Hello everyone!

Thanks for visiting my website.

Wow! Where do I begin?

The past twelve months have been fantastic, and totally exceeded my expectations!

When I first decided to self-publish Quizzical, I had no idea what to expect, really. In general, self-published authors aren't taken as seriously as commercially published authors, but it is very difficult to get published, and the thought of having to wait months, or even years, hoping to be published (but in all likelihood having rejection slips pile up) didn't appeal to me all that much. That's why I decided to publish the book myself. I have always loved writing, and my childhood dream was to one day write a book that someone would read and enjoy then, perhaps, make mention of it to friends, and maybe … just maybe ... lead to me writing another one, and another one …

Imagine my surprise (and great joy) then, when Quizzical was awarded joint first prize in the 2006 Australian Best Self-Published Book for Fiction! It was the most wonderful feeling to have my work recognised by a panel of judges, and to have them say some really great things about it. Oh, and the prize-money and certificate were just the icing on the cake!

Just when I thought things couldn't get any better, I was contacted by commercial publishers The Five Mile Press who had read Quizzical and were interested in the sequel, Money Bags. I had fully intended self-publishing Money Bags in the same way as I did Quizzical, and infact was right up to the print stage when The Five Mile Press stepped in and said they wanted to re-release Quizzical, followed by Money Bags, and a third book in the series, Puzzle Palace. So that all takes place next year, and I'm very excited about it. They will also publish a chapter book I wrote called Alby & the Cat as part of their Ripper Reads series.

In the meantime, Quizzical was one of the books recently put on the June additions of the 2007 Victorian Premier's Reading Challenge Booklist – also totally unexpected – but which I'm thrilled about.

I've also been busy (but having a great time) visiting lots of schools and libraries with my “Interactive Quizzical”. It's one of my favourite parts of being an author.

So, thank you all so much for your support. It is appreciated more than you know. Look out for book updates on my “What's New?” page, more competitions on “The Brain Zone” page, and photos from my school and library visits on the “Author Visits” page.

Until next time, happy reading!