I grew up in the south west of England and studied Mathematics at the University of Bath, writing fantasy and science fiction in my spare time. After graduating with 1st class honours (in maths, not fantasy writing!), I worked with computers for several years before redundancy convinced me that working with horses might be healthier.
I spent the next decade working in various horse racing yards, and kept on writing. "Song Quest" was eventually published in 1999 and went on to win the Branford Boase Award for best debut children's novel by a UK author.