[PODCAST] Teach Me, Senpai, E12: Travel writing and freelancing with Kara Santos

This Filipina has visited all 82 provinces in the Philippines and writes about her travels for a living. Here’s how she does it!

If you think you have a talent for writing and are wondering how writers earn money from their craft, you’ll probably find this episode interesting.

Kara Santos used to work for nonprofit organizations. She would write reports, help bolster campaigns, and talk to various stakeholders. Part of her job was to travel around the Philippines, and it was at this point in her life that she fell in love with traveling, and then travel writing.

In her travels, she realized that there were stories left untold from her reports: about the places, about the people, about the experiences. After having done various consultancy jobs and freelance writing gigs, Kara thought of taking a course at the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung Asian Center for Journalism. Her college degree was in psychology.

Throughout Kara’s career, travel writing and freelancing became her main source of income and fulfillment. Her work funds her travels, and her travels help her make content for her blog. One of her proudest accomplishments so far is having been able to visit all 82 provinces in the Philippines – an idea that sprung into her mind after seeing a scratch-off map of the Philippines.

Kara’s travel stories are in her blog called Travel Up (as in to level up like in video games), and she has written for various publications, including newspapers, magazines, websites, and most recently The Lonely Planet, for its upcoming guide on the Philippines.

In this episode, Kara schools us on a number of things:

• First, she teaches us to fall in love with print again. 
• Second, she talks about what it’s like to be a freelance worker and a full-time writer, and why she enjoys freelancing more. Plus we talk about how to figure out freelancing rates.
• Third, she shares what it was like to start a travel blog, how she monetizes it, how she works with brands, and why she continues to write about her travels.

Catch this episode on Sunday, April 14, at 7 pm! Bookmark this page so you don’t miss it. You can also follow us on Spotify at bit.ly/RapplerTeachMeSenpai. – Rappler.com