Discovering Patsy
I met Patsy 10 years ago when venturing into the local park with our new ‘little’ Hungarian Viszla, Zara. Patsy was one of the regular neighbourhood dog walkers, wandering around the park followed by her small white and russet Cavalier King Charles Spaniels. It was hard to miss her, a petite lady with bright red hair, in summer hiding underneath a wide-brimmed hat, pausing occasionally to chat with fellow dog owners.
But I generally avoided Patsy in the park as my too-excited Zara was determined to treat Patsy’s new puppy, Marigold, as a toy.
One of the good things that came out of the last year’s Melbourne lockdowns was the opportunity to chat just a little bit longer with Patsy during a morning walk and discover her former life as a University Communication Skills Lecturer and her current life as a writer. My love-of-reading, wish-I-could write ears pricked up and we exchanged contact details.
At the same time, Covid-19 closures froze Business Retreats activity. Clients were no longer able to meet face to face and didn’t need venues for their retreats, meetings, team activities, corporate training, product launches, Xmas parties and other events. I put my business baby to sleep and cancelled an established relationship with a copywriter.
Suddenly I had all that long-desired free time and space to do what I wanted. I dared to start writing my own impressions of my favourite venues. Patsy suggested tutoring me through the writing. We had one super interesting session dissecting a short text and turning my brain into writing mode.
Sadly, we didn’t get to do this again and it’s all on me and my lack of discipline. Somehow there was always something else I needed to do before the writing. Dog walking, gardening, yoga, meditation, cooking, washing, cleaning ... I could write another page or two on why I kept pushing what I enjoyed the most, writing, to the back of the line behind all the other everyday jobs.
But at last, six months later I asked Patsy if she would consider editing my text and help me create material quicker and get it onto the website faster.
So here we are now: working together, walking with and without our dogs, sharing great stories, learning and having fun writing about venues and locations. I can’t wait to receive the next text edited by Patsy. It’s like watching before and after images of the many home makeover real-life TV shows. The text restyled by Patsy is truly unrecognisable from the original. It is deeper, richer and simply in another league. Plus grammatically correct.
I hope you enjoy the true stories produced by our unique writing duo showcasing all the different flavours and shapes of Business Retreats venues.
But I generally avoided Patsy in the park as my too-excited Zara was determined to treat Patsy’s new puppy, Marigold, as a toy.
One of the good things that came out of the last year’s Melbourne lockdowns was the opportunity to chat just a little bit longer with Patsy during a morning walk and discover her former life as a University Communication Skills Lecturer and her current life as a writer. My love-of-reading, wish-I-could write ears pricked up and we exchanged contact details.
At the same time, Covid-19 closures froze Business Retreats activity. Clients were no longer able to meet face to face and didn’t need venues for their retreats, meetings, team activities, corporate training, product launches, Xmas parties and other events. I put my business baby to sleep and cancelled an established relationship with a copywriter.
Suddenly I had all that long-desired free time and space to do what I wanted. I dared to start writing my own impressions of my favourite venues. Patsy suggested tutoring me through the writing. We had one super interesting session dissecting a short text and turning my brain into writing mode.
Sadly, we didn’t get to do this again and it’s all on me and my lack of discipline. Somehow there was always something else I needed to do before the writing. Dog walking, gardening, yoga, meditation, cooking, washing, cleaning ... I could write another page or two on why I kept pushing what I enjoyed the most, writing, to the back of the line behind all the other everyday jobs.
But at last, six months later I asked Patsy if she would consider editing my text and help me create material quicker and get it onto the website faster.
So here we are now: working together, walking with and without our dogs, sharing great stories, learning and having fun writing about venues and locations. I can’t wait to receive the next text edited by Patsy. It’s like watching before and after images of the many home makeover real-life TV shows. The text restyled by Patsy is truly unrecognisable from the original. It is deeper, richer and simply in another league. Plus grammatically correct.
I hope you enjoy the true stories produced by our unique writing duo showcasing all the different flavours and shapes of Business Retreats venues.
I got to know Katarina as more than just another ‘dog person’ after my little Marigold discovered her inner wolf. Zara was chasing her when Marigold decided enough was ENOUGH. She rounded on Zara, barking and snapping in the air at her. Zara slid to a halt and ran away. I was filled with pride, Katarina fell about laughing, and since then Katarina and I have been able to walk and talk in dog peace.
Like Zara, her owner is long-legged and beautiful, and though Katarina does not have long floppy ears she is sharp-eared and curious, which is why I enjoy writing with her. She is also quirky (being trilingual may or may not have something to do with this) and creative, and I hope I’ve preserved this aspect of her voice in the vignettes we’re writing.
I mostly write fantasy fiction—my most recently published story about a winged girl is based on Little Red Riding Hood and can be found in ‘South of the Sun: Australian Fairy Tales for the 21st Century’ (Serenity Press)—but I also love writing creative non-fiction. In this genre, the truth is presented using the techniques of story.
For example, and in imitation of Andersen’s ‘The Snow Queen’:
Once upon a time, a daemon split into numerous pieces and implanted itself in the lungs, minds and hearts of humanity. We armed ourselves with weapons new and old. These weapons included persistence, hope and the ability to dream. And, as we have so many times before, we won.
Enjoy our stories!
Like Zara, her owner is long-legged and beautiful, and though Katarina does not have long floppy ears she is sharp-eared and curious, which is why I enjoy writing with her. She is also quirky (being trilingual may or may not have something to do with this) and creative, and I hope I’ve preserved this aspect of her voice in the vignettes we’re writing.
I mostly write fantasy fiction—my most recently published story about a winged girl is based on Little Red Riding Hood and can be found in ‘South of the Sun: Australian Fairy Tales for the 21st Century’ (Serenity Press)—but I also love writing creative non-fiction. In this genre, the truth is presented using the techniques of story.
For example, and in imitation of Andersen’s ‘The Snow Queen’:
Once upon a time, a daemon split into numerous pieces and implanted itself in the lungs, minds and hearts of humanity. We armed ourselves with weapons new and old. These weapons included persistence, hope and the ability to dream. And, as we have so many times before, we won.
Enjoy our stories!