About Katy

I was born at the Rottenrow in Glasgow and spent my early childhood in Kilmarnock where I discovered a passion for animals and nature.  When I wasn't drawing horses, I was off in the woods searching for wild things or collecting   shiny conkers.  I loved playing Carl Hemann  on the piano or listening to the magic of Grieg's Peer Gynt Suite while I sketched or knitted teddy bears. Just after my tenth birthday,  I climbed aboard a Boeing 727 and flew with my family to Western Australia.  At  my new school in Maida Vale I developed an impressive array of nervous ticks earning me the title of `that weird Scottish kid' and causing considerable embarrassment to my older sister, Zanty. But after stifling my Scottish brogue and winning lots of swimming races, all was forgiven by my new Aussie peers and over the next few years I honed my neighbour-watching talents from the heights of well-placed gum trees. I like to believe this period was the beginning of my obsession with research, and not a budding stalker-like tendency that my mother cautioned me against.

After leaving high school, I talked my way into a smorgasbord of unusual occupations where I surreptitiously read novels, drew portraits of my workmates and daydreamed - the perfect incubation for a frustrated writer in waiting.  I have written two novels for young adults, juice and mama's trippin'  and in October 2010, I was awarded a May Gibbs CTR Fellowship at the Burrow in Adelaide to work on a  creative non-fiction picture book project.  I am currently writing an adult novel inspired by Melbourne's iconic painting Chloe.  A passion for history inspires much of my work - I love unlocking the secrets of the past through research and creative writing.  

My four children are my greatest creations and I believe family is the most precious thing of all.   I live with Dave, Nathan and Angelina at our seaside home in Western Australia.