SARAH HARVEY

Journalist, editor & content creator

Web 2.0-savvy journalist and content creator with experience in news reporting, longform and shortform travel and lifestyle articles, editing, blogging/other website content, newsletters, press releases, copywriting, SEO, social media management and media consultancy services

Services

I spin a lot of plates so you don't have to

Travel

I'm former News Editor of Maldives Traveller and former Editor of Riviera Times. Now working remotely around the world as a self-employed journalist, my work has appeared in various international publications including BBC Travel, Forbes Travel Guide, Insider and Fodor's. Topics range from hotel reviews and scuba diving to in-depth cultural insights, conservation and local cuisine. I’m considered one of the foremost experts on the Maldives (which I have been writing about for a decade - I'm one of the few foreign writers to have lived there long-term). My other areas of expertise include Sri Lanka, Spain the Riviera Maya and Caribbean. These are also all places that I've lived in before. I believe embedding myself in a country for an extended period of time gives me a deep knowledge and access to new angles, which is highly valued by editors. Scroll down to see articles and click on the images to enlarge them or open the web page.

Manta Media

Manta Media is an association of freelance international journalists, copy-writers, translators, graphic designers, marketing professionals, photographers and videographers. I founded it in 2011 with the aim of sharing creative talent and resources at fair rates. Ping me an email to see if we can help. The following are some MM associates. Ping us an email for inquiries.

Scuba Diving

I'm a certified PADI Advanced Scuba Diver and also have a PADI Nitrox licence. My first DSD scuba diving experience was aged 16 on the French Riviera (where Jacques Cousteau first popularized recreational scuba diving) and I received my PADI OW license in 2012 in the Maldives, followed by Advanced & Nitrox. Being a scuba diver helps me to write about conservation and marine biology and adds another string to my bow when writing articles for mainstream travel publications, too. I've written about various aspects of diving including a detailed description of the learning process, protected underwater species, coral preservation, freediving, liveaboard vacations and diving equipment. They have been published in specialty diving magazines such as DIVE MV as well as lifestyle magazines, travel magazines and websites. I've also created content for various dive center websites, blogs and brochures including Into Scuba (now Maafushi Dive and Sail) and Best Dives Maldives luxury diving operator. Click on the pictures to see bigger versions.

About

With a passion for travel as well as a thirst for conveying the news, I’m fortunate enough to be able to combine the two in my journalistic career. This has led me on adventures around the globe; from writing about climbing a sacred mountain in Sri Lanka for Fodor’s and Maya portals to the underworld for BBC Travel to reporting on the terror attack I witnessed in Nice, France, (resulting in three front page bylines in the print edition of the Los Angeles Times and more than a dozen by-lines in the print and web editions). Many of the publications I write for are based in the USA, so I’m used to writing in American English/AP/Chicago Style as well as British English/Oxford/Guardian Style.

After being awarded a scholarship to Bruton School for Girls and then graduating from Brunel University with a BA Honours in English 2.1 (3.7 GPA) I began my career in journalism. Initially working as a full-time staff reporter in London, I covered news, politics, travel, the environment and celebrity interviews (including Sarah Michelle Gellar, Kelly Rowland (Destiny's Child), Shaun Ryder (Happy Mondays/Black Grape) and Tony Hadley (Spandau Ballet). I then decided to go freelance and wrote about news, travel, lifestyle, culture and the environment for outlets including CNN International and ITN, as well as newspapers and lifestyle magazines.

In 2010 I was offered the role of News Editor of Maldives Traveller in Male’, the capital of the Maldives. I spent a year overseeing the re-launch of the daily news and travel website, reviewed resorts, wrote about regional travel trends and interviewed prominent figures including British TV chef, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall. I then set up Manta Media after recognising the demand for native English-speaking journalists and writers in the Indian Ocean region. As one of just a handful of Maldives writers to have actually lived there long-term, I'm still constantly asked to write about the Maldives and frequently return to keep my knowledge fresh. I've visited around 80% of Maldives resorts and have been writing about it for a decade using my unique perspectives as a Maldives expert who has explored the country from top to bottom with the eyes of a foreigner but the insights and connections of a local.

I've now lived in eight countries on four continents; demonstrating cultural intelligence through my expertise in sensitively working with international teams across cultures and languages. Post Colonial studies was a major component of my English degree and as such I strive to seek out and uplift local voices and talent in my articles.

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