Never Wrote a Trip Report Before, Few Questions

[mikepizzo]

Howdy everyone!

I've never written a trip report before, but with my wedding and honeymoon trip coming up, I'd like to try to document as much as possible, so I have a few questions.

We leave early on the 24th, our wedding is on the 27th, our honeymoon cruise leaves on the 30th, we return to Orlando on the 5th, then depart back home on the 7th.

What's the best way to keep notes? I'd like to not be tied to my phone and to live in the moment, but at the same time I know I'll be exhausted when I get back to the room and I'll probably fall asleep and forget everything. What's a good balance you all have found?

Also, are there any "rules" i should know about? Specifically formatting? Are pictures required? Is length a problem? I tend to be long winded at times.

Any information you all could provide would be great!

 

[glennbo123]

Howdy mikepizzo. Glad to hear that another budding trip reporter is in the works. First, there are no "rules" other than the Disboard's rules regarding profanity, etc. Pictures are not required, but to hold people's interest, they're probably a pretty good idea. No special formatting required either...I've seen people write their reports in a special font, size, and color. And others like myself, just use the standard. People do appreciate when you put a table of contents at the beginning of your report, in the first or second post, so you may want to learn how to link to the chapters (if that's what you want to call them). I also put a link at the end of my chapters to the next one (I edit it to add the link when I put up a new one) so that people can just click through the whole report and avoid the comments if they want to. I recommend writing your report in Word and then when you're ready to post, paste it into the Disboards "Reply" box. (There's nothing worse than writing a long post online and then have it go "poof" before you can post it.) Length is not a problem. I had one trip report that took two threads to complete (lots of commentary!) and my current report is two years in the writing. That's a lot longer than I'd like, but life comes first. Regarding note-keeping, I've tried a pad and pencil, iPhone Note app, and Evernote. The pad and pencil is probably the fastest, but since the iPhone is always with me, I can add some notes while I'm waiting in a line or on the bus, etc. Usually I try to keep track of the order we did things, any funny stories, or things people said. The photos jog a lot of memories too.

It is a lot of work, more than people realize! But as you've already guessed, it is a great way to document the trip and all the great times you had. Good luck!