Travel memoir lab: How to fast-track your travel book by working with a hybrid publisher
Dec 10, 2024
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Matt Savino, author of "Land Without a Continent," shares his unique journey of transforming a travel journal into a published memoir. He discusses the challenges of editing down his lengthy manuscript using a humorous "Spreadsheet of Pain." Savino recounts the comedic elements of travel writing and the cultural insights gained during his Central America road trip. He dives into the hybrid publishing process, detailing its benefits and pitfalls, including a humorous mishap with AI plagiarism detection, all while offering sage advice for aspiring travel authors.
Matt Savino transformed his extensive travel narrative from 250,000 words to 142,000 by using a 'spreadsheet of pain' for editing.
Choosing hybrid publishing allowed Matt to maintain creative control and streamline his travel memoir's release compared to traditional publishing.
Matt emphasized the significance of humor in writing, inspired by Bill Bryson, to engage readers with relatable cultural insights.
Deep dives
Turning Travel Experiences into a Book
A travel memoir can stem from one's experiences, as showcased through Matt Savino's journey from Los Angeles to Panama. He initially wrote 250,000 words documenting his travels through Mexico and Central America but faced the challenge of condensing this extensive narrative into a publishable format. The process included significant revisions, leading him to eliminate a substantial amount of content he felt was irrelevant or too verbose. Matt utilized a 'spreadsheet of pain,' where he color-coded themes within his narrative to determine which parts to retain and which to cut, ultimately refining his manuscript into a cohesive book.
The Case for Hybrid Publishing
Matt opted for hybrid publishing to fast-track the release of his travel memoir, utilizing a method that blends self-publishing with some support from a publishing company. This route allowed him to maintain creative control over his work while also receiving necessary editorial assistance. While traditional publishing can sometimes feel like an uphill battle with numerous rejections, hybrid publishing offered Matt a viable alternative that streamlined the process of bringing his book to market. He emphasized that, despite the usual stigma surrounding self-publishing, the current landscape justifies considering it as a legitimate avenue for aspiring authors.
The Importance of Humor in Travel Writing
Matt's writing draws inspiration from humor, a trait he admired in author Bill Bryson, to engage readers while sharing insightful experiences about Central America. He strived to find comedic angles that highlight the contrast between expectations and reality on his trips, thereby adding depth to cultural and historical observations. For instance, he humorously recounted tense encounters during his travels, painting a vivid picture while providing readers with educational context. This blend of humor and cultural insight aims to create a compelling narrative that resonates with a broad audience, making potentially heavy subjects more palatable.
Navigating the Writing Process
The podcast highlights the difficulties many writers face in the publishing journey, including the process of cutting down extensive manuscripts to build a cohesive narrative. Matt discovered that he had to make tough decisions about which of his experiences to include, eventually cutting the work down to a more reader-friendly 142,000 words. The importance of focusing on the story's core themes and maintaining engagement throughout the narrative became evident as he sought to keep his readers captivated from start to finish. By continually reflecting on his writing's quality and relevance, he learned the necessity of balancing personal anecdotes with universal themes.
Overcoming Publishing Challenges
Matt encountered significant hurdles during the publishing phase, particularly with Amazon's KDP system, which erroneously flagged his work for plagiarism. This challenge stemmed from the similarities between the paperback and Kindle editions, showcasing the difficulties of working with automated systems that lack nuanced understanding. He emphasized the need for aspiring authors to be cautious when navigating the self-publishing landscape, as experiences can vary widely depending on the chosen platform. Ultimately, his journey underlines the importance of persistence and adaptability when handling unforeseen obstacles in one's writing career.
“In El Salvador, I dropped $5 out of my pocket at the border, and some guy came running up to me. At the beginning of the trip I would have been surprised by that. But by that point I would have been surprised if it didn’t happen.” —Matt Savino
In this episode of Deviate, Rolf and Matt talk about how the first version of his travel book was way too long, and what he ended up editing out (6:00); the origins of Matt’s Central America road trip, why he ended up turning it into a book, and how he ended up taking Rolf’s Paris class (12:00); how Matt’s “Spreadsheet of Pain” helped him edit his book down to manageable size, and how historical research helped his narrative (17:00); how he wrote about a road trip that didn’t actually reach its objective, and how he tried to model his narrative on Bill Bryson’s writing (26:00); how Matt used a hybrid publisher to get his travel book into the world in two years (31:00); the challenges, idiosyncrasies, and creative joys that come with creating a hybrid published book (39:00); how AI bots determined that Matt had “plagiarized” what turned out to be his own book (54:00); and Matt’s advice for people interested in hybrid publishing (60:30).
