Deborah

Type 2 fun

Kia ora, Do you know about the fun scale? It’s a way of categorising experiences based on how easy to hard the experience was. Type 2 fun and type 3 fun are what a lot of armchair adventurers enjoy reading about. Trips they’d never go on themselves, but they still want to read about othersContinue reading “Type 2 fun”

If we only had 15 minutes together

Kia ora, If I could sit with you and talk about your manuscript, here’s what I’d say: First, congratulations on writing a whole damn book! That’s huge. The hardest part, in my opinion, is DONE. But that doesn’t mean you’re done-done. Getting the story out is just the first stage. But that’s okay. Publishing isContinue reading “If we only had 15 minutes together”

The effect “before” and “after” have on your travel writing (aka timeline nudges)

Let’s start with an anecdote: When I arrived in the clearing, I set up my tent before putting my sleeping bag inside, then got my stove boiling so I could make a cup of Milo. I went for a walk to collect dry wood after I had warmed up, before lighting a camp fire. There’sContinue reading “The effect “before” and “after” have on your travel writing (aka timeline nudges)”

Blowing out the cobwebs

Kia ora, I love my job, but even I need to get out of my office and off the property every now and then. New places and new experiences help blow out the cobwebs and get ideas going. I know you know this. So last week I went to the Catlins for a few days.Continue reading “Blowing out the cobwebs”

Going for a walk helped me figure out a big issue

Kia ora, I wasn’t at my desk, I wasn’t on the clock, I wasn’t actively thinking about the story at all, but the clichéd bolt of lightning hit me as I heaved my way up a hill, getting blasted by a full-on southerly straight from Antarctica: the tense was wrong. I’d been working on aContinue reading “Going for a walk helped me figure out a big issue”

Sometimes you need a gentle nudge

Kia ora, Mum handed me a $5 note and a pen and said, “Go up and say hi!” She gave me a gentle nudge on the back. A few metres in front of me was Sir Edmund Hillary, one of the first two people to stand on Mount Everest. We were at the opening ofContinue reading “Sometimes you need a gentle nudge”

Readers only see the finished product

Kia ora, When people pick up a book in a bookshop or library, they see the final product. They see your name on the cover and think, cool, this looks like a great book, I’ll check it out. They don’t see the weeks (months, years) that went into writing the story. They don’t see theContinue reading “Readers only see the finished product”

My digital tools and AI policy

Generative AI tools like ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot, and Perplexity are ever-evolving. Equally, our ability to turn off features or minimise their use isn’t always straightforward or possible. I know I’m not the only one who finds these features’ intrusion into my daily and professional life unwelcome. I use plenty of digital tools to help meContinue reading “My digital tools and AI policy”

Finding my 2026 rhythm

Kia ora, It’s taken a couple of weeks, but I finally feel like I’m finding my 2026 rhythm. How about you? Thank you for being here with me for another year of adventures and adventure writing! Over the holidays I mulled over a few ideas for how I can better help you get into theContinue reading “Finding my 2026 rhythm”

2025 travel and adventure reading round-up

Kia ora, I’m starting 2026 by looking back on 2025. Or at least, I’m looking back on the books I read, and I read a lot! Here’s my one-ish-sentence summary of each, in the order I read them. I want to hear your opinions too, so if you’ve read any of these, reply and letContinue reading “2025 travel and adventure reading round-up”