Aaron Millar is an award-winning travel writer, broadcaster and author. He contributes regularly to The Times of London, National Geographic Traveller (UK), Wanderlust, and many other international publications. He was the 2014 and 2017 British Guild of Travel Writers Travel Writer of the Year, and the 2019 & 2020 US IPW Travel Writer of the Year. His podcast Armchair Explorer has been nominated for two Webbys, and won the 2022 British Guild of Travel Writers Travel Broadcaster of the Year. Aaron’s passion is telling stories that inspire people to explore the world, celebrate the outdoors, and live life to the full. He’s trekked with Shugendo monks in Japan, descended into a volcano in Iceland, and staggered through a 100-mile pub crawl in the UK.
How did you get started traveling?
I fell in love with the outdoors hiking in Switzerland with my Dad. He lived in the States, I lived in the UK, so we would meet up once a year in the Alps and hike our socks off. Then, I took a gap year after University and went backpacking around Brazil with my best mate. We saw nothing but bars and beaches, and had the time of our life. After that, I was hooked and went on at least one big adventure every year.
How did you get started as a writer?
I quit a career working in artist management in the music industry at thirty years old to see if I could become a writer. It had been a lifelong dream and I thought if I don’t do it now, it’ll never happen. I gave myself £1000 and six months to make it work. After I was down to my last pennies and about to give up I came up with the idea of doing a 100-mile pub crawl to celebrate the opening of a new national park on my doorstep – the South Downs National Park. It got published, and things took off from there. Good ideas are the most important thing when freelance writing, and thankfully that was one no one else had had.
What do you consider your first “break” as a writer?
The 100-mile pub crawl was my first published work, but my big break came when I pitched an idea to The Times of London to do what I called a ‘Galactic Safari’. Brian Cox’s space series was hugely popular in the UK at that time, so I thought why not go to Tenerife, which is the best place in Europe for stargazing, and see all this stuff first hand. It took six weeks for The Times to get back, I thought it was a no, but then got a phone call out of the blue from the editor. “I like your idea” she said. “But you’re not experienced enough for me to officially commission you. If you can get out there and write it, I will read it and if it’s good enough I’ll put it in the paper”. I talked the tourist board into paying for my trip, convinced Bryan May, the guitarist from Queen, to do an interview for it (he did his PhD in astrophysics there) and wrote a pretty good piece. After that piece got published, I was able to build up a reputation and cement a place in the UK travel writing industry.
As a traveler and story gatherer/creator, what is your biggest challenge on the road?
Staying in the moment, whilst also reflecting on how you want to capture this experience in words later. You have to do both at the same time to truly get good material but it;’s not easy. If you’re purely in the moment, you won’t get the right sort of content, or you’ll miss stuff. If you’re totally focused on the piece, you’ll miss the richness of the experience and diminish what the piece could be.
What is your biggest challenge in the research, writing, and editing process?
The actual writing process, putting words down on paper is the hardest part for me. The research component is all about building a strong itinerary, and then making sure you make the most out of each scene while you’re there. The editing process is fun. You know you’ve got the bare bones of something good. But it’s also key, you can’t be a good writer unless you’re a good (and ruthless) self-editor. A lot of people struggle with that, and it’s a skill I’ve intentionally honed over the years. But that first part of deciding how to write it, staring at the blank page when it could be anything, can often be the point where it’s the most stressful. The first paragraph is a key part of any article, and I often try and write that on the road so I come back knowing how I want to approach it. I also always try and weave in deeper themes in my pieces. When all is said and done, I think that is what I am most proud of – how that experience of traveling relates to broader issues, and my own personal journey. But getting the balance right can be tricky.
What has been your biggest challenge from a business standpoint?
It’s hard to make money as a full-time writer. Writers are shamefully underpaid and undervalued for what they do. Don’t do this job if you want to make good money. It’s a lifestyle choice. But the trickiest thing is your income is always capped by your output. The bigger the publications you write for the better that output has to be, so it takes longer. That can be tricky, as the pay increase doesn’t always reflect that. Some writers can write fast and churn out lots of copy, others – like me – are slower but try and produce more considered work. Often times the former can do better financially, but even if I wanted to be that’s just not the kind of writer I am.
Have you ever done other work to make ends meet?
I now have a podcast production company that makes audio content for the travel industry. It’s something I love – telling travel stories in audio is incredibly powerful. But from a business stand point it makes sense because the publishing industry is moribund, and budgets are shrinking year on year. The travel industry has a ton of money they invest every year in marketing. If you can get to a place where you get paid from that side it really helps.
What advice and/or warnings would you give to someone who is considering going into travel writing?
Don’t think you’re going to be able to go wherever you want, and write about whatever you want. Being on an assignment is nothing like being on a vacation. It’s incredibly busy, very little relaxation time, and often times you don’t get to choose where you go. I think the general misconception is that you can go backpacking around, writing about whatever you want. The reality is you have to follow the story, and it’s incredibly hard to get published and get enough work so you go where the story is, and that’s not always where you choose. A lot of travel writing is also copy writing for the industry, or producing listicles and the like.
What is the biggest reward of life as a travel writer?
Traveling the world on someone’s else dime. I’ve done things, and been able to take my family on trips, that I never could have afforded on my own. Travel is what makes life meaningful and memorable and to build a life of exploration and adventure is a true blessing. The other thing that is incredibly rewarding for me is being able to use my writing to inspire people to connect with the outdoors, discover new cultures and life their life to the fullest. I feel incredibly lucky to do this job.
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