Publishing a travel book during a global pandemic | Pinnacle Newsletter #81
#81 Publishing a travel book during a global pandemic
For about a year now it’s been an open secret that I’ve been working on not one but two non-fiction outdoor books. Today, one of them, Wanderlust Europe: The Great European Hike, is available to buy in hardback.
The book is visually stunning, and it features the contributions of many outdoor photographers – photographers I was glad to be able to put forward at a hard time when many of us were losing much (or even all) of our work. I can’t take that much of the credit, though. This is gestalten’s project, and I’m grateful to them for approaching me to be lead copywriter.
Anyway, enough puffle. I want to ask a tough question: what does it mean to publish a glossy travel book in the age of the global pandemic – more generally, in the age of cyberpunk dystopia and a shrinking world due to the climate crisis? Do such books still have a place on our shelves?
These questions were never far from my mind as I wrote the book. It was conceived back in the innocent days of 2019, but the world wasn’t really that different then; we were just better at pretending all was fine and we could carry on as normal. The pandemic exposed many truths barely hidden beneath the veneer of it all. The sudden restrictions imposed upon international travel mirrored what some of us had been saying for years: that, much as we love hiking and travelling abroad, we need to do less of it. And that when we do choose to travel internationally, we should try to be more conscious about how we do that.
The contradiction here is a challenge to unpick. I would not have written a book on Europe’s best hikes if I didn’t believe that travel enriches the soul, that getting out there and walking these world-class routes isn’t a fantastic way to spend your time. And yet I am conscious of the other side to it. Some of the places we’ve showcased cannot straightforwardly be reached by boat or by train. In writing this book, am I helping to promote high-carbon air travel? Unfortunately, my creative remit was not unlimited, and I was not able to stress the environmentally conscious travel message I might have focused on had I been free to write whatever I wanted. However, I’ve done what I can. I have drawn attention to environmental, conservation and climate issues at every opportunity. I’ve pointed out that the glaciers so beautifully photographed are melting. Nobody, surely, can claim ignorance at this point.
But we are living through a dark time – certainly a time unprecedented in my lifespan. The bad news from all sides is relentless. It’s a time when we must cling to whatever islands of hope present themselves, a time when we must make plans for better days, build something worth holding on for. I believe that Wanderlust Europe offers that sense of hope. I doubt that even the most well-travelled of long-distance hikers will have walked every route in the book. Perhaps it’s a beacon for the post-COVID world. A statement of optimism and a gift to those who have yet to discover the wonders of long-distance hiking.
So yes, glorious coffee-table books full of tales from distant lands and splendid photography – images from real outdoor photographers who have been there and felt the burn of the sun, suffered the storms – will always have a place on our bookshelves. I hope that you enjoy Wanderlust Europe, and when all this is over maybe I’ll see you on the trail.
In other news…
The October 2020 issue of The Great Outdoors is on sale now, and in it you’ll find my feature on hiking the Mercantour Traverse in the Maritime Alps. This was a very special trip for me and I’m thrilled to write all about it in my favourite outdoor magazine. You can pick up a copy here.
I’m now taking bookings for editorial work this autumn and winter. If you’d like to chat about how I can help you write the book you want to write, just drop me a line.
Recently published
Features and blog posts
How to Hike the Haute Route Pyrenees – my big digital feature for UKHillwalking on hiking the HRP.
Wild camping: why changing the name won’t change the bad behaviour – ‘dirty camping’ has been in the news a lot lately. Here’s my opinion piece for TGO calling for empathy and inclusivity.
Writing (two) books during the pandemic – a blog post on the challenges of writing during a hell of a time to be an outdoor writer.
A Cairngorms Learning Curve – in March 2020, not long before the pandemic struck, I spent a sublime few days trekking through the wintry Cairngorms looking for landscape images.
Introducing Wanderlust Europe: Europe’s best trails – a blog post on my new book, including a complete listing of the featured hikes.
One-minute mountains
One-minute mountain: Skiddaw – there’s more than meets the eye on Skiddaw.
One-minute mountain: Ben Alder – a favourite peak in the Central Highlands.
Until next time,
Alex
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