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A few biographical details to start with. I was born and brought up in London suburbs, and went to school in Croydon. I had my first book published while I was at school (you can find out more about this if you go to my Question & Answer section) and have been writing ever since. Once I had had a book published I immediately decided that I was A WRITER, I didn't need any more education, so instead of going to university I ran away from school saying that I was going to write books. This upset my headmistress very much. She told me that I was a foolish girl, and washed her hands of me. She was quite right, of course: I was foolish. It was three or four years before I had another book published, and in the meantime, just like anyone else, I had to earn my living. For a while I scrubbed floors, and waited tables, sold bread in Woolworth's, waltzed in and out of people's offices, did a bit of nursing, a bit of translating, a bit of cooking ... a bit of just about anything that didn't need any actual qualification. I then decided that it would be fun to go to drama school, so I took an audition for the Webber-Douglas, in London, went there for three years, met my partner, Leonard Gregory, who was a fellow student, and finally - at last! - managed to have another book published. We now live in South London, in a 300-year old house, with our family of rescued animals. We have 4 cats, and 7 dogs. Quite a handful!
Some of the handful! When I am not writing (or cleaning muddy pawprints off the kitchen floor, or putting dogs' toys away, or removing cats from the inside of food cupboards) I like best to listen to music, read books, and go for long walks through the fields. Well! I think that is probably more than enough autobiography. Thank you for visiting, and I hope you enjoy the rest of this website. BOOK NEWS My latest book, ICE LOLLY, should be in the shops by the time this appears on my website. You can already see a picture of the cover, and read the blurb. It’s currently my favourite amongst my books, so I’ll be interested to hear what readers think of it. A word of warning: it’s rather sad. But don’t be put off – it has a happy ending! In April the final book in my Girlfriends series, BOYS ARE BACK, will be published. I’m going to miss my four girlfriends, Lily, Keri, Polly and Frizz. I’ve loved every minute I’ve been with them! In November I finished a book about Frankie Foster. Frankie is one of those people who means well, she’s always good-natured and eager to be helpful, but somehow or other everything just always goes wrong. A bit like me when I was her age … This is going to be the first book in a series about Frankie and her family – Mum, Dad, sister Angel, brother Tom, and dog Rags – and her two best friends, Jemma and Skye. I’m not yet sure exactly when it will be published, nor even what it’s going to be called. I should like to call it FIZZY POP, but I’m waiting for my editor to give me the OK. As soon as I have any details, I will post them on my website. If anyone reads this and feels strongly that FIZZY POP is a) a good title or b) a bad title, WRITE AND LET ME KNOW! Meanwhile, keep reading, and keep emailing. I really enjoy hearing from my readers. Best wishes, Jean
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