Books have always been my passion. I can still remember the rhyming couplets of my first Rupert Bear annual, my favourite bedtime story at aged two or three.

Although my original training was that of a physiotherapist, when I ‘retired’ to have my first baby, I thought that I could fulfil two ambitions – to become a mother and a writer at one and the same time! I started my 1st children’s novel when my sons were 2 years and 3 months old respectively and with it won a competition for unpublished writers of full-length children’s fiction. Another baby and a second children’s book followed, before I was diverted into adult non-fiction because I discovered the need for a book for women who come to faith after marriage. This prompted me to write I Love God and my Husband followed a few years later by Loving God but still Loving you.

Twenty more non-fiction books followed, including the best selling Gift Of series which were published by Lion Hudson and sold nearly a million copies in 14 different languages. They finally went out of print this year after nearly 30 years and 4 editions.

My husband says that with me, it’s not ‘a pill for every ill but a book for every situation’ and it’s true that when I face a problem I automatically look for answers in a book. For instance when my father died of pancreatic cancer, I wrote the book for relatives that I would like to have read. Face to Face with Cancer is now in its 3rd edition and has been translated into several European languages.