I was born and educated in Australia and am originally from Queensland. During the writing of Our Father Who Art in the Tree I drew heavily on the power of the Australia landscape to infuse the story with place. I guess the point I was trying to make was that even in the blandest Australian suburb the power of the landscape is inescapable.
When I originally set out to tell the story at the heart of Our Father Who Art in the Tree I envisioned it as a film and the rights were optioned by a UK production company. However after years of the endless rewrites required as the story was "developed," I became tired of the process. As is often the norm in the film industry the script was constantly rewritten for actors and actresses who showed an interest and producers fluctuated between planning a visual feast and a simpler more elegant film that could be done for less money. In the end I declined to extend the option on the film.
It was then that I decided to turn the screenplay into a novel, and once I made that decision, the story took shape on the page very quickly.
I have also worked in performing arts in Australia and the UK, working for many seasons as an acrobat with Circus Oz, touring Australia and the world before relocating to the United Kingdom and becoming a stand-up comedienne on the UK circuit. Here I also worked as an actor, a television presenter, and a scriptwriter. I now live in the UK with my husband and two children.
I have no plans at the moment to write another novel, the past few years I have had too many distractions, but I'm sure at some point I may be tempted back to it.