My story

I was born in a tiny town called Nelson, New Zealand. It was there I grew to love language and writing and dreamed of being a novelist. But writing is not known to bring in an income, so I trained as a journalist to, as I always told people, 'pay the bills until the books start selling'.

Journalism is a privileged profession, and I covered everything from council meetings on water issues to a High Court trial of three police officers accused of manslaughter. But as much as I loved it, it could not quench the dream of writing a novel - of using language and writing to share a story and touch a heart. I had a half-written manuscript floating in the cloud and I decided it was time to live a dream.

In 2021, I left what I thought would be my forever job at a national news conglomerate and moved to a smaller paper in a bigger city. It was a work-life balance move but three weeks after I uprooted my life, my new city went into lockdown - and stayed there for three months. But in many ways it was a blessing in disguise. Work slowed down, I had no commute and had the time to push through and finish my novel.

I decided to self-publish rather than face fighting for a spot at a traditional publisher and rejection letters. It was about making a dream come true. Feedback from friends warmed my heart, and I kept dreaming, and I kept writing.

It's a cliche, but life truly is what you make it. I was lucky to be born in a wonderful country, but I had to make my own way. I had to build my own dream. But the thing is, we decide every day what we're going to do - whether or not to chase a miracle.

I hope I never stop dreaming, and I hope you never stop, either.