Welcome!

I'm a mother of teenage twin boys who I love with all my heart. My family is my life, my soul, and the very reason I get out of bed every day. Coming a close second to that, is my writing.
I've only just discovered my passion for writing in the past 2 or so years. I’d always written little poems in birthday cards for family members, but that was as far as it went…until I decided to write poems and give them to family members as homemade gifts.

It was then a spark was lit, and ever since, I have been unable to switch off the urge to write.
After a close family member fell ill, I began search for answers...I knew I was going through some kind of mid-life crisis, and began to question what I wanted. Unable to sleep one night, I sat up and just kept typing out my feelings on the laptop. My husband read what I had written and then encouraged me to write more, and that was when I knew I wanted to share my thoughts with others. I started writing my life story, but I just couldn't get into it, so instead, I decided to write about something not based on fact, but fiction, and wrote a dream sequence which I showed to my family. They encouraged me to add more, and that sequence is what my novel was eventually based around. The working title is Heart of Darkness, hence my fan fiction penname, and I’m about half way through putting it together.

My manuscript has been read by a few family members and friends, and by a published author, who has also encouraged me to stick with it. As much as enduring pain, loss, betrayal or any other negative thing in our lives can be devastating, I have since discovered that if I hadn't gone through it, I not only wouldn’t have found some lifelong friends, I doubt I would have been able to write the feelings of anguish and loss that my characters have had to endure.

Members of the fan fiction community have also been so kind and supportive, encouraging me to not only continue writing, but to follow my dream of being published. I have met many interesting people in the past few years, some of whom I consider close friends, and have also honed in my skills as a writer. You just can’t put a price on that.

Two fan fiction writers in particular, who have been there from the start, mouse555 (Mich) and Totteacher (Jennifer), have been wonderfully supportive of not only my online stories, but my original work as well. Their fan fiction and original work is amazing, and they are my dearest friends. I would like to thank Mich and Jen for not only putting up with me, but befriending me and holding my hand while I negotiated the world of fan fiction. I love you girls more than words can say.
To my beta and friend Rach, thank you for supporting me when I had my doubts. I love you bb from the bottom of my heart. To Jess, thank you for making me this wonderful blog, and for all your support and kind words of encouragement (and giving me a gentle nudge when required). To Christag Banners, without your support, I doubt my readership would be as many as it is. Thank you for putting beautiful pictures to my mutterings, Christine. To Victoria…thank you for always being there, and for giving me a shoulder to cry on, as well as making me laugh when I needed it most. To Belinda, thank you for believing in me and encouraging me to take my work further. To Sam, Katy, Kim, Penny, Kelly, Karen, Boos, Laura, Muriel (thanks for red penning Mismatch hun) to name a few, thank you for not only being my friends, but also for being a part of my support system and sharing the fun times.

My Novel: Set in Sydney, Australia, this is a supernatural, fish out of water romance about a girl finding the one she’s destined to be with. Jade is a girl who has always been out of step with the world around her, keeping to herself and having few friends, her father the only real family in her life. When celebrating her 21st Birthday, Jade’s life changes forever when she meets the enigmatic but handsome, unsettling but at the same time intriguing, Johnny.

Here’s an excerpt:

My best friend took a step back and looked over to the mystery guest before she glared at Steve.
"Well are you going to do the introductions or do I have to hit you over the head with this bottle?" she asked, raising the bottle in mock threat, her actions eliciting a chuckle from Steve.

"That’s a great idea, Donna. At least being out cold might give you a chance at winning a hand or two for a change," Steve retorted sarcastically.

Donna snorted loudly in response before answering in her usual, acidic tone, "I don’t need to knock you out in order to knock you out of contention tonight, buster!"

Steve laughed loudly before he shrugged and said, "We’ll see. Anyway, let’s get on with the introductions so we can get our game on, shall we? Jade, this is John. John, this is our birthday girl, Jade."

"Hi," I said in response, that one word as it caught in my suddenly tightening throat being my apparent limit in that moment. Unable to stop myself, I looked up at him then back to the floor, immediately regretting my actions as an unpleasant, unfamiliar and entirely unexpected sensation began to crash its way through my body.

Feeling his eyes on me for longer than was comfortable, I took a deep breath and exhaled before glancing at him once again, just to test that my reaction to him wasn’t some fluke, only realise it was anything but as he pursed his lips and grunted before he offered me an acknowledging nod. His reaction to me…in fact his very presence, set my heart racing and my stomach churning, so much so, that I felt I could lose my shit at any moment. I didn’t want to be the cause of my own party being ruined, so instead, I decided to endure the evening, hoping against hope the feelings that burned through my every nerve would somehow miraculously disappear. My every muscle continued to clench tight under his watchful gaze, while my limbs tingled and my head swam. I tried to swallow the bile that was slowly rising up my throat, doing anything I could fight the nausea, but all the while he just stood there, silently regarding me as if I was some kind of freakish sideshow act. His knuckles white as he clutched the fold out chairs, my heart pounded and my pulse raced, his stance one of a man trying but barely being able to stop himself from attacking…

I began writing this story when I was still new to the game, and since then, have honed my talents further so I will be heavily editing what I’ve written before I add more. All things going well, I hope to see it completed and submitted for publication in the next year or so.

My fan fiction: I’ve written 26 stories for fan fiction on my HeartofDarkess profile, as well as 2 stories on my Slashgal profile for those who prefer a bit of man on man action. I’ve written about heartache, strippers, vampires, bitches and bastards, geeks and users, heroes in various forms as well as those who like a bit of kink in their lives...these stories all written in either oneshot, short story or multi chapter formats. I post on Fan Fiction as HeartofDarkess, Twilighted, TWCS and also have started up a profile on A03 as HeartofDarkness.

I am committed to complete my current works in progress on fan fiction, as well as add stories when the plots come to me, or when I want to contribute to a cause I feel passionate about, but my main focus will be to pursue my dream of being a published author. Drop me a line anytime, and I’ll be happy to answer any of your questions.

Thanks for visiting!