About Me!
Q: When were you born?
A: I was born on the 18th September 1963, which, if you're interested in astrology, makes me a Virgo. I know it might sound like I'm an ancient old fossil but I still feel like a 10 year-old inside.
Q: Where did you grow up?
A: I grew up in Teddington, Middlesex. I went to St Mary's and St Peter's primary school, where my favourite teacher was Mr Brittain. My best friends were called Heidi, Angela, Julie & Christina. I loved a boy called Simon who promised me we'd grow up and have 4 children and a pink Lamborghini car, another boy called Stephen, who lived in a children's home, which I found intriguing, and another one called John who took me on a date to Hampton Court Palace when we were 11. I went onto Orleans Park secondary school, where my least favourite teacher was Mr Chapman (maths!), my best friends were Jean, Kate & Debbie and I loved a boy called Matthew and another one called Saul.
Q: What were your best and worst subjects at school?
A: My best subjects were english, drama and music (I played the Trumpet). My worst was maths. I hated it so much I used to sit at the back of the class and write poetry.
Q: Do you have any brothers or sisters?
A: Yes, my brother, Tim, is 5 years older than me and my sister, Suzanne, is 3 years older than me. So I'm the baby... goo goo goo!
Q: Have you got any children?
A: Yes, I have a daughter, Jane, and a son, Tim, and three stepsons, Sam, Joe and Ben. They're all grown-up now but I get to see them lots and love hanging out with them.
Q: What were you like when you were young?
A: Life was hard when I was small. I was born into a very troubled family. My Dad was an angry man. He used to shout and get really violent. He'd break stuff and do mean things. My lovely mum, my brother, my sister and I used to sit and tremble with fear. I quickly learnt to be as quiet as a mouse. I even learnt to cry without making a sound. When I was 10 years old and my dad left we all breathed a huge sigh of relief. And although life became more peaceful it took us years to get over the shock of living with him.
Q: Did you always want to be a writer?
A: Yes. As soon as I could hold a pen I started writing pages and pages of scribble. Then I moved onto writing words that people could read and started writing about everything going on around me. I wrote down all my feelings about life and the world.
Q: Where do you live now?
A: I live in a tiny village in Somerset with my husband, Daniel. Whichever room in I sit to write I can see green fields with gorgeous ponies grazing in them.
Q: Do you have any pets?
A: Yes, two cheeky kittens called Loki and Misha.
Q: What other jobs have you had?
A: I've worked as a nanny, a waitress, a dresser for west end theatre and the BBC (where I worked on Eastenders, Breakfast TV and Grange Hill), a mum, a homeopath, an allergy therapist, a self-enquiry teacher and now as a writer. It's really important to remember though, that what we do for work isn't who we really are. In fact it doesn't mean much about us at all. Who we really are is much, much more exciting... because who we really are is love appearing as life and that's an awesome thing to be.
Q: Who are your favourite authors?
A: I love Jacqueline Wilson, Cathy Cassidy, David Almond, Sally Nichols, Sarah Lean, Annabel Pitcher and oh, so many more. As a child I read and read and read... my favourite books were Little Women, Heidi, Anne of Green Gables, Black Beauty, Famous Five, Swallows and Amazons, Ballet Shoes, The Secret Garden, The painted Garden and oh, so many, many other wonderful stories.