by Catherine L. Tully

Writers love to read. Those words are the inspiration behind this travel destination for writers—the Library Hotel in New York. This property has ten floors which reflect ten major categories of the Dewey Decimal System. Choose from: technology, social sciences, literature, languages, math & science, history, the arts, religion, philosophy and general knowledge. Better yet—each floor has a variety of subcategories which focus in on a section of the main theme. Each room features themed art and provides guests with a hand-picked selection of books that are related to the subject…

News writers might want to book a stay in the Journalism Room, while travel writers may find something like the World Culture Room a bit more appealing. If you are not going it alone, you may want to consider the Love Room for a romantic stay. There are 60 different themes to choose from with subjects ranging from Architecture to Zoology. You may also want to check out “The Writer’s Den,” a special spot in the hotel that features a fireplace, flat screen television and an enclosed garden terrace.

The hotel offers some nice touches such as 100% Egyptian cotton linens, bathrobes and down blankets. The decor is rich, and rooms feature granite-topped desks as well as mahogany doors and cabinetry. You’ll also be connected, as the entire property provides guests with complimentary high speed wireless access; great news for those who can’t bear to leave their laptop behind. The Library Hotel has a prime location in Midtown Manhattan—one block from Grand Central Station and three blocks from Times Square.

Rates range from $249 to $679. Library Hotel 299 Madison Avenue New York, NY, 10017

Phone: 212-983-4500 Toll Free: 877-793-7323

Need a travel guide book? Don’t want to pay through the nose at the bookstore? Check out Guide Gecko, a site that sells PDFs and books to the public at reasonable prices.

Another cool feature is the publishing wizard offered which enables authors to create their own guidebook and sell it on the site. Authors receive a percentage of the profit, as well as a visible platform to sell their work. Interesting concept.

I’m always fascinated to see what people are coming up with out there, and I thought this was a creative site that FZ readers might want to check out. Enjoy!

by Catherine L. Tully

Oak Park, Illinois is the village where famed author Ernest Hemingway was born. His “birthplace home” and The Hemingway Museum are two local stops that offer writers an opportunity to learn more about the author in his formative years. Located on Oak Park Avenue, admission to one buys you a visit to both places. Begin at the museum where you will find Hemingway’s childhood diary, along with some rare photographs and other artifacts. Take your time and browse the exhibits, and if you are the type of person that enjoys a good souvenir, be sure to stop at the little gift shop that is tucked off to the side of the main area. There are some unique items for sale that would make good gifts for any serious Hemingway aficionado. Just down the street is the Hemingway Birthplace Home, an attractive Queen Anne Victorian that has been recently restored. The author’s maternal grandparents built the home and Hemingway was born on the second floor in 1899. For more information on admission and hours, visit the Ernest Hemingway Foundation of Oak Park.

The wait is finally over. Joe and I were both recently published in the book To Japan With Love, and today I received my complimentary copies of the book in a box–all the way from Hong Kong.

It was a cool moment–I have to admit.

Being published in a travel book is a big deal in the writing world, and I am just thrilled to have two stories in this guidebook. It is my second time getting published in a book, and it is just as neat the second time. Every once in a while it is just fun to share an accomplishment with FZ readers. Thanks for being there…and keep working toward your dreams…they really can come true! (* And special thanks to Celeste Heiter for her great work editing this book–you are terrific!)

I took a new-to-me vehicle out on a cross-country trip last week which combined business and pleasure–I was, among many other things, writing my way from Chicago to Texas at Turntabling.net about indie record stores I found along the way.

The new-to-me vehicle was a Ford Escape that alas, did not come with leather seats. “Who needs leather?” I asked myself, blissfully unaware that the 1000-plus mile journey (one way) would soon take its toll on the writer’s most underrated asset.

There are thousands of books written for writers about every possible topic–markets, career choices, even a few health guides. But as far as I know there is NOTHING dedicated to the care of the freelancer’s arse.

And there’s no situation that calls attention to that fact like a 1000 mile journey from Chicago to San Antonio, Texas. For the first part of the trip, the seat–the Ford’s seat, that is–felt fine. I stopped in Springfield, Illinois and St. Louis on the first part of the trip no worse for the wear. But by the time I got to Oklahoma City, my backside felt battered. Those factory-standard seats weren’t going to make the grade.

I gave in and stopped at an auto parts store and bought a cushion, and that seemed to do the trick…but after 2000 miles I find myself reclining on the couch to write this, aware that I really don’t want to be seated in an upright position anytime soon–say, ten years or so. Read all those other writer sites all you want and take the advice you find, but trust me, the most important thing you’ll learn about writing is all connected to the care and feeding of the human butt.

Wait, that doesn’t sound right.

That’s the view from the blogmobile–I’m reporting in the field on a massive road trip from Chicago to San Antonio, Texas and back again. It’s a nine-day odessey that combines travel writing, blogging and a lot of caffeine.

For this little adventure I packed the laptop, iPhone, a 500GB  portable hard drive for images and media, batteries and about a mile of USB cable with connectors for every conceivable application.

The little things are the ones that bite you on trips like these. For example–my laptop battery is two years old and won’t hold much more than a 40 minute charge–horribly inconvenient when you’re trying to blog, upload images and post tweets about the adventure.

The iPhone is great for blog photos, but a proper camera would have come  in handy on this trip. There was no room for it in the luggage (took the train for the first leg of the journey) but now I regret not having sucked it up and packed the extra bag.

Travel writing on the go like this requires a lot of note-taking–what was the first thing that me about the excellent sushi bar I ate in today in Springfield, Missouri? What is the most ugly thing about Springfield’s endless strip malls? What is the most beautiful part of the drive from St. Louis to Springfield, MO? Trying to memorize all that is a chore…and most of it can’t wait til I get in the hotel. Case in point–I had to pull over and raid a local college’s rec room space to post this before I get back on the road.

That’s one thing you can really take advantage of when on the road–if you need a place to plug in and work undisturbed for a few hours without all the coffe shop clatter, a campus is the best thing—there is usually visitor parking and nobody bothers you–they assume you’re faculty or some kind of weirdo exchange student. Well, at least in MY case they assume I’m that.

My bad news–I lost my cell signal half way between St. Louis and Springfield so I couldn’t call back one of my clients who needed a “right away” answer. I finally touched base and all is well, but it’s another one of those little things that bite you when it’s least convenient.

I’ve also scheduled myself too thin–I have a half day to make up already and I haven’t even started…gonna have to cut corners somewhere on this trip and believe me, you don’t want to make those sacrifices if you’ve already promised them to someone in an editorial department somewhere if you can avoid it. Beware of overcommitting yourself and you’ll do fine.

More from the road tomorrow…

 We have talked about restaurant reviews before on FZ, but this post is a little different. We’re going to focus on some simple preparatory tips that can help make the experience one that you can more easily evaluate. Here are a few pointers to keep in mind before you set foot in the restaurant:

Don’t eat too close to when you go. If you are not hungry when you arrive, how can you seriously evaluate the fare? You know how grocery shopping gets lame if you go after you have had lunch? Same applies here. If you are ravenous, have a small snack to hold you over.

Read and research before, not after. Preparation means doing this stuff ahead of time. Look at the menu, read the position statement or whatever it is you do to prepare–but do it before you go. This is the same concept as being prepared for an interview–it doesn’t work to do the leg-work after you talk to the person…

Mentally prepare yourself. Don’t walk in distracted. You need to be paying attention to the ambience, service and other details from the moment you arrive. If you are thinking about another article or your mind is elsewhere you won’t remember much about these things later.

Get directions. Nothing is worse than being late for a reservation when you are going to review a restaurant. Know where you are going and the experience will be off to a good start. If you are behind schedule you can’t evaluate things properly.

Doing these simple things will help you to be ready to give any restaurant a fair, attentive review. Ignoring them can mean missing important details. It really does help to be prepared!

by Catherine L. Tully

Good travel writing starts before you get to the destination. If you want to be a travel writer, you’ll need to get in the habit of doing some legwork on the front end of the trip. Here are three things to do before you go that will help you make the most of your time once you are there:

1. Research the destination on the web.

Take the time to do learn as much as you can about the place you are going. Hit sites like TripAdvisor or Yelp to get an idea of what people are saying about the city. Look at the chamber of commerce page to find local businesses. Scout out reastaurant menus and plan some meals. These days there is no excuse to go to a destination cold. Do some homework…

2. Look at a map of the area.

If you take the time to get the lay of the land it will be easier to get around once you arrive. Don’t ignore neighboring cities either…they may have something to offer. In addition, if you are able to get the main streets down (depending on how big the city is), you are less likely to get lost. If you already know places you want to visit, print out a map and mark them down ahead of time.

3. Find out what has already been written about the place.

This is an important point. If you want to go to Chicago and write about what there is to do at the lakefront, you may want to skip Navy Pier since tons of articles have already been written about it. Find something new, or look for a unique twist on something that is popular. Google the city name. Poke around and see what is out there already. This will help you define how your time is best spent.

No…this isn’t some kind of a cruel joke. You actually can use your writing skills to win a free trip to Japan, courtesy of the Japanese National Tourism Organization. 

JNTO is running a contest beginning September 1st, and all you have to do to enter is describe “where your dreams take you” in 2010 letters or less. If your entry is chosen, you’ll be packing your bags. Sign up for the newsletter for more information as it is available or visit the constest site. Isn’t it time you did a little travel writing? The contest runs until November 30, 2009, so put your thinking cap on…

Please note that this campaign is for US residents.

(As a brief aside…I lived in Japan for three years. It is truly an amazing place to go. If you win, contact me and I’ll give you some pointers!)

by Catherine L. Tully

Time to dream a little! Have you taken your vacation this year? If not…

This getaway for writers is in Inverness, CA, and it is truly inspirational. The Blackthorne Inn will take you out of reality to a magical place where you and nature are only seperated by a pane of glass. The property resembles a tree house, and there are several rooms where you look right out into the forest. In the morning, savor your buffet breakfast in the glass solarium or outside on the 3,500 square foot deck at the base of the building.

If you are going to visit, stay in the “Eagle’s Nest” tower room or if you prefer a balcony, try the “Overlook” room. Both have a great view. Point Reyes National Seashore wilderness park is right there, and the property is only an hour from Napa-Sonoma wine country.