The Everywhere blog

A member of the the Everywhere community emailed me recently with some questions about the virtues of being the discoverer of a new Place. To paraphrase, the question basically was: If I'm the person who discovers a Place, does that make it more likely that my contribution will get published?

Actually, there's no advantage to being the discoverer of a Place from the standpoint of getting in the magazine. Yes, you get the ego gratification of knowing that you found it first. And yes, you'll get credit for that in perpetuity. But when we decide what goes in the magazine, we don't look at who discovered the Place, but rather, what Places are interesting and what photos and postcards about popular Places are most interesting within the Place listing.

In fact, rather than competing with one another to discover Places, you're actually working together to make Places popular. The more content -- photos, postcards, etc. -- submitted to a Place, the more interesting it becomes to other members of the community. And thus the more interesting the Place becomes according to the "hotness" algorithm we use to help determine what goes in the magazine.

Where you *are* competing with one another is for rankings *within* the Place. Readers can vote on individual photos, Postcards, and descriptions within a Place listing, and the ones with the most votes appear first. So the photo with the most votes becomes the default image, and the Postcard with the most votes runs at the top, and so on.

Bottom line: Discovering a Place is good, but providing detailed material about a Place, whether it's a new Place or pre-existing Place, is most important of all.

(Image above: Christopher Columbus, via the Wikipedia.)

The second issue of Everywhere will include feature packages about Turkey and Los Angeles. Been there? If so, we need your help! We'd love to look at your photos, obviously, but we really really really need articles and travel tips too. That's another way of saying, your words are just as important to us as your pictures.

If you're tempted to write an article, we recommend that you avoid writing general, survey-type pieces or day-by-day travelogues. Instead, focus on one particular aspect of the place, and write about that in detail. Likewise, if you've taken photos in Turkey or Los Angeles, we love it when you provide interesting captions to go with your images. Tell us a bit about what we're looking at in your photos, and what kind of stuff you did there.

Are you a master of the art of bazaar shopping in Turkey? Give us your tips on the best negotiation strategies. Are you comfortable with the fact that some of the best restaurants in Los Angeles are located in strip malls? Map out which ones we should go see.

Get the idea? You probably have even better ideas, so write 'em up! Your expertise is what makes Everywhere unlike any other travel magazine in the world.

Los Angeles

Tinseltown. LaLaLand. The City of Angels. Los Angeles is all those things, as well as a hotbed for contemporary design. Help us find the most interesting things to see in the city where urban sprawl is a fine art form.

Turkey

It's as true today as it was centuries ago: Turkey is the gateway to the East. Perched between Europe and the Middle East, Turkey is a stunningly beautiful country that defines the political and cultural frontier between two intensely competitive civilizations.

You have questions. Your editor has answers. Here are some helpful hints on how to improve your chances of getting published in Everywhere magazine.

WHAT'S THE DEAL WITH POSTCARDS? WHAT ARE THEY?

A Postcard is basically a comment about a specific place. We call them Postcards because we're looking for something more than just a few words along the lines of "this place rocks" or "this place sucks." A Postcard is meant to be like a postcard you'd write while on vacation. It should provide some detail about your experience at the place: where you went, what you were doing, what you saw, and what made the place memorable.

WHY SHOULD I BOTHER WRITING POSTCARDS?

Simple: Writing a good postcard is probably the easiest way to get published in Everywhere. In fact, there's a whole section of the magazine devoted to Postcards. You don't have to write a lot in a Postcard, but a one-sentence Postcard ("I had fun here!") won't do you much good either. Ideally, a postcard should tell a short story about your experience at the place, so something about a paragraph long is ideal.

I'M A GREAT PHOTOGRAPHER, BUT I CAN'T WRITE. CAN I STILL GET PUBLISHED?

Yes, but remember that Everywhere is a travel magazine, not a photography magazine. Travel magazines are meant to be read, not just looked at, so photographs that include some extended caption text are generally more likely to be published than those that simply include a basic title or label. (See our suggestions on how to write Postcards, above.) Don't be intimidated: We're not looking for perfect prose, but we are looking for enthusiasm and descriptive detail. A few words can make a very big difference: Sometimes a good caption will transform a mediocre travel snapshot into a publishable gem -- if the text turns the photo into fun a little story.

I'M A GREAT WRITER, BUT A HORRIBLE PHOTOGRAPHER. CAN I STILL GET PUBLISHED?

Absolutely. Again, because Everywhere is a travel magazine, not a photography magazine, we can always pair your excellent words with an excellent photograph from someone else in the Everywhere community. So, for example, if you've been to Grand Canyon National Park, but you didn't take any pictures during your visit, don't let that hold you back. Write a Postcard or an Article about your visit. If the Everywhere community likes your excellent prose, we'll pair your words with some equally excellent photography from another member of the community.

I'VE CREATED A DOZEN NEW PLACES ON THE WEBSITE. AM I AWESOME OR WHAT??

You may well be awesome, but quality counts more than quantity. Creating places is important, but what matters most is what you have to say about the place based on your experiences there. So if you create a place, and you really loved it, tell us about that, either in a Postcard, an Article, or a detailed photo caption.

WHAT ABOUT PLACE DESCRIPTIONS? ISN'T THAT THE SAME AS WRITING A POSTCARD?

Nope. Place Descriptions are meant to be generic summaries of a place: What it is, what it offers, and basic travel details. If you're adding a new place on the website, your best bet is to write a basic description during the "create a place" process, and then add a Postcard that describes your experience at the place in greater detail. We do not plan to publish place descriptions in the magazine, but we do plan to publish lots and lots of Postcards.

ANY OTHER TIPS ON HOW I CAN GET PUBLISHED?

Sure! Everywhere needs many different kinds of articles, including how-to tips, testimonials about your favorite travel gear, handy lists, short-form stories (with great photos) for the front section of the magazine, and pieces that provide insight or advice based on your own travel expertise. Each issue will include several pieces in each of these categories, which means there are many more opportunities for you to get your stuff in print. So don't just think in terms of long-form features or photo essays. You've got lots of brilliance to offer, and we need it all!

WILL I GET PAID IF MY STUFF IS ACCEPTED FOR PUBLICATION?

Oh yes. Published contributors receive $100 and a one-year subscription to the magazine. You can receive this payment either for your words (in the form of a Postcard or Article), or for your photos, or both.

OK, GREAT. SO, WHEN CAN WE SEE THE MAGAZINE?

All of the above will make a lot more sense once you see how Everywhere looks in print. Copies of Issue 1 will be available at a newsstand near you in mid-December, but in the meantime you can get a preview by downloading the Sneak Peek.

Hopefully, seeing the magazine will answer many of your questions about what we're looking for and how the material you submit on the website will look when it appears in print. And remember, we're counting on you to help us build Issue 2!