With Scottish ancestry dating back over 800 years, it seems that the wandering spirit has always been in my blood. Us Scots have always been movers, Global Scots, explorers, and adventurers - setting sail to distant shores, building lives in new lands, and always seeking something just over the horizon. The same has been true for me throughout my life.
Born in Yorkshire, I grew up in the Lake District in the North of England, surrounded by rugged landscapes that called to my inner explorer. Joining the British Army set me on a path that would take me far and wide - Germany, Norway, Canada, and beyond.
Those years shaped me, opening my eyes to different ways of life, different cultures, and different ways people find happiness - or struggle to.
Germany gave me three years of order, quiet, and organization - traits I came to admire. Norway was a wonderland of natural beauty but came with a high price tag. Sydney was the perfect place for me between marriages, a vibrant city with golden beaches and an easygoing lifestyle. Then came California, where I spent 14 years, drinking in its beauty but also witnessing the reality that many simply couldn’t afford to live there.
I spent a couple of years in the Medway towns in Kent, UK, where I saw the other side of life - harder, grittier, with fewer illusions. Eight months in Belize showed me that poverty doesn’t always mean unhappiness, yet my time in East Africa revealed a different kind of poverty, one that left little room for hope.
In Kenya, I met the lepers, the beggars, and those who fought to survive in a world where medicine was a luxury few could afford. Walls covered in spider webs, rampant malaria, no money for treatment - just survival by sheer will.
One day in Belize, I witnessed a drive-by shooting - except the shooter was on a bicycle, the target a worker who had skipped a shift on payday. When she was shot in the chest, the locals didn’t flinch; instead, they threw down bets on how long she would last. Life, and death, played out before my eyes in ways I had never imagined.
Northern Ireland during the so called "Troubles" was another world entirely. I saw things no one should see, came close to death more times than I’d care to count, but for the most part, I saw the deep desire for peace, love, and harmony.
And then there is the United States of America, once my home, now a place I hardly recognize. The deep shifts in its culture and politics shock me, and I wonder how long the impact of today’s decisions will last - likely far beyond my lifetime. The careful embedding of loyalists and succession strategies has created a landscape that will shape generations to come.
I have seen many of my American cousins since the turn of the year and I sense a deepening sense of embarrassment.
But through it all, I remember the innocence of youth, a time before the world revealed its darkest corners. I think back to New Year’s Eve as a child, surrounded by family - Grandma, uncles, aunts, cousins - listening to the Top of the Pops countdown. John Lennon's Imagine was #1. I closed my eyes and dreamed, could it be true? Could a world of peace and harmony exist?
Imagine there's no heaven, it's easy if you try. No hell below us, above us only sky. Imagine all the people, living for today...
Now, after 48 countries, six continents, and a lifetime of movement, I have laid my hat in Santiago, Chile. And I have never been happier.
What's your story? (everyone has one!)
Willy Mitchell: Indie Author and Storyteller
Each of my books reflects a different facet of life’s challenges and triumphs. Operation ARGUS and Bikini BRAVO delve into military history, grappling with the complexities of duty and sacrifice. Cold COURAGE maps the heroic tale of Ernest Shackleton's 1914 expedition. Northern ECHO captures the rebellious spirit of punk rock, a testament to the power of challenging the status quo. Gipsy MOTH soars with the daring adventures of an aviatrix, a story of freedom and flight. And SS INDIGO explores the intricate tapestry of human relationships - the ones we cherish and those we endure.
Every story I write is a piece of me, shaped by the lessons I’ve learned and the people who’ve crossed my path. Writing these books has been as much a journey as living the experiences that inspired them - a process of discovery, reflection, and growth.
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