands your world.
Q: What are some recent travel writing projects you've done?
A: I have written about St. Lucia, Costa Rica, and Cane Ridge in Kentucky, where the Second Great Awakening occurred. I have also traveled to Kansas City and attended the Indy 500 in Indianapolis.
(Note: Verna recently won two first-place awards from the National Federation of Penwomen for her travel writing and is the author of the recently-published 100 Things to do in Birmingham Before you Die.)
Q: What advice would you give to anyone interested in getting started as a writer?
A: Write. Don't keep putting your writing on the back burner. Writing is like exercise, you have to do it every day.
(We'd love to have you join us at the SCWC on June 7-8 at First Baptist Church in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Let us know if you have any questions. You can email us at scwritersconference@gmail.com.)
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