It only took one tap dancing class (and some coaching from my mother who had been a dancer) for me to realise that I would never be a Ginger Rogers but being a journalist and writing fiction has allowed me to explore all manner of careers and situations with far less embarrassment.
All my life I have loved reading and writing. As a child I devoured books (following my mother’s example) and was encouraged by the Deputy Head at my secondary school. It was a brand new comprehensive school and the actual library was not then open so books were stored in a room off his study. He allowed me to exchange books whenever I wanted which seemed an amazing privilege.
After reading for a degree in English and French, I came to London to begin my career and never left. Having worked for various publishers, I then moved to magazine journalism before becoming a freelance writer, editor and translator.
My first non-fiction books were written after the birth of my daughter Olivia and some have been inspired by her or various stages in her life. It is an absolute joy for me that she shares my love of books, theatre, cinema as well as wining and dining.
My freelance journalism has led me to some strange places – for example a gas platform in the North Sea via helicopter – but I love how it has also informed my fiction. The idea for Dancers in the Wind emerged after I had interviewed a prostitute and a police officer at King’s Cross for a national newspaper and then wondered “what if…”
My crime thriller series, featuring freelance journalist and single mother, Hannah Weybridge and set in London in the 1900s, comprises five books: Dancers in the Wind, Death’s Silent Judgement, Songs of Innocents, Perdition’s Child, Stage Call and Murder in the Lady Chapel. All are available on Amazon as paperbacks and ebooks – the latter free on KU or you can order from bookshops and online at Blackwell’s with a £1 discount and free delivery.
