About me | Michael Pantlin

Welcome to where I tell you just how marvellous a writer I am! Well, I do believe my journey to becoming a writer has been quite extraordinary.

I never read books and never wrote anything noteworthy except business papers. At school, I hated language lessons, especially grammar, and I loathed writing essays because I couldn’t imagine what to write about. Instead, I spent my childhood playing outside and exploring the world. Occasionally, I read a non-fiction book that explained the world around me. For my master’s degree in Industrial Engineering, I only read technical books and wrote mediocre exam papers.

A significant gift from my career at KLM Royal Dutch Airlines was learning to write effective management papers that were concise and reader-focused. I was taught to focus on the message I wanted to convey, structure a document properly, and present it well. I took pride in producing strategy papers for the board to support their decisions.

KLM also offered me the opportunity to travel and meet people from all over the world. Observing different ways of working helped me reflect on our own methods and appreciate different perspectives. Working on innovative projects gave me the satisfaction of truly contributing to the company’s success.

Early retirement was another gift because it allowed me to turn my attention to my emotional side, which had always been suppressed. During training to become a freelance executive coach, I developed this aspect of myself. I learnt to pay more attention to others’ emotions, which was an enriching experience. I felt like Alice in Wonderland.

With more time for my hobbies, I researched my ancestors’ stories and wondered what to do with all the information, as a load of facts interested no one. That’s when I knew I had to write their stories and produce a book for anyone to read, even if they didn’t know my family.

I felt incredibly proud when my book, “Letters from the Past – An English Family in the 19th & 20th Century,” came back from the printers with its wonderful cover. It was marvellous!

Meanwhile, I was thinking about writing my own life story — not that it was exceptional but because I never spoke much about my life. It took me four years to develop my story from a list of events to the core theme — my emotional journey. That became “Belonging to Myself — Learning to see what I feel”.

These people, and others, have been a great help on my writing journey:

Lynn Palermo of the Family History Writing Studio helped me on my first steps

Anne Rainbow helped me with Scrivener and her Wednesday Writers Online workshops

Kerry Hadley-Pryce provided inspiring writing lessons leading me into new areas

Joanne Burn is my constructive and encouraging writer’s coach

Many others in several Facebook groups have reviewed my work and nudged me along

Last but not least, my wife Henny, has read all my drafts and found the mistakes I missed

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