S3 E26: The Driving Force Behind Unearth Women with Nikki Vargas

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I'm very excited to kick off season three of the Genius Womxn Podcast with a conversation I recently had with Nikki Vargas, a travel writer and author based in New York and originally from Bogota, Columbia.  

Nikki is the founding editor of Unearth Women, a travel magazine and media platform for womxn by womxn. Nikki’s work has been featured in Vice, Food, and Wine, and has been profiled in the New York Times, Good Morning America, and CNN. Previously, Nikki worked as the travel editor at Culture Trip, Atlas Obscura, and The Infatuation.  

In this episode, Nikki shares a wealth of insights, knowledge, and wisdom about establishing your voice on the travel storytelling path. In our conversation, we get into great depth talking about championing womxn's voices and the impossible weight of comparing ourselves to others.

I hope you enjoy this episode. Welcome to Season Three of the Genius Womxn Podcast!

Check out this special Unearth Women offer Nikki shared with our listeners

Get 10% off a one-year subscription to Unearth Women's newsletter, which includes exciting perks such as a magazine subscription, a print copy of our feminist city guidebook, a women-made charm bracelet, feminist stickers, a subscriber-only newsletter, and much more! A portion of profits from the newsletter is donated to a different nonprofit each month. Get the special offer here!

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“I know people that are writers, bonafide journalists, on-staff editors, and they were doing something completely unrelated before. So I don't think there's a right way to go about entering this industry. I think my biggest advice to anyone is to just start, you know, just start writing, start pitching, start reaching out to editors.”

Want to know how you can start publishing your travel stories? Download my step-by-step guide to publishing your stories and start sending your ideas out into the world!

What you’ll learn in this episode:

  • [02:44] Retracing a family murder in Colombia

  • [09:26] Having a passion and affinity for writing as a young girl

  • [12:39] Difference between a travel blogger and the travel journalist

  • [14:57] The bridge from freelance writing to starting a magazine

  • [18:25] Following a nontraditional path into travel journalism

  • [20:13] Taking initiative and going after your dreams

  • [21:37] Drawing inspiration from the womxn you meet on the road

  • [24:33] How travelers are uniquely positioned to support womxn wherever they go

  • [27:00] Change can happen in both big and small ways

  • [31:42] The early days of publishing the Unearth Women Magazine

  • [34:09] Lessons learned from the magazine’s early success

  • [36:44] Re-imagining the Unearth Women platform while holding true to its mission

  • [38:16] Nikki reflects on operating from a place of fear 

  • [43:08]  Struggling with insecurity and imposter syndrome

  • [45:09] Unearth Women Magazine today, a new book, and many stories to come

  • [48:53] Producing a true-crime documentary on the Milk Carton program from the 1980’s

  • [51:52] Thoughts on managing lots of creative projects and inspiration

  • [58:41] How to diversify projects and revenue streams

  • [01:02:23] Advice for getting started in travel journalism

Featured on the show:

  1. Follow Nikki on Instagram | @niknakvargas

  2. Follow Unearth Women on Instagram | @unearthwomen 

  3. Check out the Unearth Women platform at unearthwomen.com 

  4. Read Nikki’s article, Retracing a family murder in Colombia

  5. Review the Unearth Women Magazine Writer Guidelines

  6. Want more insights on pitching? Get my private pop-up podcast, Three Secrets to Successful Pitching

  7. Check out our membership community, The Circle, the place where brilliant womxn creators in travel media go to claim their dreams, get support, take action, and build their dream creative lives.

  8. Come join us in the Genius Womxn Facebook Group

  9. Interested in travel writing or photography? Join the waitlist for our travel journalism masterclass, Storytellers In Action, in which we help womxn creators get a footing in the travel media space, dream big, work through our fears, and take action

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