Type and hit ENTER
  • HOME
  • ABOUT
    • About Fi
  • CONTACT
  • OUTDOORS
    • Outdoor gear reviews
    • Map reading and navigation
  • TRAIN ADVENTURES
    • Ideas to get you started
    • Station to station walks
    • Devon and Cornwall
    • UK train adventures
    • Europe train adventures
  • WRITING
HOP ON BOARD
I'm a freelance writer and content creator with a passion for the outdoors and sustainable travel. I specialise in sustainable travel, gear reviews, walking routes and outdoor advice. Let's chat about your next project.
Fi Darby Freelance
Image Not Found On Media Library
Image Not Found On Media Library
  • HOME
  • ABOUT
    • About Fi
  • CONTACT
  • OUTDOORS
    • Outdoor gear reviews
    • Map reading and navigation
  • TRAIN ADVENTURES
    • Ideas to get you started
    • Station to station walks
    • Devon and Cornwall
    • UK train adventures
    • Europe train adventures
  • WRITING

Can outdoor writing really encourage more people to get outside?

November 21, 2019

As well as being a top Devon copywriter and one half of the outdoor duo Two Blondes Walking, I am an Ordnance Survey Get Outside Champion. I have been in this role for four years now and absolutely love it. It’s easy really when you love something and know that it does you good, to want to tell everybody else about that thing. For me ‘that thing’ is the outdoors and my favourite type of freelance writing is outdoor writing that has been specifically designed to encourage people to have a go at being outdoors themselves.

One question I have recently asking myself is exactly how successful outdoor writing can be at persuading people to go outdoors. I am inspired by a lot of what I read but so far this inspiration hasn’t resulted in me swimming the Channel, climbing Everest or saving the planet. Like most writers, I like to get my thoughts onto paper (or at least a laptop) so I have put together a few ideas about outdoor writing, persuasion and encouragement.

  1. It is important for outdoor writers to remember that they don’t have all the answers. Just because I find benefit from a freezing cold morning swim doesn’t mean that other people will.
  2. For some people, the outdoors can seem a scary place. Adrenaline-rush writing can exacerbate this, funny tales can help alleviate it. Before writing a piece of outdoor writing it is really important to consider both the hopes and the fears of its intended audience.
  3. Outdoor stories written in the first person can either sound really encouraging or really exclusive. Inclusive approaches that can be more encouraging include being honest about failures, giving practical next-step advice and delivering usable skills. You can possibly take this too far; I once wrote a blog post about Dartmoor almost entirely in emoji!
  4. One person’s stroll in the park is another person’s adventure. Outdoor writing needs to provide a healthy balance between early steps and things to which the reader can aspire.
  5. A writer should never overlook the persuasive power of a piece of outdoor writing. By suggesting that someone takes part in an activity or visits a location they should perhaps also be considering possible implications, whether these be for the reader or for the outdoor environment they are visiting.

I have been working with some really great outdoor writing clients this year and have plans to increase this particular element of my portfolio. The best thing about being an outdoor writer is of course that, if you want to do it properly, you have to get yourself outside first!

If you love the outdoors and love telling people how great it is, 2020 Get Outside Champion applications are open now!

When your work makes you proud – Ordnance Survey’s new Walk London map

Too much work or not enough? How to manage the boom or bust side of freelance life

 

November 21, 2019
Email
No comments yet

Related News

Other posts that you should not miss.

On the topic of hill walking – ‘Not one of your route marches!’

November 18, 2021

It should go without saying that an outdoor writer needs to enjoy being outside. Not only that but …

Read More
November 18, 2021
Small blue ferry by slipway, historical buildings across the water behind. People boarding.

Adventures by train – a Cremyll ferry walk

May 23, 2024

A two-ferry day is a good day. And that’s what I enjoyed when I set off to explore …

Read More
May 23, 2024

Around the world in eight Wales days

April 14, 2023

Over the last few years there have been many reasons not to travel overseas. Our post-pandemic, climate-aware, cost-of-living-crisis …

Read More
April 14, 2023

Leave a Comment

Your feedback is valuable for us. Your email will not be published.
Cancel Reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

OUTDOOR AND TRAVEL WRITER

Outdoors life by Loch Lomond in Scotland

You love the outdoors. I love the outdoors.
Let's make beautiful content together.

fi darby
Instagram
I haven't done this for a while. Sea swimming thr I haven't done this for a while.

Sea swimming through the winter saved my mental health through menopause but now, as I slowly come out the other side, I find I don't need the cold water kick as much.

Which means winter swimming doesn't happen as often.

Today I decided to celebrate summer by getting back in the sea for the first time since November.

It was cold but not biting.

And utterly marvellous.

Down here on the beaches of Devon, May is definitely the start of summer.

#devon #beach #seaswimming #outside #beachhuts
When you don't like your legs enough to wear short When you don't like your legs enough to wear shorts

But do it anyway.

The South West Coast Path in the sunshine; what better place to let my legs have a taste of sunshine.

Being a plus size and over fifty, I often envy people who have the confidence to wear shorts but find it difficult to accept that my legs are suitable for public view.

Today I decided that I actually didn't care.

It was very liberating.

Perhaps I should write an outdoor gear review for my legs.

#plussize #outside #outdoors #shorts #outdoorgear #gearreview #legs #overfifty #southwestcoastpath
Which of these counts as litter? 👇🏻 'Take a Which of these counts as litter? 👇🏻

'Take all your rubbish home with you.' It is an important part of the Leave No Trace message and it's particularly important when you're camping in beautiful wild camping locations.

But what counts as rubbish?

It's a question I ask DofE trainees every year.

1. Chocolate bar wrappers? Yes -take it home
2. Tea bags? Yes -take it home
3. Orange peel? Yes -take it home
4. Noodles? Yes -take it home
5. Banana skins? Yes -take it home
6. Toilet paper? Yes -take it home
7. Tampons? Yes -take it home
8. Poo? Yes -take it home (or bury it properly)

Some of these cause comments but arriving prepared to take everything (including yours or your dog's poo home) home is the best way to look after the places you wild camp.

Things we traditionally think of as 'biodegradable' will (after a long time) eventually disappear from view but everything leaves an invisible trace that wouldn't have been there if you hadn't.

This summer, let's look after the places we love.

#wildcamping #leavenotrace #location #walking
#outside #getoutside #takeithome #outdoors
I've got some news for you... There are only 43 d I've got some news for you...

There are only 43 days until the summer solstice. That's 43 days until the nights start drawing in again.

The weeks between the start of May and June 21st are my favourite of the whole year. They are the weeks when the world turns green and the sun sets golden.

And the days stretch on forever.

Summer might not officially start until June but May brings summertime to my heart.

It's easy to waste these long evenings though. Busy lives can often be tiring and getting outside after work can seem like a lot of effort compared to sitting in front of the TV.

But it's so much better for the soul.

Why not set aside an evening next week to spend some time outside. This was Dartmoor on a Thursday night but your evening outside could be anywhere. The local park, the beach, a nearby hill or even just a footpath.

I promise, you'll sleep much better than you would after a night watching Netflix.

#dartmoor #notflix #outside #summer #may #eveningwalk
What is train travel in France like? It's natural What is train travel in France like?

It's natural to feel nervous about new travel experiences but going to new places and doing things differently are all part of the adventure when you choose sustainable travel and take the train to Europe.

When you're Interrailing, it's easy to imagine that the travel will get trickier once you leave the UK. But this isn't necessarily true. For example:

TRAINS IN FRANCE ARE A LOT LIKE TRAINS IN THE UK.

🇫🇷 They mostly turn up on time
🇫🇷 They're often super fast (city to city)
🇫🇷 But sometimes slow (great for views)
🇫🇷 Some are very long (leave plenty of boarding time)
🇫🇷 Some have restaurant carriages (worth a visit)
🇫🇷 Very few have ticket barriers
🇫🇷 Very few have English announcements or screen info
🇫🇷 Some are double decker (check your reservation)
🇫🇷 Most have comfy seats
🇫🇷 Not all have WiFi and charging facilities 

Of course, the best way to find out what  flight free Interrail trip is like is to try it yourself. Especially if you are over fifty like me. You don't have to go far or to multiple countries for your first trip. 

JUST HOP ON BOARD AND SEE WHAT HAPPENS.

#interrail #interrailing #europe #trains #europebytrain #overfifty #adventure #travel #sustainable #flightfree
☀️ I didn't expect it to be so big... When I ☀️ I didn't expect it to be so big...

When I was planning our Europe trip on the Yellow Train through the Pyrenees, I read about the solar furnace at Odeillo but dismissed visiting it as a possible activity.

'It's just a few mirrors.' I thought.

🙄 WRONG!!!

Everything about this scientific installation is amazing. If you don't enjoy the science (you will), the sight of so many mirrors reflecting upside down mountain and cloud images, will cause you to stay much longer than you had planned.

🕵🏼‍♂️ It's all a bit James Bond film location.

😎 10,000 times the energy of the sun!!

Find out more about the solar furnace and our Interrail trip on France's Little Yellow Train over on my website. 

🌐 LINK IN BIO

#interrail #europe #trains #pyrenees #explore #solarenergy
Load More Follow on Instagram
Channel 4 - Devon and Cornwall

adventures by train blog writing car free devon family walks freelance writing hiking outdoors outdoor writer outdoor writing station to station sustainable travel torbay torquay train adventures trains Travel travel writing walking walking route working from home writing

HOP ON BOARD
I'm a freelance writer and content creator with a passion for the outdoors and sustainable travel. I specialise in sustainable travel, train adventures, gear reviews, walking routes and outdoor advice.

LET'S CHAT ABOUT YOUR NEXT PROJECT

OUTDOOR AND TRAVEL WRITER
  • January 16, 2025
    Travel writing tips – how to take effective notes
  • January 7, 2025
    Is geotagging bad for the environment?
  • January 1, 2025
    What does an outdoor influencer look like?
  • December 23, 2024
    Outdoor and travel writing trends for 2025
  • Instagram
  • Email
Fi Darby Freelance
© Fi Darby 2025 All Rights Reserved
Can outdoor writing really encourage more people to get outside? - Fi Darby