Tell us a little bit about yourself
I was born in Auckland, but have grown up in South East Asia and Germany. After finishing high school in Germany I decided to study Hotel Management in the Republic of Ireland. I returned to Auckland about 7 years ago. After a year in Auckland, I decided that working in hotels wasn’t the profession for me and now I work in Human Resources.
I enjoy writing comedy but I also try to mix in elements of sadness or challenging situations to make the stories relatable. Apart from writing I enjoy travelling around the world and going to nice restaurants. Combining travelling and eating is the best, I love trying different cuisines and learning more about other countries cultures.
What are you currently working on?
I am working on a novel that has been in progress for about 2 years. I am struggling to find the motivation to work on it so I have been working on shorter stories that I can finish. Finishing a piece of work has made me more inspired to tackle the novel again!
What’s your writing process like?
I used to never make a plan and it was so difficult to write. I take a lot of inspiration from real-life events either that have happened to myself or to people that I know, and because I knew how the stories would end, or how I imagined the end should have been, I didn’t think it was necessary to make a timeline. Now I make a timeline and I usually attempt to follow it, however sometimes my feelings towards characters change so I go with the flow and amend the original timeline.
I always write using the computer, I have written small notes by hand before but I find it a lot easier to use the computer. Even if I was to write by hand I would still need to type it up and I am too lazy to do that! I do work on multiple projects at the same time, sometimes it can be difficult to get out the mindset of certain characters and into a completely different story, but if I am not enjoying writing something I don’t want to force myself to finish it as I don’t think I would do it justice.
I enjoy attending my writing group meet ups as it pushes me to actually write something, it’s also super beneficial to receive feedback. Feedback can be hard to hear sometimes, but it’s important to obtain it to push yourself and your writing.
What are your writing habits?
I like to write on my dining room table, it’s not a “fun environment” so it helps me get into work mode. On a good week I probably write once or twice a week, I would like to write more but it can be difficult working full-time and feeling drained at the end of the day! I applaud people who have the motivation to write everyday. I think I get distracted by the usual things – TV, my phone, first world problems!
Why do you write?
I’ve always been a big talker with my friends and I love to tell them humorous stories. I enjoy writing as it’s a way I can spread humour and express my feelings about events that have happened to me or I have heard through friends. There are so many amazing stories around us, there will always be infinite things to write about.
What are your writing goals and aspirations?
I thought I would have finished my novel a year ago, so I actually have no idea when I am going to complete that! I would love to get one of my shorter stories published. I used to want to be a full time writer, but at this stage I am really happy with my full time career and published stories would be the icing on the cake. At the moment I only write chick-lit, I think in the future I would like to venture into a mystery or a thriller.
Which writers would you compare your work to?
A big call to compare myself to writers but I would hope it’s similar to Candace Bushnell (author of Sex and the City and 4 Blondes) and Sophie Kinsella (author of Shopaholic series). I love Sue Townsend’s (author of Adrian Mole series) writing style, she has an amazing use of satire and wit.
