Emily Hutto: Travel Writer's Contest

Emily Hutto, a writer for Peevish Penman, has asked for assistance with a contest to win a travel writing gig.  We can't say no helping our writers, so here is Emily's travel philosophy, writing philosophy, and shameless plea for votes as well her genuine touch of altruism that will compel even the most cynical among us to click those keys in support of Emily's bold and brave writing endeavor.  
 

Go Beavers! 

The film Sipping Jetstreams begins with the following quote:

"The world is a book, and those who don't travel read only one page."

This is part one of my travel philosophy. Experiencing new places to the fullest and meeting new faces requires venturing out with no reservations. Go anywhere, take risks, deviate from the path, get lost, choose a new path, savor your senses, and always be open to spontaneity. An open mind and willingness to explore is all one needs to read the world book.

Part two of my travel philosophy is to write my own world book as I go. I’ve found that traveling is all about the little details: oddball conversations, bus tickets, photographs that tell all, exchange rates, hostel showers, getting lost, nights of dancing, nights of drinking, etc. etc. So I take my journal everywhere and scribble it all down.

I journal nearly every day, especially during travel when I am the most stimulated. I sit down with my trusty notebook and a colorful pen and with rapid movements I connect thoughts to paper –more often than not these scribbles are incoherent snippets of conversations I’ve had or visuals that I’d like to remember.

My blogging is my deciphering of the scribble. It’s also my attempt to relive the encounters that have turned me into a writer. You can read my words at www.glosmosis.blogspot.com.

There’s nothing I’d like more than to travel and live the writerly life, so I’ve entered the Blog Your Way Around The World competition. If I receive the most votes from online users, I will be sent to write about one of six international expeditions in 2011.

Writer Emily Hutto

I believe that it’s easy for writers to neglect to participate in the world around them –we can be so caught up in documenting our surroundings that we fail to fully embrace them. That’s why for every vote I receive to blog my way around the world, I will volunteer for one hour at a local nonprofit organization. I hope it will raise my awareness of my surroundings. And I hope it will remind me of why I travel and why I write.

Please take 20 seconds to vote, and I’ll take 3,600 to make it count. I’d also love suggestions for community organizations in Portland, Oregon, that could use some of my time. Vote here:

http://www.blogyourwayaroundtheworld.com/blogs/view/1010


Good luck Emily from everyone at Peevish Penman!  

(The editor of Peevish Penman, an alumni of Oregon State, would like to take full credit for the apparent error in the above caption...Go Beavers!)