I was born in England and moved to Australia at the age of twelve. I had always dreamed of writing children’s stories, but due to childhood illnesses I missed an important part of my early schooling, and for some reason I slipped through the cracks. I didn't do very well at school and spent many hours outside the principal's office for disrupting the class. I left school at the age of fourteen to help look after my mother, who was ill for a while. As soon as I turned fifteen, I started working for a typewriter manufacturer in the city. My boss was a very kind and understanding man and he sent a typewriter to my home so that I could learn to type. I began writing about my childhood, but I had no idea where commas went, or even how to spell, so my stories were filed away.
I married quite young, had a family, and worked full time, but when I turned fifty one, I helped my husband to build a brick house in the country. Once we'd finished, my husband bought me my first home computer, and as I no longer had to work full time, I enrolled in an online IT course at TAFE. It took me over a year and I surprised myself with high marks. I then joined online writing and critique groups and learned as much as I could about writing for children. I spent every spare hour writing, reading and critiquing. I read and studied hundreds of children’s books and kept editing my stories until I felt confident to submit them.
My first story was my childhood memories turned into a fictitious children's adventure, which I called Star-Crossed Rascals.
I’m also a member of a wildlife rescue in Australia, and sometimes I add what I've learned about animals to my work, though I do write fantasy stories too.
So far, I have two children's books published: Velvet Ball and The broken Fairy which is a fantasy adventure story, and Star-Crossed Rascals, which is now a chapter book. I also drew my own illustrations of the two rascals, Pollyweena Grubble and Gertie McDougal for Star-Crossed Rascals.
At present, I'm writing the sequels to both books, plus editing other stories.
I now have two beautiful grandchildren and they are such a wonderful inspiration.
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