The Pacific Bay Desk

The desk is three people. We write under pen names, split the archive into beats and read each other's drafts before anything is published. There is no newsroom and no switchboard; there is a shared inbox, a running list of reader questions and a weekly call where we argue about which of them deserves an article next.

Who covers what

Brannagh Pellow: tools, screens and the shop floor

Brannagh handles technology and retail. That ranges from image and audio formats to browser-based design tools, AI helpers for routine office work and the screens and shelves of a small shop. Recent pieces include SVG vs PNG and a plain guide to visual merchandising. Brannagh's rule is that a guide must work on the cheapest laptop in the office, not only on the newest.

Odhran Kettleby: vehicles, power and the outdoors

Odhran looks after cars, energy, travel and gardening. The common thread is upkeep: tyres, oil, generators, meters, garden lighting and beds that need building before spring. Odhran insists that any step involving mains electricity, fuel or heavy lifting carries a clear note about when to call in a professional, and that the note sits right beside the step.

Yolanthe Strathdee: money, property and the law

Yolanthe writes the finance, real estate and legal pieces. These are the articles where a careless sentence could cost someone money, so they move slowest. Yolanthe works from official guidance and product terms, explains how things generally work, flags where rules vary between countries and never suggests what a particular reader should do with their savings or their case. A good example is APY vs APR, which compares two rates without recommending any product.

Why pen names

Pen names keep the attention on the article rather than on the person behind it, and they let us write about everyday topics without turning the site into a set of personal profiles. They are not a cover for credentials we do not have. None of us claims a qualification in the subjects we cover, and we will never sign an article as an expert.

How a guide moves across the desk

1. The question. Most topics start as a reader email or a problem one of us hit during the week.
2. The reading. Manufacturer manuals, regulators' pages, product terms and help centres come first. Opinion pieces come last, if at all.
3. The draft. The writer answers the question in the opening lines, then adds the steps, tables and cautions a reader needs.
4. The cold read. One of the other two reads it without background and marks every sentence that confuses them.
5. The final pass. Dates, links between articles and warnings are checked once more before the piece goes live.

The full list of questions that a draft has to survive is on our checklist for every article.

Talking to us

Every message lands in one shared inbox that the three of us check. Corrections, outdated steps and topic ideas are equally welcome, and the contact page explains what to include so we can reply quickly.