A former 8-to-5 Corporate America employee, JoAnna Haugen now makes a living as a full-time writer, editor, copywriter, blogger and ghostwriter.

I had the pleasure of meeting JoAnna in January 2010 on the International Food Wine & Travel Writers Association Conference at Sea. JoAnna was the scholarship winner for IFWTWA. The committee certainly made a fine selection, as JoAnna has been a member that realizes the importance of getting involved and constantly learning.

JoAnna’s writing is active and engaging and I read several pieces she has published during the past year. She keeps getting better and I’m delighted to share this interview with you.

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1. Please introduce yourself: provide some background, i.e. where are you from, how did you start writing, is there anything specifically interesting about you? If you had another career first, how/why did you switch to writing?

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I’ve always been a writer at heart, and I knew I wanted to work in some sort of international capacity, so I majored in public relations and minored in international business and German. Right out of college, I served in the Peace Corps in Kenya, which provided me with a sense of understanding about what is really important in my life. After that, I worked a series of jobs in Corporate America, but I discovered quickly that passion isn’t really valued in the workplace, and I wasn’t content on just being a commodity. After attending Burning Man in 2009 where I met many people who were living their dreams, I quit the cubicle life and ventured out to become a full-time freelance writer and blogger, which is what I’ve been doing ever since.

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2. What type of writing do you focus on, food, wine or travel or all three?

I am more of a travel writer than a food or wine writer though I do food reviews for the online travel guide I write for, Why Go Las Vegas . My personal blog, Kaleidoscopic Wandering is exclusively travel with a touch of food tossed in when appropriate. I also work on many other writing projects that aren’t related to travel, food or wine.

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3. What can you share with others as to important tips or suggestions for other writers on writing and finding outlets for articles?

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I’ve learned as I’ve gone along and I’m definitely still learning how to navigate this career field, but my best tips for people who are new to freelance writing are to look way beyond the newsstands for ideas on where to pitch ideas, take networking seriously, become involved and integrated in social media, never burn bridges and always say thank you. Too many people forget to say thank you.

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4. How did you get started writing and blogging?

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I began keeping a personal travel blog in June 2009 as part of the Roads Scholarship program. I can’t believe how far it’s come in just a single year. I have a very loyal following of readers and make some extra money on advertising every month. It’s humbling to know people seek out my blog to read about my travels.

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5. How often do you blog?

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I post every Monday and Thursday on Kaleidoscopic Wandering. I post several posts and features on WhyGo Las Vegas every week.

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6. What has been the most effective means of gaining traffic/followers?

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I use social media (Twitter, Facebook, StumbleUpon) to draw traffic to my blogs, but once readers are there, I make sure I engage them by replying to their comments and starting conversations so that they become return visitors. I also spend a lot of my time reading and commenting on other blogs.

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7. If you also write articles, do you query for assignments before you write or after the article is done?

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I very rarely write on spec. I almost always query before writing, though there are a few publications for which I’ve made an exception. The main reason is that I honestly don’t have the time to write something if I don’t know it’s going anywhere.

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8. Do you go to food, wine or tavel writers or blog conferences?

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I attended the Travel Blog Exchange travel blogging conference in 2010 and plan to do the same in 2011. Interacting with people face-to-face is so important in the travel writing and blogging industry!

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9. What’s the most difficult part of your job?

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Because I work on so many things—blogging, copywriting, article writing, editing—in so many different fields, my biggest struggle is jumping from one project to the next. It takes a lot of cognitive effort to make that switch, which I usually do several times a day.

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10. Have you learned any inside tips along the way you could recommend to writers/bloggers starting out?

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People should be writers or bloggers because they love it, not because they hope to make money at it. It takes awhile to make this job work financially, and there will always be frustrations about low or lack of pay, but if you have a passion for writing or blogging, it’s a lot easier to deal with those setbacks.

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11. Do you use social networking to promote your blog? If so, which ones work best for you?

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Regardless of what I’m working on, I always have one hand in social media. I use Twitter constantly, and I also have a Facebook fan page for my travel blog, which drives a significant amount of traffic to the site. I am also on StumbleUpon, which I use strategically in promoting my site along with other interesting sites I find around the web.

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12. Have you considered writing a book? If so, could you tell us about the subject and any titles you may have already?

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I have written a book, but it’s not related to travel, food or wine. My first book is actually a rhyming children’s picture book. My agent, Bree Ogden, is currently working with me to find a publisher for it.

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13. Where can readers learn more about you?

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Feel free to follow my travels at Kaleidoscopic Wandering or on Twitter. My professional portfolio is also available online.

If you would like to be interviewed, please let me know if you want the author/writers, writer/blogger or publisher questions.

My preference for bloggers are those who write on food, wine, travel or writing.