Tony Wheeler talks about guidebook writing

This month on the RolfPotts.com Writers page, I’m happy to feature an interview with Lonely Planet founder Tony Wheeler. In addition to giving insights into the history of his legendary guidebook company, Wheeler lays out the challenges of what it’s like to be a travel guide writer. “Writing guidebooks is like a combination of search-and-find and making a jigsaw puzzle,” he says. “You’ve got to find all the pieces and then put them all together to make a picture. Some of the pieces may be hard to find, some of them may be hard to assemble.”

For those interested in going into guidebook writing full-time, take heed of this caution from Wheeler: “I think for many guide book writers it’s not a really long-term occupation,” he says. “Guidebooks take too much out of your life; you can’t lead a normal existence when you’re continually being called away for several months of non-stop intense research/writing and then tied to your computer for months more with editors cracking the whip on you to get it finished.”

In similar interviews, I talked to National Geographic Adventure contributing editor Tom Clynes in July, and in June I posed questions to Joan Tapper, the longtime editor of Islands Magazine. For over 30 similar interviews with writers and editors from all over the travel writing spectrum, check my interview archive.