About
I was born in Sao Paulo, Brazil, where I spent an idyllic early childhood mostly watching some very dramatic telenovelas, reading comics and going to the beach. When I was nine, I swapped all of that for a few strict British boarding schools, which weren’t nearly as fun.
As a journalist and copywriter, I wrote for tabloids, broadsheets, charities and women’s magazines, before starting my first children’s novel, ‘Bloom‘.
My favourite place to write is the garden shed, a small, unheated hut that I share with spiders. They are quite good company though and don’t give me any trouble because they know that I am a ferocious Fire Snake.
Some interviews with me
Waterstones Shelfie: three books that influenced me
On BBC Radio 4 with Michael Rosen
Other writing
How can we talk to children about the climate crisis without painting it all black? (Independent)
The charm of children’s made-up words (Guardian)
Growing up in a cemetery (Guardian)
My diary obsession (Guardian)
How to spend time with children (Relationship Scotland)
