About Our Authors
Pssst, wanna know the secret of our success? Our books are written by great travellers.
Our authors' shoe leather, sharpened pencils and inquisitiveness are the foundation of everything we do.
Lonely Planet specialises in hiring professional writers who see authoring as a career. Many are former journalists and trained professionals. All take their work seriously and none are writing guidebooks as a hobby.
They are pedantic, determined and annoying. Author Alex Leviton, for instance, takes pride in testing the water pressure in every shower when she researches accommodation, much to the frustration of hoteliers showing her around. Our authors go to great lengths to get the most accurate information. Again, Alex slept in 29 different places over 35 days, including seven hostel dorm rooms, when researching southern Italy.
Authors agree they have a dream job, but they are realistic about the commitment needed to be a travel writer. When they're on the road, it's not unusual for authors to work 18 hour days, every day, with no weekends, for 30 days straight.
Lonely Planet authors also maintain their incorruptible integrity by refusing any kind of endorsement, payment or favour in return for positive reviews (it says so on their business cards!).
Facts about Lonely Planet authors
- Lonely Planet has 365 professional authors, living in 37 countries.
- Lonely Planet authors have been to every country in the world, with an average of 45 countries visited per author. They are intrepid, brave travellers who go into places such as Somalia, Afghanistan and post-Katrina New Orleans.
- From China to Oman, Lonely Planet has over 85 authors living in the destination they write about. They are our eyes and ears on the ground, so we stay up-to-date and informed.
- In total, our authors speak 70 languages – from Inuktitut to Isizulu.
- Our authors include a former TV Ad actor, cartoonist, location scout for the Tomb Raider film, international insolvency lawyer, climate scientist, war reporter, fixer for Rolling Stones' 40 Licks tour film, pastry maker, and professional microbrewer.
For an insight into life as a Lonely Planet author, check out these videos.
You hit the road and the tab's on us - if you're the lucky Bluelist competition winner, that is. Find out more »
Forget about all work and no play - you can do both on an outback holiday in the Northern Territory. Find out how »
