Friday, November 21, 2014

Memoir: Parry finds herself while at sea

Check out Jackie's KDP countdown, which starts today (Nov. 21). Of Foreign Build will be (0.99 for 24 hrs, $1.99 for 24 hours and $2.99 for 24 hours, then back up to the regular price) 

Welcome to Jackie Parry. Originally from the UK, Jackie is now an adopted Australian. She grew up with horses in the UK, but in her twenties she ran away to Australia and met and married Noel. They decided to buy a boat and set sail. Together they have sailed around the world one-and-a-half-times and had many ocean and inland waterway adventures. Now, Jackie (and Noel) are commercial skippers and maritime teachers. Currently Jackie is exploring the French canals on a Dutch barge with her Australian husband.

What brings your writing into focus-- the characters, the stories, the love of words? I will be writing fiction next year. So far I have published two non-fiction books. To answer your question though, the characters and the path they are on. Words fascinate me also. From an early age I was enchanted with the fact that black words on white paper could evoke such intense emotions (see the last question). I found this incredible and still do. So, what I am trying to say, it is the blending of characters, stories, scenes, senses and words and a balance of all these, too.

How do you find time to write and do a demanding job? If you really want to write, you find the time. How? I get up early and forget about breakfast - that is my time, in thirty minutes you can write a lot of words! I write during breaks and lunchtime. I have been known to stay late at work, hide away and write.
Would you share a bit about your next project? My next book is called A Standard Journey. It is about an extraordinary journey Noel (my husband) and I took with five horses (Standardbreds) and a tent. Living with five animals and all seven of us relying on each other was an incredible experience. The bond we fostered was stronger than I ever imagined. It is not a book about how to go trekking with horses – indeed we did not do it that well (as you will see)! But we did rescue our five boys, adopted them, and they turned from scared, blinkered beasts into magnificent members of our family. I will be donating a percentage of sales of this books to helping save more horses. You may be able to tell, horses are a great passion of mine.
What are your top three reasons for writing? (1) The voices in my head, I have to get them out. Well, maybe it isn’t so much the voices – it’s the words, the ideas, the scenes. I just can’t stop. I have never suffered with writer’s block. (2) I have too many ideas that I need to release from my head. (3) To empty my head onto paper is very cathartic for me.

What's the highest compliment someone could make about your writing? You made me laugh, you made me cry.’ (Someone did say this to me after reading Of Foreign Build).

OF FOREIGN BUILD: After suffering an emotionally-brutal bereavement and against her counsellor’s advice, Jackie ran away. Suddenly within a new culture, with a new husband, and no friends, she was living in the obscure world of cruising with zero knowledge of boats.

Crashing within the first twenty-four hours, Jackie realised life would never be the same again; a floating home with no fridge or hot water, and with a dinghy instead of a car. Suffering self doubts, she became fearful of her new world.

The first off-shore voyage took Jackie into a ferocious storm, which battered her physically and mentally. Amid the raging seas, Jackie shed the fear she’d been harbouring.

Soon she was blissfully voyaging around the world, but she still carried the mixed emotions of losing one man, while falling head over heels in love with another.

Not only did Jackie deal successfully with the challenges of her new existence, she also battled with the testosterone fuelled nautical world to become both a professional captain and a qualified maritime teacher.

Most importantly, Jackie found herself.

Website: www.jackieparry.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NoelAndJackiesJourneys
Twitter: @nandjjourneys
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/jackieparry7543/
Of Foreign Build: http://www.amazon.com/Foreign-Build-Corporate-Sea-Gypsy-Woman-ebook/dp/B00OQBWJJE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1415116513&sr=8-1&keywords=of+foreign+build



No comments:

Post a Comment