Hi! I’m Libby Zay, an award-winning writer, editor, and content strategist.

My specialties are marketing communications and travel journalism:

• By day, I work as a content marketer at a Silicon Valley-based travel app.

• On nights and weekends, I’m on the search for people and places with stories worth sharing.

I consider myself a researcher and guide, and I love to swap travel stories, advice, and real-world tips.

A few of my favorite travel-writing projects:

• 6 months living in Ecuador while writing and editing three Latin American guidebooks

• 400+ blog posts for Gadling.com, at the time the world’s most popular travel blog, from 2009 - 14

• 15 web-based city guides for World Trade Press; the equivalent of 450 printed pages

• 3 years independently managing the About.com Baltimore microsite

• 7 travel essays for Miles Away, a collection of seven true misadventures, self-published in 2017 as my MFA in Creative Writing & Publishing Arts thesis

I have a wealth of journalism and content-writing experience, including: 

• penning globetrotting stories and travel tips for Adventure Collection, BUST magazine, Every Trail, Garuda Indonesia, LifeHacker.com, MapQuest.com, TripAdvisor, Visit Baltimore, and Visit London

• capturing the essence of bars, restaurants, shops, and tourist attractions for City’s Best, City Paper, TripSavvy, and Urbanite magazine

• tracking trends and crewing the travel news desk for AOL Travel

• working with companies and organizations such as Budweiser, the Ecuadorian Ministry of Tourism, Fairfield Inn & Suites, Gogo Wireless, Marriott Bonvoy, MasterCard, SpareFoot, Virgin Atlantic, and Zipcar on branded travel content

I write because …

… no matter how much you think you know, there’s always so much more to learn. That’s also why I started The Scout Project, a merit badge program for curious people of all ages. 

My husband and I live on and are restoring an old boat, Valentina the Trawler, in Baltimore’s Inner Harbor.  I often write about the city. Otherwise, we try to hit the road — or, more and more frequently, the water — as much as possible with our hound dog in tow (see: #LifeWithPennyDog).

Interested in collaborating?

Contact me at libbyzay@gmail.com.

Employee of the Month
University of Maryland, Baltimore
2019

Staff Excellence Award
University of Maryland School of Nursing
2018

Best Online Feature Award
Caribbean Tourism Organization
2012

Winner, Technology Category
Hotspots and Snapshots Contest
Boingo Wireless
2010

T.Howard Foundation Fellowship
T.Howard Foundation
2009

Joellen Thomas Writing Award
Department of Women's Studies
The Ohio State University
2008

John Glenn Public Policy Fellowship
Washington Academic Internship Program
The Ohio State University
2007

Excellence, Magazine - Complete Unit
Nursing For/um Magazine
University & College Designers Association
UCDA 2020 Design Awards
2020*

Bronze Award, Magazine Publishing Improvement
Nursing For/um Magazine
Council of Advancement and Support of Education
National Circle of Excellence Awards
2019*

Bronze Award, Magazine - Print/Hard Copy
Nursing For/um Magazine
Council of Advancement and Support of Education
District II Accolades Awards
2019*

Bronze Award, Publishing Improvement
Nursing For/um Magazine
Higher Ed Marketing
Educational Advertising Awards
2019*

Gold Award
University of Baltimore Alumni Magazine
Higher Ed Marketing
Educational Advertising Awards
2016^

*co-earned with my team at the University of Maryland School of Nursing
^co-earned with my team at the University of Baltimore

Skills

Editorial:

Associated Press style • writing • editing • story ideation • content strategy • voice and tone

Digital:

Adobe Creative Suite • Google Analytics • content management systems • search engine optimization

Project Management:

editorial and marketing calendars • cross-departmental collaboration • freelance oversight