The Very Hungry Londoner
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theveryhungrylondonerFebruary 11, 2016

4 weeks in Japan in 5 moodAways

This post is sponsored by moodAway. Back in November I spent four weeks in Japan travelling by train from Yakushima, a small island off the southwestern corner of the country, to Sapporo on Hokkaido, the… View Full Post

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theveryhungrylondonerJanuary 27, 2016

Japanese onsens and British nakedness

When was the last time you saw someone naked in a non-sexual way (excluding your partner)? Include images in magazines, on TV shows and in movies. You can’t remember can you? And a few months… View Full Post

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theveryhungrylondonerAugust 22, 2015

Hoi An: Where to stay, where to eat, and lots of pretty pictures

Hoi An is pretty. Really very pretty. It’s a small town, chock-full of charm and the complete opposite to sprawling, brash Ho Chi Minh. It’s the kind of town you could easily end up spending… View Full Post

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theveryhungrylondonerAugust 14, 2015

Getting to know Ho Chi Minh: A book, a chat, and three recommended tours. 

I found my first few days in Vietnam a little difficult to be honest. While there were some personal reasons for this, my luggage left languishing at Singapore airport for example, I think it was… View Full Post

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theveryhungrylondonerAugust 11, 2015

A Postcard from Ho Chi Minh: Communism and Cartier.

There are certain phrases that you are banned from using as a travel writer. “A city of contrasts” is one of them. It’s just been used too many times. So I’m not going to use… View Full Post

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Hello, and welcome to my tiny corner of this big ol’ internet!

I’m Fiona, and I used to be a food-obsessed literary agent living in London. Now? I’m not so sure.

After six years of giving it a very good go, I finally realised that my hunger wasn't the sort that could be satiated with Hawksmoor short-rib French dips.

So I left. In February 2015 I packed a couple of bags and headed off to Asia. Solo, indefinitely and with the hope that new faces, landscapes and adventures would satisfy me in an entirely different way.

And it kind of worked.

I now live in Bali (for the moment). No longer a Londoner but still, as ever, hungry.

Where am I?

Current Location: Bali

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Instagram

  • Every evening, for about half an hour, the light in my bedroom is magic. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Yesterday I shared a short feedback form with my email list and on here (the link is in my profile - if you also have the time to fill it out quickly). I’ve never done anything like this before and I was really worried that a) everything would think I was stupid, and b) no one would fill it out. But I've been really touched by the amount, and the generosity of the responses. People have said some really lovely and very helpful things! So thank you. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ The one word that came up the most in the section about my Letter & Notes emails was "honesty", and the reflection that that was what people valued about them. Out of all the feedback I got, this was the thing that made me smile the most (along with the, fair few, people who said "errr Fiona, you never tell us what you actually do!!" Noted.) ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ There is so much gloss in this online, creative space, and sometimes it can feel like every other business is born into this world full-formed, thriving and wildly profitable. I quite often think "can I actually say that?" when I'm writing my letters, but I almost always keep it in because I really believe that there needs to be more honesty about what it takes to build a business. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ So, let's be honest! What challenges are you currently facing? What are you really struggling with?
  • A home with a hidden doorway. Surely every introvert’s dream? #whphidden ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ I love summer and the sun, I really do, but I’m not going to lie, when I woke up this morning to the sound of wind and rain on my windows, I smiled. I love a rainy Sunday as it takes away any pressure to do anything, really, except read and snuggle under blankets. And my Sunday morning ritual, of hot coffee in bed with the Guardian on Saturday supplements, feels better with rain lashing against the windows and the need for a duvet, than it does with sticky sheets and a sweaty back!! ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ What’s your Sunday morning ritual? Was anyone else secretly pleased to hear rain this morning?
  • I bought this typewriter in the flea market bit of @thefromeindependent last weekend. It needs a bit of a clean and tidy up, but the keys make a very satisfying sound as you type and the leaver and carriage still work. It was a total whim purchase, but at £10, hardly an extravagant one! ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ It's day ten of #createnotconsume. I've gone 10 days without looking a news website, watching TV (aside from Sunday night's slip-up!), looking at anyone else's Instagram stories, or checking Facebook or Twitter. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ So what I have done instead? Mainly made macrame and listened to My Dad Wrote a Porno! Not quite what I had in mind when I started this challenge, but I'm still breaking the habits I wanted to break, and that's good I guess. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Does anyone have any podcast recommendations? Especially ones that aren't related to work / business / entrepreneurship, as I don't really want to listen to those after I've turned my laptop off in the evening.
  • My newsletter this week was on the relationship between consumption and creation, something that I've been thinking about a lot over the past week of my #createnotconsume ban. Before I started this ban I thought that my excessive consumption of digital stuff was, at least partly, to blame for how little I've been writing recently. And I do still think that is true, I have written more in the past week than I have in the past few months, but it's not quite as simple as that. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Consumption can also be inspiration. I really miss seeing other people's Instagrams, and reading other people's blog posts and articles. I like engaging with people, and feeling like I'm part of a conversation, rather than just standing on a box on my own, shouting. And when it comes to writing these captions, I'm finding it harder to think of something to say as I'm not being inspired by other people's thoughts and ideas. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ I definitely wasn't using Instagram in a healthy way before my ban; I was spending way too much time mindlessly scrolling, rather than actively engaging. But I don't think how I'm using it right now is healthy either. I guess I just need to find a balance, which is what this experiment is all about anyway. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ How about you? How do you make sure you use Instagram in a positive way?
  • This is my favourite moment of the day. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ What's yours?
  • As I got into bed last night, I realised something: I hadn't checked my emails all day. This wasn't something I'd purposefully decided to do, but I've taken them off my phone (as part of #createnotconsume), and as I was out for most of the day I didn't open up my laptop either. I can't remember the last time I went a day without checking them. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ I had a couple of moments of panic, and then thought why? I'm a copywriter, there are very few genuine word emergencies! I try not to reply to emails outside of "work hours", and people won't expect a reply until Monday anyway, so all I really do is see emails and then fret about them. I also currently only have one email address and inbox, for personal and business, although most personal emails I get are just marketing. I like the simplicity of it, but might look at changing this. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ I'm going to purposefully not check them today either (I want to do some writing later but will keep the WiFi turned off on my laptop). I'll let you know on Monday if I missed any word SOSs! ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ How do you guys manage your emails? Do you check them at the weekend?
  • I've decided to set myself a challenge for the month of August: to consume less, and create more. I'm basically shunning all digital content: no TV, no internet browsing, and no consuming on social media (posting to Instagram is allowed!). It's going to be tough, and I'm pretty nervous about it. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ I've written a blog post explaining why I've decided to do this, and outlining the "rules" I've set myself (the link is in my profile). I'll be sharing how I'm getting on here, and on stories so follow there if you're interested! ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ #createnotconsume #analogueaugust
  • Another gorgeous Somerset doorway, this time in Bradford-on-Avon. I listened to the latest episode of @jencarrington_ and @me_and_orla's podcast #dearhopefulcreative while I made my supper last night. It's on how it can sometimes feel like there's never enough time in the day, and one of the things Jen and Sara talked about is the importance of having "anchors" to your routine. As I was listening I realised that I don't really have any anchors, and that's probably been part of the reason why my routine has sort of evaporated the last few weeks or so. I think it's one of the things that makes running your own business when you live alone that bit harder - Jen says she used to use her husband leaving and getting back from work as an anchor - she would start work when he left, and stop when he came home - and Sara says she builds her routine around Orla. Obviously your anchors don't have to be another person, but if they're not linked to something or someone external then they become another thing you have to consciously keep in place. Another thing you have to motivate yourself to do, which sort of goes against the point of them I think? So, I'm wondering what your anchors are? And if you also live and work alone, how do you keep them steady?
  • I had a small flurry of new followers yesterday thanks to the very lovely @herinternest and @caitflanders (and a rather shameless plea from me on stories)! So if you've just joined me - hi! How are you? Let me introduce myself... ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ I'm Fiona, and I live here, in Frome, a small town with a big creative heart in Somerset. It doesn't all look this pretty - there is a rather ugly shopping centre right in the middle that, funnily enough, never makes an appearance on here - but I really love it. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ I help small creative businesses share their story online through copywriting and content creation - so if you're currently building your website or keen to do so soon, and can't seem to quite put into words what you want to say, then please do get in touch - I'd love to hear from you! ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ I bloody love carrot cake, read a couple of books a week (check out my stories for recommendations) and am currently obsessed with this year's Love Island. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ How about you? I'd love to get to know you better, so please do introduce yourself below! (even if you've been following me for a while...)
  • The Pig near Bath, where I had supper with my family a few nights ago to celebrate my sisters' birthday (they're twins!). ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ I didn't actually stay here, as I only live half an hour away, but the hotel was lovely (my parents' bedroom was gorgeous, with an excellent rain shower which I tried out!) and we had a really exceptional meal there. They have a gorgeous and very abundant kitchen garden which they pull a lot of their food from. For pudding I had a delicious baked Alaska made with lemon verbena ice cream. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Having my parents and, more to the point, their car here for a few days reminded me just how much I love not just Frome itself, but this whole part of the country. Not being able to drive, and now being able to drive but not having a car, has been really frustrating as there's so much I want to explore! Hopefully I'll be on the road soon though.

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