Writer Guidelines

Last Updated on January 8, 2023

Would you like to write for us?

What we’re looking for:

Experienced writers who’ve stayed or plan to stay in a unique, classy, or eclectic vacation rental. This can be a condo, townhouse, vacation club, private home, treehouse, castle, houseboat, or beach shack. We are open to also include unique boutique hotels, inns and bed and breakfasts. But each of these venues should fit the region. Perusing our website, articles, and photos will illustrate exactly what we mean. You may even elect to cover your own vacation rental in a story.

In addition, we may request a destination side piece covering what to see, and where to play and dine in the area. Readers love personal “must-do” recommendations. Again, you can refer to the website for the styling of this article as well.

How to Find Rentals: A good place to start is to contact a tourism board representative or VRBO website. We’ve also found rentals by doing a Facebook search. You can then contact the owner or representative to set up your stay. Owners we’ve worked with are happy to comp a few nights stay in exchange for an article covering their rental.

Pitch First: Please send pitches only via this form and if we feel it’s a good match, we’ll gladly assign the story. Include a link to the rental and any photos if available.

If your pitch is accepted:

Write in First Person: Please use first-person only and if you include “we” in your story, please describe the “we” (spouse, friend, children). This makes the story personal.

Word Count: We’re pretty flexible on this. Just give us all the facts and interesting details of the vacation rental. Articles typically run between 800-1,200 words each for property pieces and destination pieces. Bring your story to life with vivid descriptions, quotes, and storytelling that makes the reader want to “go there” and “do that.” Be thorough. Paint the picture of the property filling in where photos do not cover.

Article Submission: Please prepare the story in Microsoft Word. Then upload your story and photos in Dropbox and share the link with us via the email we used to accept your pitch. Title your article and add your name under the title. Just know that the title may change after editing for SEO purposes. Use subtitles in the article and provide a link to the VRBO listing.

Photos: Submit at least 5-8 high-resolution photos (do not resize for web, we will handle that) for both the vacation rental piece and destination piece. Horizontal images work the best for layout. Please caption your photos and provide photography credits. You should also obtain permission to utilize photos from the rental property owner or manager if you need to augment your own personal photos.

Videos: If you can create a video, we’d love it! Just upload to the Dropbox folder as well.

Payment: In lieu of a set payment amount for articles, Travel By Vacation Rental is doing something different. Each month, authors of the three top three traffic-generating articles across Rovology, Travel by Vacation Rental and Book Cottages will receive a monetary bonus payment of $100 for most clicks that month, $75 for second and $50 for third. Articles are eligible for the bonus for a period of 6 months after publication but can only receive each individual story’s bonus payment one time.

Sharing on social media: In today’s fast-paced travel world, sharing on social media is not an option, it’s a requirement and it’s expected by your host destination and venues. In addition, as we have already shared, it will drive traffic to your story and further increase your remuneration opportunity.

Publication Rights: We publish first, worldwide, and digital rights. We also exercise the right to continue to use, share, and promote the article at any time in the future.

Any questions? Please contact us.