Liveaboard cruiser to be and retirement

[arbanais]

Hello Mike

Thank you for this "do not pre write like amateurs" piece of advice! i was honnestly planning to do so and look like one!

My first idea is writing about the diving experience in places i will sail to.

Picking up a good story feels more difficult as i just cannot see the story as my prospective readers would, but i will try!

I was also thinking about going to unusual places like clipperton, or japan by sea, or alaska, which for a european is rather exotic, and write "been ther seen that, felt like this, met those guys"

also on my do list is a novel inspired by life at sea, but not even a hunch of what it might about

My question is about marketing the the thing : which people should i target, how to find an editor, should i setup a blog as a shop window of my immense, but strangely unknown to the world, writing talent

Arbanais

[wavestimulus]

Originally Posted by Mike OReilly

Always pre-sell the idea and get the assignment. Don't pre-write and send it in; that's the mark of an amateur.

Yes, indeed but seems to me for "already recognized writer/journalist" with enough publications to show what you can do. Otherwise, ( and to relate to the question about marketing ), you first need to have enough articles or blog posts or ebooks for example to show your what you can and want to do. Kind of like fishing, you need a good bait

[Vronsky]

Hi Chuckr,
when are you going to share your adventures in the Black Sea with us ??

Thanks,
V.

Originally Posted by chuckr

Agree Mike -- when we were in the USA we heard over and over from people who said they wanted to do what we were doing but always had an excuse. We sailed a lot of places that people do not normally go and get away from the crowds.
I think there may be 2 types of folks- first is the above I want to but - there is always a but
the second are those who actually do go but sail the same old grounds year after year after year. It is ok if that is what you want to do

As for taking a bit of risk and finding new places it does take a bit of craziness and the willing to take a bigger risk. We are currently in the Black Sea and it is empty of sailboats - we come in to port and folks, even seasoned fishermen, come down and look and ask where we are from --
but what an adventure so far and we are only 1/2 way across northern Turkey - just past Sinop.

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by arbanais

My question is about marketing the the thing : which people should i target, how to find an editor, should i setup a blog as a shop window of my immense, but strangely unknown to the world, writing talent

Best thing to do is pick a magazine you want to write for, or go to their website, and look for the masthead. Find out who the assigning editor is (could go under various "editor" names). Then pitch an appropriate piece. Make sure you understand who their audience is, and what style/type of articles they are interested in. Another clear sign of an amateur is when the pitch is clearly inappropriate for the mag.

Originally Posted by wavestimulus

Yes, indeed but seems to me for "already recognized writer/journalist" with enough publications to show what you can do. Otherwise, ( and to relate to the question about marketing ), you first need to have enough articles or blog posts or ebooks for example to show your what you can and want to do. Kind of like fishing, you need a good bait

It's easier once you've established a relationship with a pub. But no one really cares who you are. One of your jobs as a professional writer is to pitch appropriate ideas to the right markets. If done right, the pitch (a query) not only presents the idea, and explains why you are the best person to do the job, but it also establishes your credibility and credentials as a good freelancer. Sometimes I spend more time on the pitch than I do on the actual article.

[arbanais]

so the proposal would sound like :
hi dear "quilt lover magazine" i am presently invited in a amish comunity in ohio (which explains you get this message through a pidgeon) specialized in bio/organic/hand made quilt making, i am in the process of writing something about it. Would you be interested in publishing it in your world famed magazine?

Am i right? (despite the dubious humor)

[Mike OReilly]

My pitch is one page, four or five paragraphs. Tight, quick, and to the point.

#1. First graf is essentially the lede to the story. It sets up the piece AND it demonstrates your writing and story telling capabilities. VITAL: Write it in the style appropriate for the magazine/website you are pitching to.

#2. Second graf is kinda like the bridge; it fleshes out the story, and leads into why you are pitching this particular idea.

#3. Third can expand on the 'why,' leading to why you are the perfect person to write this piece.

#4. Fourth graf can flesh out your expertise/experience or go into your writing background. If you have no professional writing cred then expand on your experience that makes you the right person for the assignment.

#5. Fifth is the wrap up. Sincerely, blah, blah...

If you've never written professionally I strongly recommend you pick up a book or two on the business. There's lots written about writing.

[arbanais]

So neat an precise! thank you Mike
About my writing experience i am a judge so i am used to writing rather complicated things and try to make them intelligible to anyone.
But this talent is very specific and will need to be broadened to fit my scribe ambition.
I would be grateful if you could remember the books that helped you the most at your beginings.

[Mike OReilly]

I've never met a judge-turned-freelance-writer. That alone should present some interesting opportunities for you. There's all manner of legal magazines out there. Certainly your skills in communicating complicated ideas will come in handy.

I honestly can't recall the books I read arbanais. It's been over 25 years now . If you Google 'freelance magazine writing, how to', or something like that, I'm sure you'll come up with dozens. These days there are lots of website/blogs devoted to the biz as well. Beware of the wannabe level stuff though. Everyone thinks they're a writer these days .

If you're really serious about making this a business you could also connect with your local or national freelance writing associations. In Canada there are a number of national and provincial groups. They connect you with fellow writers, and usually provide formal professional development and informal mentoring.

[ol1970]

In response to the OP's original question and I'd like to offer the following information. I "retired" on my 43 birthday thinking I was going to take a 6 months to a year off and then dive back into another project. 18 months later my entire perspective on investing, how much is enough, and retirement is completely different. This is just my opinion but here is what I can tell you:

1) Your actual expenses are so dramatically more important to your retirement number than your is crazy. I am not saying to cut everything to the bone and eat beans and rice, but analyze every single expense in your life and manage it like a business. My expenses are down 40% since retiring and I travel 4 months out of the year and have not cut back on dining out or my affinity for craft beer.

2) I have no affiliation what so-ever with this person or their site, but I wish somebody had introduced my to www.jlcollinsnh.com 25 years ago. Please read his stock investing series and his homeownership series...truly the most simple well explained down to earth no-nonsense financial advice you'll ever read. I have not found 1 item he has written that you can poke holes in.

3) The hell with what anybody else thinks. Being weird or different is a good thing, being normal is the McMansion and the $800/month lease on a new SUV. Get the boat you can afford, as others have said, the sunset is exactly the same from whatever boat you are sitting on.

4) Understand the 4% rule. I'm like a lot of posters on here and I'm super conservative & subscribe to the 3% rule but I admit its foolish to be worried. Basically 4% is having 25 times your annual expenses in investable assets. (3% is 33X, 2% is 50X) So if you have a paid for boat and can live off $3k month you roughly need to have $875k saved and invested. Most here would tell you that can and is being done by people cruising the world. If you run the CfireSim calculations anything over 80% is a run-away success, I suggest playing around with that online calculator. Keep in mind that saving beyond that point the probability of a very negative "black swan" type of event such as major terrorist attack or world war is a higher likelihood of derailing your retirement than your investments failing. So don't sweat it, if it is going to happen you can't do anything about it and wouldn't you have rather been out there sailing for the 7 years before it does (fingers crossed it doesn't).

5) Here is the Debbie downer part of my advice...if you haven't saved the 25 times (or greater) of your annual expenses, hold off but buckle down and race towards your goal to get there. Keep in mind that factoring in pensions and SS is absolutely acceptable in coming up with the 25X number. That is why the CfireSim calculator is so great.

It is overwhelming to think about sometimes but don't let it paralyze you from moving forward. I read regularly the following financial websites that are extremely helpful and insightful. (I like the jlcollinsnh one the best for its ability to communicate complicated financial matters into language dummies like myself can easily understand)

www.mrmoneymustache.com
www.earlyretirementextreme.com
www.1500days.com
www.financialsamurai.com
www.madfientist.com

Warning...its a rabbit hole you may not want to go down because you'll never look at money/investing/spending the same way again.

good luck : )

[iyamwhatiyam]

I turn 60 in September. I think we will sell everything and rent out the house. If not now, when? Besides, my advisor pointed out that with my technical background I can go back to work if need be, although not sure I believe him after a hiatus, things change too fast.

[chuckr]

Originally Posted by Vronsky

Hi Chuckr,
when are you going to share your adventures in the Black Sea with us ??

Thanks,
V.

Vronsky -- we are in Batumi Georgia -- just got back from an inland trip through Georgia and down to Armenia -- wow -

I am trying to catch up on things and get some writing done and will share part of that - we have a couple of rain days coming up before we move north to Poti and on to Russia --

[Vronsky]

I did a roadtrip through Russia a few years back: VISA application took many weeks in advance.
Heading for the Crimea as well ??

Originally Posted by chuckr

Vronsky -- we are in Batumi Georgia -- just got back from an inland trip through Georgia and down to Armenia -- wow -

I am trying to catch up on things and get some writing done and will share part of that - we have a couple of rain days coming up before we move north to Poti and on to Russia --

[chuckr]

Originally Posted by Vronsky

I did a roadtrip through Russia a few years back: VISA application took many weeks in advance.
Heading for the Crimea as well ??

We started planning this trip last November and yea it was a lot of work to get our Russian visa but we got it and it starts July 10 for 29 days. Our hope it to sail from Batumi to Poti for a couple of days and on July 9 leave in the afternoon for a 20+ hour sail to Sochi and arrive on the start of our visa to allow us as much time as possible. The problem is the weather - it is not kind some days in the Black Sea and seems to stick around longer than most. We got a 36hr wind to make Sochi then some weather sets in.
We have already been in touch with an agent in Sochi which should make it go a bit easier. And have set a bit of a target for inland travel in Russia - Volgograd, Moscow for a couple of days and St Petersburg before retuning to Sochi for a bit of a run north and a weather window to Odessa.

We can not stop in the Crimea. If we do we can not stop in the Ukraine. Russians said our visa works there and we would be welcomed. But they also advised that Ukraine would kick us out, as did the American embassy there, and once EU countries saw the port stamp on our exit from the Crimea we could have some real difficulties and we do not need those. Also we are wintering over in Turkey again and not so sure what they would do if they saw the Crimea passport stamp. SO no Crimea. It will be a 3 day sail from Russia to Odessa.

And we will leave before our visa expires on the first weather window we get after our inland visit. We do not want to get caught with no days on the visa and an unfriendly weather window.

[Vronsky]

My roadtrip was 6 weeks: needed a business visa for that period.
Stalingrad should be impressive (did not visit myself)
Contrast in wealth between St Petersburg/Moscow and the rest of the country is staggering. Huge distances: are you flying ? Fascinating country, Russia.

Enjoy !

Originally Posted by chuckr

We started planning this trip last November and yea it was a lot of work to get our Russian visa but we got it and it starts July 10 for 29 days. Our hope it to sail from Batumi to Poti for a couple of days and on July 9 leave in the afternoon for a 20+ hour sail to Sochi and arrive on the start of our visa to allow us as much time as possible. The problem is the weather - it is not kind some days in the Black Sea and seems to stick around longer than most. We got a 36hr wind to make Sochi then some weather sets in.
We have already been in touch with an agent in Sochi which should make it go a bit easier. And have set a bit of a target for inland travel in Russia - Volgograd, Moscow for a couple of days and St Petersburg before retuning to Sochi for a bit of a run north and a weather window to Odessa.

We can not stop in the Crimea. If we do we can not stop in the Ukraine. Russians said our visa works there and we would be welcomed. But they also advised that Ukraine would kick us out, as did the American embassy there, and once EU countries saw the port stamp on our exit from the Crimea we could have some real difficulties and we do not need those. Also we are wintering over in Turkey again and not so sure what they would do if they saw the Crimea passport stamp. SO no Crimea. It will be a 3 day sail from Russia to Odessa.

And we will leave before our visa expires on the first weather window we get after our inland visit. We do not want to get caught with no days on the visa and an unfriendly weather window.

[chuckr]

Originally Posted by Vronsky

My roadtrip was 6 weeks: needed a business visa for that period.
Stalingrad should be impressive (did not visit myself)
Contrast in wealth between St Petersburg/Moscow and the rest of the country is staggering. Huge distances: are you flying ? Fascinating country, Russia.

Enjoy !

Right now we do not have clue but prefer trains so we can see the country side and meet people along the way. it also allows us to sleep on the train and arrive in a city and see things on day 1. then sight see on the last day jump a train and sleep to the next destination.

But we got to get their first and right now working through the paperwork they want prior to our arrival. The Russians have been very helpful with everything and what we need to do. I wish other countries we as helpful.
We do not mind jumping through hoops to visit places we just want to know what the hoops are and the Russians have been very forth coming on what their needs are. We really appreciate that and their open and candid emails.