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I spent much of my youth following my parent’s breaking marriage around rural Norfolk. There was no internet and very limited telly, so to relieve the boredom, I read my way through the local libraries. I read everything I could lay my hands on, whenever I could: at meals, up trees and in the bath. (Don’t try this at home. Books don’t like baths.)
When I wasn't reading I was pouring out poems of unrequited love (which I kept private) and protest (which I pinned to the school noticeboard). Back then, my poems got me thrown out of school. Now of course, they get me invited into schools. Life's a funny thing . . .
Over the years, I got myself into lots of trouble. Maybe that's why I like writing rebellious characters? I dropped out of university, lived in loads of different places and had a mad variety of jobs, including a TV presenter, an English language teacher, a marketing manager and an artists' model.
Finally, though, I settled down. I got married, had children, and found my happy place working in libraries and writing stories. In my fifties, I went back to university and I’ve got a shiny master's degree in writing for young people. Now I’ve even moved back to Norfolk – which isn’t boring at all, who knew? – but there's still a rebel child inside me, and I write for her.