Andrew X. Pham is an independent journalist and author. At various periods of his life, he has worked as an aircraft engineer, researcher, technical writer, startup founder, farmer, food critic, pizza chef, bungalow builder, small business owner, literary panelist, teacher, and an MFA faculty. He is a Whiting Writer and a Guggenheim Fellow. He is the winner of the Kiriyama Prize and a National Book Critics Circle Award Finalist. His books have been on eight “Top Ten Books of the Year” lists.
He is an active cyclist, delta nanolight pilot, paraglider pilot, tennis player, and skier. An avid cook, amateur brewer, and winemaker, he is a fan of alcoholic beverages and almost every type of cuisine. He divides his time between California, Hawaii, and Southeast Asia. He enjoys hiking and traveling. He is stabilized by a loving wife, two rambunctious dogs, and two fat lazy cats.
How did you get started traveling?
Fresh out of college, I landed a job with United Airlines as an aircraft engineer. Wonderful! This is the dream ticket to fulfill my wanderlust, I thought. Little did I know that with barely two weeks of vacation per year, I wasn’t going to be doing much traveling. My ex-boss frowned on any holiday longer than a week. I wound up doing red-eye flights to Hawaii to drink and sleep on the beach and taking first-class domestic flights to eat filet mignon and sip champagne while catching up on my paperwork.
My first real adventure travel was with my brother Tim, in our early twenties. We backpacked, biked, and explored the length of Baja, Mexico. It gave me my first taste of adventure travel on a budget.
How did you get started writing?
I’ve always loved reading ever since I was a child. Unfortunately, I had talents for science and math but lacked both academic and corporate ambition. I was pursuing my master’s degree in Aerospace with a focus on orbital mechanics when my transgender brother committed suicide. His death ruptured my normal-existence bubble, forcing me to reconsider life on different terms. I realized that I studied aerospace because I dreamed of flying among the stars and walking on Mars. I didn’t do it to sit in an office, pushing papers and waiting for retirement.
What do you consider your first “break” as a writer?
I had a few articles published in a local weekly newspaper which led to a five-year stint as a restaurant critic and freelance writer. It was the first time I could support myself with words. This a huge step for a self-taught writer for whom English is a second language.
As a traveler and fact/story gatherer, what is your biggest challenge on the road?
The biggest challenge is remembering that I’m “on the road.” I tend to forget that I needed to return home at some point. One detour usually leads to the next, and then suddenly I find myself pursuing another line of interest.
At one pivotal point in my life, a planned motorcycle trip across Australia started with a brief working holiday in Thailand which led to a year of beach bumming on a series of tropical islands in Southeast Asia which then led to a homesteading project on the Mekong that took several more years. Two decades later, I still hadn’t set foot in Australia even though, at that time, I had clocked over a hundred thousand miles on a motorcycle.
What is your biggest challenge in the research and writing process?
Writing a book is like taking a journey. The book you set out to write is rarely the one you finish. Same as a journey. Reconciling the original vision with reality is never easy. Even though it’s a gradual process, it is one of the hardest aspects of writing.
What is your biggest challenge from a business standpoint?
I am a slow writer who is interested in telling stories no one else can tell. Although I am a natural introvert and soloist, I do enjoy socializing and the occasional party. As I have a hard time marketing my work, people have advised me to hire a publicist. I will probably do that for the upcoming publication of my new book, Twilight Territory.
Have you ever done other work to make ends meet?
I am very fortunate that my books are still read and included in the curriculum of some high schools and universities. This provides a modest sum in royalties. In addition, I also teach online, give lectures, and hold workshops. My wife operates a small guesthouse and we have a small organic farm.
What travel authors or books might you recommend and/or have influenced you?
Ted Conover’s Coyotes. Barbara Savage’s Miles from Nowhere. Marguerite Duras’ The Lover. Mark Salzman’s Iron and Silk.
What advice and/or warnings would you give to someone who is considering going into travel writing?
Reconsider.
Few people made a living as travel writers two decades ago. Fewer now. So, perhaps, if you must, do it out of pure passion. Do it for any reason, but least of all, money.
If you must …
First, find your voice. Second, find your niche. Third, find your journey.
What is the biggest reward of life as a travel writer?
Freedom. I don’t have to endure jobs I hate or bosses I don’t like. I used to loathe going to bed, dreading another day of work awaiting me on the other side of the night.
My life is my own. At times, I am the most demanding boss and the most diligent worker. I write for myself, at my own leisure. The act of writing is a journey and like all journeys it will come to an end someday. Meanwhile, I intend to enjoy it.
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