By Theresa St. John in Saratoga Springs, NY I grew up with four sisters in a small rural town in Massachusetts. Mom was a stay-at-home 1950s wife, and dad worked two jobs to pay the bills. They always found time for us, though. I remember spending hours in the kitchen with my mother, learning how […]
I’m not sure about you, but I believe everyone is a creative being, with moments of brilliant inspiration. At times we’re unstoppable—regardless of the outlet through which we find freedom of expression. That’s one side of the coin anyway. The other is when absolutely nothing happens. The times we can’t seem to drum up an […]
By Theresa St. John in Saratoga Springs, New York They say that retail jobs have a shelf life, and I can tell you that, after 22 years, mine had long passed the expiration date. I kept reaching for this elusive dream of being a travel writer, never really thinking I could actually start living it. In 2013, I […]
I’ve always said it’s smart to write about your hometown before anywhere else. After all, you know your local area—who better to tell the story? Following are some tips for a new writer on a few things you should do and a few things you should steer clear of when looking for ideas in your […]
When you have no money, energy, or free time, the thought of starting out as a travel writer can be quite daunting. But after attending the 2013 Ultimate Travel Writer’s Workshop with Great Escape Publishing in Boston, Mass—listening avidly to past attendees’ success stories and instructors’ step-by-step plans on how to make it happen—I knew […]
“Tell me you have a headlamp,” my friend Sarah says as I’m packing up all my things. I shake my head no. The sun will come up long before I reach the summit. Why do I need a headlamp? “You need a headlamp, sister. You can buy one at Wal-Mart for $10 bucks. It’s dark […]
Thomas Edison once said, “Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.” I love this quote. Nothing has ever fallen in my lap. And in life, nothing’s ever been handed to me. Which is okay–I’m used to working hard for what I have. In 2013, when I […]
I didn’t fall in love with photography by accident. My dad was a photographer when he wasn’t working as an optical design engineer. He said photography gave him a chance to be creative, that holding a camera was stress relief. As kids, we often found him out in the yard, deep in the woods, up […]
Social media can be depressing, right? Everyone seems to post travel photos from far-flung exotic locales. Scroll down your Instagram, Twitter or Facebook feed any time of day. Go ahead. You’ll find images of the 18th-century sculpted Trevi Fountain in Italy, the Great Blue Hole for scuba diving in Belize, coffee plantations in Hawaii, ancient […]
I always smile when people ask how long I’ve been interested in ghosts. The question brings me right back to my childhood. I was five, maybe six, and had asked for one special present that Christmas. My parents didn’t have a lot of money, but they always gathered lengthy wish lists from five hopeful daughters […]
