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Sarah J C Gillespie

@sjcgillespie.bsky.social
462 followers 336 following 83 posts

Scottish-Filipina travel writer 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🇵🇭 Words in Nat Geo Traveller, The Times, The Telegraph, The Guardian and more. Glasgow-based. sarahjcgillespie.com

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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 15/07/2025
Editors: would it annoy you if a writer (me) put multiple pitches for the same country in one email? Obviously you could only take one, but I feel it would be so much better for me and the host country if I could get multiple stories assigned straight away for one destination
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 12/05/2025
when you've worked with one destination so many times your Google search results are just reminders of stuff you already wrote #Ecuador
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 21/04/2025
Airlines: "Arrive three hours before international flights." Also airlines: "The check-in desk opens two hours before the flight." 💀
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 16/04/2025
First-time TravMedia Awards finalist! How lovely 🥰 #TravMediaAwards
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 14/04/2025
I'm not deleting Twitter (still holding on in some vain hope that Musk sells it) but I am going to be winding it down and making Instagram my main social media platform for now. Follow me (and I'll follow you back): instagram.com/sarahjcgille...
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 11/04/2025
I can't be the only one who procrastinates by researching productivity tools
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 10/04/2025
The ideal AI endgame (for me) would be that it writes all my emails, and everyone else's emails, so eventually everyone has these personal assistant robots that talk to each other and no one has to deal with email ever again. One can dream...
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 04/04/2025
Been a bit of a stressful week – luckily, four days of stomping around the East Neuk of Fife is just what the doctor ordered 😍🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 #inntravel
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 03/04/2025
I feel for the PRs whose press releases end up "below the fold" (the "[Message clipped]" banner) in news roundups. That's the equivalent of me getting an OOO at the beginning of an editor's annual leave – that pitch is DOA 😐
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 02/04/2025
Pisses me off when I disembark from a Not Ryanair flight and there's still a 15-minute bus ride to the terminal. Looking at you BA/Heathrow T5, you really couldn't have designed it better?!
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 01/04/2025
Is it taps aff weather yet? 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿☀️
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 31/03/2025
That's twice in a month now that I've been emailed by an editor about a potential commission, only for said editor to abruptly leave their job days later. Was it something I said? 😅
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 18/03/2025
My insiders' guide to Manila is out today in the SCMP's PostMag! Thanks so much to my interviewees and the people who helped me find them 🥰
scmp.com
Insiders’ guide to Manila, Philippine capital and cultural melting pot
Locals share their tips on what to see, do and buy, from discovering iconic landmarks and hidden gems, to encountering Filipino craftsmanship.
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 12/03/2025
Going to have to be stricter in working only with travel companies/tourism boards where everything is comped from the off. Getting into drawn-out conversations about flight support and a hundred other particulars is devastating for freelance income (I don't get paid for emails)
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 11/03/2025
I'm currently laid up with Covid and being very unproductive indeed, but you should still read my productivity guide on Talking Travel Writing today 😉🤪 Well worth getting a subscription if you don't have one!
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 04/03/2025
Realising that a single four-day trip to Japan completely decimated my stock of business cards 🥲
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 03/03/2025
If anyone gets an AI-generated email from me I apologise; it will be because I've accidentally clicked the stupidly annoying "✨ Polish" button that keeps popping up all over my Gmail
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 28/02/2025
If a client asks me to file by "29 Feb", does that mean I have three years to write the piece? 😆
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 27/02/2025
Delighted to share that I've been shortlisted in three Inspire Global Media Awards categories (including Photo of the Year?!)! 🏆🥳🎉🎉
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 26/02/2025
OK I feel like I've asked loads of people and read blogs and seen a lot of different opinions so... Simultaneous pitching. To declare or not to declare? I've read that it's polite to, but I've also read a lot of "it's none of their business" or "they know you're doing it anyway"
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 24/02/2025
Last week I ordered kinilaw at a Filipino restaurant in London and they served me ceviche and I'm still upset about it
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 20/02/2025
#journorequest Any #PRs have a client who does menopause retreats? And I mean a specialised retreat, not their usual stuff given new branding (no I don't have a deadline or publication, this is a general expression of interest at the moment)
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 14/02/2025
I aspire to this kind of pettiness buff.ly/4jW0N2a
buff.ly
Glasgow pensioner complains about pavement parking at police HQ by sending cops framed photos
Paul Studley wrote to the Chief Constable of Police Scotland to raise concerns over 'dangerous' parking near the office. His complaints come as pavement parking is officially banned across the city.
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 14/02/2025
Three bars in the top 50! Get innnnn 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 🍸 🍹 🥂 buff.ly/3Ew95gU
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 13/02/2025
My Fukuoka guide is out now on Adventure.com! Quite possibly the tastiest piece I've ever worked on. 🍜 😋
adventure.com
A guide to Fukuoka, Japan's 'city of noodles'
With strong claims to the origins of ramen, udon and soba, modern-day Fukuoka is considered Japan’s ‘city of noodles’.
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 12/02/2025
Yeah there needs to be a "with furnishings included" option
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 12/02/2025
Obsessed with this restored Arts & Crafts home just outside Glasgow. Now just need to find £675,000 from somewhere buff.ly/4aSQgRf
buff.ly
Check out this 4 bedroom detached house for sale on Rightmove
4 bedroom detached house for sale in Ardlinnhe, Bearsden, Dunbartonshire, G61 for £675,000. Marketed by Inigo, London
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 10/02/2025
When I was new to this industry, I followed a lot of bad advice from "expert" writing bloggers with no more clue than I. Such as: "You should send five pitches per day (in addition to, y'know, your actual paid work)." Five?! That's completely insane
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 05/02/2025
Writing a 2,000-word narrative feature: ☺️ Writing a 50-word writer bio: 😫 🤬 💀 🤡 💩
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 04/02/2025
My entire Google Workspace (Gmail's the worst, but I'm also seeing it with Drive etc now) has slowed to a crawl lately. Anyone else had this happen and managed to fix it?
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 04/02/2025
How fortunate it is that I love whisky, because there are a surprising number of Scottish people who don't and yet it's usually the first thing people ask me about when I tell them where I'm from 😂
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 03/02/2025
A week after returning from Japan, I am still thinking about the social customs I would like to see adopted everywhere: - bowing - exchanging business cards with EVERYONE - presenting business cards, money and gifts with both hands - loudly welcoming people
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 31/01/2025
A wee request to PRs and editors... when sending a press trip invite/assignment, please give the trip dates INCLUSIVE of travel days. Otherwise I may find myself double booked 😅
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 30/01/2025
Manila! Looking for interesting people to give their recommendations for the city, for a feature. I have a few in mind but also curious to see if there's anyone I've missed. Get in touch by EOD Monday 3 Feb – email sarah@sarahjcgillespie.com #Philippines #journorequest
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 29/01/2025
Have been poleaxed by jet lag since getting home, despite not experiencing it at all in Japan. Whoever said "west is best" was talking total BS
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 28/01/2025
I've added you to the starter pack, please share it :)
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 28/01/2025
Expectation of a 14-hour flight: "I'm going to write a 12-month career plan and a 2,000-word feature and 20 pitches like the HUSTLER THAT I AM" Reality:
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 27/01/2025
One of the exquisite delights of travel is staying in an average three-star hotel, but then being presented by a breakfast that would beat the hell out of most restaurants #Japan #Fukuoka
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 23/01/2025
This "British pub" in Fukuoka is called Morris' Hippo. I suppose I get the "Morris" part, but why the hippo...?
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 22/01/2025
Have any of you successfully managed to become the "grab and go" type of packer? If so, want to share some tips to help a stressed travel writer out? 😅
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 21/01/2025
OK I think the Pokémon airline safety video might be the best thing I've seen in a long time
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 20/01/2025
Trying something new for this long-haul flight in the hope that I don't end up with a three-day nosebleed for once. If anyone wants a review lmk
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 17/01/2025
Yet another reason to send that pitch – if nothing else, it reminds editors that you exist. I've lost count of the number of times I've had a pitch rejected, only for the editor to email again a few days later: "By the way, would you be interested in writing up [in-house idea]?"
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 16/01/2025
Filing taxes is pure boredom punctuated by the mad dopamine rush of discovering a previously unaccounted-for expense that'll knock £££s off your final bill
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 15/01/2025
Glasgow's on Time Out's 50 Best Cities list for 2025, and they asked me to explain why (which wasn't difficult). Read the full list here:
buff.ly
The 50 best cities in the world for 2025
We polled thousands of locals to rank the world’s greatest cities. Ready?
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 14/01/2025
Done! Please share :)
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 08/01/2025
Amazing what I can achieve when I suddenly don't have a crippling chronic illness
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 07/01/2025
I have no idea why it took me so long to buy a luggage rack. I still wouldn't say I "like" packing but I certainly hate it less now that I have my coffee table back.
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 03/01/2025
The aurora borealis was being awfy showy on New Year's Day. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿
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Sarah J C Gillespie @sjcgillespie.bsky.social · 30/12/2024
It was mud to me too till I read How to Crack Cryptic Crosswords by Tim Moorey
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