DIY Beijing

An update of my very first Beijing guide was published today: DIY Beijing: A guide for the independent traveler.

My pride-and-joy guide was initially published as 17 really neat things to see and do in Beijing and other good stuff I learned the hard way in 1996. It grew out of an article I was writing for a newspaper travel section. The newspaper wanted 750 words on things to see and do in Beijing. 750 words! Impossible! I kept on writing when I hit 750 words. When I got done, I counted up my favorite things to do in Beijing, and there were 17. So that's what I named my guide.

Two years later, I expanded it by 20 pages and renamed it Do-it-yourself Beijing. It was only available for sale on my website, and I didn't accept credit cards, payment in advance only. It was self-published in the truest sense of the term: I did it all myself at Office Depot., and mailed it to my customers. I sold about 500 books over a two-year period.

DIY Beijing is positively upscale compared to those early efforts. It's available as both an ebook and print from http://www.guidegecko.com/. (They accept credit cards, too!) GuideGecko is a relatively new travel book company; DIY Beijing is the third guide I've published with them. The others are Parents Guide to Beijing and Cuandixia: an ancient mountain village in China. Cuandixia is only available as an ebook, but Parents Guide is both an e- and print book.

All three guides are geared for the independent traveler, but it's also good for travelers on organized tours who want to break away for a few hours. Parents and DIY Beijing takes them to the off-the-beaten path places that I love so much. The major attractions aren't neglected, however, especially if they're sites I like to visit again and again. And like 17 really neat things, DIY Beijing is still filled with tips I learned the hard way during the years I lived in Beijing.

Just click on the links above to find the books on GuideGecko. GuideGecko will feature both Parents and DIY at the Frankfurt Book Fair next month. This is exciting news for me!

If you're planning a trip to China, check out my website. If you have questions about travel in China, please email me.

Shameless self-promotion!

I need more votes!

GuideGecko.com is having a travel writing contest for books self-published through their site. The winner gets a trip to the Frankfurt, Germany, Book Fair in October. The book fair is the world's largest, annually attracting some 300,000 visitors and more than 7,000 publishers.

Books about a different country are featured each year. This year China is the honored country. GuideGecko will be promoting by Parents Guide to Beijing there. Hopefully, with that many people they'll be able to sell a few of my books.

I've entered my book in their travel writing contest, and need votes so I can be at the fair with my book. The winner is determined by popular vote. You can vote for Parents Guide here. Buying the book is not required to vote for it, but you're very welcome to buy it if you want.

I got an email on 9/7 from GuideGecko saying I was third out of 44 guides entered, and only 10 votes out of first place. This is another election where every vote is going to count! You must be registered with them for your vote to count.

Even if I don't win the contest, I'm excited my books will be there. Books? What's this? Well, for the last month or so, I've been working on a major overhaul of my Do-it-yourself Beijing guide which I first published in 1999. I just finished the first draft last week. GuideGecko also wants to promote the updated book at the book fair, so I've got to hustle and finish it quickly. Looks like I'll spend the next couple of weeks chained to my computer.

My eguide, Cuandixia: an ancient mountain village in China, is also on GuideGecko, but, unfortunately it long enough and will be staying home.

Examiner.com interviewed me

Glen Loveland, the Asia headlines specialist for Examiner.com, interviewed me about my travel writing on China. It's a nice article, in Q & A format, and, of course, the answers are stunningly brilliant! You can read it here.

In the "it's a small world" department, Glen is originally from Yakima, Washington, about 75 miles north of Kennewick, where I live. He's lived in Beijing since 2007.

For more information about travel in China, please see my website. If you have any questions about traveling in China, please email me.

P.S. The photo above is of Beihai Park's White Dagoba Temple, a landmark sight in central Beijing.