A review in yesterday's New York Times Book Review of the new biography of Patrick Leigh Fermor noted that it was an assignment from Holiday - on "The Pleasures of Walking" - that got him finally to sit down and write A Time of Gifts. The symmetry was exquisite: my favorite travel magazine inspired my favorite travel book.
Perhaps next year the Swedes will smile on Colin Thubron and do for travel writing what they just did for the short story.
The article in Sunday's New York Times Style/Travel magazine (what do you call that thing?) about New Orleans was written by a woman who had moved there from Manhattan with her husband, as if the presence of former New Yorkers in the city was what made it worthy of coverage.
There is a film out about J.D. Salinger, a writer who stopped publishing because he couldn't bear all of the publicity. Much more common is the writer who stops trying to get published because he can't stand all of the negativity.
Travel writing has moved from metaphors to hashtags.