Record the story of your trip with a digital camera if you are thinking of submitting an article about it to a travel publication, suggests Steve Watkins, co-author of the BBC book, Unforgettable Things to do Before You Die.

Snap as many images as you can, Watkins told the 2006 Destinations travel show in London.

This will help you recall memories, places and characters, he advised. It is a cheap way of taking notes and you do not have to be the best photographer in the world.

Writers should take notes in three formats, said Emma Gregg, editor of Travel Africa magazine. In writing, on an audio recorder (for conversations, local sounds) and on camera (even if images are not sold for publication).

Writers will need to gather far more material than they think they are going to need, she added.