John Walker Pattison, a cancer survivor and award-winning author, calls himself a dreamer. After a tumultuous early life, he defied doctors’ expectations by surviving cancer and later pursued a successful nursing career. His memoir, Me and My Shadow – memoirs of a cancer survivor, has won multiple awards. Despite facing new health battles, John continues to write, travel, and enjoy the peace of fly-fishing and photography, all while cherishing family as his greatest treasure.
In the 151st episode of The HYBRID Author podcast host Joanne Zara Ellen Morrell, author of young adult fiction, women’s fiction and short non fiction for authors, chats to John about:
- his writing career in particular ‘Me and My Shadow’ a deeply personal and emotional journey of his battle with cancer
- the inspiration to write this memoir, and how the writing process helped John reflect on and process his experiences
- balancing being open and honest about stuggles while crafting narrative
- John’s advice to authors looking to write and share personal hardships in a way that both heals and inspires and much more.