Why I Write.

To try and describe why I write in a “Short Thoughts” post seems counterintuitive. There are so many reasons, and a few hundred words seem at odds with providing adequate reasoning. However, I shall endeavour to make some sense of it all.

Back in the stone age of blackboards and logarithm tables, a time void of mobile phones and calculators, my favourite subject was English. This passion was fostered by a magnificent teacher, Mr. Maurice Egan. Yet despite my love of words, I ultimately followed my burning passion and entered the technical field of aviation. A world of manuals and checklists, void of emotion and art. Or so I thought.

When Ansett Australia collapsed and left me rebuilding my airline career, I looked to having a back-up plan in the future, should the unthinkable strike twice. Maybe not an airline collapse, perhaps a loss of licence on medical grounds…or a pandemic. So, I gained a Masters Degree and started writing manuals and safety systems and in that time, I felt the lessons of Maurice Egan beginning to stir. I started by writing for various association journals and then one day I pitched a story to a national magazine – and they said yes! Enthusiastically I penned 1,500 words on my father’s experiences as a pilot in the Korean War. Once submitted I waited anxiously for publication but it the magazine failed to appear on the shelves before I had to depart for Los Angeles.

Unknown to me, a passenger on Kirrily’s flight had sent a copy of the magazine to the flight deck as they’d finished reading it. On the other side of the Pacific, my sleep was disturbed by the rustling of fax paper as a scanned copy of my article was slid under my hotel room door. It was a watershed moment and the beginning of an amazing journey. To be honest, early on I was a little concerned how my writing would be perceived by my colleagues, however, gradually I received more positive feedback and my insecurity decreased.

Now, I have written eleven books and hundreds of articles. I have been published widely in Australia, the UK, USA and South Africa to name a few places on the map. I have flown and reviewed many aircraft, travelled to France and Spain to write about Airbus’s civil and military programs and Seattle to pen pieces about Boeing. I have been embedded with an Army helicopter squadron during exercise Talisman Sabre and flown in the front seat as the pilot flew me UNDER the Golden Gate Bridge. There are just too many events to highlight.

As such, I have never had an issue with motivation. My favourite hours to write are pre-dawn, when darkness prevails and silence rules our home. It is a time and place where I can order my thoughts and let them fill the page with minimal effort. Writing at the end of the day has always been a challenge for me as every word takes ten times more effort than those that flowed in those early hours. For me, writing is cathartic. For me, writing allows me to share my world of flight with others who may not have the opportunities that I have been so fortunate to experience. It permits me to share hard earned lessons and mistakes with those who are just making their way in aviation. There are so many reasons.

Finding my voice and being permitted to share it through the written word has been one of the simple joys of my very fortunate life. As I near retirement from airline flying, I am excited that the void that will emerge will easily be filled by more writing. I have so many books that are waiting to be set free. In the meantime, I shall continue to share my words with those that are kind enough to read them, both at home and abroad.

From the embers of an airline collapse, my phoenix was the passion to write.