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I have a life outside of writing—no, really!

I write a lot. Most of my waking time is spent at my laptop or sitting outside with my Rocketbook and Pilot Frixion pens, writing, editing, researching, or brainstorming something new. I’m a bit of a workaholic and perfectionist. I have to force myself to stop and do something else with my time because it’s unhealthy to be obsessed with one job or pastime alone. So, over the years, I’ve tried my hand at several different kinds of hobbies. Being an introvert and not overly athletic, most of my hobbies are quiet and creative and can be done by myself.

Reading:

My most important hobby has directly impacted my writing career: reading. This hobby took a huge hit when I became serious about producing my first manuscript to be published, Ashes of Injustice, because after sitting in front of my own words for hours every day, my eyes were tired. I didn’t feel like reading anything more. Now that Ashes of Injustice is ready to be submitted, pending my finding a literary agent and publisher, I spend less time reading my own words and have more time reading others’ works.

I have four novels I want to finish reading for this month alone (see my blog posts about my April-May and June-July reading lists). It’s an ambitious goal, and I can’t wait to see if I can accomplish it. If not, there’s always next month. That’s the great thing about books—once you’ve bought one, it won’t sprout legs and take off on you if you can’t get to it immediately. My preferred genres to read are thriller/suspense and mystery, Christian or secular. I also enjoy a good historical fiction novel from time to time. I try to read at least one non-fiction book a month, something on a topic I find interesting at the time, and my interests tend to change, so you never know what I might be reading about. I like true crime and conspiracy theories, so many of my books relate to those topics.

Crafting:

I’m also a crafty person, so my other hobbies focus on crafting in one form or another. I used to do a lot of scrapbooking and cardmaking, though I haven’t done either in a few years. I was a Stampin’ Up! Demonstrator for a while, I still have a stockpile of supplies and photographs I intend to return to eventually. I also enjoy cross-stitching. The older I get, the harder it is for me to see the smaller counts of Aida cloth but thank goodness for progressive lenses! A kit I worked on not too long ago of a beautiful camping scene with northern lights can be found here. I’ve also hand-painted country-style home décor signs and constructed floral wreaths, which I’ve sold online and at a local public market. I’ve tried my hand at soapmaking and candle-making, too.

Baking:

One hobby I genuinely enjoy but don’t do much of while living in the UAE is baking. I especially like learning how to make different kinds of bread. I can make wicked poppyseed rolls and honey-oat bread and even know how to make a sourdough starter and bake sourdough from scratch. Once I’m living in Canada full-time again, I hope to get back to experimenting and learning how to bake more varieties of bread and rolls and maybe branch off into pastry making. I get most of my tutorials from Pinterest and YouTube. In future posts, I may share my favorite recipes with you.

Walking/Hiking:

I do have one active hobby: I enjoy going for walks. I’m out of shape now and suffer from Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, which limit how much I can do, but I hope to return to the point where I can go on hikes that last for hours again to enjoy the fresh air and sunshine. I haven’t done enough of that over the past six years living back and forth between Canada and the UAE and spending most of my time in front of my computer writing. I want to return to my long walks for physical and mental health. To facilitate that, I hope to get a friend to take for walks with me—preferably of the Scottish or West Highland Terrier variety. I had a beautiful Wheaten Scotty pup a couple of years ago. Her name was Maisie. Unfortunately, she tragically died in an accident before she was a year old, breaking my heart. I’ve grieved and healed enough to consider getting another puppy as my walking buddy.

Hobbies I’d like to try:

There are other hobbies I wouldn’t mind learning. I’ve always thought learning about photography would be fun, particularly nature photography. I want to learn how to sew my clothes just for fun. I also look forward to traveling more once my career has been launched and I have more free time.

What hobbies do you have?

Are your hobbies related to what you do for a career, or are they purposefully different? Are they more for introverts or extroverts? I’d love to hear your feedback! Thank you for reading. Please subscribe to my newsletter to keep updated on what is coming up on my website and blog, and please share my blog with your family and friends. God bless you richly!

Warmest Regards,

Pauline

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