My childhood was on the Mornington Peninsula, initially living by the sea and then on a few acres of rolling country. After studying Literature and Fine Arts at Melbourne University, then teaching in Papua New Guinea and travelling, I felt the need to be more 'practical and useful' in the world and studied Social Administration at Flinders University, Adelaide. This then led to 17 years in social work, largely counselling and family therapy in health settings.  

Increasingly, however, the urge to return to more literary pursuits won out. Over the next years I wrote a novel before being seduced by poetry - and began to write and read with focus on trying to learn the art! My first collection, Bloodwood, came out with Bunda Press in December 1996. It was a first selection of the Australian Poetry Book Club.

Since then I've been working towards a second collection, almost completed. As well, the passion to encourage more people to read poetry (and be inspired to write it) spurred me to teach in the adult education field. I'm also particularly interested in women's poetic writing and have taught courses on Women Poets: Lives and Work, covering some of the major women poets in history.  For the 2007 Two Fires Arts and Activism festival I was convenor of the Poets and Writers program.

And through the PoetryAlive courses with Harry I find that people are indeed hungry for new poetry experience and this excites me. I also enjoy editing work and offer this to individuals.

No doubt my previous career in counselling plus of course my own interests lead me to encourage people to express their life experience in poetry. Poetry does tend to lead people more deeply into themselves, and to explore more of the mysteries of living!