AvantGuild Member of the Week: Richard Truesdell
Age: 51
Location: I call Southern California home but typically I’m on the road 15-20 weeks a year.
What has been your most difficult project of late and how did you deal with its challenges?
This past summer I was able to secure a Ford GT and a Dodge Viper in Europe for the same week. The itinerary itself was a challenge, London, where the cars were based, to Maranello, Italy, home of Ferrari, and back, a total of 2,600 miles. Beyond the obvious, securing the services of another driver, finalizing the route, making all of the hotel reservations and 1,000 other things, driving 2,600 miles in a week, even in a pair of cars capable of 170 MPH+, was a challenge. Fuel alone cost over $2,000.
The main problem was that no matter how hard we tried, it was almost impossible, given that I was photographing the adventure, to stay on schedule. It required rising at sunrise and several evenings, finishing up after 10 PM before arriving at the night’s hotel. Was it worth it? Sure was as thus far different versions of the feature has been published in the US, UK, Holland and Romania with France coming up shortly. I am still working on getting placements in Italy, Germany, South Africa, Australia and Japan.
Given the expense involved in producing such a project, over $7.000 (I funded this project on my own as I couldn’t secure an assignment in advance making it the ultimate spec project), it’s essential to maximize each placement opportunity. In the US, three more versions are scheduled to appear, that don’t conflict or compete with my initial placement, one in a webzine with an entirely different focus than my first placement, a second in a mainstream automotive title that will focus just on the day at the famed Nürburgring in Germany and a third in a lifestyle publication.
What’s the most helpful thing you’ve learned about freelancing?
To be relentless on the marketing side, spend at least a day a week on average, working on new pitches and queries. That’s the best advice I can give.
I try to make contact with at least three new editors and publications each week. Also, listen carefully to what your editors want. While I have a vision for each of my features even before I start, it’s the editor who has to fit the project within the format of his or her publication.
I find it frustrating, in the in-flight category, to find that I can’t make any real progress, that most editors won’t even respond to my queries even though their readers are more male than female, especially in the premium classes. More often than not, these men, and to a lesser degree, women, are car enthusiasts and that some of my projects will be more entertaining than some of the celebrity-focused features that seem to be the staple of so many of the in-flight titles. When held captive in a pressurized aluminum tube for five plus hours, I know that I want to read a story that pulls me in, tells me what it’s really like to visit a destination, not tell me about some $500/night hotel that most people will never stay at. Any such hotel should be a great experience; I want to tell readers about hotels that cost one fifth that amount, that provide a truly unique experience.
What’s been the worst advice you’ve ever received about writing?
An interesting question. I can’t really say that I’ve received any really bad advice about writing, other to say that some people seem to believe that I’m not a very good writer. I know that I can always do better and I really strive to improve both my words and pictures, which makes me even more valuable to my editors and clients.
What advice do you have for writers hoping to break into covering cars/the automotive industry?
Have a real passion for cars and let that passion show in your writing. Cars are universal, we all need them but for most people they are appliances, simply a way to get from point A to point B. Some people would be just as happy being behind the wheel of a Chevy Impala as a Chevy Corvette. For me, the vehicle I take on the journey is just as important as the journey itself. It’s very emotional, the vehicle, the trip/itinerary and the destination all need to be a good fit.
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