Effortless, my pen glides across the page. Words come fast, creative ideas download as the story grows… a voice of its own making… shareable, presented as a gift… my writing touching your heart with my words, one sentence at a time.
Over several decades, writing has been my life’s calling. Evolving around pen, paper, writing journals, dictionaries, thesauruses, word processors, graphic arts, editing, printing and publishing, stories flooded my mind, along with a willingness to share not only my literature, but also any writing knowledge I gained along my creative journey.
The first young-adult story I wrote was for a high school English class. The teacher, proud of my work, shared it with the class and faculty. I believe this experience was the defining moment when I fell in love with writing and the power that words can have in everyday life. Afterwards, I looked for a creative outlet and joined the Calgary Writers’ Association (now defunct). I was honoured to be the 1997 recipient of the Calgary Writers’ Association Brendon Donnelly Award for Children’s Literature.
I developed my craft and found my “writer’s voice” through feedback from critique groups. It’s important for novice writers to keep practising. Develop a writing routine to help you consistently improve. The more you learn and stretch your creative muscle in word creation, the greater a writer you will become. Be open to comments and suggestions to improve your work and never let others’ opinions tear you down.
Once, I swore off writing after a harsh critique (or what I thought was one). Two weeks of abstinence crushed me. A piece of my soul disappeared. It was the worst feeling in the world to lose that creative part of myself, and I had to write again.
After leaving the workforce and moving to Water Valley, Alta., I became involved with the handmade teddy bear artisan community, using my skills to create the Canadian Teddy Bear News magazine. Subscribers were patient with me as I learned copy editing, graphic design, production, circulation and the many other roles in pulling the magazine together.
Rediscovering my love of writing children’s books, I published Little Blue Penguin (Wood Lily Publishers, 2007), nominated as a finalist for the 2008 Canadian Christian Writing Awards. Next, I reworked my Calgary Writers’ Association-winning story and published McKenzie’s Frosty Surprise (Wood Lily Publishers, 2008). I moved to Airdrie in 2012, and during a dark period lasting several years, I wrote and published Today I Am… An Empowering Journal Back to Self (2019).
A great exercise to enhance writing skills is to enter literary contests and calls for submissions, which come with deadlines. I joined a collaborative effort and wrote a chapter for The Dragon Problem (2024), following a Lintusen Press workshop at the When Words Collide Writers’ Conference in Calgary in 2023.
The Calgary Reads Big Book Sale – Seeding Readers Project selected my story, Book Bus Magic, which celebrates the joy of reading and the magic of books. They produced it as a hardcover picture book in June 2025. I’m delighted this book is being shared with families furthest from opportunity in the Calgary area.
My writerly life today comprises sending out Book 1 of my young-adult fantasy to potential publishers while completing edits on Book 2 of the series. I feel the call to write every day. For me, there is no age limit on sharing my writing, especially when the stories I create are timeless — from my heart to yours.
Atchison’s newsletter and stories: substack.com/@patricialatchison
For information about Atchison’s writing journey, please visit: patriciaatchison.ca.
