Update

So I just spent last week in the Whitsundays - Hamilton Island to be precise.

I can honestly say it is by far the most beautiful, relaxing place I have ever been. 

Leaving brisk (spelt FREEZING) Adelaide on a 6am flight to Sydney I wondered if the tropical paradise could really defrost me; in short, yes it can.

Spending time on the island surrounded by the bluest, clearest and warmest water I have ever seen and felt gave me and my husband the chance to relax and just stop - something that I think a lot of us forget to do a lot of the time.

I will of course be publishing an article on Weekend Notes about my travels and adventures but for now I felt like sitting down and just writing about it in more general terms.

(Photo taken by me on Whitehaven Beach)

Okay, so I'm not great at sitting still and doing nothing, but I did manage to do this quite a bit while we were away.  I have never slept as well as I did on the island and the day we visited the majestic Whitehaven Beach and I found I was able to write more.

Now I've said this, you can almost guarantee it will happen (nope, not really, won't let it), but I don't usually have a problem putting metaphorical pen to paper - really fingers to keyboard.  Generally I find writing is a great way to de-stress; but I was surprised at how much easier it was when I was relaxed and on holidays.

Waist deep in water fifty metres out (and no I'm not really very tall, the water was very shallow) my husband and I had a funny conversation.  As some of you might know, I have recently published my book on Amazon.com.au as an eBook.  Whilst standing out in the water I thought of a name for the second book if I decide to write it (who am I kidding, I've already started it).  I told my husband I thought the next title could be 'Out Of Her Depth' and we began discussing other options. 

For those who don't know, Out Of Her League is a book about down on her luck writer Caterina Boston who, whilst slightly drunk, applies for a job as a blogger / travel writer in the Amazon Jungle in the hopes of meeting Tarzan. When I say it like this it sounds very girly - the truth is it's a bit girly but I can give you a soppy-free guarantee (not my style).  I can however guarantee gun fights, things blowing up and a couple of fancy cars.

As we threw around ideas of book titles I suggested, Out Of Her Nose.  My husband looked at me very seriously and said, "And that's when you become a travel writer."  (In reference to Cat's failed book, not because there is anything wrong with being a travel writer - if someone offered me that job I wouldn't say no!)

Perhaps it was funny, perhaps it was funnier because I was in paradise and in a great mood, whatever the reason it got me thinking (I tend to overthink quite a bit but for once this was just normal level thinking - is that a thing?  I guess it is now). 

It got me thinking about the possibility of actually keeping up with this whole writing thing. As I've discussed in the past, I have always loved reading and writing and have rather a strange (possibly unhealthy) obsession with it.  I don't know if obsession is the right word?  Passion?  Nope, that sounds a little too Mills and Boon (is that what the Fabio books are called?). Whatever the word, I have tried several times to stop writing, deciding I'm really not cut out for it, but without fail I always go back to it.

Hey, what can I say, it's a cheap hobby.

So my eBook has been on Amazon for 6 days and has had 288 downloads at the time of writing this.  I have no idea if that is good or bad, but I think it's pretty cool (maybe my Mum isn't the only one who thinks I'm cool?  Nah, unlikely... I'm comfortable with that).

Am I doing this instead of thinking or starting on my articles about my holiday?  Yes!  Will I get onto it this weekend?  I would say so.

Since it's Friday the 13th I feel it's necessary to tell you a spooky story or something.  I don't really have a whole lot as I've never really been in to horror movies - but I am rather hooked on Supernatural - does that count?  Probably not.

Anyway... a few months ago I was doing some freelance work writing calming stories / scripts about lying on beaches, listening to the rain etc. (not in the same story of course, not many people like lying in wet sand while rain assaults their skin - because it would need to be reasonably heavy to hear it on the sand). 

At the same time as writing these stories I discovered Supernatural and realised that what you're watching / reading can in fact have a profound influence on the way you write.  I wanted to suggest a new style of writing called 'shock' or something similar where I write something extremely calming and then just when the person is all nice and relaxed, freak them out!  I never suggested this but I'm thinking there could be a very small market for this kind of work.

Here goes...

You lie on the soft, warm sand.  The sun warms your face and a cool breeze dries the salt water on your skin.  You take a deep breath, and smell the fresh salty air.  Behind you palm trees sway gently in the breeze, birds call from the cliff tops.  The water laps gently on the shore; slowly, softly, coming in before lazily going back out.

You sigh and lick your dry lips, relieved to feel the moisture on your skin.  You grimace as you taste something bitter, something not quite right.  You draw your tongue back into your mouth and you idly wonder what tastes so strange. 

A breeze above you breaks through your thoughts; you open you eyes expecting to see a seagull idly watching you.  Your heart races, your skin turns clammy and goose bumps appear as you see the creature hovering above you, dripping, writhing, staring...

And that kids is the end of the story for this week.  I apologise if that wasn't quite as therapeutic as you expected - perhaps there isn't a market for it after all?

On that note, have a safe night - told in a creepy voice as I wave my hands around in the air and back off into the shadows - tripping over something in the process - then continue further back into the shadows (where my Mum is waiting in the car to pick me up) and an awesome weekend!

Oh and if you are interested in Out Of Her League, the link is here for Australia and here for America.

So today I bought a Kindle...

So today I bought a Kindle. 

I have been resisting this for a long time. I love reading and trying different authors (although I'll admit I'm a bit of a loyal reader so once I find a writer I like I stalk them until I have read everything they've ever published - okay, maybe not that extreme), but with physical bookstores on the steep decline I've always struggled with the concept of Ebooks and the digital publishing age.

But, I'm here to admit, I've been converted. Will I still buy traditional hard copies of books?  Absolutely! There's nothing quite like the smell of a book; the paper, the dust... okay, maybe that's just me.  Most book stores in Adelaide have now closed which I find very sad.  I loved walking into a book store and knowing there were so many stories in there I hadn't yet read - so much knowledge and entertainment. 

However, when it comes to writing and reading, I think the digital age is well and truly upon us.  The Kindle is small, light and very portable.  I recently spent some time in the magnificent Whitsundays (a tropical paradise for those who don't know) and I took a good old favourite Janet Evanovich book with me.  Janet's Stephanie Plum books are by far some of my favourites; they're an easy read, entertaining, funny and if you can get past the gore, light hearted.  The problem with taking the book with me was I couldn't take too many and finished the book well before my flight home; meaning I was bookless. 

Sure, I could have taken more than one book, but the Kindle holds around 1,400 and I've heard airlines and security aren't that keen on you lugging that many books through the airport or trying to store them in the overheads.

So would the Kindle have come in handy?  Absolutely!  It might not have the same level of nostalgia that sitting down with a good book has, but the practicality is undeniable.

All right, I'll be honest, I bought a Kindle because my first book Out Of Her League has now been published on there and I wanted to know how it looked.  I am excited that my book is now available for sale and even though ultimately I would prefer it was in physical form, I understand that it's able to reach far more people for far less cost as an Ebook.

Sometimes you just have to go with the flow and understand that technology has changed things.  I have absolutely no intention of replacing my overloaded bookshelves with a small digital device (if and when the world gets overtaken by zombies it's important we still have knowledge and I don't spend my whole time roaming the streets looking for somewhere to plug in my USB to read Walking Dead to know how to defeat them).  Disclaimer, I have never actually seen Walking Dead, I'm currently still way too obsessed with Supernatural, but it is on my list.  I do know it involves zombies and I'm reasonably sure they aren't roaming the streets looking for somewhere to plug in their iPods.  Although I could be wrong.

I previously wrote about working up the nerve to try different things and 'put yourself out there' and I've decided it's really not that scary.  This morning I went for my first run outside in ages (usually done on the treadmill on the odd occasion I actually do it); I was wearing track pants, a baggy top, my hair was wet and I didn't have any makeup on, but that is okay.  I wouldn't go out to the shops dressed like that and I was wearing my oversized sunglasses, but I think it's okay to try something different every so often and not worry about what others think. 

Now I've painted that charming picture of myself (sweaty and daggy), I'm going to limp off to the kitchen, make myself a cup of peppermint tea and shamelessly read my own book on Kindle.

Oh and if you get the opportunity, head to the Whitsundays - the most beautiful place I have ever been to.

P.P.S (that should really read 'P.S' but peepee makes me giggle), if you're interested, the link to my book is here (for Australia) or here (for the US).