Jan 24, 2022
I'm excited to introduce this week's guest, Ruksana Hussain. She’s a freelance journalist and travel writer with 20 years of experience. In this episode, we talk about how living in different countries and states has shaped who she is and what she does. We also talk about her favorite places to travel and why.
And the main focus of this episode is about freelance travel writing and how to get started in this field. It’s something I know very little about, because I’ve only ever self-published things, like my blog and my books. This is a whole new world! I hope this episode inspires you to give freelance travel writing a try, so you can inspire others with your own travel and adventures.
About Ruksana
Ruksana Hussain is an award-winning journalist, writer, editor working with print and online media. With 20 years’ work experience, 10 of that as a full-time freelancer and independent consultant, Ruksana’s bylines have appeared in Delta Sky Lines, Business Insider, Restless magazine and Detour (United Kingdom), Luxury Travel Magazine (Australia), Visit California, Cuisine Noir, The Traveler’s Table (Canada), and more.
In 2020, Ruksana founded and published Traveler and Tourist magazine, a digital, subscriber-only, monthly travel lifestyle publication with the aim of diverse and inclusive coverage in terms of content and perspective, place and people, culture and engagement, through the travel adventures she has experienced. The magazine, which introduced video content in 2021, is created for worldwide readership and can be subscribed to here.
Quoted in outlets such as Boston Globe, Sherman’s Travel, CWAtlanta and Smart Business, she has presented as a speaker and/or panelist at schools, universities, networking groups, and on podcasts. Some venues she has presented at include Writers Co-op, Business Radio X, Freelancers Union, How to be Global podcast and more. A full list of presentations and press mentions are available on www.ruksanawrites.com
Born in India, raised in Oman and now calling Los Angeles home, Ruksana has always embraced change in lifestyle and perspectives with the change in culture and scenarios around her. This has resulted in a successful career as a travel journalist earning opportunities on media trips to Japan, Poland, Mexico, Yukon Territory in Canada, Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, and more. Ruksana is the recipient of several diversity fellowships and journalism awards for her work and continues to cover travel and lifestyle, among other beats, as a freelance features generalist and editor.
Freebie: Salad recipes for the month influenced by travels and/or for the busy freelancer
Opt-in form: To subscribe to Traveler and Tourist magazine
Listen To This Episode
What You'll Learn
- How to get started from scratch in freelance travel writing
- The fundamentals of a freelance writing lifestyle for writers and freelancers
- What Ruksana wishes she knew from the start
- The surprising thing that made the difference when getting started
- The hashtag you need to know to find opportunities
- The mindset you need to get started as a freelance travel writer
- How to balance pitching, networking, and actual writing
Related Episodes
- 438 Jenny Mowbray ~ Solo Travel + Adventure When You're in a Relationship
- 423 Lois Wagner ~ Adventures, Misadventures, and Learning Resilience
- 384 Halona Black ~ How to Change Your Life By Changing Countries (now with downloadable transcript!)
- 383 Anne Malambo ~ How Solo Travel Can Change Our Lives (now with downloadable transcript!)
- 367 Holly Worton ~ Finding Yourself Through Solo Travel and Outdoor Adventures (now with downloadable transcript!)
Connect With Holly
How to Subscribe
- Click here to subscribe via iTunes
- Click here to subscribe via RSS
- Click here to subscribe via Stitcher
Help Spread the Word
If you enjoyed this episode, please head on over to iTunes and kindly leave us a rating and a review! You can also subscribe, so you'll never miss an episode.