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You might say my life has revolved around kids.
At university I studied teacher-librarianship. Working in public libraries on the weekends to pay for repairs on a car that broke down more often than it ran, I soon discovered the joys of the children's section and often volunteered to shelf-check the picture books, which had seduced me with their bright covers, humor and simplicity. It was here that I first discovered Janet and Allan Ahlberg, Maurice Sendak and Margaret Wild, some of my favorite authors and ones that I still aspire to live up to.
During this time I was first tempted by the idea of becoming a writer and it never occured to me that I would write for anyone but children. These were the books that I loved the best and I couldn't imagine why anyone would want to write anything else.
When I finished university I began my career as a primary school teacher but writing was never far from my thoughts, so I would teach during the day and write during the night. Of course I had no idea what being a writer really meant. I believed that every manuscript I wrote was perfect, a stroke of genius, and never failed to be crushed when the rejection letters came in. I didn't know back then that writing takes persistence and there were many times when I gave up.
My first position as a teacher-librarian came after the birth of my first child. Once again I was immersed in children's literature and now I was witnessing first hand the growth of a child in my own home. Never before had I been so close to my audience and once again I was inspired to write.
Right now I'm taking the old advice 'Write about what you know' and combining my urge to write with my knowledge of education. I've got my first publishing credit with viatouch.com and am keeping busy writing two reference books for teachers, one on my own and one co-written with a friend.
I'm yet to have my name on the cover of a book, but every day I learn a little more. I have a blog called Oz Kids Writer where I share tips about writing that I'm learning along the way. I see my goal getting closer and this time I'm not going to give up.