The Masterclasses by National Geographic Traveller (UK) returns this week with a series of one-hour writing and photography sessions.

The first events took place last night, with the writing class looking at how to turn your travels into travel writing. Our panel of experienced travel journalists talked the audience through their career journeys and shared a wealth of tips, discussing everything from developing a story to taking notes while on the road.

Here’s some of the expert advice shared during the session:

• Before trying to secure your first byline, Ellen Himelfarb, a freelance feature writer and editor, recommended reading good travel writing and thinking about how those pieces got commissioned. “See what people are writing and imagine what their pitch might have been for the story you’re reading,” she suggested. “Try to pinpoint what attracted the editor.”
• Kerry Walker, who’s authored dozens of Lonely Planetbooks, talked about how memories can be just as valuable as notes when crafting your story. “Memory is important,” she explained. “Don’t rely on what you’ve just written down [in notes] but think about how the place touched you. What did you feel about it?”
• When it comes to finding the right structure for your piece, travel writer and editor Alicia Miller suggested thinking about the “balance between those colourful moments that are really vivid and drop the reader into the place, and those practical paragraphs that provide context and analysis to your experience.”

Tickets are still available for the remaining sessions on Wednesday and Thursday. Click here to learn more and here to buy tickets.