100 episodes

With an emphasis on non-fiction travel books, books on place, nature writing, and travel literature, host Jeremy Bassetti talks with the world’s most celebrated writers about their work and about the business and craft of travel writing in this award-winning podcast. Past guests include travel writers like Paul Theroux, Pico Iyer, and Rolf Potts. The show also covers topics related to travel journalism and travel photography.

Travel Writing World Jeremy Bassetti

    • Arts
    • 4.9 • 26 Ratings

With an emphasis on non-fiction travel books, books on place, nature writing, and travel literature, host Jeremy Bassetti talks with the world’s most celebrated writers about their work and about the business and craft of travel writing in this award-winning podcast. Past guests include travel writers like Paul Theroux, Pico Iyer, and Rolf Potts. The show also covers topics related to travel journalism and travel photography.

    Tim Hannigan – The Granite Kingdom

    Tim Hannigan – The Granite Kingdom

    Tim Hannigan is back on the Travel Writing World podcast, this time to talk about his new book The Granite Kingdom: A Cornish Journey, which is a literary and literal journey through Cornwall.







    In addition to Cornwall’s culture and geography, Tim and I also chat about re-centering maps, identity, walking, slow travel, the Tamar River, the Tim Hannigan method of outlining or structuring books, and other topics. 







    Purchase The Granite Kingdom by Tim Hannigan







    Support your local bookstore, or purchase The Granite Kingdom: A Cornish Journey from Amazon.









    More episodes, newsletters, & support







    Please consider supporting the show with a few dollars a month, less than a cup of coffee, to help keep our show alive and advertisement-free.







    You can also support the show by leaving a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts or in your favorite podcasting app, subscribing to the show, and following us on Twitter & Instagram.







    Finally, join the Travel Writing World newsletter to receive your free copy of The Travel Writer’s Guidebook. You will also receive monthly dispatches & reports with podcast interviews, travel writing resources, & book recommendations. Alternatively, you can join the Genius Loci Newsletter to get monthly roundups of travel writing news.







    Thanks for your support!







    Intro music







    Peach by Daantai (Daantai’s Instagram)







    Disclaimer







    *Some of the links on this site are affiliate links. This means that, at no additional cost to you, this website will earn a very small commission if a purchase is made using these links. Also, "as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases" using the Amazon links on this site.









    Thank you!

    • 34 min
    Leon McCarron – Wounded Tigris

    Leon McCarron – Wounded Tigris

    Leon McCarron joins me today, and we’re talking about his new book Wounded Tigris: A River Journey through the Cradle of Civilisation (available in the UK on 6 April 2023 and in the USA from 7 November 2023).







    Leon is an author of several travel books, including The Land Beyond: A Thousand Miles on Foot through the Heart of the Middle East and The Road Headed West.







    In addition to talking about Leon's new book, we also talk about the the Marsh Arabs, Wilfred Thesiger, the importance of the Tigris River for Iraq, the region, and the globe, and slowing down to make connections in travel books.







    Connect with Leon McCarron on Instagram and Twitter. Learn more about Leon McCarron on his homepage. Learn more about his book on his book's website. And learn more about the Zagros Mountain Trail initiative.







    Purchase Wounded Tigris by Leon McCarron







    Support your local bookstore, or purchase Wounded Tigris: A River Journey through the Cradle of Civilisation from Amazon.









    More episodes, newsletters, & support







    Please consider supporting the show with a few dollars a month, less than a cup of coffee, to help keep our show alive and advertisement-free.







    You can also support the show by leaving a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts or in your favorite podcasting app, subscribing to the show, and following us on Twitter & Instagram.







    Finally, join the Travel Writing World newsletter to receive your free copy of The Travel Writer’s Guidebook. You will also receive monthly dispatches & reports with podcast interviews, travel writing resources, & book recommendations. Alternatively, you can join the Genius Loci Newsletter to get monthly roundups of travel writing news.







    Thanks for your support!







    Intro music







    Peach by Daantai (Daantai’s Instagram)







    Disclaimer







    *Some of the links on this site are affiliate links. This means that, at no additional cost to you, this website will earn a very small commission if a pu...

    • 35 min
    Announcing “The Hill of the Skull”

    Announcing “The Hill of the Skull”

    Hello, everyone. This is episode 101 of the Travel Writing World podcast, and it will be a short one. 







    In the introduction to episode 99, my recent interview with Pico Iyer, I mentioned that I am taking a break from my normal, fortnightly schedule of interviews in 2023 to focus on a few projects. Well, today I want to announce one of those projects — it is a book called The Hill of the Skull. 







    The Hill of the Skull is part photobook, part travel book. It will include photos and a narrative focusing on my visit to a sacred hill called the Hill of the Skull, which is a pilgrimage site in a town in the foothills of the Bolivian Andes. And when I say “foothills,” I also mean an altitude of over 8,500 feet (or about 2,500 meters). The hill gets slammed with visitors during a celebration call the Festival of the Virgin of Urkupiña, which happens every August and centers around the hill.







    Last August, I visited Bolivia primarily to do research on the festival and the hill… but let me just say here that I got more than I bargained for. And I’m excited to show you what I’ve been working on.







    If you’re interested in supporting the project, which I’ll crowdfund on Kickstarter this May, please sign up to get notified when the project launches either through Kickstarter or through my email list. If you visit travelwritingworld.com/skull, you will be able to sign-up to whichever notification method your prefer, either Kickstarter’s or my email list. 







    If you’ve even remotely interested in the project, you’ll want to sign up to get notified when it launches because there will be special, time-sensitive discounts and rewards for those who support the project early in the campaign. The idea here is that I want to do something special for listeners of the Travel Writing World podcast and for supporters of my work.







    If the campaign is successful, the book will be a beautiful object made with premium materials and using the same printers and suppliers some of the major photobook publishers use.







    Get notified when The Hill of the Skull launches







    Please sign-up to get notified when the campaign launches at travelwritingworld.com/skull. And join me on Instagram to take a sneak peek at some of the work.









    More episodes, newsletters, & support







    Please consider supporting the show with a few dollars a month, less than a cup of coffee, to help keep our show alive and advertisement-free.







    You can also support the show by leaving a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts or in your favorite podcasting app, subsc...

    • 3 min
    J.F. Penn – Pilgrimage and Perspective

    J.F. Penn – Pilgrimage and Perspective

    J.F. Penn joins me today, and we’re talking about her new book Pilgrimage.







    Joanna is an author of many fiction and non-fiction books, and the host of several podcasts including The Creative Penn Podcast for writers and the Books and Travel podcast.







    In addition to talking about her new book Pilgrimage, we also talk about voice in writing and creative work, pilgrimage from a secular perspective, the restorative properties of walking and pilgrimage, independently publishing a travel book using crowdfunding sites like Kickstarter, and much more. 







    Purchase Pilgrimage by J.F. Penn







    If you want to check out and support her book's Kickstarter, visit https://jfpenn.com/pilgrimage. The campaign runs for until early February 2023.









    More episodes, newsletters, & support







    Please consider supporting the show with a few dollars a month, less than a cup of coffee, to help keep our show alive and advertisement-free.







    You can also support the show by leaving a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts or in your favorite podcasting app, subscribing to the show, and following us on Twitter & Instagram.







    Finally, join the Travel Writing World newsletter to receive your free copy of The Travel Writer’s Guidebook. You will also receive monthly dispatches & reports with podcast interviews, travel writing resources, & book recommendations. Alternatively, you can join the Genius Loci Newsletter to get monthly roundups of travel writing news.







    Thanks for your support!







    Intro music







    Peach by Daantai (Daantai’s Instagram)







    Disclaimer







    *Some of the links on this site are affiliate links. This means that, at no additional cost to you, this website will earn a very small commission if a purchase is made using these links. Also, "as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases" using the Amazon links on this site.









    Thank you!

    • 30 min
    Pico Iyer – The Half Known Life: In Search of Paradise

    Pico Iyer – The Half Known Life: In Search of Paradise

    Pico Iyer joins me on the podcast again. And this time we’re discussing his new book The Half Known Life: In Search of Paradise. 







    As the subtitle reveals, The Half Known Life is a book about the idea of paradise. But it is also a book about living in the real world and embracing the unknown, topics that Pico and I chat about in today's podcast.







    We also talk briefly about Reading, Writing, Buddhism, Peter Matthiessen, Cal Flyn, and more.







    Purchase The Half Known Life by Pico Iyer







    If you decide to purchase your books from Amazon, please use our links on this page. If you use our links to make a purchase, we will receive a few cents commission from Amazon at no additional cost to you. These funds help keep the podcast alive and ad-free.









    More episodes, newsletters, & support







    Please consider supporting the show with a few dollars a month, less than a cup of coffee, to help keep our show alive and advertisement-free.







    You can also support the show by leaving a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts or in your favorite podcasting app, subscribing to the show, and following us on Twitter & Instagram.







    Finally, join the Travel Writing World newsletter to receive your free copy of The Travel Writer’s Guidebook. You will also receive monthly dispatches & reports with podcast interviews, travel writing resources, & book recommendations. Alternatively, you can join the Genius Loci Newsletter to get monthly roundups of travel writing news.







    Thanks for your support!







    Intro music







    Peach by Daantai (Daantai’s Instagram)







    Disclaimer







    *Some of the links on this site are affiliate links. This means that, at no additional cost to you, this website will earn a very small commission if a purchase is made using these links. Also, "as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases" using the Amazon links on this site.









    Thank you!

    • 32 min
    Sara Wheeler and Bill Colegrave

    Sara Wheeler and Bill Colegrave

    As you’ll remember from the announcement in episode 94, we’re publishing four of Bill Colegrave’s interviews here on Travel Writing World. 







    Today’s episode is Bill’s last interview, this one with Sara Wheeler. Now, most of you will be familiar with Sara for her books like Terra Incognita and The Magnetic North. And she wrote a biography of Apsley Cherry-Garrard, the author of the now-classic book, The Worst Journey in the World. Sara came on the podcast back in episode 83 to speak about Apsley Cherry-Garrard and his book. 







    Purchase Terra Incognita by Sara Wheeler







    If you decide to purchase your books from Amazon, please use our links on this page. If you use our links to make a purchase, we will receive a few cents commission from Amazon at no additional cost to you. These funds help keep the podcast alive and ad-free.









    More episodes, newsletters, & support







    Please consider supporting the show with a few dollars a month, less than a cup of coffee, to help keep our show alive and advertisement-free.







    You can also support the show by leaving a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts or in your favorite podcasting app, subscribing to the show, and following us on Twitter & Instagram.







    Also, consider using our affiliate links to purchase your books. If you use our links to make a purchase, we will receive a few cents commission at no additional cost to you. These funds help keep the podcast alive and ad-free.







    Finally, join the Travel Writing World newsletter to receive your free copy of The Travel Writer’s Guidebook. You will also receive quarterly dispatches & reports with podcast interviews, travel writing resources, & book recommendations. Alternatively, you can join the Genius Loci Newsletter to get monthly roundups of travel writing news.







    Thanks for your support!







    Intro music







    Peach by Daantai (Daantai’s Instagram)







    Disclaimer







    *Some of the links on this site are affiliate links. This means that, at no additional cost to you, this website will earn a very small commission if a purchase is made using these links. Also, "as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases" using the Amazon links on this site.









    Thank you!

    • 28 min

Customer Reviews

4.9 out of 5
26 Ratings

26 Ratings

ingrid_t ,

Thoughtful interviews

Essential listening for budding travel writers. Thoughtful interviews with insightful guests that delve deep into the journey and craft of writing.

Economist LUVr ,

Favorite podcast

Jeremy brings an outstanding series of writers to the podcast. He is incredibly well-prepared for each interview and makes really interesting connections across the genre. I am buying almost every book from the authors that appear on the show. I support the podcast through Patreon.

Whitney B. ✨ ,

Interesting show!

I recently started listening to this podcast, and I’ve already learned a lot from it. Jeremy Bassetti, the host, has interviewed some incredible travel writers and editors, and the show always makes for an entertaining and thought-provoking listen. If you’re interested in travel writing, you’ll want to check it out!

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