Welcome

Welcome to my blog - a look at not only the ups and downs of the self-published life in a rapidly changing publishing world, but also at the passions that fuel the desire to write.

Books

Books have always been a part of my life. As a child the local library was almost a second home and, since becoming an adult, the location of the nearest library has always been on the list of factors in deciding where to live. Maybe because I read so much, I also liked to write. I wrote my first novel at the age of 12 when required to write a long story for a school assignment – a mystery about two young girls who are kidnapped while on vacation on the Isle of Skye (which just happened to be the location of that year's family vacation). Sadly the novel never survived the regular clear out after the end of a school year. It would have been such fun to be able to re-read it now!  In early adulthood, career advancement in accountancy and marriage meant my writing was cast aside for many years, until my (then) young daughter announced she was writing a book, bringing back memories of how much I had enjoyed this particular passion. Why had I stopped, I wondered? And what harm was there in trying again?  

My debut novel Silent Lies was published for Kindle in November 2011 and as a paperback in July 2012. My second book, Ulterior Motives, is due out in Spring 2013.

Travel

Born and raised in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England, I caught the travel bug early, possibly due to family vacations which involved long train journeys to distant parts of England, Scotland and Wales at a time when most people settled for a trip to their nearest shoreline. Instead of heading straight to college, I took a gap year to work in Toronto and then, while a student, spent a summer vacation working in Montauk, NY, followed by a solo Greyhound bus trip from New York to LA/San Francisco and back – an experience which cemented my love of travel. Over the years I have been lucky enough to live in London, Hong Kong and New York, all of which have afforded me the opportunity to visit nearby countries and states, but there are plenty of new places still to visit and I plan to do just that.