Matador U’s online travel writing course. The course is a 12-week program that consists of 12 separate modules, although you can take as long as you’d like to finish the course because the course offers ‘lifetime access’ to Matador U content, forums and market blog.
Price and Course Structure
With a $350 price tag, What you liked about the course was how practical it was. It wasn’t only about the craft of writing, but also about pitching editors, participating in press trips, targeting your market, getting published and actually making a career out of travel writing. One of the module assignments was to create a budget and figure out how much you’d need to make from travel writing in order to sustain the lifestyle you’d like to have. Each module has interesting example texts and helpful links that I’ve gone back to for reference.
Content and Benefits
After completing Matador U, you also bought the Lonely Planet Guide to Travel Writing by Don George. Much of the content of this $15 book is similar to what was covered in Matador U. If Matador U was only content, the Lonely Planet book would be a much better deal, but you’d say that it wasn’t really the content that set Matador U apart and made it more of a catalyst for you, but the extracurricular tools. Meeting other travel writers and bloggers in the forums and taking advantage of leads via the market blog have instrumental in advancing your writing career.
Now there are support groups and live help available, weekly writing labs and a frequently updated market blog, often with exclusive leads made available only to Matador U students.
The writing lab wasn’t offered weekly, and during your entire time as a student, you are only able to submit one article due to the infrequency of the labs. Now students can submit articles for constructive feedback from Matador’s editorial team on a weekly basis. This is one of the best benefits of the course, because you can submit any article you’re working on, whether it’s a course assignment or not, and get detailed constructive feedback from editors and your classmates.
Market Blog Writing Opportunities
After the course finished, you’d have to pay a subscription.
Thankfully for all Matador U students and alumni, the market blog is now one of the lifetime access points of the program. It’s curated by Julie Schwietert, Matador U’s head faculty, and you’d say it’s updated at least five times a week. There are TONS of leads and you’ve seen dozens of special offers to U students for press trips, one-time gigs or long-term assignments.
Conclusion
The best part about Matador U has been the people. Many of the faculty and students have become friends. you can even been able to connect with a few in person, and you hope to meet up with more in the future.
If you’re considering signing up for Matador U’s travel writing or travel photography programs, I’d definitely recommend doing it!
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