I grew up in a house full of books. Both my parents were avid readers and there were books everywhere. I have vivid memories of learning to read in the living room of our flat in a Victorian terrace in North London.
That passion for reading has never left me.
This picture below is of me, aged four, reading with my dad, John.
He was a typesetter and worked in the newspaper industry in Fleet Street before starting his own company.
In those days, before computers, he worked on a Linotype machine—casting words in hot metal.
I can still remember the smell of his workshop and the music of the keys as they moved through the machine.
I learned to proofread alongside him, marking corrections in the margins.
That’s where my love of words—and shaping them—began.
Writing stayed with me. Through diaries, poetry, short stories, and years of blogging.
But like many people, I’ve also known what it feels like to hesitate, to overthink, to leave something unfinished.
Over time, I’ve come to see writing as something quietly powerful.
“I have begun to trust the magic.
The mysterious alchemy of spirit and love that ignites passion and lights the blue touch paper of creativity, and words flow…”
— Penny Thresher
The Divine Power of The Feminine Collective
But I also know that writing doesn’t always feel like that.
Sometimes it feels uncertain. Slow. Difficult to begin—and even harder to finish.
That’s why I created Corner House Words.
A calm, supportive space where you can begin—and gently keep going—until your writing is finished.
I help you move from a blank page to a finished piece of writing—without pressure, and without overthinking every step.
If you’ve been wanting to write, or to finally finish something you’ve started, you’re in the right place.
Want to know more about how we ended up living in The Corner House?
Read more here:
The Corner House and me…
