A little about me

I suppose I should start off with a little about who I am, much as I hate author bios etc. It is so much more interesting writing about my characters than writing about myself. Anyway, I was brought up in a family that loved reading and all sorts of creative pursuits. From an early age I have been writing poems and stories and magazines (which I used to sell to my brothers and sisters!). The Hobbit was my favourite book, and I still know passages of it off by heart, because it was read to me (and I read it) so many times. I blame Bilbo Baggins (I am somewhat hobbit like in nature, fond of meals and mushrooms and not very fond of water, and I think it is because of that connection that I grew to love the little hairy footed creature so much) for planting the seed that grew into my love of fantasy. When I was about seven I started creating the world that would become Reath, with its myths, creation and characters. I have now plotted out roughly four thousand years of its history, which spreads across several continents and even a couple of planets. While my main literary interest is writing about Reath, especially the moonmarked race of wolf people called Epahs, I also enjoy writing science fiction, horror and non Reath based fantasy. The scope of the novel is the most attractive medium for me to work in, but the challenge of a good short story keeps me returning to it again and again.

In my teens I had my first taste of success with my writing and was placed in (and won) several short story and poetry competitions. My writing continued to take a back seat for a few years, but through thick and thin it was the one creative pursuit that I continued to dabble in. In the last three or four years I have started writing seriously again and I have learned my craft as I have struggled with it.

I have always dreamed of writing for a living - doing what I love so much, enjoy, and getting paid for it! Thanks to the generosity of my sister, Valerie, I am now taking the first step into making that dream a reality. I have six months to complete my trilogy, the Moonwolf Chronicles, and to get some short stories written and hopefully, please God, get published.