I think I found her (@PatriciaParis1) … or she found me by twittering via someone else. I went to her blog and found loads of witty, interesting blog stories. Some read more like a short story, others sounded like the story of my life. Not just my writing life, my life!
“Set all for these goals for yourself then slope off to have another cup of coffee and fill the birdfeeder?” she asks. Yikes, I think, I forgot to fill the birdfeeder. “That’s procrastination because you’ve set too many goals,” she says. “Break them down into smaller ones and then into little chunks.” I know that, I used to teach time management when I ran management training courses. “I used to be a corporate trainer, I ran time management courses,” she says. Ah. Yes. With you there, Patricia!
Another one… “Why didn’t I just knuckle down and study Marine Biology like my father told me?” she asks. “Because I had these characters that needed to be unfolded on the page, that I needed to tell the world about, that’s why.” (I paraphrase). Well, I’m with you there as well, except I did study Marine Biology as part of my Oceanography course. Gives you even more possibilities for characters if you ask me. Mmm, now there’s an idea… an underwater Princelings book… maybe not. But I still ended up writing – eventually.
Then there’s the Healthy Lifestyle post. “Take half an hour each day to do something active. Lift weights, go for a walk, go to the gym if you need to.” Well, I was just saying yesterday to someone who had got himself swamped in self-employment. “Take an hour off every day and get out of the house. Or take Friday afternoons off. No-one will miss you and I give you permission to do so.” Funny how we need to give ourselves permission to do healthy things when we are self-employed. You and I are of one mind, Patricia.
And recipes on your website! Well, I know someone called Eppingstrider who puts those on hers. With mouthwatering pictures too. And she likes sailing (lives on Chesapeake Bay, so why not) and birds!
Patricia, if you ever come to England, you’ll love Norfolk.