Who am I? If you’d asked me this 6 months ago, the answer would’ve been ions different.

What can I say? I am a beating, breathing mammal with curiosities and desires patiently unfolding. And discovering the mysteries and wonders of this world through travel, conscious coupling, dog mothering, writing, and a helluva lot of experimenting.

Describe your path up to what you’re doing now.

HIt’s yellow and it’s made of bricks.

And as to what I am doing right now, I am laying a new floor in the living room, packing to drive to Istanbul from the South of Spain where I’ll be writing/ reading my arse off the whole way.

And doing some acting and photographing when I am there.

How did your childhood influence your ideas and what you do now?

My childhood was unusual, to say the least.

You will hear more about it as I begin to open up like a stubborn oyster. I will say though when I was 18 I was invited to the Film Awards in my country.

Somebody who was somebody was asked to give a young promising lady like me some advice. He necked his drink, looked at me unamused, and said: “Go out and live your life. Then you’ll have something to write about”. Then he left.
And I did.

Did you or do you have a mentor? Who was it and how did they inspire you?

I have had several mentors throughout my life. All of them are worth mentioning yet the one I am still closest to and who is like a father to me is legendary director Peter Webber.

He inspires me every day with his hilarious and humble spirit. His kindness, generosity, dedication, passion, work ethic…I’m so grateful every day for having him in my life… I think I am gonna cry.

More than that, he nudges me to go further.

I have a question. Where were you born?

Does it matter? In Barcelona, Spain. The second time, in Andalusia on my bathroom floor (before it was done nice, damn it!).

Where do you live now? If there is a change of location what caused it? Can you share?

I live in the global consciousness permanently and in Andalusia, South of Spain physically.

I have changed location a dozen times throughout my life.

If you want to hear the story of how I ended up in the middle of nowhere in the mountains (yes, the dream is possible and you don’t have to be 70), I wrote about it for the first time here: https://byrslf.co/left-uk-moved-to-spain-married-at-26-ed0fecc4df08

Was there a point in your life when you decided to take a big risk to move forward?

Yes, constantly. Where do I begin? Probably by writing about it on Medium — You may need to hold tight on that one as it’s not written yet — oh and… it’s gonna be wicked 😉

Do you feel a responsibility to contribute to something bigger than yourself and what do you hope to contribute?

Responsibility? No. Do I do it?

Every time I am creative I co-create with something bigger than ‘myself’. Maybe there isn’t a ‘myself’ at all, so that’s easy.

I do what I gotta do and then give it up to the ether, the stars, the universe, the world… all of it.

Are you satisfied creatively? Where do you see yourself in five to ten years?

Abso-fucking-lutely, otherwise I wouldn’t be doing this. So in five to ten years, I am 32-37.. hum…I’d written a book by then.

Maybe a child too? (I didn’t even know that!). And co-written a script that gets made into a short film, another one that becomes a film. Maybe I have a cheeky cameo in one, Hitchcock style.

Still all very indie. I can’t quite grasp the genre yet. It has ‘my’ voice, something that has been getting more and more defined.

I live somewhere exotic, possibly in Africa, maybe in Asia. There’s a source of water nearby where Picasso, Wolfgang (the dogs) and we swim in the mornings, greenery under the sporadic rainbows, coconut water, and….children?

If you could go back and do one thing differently, what would it be?

Break up with my ex sooner.

Are your friends and family supportive of what you do? And why?

My husband and Peter are my biggest supporters. Followed by my little sis. My parents are in their own way. Why do they support me? My husband says: “There’s no question”. I can’t speak for the rest you may have to ask them.

How does where you live to impact your creativity?

I kid you not. The first few weeks I didn’t even want to go up the damned mountain. The husband eventually took me by the ear. Adopting a puppy from a nearby farm helped too. In sweat and tears of anger and frustration, I got to the top. And then I looked at the greenest, vastest, cleanest view I had ever seen. And it was home.

You can choose to believe this or not: I ‘saw’ ideas like these lively little things floating down. Their sole purpose was to be realized. Materialized. And they are up for grabs. I realized that if I didn’t pick one and commit, someone else would, someone that could and would fulfill it. I went up every day and collected a few, and listened. I’ve been co-creating ever since with the biggest smile on my face.

Also because I am not constantly being blindsided by corporatism/consumerism (aka many distractions) as I was when I lived in big cities.

If you could give one piece of advice to another creative starting out what would it be?

Fear is a construct. You’re better than that. If you get an idea write it down NOW. You won’t remember properly later unless you run with it, guaranteed. 

How do you keep learning new things?

I just climb to the top of ‘the’ mountain. Books. Friends. And by microdosing most things. Social media, sugar, the herb, exercise, work…

All right, what does a typical day look like for you?

There is no such thing as a typical day. In the summer I’m up early, but not in the winter.

Siesta in the afternoon if I wake up before 7 am happens often. Yoga day on, day off ish?

Drink a protein shake as soon as I wake up when it’s around. Walk doggo, feed doggo, love doggo when the other isn’t. Write, write, write. Record self-tapes for castings. Write, critique, write. Read in all the gaps. You know, the unusual. 

Favorite foods?

I like everything. If it’s good and healthy it’s twice as good. 

Do you have a favorite book?

No. I like many for different reasons. Name genre at least. 

Do you have any favorite movies?

Again, no. Different ones at different times. I am a sucker for romcoms as long as they have a bit of depth. I had Pineapple Express in the background earlier. I have watched Pulp Fiction a gazillion times. In the last few years, I’ve enjoyed;

Current album on repeat?

Haha. Baxter Dury – The Night Chancers. Because I love it, it’s the only one I have in the car and the radio is broken. At home, it’s more of a Gramatik/Reggae/Dub playlist vibe.

Last question. What kind of legacy do you hope to leave?

I don’t hope. I don’t need to. Whatever will be already is and I am happy with that. 

Peace & love, remember your freedom. 

P.A.U.L.A

@justpaula (Medium), @paularomeugarcia (Insta)