Today I attended my first New Zealand Authors Society Roadshow. It was great to be amongst a group of people with some similarities and many differences to me. One the workshops I attended was very hands on. One of the exercises involved writing for 5 minutes and then pulling out some term words and phrases.Continue reading “Quick fire writing challenge 1”
Tag Archives: poetry
Calm up
Never in the history of calming down has anyone ever calmed down by being told to calm down. I have tried to find a source to attribute that quote to, but so far I haven’t been able to pin down a definitive origin – if you have some leads please provide them in the commentContinue reading “Calm up”
A distracted mind
Yes, I am of the age now that I will walk into a room and on finding something I’d forgotten will have forgotten why I came into the room in the first place. I blame stress, a lack of sleep, the humidity (or a lack of it), cats, and those little imps that go aboutContinue reading “A distracted mind”
Before times, in Paris
In 2016 I travelled to Paris to do something I had never done before….I asked the love of my life to marry me. And she said yes! I popped the question as we cruised under the Bridge of Lovers. It is such a special city – we stayed at the most gorgeous hotel – HotelContinue reading “Before times, in Paris”
The human / animal
Humans like to think we are somehow special, they stand above the other animals on this small planet as it spins in the foreverness of space. There is majesty in all life that we have tarnished with our greed, envy, spite and pride. We kid ourselves if we think we can escape the damage weContinue reading “The human / animal”
Lost in a moment
I love that feeling of looking up to the clock and seeing that hours have passed while I’ve been fully immersed in something. It could the feeling of being in the flow, where minimum effort is required for maximum satisfaction, or that feeling of wild abandon when the outcome doesn’t matter as long as you’reContinue reading “Lost in a moment”
A reflection on Pink Shirt Day 2021
On Friday 21 May I joined many New Zealanders who donned pink t-shirts to show their support for inclusive, respectful and safe schools, workplaces and communities. Pink Shirt Day of course started in Canada in about 2008 and has spread around the world. Over the last couple of weeks I have been thinking about allContinue reading “A reflection on Pink Shirt Day 2021”
Career Advice
I’ve had a tonne of career advice over the years – be the first one into the office and the last to leave; work hard, do not complain; don’t wear that; just be yourself; stop being so…like yourself, try to fit in; do this course/get that qualification; put yourself forward; don’t be pushy; and… “youContinue reading “Career Advice”
Firstly, an introduction
Kia ora, and thank you for visiting my site. I am hoping that you enjoy finding out more about my poetry and short stories. As is the custom in Aotearoa New Zealand, I need to tell you a little about myself. My childhood was spent in outback Queensland (Australia). Memories of the dust and isolationContinue reading “Firstly, an introduction”