Patricia L. Atchison

YA Fiction & Non Fiction Author

Editorial - My World Views

A Year in The Life of a Writer

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Blogging throughout the year…pfft
Updating my author website… pfft
Social Media Updates… I did a few… pfft
Writing… yess!Patricia on the Golf Course

I can’t believe a year ago I was writing my thoughts during the start of Covid, and here we are still in the same mess. Vaccines have been rolling out; the number of cases has risen throughout many variants. Life with Covid continues, and people struggle to find normalcy with the pandemic issues.

However, I’m grateful to be steps ahead in my writing endeavors. I decided to sink myself into a writing project. Lockdowns forced me into my home, and the writer in me said, “No more excuses.” Over summer last year, I outlined a trilogy, but have since revamped it to a duology. I hope the pandemic lockdowns don’t continue that long! I plotted and created characters, wrote my synopsis and chapter outlines.

I joined National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), and sat down for the month of November and completed my young adult novel – book one. Then came the mess, as I was writing without editing. I spent several months on the editing process, then sent the manuscript to beta readers, and editing again. I’m unfortunately not a three-times-editing-and-we’re-done kind of writer. I really play with the words to make sure it reads well.

That brought me to camping season this year. I’ll admit it’s tough working when golfing and camping for four and a half months. But I managed get some work done, and outlined book two, wrote the first half of the books chapter outlines, and the first five chapters (this time editing as I go).

I’m currently reviewing the first book to ensure all beta reader changes are addressed – the difficult suggestions (in my mind’s eye) I’ve put off for awhile. I’ll then find an editor, cover designer and carry on with writing book two and finishing it. Hopefully before next years camping season!

Now, with the year come and gone, my blog and website needs updating, social media and promotion for my, Today I Am… an Empowering Journal Back to Self, need to be continued as does my writing, editing, etc.

The work never ends. Stay tune for updates as I get closer to publication of my Bridge Across Time Duology, a teen and young adult light fantasy and romance.

Hopefully the golf courses close soon so I can get back at it… the writing that is… pfft.

Finding My Way Back to Gratitude

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With what 2020 has brought the world in changes and loss with the COVID-19 Pandemic, I feel like I am on a magic carpet ride. The magic has dwindled fast, and now I’m just floating around hanging on tight, struggling to land safely without injury or damage. Free Png Carpet Png Images Transparent - Magic Carpet Clipart@pikpng.com

Before being in the throes of lock down, I consciously practiced gratitude daily. I knew many joyful and happy moments, but as the days turn into months, I’m floating through time. More anger, resentment, and anxiety hit me when I least expect it. I wake up tired and anxious and forge through the day, realizing at some point I’ve not written in my gratitude journal. My joyful moments are disappearing with the days and months.

When not writing my gratitude daily, I’ve come to understand that it is a necessary practice. It keeps me centered and focused. I discover that even with the community and world changes, there is something to be grateful for every day. Writing it down reminds me of what it is.

In bed at night, I go over in my mind the things in life I am grateful for, but putting the words on paper seals it in my subconscious. I recognize that five minutes in the morning, writing three Today I Am statements, can bring instant gratification and peace. This leads to more joyful moments in the day.

Like exercise, if I don’t get enough movement in a day, I feel sluggish and slow, ignoring gratitude in my day takes away from my happiness.

Today I am grateful for:

Life itself – breathing healthy, clean air, to have the lung capacity to take my next breath.

The summer heat – it won’t last, and we’ll be in the throes of a winter storm before we know it.

Electricity and running water – (I’ve been reading a lot of post-apocalyptic books recently – once electricity is gone – nothing works!).

Music – it soothes my soul, and I can dance to it.

Movement – it’s necessary for my wellbeing. (Side note: just this morning I twisted the wrong way and put my lower back out – trust me movement is vital).

Anyone in the medical and healing professions, any modality – you have my complete gratitude for all you do.

 

It’s a small list, but I’ll stop here, realizing that there is oh so much to be grateful for at any moment.

If you want to try the daily practice of writing gratitude, be sure to purchase my journal, Today I Am… an Empowering Journal Back To Self. The book features many creative methods to engage your mind and spirit toward gratitude, positivity, light, and love.

Have a beautiful day! I’m grateful for you spending time with my blog and the musings within.

Journal Writing Prompts

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Journal PromptsWhen the call to write comes, it may be challenging to find the right words to put on paper. There is a solution for that. Writing Prompts. I was lucky at Christmas as my daughter, who knows me well, knew I would enjoy a ‘writing prompt’ journal. Not only that, she supplied me a milk frother for lattes and a container of homemade chocolate-covered sponge toffee. I’m blessed!

When I sat down with the journal, a tea latte, and these delectable treats, it made for a moment of pure bliss and happiness. I love flipping through the book and finding a question that speaks to me in the moment.

So as not to trespass on any copyrights with the journal prompts book I received, here is a prompt from one of the exercises in my book, Today I Am… An Empowering Journal Back To Self.

A person’s values change over time. Values are the standards and behaviours that a person lives their life by and are different for everybody depending on how they’ve been raised, the beliefs they grew up with, or the attitudes they picked up along their life’s path.
Grab a cup of your favorite beverage – sorry I’ve no treats left to share and take a few minutes to journal the ideas that come to you from the following prompts. Enjoy!

How have your values changed over the years – from your teens and into adulthood?

If you’ve lost sight of who you once were, what changes could you make to your value system, to find the way back to the person you knew to be you?

These are substantial questions for sure, but if the prompt speaks to you, grab your favourite journal and see what response you write.

Blue Monday

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January 20, 2020, is deemed ‘Blue Monday.’ a name that’s given to the third Monday of January. It’s claimed to be the most depressing day of the year based on an equation that takes into account weather conditions in the Northern Hemisphere. It was first publicized by Sky Travel, a vacation company, in a 2005 press release. Other factors include credit card debt from the holiday season that is now arriving in the mail, and some people have more substantial sums to pay on their bills. The month seems long and snowy. The ecstatic excitement of the Christmas holiday season with family time is over, and life is back to normal. Not to mention, January is one heck of a long cold month.

All this adds up to the seasonal blue moods, causing people to struggle with sadness and depression. If you are looking for a way to increase your mood on this Blue Monday, an excellent place to start is with gratitude. What are you grateful for today? Grab a pen and paper and set the timer for 5 minutes and list all the things, no matter how small or big that you are grateful for in your life.

Something else that helps is movement. Moving can include walking, visiting the gym, running, cycling, and exercising and more. When we move, stagnant energy that pools in places as we sit – like around the hips – has the chance to dissipate and circulate throughout the body. Something as simple as getting up during the commercials while watching television and walking around the house works. When was the last time you danced? Set some tunes on and move – any which way you choose. Close the drapes if you think someone might see you!

There are many ways to increase your mood like sitting and soaking up sunshine coming in through the window. Watch a funny movie, live-talk (no text messages) to someone you didn’t get a chance to see over the holiday season or volunteer at the local animal shelter.
In my book, Today I AM… An Empowering Journal Back To Self, I list many practices to help increase happiness, joy, and gratitude. If you’re struggling to find more Joy in your life, then be sure to pick up a copy of this book.

Happy Monday!

The Magic of Setting Intention

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Resolution vs. Intention

New Year 2020 IntentionsEvery January, we go about setting resolutions, which after a few days, weeks, or even less than a month, they’ve turned into dust and have floated away like the hours we were so keen on changing.

Defined as a ‘firm decision,’ a resolution is something we make but can change or fade over time. A resolution strikes me as a one-time event where a decision made, and that’s it. There is no follow-through, no follow-up plan.

Defined as an ‘aim or plan,’ an intention is something we can formulate. We can plan for. We set an idea in motion with an intention statement or thought, and whether we acknowledge it or not, The Universe has a plan to follow through and deliver it to us.

In my book, Today I Am… An Empowering Journal Back To Self, I write about setting intentions. Every day when I write my gratitude statements, I also write out three intentions statements determining how I would like my day to go. Of course, I keep this positive. Why wouldn’t I! The magical thing is that when I set these intentions and review them at the end of the day, I find they have almost always come true.

Yesterday we had a power failure in our home. It disrupted our electronic clocks and their alarm settings. My husband didn’t check his alarm time. He just pressed the usual button to set it on for the morning. It didn’t go off at the planned time, and he was about 15 minutes late in getting up and ready for work. He suggested to me that, “My whole day is going to be off now. I’m too rushed!”

I replied that wasn’t a good intention – seeing your whole day, which hasn’t even begun as ‘being off.’ I can’t wait to ask him tonight how his day went (LOL).

You see, setting an intention activates the conscious mind to receive that which is put forth. The Universe sets in motion the aim as you formed and thought it, giving it directly to you, showing you how powerful thought manifestation is.

Setting “the power of intention” to determine a specific outcome is a useful practice. To test it, the next time you are out and about and need a perfect parking space close to the door, set the intention that you will “find the perfect parking spot to meet your needs.” Let it go and see what happens. The result of the aim or plan will come to pass when you are thankful and content – “putting it out there” vs. “I want/need this – give it to me.”

This January, you can make an intention for good health, fitness, and well-being for the remainder of the year rather than the resolution of going to the gym three times a week all year long. You may be surprised at the many different ways The Universe delivers and provides you opportunities to improve your health and fitness over the year.

2020 is a fabulous year!

Daily Gratitude

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Gratitude quote By Rhonda ByrneIt took me a long time to learn gratitude. True, all my life I’ve been grateful. Thanking people when a ‘thank you’ was due — receiving gifts with a smile. Merely being a nice, ‘thank you,’ kind of person. Until I learned what being grateful was all about, I realized that those times in my life while I was thankful for the gifts I received, I don’t think I felt gratitude deep within my heart.

When I visit my memories, I wish I had realized I should have been more grateful for the multitude of gifts I received in my life and acknowledged the challenges during those times where I neglected to cherish what I had.

As I sit in present moments, I’ve learned the definition of gratitude includes acknowledging anything within my life that gives me an emotion, which causes me to reflect or learn and be thankful for the moment. It is through emotions that we gain insights into our soul. [Read more…] about Daily Gratitude