About Barbara McDonellI live on the west coast of Canada in Victoria, British Columbia. That's located on beautiful Vancouver Island which is so large that it takes eight hours to drive the length of it. Wildlife is abundant - sometimes even in the city. Once upon a time, a cougar walked into the Empress Hotel for afternoon tea!I'm crazy-nuts about animals so it was destiny that my first job would be working in a pet hospital.
Despite long hours and minimum pay, I loved it...but the veterinarian told me I got too emotionally attached to my patients. As an administrative secretary for decades, I learned the importance of organizing chaos into calm. Later, I used that knowledge to reinvent myself by taking a leap of faith from a secure 9-5 job to operating my own business as a professional organizer. It was so rewarding to meet clients in tears of frustration and leave them glowing with happiness 3 hours later: Uncluttering is empowering; organizing simplifies lives.
I began writing novels on a manual typewriter. What was I thinking? Eventually, shaking in my boots, I bought a scary computer that sat on my desk in its unopened box for several weeks before I was brave enough to unpack it!With a broad range of interests, I've published magazine and newspaper articles on hugely diverse subjects such as cats, soppy Dobermans, hiking, hang gliding, travel fun, Victoria's colorful history, housing issues, the making of artificial eyes...and even a short erotic piece for "Playgirl" magazine.
I'm always writing something. Sitting in front of my computer screen, dreaming up new characters and scenes, is where I am the happiest.
Despite long hours and minimum pay, I loved it...but the veterinarian told me I got too emotionally attached to my patients. As an administrative secretary for decades, I learned the importance of organizing chaos into calm. Later, I used that knowledge to reinvent myself by taking a leap of faith from a secure 9-5 job to operating my own business as a professional organizer. It was so rewarding to meet clients in tears of frustration and leave them glowing with happiness 3 hours later: Uncluttering is empowering; organizing simplifies lives.
I began writing novels on a manual typewriter. What was I thinking? Eventually, shaking in my boots, I bought a scary computer that sat on my desk in its unopened box for several weeks before I was brave enough to unpack it!With a broad range of interests, I've published magazine and newspaper articles on hugely diverse subjects such as cats, soppy Dobermans, hiking, hang gliding, travel fun, Victoria's colorful history, housing issues, the making of artificial eyes...and even a short erotic piece for "Playgirl" magazine.
I'm always writing something. Sitting in front of my computer screen, dreaming up new characters and scenes, is where I am the happiest.
