While I haven’t been sent any bribes to publish a Paper Trail, I did once receive a tempting phone call.
“What would it take to get my Paper Trail in the paper?” the caller asked. “I’m serious, can I offer you some money or something?”
Visions of my daughters’ college educations being paid for quickly ran through my head, or maybe a new bike. Nothing crazy expensive like a tank of gas or anything, but, wow, this guy really wanted to get his Paper Trail in the newspaper.
Of course I didn’t take his offer, but I did have a long chat with him about his photo, why it hadn’t been chosen, why others were. He hung up after telling me that he would send in another photo using the ideas I had given him about how to get the next one picked.
And here they are.
Don’t get ready for your close-up
Confidential to the ladies on the blog who said they were at an active volcano in Costa Rica but instead had taken their photo … surrounding the back of a vehicle sitting outside a house: Um, where’s the volcano?
The first thing we look for when choosing a Paper Trail for publication is that there’s something in the photo besides people — and the more interesting, the better.
You’re beautiful, yes, but readers tell us repeatedly that they want to see a landscape or what there is to check out at that location. Also, big groups are a no-no (no more than six, please), and someone has to be holding the Travel section.
Give us the dirt
When we ask for your best meal, we want to know, very specifically, where you ate it, as in the name of the restaurant. The address or any other identifying info, such as hours or that it’s on the beach or near a landmark, would be helpful too.
Remember, this is to give your fellow readers as much information as possible. It’s great to know that your best meal in London was fish and chips, but seriously, we figured that — at which stand did you find the cheapest, greasiest, fastest, least crowded? That’s why we’re all reading your Paper Trail, and that’s what makes us pick yours to be published.
If you didn’t eat in a great restaurant, it’s also OK to share something about an unusual ingredient or dish, but tell us as much about it as you can.
News we can use
For the “Best travel tip” segment, everyone now pretty much knows to take their sense of adventure, comfortable walking shoes, layers of clothing, sunscreen and bug spray. We’re looking for the inside skinny. Do we need a visa? Are the border police going to frisk us? Is there a great local artisan product that’s hard to find but worth tracking down? Are the roads so bad that driving a rental car is a bad idea?
Deja view
We have a lot of photos of the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro, and so it’s getting hard to run them over and over. Ditto looking down on the ruins of Machu Picchu, on the beaches of Hawaii and the Riviera Maya and sitting around a big table on a cruise ship. Find something unique about a repeatedly visited location.
Tell us where you’re from
Folks like to know if you’re a resident of Denver, Littleton, Vail or Cheyenne. Say it loud and proud!
Turn off time/date stamp
It can be tough, if not impossible, to crop out.
Kyle Wagner: 303-954-1599 or travel@denverpost.com
