A week in my life

A little look into the days of a writer and creative mentor

Aug 16, 2024

Hey friends,

Today I thought I’d do something different and write about my week. While every week - and month - is very different in my life as a writer and creative mentor, I figured it might be fun, especially as I gear up for this big trip next week.

This week’s been more of a writing week, whereas the week before was more focused on mentoring. I still worked with a couple of clients on website and SEO stuff, and had a great chat about writing and publishing with another, but it was less than usual.

I didn't plan for the two weeks to work out that way, but I'm glad they did. It meant this week I could get my head down and write - along with squeezing in a few more bike rides and a lot of cat cuddles, of course.

Writing

This month I’ve been commissioned to write five articles. Although I took a big step back from travel writing last year, I've been dipping my toe back in the waters recently. I actually really missed it and didn't like the idea of all my knowledge going to waste.

That said, I've become quite particular about who I write for and what I write about. I take on jobs that are interesting, enjoyable, and focus on some of my favourite places/ things.

So, this week, I’ve been writing about El Salvador, Cambodia, Amsterdam, and ghost towns in NSW. I also sent two pitches: one about urban exploring and another about Maya ruins.

I like having multiple articles at once. It means I can set aside a day to dive deep into all the research and come up with an outline for my articles - they’re all listicle or how-to style and follow a specific formula. Having a whole day set aside to do this means that even if I do end up falling down Internet rabbit holes - as I am always want to do - it doesn’t derail me too much.

Then, I get in writing mode. First, I write my drafts, it usually takes half a day or so per article to get the drafts down and decent and then I leave myself some time at the end to put on my editor hat.

As I get easily distracted, I find it easier to batch research, writing, and editing, rather than finishing one in full before moving onto the next.

That said, procrastination has hit hard this week. I’m in the midst of one of those bouts of chronic insomnia and just feel tired all the time. I’m a little anxious about this trip and have lots of niggly annoying things to sort out before we go.

Everything feels a bit disjointed.

Still, the articles are almost done - and I’ve published two blog posts and written some social media posts and this substack - but it hasn’t been an easy week of writing. It has reminded me of when I used to write 60+ pieces a month and feel under the pump all the time. I'm glad I don't do that anymore!

Reading

I’ve also been jumping between five books. I don’t know why I have five books on the go, but at least it means I always have a book to read, no matter what mood I'm in.

I actually read a lot of books I don’t enjoy reading. I love consuming information and having read them, I just don’t always enjoy reading them. Type two fun, rather than type one.

For example, my main read is currently Joan Didion’s A Year of Magical Thinking. I'm reading it because I wanted to understand more about what it's like to lose a spouse.

Five years into this Alzheimer’s journey with my mum, I’ve become accustomed to how it is to be a daughter who is losing a mother. I’ve also been a friend who’s lost a friend, but I haven’t been a spouse who has lost a spouse - let alone a spouse who is losing a spouse, over and over.

So I figured reading more about it from people who've been there will help me have more understanding of where my dad is coming from. It's been really helpful.

I’ve also been reading.. Julia Baird’s Bright Shining, The Source by Dr Tara Swart - I’m in the exercise bit at the back of the book, so it’s taking a while to work through - and Belonging by Toko-pa Turner.

I've also almost finished Sapiens, and I'm looking forward to reading some fiction when I'm away. I just finished The Prison Healer trilogy by Lynette Noni. I always loved fantasy when I was a kid, and it’s become my go-to escapism read again in recent years.

House stuff

Along with reading and writing, I’ve also been getting the house ready for my friends who are house-sitting when we’re away. They’re friends from Cambodia and have been on a big lap around Australia for the last year with their kids so are looking forward to a little break and some cat cuddles.

I hope Joe is on his best behaviour - he hasn’t spent much time around kids before, so I’m a little bit nervous about it. However, they’re cat lovers and like me, had many cats in Cambodia - I had seven, they had even more - so I know that everyone’s in safe hands.

Time in nature

It’s also my favourite time of year here - wildflower and waterfall season! - so I’ve been squeezing in lots of bike rides and nature time before I leave as well.

Although the March fire in the bushland behind my house destroyed all of the undergrowth and a lot of the trees, Australian nature was made to be burned and bounce back and it has been fascinating to witness.

Many seeds lie dormant and are only activated by fire, and there are so many new orchids and wildflowers popping up and new life coming through that I’ve been falling back in love with it all over again.

I’ve written before about how getting to know a landscape after a fire feels like getting to know my mum again, too, but I’m not feeling quite so hopeful about this trip back as the last. It'll be what it is, but she’s deteriorated a lot in recent months. I feel like I’m preparing for the worst but also trying to hope for the best and have a good time, anyway.

We’ll see how it goes.

Upcoming adventures

This time next week, I'll be in Europe before heading back to the UK for a couple of weeks to see the family.

The first part of the trip is going to be exciting but a bit full on. I prefer to travel slow these days, but needs and wants and all that. So we land in Vienna, spend one night in Bratislava, and then head east.

I asked Ed to Google Image search Bratislava to see if he wanted to go. He said the castle looked cool, so we’re going to give it a whistle-stop shot and hope the jetlag doesn’t get in the way of our enjoyment of the city too much.

From there, we'll jump on a train to Poprad, where some other friends from Cambodia are getting married.

The last time I was in eastern Slovakia was in 2011 when I was hitchhiking to Krakow. I ended up spending a sleepless night shivering in my tent outside a service station near Zakopane. I’m looking forward to having a slightly more comfortable bed this time - hopefully - and the chance to catch up with some friends and do some exploring.

After that, we'll head back to Vienna before flying to the UK. I'll then have a few days with my mum before she goes back into a home and we head up to the Peaks for a week.

It'll be our first ever family holiday without her. She's declined a lot in recent months and it wouldn't be fair to bring her, but it's going to be tough without her, too. At least my new niece will be there to take the edge off!

For now, though, it's time to crack on with finishing these articles and packing. I always forget how long packing takes - and how much I hate it. You'd think I'd have it nailed by now, but if anything it's gotten worse.

Until next time.

All my love,

Cxx

PS: I'm now opening a few new mentoring spots for September. If you’re interested, you can check out my website or hit reply on this email and we can have a chat!

PPS: In September, I’m also going to be properly launching a behind-the-paywall tier of writing here! I'll provide more details soon but I'm excited to dive deeper into some topics and experiment more with all the ways I can show up in this space.

PPPS: If you’re not in a position to upgrade yet but still want to support my writing, you can also buy me a coffee or like, comment, and share this post. I appreciate you!