Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Change, Creativity, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Emotional Resilience, Expat Transitions & Change, Family & Friends, Holidays, Life Balance, Light Bulb Moments, Repatriation, Travel, Writing, tagged 'in the moment', 2013, Adapt and Thrive Across Cultures, being present, change, Christmas, continuous intentional observation without judgment, deaths, emotional resilience, expats, expectations, family, grieving, holidays, illusion of perfection, intermezzo, Jane Dean, Jo Parfitt, Lisa Hall, loss, mindfulness, mourning, New Year's, reflection, Repatriation, solitude, Summertime Publishing, The Emotionally Resilient Expat: Engage, transitions, travel, turbulence, turmoil, wanderlust, writing on January 6, 2014 | 6 Comments »
Over the past couple weeks, I’ve been taking it easy. Really easy. As in not doing much of anything other than what absolutely, positively needed to get done. For example, that time spent pulling together receipts, filling out reimbursement claims for our international health care provider, making photocopies of the entire stack and then standing […]
Posted in Blogging, Creativity, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Emotional Resilience, Expat Authors & Others, Expat Life, Writing, tagged Adapt and Thrive Across Cultures, Amazon, Americans in Britain, blogging, book reviews, CCKs, cross-culturals, Expat Arrivals, Expat Authors & Others, expat book reviews, expat books, Expat Focus, expat genre, expat life, expat websites, Expatica, expatriate, expats, ExpatWoman, ExpatWomen, global living, global nomads, IAmExpat, Jo Parfitt, Julia Simens, living abroad, living overseas, magazines, memoirs, novels, repats, Riveting Expat Reads, short stories, Summertime Publishing, TCKs, Telegraph, The American Hour, The Emotionally Resilient Expat: Engage, writing, Xpat on October 1, 2013 | 13 Comments »
At the risk of sounding entirely self-serving, I am going to share with you a development I hope expats*, cross-culturals, current and adult TCKs/CCKs, global nomads and repatriates alike will find heartening: the rise of books chronicling all and sundry aspects of expatriate life. I know my mentor, Jo Parfitt, will find this gratifying as […]
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Blogging, Change, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Emotional Resilience, Expat Authors & Others, Expat Life, Expat Transitions & Change, Family & Friends, Life Balance, Netherlands, Sandwich Generation, Travel, United States, Writing, tagged author, blog, blogging, book, building a new life, career change, editor, fiction, home base, Jane Dean, Jo Parfitt, layout design, leaving, Lemonberry, Lisa Hall, Netherlands, publication, Repatriation, Ruth Van Reken, Summertime Publishing, transitions, US, writing on June 18, 2013 | 42 Comments »
I’ve often wondered what I would say in a post like this. I’ve played it out in my mind before, I just never thought I’d be writing this now. You see, it’s time for that kind of post. Not the kind where you tell everyone you’re moving on to another expatriate experience, although there were a […]
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Authors (Other), Blogging, Change, Creativity, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Authors & Others, Expat Life, Expat Transitions & Change, Global Issues, Identity, Repatriation, Third Culture Kids (TCKs), Expat Teens, Writing, tagged Ann Baker Cottrell, Anne Copeland, Apple Gidley, call to action, Colleen Reichrath-Smith, creative, cross-cultural, Cultural Integration and the Illusion of Closeness, cultural intelligence, culture, culture shock, doers, Duncan Westwood, Elizabeth Vennekens-Kelly, emotional intelligence, emotional resilience, expat life, expatriate life, expatriation, experiences, Families in Global Transitions, FIGT, FIGT 2013, ideas, innovative, insight, intercultural, international, Janet Bennett, Jo Parfitt, Judy Rickatson, Julia Simens, Kathleen Gamble, Katia Vachlos, Kilian Kroll, Laura J. Stephens, Leila Buck, living abroad, Maria Foley, networking, Norm Viss, perspective, Pico Iyer, projects, Rachel Yates, Rebecca Grappo, Repatriation, research, Ruth Van Reken, social intelligence, TCKs, topics, transition process, Trisha Carter on March 30, 2013 | 4 Comments »
Last weekend I had the opportunity to attend the annual Families in Global Transition conference (aka on Twitter as #FIGT2013). The theme this year was ‘Cultural Integration and the Illusion of Closeness.’ It was, in a word, exhilarating. Inspiring. Tremendous. Thought-provoking. Reassuring. Okay, it was many words, all those and more. Two thought-laden days dedicated to exchanging […]
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Authors (Other), Blogging, Change, Creativity, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Emotional Resilience, Expat Authors & Others, Expat Life, Writing, tagged Aerosmith, author, Back in the Saddle Again, blogging, book, books, business cards, cover design, cover mock-ups, crying, done, editing, emotional, emotional resilience, FIGT 2013, final, ISBN, Jane Dean, Jo Parfitt, layout, Lemonberry.com, Lisa Hall, nonfiction, printing, publishing process, recalcitrant, regular blogging schedule, Stephen Tyler, Summertime Publishing, testimonials, writing, writing routine on March 27, 2013 | 18 Comments »
I have been thinking about this post for days, weeks, even months. I’ve longed to be able to write it, but made myself wait. There were times I never thought this day would arrive. Now that it’s here, my thoughts are a (barely) coherent mess and the words are tumbling out on the page. Well alrighty […]
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Blogging, Creativity, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Authors & Others, United States, Writers on Writing, Writing, tagged @Home in Dubai, Anne O'Connell, Anne The Writer, author, blogging, book launch, Canada, courtroom drama, crime thriller, debut novel, Dubai, expat novel, first novel, hot flashes, humor, Jo Parfitt, menopause, Mental Pause, murder mystery, nonfiction, novel, PR experience, public relations expert, Summertime Publishing, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, United States, writer, writing, Writing Just Because! on March 7, 2013 | 7 Comments »
Today’s a special day for Anne O’Connell, one I’m excited to share with her and with you. Fourteen months ago I reviewed her nonfiction book Riveting Expat Reads: Celebrating @ Home in Dubai. Anne’s been busy since then, relocating from the United Arab Emirates to Thailand and writing up a storm. Not only is today […]
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Blogging, Change, Creativity, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Authors & Others, Expat Life, Riveting Expat Reads, Writers on Writing, Writing, tagged An Inconvenient Posting, Apple Gidley, blogging, depression, editor, expat author, Expat Life: Slice by Slice, expat memoir, Jane Dean, Jo Parfitt, Laura J. Stephens, publisher, stories, Summertime Publishing, The Telegraph, topics, writing, Writing a Book on February 23, 2013 | 15 Comments »
A few months ago I reviewed longtime expat Apple Gidley’s terrific memoir Expat Life Slice by Slice. I knew many readers would find it interesting to hear about how a newly published author goes about her writing. Our interview follows. * * * I asked Apple to start by sharing when she first realized she had a […]
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Change, Creativity, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Emotional Resilience, Expat Authors & Others, Expat Life, Expat Transitions & Change, Family & Friends, Forced to Fly (2nd ed.) Book, Identity, Repatriation, Riveting Expat Reads, Travel, Writing, tagged Adventures in Expat Land, Apple Gidley, Bitten by Spain, creativity, culture clash, culture shock, Deborah Fletcher, emotional resilience, empathy, Expat Apple, expat life, expat transitions, Forced to Fly, Forced to Fly: An Anthology of Writing That Will Make You See the Funny Side of Living Abroad, funny stories, going abroad, humor, I Was an Expat Wife, identity, innovation, Jack Scott, Jo Parfitt, laughter, Linda A Janssen, living abroad, living overseas, Maria Foley, Niamh Ni Bhroin, Perking the Pansies, Repatriation, Riveting Expat Reads, Robin Pascoe, Summertime Publishing, The Singing Warrior, travel, wordgeyser on October 5, 2012 | 10 Comments »
It is an exciting day here in Expat Land: we’re madly flapping our wings for take-off, determined to catch the wind currents, achieve flight and soar. ‘What’s with the flight metaphors?’ you ask. ‘They’re flying left and right.’ Heh heh. Today marks the book launch of the second edition of Forced to Fly: An Anthology of Writings That Will Make […]
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Blogging, Writing, tagged author, expat writer, Italy, Jo Parfitt, Posaro, publisher, residential writing course, Summertime Publishing, writing mentor on February 27, 2012 | 27 Comments »
I was all set to go with another topic in today’s post, but have decided to set that aside for the moment. Why, you ask? I wanted to share with you some news from Jo Parfitt, my writing mentor, expat author of 28 books and publisher (Summertime Publishing) of the non-fiction book I’m trudging along […]
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Blogging, Change, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Authors & Others, Expat Life, Expat Transitions & Change, Riveting Expat Reads, Writing, tagged author, Bodrum, expat life, gay life, Jack Scott, Jo Parfitt, Perking the Pansies, Summertime Publishing, turkey, writing on January 17, 2012 | 12 Comments »
One of the absolutely best aspects of the internet is the ability to find all kinds of information at your fingertips. Those of you who remember life before the ‘world wide web’ know exactly what I mean; those younger can just roll your eyes and skip the next paragraph. It continually amazes me that you can […]
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Authors & Others, Expat Life, Expat Transitions & Change, Riveting Expat Reads, Writing, tagged @Home in Dubai, Anne O'Connell, expat book, expat survey, Jo Parfitt, Summertime Publishing, United Arab Emirates, writing on December 13, 2011 | 4 Comments »
Congratulations to cyber friend and talented writer Anne O’Connell who has just done what only a small percentage of people ever do: write a book and have it published! Despite being launched just two days ago, Anne’s book, @Home in Dubai: Getting Connected Online and On the Ground, is now the must-have book for […]
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Expat Life, Family & Friends, Netherlands, Writing, tagged editing, expat life, Expatcalidocious, international community, Jo Parfitt, monthly newspaper, Simone Branson Harper, The Hague, The Underground, wordgeyser, writing on November 17, 2011 | 6 Comments »
‘The best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men gang aft agley’ Poet Robert Burns’ famous quote basically means that even the best laid plans can head south, go awry, fall to pieces. Recently I’ve been reminded of this sage advice. While (almost) nothing goes on my schedule that I don’t agree to, I do not completely control […]
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Authors & Others, Expat Life, Family & Friends, Guest Posts, Riveting Expat Reads, Turning Points Book, Writers on Writing, tagged author, Corrie Ten Boom, fear, God, Holland, Jo Parfitt, Kate Cobb, Qatar, Sarah Koblow, stress, Summertime Publishing, TheTurningPointsBook.com, Turning Points book, writer, writing on November 2, 2011 | 6 Comments »
The following is a guest post from my lovely friend and fellow co-author of Turning Points: 25 Inspiring Stories From Women Entrepreneurs Who Have Turned Their Careers and Their Lives Around (Kate Cobb, editor, Summertime Publishing, 2011), Sarah Koblow. Sarah lives with her family in Doha, Qatar and blogs at Count Only Sunny Hours. You can catch […]
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Change, Creativity, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Authors & Others, Expat Life, Identity, Light Bulb Moments, Riveting Expat Reads, Turning Points Book, Writing, tagged aspirations, book launch, change, fear, identity, Jo Parfitt, Kate Cobb, light bulb moments, longings, regrets, transformation, Turning Points book, writing on November 1, 2011 | 22 Comments »
It’s finally here. Today is Tuesday, November 1st. As I mentioned a couple days ago in And What Might YOUR Turning Point Be?, today also happens to be the global book launch of Turning Points: 25 Inspiring Stories From Women Entrepreneurs Who Have Turned Their Careers and Their Lives Around. The book concept is the […]
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Authors (Other), Change, Creativity, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Authors & Others, Expat Life, Riveting Expat Reads, Writing, tagged author, fiction, inspiration, Jo Parfitt, Non-fiction, novel, realizing a dream, Summertime Publishing, Sunshine Soup, writing on October 2, 2011 | 18 Comments »
Each of us harbors a dream, a fiercely held flame of hope and desire that burns quietly yet brightly deep within us. It can be something we’d like to do or see or experience, someone we’ve always wanted to meet, somewhere we really want to visit. Or something we create. Often we hold it as a secret. […]
Posted in Authors (Other), Guest Posts, Work, Writers on Writing, Writing, Writing Business Bits at Jo Parfitt's, tagged authors, book marketing, Book Marketing Conference Online, D'vorah Lansky, Jo Parfitt, Joanna Penn, writing and social media, Writing Business Bits on August 11, 2011 | 5 Comments »
Hey there. Today I’m over at expat publisher Jo Parfitt’s site in a new feature we’re calling Writing Business Bits. Based on the positive response to my recent three-part guest post about Jack Canfield’s insights on book marketing and promotion, Jo has asked me to contribute a series of monthly posts. Topics will focus on how […]
Posted in Light Bulb Moments, Writing, tagged articles, Jo Parfitt, journalists, meeting, publications, writing on July 22, 2011 | 10 Comments »
Earlier in the week I’d looked at my calendar and was reminded that I had a meeting today. It’s for a group of writers/journalists who meet for networking, sharing of information such as story ideas and different print/online media publications, discussion of current projects, occasional guidance and instruction from our mentor and the group’s founder (Jo Parfitt), and some […]
Posted in Authors (Other), Guest Posts, Work, Writers on Writing, Writing, Writing Business Bits at Jo Parfitt's, tagged author, Benjamin Franklin, bypass marketing, Chicken Soup for the Soul, continual learning, giving, Jack Canfield, Jo Parfitt, Mark Victor Hansen, RTIR, Scott Peck, social media, speaker, Steve Harrison, The Road Less Traveled, writing, Writing Business Bits at Jo Parfitt's on July 5, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
Recently I was guest posting over at Jo Parfitt’s website again, finishing the last in a three-part series on Steve Harrison’s (of Radio/Television Interview Report) interview with mega-selling author and co-founder of the Chicken Soup for the Soul franchise, Jack Canfield. I enjoy listening to such ‘webinars’ (web seminars) to glean the nuggets of wisdom, experience, […]
Posted in Authors (Other), Guest Posts, Work, Writers on Writing, Writing, Writing Business Bits at Jo Parfitt's, tagged author, Bob Burg, Chicken Soup for the Soul, giving, Jack Canfield, Jo Parfitt, John David Mann, Malcolm Gladwell, Mark Victor Hansen, network, RTIR, speaker, Steve Harrison, The Go Giver, The Tipping Point, writing on June 14, 2011 | 2 Comments »
The other day Jo Parfitt ran the second of my guest posts in a three-part series about ‘Chicken Soup for the Soul’ co-founder/business mogul Jack Canfield. The series is based on a recent webinar interview of Canfield by Steve Harrison of the Radio & TV Interview Report. In addition to co-authoring more than 200 titles […]
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Expat Life, Writing, tagged Forced to Fly, funny expat stories, Jo Parfitt, writing competition on June 10, 2011 | 3 Comments »
Every now and then a great opportunity comes along that you just want to pass along. Most of you are familiar with Jo Parfitt as the publisher/author/writing mentor who is a one-woman whirling dervish and major supporter extraordinaire of expat books and writing. As usual, she’s juggling a few dozen projects at once, but always […]
my read shelf:
