I was born in Castlemaine, a beautiful town in the goldfields region of Victoria, Australia and have lived in the area all my life. When I was 15 I left school but I was 45 before I accidentally became a writer. There was no television in our house when I was growing up and I read a lot. I think I learnt how to write by reading books other people wrote. Now I write picture books as well as novels for younger readers and teenagers. Some of my books have won awards and been published in many countries. I feel very lucky to have discovered something I'm good at.