In the next six weeks you have 1000 miles of Brazil's north-eastern coastline to cover by boat, bus and dune buggy. There are no less than 59 towns, villages and cities on this particular stretch of coastline. You are responsible for 147 hotel reviews, 152 bar and restaurant reviews and details on everything from bus schedules to border crossings. You spent half of your advance on your plane ticket down here and if you find a way to complete the required research in the next six weeks, you will have eight days to write all 112 pages that are due to your editor. Welcome to life as a professional travel writer.

Hired in 2004 to contribute to Lonely Planet's Brazil guidebook, Thomas Kohnstamm fled his Thomas Kohnstamm Wall Street job to pursue his dream of being a travel writer. Do Travel Writers Go to Hell? is the story of the adventure that followed. Kohnstamm, a truly unique individual, goes beyond the narrow slice of experiences squeezed into the guidebook format and for the first time offers an unvarnished look at travel writing itself.