In my former life I was a professional librarian, and my last position before I retired was in charge of the junior book collections at a teachers' training college. It was great to just sit and write my own books for children instead of looking after other people's efforts. In 2004 my first novel for young adults was published - Cross Tides, which won the New Zealand Post Best First Book Award. This was rapidly followed by eight more books for different ages - adventure, fantasy, humour and historical, published in both New Zealand and Australia. A few years ago the New Zealand publishing scene began shrinking - and I couldn't find a publisher for my third young adult novel, called Touchstone. Having spent years on research and writing, I couldn't bear to file it away unread. So I plucked up my courage and e-published it with Amazon and Smashwords. Wow - what a learning curve! But Touchstone is out there now, and I feel proud that I did it all by myself.

Cross Tides - New Zealand Post Best First Book Award 2005
Three Storylines Notable Books listings