3 Writing Lessons Learned While Backpacking Europe

The Eiffel Tower, after 10PM :)

You know that sinking feeling in your stomach when something goes wrong, and there are no clear solutions? What about that awesome feeling when - against all odds - everything turns out okay? (More than okay?)

Backpacking western Europe for three weeks, from mid-July to early-this month, was a seriously amazing and unlike-anything-else experience. From London to Rome, my BFF/travel partner and I took a lot of rides on the aforementioned Feelings Rollercoaster. We dealed with issues we couldn't have predicted, and we saw beauty we couldn't have imagined. I came home with the sense that I had inadvertently learned a few things - not just about traveling and myself, but about writing.

It's easy to apply travel lessons to story-writing, maybe because the two activities are so similar. Just like traveling, writing takes you into another world, one where you don't know exactly what's going on, but are always hoping for the best. To use two cheesy expressions, both writing and traveling expand the mind and help you see things from a different perspective.

So what were these double-applicable lessons? I'm super happy to share!

Outside the Peggy Guggenheim Museum in Venice! :)

#1: No expectations are great expectations. When you're about to commit a large amount of time to something, it's easy to fall into the trap of envisioning it going perfectly, down to the very last on-time plane arrival - or perfectly wrapped-up plotline. But stuff happens, whether it's a transportation delay or a surprise plot hole. And when it's your first trip someplace, or your first draft, it's easy to imagine how the story will go. But it could end up being way different... and not in a bad way. Keeping flexible and open to changes, or plain old surprises, is key to having a good trip and to writing a good story.

#2: Negative thoughts? Kick 'em into the Seine! Arriving in Paris, the BFF and I were met with clouds, rain, and cold. It mostly stayed that way for the four days we were there. But you know what? It wasn't that bad. It would have been easy to spend the whole time complaining and wishing it were sunny. But we were in Paris - and traveling there was awesome, cold rain or not. It's good to think of writing in the same way. Even when problems arise - even when it seems like the clouds will never part over your story - remembering how wonderful it is just to be writing can mean the difference between existential despair and a finished draft.

The beautiful streets of Nice!

Or to put it another way: would it have been better to be at home (AKA not writing), where it was sunny, than in cold and rainy Paris? No way, dude! When you're trying to travel/write, negative thoughts in general don't have much use. So it's best to kick 'em to the curb.

Rome's tiny cars FTW.

#3: Fearing mistakes = a mistake. This ties in with #1 and #2. In both writing and traveling, making mistakes is inevitable. After years and years of experience, maybe it's possible to pull off a book/trip without a hitch - maybe. But when it comes down to it, these are two messy activities, and worrying intensely about possible mishaps or roadblocks is like worrying about gaining weight at an all-you-can-eat candy buffet: it's going to ruin the experience.

Is it good to take precaution? Definitely. Pre-planning, outlines, rough drafts, travel insurance, safety gear: these are all things meant to stop mistakes from occurring, or at least from having long-term consequences. But mistakes themselves aren't bad, and it's no use avoiding them like they're death traps. You can always recover (i.e.: by thanking the stars your travel partner had an extra copy of your train ticket) and walk away having gained important knowledge (i.e.: don't leave train tickets on hostel beds). And gaining important knowledge is part of what traveling and writing are all about!

Well, that's it for writing lessons learned while backpacking Europe. The trip really was incredible - I wish every single one of you had been there with me. And I can't wait to go on another one... and possibly learn a few more things! :) Bon journée, everyone, and ciao for now!