I live in a small village in Scotland and I write children's books. To be a writer you need to have a story to tell, and I'm lucky because I 1 all over the world. This is probably the first time I 2 in one place for more than a year since I left home! I 3 school at the age of 16 and I 4 a job in the kitchens of a cruise ship. It was not a great job, but I 5 to a lot of different places --- America, Canada, the Caribbean ... Then I 6 as an au pair in Australia and New Zealand, before travelling round Europe for several years, working in restaurants, bars and hotels. I 7 to a lot of Third World countries too. When I 8 27 I trained to be a nurse and I 9 voluntary work in Africa and Asia --- the Sudan, Sierra Leone, India, Nepal... I 10 in Scotland for the last ten years. I live with my husband, a doctor from Nepal, and my daughter, Charlotte. She's 16 and she 11 me a lot with my writing over the years. I 12 seven books and I'm writing the eighth. The only problem is we 13 a holiday for years and Charlotte 14 to Nepal to see her family there, so I think it's time to go travelling again!