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Romance Must-reads
Read more: Romance Must-readsSome of my favourite romance novels across the genreRead more Romance Must-reads
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A love letter
Read more: A love letterHow do you thank someone for being the love of your life?Read more A love letter
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New Year’s Absolutions 2019
Read more: New Year’s Absolutions 2019Those who have followed my blog for a while will know I don’t write New Year’s Resolutions. I do set goals from time-to-time, but the pressure we place on those resolutions can be stifling at best and paralysing at worst, and I refuse to start off a sparkly new year by tainting it with pressure.…
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The home stretch of sabbatical life
Read more: The home stretch of sabbatical lifeApproaching the end of a year-long sabbaticalRead more The home stretch of sabbatical life
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So, what exactly is #chicklit?
Read more: So, what exactly is #chicklit?I published my first novel nearly a year ago and I’m about to publish my third. Something I’m often asked—and something I need to define as an author—is what genre I write in. The long answer is ‘Contemporary Women’s Fiction’, but as this broad category also includes authors like Liane Moriarty and Jodi Picoult, whose…
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Character Description Must-Haves
Read more: Character Description Must-HavesOriginally posted on K.M. Allan: There’s a lot of elements that go into writing a book, and each one has their own set of must-haves. Take character descriptions, for example. Obviously, the easiest way to create a picture in someone’s mind is to list the physical characteristics. Often it’ll be something like; “She was…
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A desk with a view
Read more: A desk with a viewBeing on sabbatical means being able to work anywhere…Read more A desk with a view
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Could be anywhere…
Read more: Could be anywhere…Long-term travel and ordinary days…Read more Could be anywhere…
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Traveller vs Tourist: Things that make you go, hmmm
Read more: Traveller vs Tourist: Things that make you go, hmmmSometimes – only sometimes – I am a tourist not a travellerRead more Traveller vs Tourist: Things that make you go, hmmm
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Guest blog post on Highlands2Hammocks
Read more: Guest blog post on Highlands2HammocksMy guest blog post about Ireland for Highlands2HammocksRead more Guest blog post on Highlands2Hammocks
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Mid-way through our mid-career sabbatical
Read more: Mid-way through our mid-career sabbaticalHere are some reflections and lessons learned from the mid-point of our sabbatical.Read more Mid-way through our mid-career sabbatical
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Book giveaway!
Read more: Book giveaway!To celebrate the release of book 2 of the ‘Someone’ series, book 1 is available FREE on Kindle until July 25. Read more Book giveaway!
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You can go home again
Read more: You can go home againWhat’s it like to visit a place you lived in for years after a long absence?Read more You can go home again
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How to write a sequel
Read more: How to write a sequelA tongue in cheek look at the secret sauce for writing a sequelRead more How to write a sequel
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Don’t (not) look down: walking in Bali
Read more: Don’t (not) look down: walking in BaliWe’ve been living in Ubud for 7 weeks now (one week to go before we move to the US). We opted not to get a scooter for the duration of our stay and walking most places has been transport, sight-seeing and exercise. For longer journeys, we’ve grabbed taxis, but according to my FitBit, we’ve clocked…
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Bali: what to bring, what to buy here
Read more: Bali: what to bring, what to buy hereWhen we decided to spend two months in Bali as the first leg in our year-long sabbatical, I read as much as I could find about what to bring and what to buy when I got to Bali. The information was scarce, scattered and often dated. Hmmm. I did my best, but over-packed some items…
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The new normal
Read more: The new normalWhen you’re living abroad, there are things that were initially obvious to you – or even jarring – that over time become your new normal. Here are some from living in Bali over the past couple of weeks.Read more The new normal
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Living La Vida Local
Read more: Living La Vida LocalAfter a week of living in Bali, I’m settling in just fine.Read more Living La Vida Local
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Wherever I lay my head…
Read more: Wherever I lay my head…The expression, ‘wherever I lay my hat, that’s my home’ has never been as relevant for me as it is now. As I only wear a hat on occasion, however, I think of it more in terms of wherever I lay my head. Since we handed over the keys to our apartment on Feb 2nd,…
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Taking stock…
Read more: Taking stock…Ben and I have now been in my home state, Western Australia, for 3 weeks of our 4-week visit. The time has gone quickly, but we have crammed in a lot of time with family and friends, and have celebrated both of my parent’s 70th birthdays. As we are over the hump of our time…
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A Toast to…
Read more: A Toast to…We are currently in Western Australia, visiting family and friends for a month before we head to Bali, our first international stop on our year-long sabbatical. Although we’re still in Australia, we are getting into sabbatical mode, which means that each day we work a little (I write, Ben works for a client), we play…
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To Airbnb, or not to Airbnb…
Read more: To Airbnb, or not to Airbnb…Before Ben and I officially start our year’s sabbatical in a couple of days, we have taken a quick side trip to New Zealand, a place we have now been to four times together, and which holds a special place in our hearts. Seven out of eight nights have been booked in Airbnbs, and here’s…
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Take, Chuck or Store?
Read more: Take, Chuck or Store?Over the past few weeks and months, Ben and I have been playing our own version of Shoot, Shag or Marry – only with our stuff. We have literally handled and considered every item we own and have asked ourselves, ‘take, chuck or store?’ That’s every darned thing. When we originally talked about taking this sabbatical,…
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Beautiful Chaos
Read more: Beautiful ChaosLast time it was about details, drowning in them, to be more specific. While I am still up to my chin in the minutiae of departing the country for a year, I have found myself in another not-particularly-comfortable predicament: I’m surrounded by chaos. Our usually orderly home is a study in disarray. There are boxes…
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New Year’s Absolutions 2018
Read more: New Year’s Absolutions 2018Every year I like to write a list of things I absolve myself from doing, no matter how good they may be for my mind/body/soul/relationships/success/wallet, and so on. This year I absolve myself of the following: Eating spaghetti squash as ‘pasta’ While I am all for substituting healthier foods for less-healthy foods, like Greek yoghurt…
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The Devil’s in the Details
Read more: The Devil’s in the DetailsWe are now in the T-minus state of departing Melbourne, and then Australia, for a year. As in, T-minus: 17 days of work left. And T-minus: 33 days until we fly out of Melbourne. And T-minus: several hours until I lose my damned mind. I woke up at 4am last night (or this morning). I…
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I Think I Met Someone (Book 2 in the ‘Someone’ Series)
Read more: I Think I Met Someone (Book 2 in the ‘Someone’ Series)The sequel to You Might Meet Someone picks up Sarah’s story a few months after her Greek adventure. Here’s the preface… “Have a great time!” my best friend, Lindsey, called as she climbed into the driver’s seat of her car. “I hope he shows up,” said her husband, Chris, grinning at me through the passenger window.…
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Why I’m taking a mid-career sabbatical
Read more: Why I’m taking a mid-career sabbatical“Let’s trade a year of our retirement for 2018,” said Ben. We’d been toying with the idea for years, but he was giving it a time-frame, making it concrete. Initially, my stomach clenched at the thought, but I took a deep breath and said yes. Ben and I have long described ourselves as ‘location-agnostic’, but…
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Opinion vs Ideology: Same-Sex Marriage
Read more: Opinion vs Ideology: Same-Sex MarriageI’m angry. Our (ridiculous) government has gone through with an expensive plan to survey Australians, asking, “Should the law be changed to allow same-sex couples to marry?” In the context of the discussions and campaigns associated with this survey, I’ve been told – and I have read and I have heard and seen – that…
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Where the winds take you
Read more: Where the winds take youA year ago, Ben and I were about to embark on a journey back to the Greek Islands, revisiting some of the places we discovered together in 2006 – when we met. Our skipper from the sailing trip in ’06, Patrick, would be at the helm again. We’d get to see new places, we’d make…
Sandy Barker | Author 
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