We're in a hard lockdown here in New Zealand due to the Delta variant of COVID-19. It's working. It's hard and shitty for so many of us, but it's working. And unsurprisingly, journalists the length and breadth of the country (but mostly in the parliamentary press gallery) are frothing at the mouth with every new…
Question Everything
When my daughter was four, we took her to Disney on Ice. As princesses and pirates and heroines and villains swished and pirouetted and twirled, her little face was a study in concentration. At one point, Donald Duck was put into an enchanted sleep by an evil queen. All the children around us oooohed and…
Welcome to my new website
I've had a facelift! Welcome to my refreshed website, with a giant photo of me on it. (I paid a professional for that photo shoot, so I'm jolly well going to plaster the results wherever I can.) You'll notice a few changes to navigation: the menu of categories, plus a few other features, are at…
Spring is Coming
Today I took a photo of the first spring daffodil to bloom in my garden. As I posted it to to Facebook, I started crying. Just over three years ago I moved into my home after a heartbreaking but necessary separation. I was sad, excited (weird, I know), confused, and frightened. I had no idea…
Stage vs Page: or Why Not Both?
I’ve been thinking about artistic expression and validation: how I embrace the former and seek the latter. I’m a writer, but I’m also a musical theatre performer. This comes as a surprise to many people. Writing is such a solitary, introspective art, they say. How do you marry that with the intensely public display that…
The Cover Story
Everything is a bit secret squirrel when you're preparing to have your novel published. The title. The story. The launch plans. How the author managed to write the bloody thing in the first place. (If someone can tell me the answer to that one I'd be much obliged.) One of the most exciting (and terrifying)…
Wordgasms: Show Up and They’ll Come
I've just had a wordgasm. TMI? Hear me out. I've just had the kind of half hour that writers across the world dream of: complete focus, ideas flowing, fingers tapping, two "punch the air" moments, one scream of excitement, a few tears, and 500 pretty good words on the page at the end of it.…
The Stories Within Us
My daughter turns 14 next week. As is always the case at this time of year, I'm reflecting on the difference she has made to my life, what joy she has brought, and what lessons she has taught me. And as I prepare for the publication of my first novel next year, my thoughts inevitably…
A Novel Contract
Yesterday I signed a publishing contract with New Zealand Publisher Cloud Ink Press. My debut novel will be launched in February 2022. A friend asked me how I felt (which I thought was rather lovely - most people offered their congratulations, which was fantastic and expected, but this friend, perhaps aware that signing a publishing…
I Have a New Name
Not me, personally. Just this site. Goodbye, thebellbirdblog. Welcome to Patricia Bell, Author. There was nothing wrong with the former...in fact, I loved it. But it's time to ensure my online presence (including my website address) is consistent across the board and more accurately reflects who I am and what I do. I'm not going…
Patricia Bell, Author 