I grew up in a suburb of south east London on the borders of north west Kent and we had a lovely house, but with five siblings it was rarely quiet. I used to write short plays with my siblings and we would act them out for our parents and whoever else who might have been visiting at the time. It was a lively, happy home and I enjoyed my childhood. I started writing poetry at the age of twelve and my dad, who loved to read my poems, used to take them to work and show them to his staff; I don't know what they thought but my dad was very proud of my efforts and of course this encouraged me to write more.

I'm writing a book about the beautiful island of Gozo, the tiny sister island to Malta. It will be a similar book to 'When the Spirit Moves You', written with humour and I hope sensitivity, about the people; the culture; the fascinating history; profiles of some of the locals, especially the eccentric characters and relating their funny or sad stories. It will be my take on Gozo and the Gozitans and I like to see the funny side of things. It is also a book about personal and spiritual growth, to help motivate those who are stuck in their lives. I am not afraid to up my roots and move to a different country as I see life as an adventure.

So much inspires me to get out of bed each day. I love my family and my work; I have a passion for many things, especially my writing and life itself. I like to view everyday as a new adventure, because life is an adventure with all it's ups and downs. There is so much to see around us but unfortunately too many people are oblivious to the little things in life. I love to be in nature and I often rise early to watch the sunrise. I find great joy in my surroundings especially living by the sea with its ever changing moods.

I have always enjoyed reading period drama but I have far too many favourites to mention; however, Middlemarch is a wonderful book and Mill on the Floss, by George Eliot, or should I say, Mary Ann Evans; she was an excellent story teller. I tend to read mostly non-fiction books these days, including travel books, comparative religion, intuitive arts and Buddhism; again I have too many favourites to mention but I do love Bill Bryson's travel books.

I remember writing a ghost story when I was about 11 and reading it out to the class; I can still remember the story. I wrote my first poem when I was 12. We had a great English teacher and he introduced us to limericks, so my first poem was a limerick about an old lady who lived in Kent; I got hooked and wrote many more. At a very young age I was already concerned about the world and humanity with all its trials and tribulations and my early writings reflected this, so I had a serious side to me as well.

I'm not really a creature of habit but I do feel discipline and positive thinking is necessary in the writing process. I do like to write everyday, even if it's only an entry in my journal or making a few notes. I much prefer to rise early and most days I have a short meditation and do my Pilates; during my forty minute Pilates routine I say my positive affirmations and do my creative visualisation. When not doing Pilates I like to swim; this enables me to focus and get ideas and inspiration as does walking in nature or by the sea. Sometimes, when writing a book, the meditation doesn't happen because I want to get on with my writing as early in the day as possible, but I will at least have a few quiet moments to focus.

I have a small desk and a chest of drawers next to it which is where I put my stationary. I am a tidy person and I cannot work in chaos but I do have a printer, papers and notes on my desk. I prefer a laptop rather than a PC so I can take it onto my balcony where I have wonderful views across Marsalforn Bay.

I used to have a library of books and I loved it, but I have been a bit of a nomad in the last 15 years, so I have been gradually reducing the numbers of books on my shelves. I first started reading Ebooks a few years ago because of a neck problem; the weight of some of my books caused me pain. It is more comfortable reading on my laptop or on my mobile phone. But I do still like reading my paper books.