Monday, October 30, 2017

Welcome!

Welcome, tourists!

We hope you'll put down your map, your museum brochures, your GPS and your camera, take off your fanny pack, slip out of your walkin' shoes and take a few minutes to have a conversation about what you did last weekend.

You know, being a Tourist at Home.

Because I've been there. Probably literally.

When I had moved to my 10th new city, I believed I had mastered the art of being a tourist in my own backyard. As a newcomer in Cleveland, Washington DC, the Ohio heartland, Chicago, Philadelphia, northern New Jersey, Lexington, Kentucky, South Florida and San Francisco, I packed my kids into the mini-van and visited every museum, zoo, monument, scenic view and ________ (fill in the blank with your favorite tourist attraction, because it's probably mine, too).

Who needs Welcome Wagon when you have a stack of brochures from the public library and a tank of gas?

While I was awe-struck with the uniqueness that my new communities offered, I was also hit by the discovery that many of my new neighbors - some who lived in town for years and years and years - had never been to the tourist attractions that were drawing out-of-towners.

What's wrong with those people?

So I decided to do what every unemployed freelance writer who's had her second cup of coffee on a Monday morning full of possibilities is inclined to do: Write a book.

Part how-to, part friendly advice, and part humor, my yet-untitled book (but looking for suggestions, you creative types!) will help you be the best darn Tourist at Home in town.

          ðŸš˜   How to Put Together a Tourist at Home Vacation Package

          🚘 . When Guests Come to Visit: Know Your Town to Show Your Town


          ðŸš˜   Tourist-at-Home Parenting: The Importance of Kids Knowing Their Home Base


          ðŸš˜   Planning the Most Amazing Spring Break Without Leaving Home


          ðŸš˜   How to Score Local Lodging and Tourism Discounts


          ðŸš˜   How Your Small Business Can Snag the Tourist-at-Home Market


Interested? I'm writing as fast as I can and hope to publish in Fall 2018. Meanwhile, I'll be running some promotions, offering some surveys, and picking your brains as much as I can. Being a Tourist at Home is all about connecting: With your community and the people in it.

I hope you'll join the conversation about your Tourist at Home experiences, wherever you live! Here's how:

Diane's email address is diane@dianelaneyfitzpatrick.com.

Read more about Tourist at Home adventures on her website at dianelaneyfitzpatrick.com.

Chatter away on her Facebook page or her Twitter account.


Learn more about Diane's other books here:

Great-Grandma Is on Twitter and Other Signs the Rapture Is Near

Home Sweet Homes; How Bundt Cakes, Bubble Wrap, and My Accent Helped Me Survive Nine Moves

And check out her blog on the adventures of moving and relocation at It's Your Move!



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