Charles Nicholl on Story Structure and “Borderlines”

Charles Nicholl, Courtesy of the Author In 1986, Charles Nicholl traveled through Thailand to learn about the spiritual traditions of forest Buddhism. But things are not always so straightforward in Thailand. When Charles meets Harry, an old French Indochina hand, on the night train north with his tales of gem smuggling and opium smoking, it leads to a journey along the banks of the Mekong, into the Golden Triangle, and into Burma. Charles joins me today to talk about his adventures, story structure in travel writing, and about his book Borderlines: A Journey in Thailand and Burma (Eland 2021).  Purchase Charles Nicholl's book Borderlines Support independent publishers and purchase Borderlines directly from Eland. If you live in the United States or the United Kingdom, we urge you to purchase your travel books from Bookshop, an online store that supports independent bookstores. Whether you use Bookshop or you decide to purchase your travel books from Amazon, please use our links. If you use our links to make a purchase, we will receive a few cents commission at no additional cost to you. These funds help keep the podcast alive and ad-free. More episodes & support Please consider supporting the show with a few dollars a month, less than a cup of coffee, to help keep our show alive and advertisement-free. You can also support the show by leaving a positive review on Apple Podcasts or in your favorite podcasting app, subscribing to the show, and following us on Twitter & Instagram. Lastly, consider using our affiliate links to purchase your books. If you use our links to make a purchase, we will receive a few cents commission at no additional cost to you. These funds help keep the podcast alive and ad-free. Finally, join the Travel Writing World newsletter to receive your free copy of The Travel Writer’s Guidebook. You will also receive quarterly dispatches & reports with podcast interviews, travel writing resources, & book recommendations. Thanks for your support! Listen to the episode on YouTube Listen to the episode on YouTube on the Travel Writing World channel. Remember to subscribe to the channel. Intro music Peach by Daantai (Daantai’s Instagram) Disclaimer *Some of the links on this site are affiliate links. This means that, at no additional cost to you, this website will earn a very small commission if a purchase is made using these links. Also, "as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases" using the Amazon links on this site. Thank you!