Who am I?

This isn’t going to be a philosophical debate on self-concepts or creative reasoning – I literally just want to tell you a little bit about myself (and I know how much you’ve all been dying to get to know me). To think that I’ve been blogging for close to two years now, and I have never properly introduced myself! Now that I think about it, I never even bothered with an ‘Introductory Blog post’, though I’m glad I never did as I would have only embarrassed myself:

Hey Everyone! My name is Milly, and welcome to my blog! I’m so excited to start blogging, Isn’t blogging just great?? So the other day I was thinking…

Some of you may know me as the most rejected writer on the planet, the crazy cat lady who loves cat gifs, the quintessential non-bogan Aussie writer, that sarcastic ‘blonde girl’, the idiot who blogs about the wonders of self-publishing (while never actually having done so) or the Chuck Wendig quote sharer enthusiast.

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And you’d be right about them all, except one.

I’m actually not a crazy cat lady, although it is a persona I am clearly to blame for (my website is named The Cat’s Write after all). I am proud to be both a dog and a cat person. And don’t ask me to choose one over the other, because I can’t.

When I first flew the nest all those years ago… the first pet I ever bought was a snoring cavalier called Poppy. But while I do love dogs, they have nothing on the hilarity of cats and how innately relatable they are to the #WritersLife. Take one quick look at my twitter and you’ll understand.

So crazy cat lady stereotype aside, who am I?

In a nutshell I’m a 30-year-old Aussie living in the New England (Australia) with my rescue cat Sven and my super-expensive-registered-Cavalier-King-Charles-Spaniel called Poppy. (Don’t you love how writers always introduce themselves by letting you know how many pets they have? I think it fills the gap when you don’t have a litany of children or significant other to talk about.)

I work full-time as a Quality Officer (please don’t ask me what that is) and I am also studying at university part-time. Some more random facts: my favourite colour is white, I genuinely prefer water to any other drink (one exception: Little Fat Lamb), I’d do anything for a chicken burrito, I can’t jog unless I’m listening to music, I know the Pilot Alphabet by heart, my favourite movie is Die Hard, I watch You’ve Got Mail every Valentine’s Day and I’m a secret SG-1 fan.

If I had to pick one thing about me that even some of my closest friends don’t know, it’s that I grew up in Darwin. It’s an oddity, I assure you. Australia is not evenly populated like say, the US, instead you have about 60% of the population clumped together in the South East (see circle below). The reason why? 70% of Australia is arid or semi-arid desert, and it’s not really easy to live in those conditions.

If you don’t know where Darwin is, here’s a map:

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I love that I spent my formative years in the perpetual heat of the tropics, swimming around crocodiles, killer sharks, sting rays and box jelly fish. That I am still alive is a miracle.

During the holidays and on the weekends we visited Kakadu, Jabiru, Litchfield Park, Coburg Peninsula, the Kimberley’s and I have a memorable moment of breaking down on a remote section of the Gibb River road. We explored jungles, waterfalls, rock holes and remote island beaches with water so clear you could see the killer sharks coming (always a bonus).

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My Favourite place on Earth: Nadab Lookout, Ubirr, NT.

When I was 12 we moved back down to the New England to resume normal life and reconnect with family. But this new place was hell. Snow and freezing temperatures were common in winter and I learned of this new thing called ‘sleet’, which is a mixture of snow and baby hail. And not only that, I was also quickly inserted into a private boarding school, in which I entered as a wild, self-assured Territorian, only to be spat out as a prim and proper New Englander with next to zero self-esteem. On the plus side, I did get to reconnect with some of my 27 first cousins. Yes, I have 27.

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Since high school, I’ve lived all over Australia – from Sydney to Brisbane and Hay to Mt. Coolon. Subsequently, (and probably as a result of my childhood) I love the beach, the city and the country life. I enjoy swimming just as much as I enjoy hiking. I would be as much at home on a boat in the sun as I would a cabin in the mountains with the snow. I am neither an introvert nor an extrovert. I am incredibly social, but also severely hermit-like when I’m writing. I absolutely need to travel, but I also feel permanently tethered to the New England (this could be because I bought a house here, so I’m kinda stuck for the moment).

My writing style is eclectic too. I’m currently writing novels in a myriad of genres, including historical romance, contemporary chook lit, science fiction, fantasy, speculative, paranormal romance, thriller and crime.

Like WTF Milly!! Just pick a genre already and stick to it.

Growing up I always dreamed of being a published author, but I realised pretty quickly I had no chance in hell of that ever happening, so my first stop in this ‘Game of Life’ was to get a degree. At first I studied Communications (I wanted to work in the movie industry) before I transferred to the University of New England (AU) to study Criminology. Transferring was the best thing I could have ever done. I made some epic friends at UNE, got a perm, put on 5 kilos and came out the other side with that invaluable piece of paper.

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Pretty much what I looked like at college…

With my undergrad degree under my belt, I moved to Sydney and started Grad Law at a prestigious university. Unfortunately Law didn’t suit me and my creative brain, so I dropped out and I’m now studying Astronomy at Swinburne (Like WTF again Milly!!)

Between my full-time job and my part-time studies, I have barely enough time to breathe, let alone write novels, blog and socialise (online and in real life). Yet I wouldn’t have my life any other way.

And while I may no longer be the wild kid I once was, I still want nothing more than to be a published author one day. Here’s cheers to childhood dreams!

Milly out.

49 thoughts

  1. Pingback: Feeling Fernweh – The Cat's Write

  3. I feel you on many levels. Especially the ‘game of life’ part! I’ve recently realised a lot of people don’t seem to know who they’re playing the game against… it’s themselves, insistence otherwise seems a little silly to me. Law wasn’t my bag of ponies either – just couldn’t give my voice away. Great post!

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  4. Hey Mill! Thanks for the follow, and well I just scrolled to see your post. Crazy cat girl doesn’t sound half bad I’d say! Cat girls are apparently mystical and you should pride yourself in it! 😀 And hey you can be an amazing writer, don’t ever give up on that dream yeah? I believe in you and I’m sure you can pull it off, keep at it, you can do it! 🙂

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  9. Pingback: October Wrap-Up! – Sophie's Corner

  11. Nice to “meet” you Milly! That’s so cool that you grew up in Darwin- it’s a place i’d love to visit (not live!). I too am an eclectic writer…and have had many, many… too many rejections. Keep on writing, you’ll get there eventually!

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  16. This was a really funny essay. I enjoyed it. As I’ve never been able to work the question “who am I?” into a conversation, the title got me thinking of some of the few characters that have asked themselves that question. There’s the amnesiac Corwin in Roger Zelazny’s Nine Princes in Amber. King Lear asks “Who is it that can tell me who I am?” Then there’s Derek Zoolander, who asks it in the philosophical sense: https://gifrific.com/derek-zoolander-saying-who-am-i-zoolander/

    Robin Williams’s Popeye asks “What Am I?” (“I Yam What I Yam.”) If memory serves, Princess Buttercup asks “Well, what am I?” before pushing the Dread Pirate Roberts aka Wesley downslope.

    “Who are you?” is asked a lot. In SG-1, O’Neill answers the “Who Are You?” question with Larry, Moe, or Curly.

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    1. Thanks for providing all these wonderful references!! Oh and I love that you threw in a SG-1 quote! Very appropriate considering hahaha.
      When I think of the question ‘Who am I?’ – I always think of the philosophical side (probably becasue I studied philosophy at university LOL)

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  18. Milly, I really enjoyed this post. It was so great to get to know you a little better. Your life sounds like it’s been an exciting one and I thank you for sharing a glimpse of it with us! Good luck with your writing and balancing everything out. Remember: you got this.

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  23. I have been following your blog closely or sometimes not so closely for practically the entire 2 years of your blogging. It was back in my geographical follow stage. You were the first person in Australia, so I could tick it off! Finally I have a bit of an idea about you. I like the cat gifs though which mirror the subjects you speak about. Astronomy, eh? If you see that big killer asteroid coming, give us a heads up!

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    1. That’s so cool! And perhaps slightly embarrassing. My blog was a little sad looking back in the day (weird layout, weird cover picture, and it was called ‘Coffee, Chocolate & Writing’ LOL) I’m so happy to hear you’ve stayed around long enough to see it looking slightly more acceptable. Emphasis on slightly hahaha

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  27. You’re studying Astronomy? How cool! I am also both a cat and dog person, and have both in my home; however, I am a self-proclaimed cat lady– I can’t help it. You’ve seen cat paws, right? They’re the cutest things on the planet!!

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  28. I lost count of my first cousins, I know it’s at least 45. My mom was one of 13! I had to be careful dating incase they were somehow related.
    It’s lovley to be properly introduced.
    I’m a cat & dog person too. 😀

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  30. Wow. Your life sounds pretty exciting! I too have both cats (3) & dogs (2). I started out with cats, but dogs meet different needs. I’m a writer as well, but unpublished except for the Web. I have a Master’s in 19th Cent British Lit (I know–YAWN!). Thanks for sharing & keep on pursuing your dreams. 😊

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  31. Australia is such a beautiful place. I wish I could visit. I live in Karachi, Pakistan. Its near Equator and Karachi is a coastal area. We have pleasant weather but sometimes ot gets too humid. Its densely populated with too much hustle and bustle of traffic. I would love to live in a quiet place like yours.

    Wow 27 first cousins!

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  35. Darwin, eh? I bet it’s warm there now. good post. I find it fascinating to learn about other people and where they live.

    yes, I have two rescue kitties but no expensive dog … yet.

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  36. What a life, waw! Seriously impressed and I wish I lived there too, it sounds so great! Yes you’ve got ‘sleet’ but how cold is it actually, I’ll bet it’s still way better than here where it drops below 0 and the roads are hell to ride here when that happens. I’m a dog and cat person as well btw :-). Great introduction Milly 🙂

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